Courtyard House: Ten-year-old Master Zhu reorganizes the entire courtyard

The reply to the dead email inbox used to contact the shopkeeper contained only one word.

"approve."

He Yuzhu lit the paper and watched it burn to ashes and fall into the soil.

The first step of the plan has begun.

The ghost market in the western suburbs.

Old Gui was very efficient. He didn't show up himself, but instead found two of his men. One was a seasoned veteran of the casino, and the other was a burly man with a fierce face.

The seasoned veteran entered the Treasure Basin Casino in the south of the city, found the manager with practiced ease, and tossed him half a small yellow croaker.

"I'll accept Li Si's IOU."

The manager weighed the gold in his hand and chuckled. Casino debts, it didn't matter who paid them, as long as someone did. He deftly produced the IOU for fifty silver dollars covered in red handprints.

The transaction is complete.

The next afternoon, the puppet security forces changed shifts at the warehouse.

Sentinel Li Si had just taken off his uniform when a burly man blocked his way in the alley behind the barracks.

"You're Li Si?" The burly man's voice was devoid of any warmth.

Li Si's heart skipped a beat, thinking it was the casino coming to collect debts, but he stubbornly maintained his composure.

"Yes, so what?"

The burly man didn't reply, but took out the IOU from his pocket and waved it in front of him.

Li Si's face turned pale instantly. He recognized the IOU; the red handprint on it looked like a death warrant.

"What...what do you want to do?" His voice trembled.

The burly man spoke.

"My boss bought your debt, which is tantamount to buying your life."

Li Si's legs went weak, and he almost knelt down on the spot. He knew in his heart that these black-market debts, which had changed hands, were far more ruthless than the casino itself demanding repayment. Even chopping off one's hand would be considered lenient.

"Brother! Brother! Please give me a few more days, I promise I will pay you back, I promise I will pay you back!" he pleaded, crying.

"No need," the burly man interrupted him. "My boss will show you the way. If you get this done, the fifty dollars will be wiped clean, and I'll give you another twenty dollars to get out of here."

Li Si was completely stunned, unable to believe his ears.

"Wha...what is it?"

"Draw a diagram of the warehouse's interior, clearly marking the location of supplies and the distribution of sentries." The burly man stared intently into his eyes. "Then, on the day we make our move, your post will be fast asleep, you hear me?"

Li Si's back was instantly soaked with cold sweat. This was fucking a scam—a traitor! If he got caught, he'd lose his head!

"No...no, I can't do that..."

"You don't dare?" the burly man sneered, cracking his knuckles. "Then I'll just have to break your arm first."

He took a step forward, his tall figure blocking the light and casting Li Si entirely in shadow.

The instinct for survival completely overwhelmed the fear. On one hand, there was the prospect of immediate death; on the other, there was at least a way to survive.

"I'll do it!" Li Si practically roared. "I'll do it!"

Three days later, a simple map drawn on scrap paper was handed to He Yuzhu by Lao Gui.

The map was crookedly marked with the locations of the cotton cloth area, the medicine area, the guard barracks, and even the kennels of two wolfhounds.

He Yuzhu studied the map carefully, simulating every detail of the operation in his mind.

To ensure everything went perfectly, he decided to personally go to the vicinity of the warehouse to double-check the surroundings.

Instead of returning to Rongxian Hutong, he took a detour back to Nanluoguxiang first. He needed to retrieve an old item he had hidden away in a corner of the old house—a small German-made telescope that he had seized from a Japanese army orderly.

The courtyard was very quiet.

He had just reached the middle courtyard when the door to the west wing opened.

Yi Zhonghai came out, and as soon as he saw He Yuzhu, his face immediately plastered with a fake smile.

"Hey, Zhu Zi, what brings you back today?"

"Just browsing," He Yuzhu replied casually.

"Are your parents doing well? I heard your dad's a head chef at the Xidan Grand Restaurant, that's a great place." Yi Zhonghai's tone was tinged with sarcasm. Ever since the deaf old lady's property was sold, the He family had completely taken control of the compound, and he felt like an outsider. This feeling of being out of control made him extremely uncomfortable.

"It's fine, no need for you to worry about it." He Yuzhu was too lazy to waste words with him and turned to leave.

"Hey, Zhu Zi, don't be in such a hurry to leave."

Yi Zhonghai quickly stopped him.

"Now that you've made something of yourself, you can't forget your old neighbors in the courtyard. I, your uncle, don't mean anything by it, I just wanted to ask, with your family doing so well now, is it because... you've found some connections?"

His eyes darted around, revealing a hint of greed and calculation.

He Yuzhu sneered inwardly. He knew what Yi Zhonghai was thinking: he wanted to find out about his family's background and see if he could gain some benefits.

"The only way is to work hard and earn a living through your own abilities," He Yuzhu retorted firmly. "Uncle Yi, if you have nothing else, I'll be going now."

After saying that, he ignored Yi Zhonghai and walked straight to his own main house.

Yi Zhonghai stood there, his smile slowly freezing, finally turning into a gloomy expression.

He stared at He Yuzhu's back with resentment in his eyes.

"You little brat, trying to act all high and mighty with me..." he muttered under his breath.

He Yuzhu went inside, quickly found the binoculars, and put them in his pocket. He climbed out of the back window, preparing to leave.

Just as he jumped off the wall and was about to turn into the alley, he caught a glimpse of a familiar figure out of the corner of his eye.

It is Yi Zhonghai.

He was following furtively behind, at a distance of several dozen meters.

He Yuzhu immediately stopped and slipped into a doorway.

Yi Zhonghai didn't notice and continued walking. He reached the alley entrance, looked around, and then quickly walked in one direction.

He Yuzhu frowned.

That direction... is heading towards the police station.

A terrible thought flashed through his mind.

He followed them silently.

Sure enough, Yi Zhonghai stopped at the entrance of the police station, hesitated for only a moment, then gritted his teeth and went inside.

He Yuzhu's heart skipped a beat, and a chill ran up from the soles of his feet.

What's this old man trying to do? Report himself? What evidence could he possibly have?

He has no evidence.

However, doubt itself is deadly enough.

If the police start targeting him and his family because of Yi Zhonghai's report, then the subsequent warehouse operation will be too risky.

He Yuzhu stood in the shadows, staring intently at the police station gate, his eyes icy cold.

The value is already there.

Value is being submerged.

That damned old man with no descendants always manages to cause trouble at the most crucial moments.

He Yuzhu took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the murderous intent in his heart. Now was not the time to make a move against him.

The immediate priority is to complete the mission, and the variable of the police must also be taken into account.

He turned around and quickly disappeared into the shadows of the alley.

Even bigger trouble is on its way.