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

If Li Wenguo really bumped into her, he would probably turn around and lock the door, then grab her and pin her against the wall, burning her through with five years of anger.

"Which Master Li?"

The clone Niu Dali squinted, pretending to be even more bewildered than the real thing.

"Heh..." Mitsui Miri chuckled softly, tapping her fingertips slowly on the table. "You guys were already in contact before the fall, I know all about it. Pretending? No need."

Her smile was faint, but her eyes were dark and deep. Her large eyes were as still as an ancient well, without any ripples, which made her so experienced look all the more striking.

—It seems she still remembers those old grudges from back then.

Should we take this opportunity to shut her up forever?

Niu Dali quietly poked Li Wenguo in the space.

At this moment, Li Wenguo was crouching in a corner of the garden—a place densely shaded by several rows of poplar trees, their foliage so thick that not even a bird could see through. He and Lou Meie were doing stretches against the tree trunks, beads of sweat rolling down their necks.

"Sir, you're incredibly bold, doing this in broad daylight..."

Lou Meie kept her voice very low, her palms were sweaty, and she was listening intently to the sounds outside.

"Hehe, this is a private conversation between me and my sweetheart. I'm only allowing you to hear one of these things today, aren't you satisfied?"

Li Wenguo grinned, his finger tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear.

Although these words sounded somewhat forced and like coaxing a child, Lou Meie felt a sweet warmth in her heart. In the three years since she'd been married, her husband had never neglected her—he would take her out for Western food, to see "Waterloo Bridge," and to ballroom dancing every few days; life was warm and fulfilling. She understood long ago that she wasn't the only one receiving his affection, but she held a firm place in his heart, and with two lively children, a son and a daughter, she was already content.

"Grandpa, hurry up! Little Guobin hasn't had milk for four hours. If we delay any longer, he'll start crying."

She suddenly remembered her son.

"It's alright, Xiaoxue is watching over us. If she cries, let her feed us a couple of times first."

Li Wenguo was really into it and wasn't going to let up.

"No way! My son only wants my milk; he's not allowed to touch a drop from anyone else!"

Lou Meie spoke with unwavering resolve, her tone like that of a mother leopard protecting her cubs.

—Just like He Shuting back then.

These days, women would rather exhaust themselves than let their children suckle from someone else's breast milk, unless there's absolutely no other way.

"Oh, so you've forgotten about your grandfather now that you have a kid?"

"Snapped!"

Li Wenguo slapped her hard on the buttocks.

"Oh dear... Is the master jealous of his son?"

Lou Meie couldn't help but laugh out loud, her eyes crinkling at the corners, but her heart was burning with warmth.

"Hmph, you're still mine after all. When your son grows up, gets married, and separates from the family, who will be there to keep you company as you lean on your cane and count the stars? Only me."

He stared into her eyes and asked, "Tell me, which is more important, this little brat in front of you, or me?"

"But...he's so young, he doesn't understand anything..."

Lou Meie hesitated, twisting the hem of her clothes with her fingers.

If it were He Shuting, the answer would be obvious: feed her son first, then take care of her husband.

"What's the rush? It's not like nobody's watching..."

Before he could finish speaking, a message from Niu Dali popped up in the chat.

Li Wenguo glanced at it, and his brows immediately furrowed.

Mitsui Meili?

They actually came!

He even became the head of an agency?

Damn! Why won't it go away?

So what if I dumped her back then?

Why bother coming all the way here to dredge up old grievances?

He clicked his tongue inwardly, then glanced at Niu Dali asking, "Should we get rid of her?" After a moment's thought, he suppressed the idea—this clone was too useful, and he couldn't discard it right now.

In the intelligence department office.

"Lieutenant Colonel Mitsui, that Mr. Li is no longer in the capital. He went to Keishi before the new year."

Niu Dali, the clone, grinned, but his tone was as cold as iron.

He cursed inwardly: "Go ahead and transfer to Qingzhong if you dare!"

"Director Niu, we're both smart people, so let's not beat around the bush—before coming here, I turned Beijing upside down. Military airfields, ammunition depots, even those few old field guns…where didn't Li Wenguo leave his mark? This operation was ruthless and precise; who else could it be but him? Tell me, is he really not in Beijing?"

"Ha, do you even believe that yourself?"

"Besides, isn't Li Wenguo the head of the Military Intelligence Bureau?"

……

"Am I right?"

Mitsui Miri's lips curled slightly, her gaze sharp as a knife, fixed directly on Niu Dali's face.

Of course, there's a lot of exaggeration in that statement.

Fuck!

This woman is too eye-catching and too cunning!

What's even more terrifying is that she understands the true form too well!

Trying to fool them? As difficult as climbing to the sky!

The safest thing to do is to just wipe it off!

Niu Dali felt a surge of murderous intent in his heart, which he could barely suppress.

He knew perfectly well: Mitsui Miri was quick-witted and ruthless. Having shared a bed with Li Wenguo for at least half a year, she was a true bedmate, intimately familiar with his temperament, habits, and even his little tricks. Keeping such an adversary lurking under his nose was worse than carrying a time bomb.

But he still forced a bitter smile, his tone so sincere it could be squeezed out: "Master Li is really not in the capital! I broke off contact with him a long time ago, really! Lieutenant Colonel Mitsui, my loyalty to the Empire is as clear as day—all these years I've been running around doing errands, every single time I've risked my life. Believe me, I have no ulterior motives, I'm wholeheartedly serving the Empire."

……

Mitsui Miri shook her head slightly, knowing she couldn't get him to talk. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a bulging brown paper envelope with slightly curled edges, clearly containing paper or something similar.

She slammed the envelope on the table with a "thud," her gaze heavy: "Ten days. Whether Li Wenguo is in the capital or not, you must deliver it to him personally. If he refuses to show up—I will arrest you as an anti-Japanese element, and you can weigh the consequences yourself."

"Lieutenant Colonel, you have to believe me! I am utterly loyal to the Empire, and I am absolutely not some anti-Japanese element! Please, for the sake of all the years I've served you, show some mercy?"

"Besides, even if you want to convict me, you need to provide evidence, right? Making empty promises is just using public power to settle personal scores."

Niu Dali certainly wouldn't take on this hot potato—to do so would be tantamount to admitting his own status.

But Mitsui Miri insisted: Li Wenguo was hiding in the capital, and Niu Dali, this local bully, would definitely have a way to drag him out.

Her eyes narrowed, and her voice rang out like ice shards hitting the ground: "This is an order. Take it and get out."

Fuck!

This woman is something else!

I figured out his background as soon as I landed!

Niu Dali, head bowed, walked slowly out of the office, his steps heavy as if filled with lead.

Of course, the real person wouldn't show up—if he really went, wouldn't that confirm that Niu Dali was an anti-Japanese element? This is clearly a trap! It's forcing him to expose himself.

The reason Mitsui Miri was able to lock him down so quickly was not because he wasn't well hidden, but because before the fall of the capital, she had already thoroughly investigated the entire city, especially Li Wenguo—she even kept a small notebook of which teahouse he frequented, who he drank with, and the names of the wives of his trusted men.

Li Wenguo was a top agent of the Lixingshe Society, wielding immense power. He had dispatched Niu Dali on numerous occasions in the past, and every single one of these tasks was traceable.

Therefore, she was certain that Niu Dali could still get in touch with Li Wenguo.

However, her transfer from the mainland to head of the intelligence agency was for another purpose—the arrest was just a pretext. Once Li Wenguo opened the envelope, he would understand immediately and would certainly meet with her.

As soon as Niu Dali returned to the house, he immediately stuffed the envelope into his personal space. The envelope was sealed tightly and could not be opened by force; the contents could only be moved out of the space remotely to ensure that it would be returned intact ten days later.

What was moved out were dozens of photos, plus a blank sheet of paper densely covered with writing.

Niu Dali glanced at the photo, his expression changed drastically, his hand trembled, and he dared not look at it any longer, directly handing it to his main body to carry.

The two were in sync, and Li Wenguo felt a chill run down his spine.

So, what exactly are these photos about?

The first photo is a half-body shot of Mitsui Miri—the camera precisely focuses on her lower abdomen, slightly protruding, with soft lines. The date is printed in the lower right corner of the photo: exactly three months after she was captured and released by Li Wenguo into the Lixingshe Society.

With just this one sheet, Li Wenguo understood everything.

The child in her womb was created by him.

Sigh... Whose fault is it that I insisted on going back then?

"What a tragedy!!!"

Feeling stifled, Li Wenguo gritted his teeth and continued flipping through the pages.

Four months later, her belly had swelled up again.

Five months later, it became even rounder and fuller.

After six months, her waistline disappeared completely, and her breasts became increasingly prominent.

Seven months...

Eight months...

Nine months...

Immediately afterwards, a crumpled but bright-eyed photo of a baby boy caught my eye.

No need to guess, it must be the child he fathered for who knows how many times.

Then, there's the baby's round, pink face at full moon.

Two months later, he was chubby and grinning widely.

Three months...

Four months...

Five months...

Until she was five years old, she stood under a cherry blossom tree, wearing an indigo kimono, looking up and laughing, her eyes crinkling, looking just like a lovable little lucky star.

Below it, three words were written neatly: Li Xiangtai!

"Ha, this little woman is quite good at taking advantage—she even insists on using her father's surname for the child, as if she's afraid I won't remember who planted this seed."

Li Wenguo shook his head and sneered.

Although the child's features resemble Mitsui Miri more, only his brow bone and eye socket contours faintly show his shadow—that is the result of the system quietly optimizing the genes.

The child would gravitate towards whoever was more attractive; and the wives he chose were all top beauties, with skin like jade and eyes like autumn water. He himself was at best considered refreshing and pleasing to the eye, far inferior to the heavily edited idols of later generations. So, apart from a few traces of his spirit in their brows, the children all resembled their mother.

Unless he has a child with an ordinary woman, the child might resemble him—but he has no desire for that at all.

Having grown accustomed to delicacies, who could stomach coarse and plain food?

After closing the photo album, Li Wenguo finally unfolded the plain white letter.

"Li Wenguo: After seeing the photo, you should know that this is your biological son. Isn't he adorable? I haven't shown my face for the past five years because I've been watching him grow up. I'm not back this time to hold you accountable or take your life—I just want to win against you fair and square. To put it bluntly, I'm here to get back at you. After all, you completely crushed me in the battle in Beijing back then."

"I'm stubborn, but not to the point of relentlessly pursuing a comeback after just one loss. I originally planned to head straight to Shanghai, but because of this child, and for other reasons, I turned back..."

After reading it for a full ten minutes, Li Wenguo frowned and put the letter down, his mind racing: How much of Mitsui Miri's words were true, and how much was a lie?

Are they trying to lull him into a false sense of security, waiting for an opportunity to strike? Or do they genuinely intend to have a fair and square confrontation?

As for Li Xiangtai, Li Wenguo believed he was his own flesh and blood.

In the letter, she didn't use the child as a bargaining chip, nor did she utter a single threat; instead, she spoke frankly and openly.

What reassured him most was her frank statement—that her family had already determined that the Japanese Empire would not last more than ten years and would inevitably fail. That's why they gave up on heading south and instead set their sights on him, wanting to have a fair and square competition before the chaos of the world settled down.

If he loses and is captured, he will have to agree to go back to his home country with her and get married.