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

"What are you yelling about, you fat pig? You're the one who started it; I was just fighting back, it's only natural!"

Li Guojiang retorted with a cold laugh.

"Who did I hit?!"

"Who saw it?!"

"Who the hell saw that?!"

She suddenly turned her head and glared fiercely at Teacher Zhao and the principal who had followed her.

Both of them kept their eyelids down, their Adam's apples bobbing up and down, without uttering a single word.

"Comrade Lu, please calm down. We'll determine the nature of the crime after we've investigated the matter thoroughly."

Police officer Lu Gang tried to persuade him with a smile.

There was nothing he could do—his father was a division-level cadre, while he was just a section chief, two ranks lower.

In officialdom, the line between right and wrong is thinner than a knife's edge; one wrong step and your future is ruined.

Cui Jingjing sat next to Li Guojiang, her hair disheveled, her cuffs dusty, and her lips pursed white.

She lowered her head, her fingertips digging into her palms, looking as if she wanted to say something but couldn't.

Actually, it was all an act—clearly showing Li Guojiang that vulnerability, helplessness, and dependence.

Sure enough, upon seeing this, Li Guojiang immediately stepped aside to protect her shoulder, his voice low but steady: "Jingjing, don't be afraid of her. She has a section chief father, and I have a department head brother. Just stand up straight and speak."

"Oh?"

"Director?"

"Really?"

"Someone like you think you can get close to the department head?"

Apart from Cui Jingjing, who knew the truth, everyone in the room looked at each other, half believing and half doubting.

"Ha, you little rascal, just spouting nonsense! You say your brother's a department head? Fine, give us your name!"

Lu Fangfang glanced at her sideways, her lips curling into a sneer, clearly disbelieving.

"Li Guotai, the director of Hongxing Steel Rolling Mill, is my own brother."

Li Guojiang was taken aback by the words and blurted out.

Li Guotai? ??

Is it real or fake?

The room fell silent for a moment.

The Hongxing Steel Rolling Mill is located in this area, and the Hongxing School is also run by the mill. Everyone knows who Li Guotai is.

For a moment, everyone looked at each other in bewilderment, their hearts pounding.

Lu Gang's heart tightened even more.

He had followed Li Guozhi for many years and was considered half a member of the Li family. If Li Guojiang really was Li Guotai's younger brother, then this matter needed to be covered up immediately and assistance provided as soon as possible.

"Ha—I'm dying of laughter! You say so, so it is? If you're so capable, send someone to invite Factory Director Li over! If he's really standing at the door, I, Lu Fangfang, will immediately make tea and apologize!"

Lu Fangfang first scoffed, then raised her chin, her tone full of hostility.

Her outspokenness wasn't due to a habit of bullying others or speaking recklessly; it was a test of the waters.

If he were truly of the Li family bloodline, she would bow her head and admit her mistake without saying a word; if he was just bluffing, she would turn around and overturn the table.

Kids who grow up in government compounds may be chubby, but they're definitely not stupid.

"this……"

Li Guojiang suddenly got stuck.

Are you really going to call Li Guotai over?

His father will surely find out—that he's been entangled with a widow, and he's bound to be exposed. That scolding will probably be enough to tear the roof off.

"I knew it! That little rascal lies without thinking!"

Seeing his shifty eyes, Lu Fangfang immediately concluded that he was bluffing and raised her voice even louder.

Lu Gang narrowed his eyes: Could it be that this kid isn't a member of the Li family at all?

Cui Jingjing frowned slightly, wondering to herself: If they dare to mention Li Guotai, why don't they dare to invite someone to confront them?

"Comrade, what is your surname?"

Lu Gang turned his head and asked.

The two had just been brought to the police station when Lu Fangfang kept making a fuss, and they hadn't even completed the basic registration.

My name is Li Guojiang.

He answered readily, then quickly added, "Although I can't ask Brother Guotai to come, you can send someone to the courtyard at No. 95 Nanluoguxiang to find the resident, Li Guoxian—he's also my brother."

Lu Gang had been pondering the fact that "Guoxian" and "Guotai" differed by only one character, but upon hearing "No. 95 Nanluoguxiang," his heart sank—

Seven or eight years ago, on New Year's Eve, Li Guoxian got into a fight with Cao Baowei and Duan Youming at the entrance of the alley, and it was he who was on duty who handled it.

That time, he took the opportunity to get in touch with the Li family, and he still remembers it clearly.

Cui Jingjing was also slightly taken aback: Li Guoxian... who is he again?

"Li Guoxian? Never even heard of him, who does he think he is?"

Seeing that Li Guojiang didn't even dare to call Li Guotai by his name, Lu Fangfang was even more convinced that he was just putting on an act. She immediately straightened her back and her voice became sharp.

"You dare insult my brother? You're finished!"

Li Guojiang's face darkened, and he clenched his fists.

Li Guoxian was the elder brother he respected the most. He was tough in his methods and even tougher in his temper, and Li Guoxian dared not be ambiguous with him in the slightest.

"You're finished! Comrade, I'm now formally charging him with assault—arrest him immediately and sentence him!"

Lu Fangfang pointed back.

"Yes, yes, yes! He just kicked my wife so hard she can't straighten up. Look, her clothes are covered in shoe prints!"

Teacher Zhao quickly chimed in to help.

Lu Fangfang glanced at him coldly, and he immediately shut his mouth, not daring to utter another sound.

"Xiao Zhang, go to No. 95 Nanluoguxiang according to the address he gave you, and 'invite' him here."

Lu Gang winked at a police officer next to him, emphasizing the word "please".

"Okay, I understand."

Xiao Zhang nodded, turned around and left.

Everyone in the room held their breath.

Anyone could tell that the word "please" didn't have an ordinary meaning.

What's even more chilling is yet to come.

"It's getting late, you two probably haven't eaten yet?"

Lu Gang turned to Li Guojiang and Cui Jingjing, speaking gently, then turned to another officer and said, "Xiao Huang, go to the back room and get two hot meals for these two comrades."

"Okay!"

Xiao Huang responded and left.

This stark contrast in attitudes is like a block of ice being smashed into a pot of boiling oil—

Lu Fangfang froze, Teacher Zhao swallowed hard, and the principal quietly moved his chair.

They all understood: behind Li Guojiang stood probably more than just a factory director.

Otherwise, Lu Gang wouldn't have made such a blatant hint.

Cui Jingjing nodded to herself, knowing exactly who was behind Li Guojiang—this police station chief must know who was behind Li Guojiang.

Not long after, they went to have dinner separately.

Lu Gang leaned closer to Lu Fangfang and spoke in a low voice.

"Smack!!!"

"Smack!!!"

"I'm sorry, I was wrong this time. I was blind. Please be merciful and forgive me this time."

He didn't offer tea, didn't bow, but only received eight slaps, accompanied by a heartfelt apology.

Indeed, thanks to Lu Gang's subtle yet perfectly understood mediation, Lu Fangfang completely softened. Right outside the police station, Li Guojiang signaled Cui Jingjing to take action, and she slapped Lu Fangfang hard across the face twice. Once Lu Fangfang was steady, she lowered her head, hunched her shoulders, and squeezed out her apology, word by word.

As Cui Jingjing stared at Director Ganbu's daughter bowing and scraping before her, and then glanced at the evasive eyes of the principal and Teacher Zhao behind her, she felt as if a large bowl of well water had been poured into her heart on a sweltering summer day, cooling her from her throat to the soles of her feet, leaving her feeling completely refreshed.

She finally experienced what it meant to be intimidated by status.

This was also the first time she had truly tasted the power.

As soon as Lu Fangfang and her husband and the principal left, Li Guoxian immediately called his younger brother Li Guojiang aside to talk, his eyes glancing at Cui Jingjing every now and then.

When Cui Jingjing saw Li Guojiang's face shifting between light and shadow, sometimes hesitant, sometimes somber, her heart sank.

She was always very perceptive and immediately understood: Li Guojiang's brother was giving him a warning, reminding him not to get too deeply involved in this.

Sure enough, on the way home, Li Guojiang was in a daze the whole time. He swallowed back the words he was about to say, answered incoherently, and even his tone was much stiffer.

Especially when they arrived at her building, he turned to leave. But Cui Jingjing was quick-witted and gently touched her cheek, saying, "The place where I was hit still hurts, and the medicine can't reach my back... Can you help me apply it?" As soon as she said this, he stayed.

After entering the house, she sighed as she unbuttoned her clothes: "A woman like me, nobody takes me seriously at school, I'm ostracized and trampled on; when I come home, it's all empty, I don't even have anyone to talk to..." As she spoke, her eyes reddened, and tears welled up under her eyelashes, but she managed not to let them fall.

A few sweet words were enough to make the inexperienced young man, Li Guojiang, feel a surge of warmth in his heart. He patted his chest and promised, "If anyone dares to lay a finger on you, I'll be the first to object!"

Then Cui Jingjing took off her shirt so he could apply the medicine. But as soon as her hand touched his waist, his breathing became erratic; when his fingertips brushed against the warm skin on his chest, he couldn't hold back anymore—Li Guoxian's instructions earlier? He had completely forgotten them, probably forgotten in some alleyway corner.

a few days later.

Li Guoxiong finally got a job at the instrument factory and became an office clerk.

But trouble struck on my first day: sweeping, moving cardboard boxes, taking out the trash... the workload was denser than the workshop itself. Even though I was sitting at an office desk, I was panting more heavily than someone tightening screws.

"Li Guoxiong, make ten copies of each of these documents."

"Li Guoxiong, the copier is jammed. Go to the warehouse to get some new paper."

"Li Guoxiong, send all these old files to the shredder."

"Li Guoxiong, the hot water in the tea room is gone. Quickly boil some more."

"..."

"Li Guoxiong, the section chief's bicycle tire is flat, go pump it up!"

Fuck!

His bicycle tire is flat, what's it to me?

Go find someone to fight!

Li Guoxiong cursed inwardly, but he still had to agree. It wasn't that he didn't want to be assertive, but as the lowest-ranking clerk in the entire department, he had no right to say "no" when his superior spoke.

Zhao Ziping, who was sitting in the lobby flipping through newspapers and drinking strong tea, glanced at Li Guoxiong running around the building, a slight smirk playing on his lips, his smile sinister.

He had arranged these tasks with Section Chief Shi beforehand. All the miscellaneous work was dumped on Li Guoxiong, making him do the work of the entire group by himself. He would be exhausted even if he didn't die from exhaustion.

Section Chief Shi was even more furious—Li Guoxiong was taking advantage of his sister-in-law, a matter that had long made him itchy to bite, and he couldn't wait to take the opportunity to beat him up.

Fortunately, when he went to the cafeteria at noon, the cook didn't give him a strainer; instead, he was given an extra large spoonful of meat. This was because his colleague in the office had secretly put in a good word for him.

In fact, the section chief had also given the order to the kitchen to "serve less," but the cook knew better: the director had more influence than the section chief, and when the two were fighting, he only listened to the one with the loudest voice.

Besides, why should a mere fireman bother to get involved? If he gets caught, he can just push the matter to the director: "The director told me to take extra care of the newcomers." — No one can find fault with that statement.

The workday bell rang.

Li Guoxiong dragged his leaden legs out of the factory gate and walked home.

Zhao Ziping accompanied Section Chief Shi to the bicycle shed. The man was chubby, and as he bent down to take a look, he saw that both the front and rear tires had collapsed and were lying limply on the ground.

Section Chief Shi's face darkened, and he immediately realized that Li Guoxiong hadn't come to offer any encouragement.

He secretly loosened the valve stem of the tire early in the morning, waiting for Li Guoxiong to inflate it so he could take advantage of him.

"Damn it! Section Chief Shi, that kid Li Guoxiong didn't even come to inflate your tires? He's got some nerve!"

"Absolutely! He dares to disobey me—tomorrow, I'll make him regret it!"