Siheyuan: At the beginning, I can integrate everything!

The bluestone pavement of Nanluoguxiang was frozen solid.

The cold wind, carrying fine snowflakes, cut into people's necks like razor blades.

"Boom—!"

Two military green Liberation trucks, like two crazed steel behemoths, crushed the snow and violently shattered the tranquility of the morning.

The pungent diesel exhaust fumes billowed out, making the old locust tree at the entrance of the alley tremble.

"squeak--"

The ear-piercing sound of brakes cut through the air.

As soon as the first truck came to a stop, the canvas cover at the back of the truck bed was suddenly ripped open.

"Quickly! Line up!"

A hoarse, rough shout reverberated, making one's eardrums ache.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

The heavy military boots slammed onto the icy ground, kicking up plumes of white snow.

Thirty fully armed field soldiers, dressed in grass-green military overcoats, leaped off the vehicle like wolves and tigers.

Wearing a steel helmet, holding a cold Type 56 semi-automatic rifle, the bayonet gleaming with a chilling light.

This group of people carried the smell of gunpowder and blood from the battlefield.

Yan Bugui, his neck hunched, was returning from the supply and marketing cooperative with two wilted cabbages.

He had one hand tucked into his sleeve and the other holding a net bag, humming off-key Peking Opera.

"I'm viewing the mountain scenery from the city tower..."

I just turned into the alley.

"Clatter."

Yan Bugui's legs buckled, and the net in his hand fell directly into the snowdrift.

Two large cabbages rolled out, covered in mud and water, but he didn't even dare to look at them.

The thirty soldiers, each with a bayonet, stood in two rows, like two insurmountable walls of iron, blocking the gate of the Red Star Courtyard.

The dark muzzle of the gun exuded a suffocating sense of oppression.

"This...this is going to be a raid on our home?"

Yan Bugui swallowed hard, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down with difficulty.

His calves cramped, and he leaned against the wall, barely daring to breathe, wishing he could shrink into a crack between the bricks.

In the front yard.

Zhang Huaimin, wearing a thick cotton-padded jacket, was sitting on the doorstep, taking small bites of a hot roasted sweet potato.

The sweet potato skins were roasted until crispy and had a sweet, rich aroma.

Chen Bing stood behind him like an iron tower, his back straight, his right hand habitually resting on the holster.

"Greetings, sir!"

Outside the gate, thirty soldiers stood at attention in unison, their shouts deafening.

"Hahaha! Good! Cheer up, everyone!"

Lin Zhentian, wearing an old military overcoat without rank insignia, strode across the threshold.

His square face was now all wrinkled from smiling, like a blooming autumn chrysanthemum.

"Little Huaimin, Grandpa Lin has come to see you!"

Lin Zhentian walked a few steps to Zhang Huaimin, picked him up, and bounced him twice in mid-air.

The stubble on his chin was so sharp that Zhang Huaimin kept dodging.

"Oh dear, Grandpa Lin, slow down, I'm about to drop the sweet potato."

Zhang Huaimin muttered to himself as he casually peeled off the sweet potato skin that was covered in dust.

"So what if it falls? Grandpa'll have someone bring you a truckload of roasted sweet potatoes later!"

Lin Zhentian waved his hand with boundless pride, his laughter so hearty it could lift the roof off.

"Good grandson, you've really made our military region proud!"

He put Zhang Huaimin down and slapped Chen Bing hard on the shoulder, making Chen Bing stagger.

"I've seen this generator and that little battery."

A glint of fervor flashed in Lin Zhentian's eyes. He lowered his voice, but his tone still couldn't hide his excitement.

"The size of a matchbox, yet it covers a thousand kilometers!"

"If we installed this thing on our tanks, those American lumps of metal wouldn't even be able to escape our exhaust fumes!"

He turned around abruptly and pointed at the thirty fierce-looking warriors outside the door.

"Chen Bing, the security level of your class is not up to par."

Lin Zhentian's eyes sharpened, revealing an undeniable air of authority.

"From today onwards, this entire platoon of elite field soldiers will be under your command!"

"Use both visible and hidden sentries to surround this courtyard like an iron barrel."

"Even a fly that flies in has to go through a sieve first!"

Chen Bing snapped to attention, his eyes gleaming, and roared, "Mission accomplished!"

Lin Zhentian nodded in satisfaction, then squatted down again to look at Zhang Huaimin.

He reached out and touched Zhang Huaimin's soft hair, his eyes becoming extremely complex, showing both doting and awe.

"Huaimin, from now on, in this compound, if anyone dares to raise their voice at you..."

Lin Zhentian snorted coldly and glanced at the eyes peeking through the cracks in the windows.

"These soldiers have the authority to act first and report later without needing to ask for permission!"

"If anyone dares to lay a finger on you, I'll lead my troops to raze their ancestral graves to the ground!"

Upon hearing this, Yan Bugui, who was hiding under the wall, was so frightened that he collapsed onto the snow.

He covered his mouth tightly, afraid that making even the slightest sound would bring about his death.

Execute first, report later?!

This isn't protecting a little baby, it's practically treating a living devil!

"Thank you, Grandpa Lin."

Zhang Huaimin took a bite of sweet potato, his cheeks puffed out, and he smiled innocently.

"But the courtyard is quite quiet now, and everyone is very polite."

Lin Zhentian laughed heartily, stood up, gave Chen Bing a few more instructions, and then turned and strode out.

"Alright, I have to rush back to the meeting. Those old fogies are probably fighting over the batteries right now."

The jeep roared away from the alley.

The thirty field army soldiers quickly dispersed under Chen Bing's command.

There were hidden sentries on the walls of the front yard, the middle yard, and even the back yard.

The gleaming bayonets reflected a blinding, cold light in the winter sun.

At this moment, the Hongxing Courtyard was completely transformed into an impregnable military fortress.

Intermediate People's Court.

The door to Yi Zhonghai's house was so wide open that only a thin line remained.

He hunched over, like a frightened mouse, staring intently at the armed soldiers in the front yard.

His cloudy eyes were bloodshot, revealing a deep sense of fear and helplessness.

"How am I supposed to live like this...?"

Yi Zhonghai's chapped lips moved slightly, his voice hoarse like a broken bellows.

His cunning schemes, which he was so proud of, seemed like a laughable joke in the face of absolute violence and power.

In the past, he could rely on his status as an old man to wield considerable influence in this courtyard.

Now, even when he goes out to empty the chamber pot, he has to keep his head down, for fear of being shot by the soldiers.

"Old Yi, stop looking and hurry up and seal the windows tightly."

An older woman coughed twice on the kang (a heated brick bed), her face sallow, and she shivered, clutching the corner of the quilt.

"This courtyard is already someone else's territory."

Yi Zhonghai didn't say anything, but silently closed the door.

Turning around, looking at the cold stove and the empty flour jar, a nameless fear rose in my heart.

The wind direction has completely changed.

An undercurrent of change is quietly surging over Beijing.

And he, a second-level worker stripped of his honors, was caught in the impending storm.

Is it possible for them to survive?

Yi Zhonghai's fingers dug deep into his palms, his nails drawing blood.

"No, I can't just wait to die like this... I have to think of something..."

His cold eyes gleamed like venomous snakes in the darkness.