Courtyard House: A Veteran Returns Home and Becomes a Father

No. 95, South Tongluo Lane, Intermediate Courtyard.

The night wind carried the chill of early winter, stinging one's face like it was being cut by a knife.

Everyone hunched over, no one daring to move, not even to breathe loudly. Dozens of gazes, filled with fear, disdain, and schadenfreude, were all focused on Yi Zhonghai, who was slumped on the ground.

This man, who had been a local tyrant in the courtyard for decades and wore the cloak of "high moral standing" his whole life, was stripped bare on this night by Qin Huairu's tearful accusations.

His reputation is shattered.

Dignity is gone.

His lifelong plan for retirement, which he valued most, has become a huge joke.

Su Mo stared at him coldly, as if he were looking at a pile of trash that was no longer of any use. His gaze moved away from Yi Zhonghai's deathly pale face and slowly landed on a figure in the crowd who was desperately trying to curl up into a ball.

Second Uncle, with bangs.

Liu Haizhong felt as if his heart was being gripped by an icy hand. His blood seemed to freeze instantly, and his hands and feet turned ice-cold. He tried to dodge, but found himself locked onto by that cold gaze, with nowhere to escape.

"Second...Second Uncle." Su Mo's voice wasn't loud, but it struck Liu Haizhong's heart like a heavy hammer. "I heard you're very interested in becoming an official?"

Liu Haizhong trembled all over, forced himself to squeeze out of the crowd, forced a smile that looked worse than a grimace, and bent over at almost a ninety-degree angle.

"Comrade Su... Comrade Su Mo, what are you saying? I... I was just worrying unnecessarily, worrying unnecessarily..."

"Is that so?" Su Mo's lips curled into a mocking smile. He turned to the Third Uncle Yan Bugui, who had been keeping his head down and trying to make himself inconspicuous. "Third Uncle, tell me, how did Second Uncle 'meddle' the day my batch of golden nanmu wood was delivered into the yard?"

Yan Bugui, whose name was called, trembled with fright and almost jumped up.

How could he dare to tell the truth? But how could he dare to lie to Su Mo?

Just as he was stammering and unable to utter a single word, a fawning voice rang out from the side.

"Let me tell you! Brother Su, I know this best!"

Xu Damao darted forward, his face beaming with pride. He was now determined to cling to Su Mo's coattails, and he wouldn't let this opportunity to prove himself slip by.

"The moment the timber arrived in the yard that day, Second Uncle jumped out!" Xu Damao pointed at Liu Haizhong, his face beaming. "He said that the timber was good stuff, and it couldn't be kept all by you, Brother Su. It had to belong to the yard! He said he wanted to use it to make a new bulletin board for the yard, and he wanted to take the leftover scraps home to make a new table for his son!"

These words immediately caused an uproar in the courtyard.

Good heavens! This guy's got some serious scheming going on, he's practically rolling his eyes at everyone!

Liu Haizhong's face instantly turned a deep purplish-red. He pointed at Xu Damao, trembling with rage: "You...you're talking nonsense! I was doing it for the good of the hospital!"

"For the good of the courtyard?" Su Mo sneered. "When did it become your place to control my things? You're quite the big shot, aren't you?"

"I...I was wrong! Comrade Su Mo, I was really wrong!" Liu Haizhong's legs went weak, and he collapsed to the ground. He knew that if he continued to be stubborn, his fate would only be worse than Yi Zhonghai's. He wailed, tears streaming down his face, "I was blinded by officialdom! I was senile! I'll never dare to do it again! Please...please have mercy on me this time!"

Su Mo didn't even glance at him again; her gaze finally fell on the last target.

The third uncle, Yan Bugui, was the one whose every inch of his body screamed "shrewdness" and "calculation."

"Third Uncle".

Yan Bugui jumped in surprise, quickly waving his hands and forcing a sincere smile: "Comrade Su Mo, I...I didn't do anything! I'm just a teacher, I'm timid, I..."

"Really?" Su Mo interrupted him. "I heard you're the best at scheming?"

"No, no, no, it's just so-so..." Yan Bugui broke out in a cold sweat. He felt that there was something fishy about Su Mo's words.

"That's perfect." Su Mo nodded. "Help me do the math. Did you want those leftover scrap wood from my renovation?"

"I...I just feel it's a waste to throw it away..." Yan Bugui's voice grew softer and softer.

"Okay, I won't throw it away." Su Mo's tone was very calm. "Fifty cents a pound, fair and square. You calculate how many pounds you secretly tried to get from Master Lei back then. Today, I'll sell them all to you at this price. Not a single pound less."

"puff--"

Yan Bugui almost spat out a mouthful of blood.

Fifty cents a pound? Is that wood? That's gold!

Making him spend money to buy the junk he originally wanted for free is worse than killing him! It's like tearing out his heart!

"No...no more...Comrade Su Mo, I don't want it anymore..." Yan Bugui's face turned green, and he waved his hands repeatedly, his heart aching.

"Don't want to?" Su Mo's eyes turned cold. "You have no choice. Xu Damao, you keep an eye on things tomorrow. If they buy even a pound less, you'd better bring me that old, broken bicycle of theirs that only has a broken bell. I think that bike is worth at least a few dozen pounds of timber."

"Alright! Just you wait and see, Brother Su!" Xu Damao replied excitedly.

Yan Bugui's vision went black, he swayed, and almost fainted on the spot.

It’s over.

This time, it's really going to be a huge financial blow.

Seeing the three "old men" slumped on the ground, everyone in the courtyard fell silent.

Su Mo's gaze slowly swept over everyone, his eyes like a cold carving knife, etching the new rules into the very bones of each person.

"From today onwards," Su Mo's voice wasn't loud, but it clearly echoed throughout the courtyard, "there is no First Uncle, no Second Uncle, and no Third Uncle in this courtyard. There are only neighbors."

"If anyone has a legitimate matter, they should go to the neighborhood office to resolve it. Anyone who is dishonest, has ulterior motives, or is plotting against others..."

He paused, a cold smile curving his lips.

"I, Su Mo, will personally discipline them."

After saying that, he ignored the group of beasts in the courtyard with their various expressions, turned around, and walked back to the east wing.

The heavy solid wood door slammed shut with a bang, marking the end of an old era and the beginning of a new one.

When Su Mo returned home, Xia Wanqing was waiting for him with a basin of hot water.

She didn't ask about what happened in the hospital, but gently pulled him to sit down, wrung out a hot towel, and gently wiped the dust and blood off his face.

"Is it all over?" she asked softly.

"Yes, it's over." Su Mo grabbed her hand, pulled her into his arms, and took a deep breath of the fragrance from her hair. The overwhelming killing intent he had brought back from Xishan finally began to subside.

"This will never happen again," he promised.

Just as the two were quietly embracing each other, enjoying the tranquility of surviving the ordeal.

"Thump, thump-thump".

There was a knock on the courtyard gate.

It wasn't the rhythmic code of Wang Erniu, but three steady, powerful knocks with an official air.

Su Mo frowned slightly, patted Xia Wanqing reassuringly, and got up to open the door.

Standing outside the door were two men in brand-new police uniforms. They were young, but their expressions were serious, and the rank on their shoulder insignia was higher than Zhao Weiguo's.

Upon seeing Su Mo, the leader first gave a standard military salute, and then took out a document stamped with the bright red seal of the Municipal Bureau from his briefcase.

"Excuse me, are you Comrade Su Mo?" His tone was respectful, yet tinged with barely concealed curiosity and awe.

"We're from the Municipal Public Security Bureau. Regarding the 'enemy agent terrorist attack' that occurred last night in Xishan..."

"Here is a commendation order and a bonus for you, which you need to sign for."