1952: Walking through Nantongluo Alley

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Sha Zhu's series of actions were as fast as lightning, making it impossible to keep up. The whole process was like a flash of lightning, breaking out in an instant, leaving no time for people to react.

Tingting felt her vision blur and was momentarily stunned. When she regained consciousness, she was shocked to find that her mother-in-law, Jia Zhang, who had previously been in the upper hand and was triumphantly scratching Sha Zhu's face, was now pinned down by Sha Zhu. Even more astonishing, Sha Zhu's hands continued to frantically scratch Jia Zhang's well-maintained face.

Tingting was completely stunned, her mind blank. Just a moment ago, it was clearly her mother-in-law, Jia Zhang, who had the upper hand, scratching Sha Zhu's face until it was covered in wounds. How could the roles be completely reversed in just the blink of an eye?

At this moment, lying on the ground, pinned down by Sha Zhu, Jia Zhang desperately twisted her body, trying to break free, but Sha Zhu was so strong that her efforts were futile. Jia Zhang could only struggle and scream at the top of her lungs, "Stop scratching me, Sha Zhu, please stop!" Her voice was filled with fear and despair.

Jia Zhang stared in horror at Sha Zhu, who was so close. His already scarred face now looked even more hideous. For some reason, through Sha Zhu's figure, Jia Zhang seemed to see her own disfigured self. The thought of this sent a chill through her heart.

Jia Zhang was only in her early forties, in the prime of her life. Furthermore, she had just given birth to a grandson. If his face was disfigured by this fight, the consequences would be unimaginable. She couldn't imagine her grandson, Banggeng, growing up and becoming more sensible, coming up to her and saying, in innocent yet incredibly cruel terms, "Grandma, why are you disfigured? You're so ugly! My classmates all laugh at me, saying I have an ugly grandma!" Just thinking about that scene made Jia Zhang's heart ache.

At that moment, Sha Zhu's large hands were seen scratching non-stop, his movements becoming increasingly faster, his face revealing an expression of extreme excitement. Jia Zhang, on the other hand, kept shouting, "Stop scratching! Stop scratching!" while trying to dodge Sha Zhu's attacks. However, her resistance only seemed to arouse Sha Zhu's arousal, driving him even more aroused, as if his entire body were filled with boundless power.

Tingting, standing nearby, couldn't bear to watch the scene unfold. She rushed forward, arms wide open, and tightly embraced Shazhu's broad back. Her small head rested against his back, her voice trembling as she sobbed. "Stop scratching, Shazhu, please stop scratching my mother-in-law," Tingting pleaded, her voice tearful.

Tingting's sudden embrace made Sha Zhu's body stiffen as if under a spell. He could clearly feel the softness and warmth coming from behind him, and a strange feeling surged in his heart, his blood surging like a tide.

Just when Sha Zhu was stunned by Tingting's hug, Jia Zhang saw the opportunity and suddenly reached out and bit Sha Zhu's thick arm. Sha Zhu was caught off guard and cried out in pain, cursing in his heart: "Is this Jia Zhang born in the year of the dog? Why is she biting me?"

Taking advantage of Sha Zhu's distraction, Jia Zhang quickly broke free and slid out from under his crotch like a nimble rabbit. She then ran furiously, covering more than ten meters in one breath, until she felt safe, and then she stopped, panting.

After gaining her footing, Jia Zhang turned around and yelled at Sha Zhu with an angry face: "You fucking Sha Zhu, just wait and see! I'm going home now to take a good look in the mirror. If you find that I'm disfigured, humph! I will never let you go in this life!" After that, she glared at Sha Zhu fiercely, turned around and walked quickly towards home.

At this moment, the originally noisy scene suddenly fell into silence. The expressions of everyone present seemed to be frozen, with their eyes wide open, mouths slightly open, and faces full of disbelief.

And a jaw-dropping scene was unfolding - Tingting, without caring about the many eyes around her, rushed straight towards Shazhu, opened her arms and hugged him tightly, and then started crying like a child.

Although everyone knew that there must be a special reason for this incident, who could have thought that she would act so impulsively and hug Sha Zhu in front of so many people!

This scene was so unexpected and outrageous, it was practically out of line! Remember, Tingting was a widow, and Shazhu was a complete bachelor. They embraced so openly, did they really not care at all about the gossipmongers in the courtyard pointing fingers and gossiping behind their backs?

For a moment, everyone was so shocked that their mouths were wide open. Then they quickly lowered their heads and started whispering to each other.

"Look, look at this, what's going on! A widow and a bachelor are so shameless that they are hugging each other in public." Someone frowned and said with disgust.

"That's right! They really don't take us seriously. They hug each other in broad daylight without any scruples." Another person echoed, his face also full of dissatisfaction and contempt.

However, at this moment, an even more shocking statement was uttered from the crowd: "In my opinion, there's probably something fishy going on behind the scenes about Jia Dongxu's death. Maybe it was that idiot Zhu who was behind it!"

As soon as these words were spoken, they immediately drew rebuttals from the others: "Hey, stop talking nonsense here! Jia Dongxu was killed because of an operational error at work and was caught in the lathe spindle. Sha Zhu was just an ordinary cook in the steel mill kitchen. One of them worked in the front workshop, and the other cooked in the kitchen. They had no connection at all. How could they have had the opportunity to murder Jia Dongxu?"

"No, no, I feel that there is indeed something strange about Jia Dongxu's death. Jia Dongxu had been working in the steel mill for two years, how could he make such a low-level mistake? In my opinion, Jia Dongxu's death is definitely related to Sha Zhu." Someone continued to point out the doubts.

"After two years of work, you can't make mistakes? Where do you put your uncle?"

"Wasn't an old man also caught in a lathe half a year ago? Luckily, he was lucky enough to be seen by other workers, otherwise he would have been killed like Jia Dongxu!"

"You know, the uncle has been working at the steel mill for over ten years, and he's even a level eight fitter!"

After hearing this, the neighbor who had just retorted kept silent.

After listening carefully to this analysis, I found that it is quite correct.

At this moment, Yi Zhonghai, who had been standing silently nearby, finally couldn't contain his discontent. He snorted gloomily, the sound coming out of his nose, thick with displeasure and anger: "What are you talking about? What are you talking about?"

You know, for Yi Zhonghai, the eldest uncle of the courtyard, to have his past exposed in public like this was a great humiliation! After all, he was a highly respected elder in the courtyard. How could he swallow this anger?

With this commanding, cold snort, the people who had just been discussing enthusiastically were instantly as if under a spell, each of them tightly shut their lips, not daring to utter a single sound. It was only then that they suddenly remembered that the real culprit—the master—was right there! Normally, they might have discussed this in private, but now they were brazenly discussing it in front of others. It was truly a bit too much.

Yi Zhonghai glanced coldly at the crowd that had now become completely silent, and cursed in his heart: Humph, what a bunch of useless trash! Then, he turned his gaze to Sha Zhu and Ting Ting who were still hugging each other tightly.

"How long do you two want to keep hugging each other like this?" Yi Zhonghai raised his voice and asked sternly.

Hearing these words, Tingting, still immersed in grief, snapped out of her thoughts. She suddenly realized her actions had been far too intimate, even inappropriate, and her face flushed with shame. She frantically loosened her arms from the tight embrace around Shazhu, then quickly lowered her head, wiping the lingering tears from her face with both hands, as if trying to hide her embarrassment and shyness.

At that moment, Sha Zhu seemed to have just woken up from a dream, finally coming back to his senses from the intoxicating touch. Just now, he had been completely immersed in the softness coming from behind him, unable to extricate himself for a long time. But now, Tingting had gently loosened her arms around his back.

He didn't know why, but when he felt that gentle feeling leave, an indescribable sense of loss welled up in his heart. It was as if a treasure that once belonged to him had been snatched away by someone else, leaving him feeling empty in an instant.

"Hmph!" Sha Zhu couldn't help but curse in his heart, "This damn Yi Zhonghai, what a hateful old guy! Why does he only know how to ruin my good things all day long? It's always like this. When everything is about to be accomplished, he always suddenly appears and interferes!" The more he thought about it, the angrier he became, and Sha Zhu's face became more and more gloomy and ugly.

Blood was slowly trickling down the wound on Sha Zhu's cheek, where Jia Zhang had scratched it. Drop after drop, it dripped onto the ground, forming a dazzling speck of crimson. He instinctively raised his hand, ready to wipe away the agonizing bloodstains with his clothes. However, just as his arm touched his face, a piercing pain like an electric shock spread through his body. The sudden, intense pain made Sha Zhu gasp, his brows furrowed tightly together, as if they could pinch a fly to death.

His eyes, once filled with anger and resentment, now glowed red with pain, like a burning flame. Sha Zhu glared at Ting Ting, snarling through gritted teeth, "Ting Ting, if my face is disfigured, I, Sha Zhu, will never forgive your Jia family!" He ignored the gazes of the people around him and, like a frightened animal, sprinted towards his home.

Along the way, Sha Zhu's heart was filled with fear and worry, and his pace became faster and faster. He was just like Jia Zhang before him, anxious to get home and look in the mirror to see the extent of his injuries and whether he was really disfigured.

Finally, panting, Sha Zhu reached his door. Without a moment's pause, he flung it open and rushed straight into the inner room. Inside sat a tattered mirror, where Yu Shui usually dressed and groomed herself. At that moment, this mirror became the key to Sha Zhu's fate.

Sha Zhu ran all the way over, muttering to himself, "God bless me, please don't let me be disfigured! I hope it's just a few small scars, nothing too serious..." His voice revealed endless anxiety and pleading. If he was really disfigured because of this accident, then he, Sha Zhu, would probably never find a girl willing to marry him in his life.

When Sha Zhu finally reached the mirror after running all the way and panting, he seemed to be hit by a mysterious and powerful force. He was like being cast under a spell and stood still on the spot, motionless.

The face reflected in the mirror was Sha Zhu himself, but this once somewhat handsome face had been completely distorted. Deep scratches crisscrossed his face, like a hideous spider web, each one so deep that it was shocking, and even traces of blood could be seen seeping through them.

The scratches were so deep that even a glance at it sent a chill down Sha Zhu's spine, and he shuddered involuntarily. But the next second, with a sharp snap, the mirror suddenly slipped from Sha Zhu's hand and plummeted to the ground. With a crisp "crash," the mirror hit the ground, instantly shattering into countless tiny fragments that flew everywhere.

Sha Zhu slowly lowered his head in despair, his gaze fixed on the shards of mirror scattered at his feet. Through the shards' reflections, he saw shattered, scratched faces, as if his own life were falling apart at that moment. Instantly, an endless wave of grief surged over him like a tide, completely drowning him.

"It's over... It's over!!! Everything is over!!!" Sha Zhu muttered to himself, his voice filled with despair and trembling.

"Oh my God, I, Shazhu, am completely finished now!" He howled to the sky, and his sorrowful cry resounded throughout the room, echoing for a long time.