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

Zhao Lichun, as the director of the General Office of the Ministry of Heavy Industry, stood to the side and behind the podium, a cold glint flashing in his eyes. He subconsciously looked at Lin Yang.

Lin Yang did not get angry. He didn't even change his posture, but simply raised his eyes slightly, his deep and sharp eyes locking onto the American reporter like a hawk.

Upon being met with that gaze, the previously arrogant American reporter suddenly felt a chill run down his spine and instinctively looked away.

Lin Yang leaned closer to the microphone, his deep, resonant voice, carrying an immense sense of power, echoing in every corner of the hall.

"Sir, your question is not only full of ignorance, but also reeks of laughable arrogance."

Lin Yang slowly raised a finger, his tone as sharp as a knife: "First, the Soviet Union unilaterally tore up the agreement back then, withdrew all its experts, and burned most of the core blueprints before leaving. This is an objective fact known worldwide. Our Long March 1 carrier rocket, from the first sketch to the smelting of every piece of high-temperature alloy steel, and then to the engine nozzle, was all designed and forged by the Chinese themselves using abacuses and blast furnaces! We didn't steal or rob; we relied on the backbone of the Chinese people!"

A burst of enthusiastic applause immediately erupted from the Chinese journalists in the audience.

Lin Yang pressed his hands down, and the hall fell silent again.

"Second." Lin Yang's lips curled into a cold smile as his gaze swept across the Western reporters in the front row like a searchlight.

"You say our satellites only play music and have no military value? Well, I'll give you a free lesson in basic strategic knowledge today."

Lin Yang leaned forward slightly and said, enunciating each word clearly, "The Long March 1 carrier rocket can accurately send a satellite weighing 173 kilograms into low Earth orbit. What does this mean? It means that, if we wanted, we could also deliver a nuclear warhead of equal weight to any corner of this planet!"

boom!

This statement was like a bombshell, creating a huge uproar in the press conference room!

The faces of all the Western journalists turned deathly pale instantly, and some even dropped their pens.

They never expected that this Chinese general would so openly reveal his hand in such a public setting, issuing such a strong nuclear deterrent!

Yes! If you can send a satellite into space, you can also drop a nuclear bomb on the enemy's head! This kind of deterrence is simpler, more brutal, and more deadly than any diplomatic protest!

"As for that piece of music..." Lin Yang leaned back in his chair, his eyes radiating boundless domineering power, "It is the pride of us Chinese. From now on, whenever this piece of music resounds in space, those imperialists who harbor ill intentions towards our country had better sleep with one eye open!"

The hall was completely silent. Then, the sound of camera shutters rang out again, like a storm.

The following day, the People's Daily, the PLA Daily, and various internal reference materials all published the full content of the press conference on their front pages.

Lin Yang's half-body photo, dressed in military uniform and exuding a cool and domineering aura, once again spread throughout the country.

"A pillar of the nation, a hero of iron will, who stood up against Western powers and brought glory to our country!"

This was not only a victory for a press conference, but also a tremendous leap in Lin Yang's prestige among the public and the military. His name has become an invincible banner for the industrial and defense forces of the new China.

In the old city of Beijing, in Nanluoguxiang, at No. 95, a courtyard house.

Yan Bugui, wearing his tattered glasses with the legs wrapped in tape, held the day's People's Daily in his hand, his hands trembling like a leaf.

He squatted on his doorstep, looking at Lin Yang's photo in the newspaper over and over again, gasping for breath.

"My God... this second son of the Lin family has really become a god! He even dares to point his finger at the Americans and curse them, and the Americans don't even dare to fart!" Yan Bugui turned to look at the third aunt who was washing clothes, his voice filled with deep despair and awe.

The old woman wrung out her wet clothes, glared at him, and said, "You old fool, are you scared now? Back when Lin Fan first came to our compound, you tripped him up a lot just to steal half a pound of cornmeal. Now Lin Yang could crush our whole compound with a single finger!"

Yan Bugui swallowed hard, then quickly covered the third aunt's mouth in fright: "Are you crazy! How dare you say such nonsense! Haven't you seen who in the courtyard dares to take a single step near the Lin family's main room in the middle courtyard? Even Liu Haizhong, when sweeping the floor, keeps his distance!"

Indeed, although the main house of the Lin family is currently empty, in the eyes of everyone in the courtyard, it is practically an inviolable temple.

Liu Haizhong was just walking out of the backyard carrying a broken broom. His already aged face was now covered with wrinkles, and he was hunched over like a shrimp.

He overheard the conversation between Yan Bugui and his wife, stopped in his tracks, and a complex emotion flashed in his cloudy eyes. There was jealousy, there was regret, but above all, there was a deep-seated fear.

He no longer even has the right to hate. His greatest wish every day is that his superiors will not remember that he once seized power at the steel mill and will not come after him to settle scores.

Inside the building of the Ministry of Heavy Industry.

With the publication of the newspaper, the atmosphere within the ministry underwent a subtle change. Several directors who had previously secretly supported Wu Qiang and tried to trip up Zhao Lichun all rushed to the general office early this morning, fawning over Zhao Lichun with obsequious expressions.

Everyone understood the situation. Lin Yang's position was now as secure as a mountain. Anyone who dared to provoke Lin Yang at this time would be courting death.

But the undercurrents of politics often brew the most deadly whirlpools beneath the calmest surface.

3 PM, Office of the Minister of Heavy Industry.

Lin Yang was sitting behind his desk, reviewing the funding approval reports for the expansion of several arsenals in the Southwest Third Front.

Although his prestige had reached its peak, he did not relax in the slightest. The Soviet Union's million-strong army in the north weighed heavily on his mind. The daily battle reports from the front made him feel the urgency of time.

Bang bang bang!

There was a rapid, frantic knocking on the office door.

"Go in." Lin Yang frowned slightly.

The door was flung open, and He Yuzhu strode in. His face was ashen, and he was breathing rapidly. Behind him followed a young soldier covered in mud and with a blood-soaked bandage wrapped around his left arm.

Lin Yang put down his pen, his eyes instantly turning cold.

"What happened?"

He Yuzhu slammed the office door shut and locked it from the inside.

"Commander, something terrible has happened!" He Yuzhu pointed to the swaying young soldier behind him. "This is Li, the personal bodyguard of Commander Kong Jie of the Northwest Military Region. Commander Kong has been detained in Beijing!"