Fusion System: Rebirth in a Courtyard - Bird Fighting Chronicles

Chapter 57 The Academy Investigates Corruption and Strips Honors, and the Poor Academy's Anger

After the snow stopped, the Hongxing Courtyard was shrouded in a chilling atmosphere, with icicles on the eaves reflecting a cold light. Lin Chen had just finished writing the debugging report for the workshop monitoring system when he saw Officer Li from the street office accompany two men in Zhongshan suits into the courtyard. The "Hongxing Primary School" badges pinned to their chests were particularly eye-catching in the morning light—the school's investigation team had arrived.

The door to the Yan family's house was ajar, and the suppressed sobs of Yan Bugui's wife could be heard from inside. Officer Li knocked, and Yan Bugui opened the door, his hair disheveled, his eyes sunken, and a stubble of green on his chin. His once crisp Zhongshan suit was now wrinkled and crumpled, a far cry from his former "schoolteacher's" dignified appearance. Upon seeing the investigation team, his legs went weak, and he nearly collapsed to his knees, only to be caught by Yan Jiecheng beside him.

"Comrade Yan Bugui, we are from the investigation team of Hongxing Primary School. We received an anonymous tip alleging that you engaged in paid tutoring and accepted money from students. We are here today to verify the situation." Principal Wang, the leader, spoke sternly, taking out a notebook from his briefcase. "Please cooperate with the investigation and truthfully explain the situation." Yan Bugui's lips trembled, and he couldn't utter a word for a long time. However, his wife, wiping away tears, spoke up: "Leaders, our old Yan knows he was wrong. We've already handed over all those grain coupons. Please, have mercy on him and spare his life!"

The investigation team ignored her pleas and went straight into the house. Lin Chen stood at his doorway, watching this scene, clutching an envelope in his hand—inside were copies of evidence he had anonymously sent to the school, including photos of account books and audio recordings. He knew that Yan Bugui cared most about the title of "District-level Outstanding Teacher" and the prestige of being a "cultured person," and this investigation was destined to humiliate him.

The investigation lasted the entire morning. Neighbors gathered at the entrance to the courtyard, whispering amongst themselves. Liu Haizhong, arms crossed, said gloatingly, "I always said that old Yan was no good. He puts on a respectable facade, but behind the scenes he's always up to nothing but corruption and bribery!" Aunt Liu sighed, "What a pity for such a good teacher, how could he be so greedy?"

At noon, the investigation team emerged. Principal Wang announced in front of all the residents of the school: "The investigation has confirmed that Comrade Yan Bugui engaged in paid tutoring and accepted substantial sums of money, including food coupons and eggs, from students. The school has decided to revoke his title of 'District-Level Outstanding Teacher,' reduce his salary from 35 yuan to 27.5 yuan, and suspend him from his duties for one month to deeply reflect on his mistakes!"

These words struck Yan Bugui like a bolt from the blue. He swayed and collapsed onto the doorstep, muttering to himself, "My honor... my salary... gone, all gone..." He abruptly raised his head, his gaze like a poisoned knife, sweeping over the onlookers before finally settling on Lin Chen: "It was you! You must have reported me! Lin Chen, I have no grudge against you, why did you ruin my life!"

Lin Chen sneered and stepped forward: "Teacher Yan, you need evidence to back up your claims. The neighbors all witnessed you charging money for tutoring, and the school has irrefutable evidence. How can you pin this on me? Besides, it was your own greed that led you to break the rules; you can't blame anyone else." The surrounding neighbors chimed in: "That's right, Old Yan, you made a mistake and now you're blaming others!" "Lin is right, you brought this on yourself!"

Yan Bugui was speechless, and could only angrily slap his thigh and cry out, "I'm not reconciled! I've taught for twenty years, and because of this little thing, my reputation is ruined!" Principal Wang frowned: "Comrade Yan Bugui, this is no small matter! As a teacher, you have violated professional ethics by providing paid tutoring, which has seriously damaged the image of the teaching profession! You should reflect on your actions during your suspension period. If you still do not repent, you will be dismissed from your post!" After saying that, he left with the investigation team.

After the investigation team left, Yan Bugui vented his anger on his family. He stormed into the house, sweeping the dishes off the table, shards flying everywhere. "It's all your fault! A bunch of good-for-nothings!" he yelled, pointing at Yan Jiefang and Yan Jiecheng. "Eldest son, if you were capable, a high-ranking official, who would dare investigate me? Third son, if you had made me a lot of money earlier, would I have needed to tutor and collect those measly grain coupons? And you!" He then pointed at his wife, "All you do is cry and whine, you're utterly useless!"

Yan Jiefang's face turned ashen with anger: "Dad, you made a mistake, how can you blame us? We work hard to earn money, but you hid the grain coupons you collected, and you wouldn't even give the children at home a bite to eat. Now that something's happened, you blame us for being incompetent?" Yan Jiecheng chimed in, "That's right, Dad, if you hadn't been so greedy, hadn't charged me interest, and hadn't been so secretive, you wouldn't be in this mess today!"

"Rebellion! Rebellion!" Yan Bugui trembled with rage, grabbing a broom from the corner and striking his two sons. Yan Jiefang and Yan Jiecheng were no pushovers either; they dodged to the side and wrestled with their father. Yan Bugui's wife screamed and tried to break up the fight, but was pushed to the ground, crying even harder. The sounds of fighting, crying, and cursing mingled together in the courtyard, creating utter chaos.

Lin Chen stood aside, coldly watching the scene unfold. He knew that the seeds of Yan Bugui's family conflict had long been sown, and this punishment was merely the fuse. Yan Bugui had been a calculating man all his life, valuing money above all else and being extremely stingy with his children, which had long since chilled their hearts. Now that his reputation was ruined and his salary had dropped, his inner resentment had finally exploded, and naturally, he would vent his anger on his family.

Just then, Qin Huairu walked over carrying a cloth bag, her face showing some hesitation: "Director Lin, do you think we should try to stop them? If they keep fighting, someone might die." Lin Chen shook his head: "There's no way to stop them. This is their family matter, and it's the result of Yan Bugui's own actions. He has to bear the consequences." Qin Huairu sighed and put down the cloth bag: "This is medicine I brought for Aunt Yan. She fell last time, and her back has been bothering her ever since. I didn't expect their family to turn out like this."

Lin Chen glanced at the medicine in the cloth bag; it was a blood-activating and stasis-removing ointment. It seemed Qin Huairu had indeed changed; she was no longer just thinking about taking advantage of others and had started to care about her neighbors. "It's good that you have this intention," Lin Chen said. "Let the Yan family handle their own affairs; it's not good for outsiders like us to interfere. By the way, how's your preparation for next month's fitter's assessment?"

At the mention of the assessment, Qin Huairu's eyes lit up: "Thanks to the knowledge points you explained to me last time, Director Lin, I understood them all. I even borrowed Sha Zhu's old assessment question bank and did it several times. I feel like I'm almost there." Lin Chen nodded: "That's good. Don't be nervous during the assessment, just perform normally. If you pass the Level 3 worker exam, you can become a full-fledged worker, and life will be much easier from then on."

In the afternoon, Lin Chen went to work in the workshop. As soon as he entered, he sensed something was wrong. The workers were huddled together, whispering amongst themselves, their eyes filled with worry. Director Zhou saw Lin Chen and quickly waved, "Lin, you're here just in time! Something terrible has happened!" Lin Chen's heart sank. "Director Zhou, what's wrong? Is there a problem with the stamping equipment?"

Director Zhou sighed and pulled Lin Chen into his office: "The equipment isn't faulty, but someone has reported you! The report says you abused your position to embezzle alloy materials from the workshop and were also reselling your modified tools on the black market for huge profits. The factory is taking this very seriously and has set up an investigation team, which will come to the workshop tomorrow to investigate."

Lin Chen's heart skipped a beat. He knew without a doubt that Yi Xiaofeng was responsible. Yi Zhonghai's son worked as a technician in a machinery factory in another city. He must have known about the workshop's material management process and understood that reporting "embezzlement of materials" and "black market transactions" would be the most effective way to get to the heart of the matter. It seemed that Yi Xiaofeng wanted to ruin his job and reputation by reporting this, in order to avenge his father.

"Director Zhou, I didn't embezzle materials or resell tools," Lin Chen said calmly. "The parts I used to improve the stamping equipment were all scrap parts from the workshop, and all material usage was recorded. As for the black market, I did go there once to buy bearings to solve the problem of equipment improvement, and I have witnesses." He recounted how he had helped Engineer Wang's wife catch a thief at the black market last time. "Engineer Wang and his wife can both testify for me that I went to the black market to buy parts, not to sell tools."

Director Zhou nodded: "I believe you, Xiao Lin. You are a key technical worker in the workshop and have made great contributions to the factory. How could you possibly embezzle materials? But since the investigation team is here, we still need to cooperate with the investigation. Prepare the material requisition logbook, the drawings and records of equipment improvements, and show them to the investigation team tomorrow. I will also talk to the factory leaders and ask them to conduct a fair investigation."

To prepare for the investigation the following day, Lin Chen worked overtime until late at night. He organized all the material requisition forms, equipment improvement design drawings, and test data, binding them into a thick book. At the same time, he also used the system to create a "handwriting identification tool" by integrating "old paper + ink + ultraviolet light"—he suspected that the whistleblower letter was forged by Yi Xiaofeng, and it might come in handy.

Returning to the courtyard house that evening, Lin Chen had just stepped inside when he saw a strange man standing in front of Yi Zhonghai's door, holding a key and trying to open it. The man turned around, saw Lin Chen, a flash of hostility in his eyes, then feigned composure and said, "Who are you? What are you doing here?"

"I'm a resident here, Lin Chen," Lin Chen said calmly. "Who are you? How do you have a key to Master Yi's house?" The man frowned. "I'm Yi Zhonghai's son, Yi Xiaofeng. I'm back to deal with my father's affairs." Lin Chen sneered inwardly; they had finally met. He extended his hand. "So you're Master Yi's son. I've heard so much about you. I work at the steel rolling mill; I'm a colleague of your father's."

Yi Xiaofeng didn't shake hands, only letting out a cold snort: "I know you, Lin Chen. You're the one who got my father arrested, who ruined my family, right?" Lin Chen's lips curled into a cold smile: "Master Yi was arrested for stealing state secrets, it has nothing to do with me. But you, you just got back and immediately reported me for embezzling materials, aren't you being a little too hasty?"

Yi Xiaofeng's expression changed: "What nonsense are you talking about! When did I report you?" Lin Chen took out his phone (a simple communication device integrated with the system, resembling an old-fashioned radio) and played a recording—his conversation with Director Zhou in the workshop that afternoon, mentioning the report letter. "Who else do you think would report me besides you?" Lin Chen looked at him, "Yi Xiaofeng, I advise you not to waste your time. No matter how many times you report me, it won't do any good. If you continue to maliciously report me, I'll call the police to arrest you for false accusation!"

Yi Xiaofeng turned pale with fright, but still tried to remain calm: "Don't make false accusations! I didn't report you! If you slander me again, I won't be polite!" With that, he pushed open the door and rushed into the room, slamming it shut behind him. Lin Chen watched his retreating figure and sneered—Yi Xiaofeng was indeed feeling guilty; it seemed he was the one who wrote the report.

The next morning, the factory's investigation team arrived at the workshop. Leading the team was Secretary Zhang from the factory's Discipline Inspection Commission. Holding the letter of complaint, he said sternly, "Comrade Lin Chen, someone has reported you for embezzling alloy materials from the workshop and selling tools on the black market. We're here today to verify the situation, and we hope you will cooperate."

Lin Chen handed over the organized materials: "Secretary Zhang, these are all the receipts for the materials I used, with the signatures of the responsible persons on them; these are the drawings and test records for the improved stamping equipment, which all used discarded parts; these are the testimonies of Engineer Wang and his wife, proving that I went to the black market to buy bearings, not to sell tools."

The investigation team carefully checked the materials and questioned the workshop workers and supervisors, finding that Lin Chen's statements were true. Secretary Zhang frowned and picked up the whistleblower letter: "But this whistleblower letter is very detailed and even mentions the details of your black market transactions; it doesn't seem fake."

Lin Chen took out his handwriting analysis tool: "Secretary Zhang, I suspect this letter of complaint is forged. I heard that Yi Zhonghai's son, Yi Xiaofeng, has returned. He works as a technician in a machinery factory in another city and knows the workshop very well. Moreover, he harbors resentment towards me because of his father's affair, so it's very likely that he forged the letter of complaint to falsely accuse me." He used the handwriting analysis tool to examine the letter of complaint and found that the handwriting on the letter matched the fingerprints left by Yi Xiaofeng in front of Yi Zhonghai's house yesterday (which Lin Chen secretly extracted using the system).

Looking at the forensic results, Secretary Zhang's expression turned grave: "Such a thing happened! We will immediately investigate Yi Xiaofeng. Comrade Lin Chen, we're sorry you were wronged; we will clear your name." Lin Chen quickly thanked him: "Thank you, Secretary Zhang, thank you to the investigation team."

After the investigation team left, Director Zhou patted Lin Chen on the shoulder and said, "Lin, it's good that you're alright. I knew you were innocent. That Yi Xiaofeng went too far, actually framing you. The factory will deal with him seriously." Lin Chen smiled and said, "Thank you for your trust, Director Zhou. This time, it's all thanks to Engineer Wang and his wife's testimonies, as well as the materials I prepared in advance."

At noon, Sha Zhu came to Lin Chen with a lunchbox: "Director Lin, I heard you were reported. Are you alright? This is sweet and sour pork ribs I made for you to help you recover." Lin Chen took the lunchbox and said with a smile, "Thank you, Master Sha Zhu. It's alright now. The investigation team has already found out that Yi Xiaofeng framed me."

Upon hearing this, Sha Zhu slammed his fist on the table in anger: "That Yi Xiaofeng is a complete scoundrel! His father got arrested for something he shouldn't have, what business is it of yours? He actually framed you! No way, I have to go and confront him!" Lin Chen quickly stopped him: "Don't be impulsive, Master Sha Zhu. The factory is already investigating him and will deal with him. If you go to him, you'll only give them something to talk about." Sha Zhu thought for a moment and nodded: "You're very thoughtful. If he dares to bully you again, just tell me, and I'll take care of him!"

In the afternoon, news came from the factory that, after investigation, the whistleblower letter was indeed forged by Yi Xiaofeng. He was reprimanded by the factory for false accusation and was also summoned by the police station. Lin Chen breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this news—finally, the troublesome Yi Xiaofeng was gone.

When Lin Chen got home from get off work that evening, he saw Yan Bugui squatting by the door, holding a bottle of baijiu (Chinese liquor) and drinking alone. His hair was even whiter, his back was more hunched, and he looked much older. Lin Chen went up to him and said, "Teacher Yan, please stop drinking; it's bad for your health."

Yan Bugui raised his head, his eyes bloodshot. "Xiao Lin, I was wrong. I shouldn't have been greedy, shouldn't have offered paid tutoring, and I shouldn't have taken my anger out on the children. Now look what's happened—the honor is gone, my salary has been cut, and even my sons ignore me. What's the point of my life?" Lin Chen sighed. "Teacher Yan, it's good that you know you were wrong. It's not too late to repent. You can apologize to the children, communicate with them properly, and live a good life as a family. As for your job, reflect on your actions during your suspension, write a profound self-criticism, and maybe the school will give you another chance."

Yan Bugui remained silent for a long time before nodding. "Xiao Lin, thank you. I'll apologize to the children tomorrow and reflect on my actions. If the school lets me go back to teaching, I'll definitely teach well and never do paid tutoring again." Lin Chen patted him on the shoulder. "That's right. As long as you sincerely repent, everything will be alright."

The next morning, Yan Bugui indeed apologized to his sons. Although his sons were still somewhat resentful, they didn't argue with him anymore, and the family sat together for a long-awaited reunion dinner. The neighbors were all happy for them. Aunt Liu said, "Old Yan, that's more like it. It's better for the family to be harmonious than anything else." Yan Bugui smiled sheepishly and offered cigarettes to everyone.

Having resolved the troubles with the Yan family and Yi Xiaofeng, Lin Chen focused his energy on the workshop. Using his newly unlocked "material synthesis" function, he combined ordinary steel and scrap alloy parts to create a "high-strength alloy." Stamping equipment parts made with this material had double the performance of the original. Director Zhou, after reviewing the test data, was overjoyed: "Lin, you're amazing! With this high-strength alloy, our stamping equipment will not only perform better but also have a longer lifespan! The factory will definitely give you a hefty reward!"

Lin Chen smiled and said, "This is all thanks to everyone's hard work. Without the cooperation of the workshop workers, I wouldn't have been able to complete this improvement." Director Zhou nodded, "You're right, but your contribution is the greatest. I've already written a report to the factory management, recommending you as a 'factory-level model worker,' and I've also applied for your promotion to deputy workshop director, in charge of technical work."

Lin Chen was overjoyed: "Thank you, Director Zhou! I will definitely work hard and live up to your trust!" Director Zhou patted him on the shoulder and said, "I believe in your abilities. Keep up the good work, and you'll have a bright future!"

When Lin Chen got home that evening, he opened the system panel, which displayed: "Completed the side quest 'Frustrate Yi Xiaofeng's false accusations and prove your innocence,' reward: 8000 points, current points: 110500. Completed the side quest 'Guide Yan Bugui to sincerely repent and repair family relationships,' reward: 3000 points, current points: 113500. New feature unlocked: Skill Upgrade."

Lin Chen nodded in satisfaction. The skill upgrade function can upgrade existing skills and improve their effects. His current "Advanced Mechanical Manufacturing Skill" can be upgraded to "Advanced Mechanical Manufacturing Skill," making it easier for him to improve equipment in the future.

Just then, there was a knock at the courtyard gate. Lin Chen opened the door and saw Qin Huairu, holding a certificate in her hand, her face beaming: "Director Lin, I passed the Level 3 Technician exam! I'm a permanent employee!" Lin Chen took the certificate, which read, "Qin Huairu, Level 3 Fitter, Permanent Employee." He smiled and said, "Congratulations, Senior Sister Qin! I knew you could pass!"

Qin Huairu was so moved that tears welled up in her eyes: "Thank you, Director Lin! If it weren't for you, I definitely wouldn't have passed the exam. Now I'm a regular worker, and I won't have to be at the mercy of others anymore, and I won't have to rely on others for help!" Lin Chen nodded: "This is all the result of your own hard work. Work hard in the future, earn your own living, and life will definitely get better and better."

Seeing Qin Huairu's happy expression, Lin Chen felt gratified. He knew that the dynamics of the courtyard were slowly changing; villains like Jia Zhangshi, the deaf old lady, Yan Bugui, and Yi Zhonghai had all received their due punishment, and Qin Huairu had also embarked on the right path. Although there were still Yi Xiaofeng and Xu Damao, who was about to be released from prison, he believed that as long as he had the system in hand and sufficient strength, he would definitely be able to meet all challenges.