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

The entire living room was completely silent.

The only sounds were Li Yunlong's heavy breathing and the faint singing coming from the radio.

Ding Wei, Kong Jie, and Zhao Gang all watched Lin Yang quietly, waiting for his answer.

They knew that Lin Yang was now a high-ranking local official with a promising future. Moreover, he had only recently gotten married and was enjoying a happy and fulfilling life. Asking him to give up this comfortable life and return to the brutal battlefield where death could be a constant threat was not an easy decision.

Lin Yang lowered his head, looking at the southwest map on the coffee table, which was covered with densely marked enemy strongholds.

His fingers gently traced the map.

A long silence followed.

Suddenly, Lin Yang unbuttoned his sweater and ripped it off, revealing his strong and muscular upper body.

His chest and shoulders were crisscrossed with more than a dozen hideous scars. The penetrating wound on his left chest, less than two centimeters from his heart, was particularly horrifying.

"Old Li."

Lin Yang raised his head, and his once calm eyes were now ablaze with fierce fire.

That was a fanatical fighting spirit belonging to soldiers, to gods of war!

"These past few months at the factory, I've been sitting in the office every day. My body has definitely become a bit too pampered."

Lin Yang stretched his shoulders, and his bones made a crisp cracking sound.

"However, what I, Lin Yang, cannot bear to see most in my life is the mistreatment of ordinary people and the murder of our comrades!"

Lin Yang slammed his hand on the map, his eyes sharp as knives.

"I'll take this job!"

"good!!!"

Li Yunlong was so excited that his face turned red, and he gave Lin Yang a big bear hug.

"I knew it! You've got the blood of a warrior flowing in your veins! You were born for this!"

Ding Wei and Kong Jie also burst into laughter.

Zhao Gang nodded with satisfaction. With Lin Yang joining the fray, the chances of success in suppressing bandits in the southwest had undoubtedly increased.

Just as these iron-willed soldiers were filled with heroic spirit...

The kitchen sliding door was gently pulled open.

Tian Yu stood at the doorway, holding a plate of freshly cooked dumplings.

Her hands trembled slightly, and a few drops of soup from the dumpling plate spilled out, scalding the back of her hand, but she seemed not to feel the pain.

Her eyes, which were always full of tenderness, were now brimming with tears, which silently slid down her fair cheeks.

She was a nurse at a field hospital, and she knew better than anyone what the battlefield meant.

It means severed limbs, rivers of blood, and the possibility that the man who held her as she fell asleep every night might never come back.

"Tian Yu..."

Lin Yang's heart clenched when he saw his wife crying. He quickly went over, took the plate from her hand, placed it on the table, and pulled her into his arms.

Seeing this, Li Yunlong and the others suppressed their fervor and showed expressions of embarrassment and apology.

"Sister-in-law, this is... my fault." Li Yunlong rubbed his hands, somewhat at a loss. "I shouldn't have pulled Yangzi away at this time..."

"Commander Li, please stop talking."

Tian Yu leaned against Lin Yang's chest, gently shook her head, and tried her best to hold back her tears.

She looked up at Lin Yang's resolute face, reached out and gently stroked the most fatal scar on his chest.

"Yangzi, I know you are an eagle that belongs to the sky. The walls of the steel mill cannot confine you."

Although Tian Yu's voice was choked with emotion, it conveyed the unique strength and profound sense of righteousness characteristic of military families.

"I'm crying not because I want to stop you from going to war. I'm crying because I feel sorry for you, for all your wounds, and how hard it was for you to recover."

Tian Yu hugged Lin Yang tightly around the waist, buried her face in his chest, and her tears soaked his shirt.

"Go. The country needs you, the people need you."

Tian Yu raised her head, her eyes red, and said, word by word, "But Lin Yang, you better remember this!"

You're not alone anymore, you still have me! No matter how dangerous the situation on the front lines, you must come back alive!

"If you dare to lose even a single hair, I, Tian Yu, will chase you to the ends of the earth and bring you back to settle the score!"

Hearing his wife's affectionate yet resolute words, Lin Yang's eyes also reddened slightly.

He lowered his head and kissed Tian Yu's forehead deeply.

"Don't worry, wife."

Lin Yang's voice was deep and firm, as if he had made a vow of immense weight.

"Those bandits can't take my life, Lin Yang. Once I've pacified the Southwest, I'll come back and live a peaceful life with you. We'll have a bunch of kids and make a ruckus in this compound every day!"

"Mmm!" Tian Yu smiled through her tears and nodded vigorously.

Li Yunlong watched from the side, wiping away tears. He suddenly turned around and roared.

"Good! My sister-in-law is very understanding! We families of soldiers from the Fourth Field Army have backbone!"

Li Yunlong picked up the teacup on the table, using tea instead of wine, and raised it high.

"Come on! For the suppression of bandits in the southwest! For our spearhead! Let's do it!"

"Dry!"

Lin Yang, Zhao Gang, Ding Wei, and Kong Jie—five teacups—clashed heavily together.

A bloodbath sweeping across Southwest China is destined to cause rivers of blood to flow.

A bloody and arduous journey that struck fear into the hearts of countless enemy agents and bandits.

The event officially kicked off in this warm military compound!

··········

Yuquanshan Road, the military compound.

On a weekend morning, the biting north wind howled through the branches outside the window, but the living room of Building 6, Jiazi, was filled with an irrepressible warmth.

Tian Yu got up very early and spent the whole morning in the kitchen preparing a large and sumptuous feast. There was braised carp, steamed pork with rice flour, chicken stew with mushrooms, and a steaming pot of cabbage, pork, and vermicelli stew.

Today is the day Lin Fan and Ding Qiunan officially pay their visit.

Just after ten o'clock, the sound of a jeep engine came from outside. Lin Yang had specially asked his guard, Xiao Li, to drive to the alley entrance to pick them up, so they wouldn't have to ride bicycles in the freezing cold.

The door opened, and Lin Fan, holding Ding Qiunan's hand, walked in with a beaming smile.

Lin Fan, dressed in his crisp, dark blue security chief uniform, looked incredibly energetic, with no trace of the timidity he had displayed during his bullying days in the courtyard. Ding Qiunan, on the other hand, wore a brand-new woolen coat and the red scarf Tian Yu had given her, her beautiful face flushed with happiness.

"Yangzi, Tianyu! We're here!" Lin Fan greeted them with a smile, carrying two bottles of fine wine and several boxes of pastries.

"Big brother, Qiu Nan, come inside quickly, it must be freezing outside!" Tian Yu hurriedly stepped forward, took the things, and pulled Ding Qiu Nan's hand to sit down on the sofa.

Lin Yang came down from the study upstairs, wearing a loose sweater. Looking at the perfect couple in front of him, a hint of heartfelt satisfaction flashed in his deep eyes.

"Brother, Qiu Nan. You look great today." Lin Yang smiled and sat down opposite him.

Ding Qiunan lowered her head somewhat embarrassed, while Lin Fan scratched the back of his head sheepishly. The two looked at each other, seemingly exchanging glances.