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

At the entrance of the guesthouse, Xu Damao quickly ran over and opened the car door. Li Jing'an got out of the back seat, straightened his collar, glanced at Xu Damao, and frowned slightly.

"Da Mao, what happened yesterday? Why didn't you come to work? You didn't even ask for leave. Even though we're family, what will others think? Hmm?" Li Jing'an's voice was not loud.

Xu Damao's heart tightened. He quickly stepped forward, a sheepish smile plastered on his face. "Hey, Brother Li, I really had something to do yesterday and got held up." He swallowed hard and then recounted the whole story—the day before yesterday, he had dinner with people from the steel mill, and that bastard Sha Zhu had actually tied him up and secretly hidden his underwear. Yesterday, the whole compound was making a scene, almost getting him thrown in jail. At this point, Xu Damao clenched his fists, his eyes blazing with anger. "Brother Li, that Sha Zhu is a real scoundrel! He's trying to kill me!"

After listening, Li Jing'an didn't rush to reply. Instead, he looked Xu Damao up and down a few times, curled his lip, and sighed, "Hey Damao, what are you doing, arguing with a cook? Huh?" He pointed at Xu Damao's chest, "Don't you think about your current status? You're a temporary worker acting as a cadre. At this critical time, what will people think of you if word gets out? Huh? Let me tell you, even if you win against Sha Zhu, what advantage will you gain? Outsiders will think you're using your cadre status to intimidate him. It won't be a glorious victory." Li Jing'an looked at Xu Damao with disappointment, his tone full of impatience.

Xu Damao's face flushed red and then turned pale as he was told this. He quickly lowered his head and smiled apologetically, "Yes, yes, Brother Li, you're right. I don't want to have anything to do with him, but he's always watching me and can't stand to see me doing well." He didn't intend to say anything about how he interfered with Sha Zhu's blind date.

Li Jing'an snorted again, glancing at him sideways: "And what's wrong with you? You can't even control a woman at home? She's a capitalist's daughter, do you think this is the old society?" He got angrier and angrier as he spoke, "You've been with me for so long, how can you be so shameful? Look at your face, there are two bloody marks on it, you're really a piece of trash." After saying that, Li Jing'an shook his head and walked into the guesthouse, his leather shoes clicking on the terrazzo floor.

Xu Damao quickly followed, subconsciously touching the scabs on his face, and hurriedly explained, "Brother Li, she ambushed me. But I didn't suffer any losses; I pinned her down and beat her up!" As he said this, the corners of his mouth unconsciously turned up, and a hint of smugness flashed in his eyes—after all, he was now a substitute worker, and his status was different. His previous fear of Lou Xiao'e had long since vanished, and he thought to himself: I'll definitely teach her a lesson later, let her know who's in charge. So he added, "Brother Li, don't worry, I definitely won't interfere with our guesthouse's affairs anymore. If my wife acts up again, just watch how I deal with her. I'll subdue her in one go. You'll see how I perform."

Li Jing'an didn't even turn his head, scoffing, "Tch, you?" He continued walking straight into the depths of the corridor without stopping. After a few steps, he suddenly waved his hand, as if shooing away flies, "Alright, alright, stop bragging, stop following me, go do your thing. Oh, and while you're at it, call Old Huang over and have him come to my office."

Li Jing'an impatiently shook off this tagalong and pushed open the office door.

Inside the room, secretary Yang Chunjuan was bending over to tidy up the newspapers on the coffee table. Hearing the noise, she straightened up and quickly picked up the thermos to pour him tea.

Li Jing'an glanced at her, thinking to himself: Yang Chunjuan has been working here for three years. To put it nicely, she's familiar with the affairs of the institute; to put it bluntly, there's no one more suitable. But dragging it out any longer can't go on; it's time to replace her.

A short while later, Deputy Director Huang arrived at the office, panting. He stood at the door and knocked first: "Director, you wanted to see me?"

"Old Huang," Li Jing'an leaned back in his chair, tapping his fingers lightly on the table, "go to each department later, talk to the person in charge, and report two typical cases. Then let me know. I'll transfer them out of the guesthouse and free up two positions; I need them."

Deputy Director Huang nodded, didn't ask any further questions, and replied crisply, "Yes, Director, I'll take care of it right away." He then turned and left, closing the door behind him.

Li Jing'an sat alone in his chair, picked up his teacup, took a sip, and silently calculated in his mind: let Lin Wan replace Yang Chunjuan as secretary, and as for Xiao Lin... she can stay in the office as a janitor. He couldn't bear to separate the two sisters, so this arrangement was perfect, a win-win situation.

Another uneventful day passed.

Li Jing'an left work early in the afternoon and went home.

Seeing Wei Jialing still sitting at her dressing table, applying makeup, her son nestled beside her legs, constantly tugging at her clothes, Li Jing'an leaned against the doorframe, his tone slightly impatient: "Jialing, are you done getting ready?"

"No, what's the rush? There's still plenty of time." Wei Jialing didn't even turn her head, carefully applying something in front of the mirror, then added, "Also, could you think of something to bring my parents?"

Li Jing'an pursed his lips and casually said, "Our parents don't lack anything. I took two packets of tea that someone gave me, and they tasted good, so I'll bring them back for Dad." He paused, then suddenly took two steps closer and asked in a low voice, "By the way, do you know why Dad called us home for dinner today? It's not Sunday." He looked a little puzzled.

"I don't know, maybe something happened. He didn't tell me either," Wei Jianing said, swatting away her son's outstretched hand. "Don't mess around!"

Li Jing'an stood there, muttering to himself, "It's like the sun has risen in the west! What's Old Man Wei up to calling me back now?" He had a lot of complaints about his father-in-law—his father-in-law had clearly amassed a considerable network of connections over the years, yet he never proactively introduced them to anyone. He suspected the old man was deliberately saving them for his son, who was in the army and never came back. Wasn't it a waste to leave such connections unused? Was he treating them like treasures, hoping they'd produce offspring? Thinking this, a cold smile crept onto Li Jing'an's lips.

Over the years, he has built relationships with many people at various levels of the city government, all through his own abilities. As for how many of them were there because of his father-in-law… he refuses to admit it.

Seeing Wei Jialing still slowly getting ready, Li Jing'an felt bored and glanced towards the kitchen. Xiao Lin was bending over wiping the stove, her apron tied around her waist, her back view slender. He figured he'd have to wait a while, so he tiptoed over, pushed open the kitchen door, and whispered to Xiao Lin to "communicate feelings."