Courtyard House: Starting as an eighth-grade worker, with too many wives.

Li Jianguo smiled faintly.

"The information was obtained from a friend. I can guarantee that it is all true and not a single word is false."

"You think it's true just because you say so?" the deaf old woman sneered. "I'd say you're a spy. You're an outsider, what incident in the compound these days hasn't involved you? You might be the most suspicious one."

"My identity was verified when I was assessed for the Five Guarantees program," Li Jianguo said. "If you don't believe me, you can ask Director Wang to come."

Director Wang arrived quickly.

He was the previous director of the subdistrict office, retired a few years ago, and was at home taking care of his grandson. Upon hearing about the incident, he entrusted his child to a neighbor and rushed over.

Upon his arrival, the first person he saw was Li Jianguo.

He had long heard of Director Li's reputation. He was a big shot who had been featured in the newspapers, and everyone in the surrounding alleys knew him.

"Director Li, what happened?" Director Wang greeted him with a smile.

Director Zhang handed him the photo.

Li Jianguo pointed to the woman in the photo: "This is a graduation photo from an enemy spy school before the founding of the People's Republic of China. This woman is the deaf old lady."

Director Wang looked at the photo, then examined the deaf old woman closely, and suddenly smiled.

"Director Li, you've gone too far with this joke. This young woman is so beautiful, how could she be this old lady?" He shook his head. "I've seen what the deaf old lady looked like when she was young, and she's not like this at all. You've probably made a mistake. If a case involving espionage goes wrong, it won't be good for your reputation."

He spoke politely, but everyone understood the meaning behind his words.

Li Jianguo squinted his eyes.

This Director Wang is also one of the deaf old lady's people.

Yi Zhonghai immediately shouted, "Did you hear that? You surnamed Li, don't you dare slander people!"

The deaf old woman immediately shouted, "I've lived most of my life, what storms haven't I weathered? If you don't give me an explanation today, I won't let this go!"

Li Jianguo smiled.

"They won't shed a tear until they see the coffin."

Before he could finish speaking, Director Yang walked in with the security personnel. Jiang Min followed behind him.

It was quite a coincidence. Years ago, Jiang Min's father had been in charge of a project that resulted in a leak. Although the spy was caught, the person in charge was never apprehended. The only person who had ever seen that person was Jiang Min, who was still young at the time. She only remembered that the woman had a birthmark the size of a thumb on her back.

The information provided by Li Jianguo happened to mention that old case. Therefore, he asked Director Yang to bring Jiang Min along.

The deaf old woman's eyes flashed when she saw Jiang Min.

Li Jianguo gazed at her and slowly asked:

"Grandma Long, do you know who she is?"

The deaf old woman glanced at Jiang Min.

That glance was so brief, so fleeting, that one might mistake it for an illusion. Her gaze lingered on Jiang Min's face for a second before shifting away, as if she didn't recognize her, or perhaps she recognized her but didn't want to.

Li Jianguo took half a step forward.

"Her surname is Jiang."

He didn't speak loudly, but the women in the courtyard who were listening intently all heard him. Some of them started peeking out.

"Back then, you were the contact and escaped unscathed. But you never expected this, did you—" Li Jianguo paused, a barely perceptible smile tugging at the corners of his mouth, "Jiang Min went to that room you lived in. She saw you there."

The deaf old woman's expression changed.

It really happened "in an instant." Just like a crack appearing on the surface of a river in winter, then freezing over with a snap.

"What are you talking about?" Her voice was still hoarse, but steady. "I don't know anyone surnamed Jiang."

Li Jianguo did not respond.

He stepped aside, letting Jiang Min stand in front.

The wind blew in from the courtyard gate, making Jiang Min's hair stick to her face. She didn't brush it away.

She had read all those documents. The moment the pages turned, images from that year flashed through her mind—the day her father was taken away for questioning, a large crowd had gathered at the door, her mother had locked her in the inner room, and she had peeked through the crack in the door and seen the back of a woman.

The woman walked very fast.

So fast that all she remembered was the birthmark.

"My dad's project was leaked," Jiang Min began, her voice more steady than she had expected. "I was seven years old that year. The spy was caught, but the contact escaped. Only I saw her—I saw her back."

She stared at the deaf old woman.

The deaf old woman didn't look at her; she was looking at the cracks between the bricks on the ground.

"She had a birthmark on her back, about the size of a thumb. I remember it very clearly."

When Jiang Min said this, her shoulders were taut. She didn't shout, she didn't cry, and her voice was barely audible. But Li Jianguo saw it—her hand, hanging by her side, was clenched so tightly that her fingernails turned white.

Director Zhang coughed lightly from the side.

"Then let's take a look." He winked at Li Jianguo, "Find a female colleague to check if this old lady has that birthmark on her back."

The deaf old woman's shoulders twitched.

It was very light. But Yi Zhonghai saw it. Director Wang saw it too. The two men exchanged a glance, and sweat broke out on their brows.

The female staff member from the neighborhood committee arrived very quickly.

Her surname was Zhou, she was in her forties, broad-shouldered and thick-waisted, and had carried sacks in the production team in her younger days. When she entered the house, she was still clutching a rag in her hand, as if she had just finished cleaning up someone's house.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

Director Zhang gestured towards the deaf old woman with his lip: "Look at her back."

Sister Zhou stuffed the rag into her pocket and walked straight toward the deaf old woman.

"Don't touch me!"

The deaf old woman stepped back and bumped into the door frame. Her usually cloudy eyes suddenly shone with an alarming brightness, like an old cat protecting its cubs.

Sister Zhou didn't stop at all.

"Behave yourself!" She grabbed the deaf old woman's wrist and reached behind her back with her other hand. "Why are you making such a fuss at your age? I'm not going to hit you—"

Before he could finish speaking, his clothes were pulled up.

Near the scapula.

The birthmark was clearly visible. It was three centimeters long and one centimeter wide, with a crooked shape, like a gourd that had grown crookedly.

"This is it!"

Jiang Min practically shouted it out.

Her voice cracked, terribly. Her eyes were red-rimmed, but no tears fell. She just stared at the birthmark, staring and staring, then suddenly covered her face and squatted down.

Don't cry. My shoulders are shaking.

Li Jianguo reached out his hand, but then withdrew it.

Before Sister Zhou could let go, the deaf old woman struggled a couple of times and then stopped moving. She seemed to have lost all her strength, slumping against the doorframe with her eyes closed.

"Alright," Chief Zhang shoved his cigarette butt onto the ground. "The witnesses and evidence are all there, what else is there to say?"

Yi Zhonghai's legs began to tremble.

He didn't know why he was trembling, but he just kept trembling. His knees were as limp as overcooked noodles, unable to support him. Director Wang was a little better off, but his face was as white as plaster on a wall, and his lips were bluish.

Neither of them spoke.

But both of them knew that the words they had said to help the deaf old woman were now like knives, aimed at them.

Li Jianguo turned around.

He looked at Yi Zhonghai and Director Wang, his gaze slowly sweeping across their faces. Very slowly. So slowly that sweat began to bead on their foreheads.

"You two were quite certain just now," Li Jianguo said, his tone even somewhat gentle, "saying that Old Lady Long wasn't a spy, that you understood her, and that it wasn't easy for her, a lonely old woman—"

He paused.

"And now?"

Director Wang's lips trembled.

"I...I really didn't know!" His voice suddenly rose, becoming shrill like a chicken being killed. "Director Li, Chief Zhang, I really didn't know she was a spy! If I had known, I...I would never have dared to speak up for her, even if you killed me!"

Yi Zhonghai nodded in agreement.

They ate very quickly. As fast as a chicken pecking at rice.

"I was fooled by her too!" he said. "This woman was so good at hiding her true intentions; I really didn't know, I really didn't know..."

The deaf old woman opened her eyes.

She stared at the two men, her eyes devoid of any light. She just stared. Then, suddenly, she smiled.

The smile was so brief that it seemed like an illusion.

But Li Jianguo saw it.

"Director Zhang," he said.

Director Zhang turned his head.

"Those two were so vehemently defending Granny Long just now," Li Jianguo said, "I suspect they're enemy agents too, maybe even Granny Long's underlings. Should we take them away for questioning?"

Director Zhang was stunned for a moment.

Then I laughed.

"Director Li is thinking the same thing as me." He waved his hand and said, "Men, take them all away! Interrogate them thoroughly, don't let a single one escape!"

"No!"

By the time Yi Zhonghai shouted, the man had already been restrained. He struggled, kicking his legs wildly, his leather shoes scraping against the ground with a harsh sound.

"It has nothing to do with me—it has nothing to do with me—"

Nobody listens to him.

Director Wang cried even harder. This old man, who had only retired a few months ago and usually acted all high and mighty on the street, was now covered in snot and tears. He was being dragged outside, still shouting:

"Good heavens! I'm truly innocent! Chief Zhang, we've known each other for a long time, don't you know what kind of person I am—"

Director Zhang did not turn around.