Siheyuan, Me and the Yu Sisters

It was almost dark when Zhang Renkang rode his bicycle to the courtyard. As soon as he entered the gate, he was stopped by Yan Bugui, who said mysteriously:

"Renkang, do you know that He Daqing is back?"

Zhang Renkang's heart moved, and he asked calmly

"Uncle, who is He Daqing? Sha Zhu's father?"

Yan Bugui suddenly remembered that when He Daqing left, Zhang Renkang was only seven or eight years old, and at that time their family had not yet been allocated a courtyard house, so he explained:

"He Daqing is Sha Zhu's father who ran off with the widow. He came back today and had a fight with Yi Zhonghai."

"We'll have to hold a general meeting soon."

Zhang Renkang took out a cigarette and handed it to Yan Bugui. He lit it and said:

"Fight with Yi Zhonghai? Uncle, you've got me confused."

"Shazhu and Yi Zhonghai are in a good relationship, why did He Daqing beat him?"

Yan Bugui exhaled a breath of smoke and said comfortably

"Not only He Daqing, Sha Zhu has also taken action. Renkang, you are a smart guy. This Yi Zhonghai is really not a joke."

Then he said

"He Daqing has been gone for more than ten years. He mailed money to Sha Zhu every month. Yi Zhonghai collected the money on his behalf and didn't give Sha Zhu a penny. He even lied to him and said that He Daqing didn't care about him anymore. Isn't this trying to sow discord between the father and son?"

Zhang Renkang sneered and said

"People like Yi Zhonghai are very hypocritical, they are capable of doing such a thing"

Yan Bugui sighed

"Who said it wasn't true? Old Yi has been disguising himself quite well over the years. He has always been caring towards Sha Zhu and helping out the neighbors in the yard. He has a good reputation."

"It's a pity that his true identity was exposed this time."

Zhang Renkang said

"Let's see what the meeting says later. I don't think Yi Zhonghai will plead guilty so easily. He will probably make some excuses."

Yan Bugui nodded, and the two exchanged a few words. Zhang Renkang pushed the cart to the backyard. When passing the middle yard, Zhang Renkang saw the yard was in a mess. The glass of Yi Zhonghai's house was broken all over the floor, and brooms and shovels were scattered everywhere. There were faint traces of blood on the ground. Zhang Renkang smiled and went back to the backyard.

At Sha Zhu's house, He Daqing had half of his face swollen. He held a bandage in his right hand to cover his forehead and angrily scolded Sha Zhu who was kneeling on the side. Sha Zhu also had a few scars on his face, but it was better than He Daqing's. He Yushui was crying and sitting on the side. The deaf old lady was sitting on the bed with a stick. He Daqing scolded

"You little bastard, I arranged a job for you and reserved a house for you, but you just rushed to be someone else's son?"

"Don't you have any brains? Silly Zhu, Silly Zhu, why did I give birth to such a fool like you?"

Sha Zhu looked guilty, lowered his head and said nothing. After a while, he raised his head and said

"How would I know you sent money back? You didn't even tell me."

"I went to Baocheng to look for you, but you didn't even come to see me. I thought you had completely ignored us."

He Daqing was speechless. He really hadn't told Sha Zhu about this. He had thought that Yi Zhonghai had a good reputation, so he had asked him to look after Sha Zhu and his sister. He would send some money every month, and Sha Zhu's salary would be enough. The two children were doing well.

He Daqing sighed and said

"I trusted Yi Zhonghai too much. I arranged for you to work in the cafeteria, thinking that your salary of more than ten yuan a month and the money I sent you by mail would be enough for you and Yu Shui to live a good life. Who knew that Yi Zhonghai was such a beast in human form and would do such a thing, almost starving Yu Shui to death."

Sha Zhu also said angrily

"Yi Zhonghai, this bastard, I respected him so much, but he kept it a secret from me and Yu Shui for more than ten years, and he kept saying that you don't care about us anymore and don't want us anymore."

He Daqing angrily kicked Sha Zhu and said

"You two are my offspring, how can I not want you?"

He Yushui also cried and asked

"Then why did you run away so heartlessly?"

He Daqing sighed and squatted on the ground. He glanced at the deaf old lady, closed the door again to make sure no one was eavesdropping, and then said slowly and seriously:

"Our He family was originally the imperial chef of the Qing Dynasty, serving the emperor for generations. The Qing Dynasty was gone a few years ago, so your grandfather named me Daqing. The old lady was also a concubine in the palace at that time. After your grandfather and the old lady escaped, they hid their identities and dared not make them public. Later, your grandfather went to the north to serve the emperor. Before he left, he asked me not to tell anyone about my heritage, so I changed my surname to He. Before the founding of the People's Republic of China, our two families had been living in this courtyard."

“Only the old lady and I know about this.”

The deaf old lady also sighed and said

"Zhuzi, grandma, this is why I have no children in my life and I treat you as my grandson. I really don't dare to get married."

(The deaf old lady is assumed to be Wanrong's maid, hahaha)

Sha Zhu and He Yushui were stunned and dared not speak. They could not imagine that they had such an identity. Sha Zhu asked blankly:

"Dad, didn't you say that our family has been hired farmers for three generations?"

He Daqing glanced at his silly son and sighed inwardly.

"After your grandfather passed away, I kept my family's inheritance a secret and worked as a cook for a big restaurant. I'm not a hired farmer. Do we have any property?"

"Shazhu, Yushui, you two are grown up now. You must not make this matter public, otherwise you should know the consequences, right?"

Sha Zhu and He Yushui nodded vigorously. Even Sha Zhu, a fool, knew the importance of this. He dared to do this because of his good background. If people knew that he was the heir of the palace, it would be terrible. He might really go to labor camp. Sha Zhu thought to himself, I am a fool, not a fool.

He Daqing continued

"Yi Zhonghai didn't know the identities of our two families. He just thought I was kind and asked you to deliver food to the old lady. I lied when I was counting the composition. Anyway, your grandfather is dead and no one has ever seen him. I changed my last name for 20 years and have been working as a chef in Hongxianglou. They didn't suspect anything and gave our family the identity of a hired farmer."

He Daqing blushed and said

"Tan's cuisine is the official cuisine, and the ingredients used are precious and particular. It is not something that ordinary people can learn. I am afraid that something will happen over time and implicate you two. Besides, you are old enough to work and earn money, so I followed your aunt Bai to Baocheng. As long as we are not together, you insist that it is a family tradition and others will have no way to investigate. After all, it is not just you who know it."

Sha Zhu and He Yushui immediately realized the flaw in He Daqing's words and actually believed it. Sha Zhu knelt down and whispered

"Dad, I really thought you didn't want us anymore"

He Yushui also cried and said

"Dad, you can't stay away from us for so long."

While the He family's two sons were staging a grand family reunion scene, Yi Zhonghai's family was filled with grief. The cold wind of mid-November blew straight into the house. An auntie distressedly applied cold compresses to the bumps on Yi Zhonghai's face. After all, Yi Zhonghai was nearly fifty years old. He Daqing, as a cook, often flipped the woks and had considerable strength. With the young and strong Sha Zhu, Yi Zhonghai was no match for them. His eyes were black, his nose was bleeding, and the corners of his mouth were crooked. He groaned and asked an auntie to apply medicine and cold compresses to him.

The aunt sighed and said

"Zhong Hai, please apologize to He Daqing and Zhuzi. We have helped Zhuzi a lot over the years, so we should at least give him some credit."

Yi Zhonghai hummed and said

"Don't worry about it. How do I admit this? What will happen if I admit the mistake? I will still have prestige in the courtyard. I can't admit this matter no matter what. Just say that I saved it for Shazhu."

The aunt sighed, not believing that Yi Zhonghai could fool her. He Daqing was very smart. Before he left, he and Xu Damao's father in the backyard, Yi Zhonghai and the other two were equally matched. He Daqing might not be able to see Yi Zhonghai's intention.