Siheyuan: Sap is the last word

"I... I made a bowl of egg custard. I thought you must not have eaten well at night, so I made it to nourish your body." Qin Huairu said as she handed over the bowl in her hand.

He Yudong looked at the bowl of egg custard and sneered in his heart. What tricks is this woman trying to play?

"No, I'm not hungry." He Yudong refused bluntly.

Qin Huairu's face froze, then she forced out a smile: "Yudong, I know you are still angry with me. I was wrong before and shouldn't have treated you like that. Can you...can you forgive me?"

He Yudong looked at her with a half-smile: "Forgive you? Why?"

Qin Huairu bit her lip, her eyes slightly reddened: "Yudong, I know that what I did before was too much, but...but I was also forced to do so. Jia Zhangshi...she was too strong, I...I had no way to resist her..."

As she spoke, Qin Huairu's tears fell. She choked and said, "Yudong, can you...can you help me? My Banggeng...Banggeng...he is really seriously ill..."

He Yudong looked at her tearful face and couldn't help but feel shaken. This woman is really good at acting.

However, he will not be fooled easily.

"Qin Huairu, don't try to play tricks on me. What does your boy's illness have to do with me? Why should I help you?" He Yudong's tone was still cold.

Qin Huairu saw that soft tactics didn't work, so she simply used hard tactics. She grabbed He Yudong's arm and cried, "He Yudong, I beg you, please help me. If something happens to Banggeng...if anything happens to him, I...I can't live anymore..."

He Yudong shook off her hand and said impatiently: "What does it have to do with me if you can't survive? Get out of here and don't bother me!"

With a "bang", He Yudong closed the door, leaving Qin Huairu crying alone outside.

Back in the room, He Yudong lay on the bed, but couldn't fall asleep.

Qin Huairu's tears reminded him of the woman who abandoned him in his previous life. She also cried bitterly and told the same hypocritical lies.

He felt annoyed. He didn't want to be deceived by a woman again and didn't want to repeat the same mistake.

He sat up suddenly, walked to the table, picked up the newly bought watch and looked at it carefully.

This watch is the result of his hard work in this world and a symbol of his changed destiny.

He held the watch tightly with a determined look in his eyes. He would never let anyone control his fate again!

The next day, He Yudong went to work as usual. As soon as he walked to the door of the workshop, he heard a noise coming from inside.

When he walked in, he saw a group of workers gathered together, talking.

"Have you heard? An old man was arrested!"

"Is this true? What did the uncle do wrong?"

"They said he was corrupt and took bribes, and... he also raped women!"

He Yudong was shocked when he heard this. Yi Zhonghai? Rape a woman? How...how is this possible?

He squeezed into the crowd and asked a fellow worker about the situation.

"Old Li, what's going on? How could an old man be arrested?"

Old Li sighed and said, "Alas, this matter has caused a lot of uproar. I heard that the uncle took advantage of his position to embezzle a lot of money over the years, and also... raped several female workers..."

"What? Female workers? Who?" He Yudong asked.

Old Li lowered his voice and said, "I heard...I heard that one of them...is Qin Huairu..."

He Yudong was stunned when he heard the name. Qin Huairu? She...she was...

The image of Qin Huairu crying last night suddenly appeared in his mind. Could it be... Could it be that she was...

Thinking of this, He Yudong felt a chill in his heart. He didn't expect that Yi Zhonghai was such a person!

At this time, the workshop director came over, clapped his hands, and said, "Everyone, be quiet. The factory is investigating the matter of Yi Zhonghai. Please don't spread rumors. Everything should be based on official announcements."

After saying that, the workshop director left.

Although the workers did not dare to discuss loudly anymore, they still whispered among themselves, guessing the truth of the matter.

He Yudong was in a state of confusion. He didn't know who to trust or what to do.

Just then, he suddenly saw Qin Huairu walking in from the workshop door, her face pale, her eyes empty, as if she had lost her soul.

When she saw He Yudong, she felt like she had grabbed a life-saving straw. She staggered to him, grabbed his arm, and cried, "Yudong...save me...save me..."

The knock on the door was very light, as if he was afraid of disturbing the sleeping person. He Yudong sat up alertly. Who would come to see him in the middle of the night?

He put on his clothes, walked to the door, and looked out through the crack. In the dim moonlight, he saw a thin figure standing outside the door. It was Qin Huairu.

He Yudong's heart sank. This woman came to him in the middle of the night. It must be up to no good. He opened the door and said impatiently, "Qin Huairu, what do you want?"

Qin Huairu lowered her head, twisted the corner of her clothes, and whispered, "Silly Zhu, I...I have something I want to ask you for help with."

"What's the matter? Tell me quickly!" He Yudong was a little impatient.

Qin Huairu bit her lip, as if she had made a great decision. She raised her head and looked at He Yudong pitifully: "Silly Zhu, Banggeng...Banggeng is sick and has a high fever. I want...I want you to help me get a doctor."

He Yudong sneered: "Where is Jia Zhang? Why doesn't she go?"

Qin Huairu burst into tears: "My mother-in-law...she...she sprained her ankle and can't walk..."

He Yudong knew that this was another trick played by Jia Zhang, who wanted him to be taken advantage of. He wanted to refuse directly, but when he saw Qin Huairu's tearful face, he felt reluctant.

He sighed and said, "Okay, I'll go."

Qin Huairu burst into laughter upon hearing this and quickly thanked him: "Thank you, Shazhu, you are such a good person."

He Yudong ignored her compliment, turned around, picked up his coat, and followed Qin Huairu to the Jia family.

When he arrived at Jia's house, He Yudong saw Banggeng lying on the bed, his face flushed and his breathing rapid. Jia Zhang was sitting beside him, looking anxious.

Seeing He Yudong coming, Jia Zhang immediately put on an expression of gratitude: "Oh, Shazhu, you are really a timely rain. Banggeng has a high fever, and I was worried that no one would go to call a doctor."

He Yudong was too lazy to talk nonsense with her, so he turned around and walked out: "I'll go get the doctor, you stay here and watch."

Jia Zhang said quickly, "Hey, Silly Zhu, wait a minute, do you have any money? It costs money to hire a doctor."

He Yudong stopped and looked back at Jia Zhang coldly: "Jia Zhang, what do you mean? Do you think I have no money?"

Jia Zhang was startled by his sharp eyes and smiled awkwardly: "No...no, I'm just asking..."

He Yudong ignored her, turned around, walked out, and ran quickly towards the clinic.

It was already late at night when the doctor was called in to treat Banggeng. He Yudong was so exhausted that he fell asleep as soon as he got home.

The next morning, when He Yudong got up, he found a bowl of hot egg noodles on the table, and a note next to it, which read: "Shazhu, thank you for your help last night. This is a little gift from me, Qin Huairu."

He Yudong looked at the bowl of noodles with mixed feelings. He felt like a fool, being used by the Jia family again and again.

He poured the noodles into the泔水桶 and swore to himself that he would never interfere in the Jia family's affairs again!

As the days passed, He Yudong continued to work hard to improve his skills. He no longer paid attention to any requests from the Jia family, nor did he have any illusions about Qin Huairu.

He devoted all his time and energy to his work, and soon became a technical backbone of the factory, with his salary increasing.

He bought a bicycle and some new furniture, and his living standard improved greatly.

He began to enjoy his life alone and no longer lived for anyone.

One day after get off work, He Yudong was riding his bicycle past a park and saw a group of children playing. He suddenly remembered that when he was a child, he also played carefree like this until an accident changed the trajectory of his life.

It has been almost a year since he was reborn into this world. He has changed his own destiny and the destiny of those around him.

He looked at those children, and suddenly an inexplicable sadness surged in his heart. He didn't know how long he could stay in this world, nor did he know what his final destination would be.

He stopped his bike, sat on a park bench, and watched the sunset, feeling confused.

At this time, a young woman in a floral dress came over. She had long flowing hair, a sweet smile, and a book in her hand.

She walked over to He Yudong and asked softly, "Excuse me, what time is it now?"

He Yudong raised his head and looked at the girl in front of him, his heart suddenly shocked.

Why does this girl... look so much like the person in my dream?

Seeing that he was in a daze, the girl asked again: "Excuse me, what time is it now?"

He Yudong came back to his senses, looked at his watch, and said, "It's half past five."

The girl smiled and said, "Thank you."

She turned around and prepared to leave, but He Yudong suddenly called her: "Wait!"

The girl looked back in confusion: "What's wrong?"

He Yudong looked at her, with an inexplicable impulse in his heart, and he blurted out: "You...what's your name?"

The girl smiled slightly: "My name is Ran Qiuye."

He Yudong looked at Ran Qiuye in front of him, his heart pounding as if it was about to jump out of his chest. This girl was so similar to the vague figure in his dream! Could this be the one he had been looking for since his rebirth... his destiny?

Ran Qiuye felt a little uncomfortable with his direct gaze, and her cheeks flushed slightly: "Sir, is there anything else?"

He Yudong then realized his mistake and quickly covered it up, "Nothing... nothing, I just... I thought you looked familiar, as if I've seen you somewhere before."

Ran Qiuye smiled: "Really? Maybe, I also think you look familiar."

He Yudong was even more excited when he heard this. Could it be that she also had an impression of him? He mustered up the courage to say, "My name is He Yudong, and I'm a cook at the steel mill."

"He Yudong..." Ran Qiuye whispered his name, and then said: "My name is Ran Qiuye, and I'm an elementary school teacher."

"Primary school teacher..." He Yudong thought, this profession also matched the image in her dream! He felt more and more that this was fate's arrangement!

The two chatted for a while and found that they had a lot of common topics. Ran Qiuye liked reading, and He Yudong liked it too; Ran Qiuye liked quietness, and He Yudong liked it too; Ran Qiuye hated the Jia family... He Yudong even wanted to grind the Jia family to ashes!

As the sun sets, the sunset dyes the sky red, and also dyes Ran Qiuye's face red. He Yudong looks at her and feels like he has returned to his youth, full of energy and passion.

When they parted, He Yudong mustered up the courage to ask, "Teacher Ran, can I see you here tomorrow?"

Ran Qiuye thought for a moment and said, "I may not have time tomorrow, so the day after tomorrow, I'll wait for you here at 5:30 the day after tomorrow."

He Yudong was so excited that he almost jumped up: "Okay! The day after tomorrow at 5:30, I will be there on time!"

Watching Ran Qiuye's receding back, He Yudong felt full of strength. He rode his bicycle back to the courtyard humming a little tune.