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

Inside the auditorium of the Ministry of Heavy Industry, the shouts of slogans caused dust to fall from the roof.

A scarlet banner made of coarse cloth was stretched above the stage, its crooked, ink-written characters gleaming coldly under the lights. Below the stage, a group of people wearing red armbands shouted, their faces flushed, and a wave of fervor surged through the auditorium.

Lin Yang was pinned down on a wooden stool in the center of the stage by two burly men, with a heavy cardboard sign hanging around his neck and thick hemp rope digging into his collarbone, leaving bluish-purple marks.

His Zhongshan suit was in disarray, but he kept his back straight, his eyes as cold as a frozen lake, sweeping over the huge crowd below the stage without the slightest fear.

Wu Qiang was still wary of him and dared not touch him in the slightest before Lin Yang confessed.

Zhao Lichun, however, was in a much worse situation. When he was brought up, his already battered body was shoved several times, making him look quite pitiful.

His face was as white as a sheet, and his lips were blistered from biting them, but he stubbornly refused to utter a sound. His hands, hanging at his sides, were clenched into tight fists, his knuckles turning white. He knew that if he showed even the slightest fear at this moment, these people would pounce on him like mad dogs and tear him and Lin Yang to shreds.

Wu Qiang stood on the stage, clutching a metal microphone. His hair was slicked back, and his face betrayed his smugness and excitement. He had waited all these years for this day. As long as he could force Lin Yang to sign a confession and substantiate those fabricated charges, he would finally be in charge of the heavy industry sector.

"Lin Yang! Even now, you still dare to resist!" Wu Qiang took a step forward, spittle flying far and wide amidst the static of the microphone. "I advise you to honestly confess your crimes, to confess to the fact that you and Zhao Lichun's gang suppressed the masses and lined their own pockets! As long as you are willing to sign a confession, the masses may still give you a lenient treatment!"

The crowd immediately erupted in cheers: "Down with the traitors! Confess and you'll be treated leniently; resist and you'll be punished severely!"

Lin Yang's lips curled into a faint, cold smile. His voice wasn't loud, but it carried clearly through the noise: "In my life, I, Lin Yang, have done right by the country and the people. I have nothing to give back to."

"You're asking for it!" Wu Qiang was so embarrassed by the retort that he raised his hand to call for his men to go up and teach Lin Yang another lesson.

At this critical moment, a loud "bang" resounded—

The heavy doors of the auditorium were forcibly smashed open from the outside.

The noisy auditorium fell silent for a moment as everyone instinctively turned to look at the entrance.

The autumn night wind, carrying dust, swept in, making the large-character posters beside the platform rustle loudly. Immediately following was the resounding, rhythmic thud of military boots, deep and powerful, like heavy hammer blows striking everyone's hearts.

A squad of heavily armed People's Liberation Army soldiers, submachine guns at their heels, rushed in and swiftly formed ranks on either side of the auditorium aisle, their rifles slightly lowered. Their well-trained, chilling aura instantly overwhelmed the previous frenzied clamor.

A commotion began to rise in the crowd; some whispered amongst themselves, while others instinctively shrank back. No one had expected the army to simply barge in.

A tall, upright figure, wearing a military green overcoat, strode in.

The man's eyes were as sharp as steel-hardened knives, and he had a half-smoked cigarette dangling from his mouth. He walked with a powerful stride, followed by several guards carrying pistols. His aura was so overwhelming that everyone present felt breathless.

It was Li Yunlong.

Wu Qiang's heart skipped a beat, and a cold sweat instantly broke out on his back. But emboldened by his numerical advantage, he gripped the microphone tightly and shouted, "Who are you! Who gave you permission to bring your troops in! This is a revolutionary rally of the masses! How dare you suppress a mass movement?!"

Li Yunlong completely ignored him, his gaze sweeping across the platform before landing on Lin Yang, who was wearing a sign and looking disheveled. His brows furrowed instantly, and anger flared in his eyes.

He strode to the front of the stage, and when the guard reached out to help him, he slapped him away. His military boots clattered on the wooden steps as he stopped in front of Wu Qiang, glancing down at him with an expression as if he were looking at a grasshopper jumping around.

"I am Li Yunlong!" Li Yunlong's voice wasn't loud, but it carried a chilling aura of someone who had fought countless battles. "Traitor, suppressing the masses? I think you're addicted to labeling people. These two on the stage are cadres appointed by the Ministry of Heavy Industry, one of whom is a hero who risked his life on the Korean battlefield. Who do you think you are, daring to set up your own court here and denounce them?"

"They're traitors, capitalist roaders! They're problematic people!" Wu Qiang shouted, his neck stiff, his hand gripping the microphone trembling. "We're responding to the call to make revolution, it's none of your business!"

"Bullshit!" Li Yunlong cursed, taking a half-step forward, his eyes fierce as if he wanted to devour someone. "While I was fighting the Americans on the 38th parallel, you were probably playing in the mud somewhere! I know Lin Yang a hundred times better than you! If he has any problems, there aren't many clean people left in all of China!"

He pointed to the audience, his voice booming so loudly it made the metal microphone vibrate: "I'm telling you right now, I'm taking Lin Yang and his friend away. Anyone have a problem with that, step forward and talk to me."

Wu Qiang's eyes reddened with anger, and he reached out to stop him: "You can't take him away! He's a traitor! You're disobeying orders! I'm going to report you to higher authorities!"

"Sue me?" Li Yunlong scoffed, glancing sideways at the guard beside him. "Take this bastard who's instigating trouble, setting up his own court, and persecuting state cadres! Bring him back for a thorough interrogation and see who gave him the audacity to arbitrarily target industrial cadres!"

Two guards immediately stepped forward and grabbed Wu Qiang's arms, one on each side. Wu Qiang shouted and struggled, but in the hands of the well-trained soldiers, his strength was like that of a chick. He was quickly pinned down and unable to move, and his shouts turned into frantic curses.

The crowd below looked at each other, no one daring to take a single step forward. The few who had been shouting the loudest just moments before were now shrinking back—they only dared to bully unarmed cadres; if they were really faced with armed soldiers, who would dare to charge forward?

Ignoring the rabble below, Li Yunlong strode over to Lin Yang and reached out to untie the rope around his neck. His fingertips touched the reddened skin, and his brow furrowed even more, but he instinctively softened his movements.

"Old Li, what brings you here?" Lin Yang looked at his old comrade-in-arms, and his shoulders, which had been tense all day, finally relaxed.

"If you don't come soon, these bastards will tear you apart!" Li Yunlong cursed irritably.

He quickly untied the rope, grabbed the hard sign covered in filth, slammed it to the ground, and stomped on it twice. "Yesterday, the old commander personally approved it, saying something had happened to you and ordering me to bring troops over immediately to bail you out. If I had come any later, who knows how much worse suffering you would have endured!"

Zhao Lichun, who was standing next to him, finally breathed a sigh of relief. After being tormented day and night for several days, he suddenly fainted.

"Is this Zhao Lichun?" Li Yunlong stepped forward and straightened Zhao Lichun's injured face, examining him carefully. He nodded, his tone tinged with approval. "He was dozing off! Lin Yang's men are indeed tough guys; they didn't disgrace him. It's good that he's alright. Let's get him in the car first. The medic will be there to treat his wounds."

Lin Yang straightened up, adjusted his collar, and stretched his stiff shoulders. His gaze swept across the silent crowd below the stage, finally landing on Wu Qiang, who was being supported. He didn't say anything, but his eyes were icy cold.

"Let's go. It's not worth getting angry with these bastards." Li Yunlong patted his arm, turned around, and announced loudly to the entire audience, "I've remembered what happened today. From now on, anyone who dares to arbitrarily arrest cadres from the Ministry of Heavy Industry, or who dares to cause trouble in factories and workshops and delay production, will be treated as sabotaging national defense and subjected to military law!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he protected Lin Yang and Zhao Lichun and strode out of the auditorium.

The soldiers lined up on both sides to clear a path, and the crowd automatically parted to make way for them. No one dared to stop them or make a sound.

Stepping out of the auditorium, a night breeze blew in, carrying the chill of late autumn. The sky in the distance was already turning a pale white, and the engines of military trucks hummed softly by the roadside.

Lin Yang looked up at the gray sky, exhaled a long breath, and his eyes became cold and deep again.

The storm sweeping the nation is far from over, and the road ahead remains fraught with peril. But he knows that as long as these old bones who have carried guns and shed blood stand, as long as that spirit in their hearts hasn't dissipated, the sky will not fall.

But the world in Beijing has truly changed.

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