Siheyuan: Shazhu's Brother Shadan

It was a time of turmoil and war - the spring of 1943.

In this chaotic land, people fled everywhere and became displaced.

In a beggar's den, among a pile of dead bodies that no one cared about, a dazed fool slowly woke up.

All he remembered was that his father was named He Daqing and he had a younger brother named He Yuzhu. He vaguely remembered that he and his mother Zhang Guilan went back to their hometown to worship their ancestors, but he knew nothing else.

At this moment, Shadan was neither accompanied by his parents nor his younger brother.

During this period, the hateful Japanese invaders had already launched a frenzied sweep across China...

With flames of war raging and smoke everywhere, the whole of China was in panic.

Innocent civilians became victims of the enemy's guns and artillery, and the scene was filled with grief and tragedy.

As Shadan watched all this in horror, his heart was filled with fear and helplessness.

In the face of this cruel war, he was powerless.

He slowly stood up from the pile of beggars and bravely set out on the journey to find his family.

He vaguely remembered that his relatives were in Peking. Now he didn't know where he was, let alone where Peking was or in which direction.

I could only ask passers-by, but unfortunately they all knew nothing about the questions.

But he believed that as long as he walked north, he would reach home.

In this way, he began to move northward step by step. Every step was full of hardship, but he never stopped.

Because deep in his heart, his longing and concern for his family illuminates the direction forward like a torch.

Finally, after unremitting efforts, Shadan arrived at a small village.

This place seems to have not been affected by the war, and the villagers live a peaceful and tranquil life.

Shadan walked into the village full of hope, asking for news about the direction of Peking City.

Fate always seemed to be unfair to this child, and the god of luck had never come to him.

No matter who he asked, the answers he got made him feel confused and helpless.

After all, in today's rural areas, if you leave your village, you are basically in the dark and don't know anything.

In this way, he learned that this place was called Qinghe Village.

It was early spring, the earth was gradually waking up, and the farmers were busy sowing crops.

However, for Shadan, a little beggar, hunger is always with him.

He was already starving to death, and his eyes involuntarily fell on the lush greenery in a family's front yard, and he couldn't help but drool greedily.

The lush green onions exuded an enticing aroma, as if waving to Shadan.

He looked around and made sure that there was no one around. He threw away the dog-driving stick in his hand without hesitation, quickly climbed over the low wall, grabbed the green onions in front of him, and then ran out of the wall desperately as if he was being chased.

Only when he ran to an empty corner did Shadan dare to stop and catch his breath.

He couldn't wait to take a bite of the green onion in his hand. Suddenly, a strong spicy taste rushed up his throat. The stimulating feeling was simply indescribable.

Even though there seemed to be a fire burning in my stomach, filling my stomach was the most important thing at the moment.

But soon after the food was eaten, Shadan's stomach began to feel sour uncontrollably.

He couldn't suppress the feeling of discomfort and could only open his mouth helplessly, lowering his head and letting the acid flow out from the corners of his mouth, dripping onto the ground to form a small puddle of water.

Just as he was gasping for breath in the corner, his stomach churning, a small figure appeared behind him.

That was Yingzi, an innocent girl whose eyes were as clear as unpolluted spring water.

She blinked her confused eyes, stared at Silly and asked curiously, "Who are you? What are you doing here?"

When he suddenly heard someone talking, Shadan was really scared.

However, when he saw that the other person was just a tiny creature, the nervousness in his heart instantly disappeared.

"Hmph, stop meddling in other people's business! Just go wherever it's cooler and don't disturb me from basking in the sun!" Shadan retorted unhappily.

This is a skill he learned during his days as a beggar: be a little cruel to people so that others will be afraid of you.

As he spoke, he lay on his back on the green grass, a scoundrel-like aura emanating from him.

The little girl with big eyes tilted her head and glanced at Silly.

Especially when she saw his miserable appearance, she seemed to remember something, and after a moment's hesitation, she quickly ran away without a trace.

Shadan raised his head with difficulty and glanced in the direction of the little girl, but did not pay much attention to her. He still held his aching abdomen tightly, squatted down again, and lowered his head, trying to relieve the feeling of discomfort.

However, what was unexpected was that the little girl who had just left suddenly came back.

"Give!"

"What?"

"This is the leftover food from my family this morning. You look very hungry, right? Take it."

It was only then that Shadan slowly raised his head and looked at the little girl in front of him.

She had an innocent face and was wearing patched clothes, revealing the simplicity and kindness unique to that era.

Silly stared at the steamed bread handed over by the little girl, hesitated for a moment and asked: "Are you really going to give it to me?"

The little girl nodded slightly to show her affirmation.

After getting the answer, Shadan took the steamed bun without hesitation, chewed it greedily, and swallowed it all in just a few bites.

"Thank you!" Shadan said to the little girl with gratitude.

In response to Shadan's thanks, the little girl did not respond. She just stood quietly by the side with a sweet smile on her face, watching him eat silently.

After Shadan finished eating the steamed bun, he finally had some food in his stomach. He looked at the little girl with gratitude.

"What's your name?" Shadan asked in a buzzing voice.

The little girl smiled and replied, "My name is Yingzi."

"Yingzi...what a nice name." Silly muttered.

"Where are you from? Why are you so hungry?" Yingzi asked curiously.

Shadan scratched his head and told Yingzi about his experience.

He and his mother were supposed to embark on the journey back home, but fate ruthlessly tore apart this beautiful plan.

On his way home, a sudden disaster struck - the Japanese invaders came to raid and he and his mother were forced to be separated!

My father and younger brother both lived far away in Beijing and were unable to accompany me back home to worship my ancestors.

He was a little foolish as he set out on the journey home with his mother. In short, he went through so much hardship along the way and ended up losing himself. Who could he blame?

All I saw along the way was the people of this country, who were suffering terribly.

Throughout history, no matter the rise and fall, success or failure of a country, it is always the innocent people who suffer the most.

As the saying goes, "When a country prospers, the people suffer; when a country perishes, the people suffer."

Faced with this cruel reality, people can't help but sigh at their bad luck and misfortune.

And those unfortunate civilians have become specks of dust in the long river of history, silently enduring endless suffering and torture.

Now Shadan just wants to go to Beiping to find his relatives.

As for continuing to look for his mother, he couldn't even take care of himself. He could only look for his relatives in Peking first and then find ways to help.

"This is Shandong! How did you, a foreigner who is unfamiliar with the place, come here?" Yingzi asked with a frown.

Silly Egg scratched his head and said a little embarrassedly: "I... I'm lost."

Hearing this, Yingzi's eyes were suddenly filled with sympathy.

She walked up to him and asked with concern, "Where are you going? Maybe I can help you find the direction."

"Are you a local?" he asked in Mandarin with a strong Beijing accent.

"Uh, I don't look like that?" She was amused but still responded in fake anger.

Looking at the honest and simple look of the boy in front of her, she couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"So what are you going to do next?" Yingzi asked kindly.

Shadan raised his head firmly, his eyes revealing a stubborn look: "I will continue to look for my father and brother. They must be waiting for me at home!" It seemed that as long as he believed this, he would be able to find his family.

Yingzi thought for a moment and said, "I can only point you in the direction of Beijing and let you find it yourself. There is nothing else I can do for you."

Shadan looked at Yingzi in surprise and felt warm in his heart.

"Thank you, Yingzi." Shadan said sincerely.

If Shadan was not stupid, he would surely notice that Yingzi's words were a little awkward.