Siheyuan: I just want to live

After He Daqing and the other two entered Shazhu's room and arranged He Daqing to sit at the table, He Yushui immediately went to make the bed for He Daqing. She skillfully unfolded the bed and arranged the bedding to ensure that her father had a comfortable resting environment.

Zhang Jianjun picked up the thermos and poured water for He Daqing. However, since no one had lived in Sha Zhu's house for two or three days, the water in the thermos was not very hot.

What's worse is that the stove in Shazhu's house has gone out, so he can't boil water and can only make do with warm water.

But fortunately, it is summer now, and even if the stove is not lit, the indoor temperature will not be too low, and the warm water is still acceptable.

But if it is winter now, it is really unbearable to stay in the house without a stove. The cold weather will make people feel chilly and may even affect their health.

He Yushui quickly made the bed. She patted the quilt to make sure the bed was flat and comfortable.

Then she slowly walked to the table, looked at He Daqing who was sitting there in deep thought, and spoke softly.

"Dad, the bed is already made, you should go to bed early! Jianjun and I will go back to sleep next to you. If anything happens at night, please call us!"

He Daqing looked up when he heard Yu Shui's words. He glanced at the couple with a complicated look, then slowly said, "Yu Shui, don't be in a hurry to leave. Sit down and talk to me!"

There was a hint of imperceptible fatigue in his voice.

When He Yushui heard her father's words, she was confused. She didn't know why her father suddenly wanted her to stay and chat.

But she nodded obediently and sat down at the table. She looked at He Daqing quietly, waiting for what he would say next.

After He Yushui was done, He Daqing pondered for a moment, then said, "Yushui! I will be back to Baoding in two days, you and Jianjun should live a good life. Remember to write to me if you have anything. If you don't have time to write a letter, just send a telegram."

When He Yushui heard that He Daqing was leaving Sijiucheng for Baoding again, she was instantly filled with panic. Her face turned pale and her lips trembled slightly.

He Daqing left Beijing when she was young, which made her think that her father had abandoned her.

For many years, she has lived in loneliness and loss, full of resentment and dissatisfaction towards her father.

However, the day before yesterday, after the letters and living expenses intercepted by Yi Zhonghai were exposed, she realized that her father had been silently caring about her.

This discovery releases deep emotions within her and she begins to re-evaluate her relationship with her father in the hope of making up for lost time.

But now, they had just been reunited as father and daughter for a few hours, and she had not had time to enjoy the warmth of family love, but she heard the news that He Daqing was leaving the city.

This made her feel extremely painful and helpless, as if all her beautiful expectations were shattered in an instant.

She couldn't help wondering, if her father left again, would he abandon her again? This uncertainty made her fall into deep fear.

So under this fear, He Yushui's tears slid uncontrollably from the corners of her eyes and flowed down her cheeks.

Her voice trembled, with a hint of despair and helplessness: "Dad, are you going to abandon me again?"

Zhang Jianjun felt so distressed when he saw his wife crying, but he could do nothing about it. If someone else had made his wife cry, Zhang Jianjun would have rushed over without hesitation and severely taught that person a lesson to vent his anger on behalf of Yu Shui.

However, the person who made Yu Shui cry at this moment was her father, which made Zhang Jianjun feel very headache and helpless.

Faced with this situation, Zhang Jianjun did not dare to do anything extreme. He could only stand aside silently, watching the rain and crying silently.

Zhang Jianjun sighed softly, knowing that anything he said at this moment would seem pale and powerless. He slowly walked behind Yu Shui, stretched out his arms, and gently hugged her shoulders.

Yu Shui's body was trembling slightly, and she seemed to be still immersed in sorrow. Zhang Jianjun gently patted her back, hoping to give her some warmth and comfort. "Don't be sad, Yu Shui,"

He whispered, "I'm here with you."

He Daqing looked at his daughter in tears, and felt a sharp pain in his heart, as if he was stabbed by thousands of needles. He reached out and gently wiped the tears from his daughter's face, but no matter how hard he tried, the tears continued to flow.

"Yushui, stop crying. Daddy really can't help himself!" He Daqing comforted her with concern.

However, He Yushui's tears showed no sign of stopping, but became more and more violent. He Daqing had no choice but to continue to explain eagerly.

"Yushui, your Aunt Bai's health condition is not optimistic right now. I can't just leave her alone in a foreign place and ignore her!"

"After all, no matter what, she has served me for more than ten years. How can I forget this feeling? Even if there is no other reason, just because of her care for me in the past ten years, I can't abandon her so heartlessly."

He Daqing's tone was full of helplessness and guilt. He knew that what he did was unfair to He Yushui, but he could not go against his own moral bottom line.

When He Yushui heard what He Daqing said, she understood that what He Daqing said made sense, but she still couldn't help but shed tears.

Seeing his daughter like this, He Daqing spoke again with distress, "Yushui, don't be sad. Daddy can't do anything. Your Aunt Bai is in poor health now and needs someone to take care of her."

He Yushui shed tears and said in a choked voice: "Dad, I know you have feelings for Aunt Bai, but I just can't bear to see you go..."

He Daqing quickly assured, "Yushui, Daddy promises you that as soon as your Aunt Bai passes away, I will return to Sijiu City immediately and will never leave again, okay?"

He Yushui looked at He Daqing's determined eyes and knew that he had made up his mind to return to Baoding. Although her heart was filled with reluctance and attachment, she still nodded with tears in her eyes to show her agreement.

Seeing his daughter finally nodded, He Daqing breathed a sigh of relief, gently wiped away the tears from her eyes, and said softly: "Okay, Yushui, be good! Let's not cry anymore. If we cry anymore, we won't be beautiful anymore."

He Yushui couldn't help but burst out laughing when listening to his father's childish words that sounded like he was coaxing a child.

Seeing Yu Shui laughing, He Daqing was obviously relieved. He couldn't stand women's tears to begin with, and now it was his own daughter crying, which made him even more powerless to resist.

Seeing that He Yushui had stopped crying, He Daqing felt relieved and continued, "Yushui! After I return to Baoding, I will send you twenty yuan every month."

When He Yushui heard his father say that he would send her money, she interrupted him before he could finish his words: "Dad, you don't have to send me money. I'm an adult now. Jianjun and I both have jobs. We don't lack money! You should keep the money for yourself!"

Hearing He Yushui's sensible words, He Daqing was deeply moved and felt that his daughter had really grown up.

Although he was relieved, He Daqing still insisted: "Yushui, listen to me first! I have to go back to Baoding now, and I will not be able to help you in the future."

"So, this twenty dollars a month, just think of it as a little money I give to you and your wife for household expenses! Yushui, don't refuse it again!"

There was a hint of pleading in He Daqing's tone. He hoped to make up for his debt to his daughter in this way.

However, He Yushui shook his head firmly and said, "Dad, we really can't take your money!"

She knew that her father might need money after returning to Baoding, and that she and her husband both had jobs so they were not really short of money.

He Daqing saw that his daughter refused so straightforwardly, so he said again, "Yushui, since I gave it to you, you should take it. If you don't accept it, I will be angry!"

After hearing what He Daqing said, Yu Shui wanted to say something, but at this time Zhang Jianjun suddenly said, "Dad, don't be angry, we will accept the money!"

When He Yushui heard what her husband said, she was a little stunned for a moment. Her husband was not a money-grubbing person, so why did he suddenly accept the money from her father today?

Just when she was about to ask, Zhang Jianjun patted He Yushui on the shoulder and signaled her not to speak for the time being.

When He Daqing saw that Zhang Jianjun agreed to take the money, he smiled and said several good words.

Zhang Jianjun saw He Daqing smile, so he said, "Dad, it's getting late now, you should go to bed early! Yu Shui and I will go back to the next door to rest!"

He Daqing saw that his son-in-law had said so, and he also agreed to take the money, so he said, "Okay, then you can go back! You should also go to bed early!"

After hearing what He Daqing said, Zhang Jianjun pulled the rain out of Sha Zhu's house.

After arriving at the yard, Yu Shui asked her husband, "Jianjun, why do you still want to collect our money when you are not short of money?"

Zhang Jianjun did not respond to Yu Shui's words immediately, but said, "It's not convenient to talk here, let's go back to the house and talk!"

Seeing that he was still keeping the question in suspense, Yu Shui did not ask any more questions, but took him to the side room where she used to live.

After entering the ear room, He Yushui asked Zhang Jianjun while making the bed, "Honey, can I tell you now?"

After hearing what He Yushui said, Zhang Jianjun said, "Wife, since dad wants to give it to us, just keep it! We don't have to spend it after we receive it! We can save it all for our dad's retirement."

"Even if my dad can't use it for his retirement in the future, I can keep it for my eldest brother-in-law to use for his retirement in the future!"

When Yu Shui heard what Zhang Jianjun said, she thought it made sense. Her silly brother was now locked up, and when he was released, he would be already very old.

If he doesn’t have some money, how will he live his life from now on?

After figuring it out, He Yushui said to Zhang Jianjun with a smile, "Hubby, you are so smart! Why didn't I think of that?"

Zhang Jianjun raised his head when he heard the praise from Yu Shui, and then said, "That's right! Don't you see whose husband I am?"

Seeing Zhang Jianjun like this, He Yushui rolled her eyes at him and said, "Good boy! The bed is ready, go to sleep! You have to go to work tomorrow!"

When Zhang Jianjun heard what his wife said, he immediately said, "I'm here, let's go to sleep now!"

(I posted this earlier today because tomorrow is the Double Ninth Festival. I will go to the temple to join in the fun and watch others burn the first incense sticks, so I pay my respects to you!)