Courtyard Houses: Starting with Li Yunlong's Comrades-in-Arms

Two days later, at dusk, a black Volga drove into the city from the western suburbs. Liu Yuheng sat in the back seat, leaning against the backrest, his eyes tinged with a faint bluish-gray, and the skin on his cheekbones was red and flaky from the northwest wind.

After two days and two nights on the train, plus the journey from the station to the city, he was completely exhausted. But he still mustered his strength to reorganize the documents in his briefcase, making sure he hadn't forgotten anything important, before closing the bag and placing it on his lap.

When the car entered the North City compound, it was already dark. The driver stopped the car in front of the building. Liu Yuheng opened the car door, got out of the car with his briefcase and the old canvas bag, said to the driver, "Thank you for your hard work. Go back and rest." Then he turned and walked towards his front door.

Before he even reached the door, he heard voices and laughter coming from inside, mixed with the babbling of a child.

He reached out and pushed the door open to go inside.

As soon as the door opened, all eyes in the room turned to look at it.

There were quite a few people sitting in the living room.

The moment Liu Yuheng stepped across the threshold, Liu Erhe and Liang Fangfang were the first to react. They both stood up from the sofa simultaneously, their faces lighting up, their gazes sweeping over Liu Yuheng's shoulder and looking behind him. Liang's mother also stood up, her handkerchief clenched tightly, her eyes widening as she anxiously scanned behind Liu Yuheng.

Liu Yuheng was a little confused by the stares. He stood at the door for a moment, put his briefcase and canvas bag on the shoe cabinet, and looked back to make sure there was nothing behind him except the closed door. Then he turned to Liu Erhe, his brows furrowing slightly. "Erhe, what are you peeking at? Is there something behind me?"

Liu Erhe peeked behind him again, making sure no one had followed him in. His expression changed from expectant to confused, and he opened his mouth to ask, "Brother, where's my father-in-law? Didn't he come back with you?"

Liu Yuheng then realized what was happening. He glanced at Liu Erhe, then at Liang's mother and Liang Fangfang, who were staring at him, and sighed inwardly, "Uncle Liang has gone out on a mission. I went on this business trip to see him and another group of workers off. There's still work waiting for me at the ministry, so I came back early. Uncle Liang will have to stay there for a while before he can come back."

After saying this, Liang's mother's fingers, which had been gripping the handkerchief, suddenly relaxed, as if a stone that had been pressing on her chest for days had finally been lifted. Liang Fangfang also relaxed her shoulders, looked down at Liu Qingyan in her arms, and a smile appeared on her lips.

Liu Yuheng waited for them to catch their breath before continuing, "There's something I need to make clear to you. Don't tell anyone about Uncle Liang's mission. If anyone asks, just say he went on a business trip out of town, and that's all. Also—"

He paused, his gaze lingering briefly on the faces of Liang's mother, Liu Er, and Liang Fangfang: "If anyone keeps coming to ask you where Uncle Liang is, when he'll be back, or what he's doing every few days, no matter who it is, don't say anything, and come tell me immediately. Understand?"

The three of them paused, momentarily stunned. Liu Er's expression shifted from relief to confusion, then to an inexplicable wariness. He took a half-step forward and lowered his voice, asking, "Brother, what kind of mission is my father-in-law on? Why are people asking? Is there some danger?"

Liu Yuheng shook his head, his tone decisive but leaving no room for negotiation: "I can't tell you. I've told you everything I can let you know, and don't inquire about what I can't let you know. You just need to remember the two things I just said: first, don't talk nonsense; second, if anyone inquires, come and tell me."

Liu Erhe's lips moved, as if he wanted to ask something more, but seeing Liu Yuheng's determined expression, he swallowed his words and nodded.

Liu Yuheng glanced at him, pondered for a moment, and then added, "If you really want to see Uncle Liang, there are ways. Try your best to get promoted to level seven worker; that's the minimum requirement. Once you reach that level, you'll have a chance to be transferred there. Then you and your father-in-law can see him over there."

Upon hearing this, Liu Erhe was stunned for a moment. He glanced at Liu Yuheng, then at Liang Fangfang and Liu Qingyan in her arms: "Brother, does this mean that after I reach the seventh-level worker level, I'll have to leave home too? Separate from Fangfang and the two children?"

Liu Yuheng looked at him but didn't answer immediately. He walked to the sofa, sat down, took a glass of water from Yao Qingwan, and took a sip: "It's up to you. If you want to go, go. If you don't want to go, don't go. Nobody's forcing you. Level 7 worker is just a threshold; whether you cross it or not is your choice. If you go, the more capable people there are, the more manpower they'll have; if you don't go, staying at the steel mill and doing your job is also contributing to the country."

Liu Erhe nodded without saying anything more, but his expression was noticeably more serious than before, as if he was plotting something in his mind.

Liu Yuheng put down his cup and nodded to the people in the room: "I'll go upstairs and wash my face and change my clothes first. The train ride was full of coal dust, and I smell terrible."

He went upstairs to the second floor, entered the bathroom next to the bedroom, turned on the tap, and the hot water washing over him truly washed away most of the dust and fatigue that had accumulated over the past few days in the Northwest. He changed into a clean shirt, then put on a thin dark gray sweater, tidied his hair in front of the mirror, shaved, and made sure he looked refreshed before turning to go downstairs.

When he returned to the living room, several people were talking in hushed tones.

Liu Erhe sat on the sofa, holding a teacup, his gaze somewhat unfocused. Seeing Liu Yuheng come down, he seemed to suddenly remember something, put the teacup down on the coffee table, looked up at Liu Yuheng, and said with a puzzled tone, "That's not right, brother. Didn't Yi Zhonghai from our compound also pass the eighth-grade worker exam? Why didn't he go with us this time? Only my father-in-law and Master Fang Tie went to the steel rolling mill, and Yi Zhonghai is also an eighth-grade worker, why didn't he go?"

Liu Yuheng paused, his hand still bent down to pick up a water glass from the coffee table. He straightened up and glanced at Liu Erhe: "This is something you shouldn't know. Since you asked, I'll say a word. But don't spread it around the courtyard; it's not good if it gets out."