Siheyuan: I've Come Clean, I'm Done Being the Villain

On a winter night, at the compound-wide meeting, supplies went missing from the canteen. Everyone pointed at Xu Damao without a word. He certainly wasn't above doing something shady, but this time it really wasn't him. Unable to clear his name, Xu Damao hopped a freight train and left that very night, saying, "There's not a single decent person in your compound."

Away from home, he struggled to survive, repairing appliances, hauling cargo, and trading in small goods. He was cheated and cheated others, but for the first time, he made a place for himself through genuine skill. When he returned to Beijing, he wanted to prove he wasn't the kind of person everyone in the compound claimed he was. But Silly Zhu kept an eye on him, Qin Huairu doubted him, and Yi Zhonghai held him up as a cautionary example. He helped people, yet they still treated him like a thief. He got things done, yet they still called him an opportunist.

Only then did he understand: it wasn't that he hadn't tried hard enough. The courtyard needed a villain. Xu Damao laid his cards on the table: "You need a bad guy? I'm done playing one." No whitewashing, no groveling. He would rebuild his life by sticking to rules and principles. This time, he didn't need the whole compound to certify him as a good person.

This novel and its characters are entirely fictional. Any resemblance to real people or events is purely coincidental. Do not imitate.