Courtyard House: A Start with Black Gold Swallowing 100,000 Silver Dollars

The police were very cautious. They had long anticipated that anti-Japanese forces were spread throughout Beijing, so all the key strongholds were disguised: the factories were built like abandoned brick kilns, the warehouses were buried under earthen slopes, and even the entrances and exits were guarded by three hidden sentries; each key location was also guarded by a fully armed garrison squad, with guns always in hand and eyes always on duty.

In the military police meeting room.

"Today is my wife's birthday. Everyone must grace us with their presence at the banquet tonight—anyone who doesn't come is disrespecting me; disrespecting me means harboring ulterior motives..."

"Bang!!!"

Suddenly, Mikuryuu, sitting at the head of the table, drew his pistol and slammed it onto the long oak table with a "thud," causing the teacup to bounce half an inch.

His gaze was sharp as he slowly swept across the entire room: "Then he's probably a local party member who infiltrated our ranks, or a spy."

Niu Dali and the group of traitors felt their backs stiffen, not daring to even move their Adam's apples.

Seeing this, Yu Kongde nodded in satisfaction: "Meeting adjourned."

Before the words were even finished, the sound of military boots pounding on the ground echoed down the corridor, as they marched away arrogantly.

Once he disappeared, the conference room erupted in chaos.

"Oh dear, this little notebook has an appetite that's bigger than a wolf's; life is unbearable!"

"Indeed! The new head of the military police is even more tyrannical and ruthless than Toshio Akagi. If we had known this would happen, we would have been better off keeping the old guard!"

"You guys do the math—when he first arrived, they wanted us to congratulate him on his housewarming; half a month ago, they forced us to go celebrate his birthday; and this week they're throwing a 'Madam's Birthday Banquet,' and every time we have to pay five hundred silver dollars just to get in. If we're short even a penny, they won't even let us in through the gate! When will this ever end?"

"They're blatantly robbing us, trying to cover it up with a wedding invitation!"

"Why isn't General Nobuda doing anything about this?"

"Ugh, this is torture..."

"If I had gritted my teeth and refused to become a lackey, I might still be able to breathe!"

"Shh—keep your voice down! The guards outside have very sharp ears!"

"Pah! They're robbing us so blatantly, and we can't even say a word?"

The man next to him had just hunched his shoulders and tried to persuade him to lower his voice, but the hot-tempered man slammed his hand on the table and started yelling.

"Alright, alright, stop sighing! Why don't we jointly submit a note to General Nobuda and ask him to step in and give Captain Mikū a warning—after all, we're our own people who surrendered, they can't just treat us like lambs to the slaughter, can they?"

A man in his early thirties with a small mustache tentatively spoke.

"Absolutely not!" Wei Dong, with his round-framed glasses and sharp features, immediately shook his head. "Even if General Nobuda were willing to listen, Mikuriya would surely know who submitted the complaint. With his temperament, do you think he would let us off the hook? We'd probably have someone come knocking on our door in the middle of the night to 'invite us for tea'."

"Yes, yes, Weidong is absolutely right! This powder keg could explode at any moment; we must never touch it!"

"Hey, all that talk was for nothing, wasn't it?"

The hot-tempered man stiffened his neck again, and his voice became even louder.

"Exactly! Why should we get ripped off? Why can he act like he owns the place?"

"I earned this money with my blood and sweat, how can I let it be so easily snatched away by the sky?"

Before he could finish speaking, the crowd erupted in uproar again.

"Please calm down, everyone, and stop for a moment!"

At this moment, Chairman Kuai raised his hand to quell the noise and spoke.

He said in a deep voice, "Everyone, grit your teeth and hold on a little longer—the spies and local party members from the capital are all ruthless characters. Maybe they can really kick Mikuriya out just like they kicked Akagi Toshio out."

"Let's turn a blind eye for now and not really investigate. Let them stir things up in the shadows; maybe that will make them so anxious they'll pack their bags and leave overnight!"

"Even if we can't drive him away, at least we'll keep him busy and preoccupied with other things—how will he have time to focus on squeezing money out of us? He might even have to beg us for help one day, and then his overt and covert extortion will naturally stop, right?"

Most people nodded frequently and agreed; a few, however, frowned and remained silent.

"President Kuai's move is brilliant! He's outwardly obsequious but secretly sabotages us—just what we want!"

"Elder Kuai is truly shrewd and calculating!"

"Old ginger is spicier, that's absolutely true!"

"In my opinion, this is the right way to do it!"

A man slapped his thigh and made the decision on the spot.

The crowd echoed in agreement, their voices rising higher and higher.

"Director Niu, what's your opinion?"

President Kuai turned to look at his clone sitting opposite him—Niu Dali.

Niu Dali said slowly, "I have no objection. But there is one thing that must be engraved in our bones: although we have sided with the Japanese, we are not of the same origin and are ultimately not on the same path. Only by sticking together and working as one can we prevent the Japanese from trampling on our heads at will. What they are afraid of is never a single traitor, but the weight of our group together."

"That's right! Director Niu has hit the nail on the head!"

President Kuai nodded vigorously, his eyes burning.

Afterwards, the group discussed the matter for a while.

It was 8 p.m.

At the entrance of a grand compound, guards stood in rows: several armed soldiers, an adjutant, and a military police squad leader—Mori no Tetsuichi, the brother-in-law of Mikura Tokuma.

Chairman Kuai, Niu Dali, and a group of traitors arrived one after another, ostensibly to celebrate the birthday of Nanako, the wife of Mikuryu Tokuma.

The crowd lined up and took turns laboriously handing over their bulging cloth bags.

The adjutant took it, hung it on the scale hook, and Morino Tetsuichi weighed it himself.

Once the numbers were verified to be correct, the bag was casually tossed onto the cart next to it.

"The numbers are all there. State your names!"

The adjutant didn't even lift his eyelids.

"Yang Xiong!"

Only after registration was completed were they waved to let people through.

The next day, the adjutant would check the list of attendees from that night against the puppet regime's roster, one by one. If anyone was missing, they would be investigated. If no one could be found, then their family members would be targeted—making an example of someone to warn others was always a common tactic used by the Japanese.

Domineering and unreasonable.

After a full hour of fussing, everyone was finally allowed to enter.

The lobby has been completely transformed: the floor is covered with tatami mats, and shoes must be removed upon entering.

Each person has a low table with a few sweet pastries and a few small white porcelain wine cups—no need to guess, they are filled with sake.

What the hell!

Five hundred dollars for this little thing?

It's always like this. Do they really think we're easy targets?

Resentment churned within me once more.

"Damn, kneeling like this is killing me, my back is about to break!"

Niu Dali moved to the second position from the right, and as soon as he was settled, he muttered something in a low voice.

At a family banquet, the rule is to kneel and sit, and guests have no choice but to comply.

After everyone straightened their backs and knelt properly, they were left to stand there for more than half an hour before Yu Kong finally appeared, arm in arm with a beautiful Japanese woman.

Niu Dali was instantly captivated by her.

Her black hair was piled high, revealing a delicate oval face; her skin was dazzlingly white and so smooth it looked like it could be pinched to release moisture; her nose was straight and delicate, her lips were light pink, and she smiled gently. Her peach blossom eyes were slightly shy, making her look like a well-behaved girl.

What's even more remarkable is that even the loose-fitting kimono couldn't contain her ample curves that were about to burst out of her chest.

With a flick of his finger, the message had already reached Li Wenguo:

"Should we touch Mikuriya's wife?"

The original plan was to deal with his brother-in-law and then shut down a bullet factory. But now that he's seen this woman, playing the role of a traitor seems pretty exciting.

At this moment, Li Wenguo was nestled in his small villa, chatting and laughing with his children and wives. Upon receiving the message, he immediately asked: How tall? How thin? How slim? How perky? — Although his clone understood his original body's tastes, he simply couldn't resist this.

Niu Dali replied crisply and decisively:

Meets the standard: both innocent and alluring!

Oh? Just like Wen Keyi?

Li Wenguo replied instantly.

Wen Keyi's youthful, delicate face, paired with her ripe peach-like body, is the perfect embodiment of the phrase "pure yet alluring."

It's different. This girl seems to have a pure and clear inner self, but her appearance has a captivating charm. She's like a freshly peeled peach, sweet and fragrant despite her unripeness. She's completely different from Wen Keyi's superficial glamour!

Niu Dali, the clone, answered decisively.

Upon hearing this, a spark ignited in Li Wenguo's eyes, and he immediately replied: Okay, seize the opportunity and bring her here!

As soon as he finished speaking, his heart burned. He quickly shoved the sleeping Xiao Guoyu back into Wen Keren's arms, grabbed the reluctant He Shuting, and rushed upstairs—she was in the prime of her fertile period.

Yang Yuerong, who was learning to hold a baby nearby, caught a glimpse of this scene. The fetal movement in her belly also felt heavy, and she felt a tightness in her chest, but she could only grit her teeth and endure it.

Yu Kongdejian held this family banquet as an opportunity to extort money from those traitors, so he hastily ended the event with just a few words, leaving no lingering impression.

……

It was 10 p.m. that night.

To facilitate nighttime patrols by the Japanese military police, all the streetlights on the street were replaced with new high-intensity lights, casting a blinding white light that illuminated the road as if it were daytime.

A drunken woman staggered down an empty street. Her heavy makeup was garish, her strapless short dress clung to her shapely figure, and her high heels clattered on the ground, tap, tap, tap, as if stepping on eardrums.

The light licked across her bare arms and collarbone, making her snow-white skin gleam with a moist sheen, like a newly lit lamp, dazzling to the eye.

Tetsuichi Morino led his squad on patrol, his eyes sharp enough to spot a swaying figure from afar—a slender waist, long legs, and a swirling skirt that seemed to pierce his eyes like hooks. His pupils constricted as he watched the figure approach, his eyes shining so brightly they were almost reflective, more dazzling than the streetlights.

"Wow! What a beautiful young lady!"

His Adam's apple bobbed, and saliva almost dripped down to his chin.

The line of soldiers behind him swallowed hard and stared at him like wolves.

"Oh dear, the Japanese are here?" The woman turned around, raising an eyebrow, her voice soft and cloying. "I just had a few drinks and I'm feeling a bit stuffy... How about we turn into the alley and play hide-and-seek?"

She winked at Tetsuichi Morino and lightly touched her red lips with her fingertip.

Morino Tetsu felt a tingling sensation shooting through his spine, making his bones feel lighter.

"Hahaha! Yo-shi-yo-shi! I'll go crazy with you this once!"

He turned and waved, his voice low but stern: "You all stay put! Anyone who dares to come in—law enforcement!"

"Hi!!!"

The soldiers stood tall and responded, watching him chase after them into the shadows.

"Sir~ Why don't you chase after me? Once you catch me, you can do whatever you want with me, okay?"

The woman suddenly giggled, swayed, and staggered into the dark, narrow alley.

"Hehe, pretty girl, you said that yourself!"

Tetsuichi Morino rubbed his palms together, grinned, and chased after him.

The woman's steps were unsteady and her gait was erratic. She ran slower than a normal person could walk, making her easy to catch up with.

Time crawled by little by little.