Siheyuan: Mastery started in the 50s

Xu Damao's eyes flickered. He originally wanted to take the opportunity to cause trouble for Wang Qiang, but seeing that the people around him had already reached a consensus, it would be out of place for him to stir up trouble. So, he weighed the pros and cons in his mind, forced a smile and said, "Okay, I want to see what you can do."

Wang Qiang smiled and said no more. He knew that although Xu Damao was still hostile on the surface, as long as most people in the courtyard approved of this plan, Xu Damao would have to temporarily restrain his edge.

So Wang Qiang and Liu Guangtian organized a small-scale discussion, attended by several major households in the courtyard, to discuss how to plan the land, what crops to plant, and how to allocate labor.

Wang Qiang was very calm and decisive during the process. He not only put forward many constructive suggestions, but also tried his best to take care of the interests of all parties and avoid conflicts. Liu Guangtian helped from the side and added a few words from time to time. Although he was no longer as sharp as before, his presence was still very strong.

The atmosphere of the discussion gradually became lively, and the barriers between neighbors seemed to be slowly resolved in this cooperation. In the end, everyone reached a preliminary consensus and decided to take collective action from next month, allocating plots of land according to the plan and carrying out collective farming.

After the meeting, Wang Qiang stood in the yard, watching the sky gradually darken, and felt relieved. Although today's bet was unexpected, the final result made him see a broader direction. Life in the courtyard was originally complicated and chaotic, but if everyone could unite and work together, perhaps they could find a new way.

After the collective discussion, Wang Qiang felt that things were on the right track. Everyone expressed support for the cooperative farming plan, and the atmosphere in the courtyard became more harmonious because of this collective action. However, as a new resident in the courtyard, he always remained vigilant. He knew clearly that people like Liu Guangtian and Xu Damao might have compromised temporarily on the surface, but they might not really let go of their hostility towards him secretly.

A few days later, things seemed to be going on as usual, everyone was busy with their own business, the plots in the yard had been preliminarily planned and were ready to be cultivated. At this time, Wang Qiang received a call from the security department, who asked him to come over, as if there were something they needed to check with him.

"Security Department?" Wang Qiang frowned, feeling somewhat puzzled. Although he knew that the Security Department was the department responsible for public security and safety management in the courtyard, he had always been well-behaved and had never dealt with the Security Department. Why did they suddenly come to him?

Wang Qiang felt a little uneasy, but he didn't show it. He decided to meet with the security department as requested by the other party. After all, delaying such a matter would only make the problem more complicated. He thought, maybe it was just a routine inspection, or someone reported something trivial, it was no big deal.

"Okay, I'll be there right away." Wang Qiang hung up the phone, packed up his things, and walked towards the security department.

When he arrived at the security department, he was greeted by a thin middle-aged man with a serious face. He did not say much to Wang Qiang and went straight to the point: "Wang Qiang, have you had any disputes with some residents in the yard recently?"

Wang Qiang's heart skipped a beat when he heard this. Sure enough, the security department's visit to him was not a routine matter. He forced himself to calm down and responded calmly: "There is no dispute, just some discussions of opinions. The people in the yard are now discussing collective farming, and it is normal for everyone to disagree."

The middle-aged man did not respond immediately, but pulled out a piece of paper from the folder on the table and pushed it in front of Wang Qiang. Wang Qiang looked down and saw a letter of complaint. The content was roughly that someone reported that Wang Qiang secretly instigated some residents in the yard, threatened other residents, and even attempted to occupy collective land resources.

This is a complete slander! Wang Qiang's heart instantly ignited with anger, but he knew that he had to stay calm at this moment. The more excited he was, the more he would fall into the other party's trap. He raised his head, looked directly into the eyes of the middle-aged man, and said in a steady tone: "The content above is completely fictitious. I have not done anything like this. As I said just now, we have only discussed how to better distribute the land recently, and there is no dispute, let alone threatening others."

The middle-aged man from the security department still had no expression on his face. He said coldly, "Someone reported that there were some conflicts between you and Liu Guangtian and Xu Damao, and even secretly made a bet. Does this bet exist?"

Wang Qiang's heart tightened. Sure enough, this matter was related to the bet between him and Liu Guangtian. It seemed that someone was using this matter to make a fuss and wanted to use the security department to deal with him. He took a deep breath and said calmly: "Indeed, Liu Guangtian and I made a bet, but it was a completely private matter and had nothing to do with the public affairs of the courtyard. The bet was just a meal. In the end, everyone saw that we did not have any conflict because of this matter. Instead, we worked together to discuss the plan of collective farming."

After listening to Wang Qiang's explanation, the middle-aged man frowned slightly, obviously not trusting him immediately. After a moment, he suddenly said coldly: "It's not as simple as you said. We have received many reports that some residents reported that you were secretly sowing discord and intended to manipulate the collective land allocation. According to our investigation, Liu Guangtian also confirmed that there was indeed a bet between you, which gives us reason to doubt your motives."

Wang Qiang's heart sank when he heard this. He immediately realized that this was not just a misunderstanding, but a carefully designed trap. Someone deliberately twisted the bet between him and Liu Guangtian into evidence of a power struggle in an attempt to push him into the quagmire. And now, the security department has been led into this trap and began to suspect that he had ulterior motives.

He thought for a moment and realized that he had to explain it clearly at this moment, otherwise things would only become more complicated. "I don't know who is behind this, but this is absolutely fabricated. I have no motive to manipulate the land distribution. On the contrary, I want everyone to participate in this matter fairly. If you don't believe me, you can ask other residents, they can prove what I said."

The middle-aged man did not respond immediately, but stared at Wang Qiang silently, as if observing every detail of him. His calmness made Wang Qiang feel that things were not simple, and there might be a bigger conspiracy behind this accusation.

After a while, the security department spoke up: "We will conduct further investigation. But in the meantime, you'd better put down your work and wait for our notice. You can go back first, but don't get involved in the collective affairs of the courtyard in the near future."