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

Li Jiacheng immediately dialed his younger brother Li Jiayu's number: "Screen every audio-visual factory, printing factory, and packaging factory in Shanghai that you can get your hands on. Use all available connections, both legitimate and illegitimate."

Li Jiayu agreed readily. Although he was born and raised in Beijing, he had been transferred to Shanghai with his father, Li Guofu, for many years and had long since woven a network of local connections. He had acquaintances in the industry and commerce, taxation, and transportation sectors, sworn brothers in the old city, and even the loading and unloading team leaders at several docks in Pudong called him "Brother Yu".

The news will arrive within three days.

Shuyu Real Estate Company, Manager's Office.

"Knock knock knock!"

"Come in!"

Li Guoshu sat upright behind a large walnut wooden table, his shirt sleeves rolled up to his forearms, as he looked through a construction drawing.

As soon as the door opened, Wang Tingxi stood in the doorway carrying a camera bag, her expression instantly changing.

She never expected that the developer she was to interview today would be the same person who broke into her dormitory on that rainy night and ruined her reputation.

Li Guoshu looked up and was also taken aback. His pen stopped on the drawing paper, and the ink smudged into a small patch.

It turns out that "Happy Home" is the first residential community in Shanghai. The city's TV station planned to do a special report on it and specially sent Wang Tingxi to interview the project manager.

Logically, Li Jiayu should have stepped forward—he was the company's legal representative and the actual operator. However, Li Guofu, as the mayor, had to avoid any appearance of impropriety. So he had his younger brother, Li Guoshu, take his place, nominally as the "executive director," but in reality, he rarely even handled the company seal.

The shock lasted only a moment. Wang Tingxi quickly adjusted her breathing, raised the microphone, and smiled professionally: "Mr. Li, hello, I am Wang Tingxi, a reporter from 'City Observation'."

Li Guoshu closed the blueprints, stood up, and extended his hand: "Welcome. It's hot over there at the construction site, shall we walk and talk?"

The interview proceeded at a relaxed pace. At noon, the two had a simple meal at the company canteen—four dishes and a soup, with unlimited rice. The workers lined up with their enamel mugs to get their food, their laughter filling the air. After lunch, they drove straight to the construction site.

Four months have passed, and the twelve buildings have begun to take shape. Although only two stories high, their gray-white walls stand tall, scaffolding stretches out like a skeleton, tower cranes slowly turn, steelworkers sweat under the scorching sun, and concrete pump trucks roar incessantly. The entire construction site resembles a beating heart.

"We commissioned Mr. Guan Mingzhe from Hong Kong to design the project," Li Guoshu said calmly, standing in front of the temporary observation deck and facing the camera. "The positioning is very clear: comfortable, convenient, and high-quality. Twelve buildings, forty units per building, all equipped with elevators, and the underground parking garage will be built simultaneously..."

Wang Tingxi stepped forward half a step and gently held the microphone to his lips: "Mr. Li, when is the expected delivery date?"

"It will be basically completed by the end of this year." He paused, his gaze sweeping over the still unfinished building in the distance. "The floor plans have been printed, and citizens can pick them up for free at our company's front desk. Pre-sales will begin next month, with priority given to customers who have registered their interest."

This was his first attempt at a Hong Kong-style sales model—selling concepts, blueprints, and expectations before the building was even completed.

The building is now a real development, and television footage will be broadcast to every household; even if people don't trust the cameras, they can still ride a bicycle over for a look. He bets that the people trust this bustling construction site, and even more so, they trust the newly polished "Shuyu" brand.

Wang Tingxi then raised several questions: How is the plot ratio controlled? How are property management companies selected? Does the greening rate meet the standards? Li Guoshu responded to each question one by one, without beating around the bush or arguing, focusing on data and commitments in every sentence.

After the interview, she put away the microphone and nodded to him.

Li Guoshu didn't linger, only saying, "Reporter Wang, you've worked hard. We'll invite you back another day when the construction site is topped out."

His tone was casual, as if he were speaking to any other visitor.

As Wang Tingxi turned around, her fingertips unconsciously dug into her palm.

The sun was shining brightly, causing beads of sweat to appear on her forehead.

"Comrade Wang Tingxi, please wait a moment—um… I'd like to invite you to a simple meal. Would you do me the honor?"

Li Guoshu stood at the corner of the corridor, his hands slightly tucked into his pockets, his shoulders slightly tense, his tone carrying a hint of tentative politeness, yet also a barely perceptible unease.

After all, he had indeed taken advantage of her body a few months ago, and he had been carrying a heavy burden of guilt ever since.

Wang Tingxi, who had already turned to leave, paused upon hearing this. She glanced down at her watch—she had come to Shanghai TV station specifically for an in-depth interview, but she hadn't collected all the materials, hadn't thoroughly asked several key questions, and her draft wouldn't be solid enough to submit. After a moment's thought, she nodded: "Okay, but we need to hurry, I have two recording sessions this afternoon."

The two chose a private room on the second floor of the Holiday Inn, which was nearby. Li Guoshu was thinking of making amends, so he carefully looked through the menu and ordered steamed shad, crab roe tofu, braised eel in sizzling oil, poached chicken... The table was full of cold dishes and hot dishes, and he also ordered two bottles of wine: one Cabernet Sauvignon and one Erguotou.

He picked up his small porcelain cup and took a sip of baijiu, his Adam's apple bobbing slightly; Wang Tingxi, on the other hand, sipped red wine lightly from his stemmed glass, his fingertips swirling gently around the rim.

"Mr. Li is a native of Beijing, so why did he come to Shanghai to settle down?" she asked casually, picking up a piece of dried bamboo shoot with her chopsticks.

Li Guoshu's brows were relaxed, but his demeanor was unlike that of an ordinary young man—he spoke with tact and his every move exuded a calm composure, clearly not raised in a humble family. But the capital was so vast; his connections, resources, and familiar circles were all there. Why travel thousands of miles to start anew in this unfamiliar place? Just the fact that he remembered his hotel room number better than his own house number showed that he truly had no place to stay here.

"My older brother has already established himself in Beijing and his business is all set up. If I try to squeeze in, I'll just run into them sooner or later." He put down his chopsticks, smiled, and said, "It's better to open my own stall and have some peace and quiet."

"Oh..." Wang Tingxi responded without pressing further. But inwardly, she felt the words were too frivolous—there are thousands of industries in the capital; how easy is it to fall into the same trap?

After a few rounds of drinks, the conversation relaxed. Li Guoshu suddenly remembered something and asked, "Was there any investigation into that matter from last time?"

Wang Tingxi paused in her glass, the wine swirling in her hand. She didn't answer, but tilted her head back and downed the remaining half of the red wine, then refilled it. Her voice was a little louder than before: "Investigate? They investigated pretty quickly—as soon as I reported it, someone at the station held a meeting overnight, and the next day they labeled me, saying I 'used my position to engage in power-for-sex transactions.'" She sneered, "They didn't even change the foreign businessman's name; they just stuffed my name into his confession."

Li Guoshu didn't say anything, but silently poured her some more wine.

She continued, "I asked someone to check the surveillance footage and review the signed reports. In the end, even the Municipal Commission for Discipline Inspection got involved. The people were dismissed, the station director was transferred, the foreign businessmen were repatriated, and even the two deputy directors who handled the case were suspended from their posts."

At this point, her eyes glazed over, the alcohol taking effect, her cheeks flushed, and her speech became sluggish. Seeing her legs tremble as she tried to stand up, Li Guoshu quickly reached out to help her. She didn't push him away, only mumbling a "thank you," her voice as soft as a feather falling to the ground.

On the way back to the hotel, she leaned back in the seat with her eyes closed, her breathing even and deep. Li Guoshu helped her into the room he had booked and took off her high heels—her ankles were slender, her skin was so white it seemed to glow, and the insteps of her feet were slightly pink. He stood by the bed without moving, his fingers hovering in mid-air before slowly retracting them.

It felt like two shadows were tug-of-war in my mind.

A woman in a white coat spoke in a clear voice: "She drank so much because she trusted you; you can't betray that trust."

Another man, dressed in black, chuckled lazily: "Believe it? You'd only be drunk if you believed it. You're already lying here, what are you pretending to be, playing the saint?"

She didn't mean that.

"Then why didn't she stop you from coming in? Why didn't she call for help? Why didn't she slap you?"

"..."

"Go for it, it's not like it's the first time."

Li Guoshu closed his eyes, his Adam's apple bobbed, and finally leaned down to gently pull the blanket over her shoulders.

The next morning, as soon as the sunlight streamed through the window, Wang Tingxi woke up. She immediately noticed the coat draped over the chair by the bed, then glanced at the slippers scattered by the bathroom door—they were the ones she had worn the day before. She didn't say anything, only gave Li Guoshu a cold stare, grabbed her bag and coat from the sofa, and quickly slipped into the bathroom, locking the door with a "click."

Li Guoshu sat on the edge of the bed, his fingers unconsciously picking at the corner of the sheet, his heart pounding in his chest. Only when he heard the sound of water did he quietly breathe a sigh of relief—no violence, no slamming of the door, better than last time.

A few minutes later, Wang Tingxi came out. Her hair was wet and tied back, her face was bare of makeup, her lips were pale, but her eyes were sharp as knives.

"Men are all the same." She smirked. "They talk a good game, but none of them are clean."

"It really wasn't intentional... I drank too much last night too." Li Guoshu lowered his head and rubbed his knuckles, his voice very low, "But it was my fault, I shouldn't have let you drink so much."

She looked up at him, then suddenly scoffed, "Drunk? Who's going to help me upstairs? Who's going to unbutton my clothes? Who's going to carry me to bed?" She paused, then said, slowly and deliberately, "You're so drunk you've forgotten your own name, how could you possibly do those things?"

Li Guoshu opened his mouth, but couldn't say anything.

"Goodbye." She picked up her bag and turned around, then added, "No, I mean let's never meet again."

The moment the door closed, he was left alone in the corridor. He rubbed his temples and sighed.

"If only I had just held back..."

He shook his head and gave a self-deprecating laugh. It's understandable, really—at twenty-three, hot-blooded and restless, having already tasted success, how could he truly hold onto it?

After washing his face and shaving his beard, he changed into a gray shirt and went to the newly built refrigerator assembly plant.

The factory covers 30 acres, with towering steel frames and glass curtain walls that let in natural light. The interior is already equipped with production lines. Over the past three months, they've visited more than 300 customers door-to-door, and the feedback has been consistent: fast cooling, low noise, energy saving, and minimal repairs. With a strong reputation built, expanding production has become the top priority.

This factory has a designed monthly production capacity of 1,000 units. However, the market is currently only in five provinces in North China. After discussing it, Li Guoshu and Li Jiayu decided to first recruit enough workers to produce 500 units per day, and then add more workers as orders increase.

Five hundred units, with a gross profit of five hundred yuan per unit, bring in two hundred and fifty thousand yuan per month; that adds up to a net profit of seven million five hundred thousand yuan per month and an annual profit approaching ninety million yuan.

"Young Master Guoshu, you've arrived!"

Factory director Gu Aiye came out to greet them. He was in his forties, with a round face and broad shoulders. His sleeves were rolled up to his forearms, and he was clutching half a blueprint in his hand. He was the son of Li Wenguo's old bodyguard and had been transferred from Beijing three months ago. Li Guoxian had personally selected him—the factory had an annual turnover of nearly 100 million yuan, and neither the Li family father nor any other dared to entrust it to anyone else.

"Don't call me 'Young Master'," Li Guoshu waved his hand. "Call me General Manager Li, or Boss Li, it's fine."

"Hehe, in private..." Gu Aiye scratched the back of his head and laughed heartily, "I just got used to calling you that." He paused, then lowered his voice, "By the way, the TV station called again this morning, saying they want to do a special interview with you, and asked when it would be convenient for you to record your statement."