Chapter 414

Xu Damao sat in the Vice Director's office of the Revolutionary Committee, his fingers tapping the desk repeatedly.

He knocked heavily, his nail beds turning white.

Outside the window was the Steel Rolling Mill's courtyard; workers were queuing for the canteen, the line stretched long, no one spoke, only the occasional ding-dong of aluminum lunchboxes.

The office had originally belonged to the Logistics Department chief, but now it was his. The desk was rosewood, the chair spring‑back, and two pots of bamboo fern sat on the windowsill—left by the former owner; he kept them, feeling they made it look like a leader's office.

But he had no mind to appreciate them now.

His mind was filled with Li Huaide's face.

Yesterday afternoon, Xu Damao went to report the seizure of Lou Banchen. Li Huaide sat behind the large desk, listened, said nothing, and just stared at Xu Damao.

He stared for a full minute.

Sweat on Xu Damao's back soaked his shirt.

"Returning empty‑handed?" Li Huaide finally spoke, his voice flat, but a knife hidden within the flatness.

"Director Li, that Old Fox is too cunning, he already…"

"I'm not interested in that," Li Huaide cut him off, picking up the steel pen on the desk and twirling it between his fingers, "What I want is the result. Gold, antiques, evidence—anything will do. The result?"

Xu Damao was left speechless.

"You promised me," Li Huaide set down the pen, leaned back, the chair creaking lightly, "Vice Director Xu, revolutionary work is no child's play. Words spoken, water splashed—you must catch it."

The words struck like a slap on Xu Damao's face.

He recalled his boastful pledge, the imagined gold bars flashing before his eyes, and the pride he felt when he assumed this position.

Now it was all a joke.

"Director Li, give me a little more time, I will…"

"Time I have plenty of," Li Huaide waved his hand, cutting him off, "But I cannot wait. The Revolutionary Committee has just been formed; it needs results, needs action. Do you understand?"

"Understood, understood!"

"Then go do it." Li Huaide lowered his head, began reviewing documents, indicating the talk was over.

Xu Damao left the office, closed the door, and stood in the corridor for a while.

His legs felt weak; he steadied himself against the wall.

Back in his own office, Xu Damao grew increasingly resentful.

Lou Banchen fled; could this be blamed on him? That old thing was craftier than the Old Fox, surely heard the wind early and slipped away. But could he tell Li Huaide that? Saying so would be shirking responsibility, admitting incompetence.

He needed a scapegoat.

He needed to divert attention.

He needed… to assert authority.

A person suddenly surfaced in his mind.

Li Ping'an.

That calm face, those eyes that revealed no emotion.

Li Ping'an was the Head of the Security Department at the Steel Rolling Mill, weighty enough, yet he didn't side with Li Huaide, and Xu Damao also envied Li Ping'an—how could Li Ping'an, holding a high post, have a beautiful wife with a good job.

He himself was crippled, married a widow, had no child, so he could only use Li Ping'an to assert authority.

Xu Damao's hand clenched into a fist.

Yes, it was him.

Li Ping'an was the Head of the Security Department, well‑connected; moving against him was not easy. But not easy does not mean impossible. As long as a pretext, an excuse, a reason… is found.

Xu Damao's mouth slowly twisted into a warped smile.

He recalled those young people in the courtyard.

In the Siheyuan, Bang Geng was leading a group from the Central Courtyard toward the back yard.

Seven or eight half‑grown youths, the oldest seventeen or eighteen, the youngest fourteen or fifteen, all wore green jackets altered from old military uniforms, red strips wrapped on their arms, wooden sticks and tin trumpets in hand, deliberately stamping loudly so the courtyard tiles thudded.

The brothers Liu Guangtian and Liu Guangfu followed Bang Geng; both were sixteen or seventeen, acne‑spotted, eyes flashing with excitement.

Yan Jiefang was also in the line; he was Yan Bu Gui's younger son, fifteen, skinny as a straw stalk, but with a loud voice, shouting slogans as he walked:

"Destroy the Four Olds, Establish the Four New!"

"Sweep away all demons and monsters!"

The voice echoed in the courtyard, making the window paper hum.

Every household's door was closed.

But behind the glass, pairs of eyes were watching secretly.

Jia Zhangshi perched on his own window, watching his grandson Bang Geng's imposing demeanor, his face both proud and worried.

He was proud that his grandson had become a figure, followed wherever he went; he worried that… in these times, who knows what tomorrow will bring? Might they drag him out for struggle sessions, after all Jia Zhangshi liked to call himself Old Jia.

Qin Huairu was cleaning inside the house, and hearing the slogans outside, her eyes filled with worry.

Sha Zhu returned early from the canteen, was peeling scallions at his doorstep, saw the group approaching, spat, grabbed the scallions and went inside, Bang, he slammed the door.

Bang Geng enjoyed the feeling.

He was eighteen this year, left middle school without graduating, and now school was suspended, so he roamed the streets all day. Recently he joined the 'Young Cadet' group, received a red armband, and instantly felt different.

He was now a revolutionary cadet.

He was a tide‑rider of the era.

He led his group to the back yard, stopping at Xu Damao's doorway.

Xu Damao happened to push the door open, a Revolutionary Committee red armband on his arm, and upon seeing Bang Geng, a smile appeared on his face.

"Bang Geng, you're here?"

"Vice Director Xu!" Bang Geng straightened his back, "The task you assigned, we guarantee to complete!"

"Good, good!" Xu Damao patted his shoulder, lowering his voice, "Remember, the focus is Xi Kua Yuan. Li Ping'an's house, investigate thoroughly. He may appear a combat hero on the surface, but who knows if he hides any capital repair supplies? We must be responsible for the revolution, cannot let any suspect slip."

"Understood!" Bang Geng's eyes lit up. "Deputy Director Xu, rest assured, we'll get to the bottom of this!"

Xu Damao nodded with satisfaction and glanced at the others.

"You're all good seeds of the revolution, work hard. When you earn merit, I'll petition the Revolutionary Committee for you!"

The youths instantly became excited, gripping their wooden sticks tighter.

In Xi Kua Yuan, Li Ping'an was teaching Li Yaozong boxing.

The small forms of Baji Quan move slowly but demand stability and completeness. Li Yaozong, six this year, has been learning for over a year and now looks proficient.

"Sink the shoulders, drop the elbows, power rises from the ground," Li Ping'an corrected his son's posture. "A fist is not struck with the hand but with the body. Remember?"

"Got it!" Li Yaozong replied crisply and struck again.

Lin Xueqing was mending clothes inside, Xiao Nuanqing perched at the table playing by herself, and the courtyard was quiet.

Until that noisy footstep sound arrived.

Li Ping'an's ears twitched, but his hand movements continued.

"Dad, someone's coming," Li Yaozong said, stopping his punches and looking toward the courtyard gate.

"Keep training," Li Ping'an said calmly.

The courtyard gate was pushed open.

No, it was kicked open.

Bang Geng rushed in first, followed by Liu Guangtian, Liu Guangfu, Yan Jiefang, and four or five unfamiliar half‑grown boys, instantly filling the small courtyard.

"Li Ping'an!" Bang Geng planted his hands on his hips, his voice deliberately high‑pitched and a bit sharp. "Someone reported your house hides four old items; we are ordered to search!"

Li Ping'an slowly turned around.

His gaze calmly swept over the group of youths.

Bang Geng knew him: the Jia family's grandson, who as a child stole chickens and dogs, and grew up to become a "revolutionary junior."

Liu Guangtian and Liu Guangfu are Liu Haizhong's sons, and Yan Jiefang is Yan Bu Gui's youngest son… all children raised in the courtyard.

But now, a strange fanaticism glints in these children's eyes.

"Search?" Li Ping'an asked, his voice low but steady. "Whose order?"

"The Revolutionary Committee's order!" Bang Geng lifted his chin. "Deputy Director Xu personally gave the command!"

"Oh." Li Ping'an nodded. "Do you have a search warrant?"

Bang Geng was taken aback.

Search warrant?

He had no idea what a search warrant was.

"Cut the chatter!" Liu Guangtian shouted from behind. "Revolutionary juniors searching counter‑revolutionaries don't need any warrant! Move aside, or we'll take revolutionary action!"

Saying that, he shook the wooden stick in his hand.

Li Ping'an looked at the stick, then at Liu Guangtian's flushed face from excitement.

He suddenly smiled.

The smile was faint, but the youths in the courtyard felt an inexplicable tension.

"If you want to search my house, fine," Li Ping'an said, "but you must first answer a question."

"What question?" Bang Geng frowned.

"On what grounds do you search my house?"

Li Ping'an stepped forward two paces, his gaze scanning each face. "My father was a poor farmer, my mother a tenant farmer, pure and upright. I enlisted at fourteen, fought Japanese soldiers, fought the Nationalist reactionaries, took part in the Korean War, earned three first‑class merits and five second‑class merits."

With each sentence, he took another step forward.

The youths involuntarily stepped back.

"I am a combat hero, recognized by the organization. I transferred to the Steel Rolling Mill as Head of the Security Department; in three years I cracked two spy cases and seventeen theft cases, safeguarding the mill's production safety."

Li Ping'an stopped in front of Bang Geng, the two less than a meter apart.

"Now, tell me," he said, looking into Bang Geng's eyes. "I, Li Ping'an, what reason have I to hide four old items? What reason makes me your search target?"

Bang Geng opened his mouth but said nothing.

The youths behind him all exchanged glances.

Xu Damao hadn't told them about this.

Xu Damao only said Li Ping'an might have issues and needed a thorough check, but never mentioned that this man was so… so tough.

"You… you say you're a combat hero, and that makes you a combat hero?" Yan Jiefang mustered courage and shouted, "Where's the evidence?"

Li Ping'an gave him a look.

He turned and went inside.

The youths wanted to follow, but their feet felt nailed to the ground, and they dared not move.