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

"Ah—stop hitting me!"

"It's none of my business! He's the one who's been bothering me!"

"Spare me!!!"

Xiangxiang was in so much pain that she curled up in a ball, her voice hoarse from screaming.

No wonder they ask for fifty yuan right off the bat—not only do you have to sleep with them, but you also have to get a real beating. It's money earned at the cost of your life!

If you encounter a reasonable person, you might get some compensation for medical expenses; but if you encounter someone like Cui Jingjing who doesn't care about her life, calling the police might result in being detained for a few days for causing trouble, which would be considered lenient...

Cui Jingjing was going crazy, and Cui Mingming huddled by the door, too afraid to move; Li Guojiang was slumped in the corner, not even daring to breathe, let alone go forward to stop her.

For a full five minutes, the only sounds in the room were slaps, cries, and heavy breathing.

Only when Cui Jingjing's wrist started to ache did she let go of Li Guojiang's hand and pull him outside.

Along the way, he hunched over, following half a step behind her, his shoes scraping the ground like a dog that had lost its soul.

As I approached home, I suddenly heard her sobbing softly.

He looked up and saw two lines of tears sliding down her cheeks, silent yet more scorching than any curse.

He opened his mouth, but his throat felt like it was blocked by a thousand-pound stone, and he couldn't squeeze out a single word.

She walked into the courtyard while crying.

—I just want to cry in front of everyone.

Lou Xiao'e was standing on tiptoe to hang the bed sheets, while Li Jingtong and Li Jingqin were standing beside her helping her pull the rope. Upon hearing the crying, they both turned their heads.

Lou Xiao'e quickly came forward: "Jingjing? What happened?"

"Ask him."

Cui Jingjing's eyes reddened. She quickly glanced at the three of them, then muttered, "Ask them yourselves," before turning and walking away.

Lou Xiao'e, Li Jingtong, and Li Jingqin all looked at Li Guojiang—his head was hanging down, his hands frozen at the seams of his trousers, looking like a child caught red-handed stealing candy.

Lou Xiao'e, being the eldest sister-in-law, swallowed her words. Li Jingtong, however, had no such reservations and pressed directly, "Guojiang, what exactly did you do to make Jingjing so angry?"

"I...I..."

His lips moved, his gaze wandered, and he felt as if there was a wad of cotton stuck in his throat.

"What do you mean, 'what do you mean, 'what do you mean, 'just say it'!" Li Jingtong stamped her foot. "Tell me, and I'll help you figure out how to win her back!"

Cui Jingjing is usually sweet-talking and hardworking. Most of the women in the courtyard have received her help in taking care of their children and bringing them soup and vegetables, so they have a good impression of her.

But "most" does not equal "all". Li Jingqin is the exception.

As someone from the same Jinhua family, she knew exactly how her younger brother had been gradually "nailed" into marriage by Cui Jingjing; moreover, her father, Li Wenguo, had stated to her face that he "didn't acknowledge this daughter-in-law," so naturally, she wore a cold expression. At this moment, she stepped in front of Li Guojiang, blocking his path, her voice icy: "What's there to ask? Jingjing is older, Guojiang is only in his early twenties. Give in to your brother in everything. Should she be the one to boss him around and lecture him?"

The unspoken message is clear: don't make a mountain out of a molehill.

Li Guojiang's Adam's apple bobbed, and he finally finished speaking in a hoarse voice: "...This time, I really let her down."

Before she could finish speaking, Cui Jingjing, wiping away tears, rushed into her uncle Li Guoyu's courtyard—the two children were still there playing with Kong Liuting.

"Oh dear? Jingjing, what happened?"

Kong Liuting was squatting on the carpet playing with building blocks with the child when she looked up and saw that her face was covered in tears, which startled her so much that she stood up.

Li Guoyu, who was on the sofa, also put down his newspaper, his brows furrowed into a deep frown.

Cui Jingjing rushed to the coffee table, her fingers clenching the hem of her clothes, her voice trembling: "Sister Liuting, Uncle Guoyu... Guojiang is having an affair! I didn't believe it at first, but I just saw him lying naked on the bed with a widow! Waaah..."

This was her prepared backup plan – specifically targeting Li Guoyu to complain.

He was the most outspoken and reliable member of the second generation of the Li family. As long as he acknowledged her as his sister-in-law, even if others had their own grumblings, they would still have to give him face.

"ah?!"

"Guojiang...did he really do something like this?!"

Kong Liuting blurted out, her heart sinking – it wasn't that she didn't believe it, but she suddenly remembered that back then, wasn't she also a widow who pulled Li Guojiang into Cui Jingjing's bridal chamber?

"Is this true?" Li Guoyu stared at Cui Jingjing, his voice low and deep.

He arranged a factory job for Li Guojiang, organized his wedding banquet, and even consulted him about seasonal clothing changes and borrowing money for business. Over the years, he had long treated his younger brother like a son. Now, upon hearing this, he felt as if someone had squeezed his chest.

"Absolutely true, Uncle Guoyu! He's standing right outside; you can just go out and ask him!"

Cui Jingjing sniffled, her voice choked with emotion: "I've never wronged him in the slightest—the food is always hot, the clothes are always clean, the children are well-mannered, the house is always tidy… But what about him? What am I working so hard for? Just so he'll sneak out to see someone else in the middle of the night?"

Before she could finish speaking, tears had already fallen onto the back of her hand.

Li Guoyu suddenly stood up: "I'll go ask him."

"If that's true, I'll personally punish him by making him kneel in the ancestral hall and then kowtow to you to admit his mistake."

Cui Jingjing lowered her eyes to hide the fleeting light in them—only after Li Guoyu's words did she truly feel at home in the Li family.

"Thank you, Uncle Guoyu..." Her voice was so soft it was almost inaudible.

Kong Liuting patted the back of her hand: "Don't be afraid. Once Guoyu makes a move, Guojiang will definitely behave himself from now on."

The argument continued outside the courtyard gate.

"Jingqin, stop spoiling him!" Li Jingtong frowned. "Jingjing is such an honest person. The house is so well-organized, the children are so well-behaved, and Guojiang spends his days leisurely drinking tea and reading newspapers. Isn't she the one who takes care of all of that? Just because she's a widow, do you have to be so confrontational?"

Li Jingqin sneered, her fingertips digging into her palm: "Honest? From the day she entered the family, she planned how to ensnare Guojiang. Have you forgotten what Father said? 'She'll stop at nothing, but the Li family owes her nothing.'"

That old story was revealed to his siblings by Li Wenguo in a drunken slip of the tongue. From then on, the name Cui Jingjing always carried an indelible shadow in the mouths of some members of the Li family.

"Look at her after she married into our Li family—she lives in a spacious and bright house, never has to worry about food, clothing, or daily necessities, and even her promotions are all thanks to Aunt Wen's help; in the blink of an eye, she's become a section chief. All these benefits, weren't they all given to her by our Li family? For anyone else, a widow with a child, how could she so easily reach this level?"

"So, no matter what mistakes Guojiang makes, no matter how angry or aggrieved she feels, she has to swallow it down."

These words, spoken by the Li family, are not entirely unbiased. Everything Cui Jingjing holds in her hands now is entirely aimed at Li Guojiang, without a doubt.

"you--!"

"Alright, alright, stop arguing! We don't even know what Guo Jiang actually did, so what's the point of arguing?"

Li Jingtong was about to retort when her sister-in-law, Lou Xiao'e, stopped her in her tracks. She was afraid that if the two of them really started arguing, it would damage the family's reputation.

Before he could finish speaking, Li Guoyu strode in from outside the courtyard gate, his gaze fixed on Li Guojiang's face: "Your sister-in-law said you're keeping a woman outside, is that true?"

Li Jingtong, Lou Xiao'e, and Li Jingqin were all stunned, as if they had been nailed to the spot.

These days were nothing like later times—if you had a woman outside the home, at best you'd be criticized and forced to write a self-criticism, at worst you'd lose your job and be labeled as "having illicit sexual relations," and sent to a re-education camp for a few days; in the countryside it was even worse, a loudspeaker would blare, you'd be paraded through the streets with a sign hanging on your head, and the whole village would point fingers and curse you behind your back.

That would be a disgrace to one's ancestors, a collapse of the moral wall, something no one would acknowledge or dare to touch.

The three men's expressions changed immediately.

"No...no! Brother Guoyu, I was really drunk that day. I only met that woman twice! I was really too drunk!"

Li Guojiang's voice was weak, and his back was so limp that he could barely support himself.

"But I swear, I will never do it again!"

"Outrageous! You're over thirty and still doing something so shameful! No wonder your father gave up on you long ago—you're truly disheartening!"

Even his own sister, Li Jingqin, didn't cover for him this time. This matter crossed too many lines, so much so that even she couldn't bring herself to speak out.

"Now, go apologize to your younger siblings right now! And write a guarantee, in black and white, stating that you will never make a mistake again!"

"And also—pay a little more attention to Jingjing, and tone down your wildness! Stop making a mess of things and leaving others to clean up your messes every day!"

Li Guoyu watched him write each stroke carefully before letting him in.

Filled with remorse, Li Guojiang pushed open the door and bowed his head to admit his mistake. But Cui Jingjing only managed a few sobs before falling silent. All the remorse he had prepared was stuck in his throat, making him feel even more choked up.

The wind in the compound can never be completely contained.

Within three days, the news reached Li Wenguo's ears.

After listening, the old man simply waved his hand and sighed, "That silly son of mine..."

He had long ago handed Li Guojiang over to Li Guoyu to manage, too lazy to bother with him anymore. Right now, he's busy finding partners for his children.

……

"What? Sis, you really let him off the hook?"

On the other end of the phone, Cui Mingming almost jumped up, her sneer frozen on her lips.

"This...this is too outrageous!"

"That good-for-nothing brother-in-law has slept with other women, and you're still denying it?"

"Am I still your brother? Why don't you recognize me all of a sudden?"

After hanging up the phone, Cui Mingming stared at the receiver, lost in thought for a long time.

He knew his sister all too well: she was beautiful since childhood, had attended a private school, and had an air of arrogance about her. She was determined to settle down in the city and become a true city dweller. Now that she had secured her position as section chief, she spoke and acted with an air of authority. How could she possibly tolerate her husband's infidelity?

This doesn't make sense!

"I need to find Section Chief Chang right away and get to the bottom of this!"

He ran straight to Chang Daman's office and poured out the whole story.

"That's strange, really strange!"

Chang Daman also frowned.

Logically speaking, even if Cui Jingjing had previously refrained from leaving because she was afraid of gossip at work, now that the evidence is conclusive and she has a legitimate reason to leave, why is she still not moving?

He only met Cui Jingjing once, but he could tell at a glance that she was a woman with a strong sense of justice and a clear conscience. She would never cling to a crooked tree, much less risk her future to support a good-for-nothing.

But reality often does the opposite.

"Section Chief Chang, what's the next step?"

Cui Mingming couldn't sit still any longer and hurriedly spoke up: "My sister can tolerate even her brother-in-law making a mistake like this, so what other way is there to break them up?"

He racked his brains, but he really couldn't come up with a solution.