Courtyard House: The Road to an Industrial Power

The old incandescent light above the interrogation room of the municipal bureau made the eight large red characters on the wall, "Confess and be treated leniently, resist and be punished severely," particularly glaring.

Lin Weidong was pressed down onto a loosely mortise and tenon wooden interrogation chair.

"Lin Weidong, we'll ask you one last time: Did you intentionally damage national military equipment and assault Ji Boda, the son of a state cadre?"

Lin Weidong stared at the two people opposite him and said, "I'll say it again, I didn't."

"The four-axis CNC machine tool is the core equipment that my team and I spent three months developing. It took countless hours and a lot of effort, so I would never damage it."

"It was Ji Boda who took advantage of the time when Technician Su and I were inspecting the parts and modified the machine tool parameters without authorization, which caused the cutter head to break and the spindle to burn out. The workers in the workshop can all testify to this."

"Workers as witnesses?"

"What do they know? Can their words be taken as evidence?"

"Comrade Ji Boda is a highly skilled individual who returned from studying abroad. His mother is Liu Shuya, the director of the Organization Department of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China. They have impeccable political backgrounds. How could they lie?"

"On the contrary, you, a worker's son, became a senior engineer through a bit of cleverness, and now you're so arrogant and ignorant. Maybe you're just jealous of Comrade Ji's talent and deliberately picking a fight!"

One of the interrogators frowned impatiently and shoved a stack of printed confessions in front of Lin Weidong: "Lin Weidong, don't push your luck!"

"The evidence is now conclusive. If you still refuse to plead guilty, you are resisting severe punishment!"

"If you sign and put your fingerprint on it, we can even plead with higher authorities to treat you leniently."

"If you resist any further, don't blame us for being impolite!"

Lin Weidong glanced at the glaring charges on the confession, such as "intentionally damaging state property" and "assaulting the children of state cadres," and said without hesitation, "I will never sign something I didn't do."

The interrogation reached a stalemate.

Two interrogators took turns questioning him, but Lin Weidong remained unmoved, insisting that he had been framed.

Meanwhile, in the criminal investigation team's office outside the interrogation room, Captain Liu was holding an old-fashioned black telephone.

His face was full of fawning smiles, but fine beads of sweat glistened on his forehead.

"Director Zhao, don't worry, the person has been taken to the interrogation room and we are interrogating him."

"But Lin Weidong is too stubborn. He refuses to admit his guilt and claims that many workers in the factory can testify for him. They are all eyewitnesses."

On the other end of the phone, Ji Boda's mother, Liu Shuya, said impatiently, "Da Liu, can't you even handle such a small matter?"

"I don't care what method you use, you have to make him sign the confession!"

"Once he signs, the testimonies of those peasants will be invalid, and no one will believe a group of workers."

"If you handle this matter well, I assure you, I will put in a good word with your superiors regarding your promotion."

"Yes, yes, Director Zhao! Don't worry, I'll handle it perfectly!"

After hanging up the phone, the smile on his face vanished instantly, replaced by deep hesitation and struggle.

He knew in his heart that Lin Weidong was no ordinary person.

Moreover, there are numerous testimonies from workers. If this matter blows up and it is found that he abused his power for personal gain, the consequences would be unimaginable.

But when he thought of Liu Shuya's identity and the promised promotion, he couldn't help but be tempted.

He had been in the position of battalion commander for many years without being able to advance further, and this was his best opportunity.

"I'll risk it!" Da Liu gritted his teeth, his eyes turning fierce.

For the sake of his future, he decided to take a gamble. He straightened his uniform, took a deep breath, and walked towards the interrogation room.

He pushed open the interrogation room door and winked at the two interrogators: "You two go out first, I'll handle the interrogation."

The two exchanged a glance, nodded quickly, and got up to leave.

Da Liu slammed the interrogation room door shut and pressed the latch behind it, completely cutting off any outside noise.

"Lin Weidong, those who understand the times are the heroes."

"As long as you sign this confession, this matter will be over, and you can keep your job."

"If you continue to resist, not only will you suffer, but your family will also be implicated. Your mother is the deputy director of the neighborhood committee; aren't you afraid this will affect her?"

Lin Weidong raised his head and looked at him coldly: "You're courting death. Try it if you don't believe me!"

"If you won't listen to reason, you'll have to suffer the consequences!" Da Liu was completely enraged.

He originally wanted to try to persuade him again, but Lin Weidong's tough stance made him lose patience.

He cracked his knuckles as he flexed his wrists: "Since you don't know what's good for you, don't blame me for being impolite!"

As he spoke, he reached out his hand, trying to forcefully press Lin Weidong's hand down to sign.

But he didn't expect that Lin Weidong's physical fitness, thanks to the system's multiple upgrades, had already far surpassed that of ordinary people.

His body's strength, speed, and reflexes have been enhanced, and the old interrogation chair can't hold him back at all.

Just as Da Liu's hand was about to touch Lin Weidong's wrist, Lin Weidong suddenly exerted force and stood up from the interrogation chair.

Da Liu was stunned by this sudden scene and stood there dumbfounded.

Coming to his senses, he immediately swung his fist and smashed it towards Lin Weidong's face.

Lin Weidong easily dodged the punch by turning to the side.

Da Liu's fist missed its mark, causing him to lose his balance and stumble forward.

Lin Weidong seized the opportunity and delivered a swift side kick, landing squarely on Da Liu's stomach.

With a dull thud, Da Liu was kicked away and crashed heavily into the wall, causing the wall to tremble slightly.

He slid down the wall to the ground, clutching his stomach, wincing in pain, unable to catch his breath for a long time, and groaning in agony.

Lin Weidong did not stop.

He strode forward, grabbed Da Liu by the collar, and lifted him up from the ground: "As a police officer, instead of standing up for the people, you abuse your power and bend the law for personal gain, framing innocent people for your own future."

"Are you worthy of the uniform you wear? Are you worthy of the trust placed in you by the Party and the people?"

Even then, Lau remained defiant: "You...you dare assault a police officer? I...I'm going to sue you!"

"Assaulting a police officer?"

Lin Weidong laughed angrily, increasing the pressure on his hand. "You attacked me first to force a confession; I was only acting in self-defense. This isn't over until you give me an explanation!"

Just as Lin Weidong was dealing with Da Liu, Su Zhenbang arrived at the Municipal Bureau's office.

Upon seeing the visitor, Director Zhang Hongyuan said happily, "Old classmate, what brings you here?"

But at this moment, Su Zhenbang's face showed no trace of a smile. Instead, he said, "Zhang Hongyuan, you still have the mind to joke? I'm asking you, did you arrest Lin Weidong from the military workshop of the steel rolling mill?"

Zhang Hongyuan was taken aback, his brows furrowing. "Lin Weidong? I vaguely remember him. He was arrested by the criminal investigation team, supposedly for damaging military equipment and assaulting people. What happened?"

"What's wrong?"

Su Zhenbang then quickly explained the whole story to Zhang Hongyuan.

Zhang Hongyuan's face darkened as Su Zhenbang spoke, and then he slammed his hand on the table.

"Damn it! That scoundrel Liu! I told you he'd been up to no good lately, all he wanted was to climb the ladder, but I never expected he'd dare to bend the law for personal gain!"

At this moment, Su Zhenbang said, "Now is not the time to curse!"

"Lin Weidong is a precious gem in our military-industrial complex. The four-axis machine tool is just one step away from mass production. If he makes even the slightest mistake with you, you might end up suffering the consequences."

Zhang Hongyuan also realized the seriousness of the situation.

The two rushed out of the office one after the other. When the police officers in the corridor saw that the bureau chief's face was ashen, they all stood at attention.

Zhang Hongyuan shouted as he ran, "Notify the criminal investigation team to assemble at the detention room immediately!"

The iron door to the detention cell was pushed open with a bang, and Zhang Hongyuan led his men inside, shouting, "Where is Lin Weidong? Bring him out!"

The two young police officers in charge of guarding the detention cell were stunned by the commotion and rushed over, saying, "Chief, the Lin Weidong you mentioned is in the detention cell! We didn't receive any notification to detain him."

Zhang Hongyuan's voice suddenly rose, "What? Not in the detention room?"

"The person was arrested by your criminal investigation team. They're not in the detention room. Where did you take them?"

One of the young police officers said, "The criminal investigation team took them directly to the interrogation room; they didn't even bring them to us!"

"Interrogation room!"

Zhang Hongyuan and Su Zhenbang exchanged a glance. "Damn it! That bastard Liu is definitely trying to force a confession in private!"

Zhang Hongyuan was trembling with rage. He turned to the officers behind him and roared, "Everyone, come with me to the interrogation room!"

The officers didn't dare to delay and immediately followed.

The direction of the interrogation room grew closer, and the sounds of arguing could be faintly heard coming from inside. Zhang Hongyuan's face grew increasingly grim, and he roared at the top of his lungs, "Open the door! Open the door for me, you people inside!"

The sound echoed in the corridor, but there was no response from inside the interrogation room.

Zhang Hongyuan's eyes hardened, and he shouted to the officers behind him, "Break down the door!"