Courtyard House: The Road to an Industrial Power

Just as the deaf old woman left, two figures in police uniforms stepped into the courtyard.

"Is Yi Zhonghai home?" The lead policeman glanced at the crowd and asked in a loud voice.

Yi Zhonghai, who was holed up in his room, felt a jolt in his heart when he heard the word "public security".

He had just come out of the security office when the police came knocking on his door. His legs went weak and he didn't dare to answer for a long time.

When the police officer saw that no one responded, he raised his voice and shouted again.

An older woman rushed out of the house in a panic, wringing her hands and forcing a smile: "Comrade, he...he's here, I don't know...I don't know what's wrong?"

"Someone reported that he fabricated facts and maliciously slandered others. Please come with us to cooperate with the investigation."

The police officer's words were like a stone thrown into the courtyard, instantly stirring up a buzz of discussion.

Yi Zhonghai's face turned deathly pale. He staggered out, pointing at the door and screaming, "It's Lin Weidong! He must have framed me! I didn't slander him!"

"Whether it's a frame-up or not, the police station will find out." The police officer stepped forward, showed his badge, and said, "Take him away."

Two policemen grabbed Yi Zhonghai from either side. He struggled, cursing Lin Weidong with foul language, but his voice grew weaker and weaker until he was finally dragged out of the courtyard.

This scene was clearly seen by everyone in the courtyard.

The deaf old woman stood at her doorstep, leaning on her cane, a hint of panic flashing in her cloudy eyes.

She had just used all her connections to get Yi Zhonghai a temporary job. But now the police were at her door, clearly because Lin Weidong had filed a complaint with the police station and had solid evidence.

Liu Haizhong was squatting under the eaves of his house, silently smoking a pungent pipe.

Hearing the commotion, he looked up and saw Yi Zhonghai being dragged away in a disheveled state, and a barely perceptible smug smile crept onto his lips.

If it weren't for Yi Zhonghai's instigation, he wouldn't have acted rashly and framed others, ultimately resulting in demotion and pay cut.

These past few days, he'd been feeling incredibly frustrated. Now that Yi Zhonghai had stumbled again, he felt a surge of satisfaction, secretly spitting out, "Serves him right! He brought it on himself!"

Aunt Erda brought out a bowl of thin porridge. Seeing his appearance, she simply handed the porridge to him and whispered, "Drink it quickly, it won't be good if it gets cold."

Liu Haizhong took the porridge, ate a couple of mouthfuls, and the gloom in his eyes dissipated considerably.

Yan Bugui's reaction was much more straightforward than Liu Haizhong's.

He squeezed to the front of the crowd, standing on tiptoe to get a clear view. After Yi Zhonghai was dragged away, he shouted at the top of his lungs, "Hey! Old Yi, he's so old, why is he arguing with the kids? Now I'm the only liaison in the compound, I'll have to worry about him a lot from now on."

He couldn't be happier now.

When Yi Zhonghai was a big shot, he often put on airs and put him down. Now that Yi Zhonghai is in trouble, he can't wait to kick him while he's down, so he can vent his anger and gain a reputation for being "reasonable" in front of the neighbors.

Just then, Jia Zhangshi suddenly rushed out from the crowd, pointing in the direction where Yi Zhonghai had disappeared, and jumping up and down while cursing.

"That damned Yi Zhonghai! He's been a scoundrel for ages! He seduced our Zhang Guilan, causing the Jia family to lose all face. He's utterly depraved!"

She cursed him relentlessly, spitting as she spoke, seemingly forgetting how she had fawned over him when Yi Zhonghai had helped the Jia family take advantage of the neighbors. Now that Yi Zhonghai had completely fallen from grace, she immediately changed her tune, spewing insults at him as he fell from grace.

"This kind of person should be arrested! Locked up for life would be better! It would save him from harming others in the compound!"

Jia Zhangshi's voice was shrill, as if she wanted the whole alley to hear it.

She had her own agenda. Now that Yi Zhonghai was a pariah, the more fiercely she cursed him, the more she could distance herself from the Jia family's relationship with him.

The neighbors all knew exactly what was going on with Jia Zhangshi. Some secretly grimaced, some shook their heads, but no one called her out on her hypocrisy.

Inside the Lin family's house, Lin Weidong was looking at the technical drawings on the table, listening to the commotion outside, his face expressionless.

He reported Yi Zhonghai's slander against him to the police station as soon as he got off work.

False accusations and framing are no small matter in this day and age, and Yi Zhonghai may not be able to get away with it so easily this time.

"Dongzi, is it quiet now?" Lin Jianjun brought over a cup of hot water and sighed.

Lin Weidong put down the blueprints, took the water glass, and shook his head: "It's still early. Some people won't turn back until they hit a brick wall."

Just as dawn was breaking and the steel mill's work bell hadn't even rung, a gentle knock sounded on the Lin family's gate in the Hongxing Courtyard.

Lin Weidong had just finished washing up when he heard a knock on the door and frowned.

When they opened the door, they were surprised to find Liu Haizhong standing there.

Liu Haizhong, who used to stand tall and have his nose in the air, was now hunched over with his head drooping. His faded work clothes were still covered with iron filings that hadn't been wiped clean.

He stood at the door with a smile on his face, carrying two bottles of liquor and a pack of cigarettes.

"Lin...Chief Engineer Lin."

"I had no choice but to bother you so early."

Lin Weidong raised an eyebrow, said nothing, and stepped aside to let him into the courtyard, but did not invite him into the house, and just stood there in the courtyard talking.

Liu Haizhong didn't mind and handed the things in his hand forward: "These things are nothing, don't look down on them."

Lin Weidong glanced at it but didn't answer: "Master Liu, just say what you want to say, no need to be so polite."

"Yes, yes, yes. Chief Engineer Lin, I know. I was blinded by greed before, following that scoundrel Yi Zhonghai and doing things that betrayed you. I was a scoundrel, I'm not human!"

As he spoke, he suddenly bowed deeply to Lin Weidong at a ninety-degree angle, his waist bent like a shrimp.

"I know I was wrong, I really know I was wrong! Please forgive me this time, you are a magnanimous person."

Liu Haizhong looked up. "I've been demoted to a regular blacksmith, and my salary has dropped significantly. My eldest son is getting married soon, and the dowry and wedding banquet cost money. My second and third sons are still in school, and they keep asking for tuition and textbook fees. The family's grain jar is almost empty, and we're barely able to afford to eat thin porridge every day."

He became more and more agitated as he spoke, his voice trembling: "Chief Engineer Lin, I know you have a good relationship with Factory Director Li, and you can speak to him. Please, be merciful and plead with Factory Director Li to restore my job grade."

"As long as I can get my worker status back, I'll be your slave for the rest of my life!"

"Master Liu, when you were helping Yi Zhonghai frame him, didn't you ever imagine this day would come?"

Liu Haizhong's face flushed crimson instantly. "I was foolish! I was bewitched! I shouldn't have been greedy for that petty gain, and I shouldn't have listened to Yi Zhonghai's instigation. Please give me another chance, I'm truly desperate!"

"Chance?"

Lin Weidong sneered, "Did you give me a chance back then? When you picked the lock on my office and threw dirty water on me, did you ever think you'd give me a chance?"

"Military production cannot tolerate the slightest carelessness. For your own selfish reasons, you almost ruined the factory's military orders and cost so many workers their jobs. For this alone, you do not deserve to be forgiven."