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

Time flies like water, and another year has passed in the blink of an eye.

Li Wenguo packed his bags and headed to Qingzhong again—this time, to continue the family line for the ladies there.

However, this trip is destined to bring him surprises.

They set off on an American cargo ship again, with Haozi and Dayan accompanying them.

Xiaoxue, being quite far along in her pregnancy, stayed in the capital to rest and didn't board the ship. The five-day voyage, however, became a good opportunity for Li Wenguo to recuperate—after all, the dozen or so ladies in Qingzhong were eagerly awaiting their arrival, and it was no joke.

Five days passed in a flash, and the three of them set foot on Qingzhong Wharf.

They encountered an unexpected incident along the way: they were stopped and questioned by a patrol boat from Japan.

Although they were traveling on an American ship, the current struggle for colonies and the increasingly tense relationship between the United States and Japan meant that even cargo ships flying the Stars and Stripes were being deliberately harassed.

Fortunately, the three of them had already changed into coarse work clothes and blended in with the group of porters, bowing and scraping as they passed through the checkpoint.

Actually, the little book was just bluffing—the real showdown? We'll have to wait until the attack on Pearl Harbor at the end of the year.

Back at the grand villa in the west of the city, Xu Wanqing, Xianglan, Hongyu, Dong Haitang, and the other ladies were already waiting inside, all smiles.

Li Wenguo has been away from home for a year and a half, and now his family has grown to include seven more people.

Dong Haitang insisted on not having children, but the others were quite successful: Xu Wanqing gave birth to another daughter, Xianglan had a son, Hongyu gave birth to a daughter, Xiaocui gave birth to a daughter, Xiaoju gave birth to a son, and Jinhua and Xiuxiu, who had just entered the family last year, also gave birth to sons for him.

For a time, Li Wenguo was dizzy from counting his children—he had almost thirty kids at home, not counting those in the capital.

If word gets out, it will shock everyone.

His generation truly supported the entire family.

He had just lain down to catch his breath when Xu Wanqing came over, massaging his shoulders while sighing:

"Sir, please take it easy! Look at this, it's not a house, it's clearly a nursery!"

There are just too many kids in the house, and they make a lot of noise. Now, even if Xu Wanqing just walks through the corridor and strolls to the backyard, all she can hear is the children chasing and playing, laughing and wailing after falling down. It's so noisy that her head is throbbing, and she can't even find a moment of peace.

Even in her spacious bedroom, she was still holding her daughter, who was suckling and grabbing at her breasts, never having a moment's rest.

And since my grandfather comes to "spread rain" every few days, it's estimated that seven more new babies will be added next year—this house will probably be so crowded that there won't even be enough room to stand.

Xu Wanqing muttered a few words, which was understandable.

"Wanqing, you know that I came from a powerful family in my early years. I completely broke ties with the main family and established my own household, vowing never to look back. Now that I've established my own household, I have to make sure it has many descendants and establishes a strong lineage. If my descendants are few and far between and the household is deserted, wouldn't those people from before laugh at me?"

Li Wenguo gently patted the little girl in his arms while slowly explaining.

Upon hearing this, Xu Wanqing immediately fell silent.

As a descendant of a former dynasty's old family, she understood best that a large family was the foundation of its existence; if the bloodline was severed, even the largest mansion would be an empty shell.

"Well... if we have another one this time, we really can't have any more in the future."

She already has four children, which is quite a lot—her mother's generation only had three children, a brother and a sister.

Now I somewhat envy Dong Haitang, who is so carefree, able to embroider whenever she wants and read whenever she wants, without ever getting involved with the grime of children.

"Wanqing, you're different. You're the master's legal wife, so you have to set a good example for the other wives. Look at Hongyu, she already has six children; Xianglan has quite a few too, five of them running around the yard. You only have four, you need at least two more to keep things in order."

Li Wenguo spoke calmly, but left no room for negotiation.

In less than four years, the Japanese will have to raise the white flag and surrender. Wouldn't it be perfect to add a couple more people now, so they can be settled before returning to Beijing?

"this……"

"Alright."

What can a wife do when her husband says such things? Six is ​​fine, we've made it through four, why would we care about two more?

"By the way, my third uncle's branch of the family was planning to invest in an oil well in the US the other day. I heard the reserves are plentiful and the oil production is stable, but they're short on funds. They asked me to ask if you'd like to invest, or at least lend them some money to help them with the cash flow?"

Xu Wanqing pulled her squirming baby daughter closer to her chest and began breastfeeding.

"oil?"

"Your third uncle's branch is quite bold; they've gone straight into the black gold business."

Li Wenguo raised an eyebrow slightly.

This industry is very complex; you can't succeed without some serious skills. The money you invest upfront could buy half a county.

"You know how it is in the US. Capital is in charge. Money holds the reins of guns and pens. Presidents get elected because of the approval of financial groups. Since our Xu family has taken root in the US, we can't just be law-abiding businessmen."

She spoke casually, as if she were talking about something as ordinary as buying vegetables and picking scallions.

To gain a foothold in the United States, one must inevitably join the ranks of the top families—even if one cannot wield military power like the military elites in China, one must at least be able to influence the political and business climate.

Oil is the easiest ladder to becoming a wealthy and powerful family.

Li Wenguo pondered for a moment, then nodded and said, "Invest, and a large stake at that. Later, I'll have someone explore a few more oil reservoirs, acquire them all, and develop them together."

He still remembered the locations of several golden oil fields in the United States in later years, and he planned to acquire the land as soon as possible so that when the opportunity came, what he would dig out would not only be oil, but mountains of gold.

"Okay, I'll reply right away."

Xu Wanqing smiled slightly.

The more influential her husband was, the louder her voice rang in her parents' home, and the more assertive she became. After all, when the Xu family encountered trouble, she was the first person they thought of.

"Since your third uncle's branch of the family is going to take root and grow strong in the United States, the matter of marrying foreign wives to members of the clan cannot be taken lightly—we must choose those with a real foundation: old money families like Rockefeller, DuPont, Adams, and Morgan, or famous families with deep roots in politics."

Li Wenguo took the opportunity to offer some guidance.

He also considered that his two mixed-race sons should marry into prominent political families like Kennedy or [unclear], so that they could truly establish themselves in the United States.

Speaking of which, last time he spent several days with Selena in the United States, he returned home and was diagnosed with pregnancy; this time, he was expecting twin boys.

He now has four sons with foreign features.

"Yes, I've noted it all down."

The two then discussed the US strategy in detail for a while. Xu Wanqing listened attentively, nodding frequently, every word resonating with her, and she secretly memorized it—she would pass on the message to her third uncle later, and it would surely help this branch rise to prominence.

Before he finished speaking, Li Wenguo's hand had already wrapped around her waist and gently pulled her close.

Before long, the two were rolling around in each other's arms again.

As usual, they timed it precisely, and whoever was in their fertile period would be the first to conceive.

After working for ten whole days, Li Wenguo finally managed to find time to go see Song Caidie.

Western-style villa.

Inside the master bedroom.

After two rounds of lovemaking.

Although Song Caidie's eyes were tinged with dark circles, she couldn't hide the joy in her eyes. "Wenguo, come to my house tomorrow! I have some incredibly good news for you!"

Just imagining Li Wenguo's astonished expression when he saw the tiny, pink baby she had given birth to for him made her lips curl into a smile.

"What good news? Are you suggesting your family is forcing me to go through the wedding ceremony?"

"We already agreed—after the victory against Japan, I'll bring you home in a grand sedan chair carried by eight men!"

Li Wenguo quickly responded, fearing the other party might misunderstand.

His heart pounded with anxiety: Could it be that the Song family had figured out his background and was planning to use the marriage to force him to back down?

"How could that be! Father has already given his word. This time it's not about pressuring me to get married; there's something else going on!" Song Caidie's eyes sparkled, and she smiled brightly.

A good show is fine, but please don't let it turn into a terrifying night!

The next morning, Li Wenguo followed Song Caidie into the Song residence and met her parents and brother and sister-in-law for the first time.

Sure enough, Emperor Song Qingzong's face was as cold as an iron plate; he didn't even lift his eyelids, let alone offer a smile.

Li Wenguo wasn't angry at all—if it were his daughter who had been taken to bed by him and then kept delaying marriage until the day the country was recovered, he would have been so angry that he would have smashed his teacup.

The Song family is deeply entrenched and values ​​its reputation above all else. To suffer this injustice in silence is like having one's heart ripped out. If Song Caidie hadn't steeled herself and threatened to take her own life back then, she would probably have been bound hand and foot and taken to the ancestral hall by the Kuomintang agents long ago. How could she be sitting here leisurely sipping tea?

"Hello Uncle Song, hello Auntie, hello Brother and Sister-in-law!"

He bowed and casually placed the heavy gift box on the table.

Song Qingzhi was only in his early thirties, two years younger than him, but the seniority was there, and he had to call him "brother"—the rule couldn't be broken.

Except for Emperor Song Qingzong, who remained silent, everyone else nodded in acknowledgment.

Seeing that her husband's gaze made Li Wenguo's back tense, Madam Song quickly smiled and smoothed things over: "Wenguo, sit down and try some freshly roasted Maojian tea."

She was holding a baby boy wrapped in red silk, which Li Wenguo assumed was his brother's child.

"Oh, Aunt Xie!"

He remained expressionless, and naturally sat down next to Song Caidie on the opposite sofa, his arm affectionately linked with hers.

"snort!!!"

Song Qingzhi snorted coldly, making the teacup tremble.

He had already thoroughly investigated Li Wenguo: not counting his legal wife, he had more than ten concubines whom he had formally married—this was not marrying wives, but clearly building a harem!

His audacity to this extent is unparalleled in the entire country.

It was precisely this kind of philanderer who managed to bewitch his precious daughter, whom he had raised with such care. How could he not be furious?

Then he blamed himself for being too protective, which allowed the vixen to take advantage of the situation.

"Li Wenguo, I've invited you here today to ask just one question—when will you welcome my daughter into our family?"

Song Qingzong's voice was hard and unyielding, as if it had been carved out of a crack in the rock.

"Hehe, didn't Cai Die already tell you two? Once we achieve a great victory against Japan, I'll immediately dress her up in red and have her carried in a grand sedan chair by eight bearers!"

He chuckled, his tone light as if he were talking about what to eat today.

Anyway, we don't know how long the war will last, so let's stabilize the situation first.

If he were to actually join the organization, would Emperor Qingzong be willing to marry his daughter to him? He'd probably be thrown out of the house.

"Nonsense! The Japanese pirates are trampling half of our country and are about to swallow up the whole nation. You're still trying to fool us with empty promises? This isn't just deceiving us; it's playing us, the Song family, for fools!"

Emperor Qingzong slapped the armrest, his temple veins throbbing.

The Nationalist government suffered repeated defeats on the battlefield. If it weren't for the secret financial support from Britain and the United States, even the wartime capital, Qingzhong, might not have been able to hold on.

What's the point of talking about victory in the War of Resistance against Japan? Only a fool would believe such empty words!

"Uncle Song, I don't think that's necessarily true."

Li Wenguo slowly shook his head, his expression calm.

"Oh? A mere stationmaster dares to pontificate about everything?"

Emperor Song Qingzong chuckled and tapped his fingertips on the table.

He was a central figure in the Party and the State, with mountains of war reports and secret telegrams; how could he allow a local station chief to interfere?