Courtyard House: From Deputy Division Commander to Civilian, Progressing All the Way

Blood streamed down his cheek, obscuring one of his eyes.

He Yuzhu's arm was also wrapped in a dirty bandage, stained with dark red blood—it was from when he was beaten with an iron rod half an hour earlier on Dongsi South Street while trying to stop a group of rebels who were trying to storm the Dongcheng Branch Bureau.

The Dongcheng branch of the Public Security Bureau is now in complete chaos.

The bureau chief was labeled a "capitalist roader" and locked in a basement. The deputy bureau chiefs each had their own agendas, and no one took charge.

He Yuzhu, the former captain of the criminal investigation team, had a fiery temper and refused to collude with the rebels. Instead, he fought them and fought his way out, risking his life to escape back to the courtyard house.

"Sister-in-law! Sister-in-law! Something terrible has happened!"

He Yuzhu didn't bother wiping the blood off his face or treating his wounds. He staggered into the main room of the Lin family, his voice filled with undisguised anxiety and fear.

Inside the house, Tian Yu was sitting on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), gently patting her five-year-old son, Lin Weidong, in her arms to lull him to sleep.

Lin Fan sat on the chair next to him, his brows furrowed, smoking silently. The ashtray was already overflowing with cigarette butts.

Ever since the news of Lin Yang's arrest began to circulate that morning, they had been on edge.

Upon hearing He Yuzhu's shout, Tian Yu's hand trembled violently, and the enamel teacup in her hand fell to the ground with a "clatter" and shattered. The scalding tea splashed all over her pants, but she was completely unaware.

Lin Weidong, who was in her arms, was so frightened that he burst into tears.

Lin Fan also stood up abruptly, dropping his cigarette to the ground. His voice trembled as he asked, "Zhu Zi? What happened? Is it Yang Zi…? What happened to Yang Zi?"

"Director Lin has been arrested!" He Yuzhu gasped for breath, slapping his thigh in frustration. "I just ran into Old Chen from the ministry at the branch office. He secretly told me that this afternoon, Wu Qiang led several hundred rebels into the minister's office and forcibly took Director Lin away. He's currently locked up in the cowshed in the basement of the Ministry of Heavy Industry! They also said they're going to hold a denunciation meeting tonight and torture Director Lin to death!"

"What?!" Lin Fan felt a sudden darkness before his eyes and almost collapsed to the ground.

He grabbed the table beside him to steady himself, his face ashen. "Are those people crazy?! That's Lin Yang! He's a national hero! A meritorious official who shed blood and risked his life for the new China! How dare they?!"

"Brother, there's no justice left in the world these days!"

He Yuzhu's eyes reddened with anxiety. "Who cares if you're a hero or not? Who cares if you've contributed to the country? Once you're labeled a 'capitalist roader,' you're nothing! Those people are blinded by greed; they'll do anything!"

Just when everything was in a critical moment and everyone was in chaos, Tian Yu suddenly calmed down.

She took a deep breath, gently patted her crying son in her arms, and her eyes became incredibly resolute in an instant.

It was a calmness etched into one's bones after experiencing the baptism of war and witnessing life and death.

She was once the head nurse of a field hospital of the Chinese People's Volunteer Army. On the Korean battlefield, she witnessed the horrific scene of severed limbs flying everywhere and the grief of her comrades dying in her arms. She survived all kinds of storms.

She knew that now was not the time to cry or panic; if she lost her composure, the family would truly collapse.

"Weidong, be good, don't cry, Mommy's here."

Tian Yu gently coaxed her son, handed him to the pale-faced nanny beside her, then looked up and said to He Yuzhu in an unquestionable tone, "Zhuzi, lock the door right now and hold it in place with the door jamb. Even if the King of Heaven himself came, you cannot let anyone into this house today, especially not let anyone take Weidong away."

"Don't worry, sister-in-law!"

He Yuzhu straightened his back abruptly and pulled out the Type 54 pistol he was issued from behind his waist.

With a click, he expertly cocked the gun, his eyes instantly turning fierce. "My life, He Yuzhu's life, was saved by Brother Lin! Even if I die here today, I will absolutely protect you and your daughter! Anyone who dares to take a step forward, I'll shoot them dead!"

After saying that, he strode to the main door and stood guard there like a god of death, his eyes fixed on the gate of the courtyard, his finger tightly on the trigger.

Tian Yu immediately turned around and went into the inner room, locking the door behind her.

She walked to the dusty mahogany chest in the corner, took a brass key from around her neck, inserted it into the lock, and turned it gently.

"Click".

The box was opened.

There was no gold or silver jewelry, no valuables inside, only a black military radio wrapped tightly in red cloth.

This radio had no dial, only a crank and a few simple knobs. It looked old and bulky, but it exuded a solemn and dignified aura.

This was a top-secret communication line that the Central Military Commission specially approved for Lin Yang to retain after he returned from the Korean War.

This line connects directly to the Central Military Commission's operations room and is not subject to the jurisdiction of any local department. It can only be activated when the country is in the most critical situation or when Lin Yang's life is seriously threatened.

Over the years, this radio station has never been touched, and Lin Yang has never even told anyone about its existence, except for Tian Yu.

Tian Yu carefully lifted the red cloth, revealing the radio's cold metal casing.

She took a deep breath, stretched out her slightly trembling but unusually steady hand, grasped the heavy crank handle, and began to crank it vigorously.

"Squeak— Squeak—"

The sound of the crank turning was exceptionally clear in the quiet room, as if it were striking everyone's heart.

Tian Yu's eyes were focused and firm, and her movements were skilled and fluid, as if she had been operating this radio station just yesterday.

She remembered every frequency band and every code clearly. Lin Yang had taught her this all those years ago, saying, "If something happens to me one day, only this radio can save me, and only you can start it."

A few minutes later, the radio's indicator light suddenly lit up, emitting a faint green light.

Immediately afterwards, a noisy electrical hum came from the speaker, mixed with signal interference from afar.

Tian Yu's heart skipped a beat. She picked up the microphone, put it to her lips, and, in a voice that was as steady as possible but trembling slightly, recited the top-secret call sign that only the Central Military Commission's operations room could understand:

"Yangtze River! Yangtze River! I am the Yellow River! I am the Yellow River! Please respond if you hear me! Please respond if you hear me!"

The crackling sound of electricity continued, and time passed by, each second feeling like an eternity.

Tian Yu's palms were sweaty. She gripped the microphone tightly, her eyes fixed on the flashing green light, her mind filled with only one thought: I must get through! I must get through! Lin Yang, you must wait for me!

Outside the window, the slogans of the rebels grew closer and closer, and one could vaguely hear someone shouting, "Ransom the home of Lin Yang, the capitalist roader."

He Yuzhu gripped the gun even tighter, his knuckles turning bluish-white from the force.

In the basement, Zhao Lichun had been beaten unconscious twice and then woken up twice by being splashed with cold water.

But he remained clenched in his teeth, refusing to utter a single word. Wu Qiang was furious, yet utterly helpless.

No one knows when this storm sweeping the nation will end.

But everyone knew that from the moment Tian Yu turned on that military radio, the gears of fate had begun to quietly turn.