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

The deaf old woman frowned, remained silent for a long time, and finally spoke slowly: "Xiao Yi, in this situation, regardless of whether the other party intends to target you, you must keep a low profile for now. Avoid any further conflict with Zhou Weiguo and his group. The situation is still unclear; let's observe and see how things develop."

She paused briefly, then continued, "It seems unlikely that I'll be able to get Yang Weimin to help you with the house. You need to go to the neighborhood office immediately; there's still a vacant room in the west wing of Jia Zhang's house. Try to rent it. Then, quickly vacate Zhou Weiguo's house and try to mend the relationship between him and Zhuzi, otherwise, you're likely to have a hard time at the factory."

"The only way forward right now is through the certification exam. If you can pass level seven or even eight this time and become a senior fitter, the head of the technical department won't be able to do anything about it, and then you can find a way to turn things around."

A glimmer of hope appeared in Yi Zhonghai's eyes, but then he seemed to remember something, his face showing worry: "Grandma, Zhou Weiguo and his group now control the technical department. Although the grading approval is decided by the higher-level unit, the application must be submitted through the technical department. I'm worried they'll sabotage my application process, and then I'll be helpless."

Upon hearing this, the deaf old woman first sneered, then said, "If Zhou Weiguo is acting so directly to get back at you, then you should complain to the higher authorities on the day of the exam."

"You can't bully someone like this! I'd love for him to do it; if he really does, he'll most likely lose his position as head of the technical department. Now we just have to wait, even if it means humbling ourselves for the time being."

"Once Zhou Weiguo makes a mistake and slips up, we might be able to counter and control him. If one day you really have the opportunity to completely control Zhou Weiguo, and instead of getting Zhu Zi to cooperate with your retirement plan, it's not impossible for Zhou Weiguo to take care of you in your old age."

"If Zhou Weiguo obeys by then, that's fine. If he doesn't, find a way to bring him down completely. In short, from now on, you can't have any more direct conflicts with any member of their family. Let's not delay; let's settle the house matter first."

Yi Zhonghai nodded and replied, "I understand, ma'am, I'll get on it right away!"

Seeing Yi Zhonghai preparing to leave, the deaf old woman hurriedly reminded him, "Also, from now on, don't say anything good about Jia Zhangshi in front of Zhou Weiguo and the others, understand?"

Yi Zhonghai's face instantly turned ugly.

The deaf old woman's expression tightened: "You didn't already tell me, did you?"

Yi Zhonghai nodded helplessly: "Just before Director Yang's accident, Dongxu and I saw Zhou Weiguo avoiding us. We thought he was scared, so..."

"You wouldn't use me to threaten him into releasing Jia Zhangshi and returning the money and house, would you?" the deaf old woman asked incredulously.

Yi Zhonghai nodded slowly, his face contorted in a grimace.

The deaf old woman sighed deeply, rubbing her forehead, and pointed at Yi Zhonghai, saying, "Little Yi, what am I supposed to say to you? You used to be quite sensible, how come you act so impulsively now?"

Yi Zhonghai lowered his head, speechless.

The deaf old woman continued, "Xiao Yi, remember this! From now on, even if you need to deal with Zhou Weiguo and the others, you must never act personally. You need to know how to utilize all these people around you. Use Yan Fugui for small matters, and Liu Haizhong for big matters. One is fame-seeking, and the other is greedy for profit; both are easy to manipulate. When you can use everyone around you effectively, I will be at ease."

Upon hearing this, Yi Zhonghai nodded thoughtfully, then lowered his head and walked out.

His mind was filled with the old deaf woman's words about how to manipulate Zhou Weiguo and how to use the people around her.

Just as Yi Zhonghai stepped out of the courtyard gate, a blonde, blue-eyed woman came into view.

She stood outside the courtyard, surveying the situation inside.

Yi Zhonghai subconsciously glanced at the woman's attire: a black dress with a black leather jacket draped over it, and a leather suitcase in her hand.

He couldn't control his gaze at her, and kept looking her up and down.

To Yi Zhonghai's surprise, the woman opposite him smiled at him and then asked in standard Mandarin, "Hello, excuse me, is this No. 95 Nanluoguxiang?"

Yi Zhonghai nodded subconsciously.

The woman then asked, "Excuse me, does anyone here live in this courtyard named Zhou Weiguo?"

Yi Zhonghai looked at the woman in front of him and nodded again.

Seeing Yi Zhonghai nod, the woman's face instantly lit up with joy.

Her already sexy and alluring charm was further enhanced by the beautiful smile that radiated from her, leaving Yi Zhonghai completely stunned.

Is he there?

Yi Zhonghai replied absentmindedly, "Zhou Weiguo hasn't finished get off work yet. And you are?"

When asked Yi Zhonghai's question, the woman did not answer. She simply nodded, said "thank you," and quickly left.

Yi Zhonghai watched the woman's departing figure before he came to his senses, but he still felt that something was wrong.

He pondered to himself: Why would such a beautiful woman seek out Zhou Weiguo? How could Zhou Weiguo possibly have foreign friends? There aren't many foreigners in China these days, and even if foreigners travel, they're always accompanied by Chinese people. This woman is so alluring and beautiful; she doesn't look like a good person at all. The word "enemy spy" popped into his mind and he couldn't suppress it any longer.

His mind was racing: Could this be the opportunity the old lady was talking about? If he really was an enemy spy, no matter what connection he had with Zhou Weiguo, it would be enough to give that kid a run for his money. But what if he wasn't?

Just then, Yi Zhonghai saw a familiar figure in the distance brush past the woman from before.

The man kept staring at the woman, even stopping to turn his head and look back repeatedly.

Upon recognizing the person, Yi Zhonghai's eyes flashed, and he quickly stepped forward, asking, "Second Uncle, what are you looking at?"

Liu Haizhong was startled by Yi Zhonghai and quickly wiped the drool from the corner of his mouth, stammering, "No, I didn't see anything, there was nothing foreign... uh, nothing at all."

Yi Zhonghai chuckled inwardly at Liu Haizhong's incompetence and said, "I think I just saw a blonde woman calling for Zhou Weiguo at the courtyard gate. As soon as I came out, she ran away like she'd done something wrong. She was carrying a big box, which rattled as she ran, and I don't know what was inside. I'm still hesitating whether to report this to my superiors, just in case something happens to her."

Upon hearing this, Liu Haizhong shuddered. He thought: Yellow hair? Isn't that the foreign woman with the golden hair and lion-like appearance from earlier? Looking for Zhou Weiguo? There are heavy items in the box? They need to report it to higher authorities? There are other problems? This series of information pieced together a few words in his mind: enemy agent, report, Zhou Weiguo, revenge, meritorious service, becoming a leader?

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