Siheyuan, my new life

At Liu Haizhong's home in the backyard of the Siheyuan at No. 95 Nanluoguxiang, Liu Haizhong's wife was mechanically sorting her husband's clothes. This afternoon, she met the public security personnel who were coming to deliver the court verdict at the police station gate. Since she had been staying at the police station gate almost every day recently, many public security personnel also knew this middle-aged woman.

Although this middle-aged woman looked very pitiful, the public security personnel from the police station had already conducted a serious investigation and visit to Courtyard No. 95. The more they learned about this courtyard, the more incredible it seemed to them, and they also knew that this woman did not deserve sympathy.

Out of their own selfish motives, the three uncles in charge joined forces to control the right to speak in Courtyard No. 95, and openly made the absurd statement that "matters within the courtyard should be resolved within the courtyard", and in recent years these three uncles in charge have been managing Courtyard No. 95 in this way.

Strictly speaking, these three uncles in charge are just forming a small group and forming a clique. In other words, there had been no vicious incidents in Courtyard No. 95 before. The most common incidents were petty thefts, fights and other trivial matters. These three uncles in charge, adhering to the excuse of "matters in the courtyard should be resolved in the courtyard", strictly controlled these ugly incidents in the courtyard.

In fact, many slums and courtyards have more or less the phenomenon of covering up the truth, and some trivial matters are coordinated and resolved by the manager. However, the situation in the courtyard at No. 95 Nanluoguxiang is more serious, and there is even a sign of feudal patriarchy.

The more the staff of Jiaodaokou Police Station and the Street Office learned about it, the more scared they felt. If it weren't for the terrible incident in which Liu Haizhong led people to smash the gate of the west wing for no reason, which exposed the various inside stories of Courtyard No. 95, if a major incident occurred in the courtyard in the future, both the Street Office and the Jiaodaokou Police Station would bear the responsibility for negligence, and by that time, it would be impossible to justify criticism or punishment.

After hearing the court verdict read out by the public security officer, Liu Haizhong's wife immediately collapsed to the ground. Although she had known from the police station officers that her husband would definitely be sentenced to prison, she never expected that he would be sentenced to twenty years. At this moment, she felt as if the sky had fallen. Since marrying Liu Haizhong, he had been in charge of almost all the family affairs, and she was just a housewife.

But now that her husband has been sentenced to twenty years in prison, it is still unclear whether he can get out alive. The most urgent thing is how she and her three sons will survive in the future.

Liu Haizhong usually had high hopes for his eldest son Liu Guangqi. He was particularly partial to this eldest son in terms of food, clothing, and daily expenses. However, he treated his second son Liu Guangtian and third son Liu Guangfu very differently. He either beat or scolded them every day and hardly ever smiled at his two younger sons.

Liu Haizhong's wife has always adhered to the traditional concept of marrying a chicken, following the chicken; marrying a dog, following the dog, perfectly demonstrating what it means for the husband to sing and the wife to follow. Every time Liu Haizhong beat and scolded his two younger sons, she not only did not step forward to dissuade him, but also supported her husband's actions with practical actions.

After being comforted by a female police officer from the police station, Liu Haizhong's wife finally accepted the reality reluctantly. She suppressed the pain and helplessness in her heart, and carefully asked the female police officer some questions that she was concerned about. Then she put away the verdict and returned to Courtyard No. 95 with heavy steps.

Liu Haizhong's wife felt a little relieved in her heart. If she had not met the public security officer who delivered the verdict when she went to the police station this afternoon, the news that Liu Haizhong was sentenced to prison would probably have spread throughout the courtyard.

After Liu Haizhong was arrested, Liu Haizhong's wife finally saw through the true colors of the residents in this courtyard. Given the character of those people, one can imagine how they would behave once they knew the news. At the very least, they would come up to gloat over his misfortune and make sarcastic remarks.

Liu Haizhong's wife began to pack clothes for her husband silently. After all, they were still husband and wife, and although this might be their last farewell, she still wanted to bring him some clothes to change into.

After asking the female police officer just now, Liu Haizhong's wife had already made a decision in her heart.

Since her husband was arrested, her eldest son Liu Guangqi's behavior in the past few days has deeply hurt her heart. Now she realizes that her eldest son has grown up in a wrong way and is simply unable to support the family.

Without Liu Haizhong's salary income in the future, and the steel rolling mill will definitely take back the house their family currently lives in, Liu Haizhong's wife has decided to move out early, to an unfamiliar place far away from Nanluoguxiang.

Liu Haizhong has saved nearly 3,000 yuan from his salary over the years. Liu Haizhong's wife plans to go to the police station tomorrow morning to pay the fine, and then go to the street office to get a letter of introduction. She plans to take her sons back to her mother's home in the countryside.

The eldest son Liu Guangqi has not returned yet. Since his father was arrested, he has been leaving home early and coming back late. He didn’t even come back to stay last night.

The wife of the eldest son Liu Haizhong had also completely given up hope. She had just whispered her decision to her two younger sons and told them everything she had learned from the public security personnel.

Liu Guangtian felt very sad when he heard his mother say that she was going to move away from the home where he had lived for so many years. Although he was often beaten and scolded by his father in this home, it was still his home after all. If he left here, how would he, his mother and his brother live in the future?

Liu Guangfu was still a little kid who hated dogs. He didn't have much feeling about the move. He just stood there quietly listening to the conversation between his mother and second brother.

Liu Haizhong's wife comforted her second son softly: "Guangtian, your father has been sentenced to 20 years in prison. He will be paraded through the streets next Sunday and then sent to the northwest to serve his sentence. I heard that the environment there is terrible and most people can't survive for a few years. So the three of us have to think about ourselves. The family will no longer have your father's income. Although we have saved a little money in the past, we can't just sit back and eat it all. I plan to move back to your uncle's house tomorrow to live for a while, and I will rent a house somewhere else. I can also do some odd jobs at the street office to support our lives. You and Guangfu still have to go to school now, so don't worry about the things at home. Anyway, your mother will not starve you two brothers to death."

Liu Guangtian hesitated for a while before speaking: "Mom, what about my brother?"

"Alas, you've seen Guangqi's performance in the past two days. Let him be. Anyway, if he is willing to come home in the future, I, as his mother, will definitely give him something to eat. But it's impossible to think of it as before. As the eldest son of the Liu family, Guangqi has failed your father and me. I'm afraid it's just a dream to expect him to support the family in the future. Mom doesn't want to worry about Guangqi anymore. From now on, I will treat you three brothers equally. I will raise you to the best of my ability. As for whether you can take care of me in my old age, it all depends on the conscience of you three brothers." Liu Haizhong's wife murmured in tears while sorting out clothes.