Courtyard House: Starting as an eighth-grade worker, with too many wives.

-

News travels faster than people.

The news of Li Jianguo's assassination attempt spread from the alleyway all the way into the courtyard, throughout the neighborhood, and even to several neighboring courtyards. By the time Li Jianguo helped Factory Director Yang to the courtyard gate, a dozen or so people had already gathered inside, making a racket like a bustling market.

"Have you heard? Li Jianguo ran into an assassin at the alley entrance!"

"Really? There are still assassins these days?"

"How could it be fake? Someone saw it with their own eyes; there were shots fired!"

A group of people sat in a circle, talking amongst themselves, their spittle flying everywhere.

Uncle Erda hunched his shoulders, his face pale.

"Who did Li Jianguo offend? So ruthless, hiring an assassin to kill him?"

Someone nearby chimed in, "Uncle, what are you afraid of? Director Li is an engineer, a government official. What are we? Killing us wouldn't even cost us two bullets."

The crowd burst into laughter.

"Could they be sent by a foreign country?"

"Didn't they say the cars were already built? It's too late to kill someone now."

"That's not necessarily true. What if there's something else coming up?"

The discussions grew louder and louder, and no one could say for sure what was going on. But one thing was clear to everyone—anyone who could draw their guns in Beijing was definitely not an ordinary person.

In the crowd, Yi Zhonghai stood in a corner, saying nothing.

Normally, he would love to say something about things like this. But today he was like a mute, his neck shrank and his eyes darting around.

He was clutching a piece of paper in his hand, which had been crumpled into tiny pieces.

The deaf old woman gave it to him, telling him to go find someone. He hasn't gone yet.

He dared not get involved with enemy agents. His mind had been in turmoil for the past few days. But unexpectedly, before he could even make a move, they had already struck.

Whose people are they?

Yi Zhonghai's mind was in complete chaos.

What if they find out... what if they find out about that old woman... what if they follow the trail back to him...

He shuddered.

-

Inside the deaf old woman's house.

She lay on the bed, listening to the sounds coming from outside.

When she first heard that Li Jianguo had been assassinated, the corners of her mouth curled up, and a hint of pleasure flashed in her cloudy eyes.

But when the next sentence came in, her old face instantly twisted in pain.

"Not dead? That little beast isn't dead?"

She pounded the bed board hard.

"How come he can't be killed? Is he a cat demon reincarnated? With nine lives?"

She gritted her teeth, making strange hoarse noises in her throat.

"Useless...all of them are useless..."

After the founding of the People's Republic of China, those with real skills either fled or were arrested, leaving only good-for-nothings.

She cursed for a while, then collapsed back onto the bed, her cloudy eyes staring at the ceiling beams, lost in thought.

-

Li Jianguo helped Factory Director Yang into the courtyard.

The people in the courtyard swarmed around.

"Director Li is back!"

"Are you alright? I heard you ran into an assassin?"

"What happened? We were all terrified!"

They were all talking at once, making my head ache.

Li Jianguo smiled, unsure of whose response to give first.

At this moment, the second uncle squeezed through and shoved the people in front of him aside.

"Alright, alright, make way, let Director Li go inside first! What kind of behavior is it to block the doorway?"

The crowd then made way for Li Jianguo, but they still stared at him with curiosity in their eyes.

The second uncle leaned closer and asked in a low voice, "Are you really alright? Are you hurt?"

"It's nothing, I dodged it," Li Jianguo said casually. "It's just that the assassin was unlucky; I don't know if he'll survive."

"People like that should be dead!"

The second uncle was filled with righteous indignation, and several people around him nodded in agreement.

"Do you know whose people they are?"

This is probably the question everyone wants to know the most.

Gunfire in Beijing? What a huge deal! Who must be behind this?

Li Jianguo shook his head.

"How would we know?"

As he spoke, he scanned the people in the courtyard.

When the gaze fell on Yi Zhonghai, he seemed to be pricked by a needle, abruptly turning his head away and taking half a step back, hiding in the crowd.

Li Jianguo narrowed his eyes.

interesting.

-

Li Jianguo helped Factory Director Yang into the house.

After Director Yang sat down, he finally relaxed completely. He leaned back in his chair, closed his eyes, took a few breaths, his complexion gradually returned to normal, and his hands stopped trembling.

The people outside hadn't dispersed yet; they stood in twos and threes in the courtyard, some even peering into the courtyard from the doorway.

Xu Damao was the first to squeeze in.

"Don't worry, Director Yang. Director Li is in our facility. With us here, nothing will happen."

He patted his chest, speaking with exceptionally loud voice.

He was startled when he heard that Li Jianguo had been assassinated. A plot straight out of a book had actually happened to someone he knew. But when he heard that Li Jianguo was not only unharmed but had also severely injured the assassin, his eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

I'm sticking with this guy.

Factory Director Yang glanced at him, then looked at the people outside, and nodded.

"They have a good relationship with their neighbors."

This was his first time visiting Li Jianguo's place, and seeing the lively atmosphere in the courtyard made him feel more at ease.

Yi Zhonghai remained standing in the crowd.

He didn't leave, nor did he move forward. He just stood there in the corner, head down, lost in thought.

Others might not see anything, but Li Jianguo saw it all clearly.

This old man hasn't looked this way even once since the beginning.

-

Factory Director Yang sat for a while, then got up to leave.

"Factory manager, please stay for dinner tonight and try my cooking," Li Jianguo stopped him.

Factory Director Yang waved his hand.

"No, I have to keep an eye on this. The sooner we find the culprit, the sooner you can have peace of mind."

Having said all that, Li Jianguo couldn't keep him any longer and saw him to the door.

When he returned, the people in the courtyard were just about to leave.

Yi Zhonghai squeezed into the crowd and moved toward his own room.

Li Jianguo called out to him.

"Sir, wait a minute, there's something I'd like to ask you."

Everyone paused and turned to look.

The second uncle paused for a moment, then blurted out, "Director Li, you don't suspect me, do you?"

He laughed.

"No way, where would an old man like that know anyone carrying a gun?"

Several people nearby laughed along with him.

"Exactly, what does it have to do with our department?"

"Director Li, please don't take it personally."

Li Jianguo didn't respond, he just looked at Yi Zhonghai.

"Sir, wanna chat?"

Yi Zhonghai's heart was pounding, but his face remained tense.

"Say what you have to say here."

He didn't dare to be alone with Li Jianguo.

Li Jianguo nodded.

"OK."

He took a step forward.

"Sir, do you know anything about my assassination attempt?"

There was a moment of silence.

The crowd exchanged bewildered glances, their expressions shifting from amusement to astonishment, and then to suspicion.

The second uncle frowned: "That can't be, can it?"

"What does an old man know?"

Yi Zhonghai's expression changed.

"I don't know... I don't know anything..."

His voice was weak and his words were incoherent.

Anyone who saw it would think something was wrong.

"Li Jianguo, don't talk nonsense!" he retorted, glaring. "Don't try to pin this on me!"

Li Jianguo smiled.

"Yeah?"

He stared into Yi Zhonghai's eyes.

"You really don't know? You know absolutely nothing?"

Yi Zhonghai swallowed hard and shook his head vigorously.

"I don't know! I don't know anything!"

After he finished speaking, he turned around and squeezed his way out of the crowd.

"It's getting late, I'm going back."

-

The second and third uncles got together.

"Is Old Yi acting a little strange today?" The second uncle stroked his chin and squinted at Yi Zhonghai's back.

The third uncle nodded perfunctorily.

"They were probably frightened."

He turned and left, not wanting to get involved in these matters.

Seeing that there was nothing exciting about it, the others also dispersed in twos and threes.

Before leaving, Uncle Er came over and said a few words to Li Jianguo.

"We live in the yard, so if we need anything, just call out. A close neighbor is worse than a distant relative."

Li Jianguo nodded and smiled.

This second uncle has learned to talk now.

-

The courtyard gradually quieted down.

Families began to light fires and cook, and smoke drifted from the chimneys into the twilight.

Li Jianguo sat in the room, stroking his chin.

Given Yi Zhonghai's behavior, it's no wonder he has something to hide.

But what others say is also true. Yi Zhonghai is an honest and unassuming man who has worked in the compound for so many years without ever causing any major trouble. How could he possibly know an armed assassin?

There must be something he doesn't know.

Li Jianguo sat quietly for a while, then raised his hand.

A mosquito landed on his fingertip.

This was a skill he had only recently discovered—the ability to communicate with these little creatures. More precisely, to control them.

He tried ants and sparrows, and they both worked well.

Li Jianguo stared at the mosquito on his fingertip, a thought suddenly occurring to him.

Mosquitoes took flight, slipped through the crack in the door, crossed the yard, and flew into Yi Zhonghai's house.

-

Yi Zhonghai paced back and forth in the room.

He walked around and around, his face never drying with sweat.

I couldn't sit still, I couldn't stand still, my mind was a complete mess. That old woman... what exactly did that old woman do? Who did she hire? Will she get caught? If she's caught, will she implicate me? If she does, will it implicate me?

The more he thought about it, the more frightened he became.

After pacing around the room for a while, he finally couldn't resist and pushed open the door to go out.

Seeing that no one was around, he quickly walked towards the deaf old woman's house.

-

Li Jianguo closed his eyes and watched all of this through the mosquito's eye.

The mosquitoes followed Yi Zhonghai and flew into the deaf old woman's house.

"Was that assassin you sent today?"

Yi Zhonghai lowered his voice, his voice urgent and trembling.

The deaf old woman lay sprawled on the bed, glancing at him sideways.

"Look at you, so pathetic."

Her tone was full of disdain.

"What? That little beast didn't die, and now you're heartbroken?"

Yi Zhonghai became anxious.

"Why are we talking about this now? If the person you hired gets arrested and gives you away, neither of us will be in good shape!"

He was so angry that he was trembling all over.

If I'd known, I shouldn't have gotten involved with that old woman. He hadn't even made a move yet, and she'd already caused such a huge mess.

"You went to find someone without telling me, do you know how dangerous that is?"

The deaf old woman interrupted him.

"Alright."

Her tone was indifferent.

"Look at you, such a coward. Even if you arrest someone, you won't betray me. And even if you do betray me, you won't betray you. What are you afraid of?"

Yi Zhonghai was stunned.

Yes.

From beginning to end, what was he? He only knew a little bit about it. He didn't do the deed, and he didn't find the people.

What is he afraid of?

He breathed a sigh of relief after figuring this out.

But looking at the deaf old woman's wrinkled face, I still felt uneasy.

"Are those people behind you keeping their mouths shut? Don't let them get themselves into trouble later."

The deaf old woman was much calmer than him.

"Trained spies are more useful than you think. They don't know my identity, so don't worry. I'm not afraid, so what are you afraid of?"

She looked at Yi Zhonghai with a mocking gaze.

Yi Zhonghai's face burned with embarrassment. He stood there for a while, then turned and left.

"Remember what you said."

He slammed the door and left.

-

Li Jianguo opened his eyes.

He leaned back in his chair, staring at the roof beams, and didn't move for a long time.

A deaf old woman.

That seemingly harmless old lady, who needed help to walk, was actually a spy.

No wonder.

No wonder she hated me so much. No wonder she kept instigating Yi Zhonghai to oppose me. No wonder the way she looked at me that day was so venomous.

But who's behind this old woman? How many people can she mobilize? Besides that assassin, is there anyone else?

Li Jianguo squinted.

Living next to someone like that is like having a venomous snake around; you never know when they might bite you again.

We need to find a way.

We need to expose her identity.

-

The next morning.

Li Jianguo pushed open the door, and Xu Damao was already waiting at the door.

"Director Li, I'll go to work with you."

Li Jianguo glanced at him but did not refuse.

What happened yesterday certainly served as a wake-up call for him. Even though he's skilled, he can't stop a bullet. Having someone by his side is always a good thing.

When we arrived at the steel rolling mill, everyone we met along the way came up to ask us questions.

Yesterday's events spread throughout the entire factory overnight.

It's been many years since anything this big has happened, and everyone is on edge.

"Director Li, Factory Director Yang wants you to come over."

Li Jianguo nodded and walked towards the office building.

Upon entering Director Yang's office, I found two people sitting inside, dressed in Zhongshan suits, with serious expressions.

Factory Director Yang nodded to him.

"These two are the officers in charge of the shooting case. They have some questions for you. Tell them whatever you know."

Li Jianguo responded and sat down in the chair.