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

"Bang!"

In the large conference room of the mining area's office building, Li Jing'an slammed his fist heavily on the conference table, making the teacup lids clink. Everyone in the room fell silent, not daring to even breathe.

Li Jing'an's gaze sharpened as he slowly scanned the area, then his anger turned into a mocking laugh: "Fine, fine! Not only has the new production line been scrapped, but the gold in the warehouse has also vanished? What exactly happened? Explain yourself!"

After slamming his hand on the table, he rhythmically tapped the surface with his knuckles, producing a chilling "thump-thump" sound. Everyone remained silent. Old Hu looked around and, seeing that neither the prefectural committee nor the military sub-district was willing to take on this hot potato, he had no choice but to bite the bullet and step forward.

"Minister, this is what happened. We worked through the night, from last night to early this morning, to tally the figures. These thugs, cornered as they were, deliberately set fire to the new production line. Also, the 50 kilograms of gold produced in the first half of the month and stored in the warehouse couldn't be transported out in time because they had control of the mine. They all ended up in their hands. When we took inventory today, we discovered that all of this gold had vanished."

"Investigate! We must get to the bottom of this!" Li Jing'an interrupted angrily. "The country is in such dire straits, and these production lines, bought with precious foreign exchange, are destroyed just like that! And the gold has been embezzled! These conspirators, under the guise of the working class, slander others as the bourgeoisie, and they've already reached into the warehouses—it's utterly heinous! Go, ransack their house, turn it upside down, dig three feet into the ground, and find all the gold!"

"Yes, yes, Minister, I'll make the arrangements immediately. We won't let anyone get away with this!" Old Hu quickly replied, then cautiously added, "Fortunately, the old production line wasn't damaged, and production can still continue."

"Is this some good news? Forget about production now, you must get to the bottom of this! The ringleader has committed suicide out of guilt, but those who followed suit must be exposed by the masses. Anyone involved must be brought to justice; we can't let them get away with this!"

Li Jing'an, still furious, turned to Lao Hu and asked, "By the way, didn't you just say you had something important to report?"

Old Hu suddenly realized: "Yes, yes, Minister. I just received news that several other mining companies that caused trouble in the area have changed their ways after hearing the news. The original leadership teams who were under house arrest have all been released and have taken back control of the companies."

"Hmm? That's a good thing, saves us some trouble." Li Jing'an then leisurely lit a cigarette and asked, "What about those people from the original Revolutionary Committee?"

"They have all been taken into custody and are awaiting further instructions."

Li Jing'an nodded, making the final decision: "In that case, let's get started on the cleanup work and get everything sorted out."

On the mining area square, someone on the platform was loudly announcing policy through a megaphone: "...Regarding the recent conspiracy by former Revolutionary Committee members to subvert the government, restrict the original factory leadership, and cause significant losses to the enterprise, some of their henchmen are still hiding among the workers. We hope everyone will actively report such activities to bring these criminals to justice! Furthermore, some people have taken advantage of the situation to loot, and a large amount of gold has been stolen from the warehouse. If anyone has any information, please report it. If anyone repents and voluntarily confesses or surrenders the illegally obtained gold, the government will decide to treat them leniently, reducing or exempting them from punishment..."

The crowd below the stage buzzed with discussion.

"Hey, Old Song, did you hear that? They've hidden all the gold! They're incredibly audacious!"

Old Song, however, was clearly distracted, his eyes constantly glancing towards the edge of the meeting hall. People were being pulled away from the crowd by armed soldiers; they were clearly the "escaped fugitives" mentioned on stage. He felt uneasy and could only manage a forced smile at his coworkers: "Yeah, yeah, that's too daring."

Noticing his odd expression, his coworker asked curiously, "What's wrong, Lao Song? What are you thinking about?"

"Sigh, I have some things to take care of at home, and I'm still thinking about this..."

"Song X!" A voice came from behind.

Old Song turned around with difficulty and saw a man in cadre uniform holding a list standing behind him, with a soldier carrying a gun beside him. His face turned pale.

"Is that you? Did you join the militia in the mining area?"

Old Song stood up shakily, forcing a smile that looked more like a grimace. His hands trembled, and he began to stammer, "Yes, yes, it's me. But I used to be in the militia, but I left long ago after they came to power! I have nothing to do with them!"

"Whether it matters or not is not up to you to decide. Come with us. After the investigation, we'll know if you're innocent or not."

People were being taken away from the venue from time to time, and the family area was not spared either.

With a loud bang, the door of a house was flung open, and several people rushed in. The leader waved his hand and shouted, "Search!"

A woman rushed forward, not daring to stop them, but anxiously asked, "What's wrong? What's wrong?"

The leader stared at her: "I forgot to tell you, your family has been exposed. Your whole family will be coming with me soon. Your husband joined a conspiracy group organized by the former Revolutionary Committee, and he was a key member! Furthermore, the gold in the mine has been divided up by you people. I'll give you a lenient opportunity; as long as you hand over the gold, I'll report it truthfully in the report. This will benefit both your family and your husband."

"What gold? I don't know anything about it! Our boss has never taken any gold from the mine, and he's not even a key member. He's just the leader of a small group, and he can't talk to them at all!" The man panicked completely and stammered as he explained.

The leader's face darkened, and he was about to lash out when his subordinate came out of the bedroom, holding a small handkerchief. Opening it, they found a small packet of gold dust.

"Hehehe, Captain, we've made some gains."

The leader chuckled, took it, and waved it in front of the woman: "What else is there to say?"

"That's not true! This was saved by my father-in-law; it has absolutely nothing to do with my husband!"

"If you won't listen to reason, you'll have to suffer the consequences." The leader looked at the panicked woman who was still trying to explain, and simply waved her away.

The streets were bustling with activity, and trucks lined the roadside. Groups of people were called out of their homes and, under the escort of armed men, climbed onto the trucks. Chaos erupted; adults cried and children screamed. Some stubbornly refused to move, squatting on the ground, but were quickly subdued after being struck with the butts of two rifles; no one dared to delay any longer.