Suddenly, Sha Zhu thought of something else and hurriedly crawled under the bed to pull out a box, the lock was already open.
He opened it and saw that all the money inside was gone, not a single cent left.
“This can't be!”
Sha Zhu yelled to the sky. He had been working as an apprentice for almost a year, earning eighteen yuan and five cents a month. He kept three yuan and five cents for himself and gave the remaining fifteen yuan to his father.
But his father had run off with all the money. How would he and his sister survive?
“Sha Zhu, I told you, I wasn’t lying. Your dad really ran away.”
Er Da Ma kept nagging, rubbing salt in the wound.
Sha Zhu clenched his fists, “Er Da Ma, when did my dad run away? What happened?”
He had been sharpening his cleaver for the whole afternoon, and there was a murderous glint in his eyes.
Li Wu Wei thought for a moment and decided to be a good guy again, letting justice prevail. He said, “Sha Zhu, don’t ask so many questions. Your dad went to the train station. The train to Baoding departs at 8:00, and the security check is at 7:30.
The steel factory gets off work at 6:00. You’ll be at the courtyard by 6:20 at the latest. If you run to the train station now, you can still catch your dad in the waiting hall.”
“Li Wu Wei, thank you!”
Sha Zhu didn't even care about his previous condolences. He rushed out of the courtyard.
He ran out like a madman, and he crashed into Jia Dong Xu.
“Ouch!”
How could Jia Dong Xu’s frail body compare to Sha Zhu’s? He was thrown into the air, fell to the ground, and rolled several times. One side of his face instantly swelled up.
“Sha, Sha Zhu…”
When Jia Dong Xu’s vision focused, he saw Sha Zhu had already run far away. He felt so miserable.
“Help! Sha Zhu beat me up!”
Jia Dong Xu howled at the entrance of the courtyard. No one came, so he had to get up himself. He discovered that one of his legs hurt terribly.
When he limped to the middle courtyard, he saw a lot of people, but they didn’t even ask him a single question when they saw him like that.
Even his mother, Jia Zhang Shi, was spitting out words to someone, and didn’t even notice her sick son.
“Jia Dong Xu, did you get beaten up because you were stealing something?”
Li Wu Wei kindly came forward to inquire. They were all from the same courtyard and should be helpful and friendly.
“Li Wu Wei, none of your business. You are the thief, the kind who steals other people's wives.
I was hit by Sha Zhu. He just ran away. It’s not fair. His father has to pay for my nutritional expenses.”
Jia Dong Xu grimaced, his face hurting. He was so unlucky.
He called it nutritional expenses because although medical treatment was free now, nutritional supplements had to be paid for out of pocket.
“Jia Dong Xu, you can only blame yourself for this. Sha Zhu’s father, He Da Qing, has already run away to Baoding with the money.”
Li Wu Wei hadn’t expected Sha Zhu to be so strong, that he could hit Jia Dong Xu like that.
“Oh dear, Dong Xu, who in the world beat you like this?”
Jia Zhang Shi finally noticed her son’s condition. She quickly rushed over and stood in front of him, afraid that he would be hit again.
“Li Wu Wei, you beat my Dong Xu like this. You have to pay, give me your bicycle.”
Jia Zhang Shi had a wicked idea. She coveted the bicycle.
“Are you kidding? Jia Zhang Shi, are you blind? There are so many people in the middle courtyard. Do you think I can hit Jia Dong Xu like this without being discovered?”
Li Wu Wei was speechless. This old woman always imagined dramatic scenarios.
This time even Jia Dong Xu was embarrassed and said, “Mom, it wasn’t Li Wu Wei. It was Sha Zhu. He ran away.”
“Oh, that Sha Zhu, the bastard. He deserves to be abandoned by his father. If I had a son like him, I wouldn't want him either.”
Jia Zhang Shi directly insulted Sha Zhu. After regaining her senses, she wanted to take her son to the hospital, but she didn’t want to miss the drama either.
“Dong Xu, can you walk? Go to the hospital quickly. I didn’t cook dinner yet. Come back later to eat.”
“Mom, how can I go like this? By the way, when did He Da Qing run away?”
Jia Dong Xu was confused. They worked at the same factory, how did Li Wu Wei and Sha Zhu know so much? He didn't know anything.
“Don’t ask so many questions. Go to the hospital quickly. It’s free.”
Jia Zhang Shi urged her son to leave. Right, where did she stop talking to Da Ma? Oh right, about He Da Qing, that scoundrel. He had asked her out to watch a movie, but she didn’t agree…
“Mom…”
Jia Dong Xu wanted to say something, but his mother had already left.
“Jia Dong Xu, go to the hospital quickly. Didn’t you say that you’re going on a blind date tomorrow? Your face is swollen like this. How are you going to see the girl?”
Li Wu Wei kindly reminded him.
“Right, right. I have a blind date tomorrow. Li Wu Wei, don’t be smug. My mom said that tomorrow’s blind date is a hundred times better than your Qin Huai Ru. She is a city resident.”
Jia Dong Xu couldn’t contain his pride, but when he turned around, he couldn’t help but shed tears. He had a crush on Qin Huai Ru.
After a while, He Yu Shui came back. She was eight years old, already in school. She had been tricked to the children's palace by He Da Qing that morning.
“Yu Shui, your dad ran away with a widow.”
Er Da Ma was at it again, striking another blow.
“What, my dad ran away?”
He Yu Shui's little face was stunned.
Li Wu Wei shook his head, thinking that he had done a good deed by turning down Bai Guoa Fu. At least Sha Zhu and He Yu Shui wouldn’t be deprived of fatherly love.
It was just that He Da Qing was too impulsive. He hadn’t even discussed with Bai Guoa Fu, maybe he hadn’t even won her over. He dared to quit his job like a 90s-born employee, ran away with a woman, and now he’s finished.
Not only did he lose his job, but he also cracked his relationship with his children. It wasn't worth it!
…
Speaking of which, He Da Qing was frantically searching the waiting hall at the Qianmen train station. Thankfully, he finally found the Bai Guoa Fu he had been looking for.
“He Hua, why didn’t you come to find me? We agreed to meet outside the courtyard this afternoon.”
He Da Qing breathed a sigh of relief. He had found her. This proved that he wasn’t a spy and that he could go to Baoding.
Otherwise, he would have announced it in the courtyard, and he had already quit his job. If he couldn’t go, wouldn't it be the biggest joke in the courtyard and the factory?
“He Da Qing, what are you doing here? Didn’t I have Xiao Song Jiang bring you a message?”
Bai Guoa Fu was surprised. She looked at He Da Qing and noticed he wasn’t alone, but with several people. She even saw someone from the police station. Had he committed a crime?
“He Hua, what are you talking about? Who is Xiao Song Jiang?”
He Da Qing didn’t understand. Who was Xiao Song Jiang, and where did he come from?