Courtyard House: The Road to an Industrial Power

The night is getting dark.

Seeing that the others were late in arriving.

Lin Weidong sat in the driver's seat of the jeep.

The car window was left slightly ajar, and the driver waited quietly for those persistent thugs at the alley entrance.

Time passed by, minute by minute, until it was past 11 p.m.

Finally, the sound of light footsteps came from the end of the alley.

The little rascal was wrapped in a tattered cotton-padded coat and clutched a sharpened steel pipe in his hand.

Behind him followed a skinny man and a long-haired man, each carrying a wrench.

Crouching low, they stealthily made their way toward the jeep.

"Big brother, this is the car!" The skinny man lowered his voice and pointed to the jeep with trembling hands.

"Hurry up and unload it, then we'll run away, exchange the money, and treat ourselves to a nice meal!"

"Eat my ass!" The little brat glared at him, his eyes sinister.

The three men had just squatted down when the wrench hadn't even touched the wheel lug nuts.

The driver's side door was pushed open with a "bang".

Lin Weidong slowly got out of the car, his hands in his coat pockets.

"I've been waiting for you for a long time."

A cold voice rang out, and the three little rascals trembled in fright.

The steel pipe and wrench in his hand fell to the ground with a "clatter".

"You...you were actually in the car!"

The scoundrel, realizing what was happening, flew into a rage and gritted his teeth, shouting, "Brothers, attack! Cripple him!"

He was the first to swing the steel pipe and smash it down on Lin Weidong's head.

The skinny guy and the long-haired man pounced on them from the left and right.

Lin Weidong's eyes turned cold, and he moved slightly to easily avoid the steel pipe.

Before the little rascal could finish his move, he raised his hand, grabbed the other's wrist, and twisted it sharply.

A crisp "snap" sounded.

The little rascal's arm bent at an eerie angle, and a piercing scream instantly tore through the night sky.

Immediately afterwards, Lin Weidong kicked the skinny man's knee.

Another cracking sound rang out, and the small, thin man collapsed to his knees in the snow, clutching his broken leg and rolling around in agony.

The long-haired man was terrified and turned to run away, but Lin Weidong grabbed him by the back of his collar.

He snapped both arms with his backhand and collapsed to the ground, unable to move.

In just half a minute, three fierce-looking thugs...

All of them had their limbs broken and lay paralyzed in the snow like rotten mud.

Blood stained the pristine white snow, and screams echoed everywhere.

Lin Weidong slowly walked up to the little rascal.

Looking down at him.

"Weren't you going to break my limbs?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Lin Weidong raised his foot and stomped hard on the little rascal's groin.

"ah--!!!"

Heart-wrenching screams echoed through the alley.

The little rascal rolled his eyes, fainted from the pain, and fell completely silent.

Lin Weidong remained expressionless, bending over as if dragging a dead dog.

They picked up the three men one by one and threw them into the trunk of the jeep.

The Jeep started its engine and headed straight for the city bureau.

The police officers at the city police station's guardhouse were warming themselves by a stove.

I heard a car coming from the doorway and got up to check.

Then we saw Lin Weidong open the trunk.

Inside the trunk, three people covered in blood and with their limbs twisted were limp and huddled together, a horrific sight.

The on-duty police officers turned pale instantly, gasped, and instinctively took a step back.

"Comrade Lin...?" The first police officer to come out recognized Lin Weidong.

This person had seen Lin Weidong at the steel rolling mill before.

"These three men had been lying in wait outside the courtyard for days, intending to harm me."

"He just tried to damage my vehicle, but I subdued him."

The police officers came to their senses and quickly carried the three people down.

They were rushed to the hospital for emergency treatment and interrogated overnight.

The excruciating pain of broken bones quickly brought the three rascals to their senses, and they couldn't withstand the interrogation at all.

He confessed in detail about how Liu Yuanchao had paid them to break Lin Weidong's limbs.

Meanwhile, at the Liu family villa in the military compound.

Liu Yuanchao paced back and forth in the room, as restless as an ant on a hot pan.

Today, the little rascal said he would first test the waters with Lin Weidong.

We waited from dusk till late at night, but there was still no news from that little rascal.

Not only did they not teach Lin Weidong a lesson, they didn't even send back a message.

"Useless! All of you are useless!"

Liu Yuanchao grabbed a teacup from the table and smashed it on the ground, shards flying everywhere.

"He took my money and can't even get this done! I really want to kill that bastard Lin Weidong with my own hands!"

He grew angrier the more he thought about it, and slammed his fist against the wall.

The Liu family fell from power one after another, and Liu Zhiqiang was exiled to the far northwest.

Liu Jie was sidelined entirely because of Lin Weidong, and he wished he could tear Lin Weidong to pieces.

Just then, a phone rang urgently downstairs.

Grandpa Liu, leaning on his cane, slowly walked to the phone and picked up the receiver.

The voice on the other end of the phone was deep, implying that Liu Yuanchao had hired someone to injure others.

The target was still Lin Weidong, and the news that the Municipal Bureau was about to come to arrest him was relayed word for word.

The voice on the other end of the phone said, "Whether you flee or get arrested is up to you. The city police are here now."

The old man's hand holding the receiver trembled slightly, and he remained silent for a long time.

Finally, he let out a long sigh, his voice aged and weary: "I understand. Take the people away. The Liu family will not protect them."

I hung up the phone.

The old man, leaning on his cane, walked up the stairs step by step.

Arriving at Liu Yuanchao's door, I gently knocked.

"Knock knock knock".

"Who is it?" Liu Yuanchao asked irritably.

Upon opening the door and seeing the old man, he immediately suppressed his fierce demeanor, obediently lowered his head, and said, "Grandpa."

The old man walked into the room and sat on the edge of the bed.

Seeing this, Liu Yuanchao obediently sat down next to him.

Grandpa Liu looked at Liu Yuanchao, remained silent for a moment, and then slowly said, "Yuanchao, tell Grandpa the truth, why do you insist on going against Lin Weidong?"

Liu Yuanchao was stunned for a moment, and dared not hide it. He said in a low voice, "It started because my cousin Ji Boxiao was dealt with by Lin Weidong, and I wanted to stand up for my cousin."

"Later, my second and third uncles both fell from power because of him. I couldn't swallow this insult, so I found someone to teach him a lesson."

The old man nodded, a hint of understanding flashing in his eyes, yet also tinged with endless melancholy.

He raised his withered hand and gently patted Liu Yuanchao's shoulder: "A man of the Liu family must never disgrace the Liu family, no matter where he goes."

"Things have come to this, there's no other choice. Go to the Northwest, reform yourself, and start anew."

Liu Yuanchao looked puzzled and was about to ask what he meant.

Suddenly, a series of noisy footsteps came from downstairs.

Immediately afterwards, the door was pushed open.

Several city police officers walked in, their expressions serious.

"Liu Yuanchao is suspected of hiring someone to commit assault. Come with us!"

Liu Yuanchao instantly understood his grandfather's meaning. His face turned pale, but he neither struggled nor begged for mercy.

He stood up and straightened his collar.

As I reached the door, I turned back to look at Old Master Liu, who was noticeably more hunched over inside the house.

Standing tall and speaking in a firm voice, he said, "Grandpa, don't worry, the Liu family will always be outstanding wherever they go!"

After saying that, he didn't look back and strode out of the room with the police.

Old Master Liu sat on the edge of the bed, gazing at the empty doorway.

Two lines of tears slowly slid down his cheeks; overnight, he seemed to have aged ten years.