Chapter 487

You Fengxia, who fled her marriage and ran to the capital city.

She was unfamiliar with the people and the place.

First, she had no letter of introduction.

Second, she had no money or tickets.

She was simply a drifter.

Because Shazhu's decision to quit his post as cafeteria head at Yagangchang and open a restaurant outside was so shocking, it sparked heated discussion among many people, and thus You Fengxia accidentally learned of Shazhu's existence.

In utter desperation, with no other way out, You Fengxia waited at the entrance of Bai Xu Restaurant with a hint of gambling intent, hoping Shazhu would let her stay and work at Bai Xu, even as an ordinary waiter serving dishes and pouring tea; she was willing, her demands were low—just to get a meal.

She didn't go to the Siheyuan to find Shazhu also to avoid embarrassing him.

In those days.

A woman comes to the door.

In the end, it will leave the man with gossip on all sides.

You Fengxia's habit of considering others left Shazhu puzzled; he found it strange that such a girl would eventually become ruthless.

In his previous life.

You Fengxia partnered with Deputy Factory Director Li to trade televisions; at first they planned to involve Xu Daming, but Xu Daming, being cautious, feared leaks in his first big deal and fell into the trap set by You Fengxia and Deputy Factory Director Li, becoming a middleman who connected some people in the Siheyuan—until he flirted with You Fengxia, pocketed a 10,000‑yuan introduction fee, and was kicked out.

Xu Daming was unaware of these details, but from the unusual behavior of the Yan Fugui and Liu Haizhong families he sensed something fishy, guessed he had been excluded, pretended not to know, secretly investigated everything, and when You Fengxia and Yan Fugui's group were trading, he sneakily placed a report call, leading to the Liu Haizhong and Yan Fugui families being caught on the spot, the televisions confiscated, and the money gone.

Liu Haizhong was so angry he ended up in the hospital.

The Yan Fugui family made a huge fuss.

You Fengxia didn't know how she learned of this; from fragments of memory it seemed that Yi Zhonghai had suspected Xu Daming and spoken about it.

You Fengxia took revenge on Xu Daming, swindling him out of his family property, which drove his father to death from anger; Xu Daming finally fainted at the Siheyuan gate on New Year's Eve, then, before the assembled elders and children of the Siheyuan, he acknowledged Shazhu as his master and apologized to each neighbor.

This is the grand happy ending in the TV drama.

One could say that.

If it weren't for You Fengxia, Xu Daming probably wouldn't have been reduced to bowing before his lifelong rival Shazhu.

It is precisely because of this bowing.

Only then did the later incident occur in which Xu Daming collected Shazhu's corpse.

Past cause.

Present result.

Every sip and bite is destined.

You Fengxia can be considered the button that reconciles Shazhu and Xu Daming.

The current difficulty.

It is the question of whether to keep You Fengxia.

He pondered for a moment.

Shazhu decided to keep You Fengxia.

One aspect is that You Fengxia truly has no way out; saving a life beats building a seven‑story pagoda, so if we can help, we should—we can't just watch her walk into a dead end.

His saintly heart overflows.

On the other hand, Bai Xu Restaurant indeed needs a waiter.

For future restaurant revenue, this waiter must be pleasing to the eye; You Fengxia looks good, so keeping her may draw customers who come for her looks.

This amounts to treating You Fengxia as the face of Bai Xu.

Shazhu also has other considerations.

In his previous life, You Fengxia appeared before everyone alongside Deputy Factory Director Li; at that time she was Li's lover and had her own ways, otherwise she could not have swindled Xu Daming's family property.

It should have been that, in a desperate situation, she met Deputy Factory Director Li—one with no way out, the other fond of beautiful women—and they hit it off immediately.

Now that Shazhu has kept You Fengxia, thereby changing her fate, in this situation can she still undergo training and follow Deputy Factory Director Li?

Well worth looking forward to.

Although Shazhu decided to keep You Fengxia, there are still some things to consider.

First is You Fengxia's residence permit, which must be handled at the police station; second is her luggage problem—a little girl can't work barefoot, and her clothes don't fit well; moreover, Shazhu must also consider her housing issue—a pretty girl living alone outside is truly unsafe.

You Fengxia really is a lively little girl; she probably guessed what Shazhu was thinking from his facial expression and began pleading with him.

"Master He, keep me, I promise to be very honest, very honest; no wages needed, just give me a bowl of rice; as for lodging, I'll stay in the restaurant."

To maximize her chances of staying, You Fengxia exhausted all of Shazhu's possible excuses and thought of standing night watch.

"At that time I'll put the tables together and sleep on them, guaranteeing not to interfere with daytime business; Master He, keep me, during the day I'll help clean, tidy up, serve dishes and carry water; at night I'll stand watch in the restaurant, saving the need to hire staff."

Shazhu gazed at You Fengxia for a moment.

He smiled.

"How can you work without pay? If I just make you work and give nothing, I'd become a heartless landlord; Bai Xu Restaurant is a side business of Yagangchang, so I'll pay what's due; as for night watch..."

His gaze lingered on You Fengxia's face for a few glances.

A woman that even the playboy Xu Daming would take notice of.

Her looks are not lacking.

Shazhu also admits that You Fengxia looks good.

The opening of Bai Xu Restaurant has already touched some people's interests; they are resentful and will surely give Shazhu all kinds of embarrassment.

A pretty little girl staying in the restaurant every night might turn nothing into trouble, and the petty hooligans who used to cause a disturbance every two days now come daily.

Teasing the little girl isn't bad either.

You Fengxia stands night watch.

The worst choice.

You stay at the restaurant to keep watch; I guess all the youngsters in the lane have come, the watch duty can be discussed later, the restaurant still needs a few days before opening.

You Fengxia is also a wonderful person.

He understood Shazhu's intention to stay behind.

So he didn't insist any further.

She knew how much trouble her face had brought her.

The so-called night watch.

It was also done out of necessity.

"You Fengxia, I arranged it this way; you can stay, but there are some paperwork issues."

"Master He, this is our family's household register; I tore out a page when I left."

You Fengxia pulled a crumpled piece of paper from her pants pocket and handed it to Shazhu.

Shazhu took it and saw it was indeed a torn page from the household register, listing You Fengxia's detailed information: Yujia Fort, Fifth Team, Thirteenth Brigade, Shitouling Commune, suburban county of the Capital City.

"The paperwork, I'll handle it for you to save you the trouble."

Shazhu, as Liu Jianguo's elder brother-in-law.

Those people all know Shazhu.

His stepping in is far better than You Fengxia doing so.

You Fengxia also knew these connections; just as Shazhu finished speaking and she was about to kneel and kowtow to him, a questioning voice flew into their ears ahead of her.

"Master He, who is this little girl?"

The person who asked.

It was Liu Lan.

Thus: Thus: Mahua followed behind her.

It was precisely because Liu Lan and Thus: Thus: Mahua appeared that You Fengxia didn't kneel a second time before Shazhu.

Shazhu himself didn't know what he was thinking; perhaps he hadn't thought at all, and he blurted out a sentence without thinking.

"A distant relative of ours, we haven't been in touch for many years; she's the only one left in her family, came to rely on kin, but she got lost, asked for directions and was deliberately pointed the wrong way, at night she met vagrants, and during the escape she ended up with nothing but herself."

He pointed at Thus: Thus: Mahua and Liu Lan and gave a brief introduction.

"My apprentice Thus: Thus: Mahua will be the restaurant's head chef; Liu Lan, my colleague at the steel plant, is in charge of the back kitchen and is also the restaurant's kitchen manager."

"Hello, Master Ma; hello, Master Liu."

"My distant relative, named You Fengxia, will be a waiter at our Bai Xu restaurant."

Shazhu pulled a little trick.

He deliberately didn't say what relation You Fengxia was to him.

Liu Lan and Thus: Thus: Mahua didn't know whether they had caught that meaning, they cheerfully greeted You Fengxia; after they got to know each other, Shazhu gave the two a reminder.

"As for the restaurant, you keep busy, or follow what I told you yesterday; I'll take Fengxia to the siheyuan for a visit to see my wife."

You Fengxia actually wanted to stay and help, but Shazhu pointed at her bare feet.

See a good deed through to the end.

See the Buddha off to the west.

Since we decided to keep You Fengxia, let's help her thoroughly.

Shazhu prepared to go back and have Zhuli help find a few clothes, then arrange a place to stay; he rode his bicycle carrying You Fengxia back to the siheyuan.

Everything turned out just as Shazhu had expected.

He carried a pretty girl back.

The quiet siheyuan instantly became noisy.

No one needed to be reminded.

A swarm surged into the surroundings.

Shazhu repeated the story he'd thought up on the road, saying You Fengxia was his distant relative's daughter, her whole family dead, with no choice but to come a long way to the Capital City to rely on him.

The words he said.

The neighbors all felt the same.

They were no longer surprised.

After all, the fierce storm had just passed; now the whole street is settling the small debts left then, and several tragedies of broken families and deaths have occurred in the courtyard.

Yan Fugui's family had also just taken in a distant relative seeking refuge, the son of some brother of Third Aunt, the sole survivor of his whole family; when Shazhu and You Fengxia entered the siheyuan, Third Aunt held that child and wept until heaven and earth seemed dark.

Shazhu's given reason.

Logically explained past.

It can also be made clear on emotional grounds.

Moreover, the fact that Third Aunt's relatives came looking indirectly serves as further proof.

It amounts to being even more factual than the facts.

Why bring You Fengxia to the siheyuan.

Mainly to solve You Fengxia's lodging problem; on the way, Shazhu and You Fengxia agreed on terms: she would first stay in the siheyuan, since Shazhu's house has many rooms, empty rooms are just empty, and an unoccupied house will deteriorate, so following the principle of not wasting, we let You Fengxia stay temporarily, paying some monthly rent, and when she later finds a partner and marries, we'll return the house to Shazhu.

Upon seeing Zhuli, he briefly explained You Fengxia's situation.

Zhuli is also a warm-hearted woman.

After putting herself in You Fengxia's shoes and feeling her hardship, Zhuli had Shazhu ride his bicycle to the police station to handle You Fengxia's temporary residence paperwork, she took You Fengxia to the bathhouse to wash up, and gave her a set of her own clothes she couldn't bear to part with, for You Fengxia to change into.

When Shazhu finished the paperwork and returned to the siheyuan, Zhuli had already prepared the room for You Fengxia; the bedding and such, though not newly bought, had been washed very clean by Zhuli.

The couple discussed it.

The outward title.

You Fengxia is a distant relative of Shazhu's distant relative's family; her entire family died in that violent storm a few years ago, leaving only her, and she came a long way to the capital to rely on Shazhu.

The person Shazhu is looking for is Yushui.

Yushui also feels sympathy for You Fengxia.

While handling the paperwork, they tampered a bit, changing You Fengxia's name to Dang Xianghong.

From this moment on.

You Fengxia is no longer You Fengxia; she has become Dang Xianghong.

……

After Qin Huairu returned from work at night, Jia Zhangshi also specially told her about this, scolding Shazhu, saying Shazhu would rather keep a not-so-close distant relative in the siheyuan than help her Jia family; after scolding Shazhu, she then began to madly mock Yan Fugui, saying that Yan Fugui, who has been petty and calculating all his life, now has an extra mouth to feed, and will surely be heartbroken to death.

Qin Huairu didn't really respond to Jia Zhangshi.

She was also worried about her own matters.

After dinner.

After hesitating for a while, she finally made up her mind and said a word to Jia Zhangshi, saying she is now a mistake‑correcting reformer at the Yagangchang; when she went to ask for leave today, they told her to go to the street office to get a certificate; she said she now needs to go to the street office director's home to get the certificate, and asked Jia Zhangshi to leave the door open for her tonight.

Jia Zhangshi didn't think much of it, and gave Qin Huairu a reminder to be careful on the road.

While casually agreeing, Qin Huairu stepped out of the Jia family home; she had originally intended to leave directly, but when her gaze unintentionally swept over Shazhu's home opposite.

She stopped her steps.

Her eyes carried a hint of envy.

They are both women; look at Yu Li, then look at herself.

"Ai!"

A low sigh.

It flew out from Qin Huairu's mouth.

If Shazhu were to help the Jia family, the Jia family wouldn't have fallen to this point.

Head lowered.

Left the siheyuan.

Arrived at Deputy Factory Director Li's home.

Perhaps because arrangements had been made in advance, when Qin Huairu arrived, there was no one else at home, only Deputy Factory Director Li.

They are both thousand‑year‑old foxes.

Don't play those Strange Tales tricks.

After a few brief words, Deputy Factory Director Li took Qin Huairu's hand and led her to his room to discuss the leave matter.

Why ask for leave?

How many days of leave?

Such questions took over an hour to settle.

When Qin Huairu returned to the siheyuan at night, it was already 10:30 p. m.; most of the neighbors in the siheyuan had gone to sleep, only Jia Zhangshi was still waiting for Qin Huairu.