Courtyard House: The Road to an Industrial Power

As the steel rolling mill's closing bell rang, Lin Weidong and Su Wanqing walked out of the mill's gate side by side and rode their bicycles toward the courtyard house.

The successful operation of the four-axis CNC machine tool relieved both of them, and they continued to discuss the details of subsequent mass production on the way.

As soon as I arrived at the entrance of the courtyard house, I saw Yan Bugui carrying an enamel basin, carefully watering the rose bushes placed at the entrance.

With his sharp eyes, he spotted the two men riding over at a glance and quickly put down the basin of water: "Hey, Weidong and Technician Su are back!"

"Uncle, you're still watering the flowers," Lin Weidong replied with a smile as he pushed his bicycle.

Su Wanqing nodded in greeting.

Yan Bugui glanced around and then lowered his voice, saying, "Weidong, I have something to tell you. This morning, the deaf old woman brought a woman back from outside, saying she was there to take care of her."

"Oh? Is that so?" Lin Weidong asked.

"Who is that woman? What does she look like?"

"What else could she be? She must have fled from famine. She looked honest and simple, dressed in tattered clothes. The deaf old lady even gave her two cents to go to the bathhouse."

Yan Bugui clicked his tongue, then changed the subject, "However, those who look honest may not actually be honest."

"This morning, that shrew Jia Zhangshi saw someone had money and tried to rob them. Guess what happened?"

"That woman pushed her down in a few moves, and she lay on the ground crying, which frightened Jia Zhangshi. In the end, she was pointed at and gossiped about by the neighbors, and she slunk home!"

Yan Bugui recounted the story vividly, as if he had witnessed the entire process firsthand.

Lin Weidong chuckled: "It seems this old lady really had a falling out with the deaf old woman, otherwise she wouldn't have had to look for someone from outside. I didn't expect the deaf old woman to be so quick, finding someone so fast."

Su Wanqing nodded and said, "This person must be quite something to make Jia Zhangshi suffer such a big loss. Although Jia Zhangshi is shrewish, she's not brainless; she can't be intimidated by ordinary people."

As the three were talking, they saw the deaf old woman leading a neatly dressed middle-aged woman out of the yard.

The woman had changed into a slightly worn coarse cloth dress, and her hair was neatly combed. The woman was none other than Widow Li.

The deaf old woman spotted Lin Weidong and Su Wanqing at the door immediately, and her face darkened instantly.

She tugged at the widow Li beside her and said in a voice only the two of them could hear, "See them? Those two are Lin Weidong and Su Wanqing."

"They're all no good. If you see them in the yard in the future, stay away and don't deal with them, lest you get into trouble."

Widow Li followed the deaf old woman's gaze, then nodded gently and replied softly, "Understood, Auntie."

The deaf old woman nodded in satisfaction, then added, "There's also He Daqing in the courtyard; he's Sha Zhu's father."

"I used to be a chef at a big restaurant. I was skilled and had a decent conscience."

"Whenever you have free time, you can go and strike up a conversation with him and try to build a relationship."

Widow Li's heart stirred, and she looked up at the deaf old woman with a hint of doubt in her eyes.

"Are you stupid?" The deaf old woman glared at her.

"He Daqing is such a good catch, and Sha Zhu already has a job. If you get together with He Daqing, you'll have someone to rely on, right?"

After listening to the deaf old woman's words, Widow Li no longer believed that the deaf old woman would be so kind as to find someone to rely on.

However, it's worthwhile to learn more about this He Daqing.

Just then, the deaf old woman, who had just returned home, suddenly said, "As long as you and He Daqing get together, I will arrange a house for you in the suburbs so you can live there."

"You'll definitely get your share of the benefits then!"

Widow Li immediately understood the deaf old woman's thoughts, and a look of sudden realization appeared on her face. She quickly nodded, "Don't worry, Auntie, I know what to do!"

She secretly thought to herself, "This old guy probably has other ideas."

"And judging from what I've learned today, this old guy seems to be quite wealthy."

When she got home, Zhao Xiulan and Lin Jianjun were sitting in the house chatting.

As soon as Lin Weidong entered, he said, "Mom, Dad, we overheard Uncle talking at the door. He said that the deaf old woman brought back a woman who had fled famine, and she even had a fight with Jia Zhangshi?"

"That's right!" Zhao Xiulan said, "Widow Li has Jia Zhangshi completely under her thumb."

"I don't think that Widow Li is a simple character. Even someone as shrewish as Madam Jia can be intimidated by her."

Lin Jianjun nodded and said, "The deaf old lady is likely to suffer a great loss by bringing in someone like this."

Lin Weidong picked up the water glass on the table, took a sip, and said, "As long as it doesn't affect our lives, let her do whatever she wants."

"By the way, Mom, who exactly is this deaf old woman? She doesn't look like a poor old lady."

Zhao Xiulan also said with doubt, "The deaf old lady has been in the courtyard for a long time. The neighborhood committee initially had a file on her, but the day before the five-guarantee households were confirmed, the neighborhood committee's archives were burned down."

"The population files for the neighborhood have all been updated. The deaf old lady is listed as an ordinary resident in the file. When asked about specific details, she said she had forgotten them."

Upon hearing this, Lin Weidong immediately realized that this was definitely something done by some people to conceal their identities.

"Didn't the neighborhood committee conduct a thorough investigation?"

"Where would we find the energy to investigate each case one by one, especially when the other party is an old lady?"

Lin Weidong had always been suspicious of the deaf old woman's identity; she seemed not only cunning but also quite wealthy.

Most of them were remnants of the Qing dynasty.

The group chatted for a while longer, and the topic gradually shifted from the trivial matters of the courtyard to their work in the workshop.

Lin Weidong told his parents the news of the successful operation of the four-axis linkage machine tool. Zhao Xiulan and Lin Jianjun were very happy and kept telling him to take care of his health and not to overwork himself.

After chatting for about half an hour, Lin Weidong stood up and said to his parents, "It's getting late, I'll go back and rest now."

After saying that, he turned around and went back to his west courtyard.

He sat down at his desk, took out the follow-up production plan for the four-axis CNC machine tool, and began to study it carefully.

Inside the courtyard, the deaf old woman was sitting in the house, instructing Widow Li on various matters, her eyes full of calculation.

Widow Li kept her head down, appearing meek and submissive, but in her heart she was making her own plans.