Courtyard House: My Hidden Wheat Seeds Caused a National Sensation

As the conversation continued, Mr. H's astonishment grew—this young man's speech and knowledge were nothing like those of a farmer toiling in the fields; he clearly exuded the erudition and insight of an old professor from academia.

The more Mr. H listened, the more excited he became. Not only was he more optimistic about Li Jianye's personal future, but the future of the country also seemed brighter.

During the journey, Li Jianye mentioned that the area around Beijing, especially Changping, was likely to experience continuous rain. H Gong immediately took it to heart and solemnly gave instructions.

……

The night breeze at the end of May brushed past the window, carrying a slight chill.

Li Jianye lay comfortably in his single dormitory room in the Agricultural Science Academy's dormitory building.

This six-story tenement building might have seemed simple in his previous life, but in this day and age, it's considered the best place to live.

He was allocated a 60-square-meter apartment on the second floor, with no shared area, and it had a bedroom, living room, and kitchen.

The government provided him with a bed, table, chairs, and a wardrobe. Although the toilet was outside and shared, and showering was inconvenient, Li Jianye was already very satisfied.

"This is home."

He rested his head on his arm, a warm feeling spreading through him. "Not bad at all."

What he's even more excited about is that the government will allocate him another apartment tomorrow.

The reason was simple: he not only had to tend to seeds at the Academy of Agricultural Sciences, but also had to take care of the task of manufacturing agricultural implements, so he was assigned a steel rolling mill.

The two places are quite far apart, so for the convenience of traveling back and forth, it was decided to arrange another place to stay near the factory.

It's getting late today, so we'll leave everything for tomorrow—first I'll report to the factory, then I'll go see my second place to settle down.

Of course, the house did not belong to him. Over the years, all real estate belonged to the state, and individuals only had the right to reside there and pay a small monthly rent. Even teachers were no exception.

But as long as one behaves lawfully and obediently, the peaceful days under this roof will last a long time.

"Which steel mill is it? And what does the building look like?"

With these thoughts lingering in his mind, Li Jianye drifted off to sleep.

……

He slept soundly that night, but some people tossed and turned because of him.

All because of his "rain is coming"

Following the reminder, all production teams in Changping were working overnight to harvest wheat.

There was only one exception—the production team to which Li Jianye originally belonged.

"Qin Yaoshan, what are you doing?!"

The reprimand sounded particularly harsh in the night: "You're not the deputy battalion commander anymore!"

"Yes, I am no longer the vice-captain."

Qin Yaoshan led a group of people and blocked the road leading to the threshing ground.

His body was like a wall, firmly blocking the way.

"But you must understand—"

He drew out his words, his gaze sweeping over the anxious faces before him.

"I stand here on behalf of the vast majority of the villagers in our production team!"

He raised his voice, which carried on the evening breeze.

"We all believe there won't be any rain tomorrow! That Li Jianye is talking complete nonsense, spreading alarmist rumors! We're here to protect the harvest, to preserve everyone's hard work!"

"This is blatant defiance of the production team's decision!"

The captain's face turned bright red, and his voice was filled with suppressed anger.

However, there were many members of the Qin family standing behind Qin Yaoshan, and there was even a militia company commander carrying a gun in the group.

The captain clenched his fists, but ultimately couldn't force his way through.

"No,"

Qin Yaoshan gave a confident smile. "I'm protecting collective property."

This morning he made a special trip to ask several elderly people in the village, and then looked up at the sky for a long time.

Everyone agrees: there's absolutely no chance of it raining in this weather.

Therefore, he was very confident.

"I can pledge my life to it!"

Qin Yaoshan stepped forward, his voice resolute, "If it really rains tomorrow, I, Qin Yaoshan, will volunteer to go immediately to support the construction of the Great Northwest, without hesitation!"

"Fine! You said that!"

The captain glared at him fiercely, his eyes filled with a mixture of anger and helplessness.

"I will report everything that happened today to my superiors without missing a single word."

"Qin Yaoshan, let's look back."

"snort."

Qin Yaoshan let out a cold snort through his nose.

"I will show everyone what kind of person Li Jianye really is."

……

The next day, before dawn.

The sky over Changping suddenly darkened without warning, and then large raindrops began to pelt down, becoming increasingly dense and soon forming a torrential downpour.

Thunder rumbled through the low-hanging clouds, and flashes of silver lightning occasionally tore through the dim sky.

Qin Yaoshan was jolted awake by the thunder. He rushed to the window in a daze, staring at the torrential rain outside, and froze instantly.

"It's over..."

His lips trembled as he murmured two words.

The cold rain seemed to pour directly into his heart.

At that moment, he realized with absolute clarity that he was probably in grave danger.

……

Torrential rain poured down in Changping.

A light drizzle began to fall in the city, but compared to the torrential rain in the suburbs, the rain inside the city was gentle and mild.

Li Jianye woke up very early. Standing under the eaves, looking at the gray sky and the drizzling rain, he couldn't help but sigh deeply.

"A year of disaster...it really is a year of disaster."

The whispers dissipated in the damp air.

Soon after, Deng's driver, Xiao Wang, came to pick him up.

Xiao Wang first treated Li Jianye to breakfast at a breakfast shop before driving to his destination.

"Researcher Li, look, this is the workplace your superiors have assigned you—Hongxing Steel Rolling Mill! This mill is large in scale and has a long history; it's a good place."

While driving, Xiao Wang enthusiastically gave a presentation.

Li Jianye listened to "Red Star Steel Rolling Mill"

These words startled him slightly, and a jumble of chaotic thoughts flashed through his mind.

"Red Star Steel Rolling Mill? Could it be... the one I know?"

Before he could think it through, the car had already entered the factory area and stopped steadily in front of a simple office building.

"Researcher Li, we've arrived."

Factory Director Yang and Deputy Factory Director Li should already be waiting.

"Okay."

Li Jianye composed himself, nodded, and got out of the car.

The moment my feet touched the ground, I saw a group of smiling people hurrying out of the building to greet me.

"Hahaha! Researcher Li, Comrade Wang! We've been waiting for you!"

The leader was a man around fifty years old, with a square face, upright features, and an air of righteousness. He was Yang Weimin, the director of the steel rolling mill.

Beside him was a middle-aged man with a lively face who smiled before speaking; this was Li Xinmin, the deputy factory director.

Director Yang warmly introduced Li Jianye to the several factory leaders present. After exchanging a few pleasantries, he personally led him on a tour of the factory area.

"This is our factory's engineering department."

When they arrived at an office with a sign, Director Yang pushed open the door, and three people were sitting inside.

He stepped forward and introduced them one by one.

"This is Comrade Liu Weiping, an eighth-level engineer in our factory, and also the director of the engineering department."

This is Comrade Zhang He, a level 10 technician.

This is Wang Tao, a level 11 technician.

Factory Director Yang smiled apologetically.

"To be honest, our engineering department currently only has a few people."

but!"

He changed the subject and looked at Li Jianye with anticipation.

"With your addition as a Level 1 Researcher and Level 13 Technician, our factory's technical capabilities will be greatly enhanced! We're sure to create a new era! Come on, everyone, let's get to know each other—"

Factory Director Yang stepped aside to let Li Jianye move forward, his voice loud and clear.

"This is Comrade Li Jianye! From today onwards, he officially joins our Hongxing Steel Rolling Mill! Everyone, give him a warm welcome!"

"Slap, slap, slap..."

A few scattered, somewhat restrained claps rang out in the office.

Yang Guangchang frowned and glanced at the few lazy figures in the workshop.

"What's wrong? You don't have any energy?"

Liu Weiping twitched the corners of his mouth, a perfunctory smile on his face.

"Factory manager, my stomach is empty, I really can't muster any strength."

The resentment in his heart was almost overflowing—why should he, a college graduate and a proper technician, bow down to Li Jianye, a peasant who didn't even know which way the school door faced?

"you……"

Yang Guangchang's chest heaved, and he swallowed back the words that were on the tip of his tongue.

Liu Weiping was, after all, the factory's technical backbone, so no matter how angry he was, he had to swallow his anger.

"It's alright."

Li Jianye waved his hand, his expression calm.

He was well aware of the situation before him. His own resume clearly stated in black and white: "Elementary school dropout."

In the eyes of these ambitious young people, it is naturally nothing.

"Listen up, everyone!"

Yang Guangchang lowered his voice and said slowly and deliberately, "From today onwards, Comrade Li Jianye will be the deputy director of the engineering department, in charge of the newly assigned key projects."

This is a decision made by higher authorities.

No matter what you're thinking, you must fully cooperate at work!

"knew--"

A few drawn-out, listless replies rang out, interspersed with barely perceptible sneers.

"You guys are just...!"

"Director Yang, it's alright."

Li Jianye gently stopped him, his face still bearing that amiable smile. "Let's continue looking around the factory. I'd like to get to know it better."

Seeing his magnanimity, Yang Guangchang couldn't help but feel a sense of admiration, and his anger subsided considerably.

The group continued walking around the factory area.

The Hongxing Steel Rolling Mill covers a large area, and by the time we had roughly completed a tour, the sun was already high in the sky.

The group moved to the specially set-up small canteen.

"Researcher Li, today's meal is prepared by the most skilled chef in our factory."

Deputy Factory Director Li enthusiastically introduced, "Tan Family Cuisine and Sichuan Cuisine are his specialties."

However, Tan Family Cuisine uses high-quality ingredients, and we couldn't prepare them all at once, so we'll focus on Sichuan flavors today.

Do you have any dietary preferences or restrictions?

"When in Rome, do as the Romans do; whatever the chef is good at is fine."

Li Jianye responded gently.

"Alright! Let them serve the food now."

The dishes were served extremely quickly.

As soon as they sat down, the aroma wafted over them.

Looking at the brightly colored dishes on the table, Li Jianye understood.

He picked up a slice of boiled pork and put it in his mouth. The meat was tender, spicy and savory, with just the right amount of oily aroma.

"It's fragrant, smooth, and flavorful; the cooking skills are truly excellent."

He nodded in approval, "This pork is authentic."

"I'm glad you're satisfied!"

Deputy Factory Director Li smiled broadly, "I'll have the cook come and greet you later. If you need anything in the future, just tell him."

Li Jianye nodded in agreement.

Deputy Factory Director Li then turned to a female worker and gave her a few instructions.

Before long, a middle-aged man with a kind face and simple clothes walked in carrying a large blue and white porcelain bowl.

"Eight-Treasure Sweet Pork Belly, all done!"

He has a loud voice.

"Researcher Li, this is He Yuzhu, our factory's head chef."

Deputy Factory Director Li introduced, "Yuzhu, this is Comrade Li Jianye, who will be working in the factory from now on."

Please take care of me if I need anything in my daily life.

"Good morning, boss!"

He Yuzhu readily replied, "My name is He Yuzhu, but everyone calls me Shazhu."

Just tell me what you'd like to eat, and I guarantee you'll be satisfied!

Li Jianye smiled and nodded.

When He Yuzhu isn't making a fuss, he's quite considerate in his dealings with people.

……

After lunch, driver Xiao Wang took Li Jianye away from the steel rolling mill and headed towards the street office.

Street director Wang Shipei personally received Li Jianye.

"Researcher Li, the housing situation in Beijing has always been quite tight."

Director Wang adjusted his glasses, his tone gentle yet somewhat formal, "Right now, there's only one place that meets your criteria."

That place is quite nice, though.

Li Jianye was slightly taken aback: "Where?"

"That was the model courtyard house that our neighborhood recognized."

A smile appeared on Wang Shipei's face, and his voice rose a little, "Since the establishment of the subdistrict office, we have held the 'Most Beautiful Courtyard' selection every year."

There aren't many places that can win awards consecutively—this courtyard is one of them, making the list every year.

"Don't you think that's quite rare?"

Li Jianye's lips twitched slightly as he listened, a vague sense of unease passing through his heart.

"Love Fills the Courtyard?"

He repeated it in a low voice.