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

Li Jing'an sat in his office, legs crossed, a cigarette dangling from his lips. Through the swirling smoke, he squinted and pondered: "These days, almost all the well-known collectors on the ground have been thoroughly plundered. How much have I even gotten? In the end, there aren't many truly rare treasures among private collectors anyway."

Zhao Wenguang, the guy from the antique shop, is basically useless now; everyone he knew has been taken advantage of. Li Jing'an was thinking about how to fulfill his promise to Zhao Wenguang—he had patted his chest and said he would pick a position for one of the "revolutionary committee members" in their system.

But as soon as the thought crossed his mind, he felt a toothache. The antique shops in Liulichang didn't even have any revolutionary committees. The shops were closed, and everyone had left. Whose committee could they be revolutionary?

He frowned, his fingers tapping unconsciously on the table. Lost in thought, his eyes suddenly lit up—even though the shop was closed, weren't all the old antiques still locked in the warehouse? Weren't they all "old things"? Could I… perhaps get a piece of the pie?

The thought, once it crossed his mind, was like a match thrown into an oil drum. Li Jing'an's eyes grew brighter and brighter, and the corners of his mouth slowly turned up. He suddenly sat up straight, not even bothering to brush off the cigarette ash that fell onto his trouser leg: If that's the case, why should I keep staring at the antique shop? The things in the antique shop aren't even the best.

Then why don't I just go to... the best place? The Palace Museum! Damn, even getting a couple of items from there would be way better than the whole antique shop, right? Yeah, yeah, yeah!

He grew more and more excited as he thought about it. He stood up and paced back and forth in the office, a cigarette dangling from his lips. "Let's do it. I still have people on my side," he muttered to himself.

The guesthouse was always full of young revolutionaries who came to make connections. They couldn't just freeload here, could they? I'm supporting you, so you have to do something for me.

These young revolutionaries came in batches, left in batches, and then came in batches again—some were specially recruited by Li Jing'an, and others came because of his reputation. Word spread, and more and more people gathered. The First Guesthouse is now basically no longer open to the public. Apart from reserving a few suites for its own use, the rest are all occupied by the revolutionary young revolutionaries who are making connections.

"We need to resolve Zhao Wenguang's matter first." Li Jing'an sat back down in his chair, stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray, and crushed it forcefully. "After all, I promised him, and I can't go back on my word. I, Li Jing'an, am not that kind of person."

But then again, Zhao Wenguang worked in the antique shop for so many years, how could he not have some stuff at home? Besides, with all this time of house raids and confiscating things, could he really remain unmoved by the good stuff he saw? Is he really that clean?

Li Jing'an narrowed his eyes, a faint smile appearing at the corner of his mouth. He reached for the phone on his desk and shook it a few times.

"Hey, connect me to the Workers' Propaganda Team."

After waiting a while, a voice came from the other end of the microphone.

"Hey? Liu Haizhong, it's me. Yes, there's something I need you to do. Someone anonymously reported that Master Zhao Wenguang has a large number of 'Four Olds' items at home, and that during the period when he was cooperating with you on the 'Critique of the Old,' he embezzled some of the 'Four Olds' items and illegally took them home for his own use."

He paused, his tone suddenly softening, and he smiled, "I know, I know, of course I trust you. I know how loyal you are to me. I don't doubt anything about you, so you can rest assured."

"I need you to go immediately and check on Master Zhao's house. If there's nothing there, wouldn't that prove Master Zhao's stance is firm? We should even apply for a large reward for him. But if there are any prohibited items at home... then don't hold back. In this great upheaval, he still dares to defy the wind and hide the Four Olds. We must make an example of him to deter others and stop this evil trend. Most importantly, don't let him talk nonsense, understand? Okay, go, don't waste time, strike immediately. That's all."

The phone clicked off. Li Jing'an leaned back in his chair, the smile slowly fading from his lips. He looked down at the ashtray on the table and muttered softly, "Master Zhao, if you're innocent, then I'll definitely keep my promise. But if you're not clean... then I'm sorry. This isn't about me breaking the contract, so don't blame me."

He suddenly straightened up again, picked up the phone once more, and a meaningful smile returned to his lips.

"Hello, connect me to the work group—Xu Damao."

"Hey, Da Mao, I have a task for you. You need to secretly investigate Liu Haizhong from the Workers' Propaganda Team. In this campaign to criticize, clean up, and confiscate the 'Four Olds,' did he secretly line his own pockets, accept bribes, or pull strings? If so, write it down for me secretly. Don't make a fuss, don't alert him, just report it to me quietly."

He paused, his tone becoming even more candid: "Yes, I haven't had much contact with Liu Haizhong these past few years. Unlike you, you've worked for me for so long, I trust you unconditionally. But I'm not sure what kind of person Liu Haizhong is. So I'm asking you to investigate. Just report back to me if you find anything."

After hanging up the phone, Li Jing'an let out a long sigh, leaned back in his chair, and closed his eyes for a while.

-

The next day, Li Jing'an sat in his office chair with a gloomy expression, his face as dark as if it were about to rain.

Last night, he made a special trip to the guesthouse to talk to the leaders of several young revolutionaries about their ideas regarding the "Four Olds" in the museum. The young revolutionaries were initially very enthusiastic and excited, clamoring to do it. He thought he was about to succeed and was feeling quite pleased with himself, but then someone poured cold water on his enthusiasm.

A well-informed young officer told him that this idea wasn't his original thought at all. Someone had already considered it a few days earlier and even attempted to implement it, though unsuccessfully. Upon learning of this, the central government immediately dispatched a garrison to protect the museum.

After hearing this, Li Jing'an felt completely drained and remained speechless for a long time.

"Damn it..." he muttered under his breath, stubbing out his cigarette in the ashtray. "What a waste of time."

The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. If it stayed in the museum, someone might embezzle it and swap it for a genuine article later. It was better for it to fall into his hands and be "kept safe." What a pity, such a waste.

Just as he was lost in thought, the phone on the table suddenly rang.

Li Jing'an lazily picked up the microphone and held it to his ear: "Hey?" After a few words were said on the other end, he responded expressionlessly, "Okay, let her in."