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

"Let's stick to the rules at the factory. My brother-in-law just asked me what I plan to do in the future, and I said I want to follow his example. He said that I should avoid suspicion at the factory to avoid gossip."

Li Guoxiong made his point very clear.

"Fine, fine, whatever you want."

"So—Director Li, why did you call me here?"

"Look, this isn't what I wanted at all."

Li Jingya casually pushed the document in front of him.

"Not yours? Did Deputy Factory Director Zhang want it?"

Li Guoxiong was taken aback, his brows furrowed, and he looked up at her, his voice revealing surprise.

Suddenly, it dawned on him: it was indeed Zhao Ziping who had done it.

"Most likely."

"So you took the wrong one yourself?"

She looked at him, her gaze calm.

"I didn't take the wrong one. Zhao Ziping told me in person that it was for you, so I brought it over."

He recounted the whole story in detail—explaining clearly why Zhao Ziping had targeted him and why he chose this particular time to strike.

"What? My sister-in-law's family all act like this?"

Li Jingya's face darkened. "Do you want me to teach them a lesson?"

The younger brother was openly plotted against and secretly tripped up. How could the Li family's reputation be trampled on by outsiders?

Li Guoxiong gently shook his head: "No need. If they have really made a mistake, there will be proper procedures to deal with them; but if they are just trying to trick us... I will not stoop to the same tactics in return."

He stood straight, his tone was not loud, but it was very firm.

"Alright, little brother, you have ambition, so I'll give you a hand."

She paused, her eyes cold and sharp, "Let the Zhao family open their eyes and watch closely—the more they consider you insignificant, the higher you will rise; once you stand high enough, they will have to stand on tiptoe to even look up at you."

"Today they ignore us, but tomorrow they'll be the ones who can't reach us, and it'll be too late for regrets."

Li Jingya sneered and tapped her fingertips lightly on the table twice.

"Director Li, I'll go and exchange the documents right away."

Li Guoxiong grabbed the paper, turned around, and went out.

"That's not right... Director Li didn't scold him?"

Zhao Ziping peeked out from behind the window and saw Li Guoxiong walking out with a normal expression and steady steps. His heart pounded. "How come this kid is completely unharmed? This is so abnormal!"

At the same time.

Liu Youtian walked out of the chemical plant gate dejectedly once again.

He had just gone to see Director Gao again, wanting to ask where things were stuck, but Director Gao only said, "Director Li instructed that no results would be discussed in less than half a month."

He's never been one to sit still. These past few days, he's been holed up at home, losing his appetite, sighing constantly, and his eyes are dark circles. Even his children are afraid to speak loudly to him.

Half a month passed in the blink of an eye.

That morning, an old neighbor from the compound came to knock on his door: "Old Liu! The factory wants you to pass on a message—go to the director's office first thing tomorrow morning!"

Liu Youtian jumped up on the spot, his hands trembling as he grabbed the man's arm: "Really? You're really letting me go?"

After the initial elation, my heart sank: what if I can't afford to pay the compensation? Will I be fired immediately?

The next day, he stood at the door of Gao Zhiyuan's office, clutching the hem of his clothes, sweat beading on his forehead and his calves trembling slightly.

"Director Gao... Hello."

"Yes, Comrade Liu, the results are in."

He immediately straightened up, his ears standing up like fully drawn bows.

"That chemical tank was damaged for a total of 300 yuan. Once you pay that amount, you can go back to work at the factory."

Three...three hundred yuan?

Liu Youtian's pupils shrank suddenly, his lips turned white, and he froze on the spot, as if he had been nailed to the floor.

Three hundred yuan? His whole family only has thirty-two yuan and seventy-five cents left now, which they saved by gritting their teeth and tightening their belts.

What will we use to repay this? Our lives?

Once you're fired from the factory, your whole family will be destitute.

Suddenly, it got dark.

My heart is empty too.

As he entered middle age, his spirit was not what it used to be. He took a deep breath, forcing down his panic, and bowed to Gao Zhiyuan, his voice tight: "Director Gao, please have mercy, please be lenient this time! I will never dare to be careless again, I will keep a close eye on every step, and make sure there are no more mistakes. This compensation... could it be reduced? My family really can't afford that much."

"These numbers were decided in a factory meeting; I'm just responsible for relaying them."

"I'll give you three days to think it through."

Gao Zhiyuan waved his hand, his tone calm, leaving no room for negotiation.

Liu Youtian dragged his feet home, his face ashen, as if covered in dust. The moment he spoke, the room fell so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Right now, the whole family is living off the eldest son's monthly salary of about thirty yuan; although the daughter has a job opening, she has to wait more than a month to report for duty—besides, a girl will eventually get married, so how can we expect her to support her family?

Liu Shujuan turned around and ran to Liao Zhihua's house, hoping to borrow three hundred yuan to tide her over.

But the Liao family is no longer what it used to be: the older brother Liao Zhixing was sentenced to five years, the father Liao Daqiao and the mother were both unemployed, and Liao Zhihua himself had just graduated and had not yet found a job. The family's savings were running out day by day, so where would they get any extra money to take out?

Besides, he only had two hundred yuan in his pocket, not even half of that, so how could he borrow it?

Liu Shujuan stood outside the threshold with her hands hanging down, turned and left without even going inside. The last vestiges of hope in her heart gradually cooled.

Just then, Li Guojiang, carrying the three hundred yuan given to him by Li Wenguo, came to his door.

"Guojiang, I'll agree to anything you ask for, as long as you're willing to lend it to me—I'll even marry you if you want!"

Her eyes were red-rimmed, and her fingers were clenched so tightly that her knuckles turned white, as if she were grasping at the last piece of driftwood.

"Ha, who would want to marry a piece of trash like you?"

Li Guojiang scoffed, his eyes full of contempt.

The color drained from Liu Shujuan's face in an instant. Her lips trembled, but she ultimately didn't dare to retort.

"Getting money isn't hard—just get rid of the baby in your belly."

He paused, then added, "I'll cover the expenses."

"Wh...what?"

"I told you to get rid of the child."

Liu Shujuan stood there, stunned, her throat dry.

"You choose."

After Li Guojiang finished speaking, he leaned back in his chair and stopped looking at her.

She stood there, her mind racing.

Since Li Guojiang had already discovered that the child wasn't his, it was unrealistic to use this to force him to comply; and Liao Zhihua was now in dire straits himself, let alone marry her—keeping the pregnancy would neither improve his future nor save him any money, so it was better to get three hundred yuan and keep her father's job. She had calculated this very clearly.

The two went to the hospital that same day.

Vice Dean Li Jingfen had already received instructions from her father, Li Wenguo. First, arrange a prenatal checkup; the results came back: two months pregnant. The timing didn't match up; the evidence was irrefutable.

then……

"Shujuan! How could you be so silly!"

"How could they possibly lose the baby out of nowhere!"

Mr. and Mrs. Liu rushed into the ward and their hearts clenched when they saw their daughter lying on the hospital bed, her face pale.

Liu Shujuan didn't hide anything and told everyone where the child came from, how she found Li Guojiang, and how the deal was reached.

It couldn't be hidden any longer—the prenatal checkup report was already in their hands; if the origin of that three hundred yuan wasn't explained, it would only arouse suspicion.

"Ugh... what are you all doing!"

"If this isn't harming people, then what is it?!"

Liu Youtian's voice was hoarse, filled with anger and frustration, but his words softened as they reached his lips. His daughter had just undergone surgery and was still sweating profusely, all to raise the compensation money for him and keep his long-serving job—what else could he possibly complain about?

"Remember this: stay far away from Liao Zhihua from now on! The first time I saw him, I knew there was something sinister about him!"

Liu Youtian stared at his daughter, speaking slowly and deliberately.

"Yes, goodbye forever."

Liu Shujuan closed her eyes and readily agreed.

Liu Youtian pocketed the money and rushed to the chemical plant; his mother stayed at the hospital to look after her daughter. She needed to be observed for a few days after the surgery and would require hospitalization.

Chemical plant, director's office.

"Director Gao, here is three hundred yuan."

Liu Youtian neatly stacked thirty brand-new ten-yuan bills on his desk.

Gao Zhiyuan nodded slightly, his gaze sweeping over him: "Comrade Liu, this time the factory is making an exception for you because you are a long-time employee. The matter of your dereliction of duty will not be pursued further. The losses have been made up, and you can return to work as usual starting tomorrow."

Not pursuing the dereliction of duty means that the 300 yuan will not be recorded, will not be documented, and will not require any written agreement or compensation receipt.

Otherwise, the money will not be returned to his father-in-law, Li Wenguo.

Yes, the whole thing was a scheme to get something for nothing.

The chemical pool was already filled with unwanted waste, but they used it as a pretext to swindle Liu Youtian; the factory didn't lose a single penny and suffered no loss whatsoever.

"Okay, thank you, Director Gao..."

Liu Youtian quickly responded, his voice becoming lighter.

The heavy weight on my heart has finally been lifted.

Li Wenguo didn't make things difficult for him anymore—he was just an honest, simple worker; the one he really wanted to mess with was his daughter.

"From now on, we must keep our minds straight and our eyes open when we work."

"Alright, you can go back now."

Gao Zhiyuan picked up the teacup and gently blew away the tea leaves floating on top.

After getting off work, he quietly slipped the three hundred yuan back into his father-in-law Li Wenguo's hand.

Not long after, Liu Shujuan was discharged from the hospital.

But she never told Liao Zhihua that she had lost her child.

This time she suffered a terrible defeat: she tried to scheme against Li Guojiang but ended up getting herself involved and losing her child; in addition, Liao Zhihua's family fortunes plummeted, so she finally gritted her teeth and listened to her parents, completely severing ties with Liao Zhihua.

Next, just go to work on time, work diligently, and find a decent family to marry into.

To put it simply, it means making up your mind to start over.

Unfortunately, she didn't know that the door to "starting over" had already been welded shut.

The state-run restaurant was steaming hot.

Li Wenguo's second son, Li Guolin, was sitting by the window with a pretty female classmate.

"Guolin, the reason I asked you out today is that I want to start a relationship with you."

Zhang Qian looked him up and down, her tone flat and straightforward.

It's still because of **.

However, her family was well-off—her father was a powerful section chief in a government compound, and could be considered to have some connections.

As for why she wasn't given a permanent position through connections, the reason is simple: she has five siblings, and she is the youngest.

A while ago, the old father did his best to settle his eldest daughter down, but he had no energy left. He could only settle for second best and let her get married as soon as possible to avoid the limelight.

So she thought of Li Guolin.

He is Xu Wanqing's youngest son and Li Guoxian's younger brother. Born in 1948, he has just turned twenty-two this year. He is tall and handsome, and is recognized by the neighborhood as having a good appearance. What's even more remarkable is that he has a stable job—this job is the real reason Zhang Qian came to visit.

"Oh? Is it because of **? Otherwise, why would the daughter of a department head even look at me?"

Li Guolin's lips curled slightly, his words carrying a hint of coldness.

Back in school, he tried to get closer to her, but she flatly rejected him.

The reason is straightforward: his family is too ordinary—his father retired early, and his mother has spent her whole life working in the kitchen, without any family connections.

The person who thought he wasn't good enough for him back then is now taking the initiative to propose marriage. If he immediately agrees, wouldn't he look like a spineless wretch?

Zhang Qian's expression froze, and her lips tightened slightly.

That's right, she thought his family was too poor back then.

But she didn't dislike him as a person—who doesn't like a handsome and clean-cut young man?