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

On this day, Li Wenguo and He Shuting entered Zhongnanhai, the most heavily guarded and highest-level place in Beijing.

The two stayed inside for a full two hours. When they came out, they had two more things in their hands: a painting and a piece of calligraphy. Most importantly, the old man's autograph was at the bottom of the painting.

It turned out that Li Wenguo had sent an accomplice to infiltrate the United States, disguised as a local, to secretly collect key information that could help boost domestic industry, which he and He Shuting would then submit to the United States.

This trip resulted in a personal meeting with the old man and the return of these two pieces of calligraphy.

With these treasures at the bottom of their chests, the family would have a reliable talisman to protect them during the turbulent times to come.

Li Wenguo originally planned to send all his wives to Hong Kong to avoid trouble once the unrest started. However, He Shuting, Yang Yuerong, and Sai Honglian, along with their sons who were involved in politics, couldn't get there at all—the policies were too restrictive, and they couldn't move an inch. They had no choice but to find another way, donning this "tiger skin" for peace of mind.

He racked his brains and put in a lot of effort for this family.

On the way back, He Shuting leaned closer, her eyes shining, with a mix of coquettishness and impulsiveness: "Sir, you have connections in the US, why don't you bring back something more hardcore? Like the blueprints for the atomic bomb or something..."

Having just been praised by the old man to his face, she was still floating on air, and dared to ask for even this hot potato.

Without a word, Li Wenguo swiftly pulled down the carriage curtain. Before He Shuting could react, he had already pulled her into his arms. The wheels rolled on, the shadows of trees flashed past the window, and only a sudden, soft gasp remained in the carriage.

"No, no, no, sir, I was too reckless. I acted impulsively in the heat of the moment. Let's not stay here, let's go home... you can punish me however you want at home!"

He Shuting had just pulled her pants down to her knees when she frantically pulled them back, her voice soft and trembling as she begged for mercy, almost whispering in Li Wenguo's ear.

"Jiu—you shrew, you think you're all that just because you're a neighborhood committee group leader? Give you a little leeway, and you dare to take advantage? Are my rules just for show?"

Li Wenguo glared at her sideways, but his hand didn't stop. His knuckles were clearly gripping her wrist, the force wasn't strong, but it was impossible for her to break free.

"I admit my mistake! I really admit my mistake! This place is really no good... Once we get back inside, you can do whatever you want with it..."

He had actually stopped himself from going all out; he was just trying to curb her smugness—but he had already planned in his mind that once they got home, he would make her lie on the sofa panting for half the night.

Although He Shuting is over forty, her eyes are bright and her figure is slender. Wearing a fitted cheongsam, she still exudes charm. Her mature and sweet fragrance always makes Li Wenguo's heart flutter at first sight.

Days flowed by like water.

Before we knew it, it was the first Spring Festival of the 1960s.

Red paper lanterns hung high all over the streets, window decorations were bright and shiny, the air was filled with the smell of gunpowder and the aroma of candied melon, and the crackling sound of firecrackers rang out from morning till night.

Today is the third day of the Lunar New Year.

Fifty-five-year-old Li Wenguo, dressed in a dark blue woolen overcoat and shiny leather shoes, stepped steadily into Qin Huairu's courtyard.

Time seemed to have bypassed him—his face remained youthful, his back straight, his thick black hair glistening with oil, and he stood taller than a thirty-year-old; his strength at night was still there.

In recent years, Xiao Cui, Xiao Ju, Xiu Xiu, Jin Hua, and Xiao Xue each gave birth to three children for him, and the nine children run all over the yard.

Qin Huairu lives alone and has given birth to three children in six years. Now her belly is slightly protruding, and she is pregnant with her fourth.

Fortunately, Li Wenguo had already brought Qin Jingru into the courtyard house to help his cousin take care of the children and manage everything inside and outside.

"Are you my fiancée?"

"Tsk, it's just so-so."

In the courtyard, twenty-year-old Li Guoxian had just entered with his father when he spotted Qin Jingru, whom he had brought from the countryside. His old habit immediately kicked in—he raised his chin, spoke with barbs, and his eyes were full of impatience.

Marry a country girl with braids and wearing a coarse cloth jacket? He thought to himself, "What a joke!"

Sixteen-year-old Qin Jingru was seeing such a handsome and dashing young man from the city for the first time. Her heart was pounding like a drum, her fingers were tightly twisting the hem of her blue cloth shirt, and she secretly shrank her toes behind the threshold.

"Come on, what are you dawdling for? My dad asked me to take you to the supply and marketing cooperative."

Seeing her head down and silent, Li Guoxian frowned, turned around and walked out, his tone hard but no longer harsh.

Li Wenguo arranged this meeting to get the two of them connected—buy some new clothes, pick out a pair of leather shoes, and have a nice meal at a restaurant, just to make it a proper date.

How can a father not care about his son's lifelong happiness?

"oops!"

Upon hearing "supply and marketing cooperative," Qin Jingru's eyes lit up instantly, and her little face became lively.

She had heard that the big house in the city was bright and spacious, with glass cabinets filled with enamel bowls, Butterfly brand sewing machines, face cream, and Dacron fabric... She had been looking forward to seeing it with her own eyes for a long time!

The two left the hospital gate one after the other.

"Hello, Uncle San!"

"Hello, Brother Silly Zhu!"

"Hello, Second Uncle!"

"Hello, sir!"

……

When she met her neighbors on the way, Qin Jingru greeted them crisply one by one, her voice clear and bright, her back ramrod straight.

Everyone responded cheerfully, their eyes filled with warmth.

Li Guoxian, however, kept his head held high, his eyes fixed straight ahead, not even glancing at the person out of the corner of his eye—as if nodding would lower his status.

Ugh……

Being born into the Li family is truly a blessing!

The three old men, Sha Zhu, and the other residents in the courtyard all sighed inwardly.

Who doesn't know that Qin Jingru is beautiful and hardworking, and has long been chosen by Li Wenguo to be his son's wife? Even if they don't say it, they are already envious and jealous in their hearts—these days, it's harder to find a girl who is both beautiful and good at managing a household than to find a whole wheat loaf of bread.

Sha Zhu was especially disappointed.

Ever since Qin Jingru moved into the courtyard, he often took the opportunity of delivering vegetables or repairing windows to sneak into her room. However, Qin Huairu's words, "She's already engaged to the Li family's son," extinguished his hopes, leaving him only with a dejected figure.

"Big brother!"

"Sister-in-law!"

As soon as Li Guoxian stepped out of the Intermediate People's Court, he saw Li Guohua at a glance—holding the hand of a six-year-old boy in her left hand, supporting Jiang Yue, who was heavily pregnant, in her right hand, and holding the hand of a three-year-old girl in her other hand.

"Hey, Guoxian, are you heading out?"

Thirty-year-old Li Guohua asked with a smile, his face showing the kindness of an elder brother.

"Big brother!"

"Sister-in-law!"

Qin Jingru quickly followed, her voice as sweet as a freshly peeled tangerine.

"Tch—it's not even close to happening yet, and you're already calling me all lovey-dovey?"

Li Guoxian complained, but kept his voice very low, and his ears even turned slightly red.

In fact, he had already accepted Qin Jingru as his wife in his heart, but he was too strong-willed and always kept a straight face, putting on an unwilling look.

"Haha, it's your sister-in-law Jingru! Where are you headed?"

The eldest brother, Li Guohua, laughed heartily, his tone as warm as a freshly opened steamer.

He lived in the next courtyard and knew perfectly well that Qin Jingru was his younger brother's fiancée.

"I...we're going to the distribution center."

She glanced quickly at Li Guoxian before replying softly.

"Oh, what a coincidence! My sister-in-law has saved up a few cloth coupons, enough to buy two new outfits."

As Jiang Yue spoke, she deftly pulled a stack of tickets from her pocket, the edges of which were worn slightly soft.

"No need, I have some."

Li Guoxian raised his chin, shoved his hand into his pocket, and shook out a stack of tickets—bicycle tickets, audio recording tickets, sewing tickets, television tickets… all kinds were there, neatly stacked in his palm, like carrying a small stack of solid confidence.

Jiang Yue was taken aback, then chuckled and stuffed the ticket back into her pocket.

She had long understood her brother-in-law's temperament: to put it nicely, he was unyielding and wouldn't take advantage of others; to put it bluntly, he was spoiled since childhood and was stubborn and thin-skinned. Even when good intentions were offered to him, he would turn his head away.

"Why aren't you calling him 'Uncle' and 'Aunt' yet?"

Jiang Yue turned to urge her two children.

"Uncle! Aunt!"

"Uncle! Aunt!"

There are too many uncles, aunts, and cousins ​​in the family, and the children can't remember them all, so it's easier to just call them all "uncle" and "aunt" instead.

"You guys go ahead, we'll take the kids to visit Dad and Aunt Qin for the New Year."

Li Guohua waved his hand, and as soon as he finished speaking, he began to describe the schedule-like arrangement: on the first day of the Lunar New Year, he would go to his biological mother He Shuting's house; on the second day, he would go to Xu Wanqing's house; on the third day, he would go to Qin Huairu's house; and on the fourth day, he would have to go back to Jiang Yue's parents' house.

Li Guoxian nodded, then turned and left.

Qin Jingru quickly bowed and said, "Brother and sister-in-law, we'll be going now." After saying that, she quickly followed, her skirt swaying lightly, her steps steadily trailing half a step behind him.

"Guoxian's temper is still the same as ever. In my opinion, he'll hit a brick wall sooner or later."

Jiang Yue shook her head, her fingertips unconsciously twisting the hem of her clothes.

When she first stepped into the Li family's doorstep, this boy led a group of younger siblings to block the entrance, coldly saying that she "couldn't even compare to one of his sisters' fingers"—even now, she still grits her teeth when she thinks about those words.

"He may be a bit stubborn, but he's not crooked at heart."

Li Guohua gently shielded his half-brother from harm.

The two then walked towards the small courtyard to the east.

Unlike Li Guoxian, who kept his head down and hurried along the way, he nodded to everyone he met, a smile on his lips, and a kind look in his eyes. He would respond to any greeting from his neighbors.

Just as Li Guoxian led Qin Jingru to the door, they ran into his third brother, Li Guotai, and his family.

As usual, it was the same familiar small talk, like spring water flowing over stone steps, natural and comforting.

The little squabble from a few years ago has long been washed away by time. Between brothers, there's no such thing as holding a grudge overnight.

Li Guotai and Hu Ke'er also have a son and a daughter. Hu Ke'er's belly is slightly protruding, and she will give birth to her third child in one day.

Before he finished speaking, his second brother, Li Guofu, and his family arrived—his wife, Cao Yan, was leading two children, a boy and a girl, who were still quite young and walked with a slight sway.

He got married a year later, so he naturally had fewer children, but he still managed to have a pair.

Old man Li Wenguo had already declared: Don't be afraid to have children, have as many as you can, at least five for each person.

If you do the math: Li Wenguo currently has nearly fifty sons. If each of them has five sons, that's two hundred and fifty grandsons. If each of these grandsons has five sons, by the fifth generation, the family genealogy will probably be so thick that it's impossible to carry it.

The Li family is undoubtedly the most prominent family in the capital.

As soon as Li Guotai's family stepped into the courtyard, Li Guofu's family followed closely behind, followed by Li Guozhi with Lou Xiao'e and Li Guohe with his whole family, all filing in one after another.

The old men in the courtyard—the eldest, second eldest, and third eldest—along with Sha Zhu and the other residents, craned their necks to look, clicking their tongues in amazement: "Old Li's sons, one after another, are popping up like mushrooms after rain!"

One old man in particular had his eyes practically glued to other people's children—he had no children of his own and was worried sick about taking care of them in their old age. Now, seeing his grandchildren jumping around in the yard, he really wanted to hug one of them and call him "Dad."

"Dad, I'll be transferred to a county below as county head after the New Year."

Inside the room, Li Guohua's voice was calm and steady.