Courtyard House: A Start with Black Gold Swallowing 100,000 Silver Dollars

"Oh no, no, no! You're heavy, don't move around. I'll call Hongyu to serve you."

Good heavens!

He was carrying a basin and bending over and squatting!

With your big belly, don't torture yourself, and don't hurt the little bit of tenderness in my heart!

He Shuting felt a pang of jealousy when she heard that Hongyu, that little vixen, was being called again. Although she also came from an opera troupe, she was wilder, more fiery, and more desirable than Xianglan, who came from a brothel.

She pursed her lips, a hint of jealousy in her voice, and said, "Sir, please spare me. How many more times can your body withstand this?"

Li Wenguo was most confident when it came to this.

He smiled, narrowing his eyes: "What? You doubt my abilities? How about I go over there and 'pest control' first, then come back and check my quality for you?"

He Shuting froze on the spot, her temples throbbing. She snapped, "Sir, you decide for yourself!"

She turned around, grabbed the yarn and needles from the table, and began knitting a sweater.

That style, with its broad shoulders and fitted waist, is clearly designed for boys.

Although she is a woman of the new era, she still cannot escape the deeply ingrained old belief that the first child must be a son.

Especially since she is the legal wife, the future Li family's legacy, land, shops, and ancestral home will all be inherited by the child in her womb.

Although Li Wenguo didn't say it, he was still worried about his unborn son. That night, he stayed in Hongyu's room and didn't step into He Shuting's room again.

As night fell and dawn broke, a rooster's loud crow pierced the morning mist, and the day quietly turned to the next.

Li Wenguo contacted "Yang Zhengde" just as dawn broke.

Sure enough, Yang Zhengde returned with a message in the afternoon.

This result surprised him.

The editor wasn't sent to the secret service at all; instead, he was imprisoned in the municipal jail.

The bookstore's underground agents were quite clever, deliberately choosing their rendezvous day to coincide with the anniversary sale—a 50% off sale, and the store was packed with people.

The crowd of customers that day was as dense as a temple fair. Although the secret service arrested everyone on the scene, interrogation could not be completed in one go. They had to select a few key people for interrogation first, and the rest were temporarily detained in jail until their turn came.

Li Wenguo casually asked, "Can the person... be retrieved?"

Unexpectedly, Yang Zhengde nodded: "Yes."

He's gotten quite familiar with the police station lately, and he's learned all the ins and outs of officialdom, the unspoken rules, and the power dynamics.

Unless it's a wanted criminal specifically named by higher authorities, as long as the money is right, even a prisoner sentenced to death can be "lifted" out by the warden.

To put it simply, it boils down to one sentence: as long as the money is there, everything is negotiable.

He had the money, but Li Wenguo still asked one more question: "Won't this cause trouble later?"

Yang Zhengde shook his head: "No."

He explained: All we need to do is talk to the warden, and then send some nameless "unregistered person" to ransom the person. The money will be exchanged, and no one will be able to trace the source.

After a moment's thought, Li Wenguo nodded.

Saving this person would significantly increase He Shuting's standing within the organization, which would be entirely beneficial for her.

Since it's safe and there's no risk of exposure, what's there to hesitate about?

That day, "Yang Zhengde" paid a visit to the prison warden Liu Shouzhen—a round-faced, thick-bearded, oily-faced man in a uniform wrapped in fat, who walked with a swagger.

"Director Liu, someone asked me to come here to 'ask' someone to leave."

He spoke with a smile.

"Sure!"

"As long as you count enough!"

"Anyone can be released!"

Liu Shouzhen twirled his fingers, his eyes crinkling with laughter.

"Huh... Is it really that amazing?"

"Political prisoners, Japanese puppet regime spies, underground party members—you dare to pass these out?"

"Yang Zhengde" asked with a half-smile.

The two often played mahjong together and were quite familiar with each other.

"Hahaha!"

"How could I dare? Do I even care about my life?"

"Even if you threw a mountain of gold and silver at me, I wouldn't dare take on this hot potato!"

Liu Shouzhen smiled and waved his hand.

He knew perfectly well that the other party wasn't after any heinous criminal.

Who is Yang Zhengde? He's a seasoned veteran, with a keen eye for detail. Why would he put himself in danger?

"No more beating around the bush—the person who asked me to do this favor is named Zhu Youcai, and he was caught yesterday at Huamin Bookstore."

Before he finished speaking, Yang Zhengde's smile vanished, and his eyes darkened.

"My goodness! These are people from the Secret Service, how dare you lay a hand on them?"

Liu Shouzhen's face immediately fell, and his brows furrowed into a knot.

Although the Lixingshe Society is not as terrifying as the Military Intelligence Bureau later on, it is highly valued by the higher-ups. Ordinary people would rather avoid it than provoke it.

"hey-hey!!!"

"The person hasn't even crossed the threshold of the Secret Service yet."

Yang Zhengde shrugged, his expression nonchalant.

Once inside the Special Service Department's territory, Li Wenguo wouldn't even lift an eyelid—that would be like having the word "accomplice" engraved on his forehead; he'd only touch it if he was tired of living.

But right now, the person is still stuck outside the interrogation room; the roster hasn't been updated, the procedures aren't complete, and there are plenty of loopholes:

They bribe the registrar to erase names, find a scapegoat, or even... simply switch the case files.

There is never just one way.

"That makes sense, but since it was someone arrested by the Special Service, the price should be tripled."

Liu Shouzhen held up three fingers, his tone both soft and firm.

In the years that followed, when the Military Intelligence Bureau was all-powerful, he wouldn't have dared to get involved in this even if he had ten lives.

I'll go and let them know later.

Yang Zhengde remained calm and composed, and did not make any promises or guarantees. For someone like Liu Shouzhen who was quick to make a profit, agreeing too readily would only urge him to increase the stakes.

Not long after.

In a secluded courtyard, Li Wenguo activated his clone technique, transforming himself into a fierce man with a leopard's head, piercing eyes, and a face covered in scars.

This demeanor was specifically designed to intimidate the greedy warden—to prevent him from playing tricks or demanding exorbitant prices on the spot.

Before the evening shift ended, one hundred silver dollars were handed over, and Zhu Youcai, the older cousin, was smoothly led out of the prison.

into the night.

Li Wenguo slowly finished two large bowls of rice and drank the last bowl of hot ginseng chicken soup. He Shuting couldn't hold back any longer and grabbed his arm, dragging him into the house.

Xianglan and Hongyu stood behind, pouting and looking indignant.

snort!

You slut!

"Sir, have you found out anything?"

As soon as the door closed, He Shuting lowered her voice and pressed for an answer.

Today, the club president, Wang Zhiguo, urged her again with a dark face, and she felt like she had a ball of fire burning inside her.

"We figured it out long ago!"

If Li Wenguo didn't know she was one of his comrades, he would have suspected that she was so anxious about some lover that she had turned gray with worry.

"Where are they? Where are they?"

She pressed for more information.

Li Wenguo wanted to say directly, "The person has been released," but he hesitated and only said, "The person is indeed in jail, and they are being held very tightly."

He Shuting blurted out, "Can it be saved?"

"Tsk... That's tough!"

He deliberately dragged out the tone, leaving room for interpretation.

Upon hearing this, her eyes lit up immediately. She took two steps closer, hooked one arm around his, and said with a mix of reproach and pleading, "Sir, you are incredibly capable; this is no problem for you!"

Li Wenguo sighed dramatically and shook his head repeatedly: "Too dangerous! Besides, what good would it do me to save a complete stranger? It would only cause trouble."

Seeing her stunned and pale, he simply revealed his trump card: "Unless... you give me something concrete to hold onto."

Longing?

He Shuting was taken aback and didn't react.

"What do you want?" she asked tentatively.

Li Wenguo chuckled softly, leaned close to her ear, and whispered something.

Her face flushed instantly, she bit her lip, and her ears burned.

Seeing his grinning, confident look that he had her completely under his thumb, she wanted nothing more than to slap him across the face.

All you care about is this mouth? You can't even feed yourself properly down there, and you're still craving this?

But since lives were at stake, she had no choice but to swallow her anger.

"Alright! As long as you bring the person out safely... I, I'll play the flute for you!"

The words were squeezed out from between his teeth, sharp and crisp.

"My dear—my little darling, just wait for good news tomorrow!"

Li Wenguo put his arm around her shoulder and smiled smugly.

"Go find your little vixen!"

She forcefully pulled her hand away from his groping, turned and walked away, angrily throwing down a sentence.

"hey-hey!!!"

"Make sure you rinse your mouth thoroughly tomorrow night!"

He didn't mind at all, and even made another joke.

"roll--!"

……

The following afternoon.

As soon as He Shuting pushed open the glass door of the newspaper office, she bumped into the editor-in-chief, Wang Zhiguo, who was walking in with a beaming smile.

When he was called into the office, Wang Zhiguo was grinning from ear to ear, wrinkles crinkling at the corners of his eyes: "My older cousin is out! He just got discharged from the hospital this morning!"

He Shuting felt a sense of relief, as if a heavy burden had been lifted from her shoulders. But then she remembered the "agreement" she had been forced to sign last night, and the corners of her mouth that had just begun to turn up slightly froze again.

She simply uttered four words: "As long as the person comes out."

"Shu Ting, you really have to thank your man this time!" Wang Zhiguo leaned forward, his voice low and eager. "Your husband is really capable—he just scooped people out of the heavy prison cell with a wave of his hand! I heard he stepped out of the iron gate yesterday afternoon. You'd better hurry up and persuade him to join us as soon as possible..."

What?!

Yesterday afternoon?!

He Shuting's mind went blank for a moment, and the rest of her words were lost in the wind.

She clenched her fists tightly, her nails digging into her palms—you old fox!

They're taking advantage of my misfortune, trying to bully me when I'm down!

Fine, if you don't follow the rules, then don't blame me for not keeping my promise.

At night, Li Wenguo strolled into the room humming a tune, his eyebrows and eyes full of smugness.

"hey-hey!"

"I've taken care of things for you, now it's your turn to deliver!"

He Shuting glanced at him sideways, then calmly walked to the bedside, leaned back, and spread her limbs out, like a graceful ink painting.

Li Wenguo was stunned: Shouldn't he be coming over to unbuckle his belt? Why is he just lying down?

He sidled closer, gestured to his mouth with both hands, and winked, "Shuting, time to get to work?"

"Sir, take a rest." She slowly turned over, lying on her side, and touched her chin to her protruding belly. "If you won it fair and square, I'll accept it; but this trick of yours, where you reach out and strangle me when I can't breathe—I'm sorry, the contract is void."

"Blow? No way. I'll just lie here and do whatever you want. But a word of advice—be gentle, don't startle the baby inside."

Li Wenguo's face immediately darkened to the point of being dark enough to drip ink.

He didn't say anything—he had indeed played a trick on this matter.

But he wasn't in a hurry. There was plenty of time; there would be many more times when he could be of use to her. One day, he would make her willingly part her red lips and turn that stubbornness into a soft sigh.

"snort!"

"If you don't brag, plenty of others will. I'll go find Hongyu right now."

"You might as well stay here in this empty house and enjoy the cool air!"

Before he finished speaking, he flicked his sleeves and turned around, his back view clean and crisp, without even a sway of his clothes.