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

"Master Li!"

"Your methods are truly forceful; even this little notebook has to bow to you!"

On the road, Kong Wu gripped the handlebars tightly, his back ramrod straight, his tone full of pride.

Li Wenguo slowly shook his head, a deep bitterness flashing across his brow: "In a few years, things won't be like this anymore."

Right now, the Japanese haven't even set foot in Beiping yet, and they're still keeping their tails between their legs, not daring to get too cocky. But once their iron hooves have trampled over the capital, their morale will be high and their arrogance will soar. Even with foreigners backing them up, they probably won't be able to control their arrogance.

His fingertips unconsciously rubbed his cuffs, his thoughts drifting far away—how could he extricate himself from this situation? Where could he hide? How could he escape the overwhelming onslaught?

It has been almost a year since I transmigrated to the Republic of China era.

He'd truly figured out how to survive these days: wallowing in the mud, braving the wind and fire, one wrong step and you're headed for the abyss. Want to get ahead? As difficult as climbing to heaven, practically a pipe dream.

If it weren't for the newbie gift pack the system gave him, plus his fluent English as a foundation, how could he have secured his position today?

Most of them were swallowed up by the chaos of war long ago, leaving not even bones behind.

Lost in thought, the heavy oak door of the trading company came into view.

Another day's work begins.

With his clones secretly orchestrating events, he signed orders and purchased goods with his left hand while reselling them with his right. Silver dollars flowed into his pockets like a stream, then he would use them to invest in venture capital—orders grew larger and larger, profits soared, and he left others far behind.

The position of deputy manager was already firmly planted under his buttocks.

"Thump, thump, thump!"

The knocking was short and forceful.

Charlie, the foreigner, specially set up a private office for him on the second floor. The doorplate was gleaming, and the glass was so clean you could see your reflection.

"Enter!"

Li Wenguo sat upright, his official tone perfectly executed.

But when the door opened, it was Mary who came in.

She wore a jet-black dress with a dangerously low neckline, the hem of which just passed her knees, and her red high heels looked like two burning flames.

The black silk accentuated her snow-white neck and arms, which shimmered with a glaze-like sheen in the afternoon light.

It was dazzlingly beautiful, and also blindingly so.

In today's world, this outfit would be considered "indecent and immoral."

What are you doing here?

Li Wenguo had no time to observe the shimmering light and shadow on her body. He kept his voice very low, his Adam's apple bobbing slightly, and beads of sweat appearing on his forehead.

People were coming and going in the corridor outside. He didn't believe that the eyes of those trading company employees could stay still as Maria walked along—they were all staring at her like hungry wolves eyeing meat.

To make matters worse, Charlie was still inside the building!

But Maria was not intimidated at all.

She approached gracefully, her skirt swirling gently, and finally sat directly on his lap. She hooked her arm around his neck, her fingertips almost digging into the back of his neck: "Hmph, what are you pretending to be, a coward? You weren't like this last night—you were like a starving leopard, wanting nothing more than to chew me up and swallow me whole!"

"How can that be the same?"

"This is a foreign firm! Charlie could be back at any moment!"

"Get down! Hurry up and let's go!"

He whispered in her ear as he reached out to support her waist, trying to help her move away.

"Don't worry, Charlie has gone to the banquet and won't be back until the afternoon."

She wore delicate pink velvet gloves, as thin as cicada wings, and slowly drew circles on his chest, one after another—the meaning couldn't be clearer: right now, right here.

Li Wenguo didn't even lift his eyelids, only saying indifferently, "Go to your place. You can go out first."

The moment the door closed, the warmth on his face vanished instantly.

"Maria...you're getting bolder and bolder."

"Browning into the deputy manager's office in broad daylight? Do they think everyone in the trading company is blind and deaf?"

He knew very well that their relationship was only a thin layer of ice away from being broken through.

as predicted--

As soon as Li Wenguo stepped down the stairs, more than a dozen pairs of eyes swept over him in the lobby, their expressions saying, "Those who know, know."

"Meijing, please ask for leave for me. Just say that I'm going out on errands with Miss Maria."

His tone was steady, and his words were clear, as if he were reporting the weather.

The entire hall fell silent instantly.

The crowd exchanged bewildered glances, astonishment creeping into their eyes—

No concealment whatsoever? Is this truly just official business?

But who would believe that?

If it were truly important business, why bother reporting it in public? Isn't this blatantly sending a message to Charlie's ear?

Asking for leave is meant to avoid suspicion; but he did the opposite, leaving everyone puzzled.

The few people who were grumbling immediately fell silent and hesitated in their tracks.

This move, which cut off the source of the problem, temporarily suppressed the rumors.

Ever since Maria barged into his office last time, she has become increasingly reckless.

Whenever Charlie went to a dinner party without her, she would storm into the trading company and drag him out—not to do business, but to "deal with him."

Fortunately, Li Wenguo had a backup plan: he told her to find Kong Wu first, and then Kong Wu would come looking for him.

Fortunately, it hasn't crashed yet.

But Li Wenguo knew in his heart that this situation could not last long—especially since Maria's desire to escape was becoming more and more urgent, and she had revealed her trump card several times: threatening to tell the foreigner Charlie about his seduction of her.

Although Li Wenguo managed to sway her back every time, he had already made up his mind: the next time they met, he would make her disappear completely.

I'm not going to act with her anymore.

He'd already thoroughly explored the allure of foreign women—to put it bluntly, they were just tough and daring, nothing more than empty boasts, nothing of substance.

The opportunity came sooner than expected.

That evening, Maria declined Charlie's dinner invitation, citing stomach pain. Unbeknownst to her, the moment Charlie left, the lukewarm smile on his face froze, his eyes turning as cold and menacing as poisoned knives.

In the blink of an eye, Li Wenguo appeared right on time.

"baby--!!!"

I missed you so much!

"Quick! Quickly, meld me into your body!"

Maria was still as fiery as ever, losing her mind the moment she saw him, forgetting even her own name, her eyes filled only with a raging fire that burned through reason.

After all, the banquet only lasts two hours, so time is extremely tight.

"oh--!"

"My darling!"

I miss you terribly too!

Li Wenguo was also burning hot, and deserved no leniency.

Since we're going to wrap things up tonight, let's put on a show to the fullest and consider it our final act.

An hour later, Maria lay slumped in his arms, her fingertips still entwined around his clothes, her voice as soft as melting honey: "Darling..."

"I have good news and bad news. Which do you want to hear first?"

"Good news."

Li Wenguo casually agreed, but inwardly he was coldly calculating:

Who cares if the sky falls or the earth cracks, you're going to be wiped off the face of the earth tonight anyway.

"Honey--"

"I'm pregnant."

"I'm pregnant with your child."

Boom!

A bolt of lightning struck Li Wenguo's crown, making him stiffen.

The thought of raising his hand to activate the space was abruptly frozen in mid-air.

The color drained from his face instantly, as if all his strength had been drained away.

"What's wrong, darling?" Maria tilted her head, leaning closer suspiciously. "Are you unhappy?"

She knew that Chinese people value the continuation of bloodlines most.

What's wrong with that look of utter disbelief?

I'm not happy at all!

Li Wenguo felt a churning in his stomach, but a smile suddenly appeared on his face as he leaned down and kissed her forehead.

"Happy! How could I not be happy?"

"I'm going to be a dad—just thinking about it makes my heart pound..."

The words were false, but the laughter was genuinely forced.

That murderous intent vanished on the spot.

He could kill Mary without flinching; but he wouldn't even dare to think about touching the flesh inside her womb.

Even tigers don't eat their cubs, let alone a living person from the 21st century? To personally extinguish his own flesh and blood? He wouldn't even dream of doing such a beastly thing.

We have no choice but to... find another way out.

"Darling!" Maria wrapped her arms tightly around his neck. "Now that I'm carrying your child, when are we leaving?"

"Well..." Li Wenguo slowly brushed her fingers aside, "I haven't sold a few properties yet, the paperwork is dragging on. Just wait a little longer, it'll be done soon."

"Quickly? It's been dragging on for months!" Her voice suddenly rose. "Are you reluctant to part with those few yellow-skinned concubines at home?"

"What makes them better than me?"

Li Wenguo's face instantly turned ashen.

In terms of virtue, affection, and resilience—any one of them is miles ahead of you!

No, it's eighty streets!

"In your eyes, am I just a yellow-skinned monkey?" he suddenly lowered his voice.

"Huh? Of course not!" Maria hurriedly waved her hands. "You're the most handsome and amazing prince charming I've ever seen in my life!"

As she spoke, she tiptoed closer, wanting to kiss his lips.

Li Wenguo turned his head away, letting her kiss only up to his cheekbone.

"So how long are you going to keep dragging this out?" She gripped his wrist tightly. "If you wait another two or three months, your belly will swell up, and the truth will come out."

"Don't worry, I have my own plans." His tone was calm, but it left no room for argument.

"How can I not be in a hurry?" Her voice trembled. "If Charlie knew I'd cheated on him, he'd skin me alive!"

Skin you alive? That would save me the trouble.

Li Wenguo lowered his eyes, concealing the cold glint in them.

"How about..." Maria bit her lip, seemingly determined, "and take all your yellow-skinned ladies with you abroad?"

Once the words were out of his mouth, he didn't care about propriety or restraint anymore—escaping for his life was the priority.

Once we step out of the country, we'll find an opportunity to get rid of Li Wenguo's women completely.

"I need to calm down and think things through."

Li Wenguo's tone was indifferent, and his perfunctory attitude was made no attempt to hide it.

He had no intention of leaving at all.

Even if you really go abroad—

Maria is a staunch believer in monogamy. If she were to bring her family along, would she be willing to make do with them?

He had already rolled his eyes a hundred times in his mind: Don't even think about it.

"Oh, by the way, what was the other bad news you mentioned earlier?"

Seeing that Maria was about to press him again, Li Wenguo immediately interrupted.

"Oh, the bad news... she's pregnant."

"You know, this belly can't be covered up for more than a few days."

"Honey, do you prefer a son, or do you long for a daughter?"

"I've heard that you have a preference for sons over daughters where you're from, but in my opinion, girls are the most considerate—look at the British Empire, which once spanned the globe, wasn't it all built up by the Queen alone..."

Before she could finish speaking, her thoughts were already drawn far away by the baby in her womb.

Li Wenguo verbally agreed, but his mind was racing, trying to figure out how to put out this time bomb.