Chapter 368

Outside the train station.

He Daqing realized that Shazhu might not have eaten.

He bought several boiled eggs for Shazhu.

In the process of handing over the eggs.

He noticed that the train would not leave for another hour or so.

The father and son, pressed for time, chatted briefly; the conversation wandered, and they eventually turned to the topic of the child.

Shazhu was still quite curious.

He could be considered a direct victim of the widow's IUD insertion.

It's hard to understand why the widow would bear a son for He Daqing, or what method he used to make her willingly have his child.

According to He Daqing's account.

Only then did Shazhu realize that He Daqing was actually more skilled than him in this area.

He bluntly spoke harsh words.

I can raise a child for you, widow, but don't treat me, He Daqing, as a fool. You must bear me a child—boy or girl doesn't matter—as long as it's the love child of you and me, I'll willingly support your whole family; otherwise we'll split up and go our separate ways.

This amounted to pressuring the widow.

After careful consideration.

The widow went to the hospital to have her IUD removed.

Only then did He Yuliang come into being.

Shazhu thought of his past life; if he also acted like He Daqing and pressured Qin Huairu, maybe he really would have had a child with Qin Huairu.

He would have flesh and blood.

The houses in the Siheyuan couldn't possibly all belong to the Jia Family.

Shazhu also avoided the tragedy of being driven out of his home to freeze and starve to death.

Think about it.

Or maybe I'm just incapable!

A bitter smile appeared on his face.

Thanks to the cover of night, He Daqing opposite didn't see the self-mocking look on Shazhu's face; he paused a moment, then asked about the situation in the Siheyuan.

"I've been away for over ten years; what's the situation inside the courtyard?"

"It's still the same: some people died, some didn't."

"All the same."

"I believe you left me and Yushui to follow that woman to Baocheng out of unavoidable hardship; can you tell me? I'm about thirty years old."

Shazhu stared at He Daqing with bright, spirited eyes.

He really wanted to know what had happened back then, something that could force He Daqing to do this painful act that both sides found agonizing.

In the eyes of some people.

He Daqing is the second Chen Shimei who abandoned his wife and children!

Some people around the Siheyuan who knew He Daqing's background were all cursing him.

They said He Daqing wasn't fit to be someone's father, bluntly stating that Yushui had a good fate, and if it weren't for Shazhu's responsibility, whether Yushui could live would be another matter.

"This matter." He Daqing suddenly became hesitant, shifting the topic: "Is Weiguo quite mischievous? I remember when you were little, you were quite mischievous; when you went to sell steamed buns, I told you not to lose the steamed buns, you, carrying the steamed buns and running, with chaotic troops chasing behind."

"Was your initial departure related to Yi Zhonghai?" Shazhu looked at He Daqing and said, "Did the deaf old lady in the rear courtyard also get involved in this?"

He Daqing stepped back a pace.

Staring with an incredulous gaze.

Staring fixedly at Shazhu.

Everyone was dumbfounded.

"Looks like I guessed right—could it be because of our family's status?"

The following few words.

Shazhu lowered his voice.

"No, our family's status is fine; we make a living by selling our physical labor, belonging to hired workers!" He Daqing hesitated a moment, still not giving the reason: "Forget it, as long as you and Yushui are doing well, let some things go."

"Yi Zhonghai is dead."

The shock on He Daqing's face.

Visible to the naked eye.

What the heck.

Yi Zhonghai is dead.

How could he have died?

While He Daqing hadn't yet digested the news of Yi Zhonghai's death, Shazhu threw out another piece of news that He Daqing couldn't stomach.

"The deaf old lady also died."

He explained the deaths of Yi Zhonghai and the deaf old lady.

He merely wanted to express that the culprits who caused He Daqing to leave were already dead, so He Daqing no longer needed to continue being afraid.

"I have no need to deceive you; this is the truth. Not only those two died, but Jia Dongxu also died. The Jia Family now consists of orphans and widows scraping a living, their days are extremely hard."

"Heavens, open your eyes!"

In He Daqing's words.

With a refreshing vigor of venting resentment.

This caused Shazhu's heart to stir again with a faint doubt.

In his understanding, the inside story of He Daqing's initial departure should have been a joint plot by Yi Zhonghai and the deaf old lady, but he didn't expect Jia Zhangshi to also be involved in this matter.

Otherwise, how could one explain the scene before his eyes—fists waved, celebrating Jia Dongxu's death, celebrating the Jia family's hardship?

Ah!

He Daqing let out a sigh.

He slowly spoke.

"I originally thought this matter would go with me into the coffin, but I didn't expect they'd all died. Since you want to know, I'll just tell you the truth. Now thinking about it, this is clearly a trap; otherwise it's too much of a coincidence...."

The truth of the matter.

Thus it was narrated by He Daqing.

Everything was as Shazhu had anticipated; He Daqing was forced to leave.

From beginning to end, it was just a trap.

It was a plan specially devised by Yi Zhonghai and the deaf old lady to force He Daqing's departure, in order to make their own old age absolutely secure.

In this, Jia Zhangshi served as a tool.

This can be considered an exchange of interests.

Jia Zhangshi agreed to act as an accomplice for Yi Zhonghai and the deaf old lady in forcing He Daqing to leave; in return, Yi Zhonghai took Jia Dongxu as his disciple.

As for why He Daqing was forced to leave by Jia Zhangshi.

Actually, it can be summarized by the underwear incident.

More appropriately.

Jia Zhangshi took the opportunity when He Daqing was not indoors, hid her own underwear in his clothes, and chose a moment when they were both present but the neighbors were not.

This substantiated the charge that He Daqing had stolen Jia Zhangshi's underwear.

The deaf old lady took the opportunity to threaten He Daqing, saying that the crime of stealing women's underwear was serious, and he might end up working underground otherwise.

Yi Zhonghai, playing the good cop, said he still had some face with the Jia family and was willing to step forward to talk with Jia Zhangshi.

No one knew what they discussed.

Perhaps it was merely putting on a show.

Thirty minutes later.

Yi Zhonghai, who had gone to the Jia family and returned, said he had persuaded Jia Zhangshi, who agreed not to expose the matter, but required He Daqing to leave the siheyuan, worrying that if He Daqing stayed he might harbor ill intentions toward him.

Where exactly to go.

Jia Zhangshi shouldn't interfere.

Anyway, he couldn't stay in the siheyuan, and she also refused to remarry He Daqing.

If He Daqing didn't agree to Jia Zhangshi's conditions, she would go to the subdistrict office and have him sent to work underground.

Seeing He Daqing weighing the pros and cons, the deaf old lady and Yi Zhonghai began to work on his thoughts, saying that Shazhu was now sixteen years old, and in a few years would be at the age to discuss marriage and take a wife.

If the scandal of He Daqing stealing Jia Zhangshi's underwear were really to spread.

When the prospective in-laws came to inquire, hearing that the father-in-law was lustful to the point of being life-threatening, they would completely oppose this marriage.

If this continued.

Shazhu would surely be destined to remain a bachelor.

Yushui was seven or eight years old, just at the age to start school; if the matter were exposed, how could He Yushui face those classmates and companions, how could she hold her head up?

Considering it for Shazhu and Yushui's sake, He Daqing said he had to leave no matter what, and could not remain in the capital city.

As for He Daqing's worries about Shazhu and Yushui's livelihood, the deaf old lady and Yi Zhonghai patted their chests and assured him that as long as they remained in the siheyuan for a day, Shazhu and Yushui would receive their protection for that day, and their livelihood would certainly not suffer.

Using the excuse of long nights bringing many dreams.

They forced He Daqing to leave.

As for the white widow.

It was purely an excuse, a fictitious name made up by Yi Zhonghai and the deaf old lady to round out the lie.

But they never expected.

He Daqing, who had run to Baocheng, actually encountered a widow named Bai with three children; they considered it mutual support, one needing comfort, the other needing reliance, they obtained an introduction letter from the subdistrict office and got a marriage certificate.

After living with the white widow, He Daqing wrote a letter to Yi Zhonghai inquiring about Shazhu and Yushui's specific situation, and also recounted his own marriage in full.

This is why Yi Zhonghai schemed to have Shazhu bring Yushui to Baocheng to find He Daqing.

However, because Shazhu possessed the memories of his previous life, Yi Zhonghai's scheme failed.

After marrying the white widow, He Daqing, several years later, sensed something amiss, learned that the white widow had an IUD, and decisively laid out the situation, forcing her to bear him a child.

As for these years.

There had been no correspondence all along.

Because He Daqing learned through some workers from the Yagangchang who came to Baocheng on business that Shazhu and Yushui were doing well, and that his fleeing to Baocheng had not caused them to live a precarious existence.

Out of the desire not to add trouble for the two children.

He Daqing never went back.

Until this time, when Shazhu came to the door because of Yushui's marriage, and from Shazhu learned that those who had originally forced him to leave had all died, did he feel at ease to reveal this secrecy.

Alas!

Upon hearing He Daqing's account of the secret, Shazhu felt a myriad of emotions.

It was merely because of an illusory chamber pot that He Daqing was forced to leave the capital city.

Ah!

A sigh.

It flew out from his mouth.

Fate toys with people.

He Daqing also had his share of mistakes; if it weren't for being forced by Jia Zhangshi and Yi Zhonghai to come to Baocheng, he wouldn't have met the white widow, and naturally there would be no birth of He Yuliang.

Yi Zhonghai schemed his whole life.

Unexpectedly, he ended up doing someone else's wedding dress work; He Daqing, whom he had schemed to force out of the Capital City, unexpectedly had an old son.

Fortunately, Yi Zhonghai doesn't know about this.

Otherwise he would certainly vomit blood and die.

The misunderstanding was cleared up.

The estrangement in his heart vanished instantly.

Seeing that the time was about right, Shazhu waved his hand, bade farewell to He Daqing, and stepped into the train station under He Daqing's reluctant gaze.

Holding his ticket, he came to his own carriage and sat quietly in his seat.

He waited seven or eight minutes.

The train started moving.

The speed grew faster and faster.

Watching the scenery outside flash by, Shazhu's mood was neither good nor bad.