Courtyard House: The Road to an Industrial Power

Because her house was burned down, Zhang was homeless and stayed at He's house that night.

He Daqing felt sorry for Zhang Shi, who had been frightened, and gave her the warm kang (heated brick bed) in the inner room.

He Yuzhu simply squeezed onto the wooden bed in the outer room with his father.

In the inner room, Qin Huairu put Xiao Dang and Huaihua to sleep, then turned around and sat down next to Zhang Shi.

Zhang was wrapped in a thick quilt, huddled in the corner of the kang (a heated brick bed), covering her mouth and sobbing silently. Her shoulders trembled, a sight that broke one's heart.

Qin Huairu reached out and gently grasped Zhang's cold hand.

She comforted her gently, saying, "Aunt Zhang, don't cry, it's all over now, okay?"

"That heartless bastard Yi Zhonghai has already gotten his comeuppance."

Zhang sniffed and looked at Qin Huairu with teary eyes.

Her voice was hoarse: "Huai Ru, I've lived most of my life and I've never seen such a heartless person."

"We've shared a bed for decades, and he actually wanted to burn me alive."

"Now, every time I close my eyes, I see the house on fire, the smoke is so thick I can't breathe, and I think I'm going to die."

As she spoke, tears welled up in her eyes again, and her whole body trembled uncontrollably.

Qin Huairu reached out and gently patted her back.

She gently comforted him, saying, "It's all in the past, everything will be alright."

But under the locust tree in the central courtyard, a completely different scene unfolded.

In the depths of winter in Beijing, the outdoor temperature at night can plummet to nearly minus ten degrees Celsius.

The cold wind stung my face like a knife.

Yi Zhonghai was tightly bound to the tree trunk with thick hemp rope. Although he was wearing a cotton-padded coat, it did not protect him from the biting cold wind.

His hands and feet quickly turned stiff and purple from the cold, and he shivered uncontrollably all over.

His teeth chattered, and even his breath was steaming, as if he were about to freeze in the cold night.

He was filled with anger and fear, and an overwhelming hatred almost consumed him.

He hated Zhang, hated her insistence on divorce, hated her close relationship with He Daqing, which made him lose face.

He hated He Daqing, hated this man who suddenly appeared out of nowhere, stole his ex-wife, and ruined his plans.

He hated Lin Weidong even more, if Lin Weidong hadn't suddenly returned.

With just a few words, he saw through his scheme. He had already sent He Daqing to the police station, and Zhang had already perished in the fire!

Lin Weidong ruined everything for him!

The thought of being handed over to the police at dawn was daunting. Arson is a serious crime, punishable by imprisonment at best, and expulsion from the police at worst.

Yi Zhonghai felt a chill seeping from his very bones, even more biting than the cold wind outside.

He struggled desperately, but the rope was tied too tightly, causing painful cuts to his skin, and he couldn't break free at all.

He could only lean against the tree trunk in despair, his consciousness beginning to blur from the cold.

Just then, a hunched figure, taking advantage of the cover of night, slowly made its way from the backyard.

She was a deaf old woman.

She was wrapped in a thick black cotton-padded coat, leaning on a cane, her steps as light as a breeze.

His cloudy eyes scanned the surroundings, and only after confirming that no one in the courtyard had woken up did he slowly walk up to Yi Zhonghai.

When Yi Zhonghai saw the deaf old woman, his eyes lit up instantly.

As if grasping at the last straw, her lips trembled.

His voice was muffled and trembling from the cold: "Old lady, help me... help me!"

The deaf old woman gave him a cold, disdainful look, but didn't say a word.

She pulled a sharp folding knife from her sleeve and quickly cut the thick hemp rope binding Yi Zhonghai.

The moment the rope snapped, Yi Zhonghai's legs went weak and he almost collapsed to the ground. He quickly grabbed the tree trunk, and it took him a while to regain some feeling in his frozen hands and feet.

"Come with me." The deaf old woman lowered her voice, her tone leaving no room for doubt, and turned to walk towards the backyard.

Yi Zhonghai dared not delay and staggered after her, his face, which was purple from the cold, filled with wild joy.

He knew that the deaf old woman was trying to save him.

If we stay here, we'll all die by dawn. Only by escaping can we have a chance of survival!

The deaf old woman came to the cabinet. Yi Zhonghai thought she was going to hide him in a secret room, so he pushed open the cabinet and went into the secret room with her.

After entering the secret room, the deaf old woman opened a passage in front of Yi Zhonghai.

She pulled out a lot of money from her pocket and stuffed it into Yi Zhonghai's hand: "Take the money and go through the passage."

Clutching the money, Yi Zhonghai was moved to tears: "Grandma, thank you so much! I will never forget your great kindness!"

"Stop talking nonsense." The deaf old woman interrupted him, a hint of displeasure flashing in her eyes.

"I saved you because I was afraid that if you were captured, you would implicate me to save your own life."

"Remember this: after you get out of here, you are not allowed to utter a single word about me, or I'll make sure you die a horrible death!"

Yi Zhonghai's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly nodded and bowed, "I know! I would never dare to mention it! Not even a single word!"

"roll."

The deaf old woman snorted and shoved Yi Zhonghai.

Yi Zhonghai dared not linger and plunged into the dark, secret passage, moving forward along the passage.

After about half an incense stick's time, they finally crawled out of the passage and found themselves in a quiet alley next door.

The cold wind was still biting, but Yi Zhonghai didn't care about the cold. He knew that if the people in the courtyard discovered that he had escaped, they would definitely call the police immediately.

He wrapped his thin cotton-padded coat tightly around himself, hunched his neck, and meandered through the night.

They eventually found a dilapidated and abandoned courtyard house.

The courtyard was in ruins, with broken walls and windows, and covered with withered branches and leaves; there wasn't a soul in sight.

Yi Zhonghai hid in a dilapidated room in the far corner, huddled in the corner.

They shivered from the cold, relying on their remaining body heat to keep warm.

He gazed at the pitch-black night outside the window, a venomous glint in his eyes, and gritted his teeth as he swore an oath in his heart:

"Lin Weidong, He Daqing, Zhang Shi, and everyone in the courtyard, you just wait!"

"If I don't avenge this, I, Yi Zhonghai, swear I'm not human! I will make you all pay the price!"

I spent a sleepless night, and just as dawn broke, the east began to lighten with the pale glow of dawn.

Yan Bugui got up earlier than the chickens, rubbing his eyes as he strolled over to open the courtyard gate.

As he passed by the entrance of the Intermediate People's Court, he subconsciously glanced at the old locust tree, and upon seeing it, he froze on the spot.

The area under the locust tree was empty; there was no trace of Yi Zhonghai.

Only a pile of severed thick hemp rope lay scattered beside the tree roots, the cuts neat and tidy, clearly made by a knife.

Yan Bugui looked at the bundle of hemp rope that had been cut up and felt a pang of heartache: "What a pity! Such good rope, how can we use it now that it's been cut like this?"

Only then did he realize the gravity of the situation, and he suddenly raised his voice, shouting at the top of his lungs, "Something terrible has happened! Something terrible has happened! Yi Zhonghai is gone!"

That shout instantly shattered the tranquility of the courtyard.

The people in the courtyard were all awakened by the noise and hurriedly ran out, throwing on their clothes.

Liu Haizhong ran the fastest, his face beaming with excitement, shouting as he ran, "Gone? Frozen to death?"

"It was so cold last night, at least minus ten degrees Celsius. If you were tied up outside all night, you must have frozen solid by now."

Lin Weidong was also awakened by the shouts and slowly walked out from the west courtyard.

He originally thought that Yi Zhonghai, having been tied up outdoors in minus ten degrees Celsius all night, was most likely frozen to death, and never imagined that he could escape.

But when he got to the old locust tree and saw the situation on the ground, his brows furrowed slightly.

The hemp rope on the ground was neatly cut, and there were scattered footprints nearby, the traces of which were clear.

Lin Weidong's face instantly darkened.

Someone deliberately let Yi Zhonghai go.