Silly Zhu's Moving: The Old Neighbor's Nightmare

He Daqing also felt something was amiss, but he said aloud, "Impossible, wasn't your Aunt Bai introduced by Yi Zhonghai?"

Sha Zhu hurriedly said, "Couldn't Yi Zhonghai find someone else to introduce you, seduce you, and then keep you there?"

If someone sets you up in a honey trap and you don't leave, they'll threaten to send you to the military control commission. Will you get shot?

Look at the rumors circulating about you in the streets these past few days. I haven't even gone back to Nanluoguxiang. Dad, the rumors about you finding a woman have even reached me.

He Daqing was startled when he heard he'd been shot. He looked around to make sure no one else was nearby, then let out a sigh of relief.

Shunxun said, "I'm with your Aunt Bai now. She wants me to go to Baoding with her these past few days. I just want to get away and have some peace and quiet so that my neighbors won't keep nagging me."

Upon hearing He Daqing's words, Sha Zhu knew that this father was beyond saving; he probably just wanted the widow's body.

Then I thought, if I don't make things easy for you, you think you can have a good life? Dream on.

He hurriedly said, "Dad, think about it, if you find a widow, you'll just end up raising her son."

Go and find out who Dorgon is. You know he's the regent.

In the end, he even gave up being emperor for a widow, and after his death, the emperor dug up his body and whipped it.

You're not as capable as them; even Dorgon couldn't handle it.

You're still trying to seduce widows? You might as well go to the countryside and find a respectable family.

Anyway, there are so many people who can't afford to eat and are living in poverty. You're not short of money either; all the money I earn is still in your hands.

"You're just looking for someone in a city; as long as you have money, it's not a big problem."

He Daqing smiled awkwardly upon hearing Sha Zhu's words. "It's probably going to be difficult now," he said, without explaining why.

Seeing this, Wang Yijun said, "You two haven't gotten your marriage certificate yet, have you?" "No," He Daqing said, bowing his head.

Wang Yijun said angrily, "If this gets out, it'll look like you're having an affair, and your reputation will be ruined. Get your documents first, and we'll figure something out later. Don't drag Yushuizhu into this."

"What will you do when you end up with a child born to a slut? You can always find a way to get a divorce then." Hearing his senior brother say this, He Daqing...

"What about Zhu Zi?" Wang Yijun glanced at He Daqing and said, "Aren't you afraid that Zhu Zi will be bullied when he goes back?"

"I have no choice," He Daqing said helplessly. "Yushui just started school, and Zhuzi is working here and can't take care of her. Shazhu is getting old too."

Sha Zhu chimed in from the side, "Dad, if you want to leave, you can, but first, you have to buy me a bicycle and pay me back all the money I earned from my job."

Anyway, it's better to give the money to the widow's son than to give it to me and Yushuihua.

Secondly, you need to transfer the ownership of your house to me. Give me our family's recipes; that's all I ask for.

"These two things are done. You can leave whenever you want."

He Daqing breathed a sigh of relief when he heard Sha Zhu say that.

He quickly looked at his senior brother, Wang Yijun, and said to Sha Zhu, "Zhu Zi, have you thought it through? If it doesn't work out, you can stay at Fengzeyuan. Your sister can transfer to the primary school on Qianmen Street, and your teacher's wife can take care of her."

Sha Zhu looked at his master and said, "Master, let's not trouble your wife. Besides, Master, you've noticed that several chefs from Fengzeyuan haven't been coming lately."

Everyone's asking for wage increases, and business's been really bad. I think factory work is more stable. Boss, if you ever have the chance, you should find a factory job.

It's not tiring at all, and I can leave work early. It's easy and relaxed, and with your skills, I won't earn much less.

When Master Wang heard what Sha Zhu said, he didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "I'm trying to advise you, but you're the one advising me. I've been here for over ten years. Sigh, fine, don't worry about my business."

"Since you've made up your mind, I'll just talk to the manager later. A lot of people have left recently anyway. You and your dad wait here for a bit, I'll go settle your wages and then leave; you don't need to work tonight."

After Master Wang left, Sha Zhu looked at He Daqing and said, "Dad, when are you planning to leave?"

He Daqing glanced at Sha Zhu and said, "After we get back, I'll arrange a job for you. I'll transfer the ownership of the house to you. Once that's all, I'll leave."

He paused for a moment, then continued, "After you start working, you just need to pick me up and drop me off at school every day, even when it rains. I'll send you some living expenses every month." He Daqing didn't say anything more after that.

Sha Zhu said, "Dad, I need to talk to you about something."

Upon hearing this, He Daqing asked, "What is it?"

Sha Zhu said, "I want to move out and don't want to live in the compound anymore. Our house is private property. Before you leave, could you please move our house to a place outside, preferably near the military control commission or the police station?"

Upon hearing this, He Daqing said, "Change houses? What a pipe dream! I've put so much effort into building our house."

Where can I find a place to move to nearby? There are tenants looking for housing everywhere. The decent houses cost two or three thousand, and even the ones with courtyards are beyond our reach.

If you move to another courtyard, where your father has no connection with you, do you think he'll stop bullying you?

At least the houses we live in now are all old neighbors. If you're worried about Yi Zhonghai, I'll talk to Liu Haizhong, Xu Fugui, and Yan Bugui to take care of you and your sister.

Sha Zhu wasn't in a hurry. Even if He Daqing wouldn't let him change, he could find a way himself. Of course, it would be best to change to something outside before leaving. That would save him a lot of trouble.

Sha Zhu thought for a moment and said, "Dad, look, Uncle Liu and Uncle Xu live in the backyard, and Uncle Yan lives in the frontyard."

We live in the central courtyard, in the best house. If you leave, don't they have any thoughts about it?

Yi Zhonghai and Jia Zhangshi both lived in the east and west wing rooms of the central courtyard. Yi Zhonghai also took Jia Zhangshi's son, Jia Dongxu, as his apprentice, and the two families became one family.

A few months ago, Yi Zhonghai helped Jia Dongxu find a wife. The Jia family only had one room; the other houses were already occupied.

Our house is a bit more spacious, Dad. Do you think that after you leave, Jia Zhangshi, with her personality, might come looking for trouble with your son?

Will Yi Zhonghai try to fool your silly son? When you were here, Jia Zhangshi liked to wander into our kitchen.

"Now that you're gone, does that mean you won't bully your son anymore? If I make a scene, do you think Yi Zhonghai will side with your son or his apprentice's family?"

He Daqing was stunned upon hearing this.

Sha Zhu continued, "Isn't the government encouraging people to build their own houses now? You can help me exchange our house for someone else."

Near the military control commission, there are those collapsed houses. Please find a construction team to rebuild them for me.

Build a smaller house, close to the military control commission, and no one will dare to openly bully your son.

He Daqing thought for a moment and said, "No, that's not reliable. Construction teams are all very busy right now, so it's not easy to find one. Besides, I'm leaving soon. If I move to an abandoned house, where will you and your sister stay?"

Sha Zhu got anxious and said, "Dad, if you don't change houses, even if you leave, I'll still ask the military control committee to change houses. Living in our old compound is already troublesome enough."

I'm not living in Fengzeyuan anymore. I asked my master to help me find a martial arts instructor, a coach at the Beijing Martial Arts School, who is my neighbor. I'm currently staying at his house.

He Daqing was taken aback when he heard this, "When did you find a martial arts master?"

“It’s been two months, I haven’t been back for two months. I’ve been practicing martial arts at my master’s house every weekend,” Sha Zhu said.

Then he continued, "Anyway, I don't care, I'm not living in that courtyard anymore, I'm moving to a house outside. You buy me a bicycle."

I ride my bike every day, carrying rainwater, to my master's house to stay. I'll go back home whenever the house is finished.

Sha Zhu, still worried about He Daqing, continued, "At worst, you can just be more diligent and come back a few more times. If you go and raise someone else's child, you won't miss Yushui."

At this point, Sha Zhu wanted to continue speaking.

At this moment, Master Wang came over and handed the money in his hand to Sha Zhu.

He said, "Zhu Zi, this is your surplus salary. Take it." Then he looked at He Daqing and said, "Daqing, have you thought it through? Are you going to abandon your two children?"

He Daqing quickly replied, "No, how could that be? I'll go out for a few months to see how things go before I come back."

Upon hearing this, Master Wang looked incredulous and said, "Are you kidding me?"

Sha Zhu said from the side, "Master, can you do me a favor? I'm going back to take over my dad's shift and will stay home for a couple of days. Could you please tell Master Li for me?"

In a couple of days, I'll be moving with my sister to Mr. Li's house for a few months. I'm planning to move out of our current house.

Upon hearing this, Master Wang said, "Zhu Zi, if it doesn't work out, move to Qianmen Street. I'll help you find a place."

Sha Zhu shook his head and said, "Master, it's a bit far from my workplace. Lou's Steel Rolling Mill is outside Dongzhimen. It's okay for a short time, but I can't handle it for a long time."

I thought to myself, if I move this far away, how will I play with that yard full of animals?

In this day and age, you can't do anything. Going to school? That's ridiculous. Does Sha Zhu even know how to read?

In business, many large factories have been taken over, and public-private partnerships are not far off. This is a trap.

Of course, I was just really bored, so I played around with those beasts to amuse myself. Otherwise, I would have really let Sha Zhu down by transmigrating here.

Seeing Sha Zhu's reaction, Master Sha Zhu didn't try to persuade him any further. After bidding farewell to Master Wang with an apologetic expression, He Daqing left Fengzeyuan with Sha Zhu.