Siheyuan: Starting from the Old Society

The old voice was silent for a moment, as if thinking about how to answer him.

"I want you to face reality and see your miserable fate."

"Bullshit! I decide my own destiny! I won't live my whole life like you said, a coward!" Sha Zhu stood up suddenly, pointing at the light curtain and swearing, "You let me watch this, do you want to make a fool of myself? I'm telling you, no way!"

"Who do you think you are? Do you think you can escape? You are nothing but a poor ant, a chess piece at the mercy of others." The old voice carried a hint of sarcasm, as if he was looking at a clown.

"Fuck you! I'm not a chess piece!" Sha Zhu was furious and punched the light curtain.

The light curtain disappeared instantly, and Sha Zhu also collapsed on the ground, gasping for breath. He didn't know what was wrong with him, nor did he know what to do. He just felt empty in his heart, as if he had lost something important.

"Shazhu, what's wrong with you?" A gentle voice sounded in his ears, with a hint of worry and concern.

Sha Zhu suddenly raised his head and saw Qin Huairu standing in front of him, looking at him anxiously.

"Huai Ru, why are you here?" Sha Zhu was a little surprised. He clearly remembered that he was in the park...

"Have you forgotten? We agreed to go to the park today." Qin Huairu said with a smile and stretched out her hand to pull Sha Zhu up.

Sha Zhu was stunned for a moment, and subconsciously dodged Qin Huairu's hand. He looked at the familiar face in front of him, but the unbearable scenes on the screen kept appearing in his mind.

When Qin Huairu saw Sha Zhu's reaction, the smile on her face froze.

"Shazhu, what's wrong with you? Are you feeling unwell?" Qin Huairu asked with concern, reaching out to touch Shazhu's forehead.

"Don't touch me!" Sha Zhu slapped Qin Huairu's hand away, his eyes full of disgust and defensiveness.

Qin Huairu was startled by Sha Zhu's sudden action, and tears welled up in her eyes.

"Shazhu, what's wrong with you? Why do you treat me like this?" Qin Huairu said aggrievedly, with a hint of tears in her voice.

"What's wrong with me? I just wanted to ask you! Why did you do this?!" Sha Zhu pointed at Qin Huairu's nose and roared.

"What did I do? Explain yourself clearly!" Qin Huairu was also angered by Sha Zhu's tone and retorted loudly.

"You know what you have done!" Sha Zhu was furious. He grabbed Qin Huairu's arm and said with gritted teeth, "Why did you betray me? Why did you want to be with another man..."

Before Sha Zhu could finish his words, Qin Huairu pushed him away.

"What nonsense are you talking about?!" Qin Huairu covered her face and looked at Sha Zhu in disbelief, "How could you slander me like this?!"

"Slander you? I saw it with my own eyes..."

Before Sha Zhu finished speaking, he suddenly realized something and stopped abruptly. He looked at the young face in front of him, and suddenly a trace of doubt arose in his heart.

Sha Zhu held his head in pain, but those images were engraved in his mind like a brand, lingering. He would rather believe that Qin Huairu was greedy for his money and his foolish efforts than to believe that she would betray their love and their family.

"No! This is not true! You lied to me! You old thing, don't even think about sowing discord between me and Huairu!" Sha Zhu's eyes were red, and he roared hysterically at the sky, but all he got in response was endless emptiness.

The light gradually faded away, and the old voice also disappeared, as if it had never appeared. Sha Zhu sat on the ground dejectedly, like a body without a soul.

It was unknown how long it took Sha Zhu to come back to his senses. He stood up shakily, his mind in a mess. He didn't know what to do, should he believe that mysterious voice, or should he believe his own heart?

At this moment, Sha Zhu saw a familiar figure slowly walking towards him not far away. It was Qin Huairu!

She was wearing a plain floral dress, carrying a net bag in her hand, walking lightly with a gentle smile on her face.

"Huai Ru!" Sha Zhu couldn't help but shout out, with a hint of trembling in his voice.

Qin Huairu heard someone calling her, looked up, and saw that it was Sha Zhu. An expression of surprise immediately appeared on her face.

"Shazhu, why are you here? I was thinking of going to the factory to find you!" Qin Huairu walked quickly to Shazhu and asked with concern.

"I..." Sha Zhu looked at the familiar face in front of him, but the disgusting scenes on the screen emerged involuntarily in his mind. Those scenes gnawed at his heart like poisonous snakes, making him feel nauseous and disgusted.

"What's wrong with you? Are you feeling unwell?" Qin Huairu saw that Sha Zhu looked unhappy and reached out to touch his forehead, but was grabbed by Sha Zhu.

"Huai Ru, tell me the truth, are you hiding something from me?" Sha Zhu stared at Qin Huai Ru's eyes and asked word by word.

Qin Huairu was startled by Sha Zhu's sudden action. She was stunned for a moment, then reacted and tried hard to break free from Sha Zhu's hand.

"What nonsense are you talking about! What could I possibly be hiding from you?"

"Then tell me, what is your relationship with Deputy Director Li? Why do you often leave work together? Why do people in the factory say..." Sha Zhu's voice stopped abruptly when he said this. He really couldn't say the words "cuckold".

When Qin Huairu heard the words "Deputy Director Li", her face suddenly turned pale and her eyes began to flicker.

"Who are you listening to? Deputy Director Li and I are just ordinary colleagues. Don't listen to those people's nonsense!"

"Ordinary relationship between colleagues? Ordinary relationship between colleagues will..." Sha Zhu suddenly remembered the scene on the screen that made him feel so miserable that he was immediately filled with rage. He grabbed Qin Huairu's shoulders and pushed her to the ground.

"What are you doing! Sha Zhu, are you crazy!" Qin Huairu sat on the ground in embarrassment, looking at Sha Zhu in horror.

"Am I crazy? Hahaha, I'm not crazy yet! I want to ask you, what is your relationship with that Deputy Director Li! Whose child is that in your belly?" Sha Zhu pointed at Qin Huairu's nose and roared.

Qin Huairu covered her stomach, her face pale, her eyes filled with fear and panic...

Sha Zhu held his head in pain. Those images were imprinted in his mind like a branding iron and could not be erased.

"No! This is not true! Huairu is not that kind of person!" Shazhu shouted almost crazily, "You lied to me! You old thing, don't even think about sowing discord between Huairu and me!"

The old voice just sneered contemptuously: "Haha, you won't give up until you reach the Yellow River. Well, let you see it with your own eyes, so you won't regret it in the future."

The picture changed again, and this time, the scene returned to the day when Sha Zhu and Qin Huairu got married.

The lively courtyard was decorated with lights and full of joy. Sha Zhu was wearing a brand new Zhongshan suit, with a big red flower on his chest, and a happy smile on his face, as if he owned the whole world.

He held Qin Huairu's hand with great joy, and got married in the hall with everyone's blessings.

However, in the corner where Sha Zhu couldn't see, Qin Huairu quietly rolled her eyes, with a hint of imperceptible disgust and contempt in her eyes.

"Silly Zhu, silly Zhu, if it weren't for your big house and high salary, I wouldn't marry a useless thing like you!" Qin Huairu sneered in her heart, "When I find someone better in the future, I will kick you out!"

The scene changes to the wedding night of Sha Zhu and Qin Huairu.

Sha Zhu couldn't wait to be intimate with Qin Huairu, but was pushed away by Qin Huairu.

"What are you doing? Why are you in such a hurry?" Qin Huairu said unhappily, "I'm tired today and my whole body aches. How about we talk about it tomorrow?"

Sha Zhu was stunned for a moment, a little embarrassed, but still forced a smile and said, "Okay, okay, I'll listen to you, I'll listen to you."

Having said that, Sha Zhu obediently went to the outer room to sleep on the floor.

However, what Sha Zhu didn't know was that the reason why Qin Huairu rejected him was not because she was really tired, but because she didn't have him in her heart at all, and she was just perfunctorily trying to please him.

That night, Qin Huairu lay in bed, tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep. The figure of a man kept appearing in her mind. The man was tall, handsome, and suave. Compared with the dull and honest Sha Zhu, he was like heaven and earth.

"Jia Dongxu, where are you? I miss you so much..." Qin Huairu silently repeated the man's name in her heart, and tears flowed from the corners of her eyes.

The scene changes again, and the time comes several years later.

Sha Zhu and Qin Huairu's children were already born, and the family of five was squeezed into a house that was not big to begin with, and they lived a very difficult life.

Sha Zhu works hard in the factory from dawn to dusk every day, and his meager salary is barely enough to make ends meet, let alone buy new clothes and toys for the children.

And what about Qin Huairu? She dressed up all day long, gossiping with neighbors in the yard, or being lazy at home, ordering Shazhu to do this and that.

"Shazhu, look, Banggeng's shoes are torn again. Can you buy him a new pair?" Qin Huairu pointed at the pair of shoes with a big hole in them on Banggeng's feet and said to Shazhu.

"Huai Ru, it's not that I don't want to buy it, it's just that my family is out of money. I have already borrowed money from several families this month." Sha Zhu said helplessly.

"No money? If you don't have money, go and borrow some! You're a grown man, but you can't even buy shoes for your child, and you still have the nerve to call yourself a father?" Qin Huairu put her hands on her hips and yelled at Sha Zhu.

"I..." Sha Zhu was speechless after being scolded by Qin Huairu and could only lower his head and remain silent.

"What do you mean? Why don't you go and borrow money? Do you want to watch Banggeng walk barefoot?" Qin Huairu yelled relentlessly.

Sha Zhu had no choice but to bite the bullet and go to his neighbor's house to borrow money again.

However, this time, the neighbors shook their heads and refused.

"Silly Zhu, it's not that we don't want to lend you the money, it's just that we are out of money!"