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

"Uncle Guoxian! Uncle Guoxuan!"

The two had just stepped out of the courtyard gate when they heard a shout.

Li Jiacheng, the eldest son of Li Guofu, was already waiting there, leading a 28-inch bicycle.

"Hey kid, what are you doing getting involved in our second-generation's business, getting involved with this?"

Li Guoxian joked with a smile.

"Hehe, I'll just go and broaden my horizons!"

"Besides, there are so many uncles, aunts, and other relatives I've never even met. I need to at least become familiar with their faces, right?"

Li Jiacheng approached with a grin, his tone ingratiating.

"The old man set the rules—even your father has to abide by them. How dare I lead the way in breaking them?"

Li Guoxian shook his head and refused outright.

He is still terrified of his elderly father, Li Wenguo.

"Besides, I heard Dad mention that once your generation of three generations grows up, a special 'Three Generations Association' will be set up in ten years. Jiacheng, don't rush, it'll be your turn. I'm afraid that by then, you'll find it too annoying to attend so many gatherings."

He made a joke, half-jokingly and half-seriously.

"Uncle Guoxian! Please, give me a ride!"

Li Jiacheng gripped the handlebars, pleading with a pained expression.

"No. Guoxuan, let's go."

Li Guoxuan simply shrugged at Li Jiacheng, looking helpless.

the other side.

Residential area of ​​government buildings in Wangfujing, Dongcheng District.

"National Defense, why are you still holed up here?"

Xu Yaling had just finished feeding her third son when she lifted the bedroom curtain and came out to see Li Guofang lounging on the sofa, staring at the TV with the remote control in his hand and his legs crossed. Her brows immediately furrowed.

"It's a day off today, so where else can I go if I don't stay home?"

He casually pressed the channel change button, and the screen flashed to show "Tunnel Warfare"—Li Guoyao had just appeared on screen, leaping out of the tunnel with a gun in hand, looking incredibly heroic.

"See that? Isn't that my brother Guoyao? He's on the big screen now!"

Li Guofang's eyes shone, and his voice revealed an undisguised smugness.

Without saying a word, Xu Yaling reached out and turned off the TV with a "snap".

"Hey? Why did you turn it off! I'm waiting to see Guoyao!"

He was stunned for a moment, and his face immediately fell.

"Look? It's the end of the month, the clan is having a gathering."

She crossed her arms over her chest, raised her chin slightly, and spoke in a stiff tone.

"Pshaw, I thought it was something serious—I'm not going. Why would I just sit there and listen to their idle chatter? I wouldn't even be able to get a word in edgewise."

"Besides, with all those older brothers... older sisters... we're never all together until the end of the year or the first month of the lunar calendar. There are only a handful of us here now, what are we even talking about?"

He slammed the remote control on the coffee table, looking utterly impatient.

In truth, he was terrified of those gatherings—he was a lazy bum, and these days entertainment was scarce; television was like his lifeline, and he wished he could spend twelve hours a day glued to the sofa.

"Are you going or not?"

Xu Yaling's face darkened, and her voice turned cold.

"You should have said so earlier, it would have been a waste of time. What's the point?"

He didn't even lift his eyelids.

"You're at least a deputy director now, if the higher-ups aren't coming, why don't you take this opportunity to show yourself off?"

"What's the point of showing off? If the younger guys really want to move up, who can stop them?"

"One last time—are you going or not?"

"I'm not going!"

"Fine, I'll smash the TV."

"No, no, no! I'll go, I'll go right now!"

Li Guofang sighed, stood up dejectedly, and went back into the house to change his clothes.

The same applies downstairs.

He Yushui was already a deputy division-level cadre, while her husband, Li Guotao, had only recently been promoted to section chief. She urged him to attend the gathering, not saying it explicitly, but the meaning was clear: Why wouldn't you take advantage of a readily available opportunity?

However, she was more tactful—her family was not wealthy, so she didn't dare to throw things around like Xu Yaling did. Instead, she spoke gently, explaining the advantages and disadvantages and appealing to people's feelings, stopping short of making a move.

Li Guotao eventually went.

Fifth floor.

I'm going home.

Li Guolei said to Cen Weiwei, who was changing her second son's diaper.

"Okay, go ahead."

She didn't even look up.

"Hmph, you always sneak off at the end of every month. Last time, your colleagues at the factory caught you riding your bike to the old embassy area. This time, I'm going to see what you're up to behind my back—are you having an affair, or something shady?"

Cen Weiwei was sharp-witted and had long suspected that there was something fishy going on in Li Guolei's family. Fearing that she might try to climb the social ladder and demand more, and even more afraid that she might blurt it out, he had kept it a secret all these years, even sneaking into family gatherings.

She deftly slung her youngest son over her shoulder with an old cloth, led her four-year-old daughter downstairs, hopped on her bicycle, and headed straight for the old embassy area. Before long, she could see Li Guolei's silhouette riding his bicycle in the distance.

"So, Li Guolei! You dare lie to me? I didn't even go back to your run-down house!"

When she realized the direction was wrong, her anger flared up instantly, and her face turned red.

He had only taken her to Aunt Qin Huairu's house before, lying that it was his hometown, and never let her set foot in the Li residence.

But the next second, she froze on the spot—

Li Guolei stopped his bike on the side of the road, helped a young woman with a large pregnant belly onto the back seat, and then slowly continued riding towards the old embassy area.

"Li Guolei! You liar! You bastard! You cheated on me and even got someone killed?! I'm not finished with you!"

Tears welled up in her eyes, and she wiped them away as she pedaled, her voice cracking.

She married him for a stable job; she'd already given him her body, bearing him a son and a daughter in four years, and resigned herself to her fate. Now, she'd caught him with his own eyes, and he was seven or eight months pregnant…

How could she not be angry?

How could I not feel wronged?

"Sis, you're almost due, there's really no need to come all this way to the party. We can have a big celebration after the baby is born."

Li Jingjiao spoke as she walked, her voice soft yet carrying an undeniable weight.

She is Li Guolei's older sister, born to the same mother in 1942, six years older than him, and currently serves as the head of a branch of the Public Security Bureau.

She resembled her mother, Xiao Cui, with beautiful features and an elegant demeanor; in terms of appearance, she was even more stunning than Cen Weiwei.

She replied, "Once the baby is born, there won't even be a trace of the party."

"Besides, my second sister also said that it's good to walk around more before giving birth."

"What about the two younger ones?"

he asks.

"Your brother-in-law took them to the park."

"By the way, your brother-in-law will be promoted to deputy director in two years. Have you ever thought about transferring to our branch? That way, it'll be easier to look after each other."

Li Jingjiao's husband works in the same branch bureau as her and is currently a division chief. He is likely to be promoted to deputy director in two years.

He was her own brother after all, and she always kept him in her heart.

There's another layer that hasn't been revealed yet—the bureau chief, Duan Tianming, works at their branch office.

"Let's talk about it later."

Li Guolei spoke in a flat tone.

Cen Weiwei had just given birth to a son at the beginning of the year, and he had to stay home to take care of him, so he really couldn't spare the time to go to work.

"Are you really planning to stay home forever and be a stay-at-home dad?"

Li Jingjiao was a little anxious.

Isn't it a waste to leave such a good opportunity unused?

What would those who have no connections but desperately try to climb the ladder think if they found out?

"It's not that I don't want to go out, but my baby is only a few months old, how can I leave him?"

"Unlike you, whose mother-in-law can lend a hand; my husband is very materialistic, how could he possibly quit his secure job to stay home and take care of the kids? What else can I do?" Li Guolei sighed.

"How about I go to her place tomorrow and persuade her to put her work aside for now?"

"Absolutely not! You have no idea how much she cares about her image—even if she's number eight at the bottom of the company, she walks with her head held high. If she loses her job, it will hurt her more than if her heart were ripped out."

Li Jingjiao paused for a moment before speaking: "How about this, let your sister-in-law take a leave of absence without pay so she can focus on taking care of the child; I'll have your brother-in-law get her a permanent position in the bureau—a job in the public security system is much better than what you have in the factory; with me and your brother-in-law overseeing things, she'll get promoted quickly; a higher position will give her more confidence and respectability, won't it?"

That's a very good idea.

She's on unpaid leave, but her job title is still valid; her husband is a police officer, which sounds respectable.

"Um... I'll go back and ask Dad first."

He fell into his old habit again, unable to make up his mind, and insisted on getting Li Wenguo to make the final decision before he felt at ease.

Li Jingjiao rolled her eyes—this younger brother may be obedient, but he's too weak-willed.

"Don't ask anymore, Dad's definitely going to agree. Why would your sister trick you?"

"Then...then...shall we give it a try?"

Li Guolei hesitated.

He'd been cooped up at home for too long and really wanted some fresh air.

By this time, the two had reached the outside of the small villa.

"What's there to try? It's settled then! I'll come over tomorrow and discuss it with your wife in detail."

"Li Guolei! You liar! You bastard! I married you, slept with you, and bore your children, and this is how you repay me? You cheated on me behind my back and dared to hide it from me? You're not even as good as an animal!"

The sound exploded, and the siblings turned around abruptly.

Cen Weiwei was seen riding a bicycle with her daughter on the back and her son strapped to her back. Her face was covered in tears and her lips were pale.

This is a real disaster!

Both of them knew she had misunderstood.

Before she could even finish speaking, Cen Weiwei turned and yelled at Li Jing:

"You shameless slut, seducing my man? You vixen! How can you be so shameless and self-righteous..."

"shut up!!!"

A sharp shout came from behind her.

Two tall, upright young men, just like Li Guolei, sped up on their bicycles. One of them had a cold expression and stared straight at Cen Weiwei.

"Brother Guoxian!"

"Brother Guoxian!"

Li Guolei and Li Jingjiao shouted out almost simultaneously.

No one dared to underestimate his importance in the family—simply because his mother was Xu Wanqing, and even their mothers had to bow down to him.

Li Guoxian nodded to Cen Weiwei, his tone calm but clear:

"This must be Guolei's sister-in-law, right? You've got it wrong. This is Li Jingjiao, Guolei's biological older sister, not what you think."

"ah???"

Cen Weiwei froze on the spot.

It turns out that the woman with the big belly was actually her husband's older sister, her own sister-in-law.

"You say it's true? Who would believe that?"

"There needs to be some kind of proof, right?"

She pretended to be convinced, but in her heart she was already 80% convinced—but her vanity got the better of her, so she had to come up with an excuse to get rid of the awkward situation.

"certificate?"

"This is the proof!"

Li Jingjiao's face darkened, and she swiftly pulled out her police ID, displaying it directly in front of Cen Weiwei.

"I am Li Jingjiao, a senior police officer from the Chongwen District Public Security Bureau." Her voice was calm and clear. "I am hereby formally summoned to the station to cooperate with the investigation on charges of public defamation."

"Huh? No, no!"

Cen Weiwei's expression changed drastically.

In a panic, she grabbed her husband's arm: "Guolei! Quickly explain to your sister—I really didn't know she was your sister!"

Li Guolei scratched the back of his head and turned to Li Jingjiao: "Sis... how about we just let it go?"

"Apologize immediately. Otherwise, we will pursue legal action."

Her gaze was sharp as a blade, fixed directly on Cen Weiwei's face, her aura so oppressive it was hard to breathe.

Being called a "shameless slut" and a "vixen" for no reason, and even being labeled as "seducing men"—how could Li Jingjiao, who was proud and principled, swallow this insult?

If it weren't for the fact that they were my own siblings, I would have slapped them across the face without saying a word.