I painted an aircraft carrier on the courtyard house for Dongda University.

He simply couldn't think of any way to turn things around now that things had come to this.

Seeing his panicked state, the deaf old woman's eyes inexplicably reddened, and she said with a hint of determination, "In this situation, there is only one way to save your life."

A glimmer of hope instantly ignited in Yi Zhonghai's eyes. He stared intently at the deaf old woman, his breathing becoming rapid. Under his expectant gaze, the deaf old woman spoke, word by word: "We... have a fake marriage."

"boom..........."

These words were like a thunderclap, exploding in Yi Zhonghai's mind.

His head was buzzing, and he stood there dumbfounded, his eyes wide open, his mouth agape as if he could fit an egg in it, his face filled with shock and disbelief, as if he had heard the most absurd thing in the world.

A fake marriage? With a deaf old woman? How is that possible!

The deaf old woman's eyes gradually turned indifferent, as if they were covered with a layer of ice: "Xiao Yi, this is the only way. If you don't want to live, then pretend I didn't say anything."

His tone left no room for negotiation, carrying a resolute determination to burn one's bridges.

Yi Zhonghai shuddered, finally snapping out of his shock.

Looking at the deaf old woman's unwavering expression, he was torn between two conflicting emotions. He stammered, "Then...then, old lady, what about Cui...Cuilan? What about the children? How...how are we going to live from now on?"

The thought of Cuilan and his newborn son caused him a sharp pain in his heart, as if it were being pierced by needles.

The deaf old woman sighed softly, her tone tinged with impatience yet also with reassurance: "The most important thing right now is to save your life! We can deal with the rest later. Just live your life as usual. That marriage certificate is just a facade, used to save your life. Once this is over, we can take it off."

Yi Zhonghai shook his head vigorously, his face full of resistance: "Impossible! Absolutely impossible!"

He looked at the deaf old woman, his tone urgent, "Grandma, how could Cuilan possibly agree? I finally managed to have a child with her. What if she leaves me after we divorce? How can I let her risk leaving me? No, I can't do that! Besides... how could Cuilan just get a divorce and then get married like that?"

The deaf old woman stared intently at Yi Zhonghai, her eyes sharp as knives, her face so grave it seemed to drip water, her tone icy and chilling: "Xiao Yi, listen to me! I have a way to get Cuilan to cooperate with us. You just need to do as I say! Your most urgent task now is to go and find Cuilan immediately. I want to talk to her!"

She paused, her tone softening slightly, but still carrying a sense of pressure, "Don't worry, Cuilan is a reasonable person, she will understand us. As long as you get through this, we'll continue living our lives as before."

Looking at the determined look in the deaf old woman's eyes, and recalling the fear of "eating peanuts," Yi Zhonghai's defenses completely crumbled.

He gritted his teeth, as if making a difficult decision, his voice trembling slightly: "Okay, okay! Grandma, I'll listen to you! I'll go find Cuilan right now!"

After saying that, he seemed to have lost his soul and stumbled towards the door, his steps unsteady. His mind was a mess, with only two thoughts remaining: "find Cuilan" and "save his life".

The deaf old woman watched his hurried departure, her eyes filled with complex and ever-changing emotions—calculation, smugness, and a hint of barely perceptible ruthlessness.

A moment later, a cold smile curled at the corner of her lips. She thought to herself, "Cuilan, don't blame the old lady for being heartless; blame yourself for blocking my way. But if you know what's good for you and cooperate obediently, I won't make things too difficult for you."

As soon as Yi Zhonghai rushed out of the deaf old woman's house, he bumped into Director Wang and several street office staff members who were guarding the door.

His heart tightened, his face turned deathly pale, and he stammered, "Director Wang, please wait a moment! I... I'll go find Cuilan; the old lady has something to say to her!"

When the street office staff saw this, they were about to step forward to stop him, but Director Wang grabbed them.

Director Wang gave Yi Zhonghai a deep look, his eyes filled with complex emotions, and said in a heavy tone, "Fine, Yi Zhonghai, this is your last chance, do you understand?"

She knew in her heart that if this matter escalated, it would not benefit anyone, so she could only wait and see what tricks Yi Zhonghai was up to.

Yi Zhonghai trembled, his face turning as white as paper. He nodded hurriedly, "I...I understand! Director Wang, I understand!"

But just as he turned to run towards the central courtyard, his gaze inadvertently swept across the moon gate, and he froze instantly, as if struck by a spell. His eyes widened, his face filled with shock and disbelief: "Zhou... Zhou Weiguo? You... how did you get here? Weren't you arrested by the police?"

Zhou Weiguo leaned against the frame of the moon gate, arms crossed, a mocking smile playing on his lips: "Old Yi, it seems you're not happy to see me?"

He paused, a hint of schadenfreude in his voice, "But it's okay. Seeing you unhappy makes me happy. Hurry up and go, or you'll forget about finding Cuilan, you might not even get the peanuts cold."

Yi Zhonghai felt a chill run down his spine from what he said, his eyes instantly turning sinister as he stared intently at Zhou Weiguo, as if he wanted to devour him alive.

He gritted his teeth, suppressing the hatred and anger in his heart, and turned to walk quickly towards the central courtyard. He knew that now was not the time to argue with Zhou Weiguo; finding Cuilan was the most important thing.

Director Wang watched Yi Zhonghai's departing figure, frowned thoughtfully, then turned to the direction of Xu Damao's house and asked in a deep voice, "Xu Damao, are you all dressed?"

"Okay, okay..." Xu Damao's trembling voice came from inside the room, filled with deep fear and panic, and he could barely speak properly.

Director Wang didn't wait any longer and walked into the house.

As soon as I entered, I saw Xu Damao and Song Dahua sitting on the edge of the bed with their necks hunched over. Their faces were ashen, as if they had lost their souls, their eyes were unfocused, and their bodies were trembling slightly.

The air inside was even more oppressive than in the deaf old woman's house, filled with an atmosphere of despair.

Director Wang glanced at the two men and said in an icy tone, "Tell me, do you want to be paraded through the streets first, or come directly to the police station with me? The nature of your case is extremely serious. I reckon a sentence of twenty or thirty years would be too lenient."

"Twenty or thirty years?"

These words struck them like a thunderbolt, making the two of them shudder.

They all looked up, staring at Director Wang in disbelief, their eyes filled with fear and despair.

Xu Damao's eyes instantly reddened, and tears almost fell. How old was he?

If he's sentenced to twenty or thirty years, he'll be an old man when he gets out, and his life will be completely ruined. No! Absolutely not! He can't just be ruined like that!

P.S.: Please urge me to update more and give me good reviews. Thank you!