Siheyuan, integrating everything, cultivating the city

Li Xiangqian suddenly realized that he seemed to be losing a lot of hair recently. Every time he washed his hair, he would feel a few fallen hairs between his fingers, and there were often some scattered black hairs on his pillow. Although he had always been reluctant to think too much about it, thinking that it was a natural phenomenon of work pressure or aging, at this moment today, he had some different thoughts in his mind.

He couldn't help but touch his hair, and felt that the roots seemed a little thin, and several places were obviously much thinner than before. He suddenly felt a deep sense of loss, as if the world was beginning to deprive him of everything. Hair, this seemingly insignificant detail, actually deeply touched the most vulnerable part of his heart at this moment.

"Is it because..." He muttered to himself, and suddenly thought of the missing potatoes that night. His constant anxiety might really be quietly devouring his health, and even this most ordinary sign of life began to become abnormal.

He was silent for a moment, but his heart was still restless. The missing potato seemed to have gradually become an unsolvable knot as time went by. That incident, with some unspeakable weight, made him breathless. At this moment, he felt that he was trapped in a situation from which he could not escape. Everything around him became extremely complicated, as if even this familiar courtyard began to become unfamiliar.

Li Xiangqian walked to the mirror and stared at his own reflection. He looked a little haggard, with the kind of fatigue that comes from not having rested for a long time on his face. The dark circles around his eyes became more obvious, and even the slight smile he had originally had almost disappeared. Compared to his previous self, he looked older, as if the burden of life had unconsciously made him lose his former glory.

He looked at his hair and suddenly felt unwilling to give up. He was not the kind of person who gave up easily, and besides, these were just a few sparse strands of hair. Li Xiangqian took a deep breath. He knew that if he didn't face this problem, sooner or later he would completely collapse at some inadvertent moment. He stood there, looking at the familiar yet unfamiliar face in the mirror, and a strong determination gradually rose in his heart.

"One way or another, I have to find out everything," he whispered to himself.

Just as Li Xiangqian was about to leave, a voice outside the door interrupted him. It was Uncle Shen's voice, rough and a little tired: "Xiao Li, open the door."

Li Xiangqian frowned, walked over and opened the door. Uncle Shen stood at the door with an unusual look on his face. His eyes were confused and seemed a little uneasy. "You stayed in the room for so long, what happened? Weren't you... wandering around outside the whole time?"

Li Xiangqian was stunned for a moment, then he understood, and the uneasy feeling in his heart resurfaced. "No, recently...some things are not going well."

Uncle Shen frowned slightly: "You seem a little strange recently, are you feeling unwell?"

Li Xiangqian forced a smile and said, "Nothing, just some small things."

"If you have something to say, just say it. Don't hold it in." Uncle Shen's tone was firm and unyielding. "If you have something to say, you have to say it. Don't keep it to yourself."

Li Xiangqian lowered his head and remained silent for a moment, his eyes unconsciously glancing at the dull pair of shoes in the house. His lips moved slightly, but he still didn't say anything. Outside was Uncle Shen's concerned eyes, and inside was the unspeakable mystery. His mood became heavier, but he still couldn't get rid of the hidden burden.

"Maybe... maybe I'm really thinking too much." Li Xiangqian finally spoke, "Maybe it's because of the pressure at work, or maybe my life hasn't been going smoothly recently." He said it lightly, but he vaguely felt that the depression in his heart was slowly rising to his heart.

Uncle Shen nodded, not seeming to completely believe what Li Xiangqian said. "It's okay. If you really feel uncomfortable, remember to tell me. I'm telling you, Lao Li, everyone has been a little uneasy during this period. Look, today I noticed that the dirt on the path in front of the door was a little messy, as if someone had passed by."

Li Xiangqian's heart tightened slightly, and he instantly recalled the scene when Potato disappeared that night. He raised his head suddenly and looked at Uncle Shen: "You said the path is a bit messy?"

"Yes, I remember it was fine a few days ago, but today there are some new dirt marks on the road." Uncle Shen paused, his tone was a little helpless, "I have also seen a lot of strange things in the past few days. Everyone is busy with their own things and has no time to pay attention to these, but in fact, everyone knows that some people in the courtyard always move around more frequently."

Li Xiangqian's heart almost skipped a beat, and the uneasiness in his heart rose again. He began to feel that he had never really figured out all this. Was the potato that night really just a coincidence? Or was there someone behind it, with some unknown motive?

"Do you..." Li Xiangqian's throat tightened, "Do you also feel that something is wrong with the Siheyuan recently?"

Uncle Shen's eyes moved slightly, as if he was thinking about it, and then he nodded silently. "The Siheyuan has been very stable in the past few years, but something is really wrong during this period. I tell you, you still have to be more careful sometimes."

Li Xiangqian's heart was getting heavier, but he couldn't say the words. Everyone seemed to have a vague feeling, but they were unwilling to speak. It seemed that this courtyard really had some secrets. The closer they got, the more unfathomable it seemed.

He lowered his head and rubbed his hair, feeling a slight pain at the roots. The unnatural thinning made him dizzy. The invisible pressure was slowly eroding everything about him, and his life became increasingly blurred, as if something had quietly unfolded around him.

Li Xiangqian stood there in silence, his emotions as complicated as being shrouded in layers of heavy fog. He took a deep breath, trying to put the sudden uneasiness behind him, but the indescribable sense of oppression still enveloped him, like an invisible big hand, ready to push him deeper into the fog at any time.

He looked up and found that Uncle Shen had turned and walked away, but he was still standing there, quietly feeling the silence around him. Every sound of the wind blowing through the leaves in the yard seemed to carry a discordant whisper, making the anxiety in his heart even more difficult to calm down. Li Xiangqian hesitated for a few seconds, and finally turned around and prepared to go back to the house.

Just as I walked to the door, I suddenly heard a familiar voice coming from outside - "Xiao Li, are you home?"

Li Xiangqian was stunned, his heart skipped a beat. He was very familiar with that voice - it was his father's voice.