Courtyard House: From Deputy Division Commander to Civilian, Progressing All the Way

He touched the smooth fabric of his clothes, tears welling up in his eyes. Ten years had passed, and he finally stood before the mirror like a human being.

"Alright, stop crying. Xiao Li, take my brother to get a haircut and a shave. Then pick out a pair of three-piece leather shoes made in Shanghai." Lin Yang gave the order directly.

Over the next two hours, a frenzied shopping spree took place in the special offer store.

Besides buying Lin Fan a new outfit, Lin Yang also generously bought a Shanghai brand all-steel watch and insisted on putting it on Lin Fan's wrist.

Afterwards, they went to the food section.

The package included imported Soviet-made luncheon meat in metal boxes, top-grade black fungus from the Greater Khingan Mountains, Yunnan ham, boxes of malted milk powder, White Rabbit milk candy, and several beautifully packaged bottles of Luzhou Laojiao and specially supplied Moutai.

Looking at the large bags and packages carried by Xiao Li and the other two guards, Lin Fan was numb. He had only one thought in his mind: his younger brother had truly made something of himself, incredibly successful!

……

As noon approaches, the courtyard house is at its liveliest time of day.

Every household was cooking over a fire, and the courtyard was filled with the pungent smell of burning cornmeal porridge and cheap coal briquettes.

"drop--"

A clear car horn sounded at the entrance of the alley.

The military jeep came to a steady stop in front of the gate of No. 95 compound.

Yan Bugui, who was watering the flowers and plants in the front yard, heard the noise and immediately put down the broken water ladle in his hand, peeking out curiously.

The car door opened.

The first person to get off the bus was not Lin Yang, but Lin Fan!

When Lin Fan was wearing that crisp, dark blue serge Zhongshan suit, with his gleaming leather three-piece shoes and a glittering Shanghai brand watch casually peeking out from his wrist...

Yan Bugui's eyeballs almost popped out of those tattered glasses!

"Oh my god! This...this is Lin Fan?!"

Yan Bugui rubbed his eyes, hardly believing his titanium alloy dog ​​eyes.

Is this still the same old man who wore a tattered cotton-padded coat that let in the wind in the dead of winter and washed clothes in the back room? His whole demeanor is so imposing, even Director Yang from the factory couldn't compare!

Lin Fan got out of the car. Although he was still a little nervous, he took a deep breath and tried to straighten his back, remembering his younger brother's instructions.

"Uncle, watering the flowers?" Lin Fan, unusually, took the initiative to greet him, his tone neither humble nor arrogant.

"Ah...ah! Yes, Lin Fan, where...where did you go to make your fortune?" Yan Bugui stammered, his eyes fixed on the watch on Lin Fan's wrist.

That's a Shanghai brand watch! It costs 120 yuan apiece, and you need industrial coupons for that! Yan Bugui has been calculating his whole life, and he can't even afford a watch strap!

Just then, Lin Yang and Tian Yu also got out of the car. Bodyguards Xiao Li and Xiao Wang, each carrying four huge net bags filled with various high-end ingredients and canned goods, followed behind.

The colorful candy wrappers, the tin cans printed with foreign languages, and the glistening ham...

This scene completely stunned the people who had come out of the middle and back courtyards to watch the spectacle.

Yi Zhonghai stood at the moon gate of the central courtyard, holding a rice bowl. His chopsticks fell to the ground with a "clatter".

Looking at the transformed Lin Fan, he felt as if a thousand steel needles had pierced his heart at once, causing him unbearable pain.

Regret! Endless regret!

If he hadn't conspired with Jia Zhangshi to seize the Lin family's house back then, if he had treated Lin Fan even slightly better over the past ten years, wouldn't he, Yi Zhonghai, have a share of these high-end resources and those powerful connections today? Wouldn't he no longer have to fawn over that good-for-nothing Jia Dongxu for his retirement?

But now, it's all too late. Not only did he gain nothing, but he also lives in constant fear, terrified that Lin Yang might remember him one day and shoot him dead.

Liu Haizhong hid behind his own window, his eyes red with jealousy.

He was obsessed with officialdom, valuing appearances and face above all else. Looking at Lin Fan's attire and then at his own old work clothes stained with oil, Liu Haizhong angrily slammed his fist on the windowsill, scraping his hand in the process.

"What's the point of a lousy apprentice dressing so nicely! What's he showing off for!" Liu Haizhong cursed through gritted teeth.

Although the swelling on Jia Zhangshi's face had subsided somewhat, it was still a bruise. She peered through the crack in the door at the delicious food the guard was carrying, drool dripping from her leaky mouth.

"Damn the Lin family! Buying so many good things, aren't they afraid of their intestines rotting? Why don't they know how to show some respect to an old woman like me!" Madam Jia cursed viciously in her heart, but she dared not utter a sound now. That slap from Monk Wei had completely shattered her courage.

He Daqing reacted the fastest. He immediately ran out of the kitchen, holding a spatula in his hand, and greeted them with a big smile.

"Oh my! Secretary Lin, Comrade Tian Yu, you're back! Oh dear! And this is... Brother Lin?!"

He Daqing's eyes widened dramatically as he circled Lin Fan, exclaiming loudly, "My goodness! Brother Lin, you look absolutely stunning in this outfit! The fabric, the workmanship—this is the work of a genuine Shanghai tailor! Who would dare say you're not a high-ranking official if you walked out like this!"

Lin Fan was a little embarrassed by He Daqing's blatant flattery, his face flushed slightly, but he felt an unprecedented sense of pleasure.

It feels so good to be looked up to by everyone in the hospital and to be fawned over by people who were once high and mighty!

"You're too kind, Master He." Lin Fan smiled. "Yangzi took me to an exclusive store today, and I bought a couple of outfits."

"A special-edition store?!"

He Daqing gasped, his voice rising eight octaves as if afraid the whole hospital wouldn't hear him.

"That's a place only high-ranking cadres at level 13 or above, or top leaders, can enter! I heard they even have some of the best stuff from our Soviet big brother! Brother Lin, you've really seen something amazing today!"

Upon hearing this, the beasts eavesdropping nearby felt even more sour and were almost driven mad with jealousy.

Senior cadres at or above level 13!

Yi Zhonghai felt like he was about to have a heart attack. His pride and joy in being an eighth-grade fitter was utterly a joke in the face of such privilege!

Lin Fan seemed to have found his confidence. He glanced at Yi Zhonghai, whose face was pale, and Liu Haizhong, who was hiding behind the window, and deliberately raised his voice.

"Yes, there are definitely a lot of good stuff inside. But Yangzi said that's nothing special."

Lin Fan straightened his collar and casually dropped a bombshell.

"In a few days, it will be Li Yunlong's birthday. Yangzi insisted on taking me to the birthday banquet, saying that he was afraid I would be dressed too poorly and embarrass him and the old commanders, so he forced me to buy this outfit. Sigh, actually I think that tattered cotton-padded coat is quite comfortable to wear."