I feel right at home in the world of the courtyard house.

Qin Huairu hurriedly finished the last two bites of rice, put the bowl on the table, and called out:

"mom!"

Hearing this from inside the room, Madam Jia responded through the window:

"What's wrong?"

"The bowls are here; you can wash them along with the pot in a bit. I'll go hang up the sheets I washed for Li Jing'an's family yesterday."

"Don't worry about the sheets, I'll hang them up myself after I wash the dishes," Jia Zhangshi quickly advised. "You should hurry up and go to work. I just ran into Xu Damao; he'd already ridden away on his bike."

"Mom, it's still early. Xu Damao is trying his best to impress everyone; he arrives earlier than anyone else every day."

"Why is he going so early? Who is he showing up for?" Madam Jia Zhang couldn't figure it out either.

"Who else could it be given to? Li Jing'an, of course," Qin Huairu chuckled. "When he arrived at the guesthouse, he didn't bother with anything else. He just waited at the entrance, insisting on seeing Li Jing'an before he would go about his business."

"Really? This kid's got a sharp mind."

Madam Jia didn't mean to look down on her; people of her generation just thought it was a sign of being good at handling things.

Qin Huairu got up and brought out a large basin containing the bed sheets and blankets she had brought back from Li Jing'an's house yesterday. Not wanting to disturb the couple's rest, she took them back to her own home to wash in the courtyard.

Lately, whenever Li Jing'an and Wei Jialing are home, Qin Huairu goes over almost every night to help tidy up.

She felt a vague unease—Li Jing'an hadn't been contacting her much lately, which made her feel more threatened.

She was determined to cling tightly to Wei Jialing's leg.

She knew very well that even if Li Jing'an no longer needed her in the future, as long as she had a strong enough relationship with Wei Jialing, her position at the guesthouse would remain as secure as a rock.

……

In the morning, in the guesthouse director's office.

Li Jing'an sat at his desk, holding a stack of photos, a smile on his face, carefully examining each one. The waitresses in the photos were all pleasing to his eye; in the pictures, the waitresses held confessions, their expressions varying.

As he flipped through the pages, he couldn't help but click his tongue softly and mutter a few comments.

Putting down the photos, Li Jing'an suddenly felt a soreness in his lower back. He rubbed it, thinking to himself, "No, even with my excellent physical condition, I can't withstand this kind of intense exertion. I remember a great man once said, 'Health is the foundation of revolution,' and that's absolutely true. It seems I must start taking care of my health. My revolutionary cause is far from over; I can't afford to let my body fail me."

After the thought crossed his mind, he picked up the photo again and continued to examine it closely.

"Knock knock—", a knock sounded on the door. Li Jing'an quickly tucked the photos into the drawer, cleared her throat, and said, "Come in."

The door was gently pushed open, and Old Huang humbly poked his head in: "Chief, did you call me?"

"Hehe, Lao Huang, come in, come in and sit down." Li Jing'an pointed to the sofa opposite him, his smile gentle. "Nothing much, just wanted to chat with you."

Li Jing'an picked up the cigarette pack on the table, took out one, and handed it to Lao Huang. Lao Huang quickly walked to the desk, respectfully accepted the cigarette with both hands, but didn't dare to sit on the sofa, remaining standing properly in front of the desk.

Li Jing'an was quite satisfied with Lao Huang's attitude. He slowly exhaled a puff of smoke and said:

"Old Huang, I've started to consider you one of my own. From now on, you'd better do your job well."

Old Huang immediately bowed and nodded, repeatedly scraping back and agreeing, expressing his loyalty to Li Jing'an.

Li Jing'an chuckled: "Go today and change these people on the list."

As he spoke, he picked up a piece of paper from the table and handed it to Old Huang. Old Huang took it with both hands, quickly glanced at it, and saw it was filled with names of key personnel and squad leaders left behind by the previous guesthouse. He looked up at Li Jing'an's still-gentle smile and quickly replied:

"Yes, Director, I'll take care of it right away."

"Okay, okay." Li Jing'an nodded, pointing to the note, "I've written down the candidates for replacements here. Just follow the instructions. Also, I'll give you something else."

He then pulled out a few more papers from the drawer and handed them to Lao Huang. Lao Huang instinctively wanted to look at them on the spot, but Li Jing'an quickly raised his hand to interrupt him:

"Old Huang, you can look at it after you go downstairs. Go out now and get on with your work."

"Yes, yes, yes! Then you go ahead and do your thing, I'll get right on it!"

Old Huang quickly acknowledged and left the office.

As soon as he stepped outside, he looked down at the few sheets of paper in his hand with a puzzled expression. He only glanced at the beginning of the paper before his face changed instantly.

These sheets of paper are all materials used to report him.

Old Huang sighed with a wry smile. He instantly understood what Li Jing'an meant—this was revealing his hand while also giving him a way out: as long as he honestly acted as one of their own, these things would never be exposed.

He glanced at the contents of the paper again; most of it was unfounded and baseless. But in this world, rumors can be deceiving, and it's hard to distinguish truth from falsehood. If someone insists it was you, no matter how you try to explain, it will be futile.

Old Huang sighed softly, carefully folded the letter of complaint, and put it into the inside pocket of his clothes.

These things are not important. If Li Jing'an really wanted to mess with him, he could get as many copies of these materials as he wanted.

His already hunched back became even more stooped.

He had thought that under the previous director he was merely marginalized and could manage, but who would have thought that after Li Jing'an arrived, his situation would become even more difficult. Lately, he has been extremely cautious and prudent, living as if walking on thin ice.

Looking at the end of the corridor, Old Huang could only think: "Sigh, these days are really tough."

Old Huang was startled and looked around nervously.

In his office, Li Jing'an picked up the phone: "Hello, is this the catering department? Have Zhou Yufei come to me. ...Really? Okay, let her know when she gets back."

He hung up the phone after saying that.

At this moment, Zhou Yufei was sitting in the corridor of the maternal and child health hospital, feeling uneasy.

The door to an examination room opened, and the doctor called out, holding out a form:

"Comrade Zhou Yufei! Has Comrade Zhou Yufei arrived yet?"

Zhou Yufei, who had been lost in thought, suddenly snapped back to reality and quickly stood up, replying, "Yes, yes!"

"Okay, come in with me."

As the doctor walked along, he glanced at her medical records and casually asked:

"I see you've only had your IUD for a short time, why are you already thinking about removing it? Is there pressure from your family? Does your husband disagree, or does your mother-in-law have objections?"

Faced with the doctor's barrage of questions, Zhou Yufei didn't say much, only giving vague answers.

She had made up her mind long ago to come this time.

She had to secure her own future, and even if Li Jing'an's wife, Wei Jialing, found out in the future, she didn't care about that anymore.