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

In a large courtyard on the street corner, the door of a cramped side room was suddenly pushed open, and several students staggered in. The last one slammed the door shut behind him, leaning against the door panel, panting heavily, his chest heaving like a bellows. Only heavy breathing could be heard in the room, making it hard to breathe.

After a long while, suppressed sobs came from the corner. A girl huddled against the wall, her hands covering her face, her shoulders shaking: "Waaah... Xiaolin was shot..."

"What?!" A tall boy turned around abruptly, his face turning deathly pale. "Xiao Lin was shot? When did that happen? Is he alright?"

The girl just shook her head frantically, tears welling up between her fingers: "Blood...so much blood...I'm trying to cover it with my hands, but I can't stop it..."

boom!

Another young man slammed his fist on the table, sending the enamel mug soaring high into the air before crashing to the dirt floor and rolling twice. His eyes red, he hissed, "Where did these people come from?! They're ruthless! They're here to kill! They shoot if you don't obey, without even giving you a chance to explain!"

Xiao Cui, huddled in the shadows in the corner, his lips trembling, finally managed to squeeze out, "I'm sorry..."

The room was small, and though his voice was low, it carried clearly to everyone's ears. No one responded. After a few moments of silence, he repeated, "I'm sorry..."

He never expected things to turn out this way. Before, this group of students was always on their toes, never suffering such a huge loss. Even when they encountered other rebel groups, they could fight them to a standstill.

But this group of people was different—they came with a purpose. Without saying a word, they smashed the butts of their rifles, aiming straight for the head. If anyone dared to struggle, they would simply pull the bolt. He personally witnessed several people being shot and falling to the ground; that image still lingered in his mind, and he couldn't shake it off.

"Alright! Stop crying! Quiet down!" The guy who slammed the table spoke again; it seemed everyone followed him. He glanced at the crowd. "The most important thing now is to find a way back to school. As long as we're back, we still have classmates, and we can regroup. We'll get our revenge sooner or later!"

Unbeknownst to them, a shifty-eyed young man slipped out of the courtyard, hugging the wall as he went, glancing back as he went. He then turned into the depths of the alley and ran away.

"Director Li! We've found them!" A young man from the security team ran up to Li Jing'an. "Those student leaders are all huddled in a side room of the courtyard! Team Leader Gou and the others have already surrounded them!"

Li Jing'an flicked the half-smoked cigarette butt onto the ground and ground it with the sole of his shoe: "Let's go take a look."

Dozens of people had gathered at the entrance of the courtyard. Team Leader Gou stood at the front, hands on his hips, pretending to direct the defenses. The propaganda team leader squatted against the wall, whispering something to several informants.

Upon seeing Li Jing'an arrive, Team Leader Gou quickly stepped forward, his face stern, and said in a serious tone, "Director Li, some concerned citizens have reported that the ringleaders are in the house at the east end of the courtyard. I was worried they might have weapons, so I surrounded them and am currently trying to persuade them to surrender. If they don't surrender, we can launch a full-scale attack later."

As he spoke, he puffed out his chest, adopting an air of shrewdness and confidence.

Li Jing'an stared at him for two seconds, then suddenly scoffed, "What are you trying to persuade them to surrender for? Why are you wasting your breath talking to them?"

Team Leader Gou was stunned, his face frozen in place.

"What weapons do they have?" Li Jing'an's voice wasn't loud, but every word was firm and decisive. "Charge straight in! Anyone who resists, shoot them on the spot!"

Team Leader Gou, having been rebuffed, awkwardly wiped his face and turned to a team member beside him, yelling, "Didn't you hear Director Li's words?! Take the men and launch a direct assault! Once inside, beat down anyone standing, beat them until they dare not move!"

The team member nodded, waved his hand, pointed to a group of people, and charged into the courtyard with their guns in hand.

The door to the side room in the courtyard was kicked open, and chaos erupted inside—shoutings, the sound of tables and chairs overturning, and muffled groans mingled together, only to be quickly drowned out by a few short gunshots.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

While chaos reigned on this side, at the other end of the street, Li Hongying was leading the militia from the steel rolling mill, escorting several people towards them.

The group of people, some old and some young, were bound with ropes, their heads bowed, their faces covered in bruises. Li Hongying walked at the front, chin held high, swinging a leather belt as she went, cursing, "You shameless bastards! I was giving you face by discussing exchanging houses with you! You wouldn't listen to reason, now you know who I am, right? Don't come crying to me when we get to the Revolutionary Committee!"

Just as she was about to lead the person outside, a middle-aged woman suddenly emerged from a nearby alley, looked around, and stealthily approached her, whispering, "Hongying, I have something to tell you."

Li Hongying glanced at her sideways, recognizing her as a neighbor in her courtyard, and didn't even bother to lift her eyelids: "Spit it out." Clearly, she didn't take the visitor seriously and wasn't polite at all.

The woman's previously ingratiating smile froze for a moment, her face turning pale and then red, but she quickly regained her composure, as if she hadn't heard the harsh words: "Oh, Hongying, I really have something to say! Old Zhang's wife in our compound was saying bad things about you to my face this morning. I didn't want to listen, but she insisted on telling me—saying your brother isn't any better, and that it's a pity the rebels didn't bring him down… Oh dear, there were many other nasty things she said, I'm too embarrassed to repeat them to you…"

Li Hongying's face gradually darkened, her lips twitched, and she replied with a forced smile, "Really? Then I should thank you."

Upon hearing this, the woman's eyes lit up immediately: "No need, no need! We've lived in the same courtyard for so many years, it's not polite to say such things! I only came to tell you this because I genuinely feel we get along well!"

Li Hongying didn't reply, but turned to the steel mill workers behind her and coldly ordered, "Send a few men to take them over first. The rest, come with me."

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

In the time it takes to smoke half a cigarette.

At the entrance of the courtyard, the young man who had led the way in rushed out to report, "Director Li... the place is completely under control. Four men and one woman in total, all of them have been apprehended."

"No resistance?" Li Jing'an asked, a cigarette dangling from his lips, his eyes narrowed.

"They resisted, but we subdued them all."

"What are the casualties?" Li Jing'an flicked his cigarette ash.

The young man paused, clearly not understanding who he was asking: "Director Li...our people are alright."

"I'm asking you, how many of them died? Is the one surnamed Cui still alive?"

The young man scratched the back of his head and stammered, "Um...they're all injured, but...they should be alright, right..."

Li Jing'an took the cigarette out of his mouth and snorted, "Fool. You dare to report this without even figuring things out?" He turned and shouted, "Xiao Gou! Go in and see! See how that guy surnamed Cui is doing!"

Team Leader Gou rolled up his sleeves and went into the yard without saying a word.

About two or three minutes later, he returned and stood in front of Li Jing'an, his voice low: "Director Li, the investigation is complete. One dead and four injured. That guy surnamed Cui... resisted too fiercely, and when he was subdued, he fell and hit his head on the corner of the table. He died on the spot."

"knew."