Siheyuan: Why does your brother beat you up every day, Shazhu?

He quickly squatted down and asked in a soft voice:

"Sister? What's wrong with you? Tell me! It's just a meal. Why are you crying?"

He Yushui sobbed, raised her tearful face, and looked at He Weiguo. Her eyes were filled with despair and a ridiculous fear, and her voice was trembling:

"Brother! Is this...is this the last meal for execution?"

"Are you...are you going to kick me out of the house just because you invited me to this meal?"

"Is it this way?"

He Weiguo froze!

He looked at his sister's serious and frightened eyes, and an indescribable feeling of bitterness and absurdity surged in his heart!

He finally understood!

I finally understood the root cause of this girl's alienation, distrust, and cautious testing from the time we met until now!

It turns out that they are afraid that he will come back and steal the house!

Why would this girl have this idea?

I actually associated this meal with the meal before execution!

He Weiguo looked at his sister, who was only thirteen or fourteen years old, skinny and terrified by life, and felt distressed and at a loss whether to laugh or cry.

He reached out his hand and gently wiped away the tears on her face with his fingertips. He pinched her fleshy little face and said in a gentler voice than ever before:

"Silly girl! What are you thinking about all day?"

He looked at He Yushui's red eyes and said clearly, word by word:

"I'm your elder brother! My dear elder brother! This house belongs to our He family! It's also the place you and Zhuzi have guarded all these years!"

"How could I possibly kick you out?"

He paused, and said in a more serious tone:

"Yushui, listen up! Big brother is back!"

"From now on, I promise that I will make sure you have enough to eat every meal! I will never let you go hungry again! And I will never let anyone bully you!"

He Weiguo's words left He Yushui stunned.

Having enough to eat was still too much of a luxury for her, and she didn't dare to hope for it.

What she fears most is being homeless!

But when she heard her elder brother say that he would not kick her out, she finally felt relieved.

He Yushui stared at He Weiguo blankly, and the fear in her big, red and swollen eyes faded away little by little.

She nodded, and although there were still traces of tears on her face, her tense body visibly relaxed.

Seeing her like this, He Weiguo stopped talking nonsense.

He knew that trust took time to build, and that it would take some events to change this girl's temper.

Chapter 13 State-Owned Hotel

Soon, He Weiguo brought He Yushui to the state-owned restaurant at the intersection.

There are eye-catching slogans on the wall: Serve the people and do not beat customers without reason.

He Yushui followed He Weiguo closely.

She had never been to such a place!

To her, this place is another distant world.

She lowered her head, not daring to look around, and felt like she didn't know where to put her hands and feet.

He Weiguo found an empty seat in the corner and asked He Yushui to sit down.

Looking at her nervous and uneasy look, as if she wanted to curl herself up into a ball, He Weiguo sighed inwardly.

He tried to soften his voice and asked:

"Yushui, what do you want to eat? Don't be polite to me!"

"Meat, eggs, whatever you want! All you can eat! I'm rich!"

He Yushui shook his head like a rattle, the sound so soft that it was almost inaudible:

"Brother... forget it... forget it, it's too expensive, let's... let's go home!"

When she thought about how much money it would cost to eat out, she felt heartbroken. That much money was enough for her to eat steamed buns for a long time.

He Weiguo knew that this girl would not be able to change in a short time.

I am afraid of being poor and hungry.

He said it differently:

"Yushui, look, I haven't eaten for a day, and my stomach is growling with hunger. Just think of it as accompanying me to eat, okay?"

"You sit down, I'll go order the food."

After saying that, without waiting for He Yushui to refuse, he strode towards the ordering window.

There was a small blackboard hanging above the window, with the names of the dishes served today written in chalk:

Stir-fried lamb with green onions, scrambled eggs with tomatoes, stir-fried cabbage, braised pork (limited quantity), tofu soup, noodles with soybean paste, and rice.

A waitress in a white apron and with a blank expression sat behind the window, eating sunflower seeds out of boredom.

He Weiguo took a quick look and spoke directly:

"Comrade, I want a plate of stir-fried lamb with green onions, a plate of scrambled eggs with tomatoes, a plate of tofu soup, and two bowls of noodles with soybean paste."

The waiter didn't even raise his eyelids and scribbled a few words on the list: "Do you have any tickets?"

"No ticket." He Weiguo answered bluntly.

"No tickets?"

The waiter then glanced at him, his tone a bit businesslike and distant:

"If you don't have a ticket, stir-fried lamb with scallions is 3.20 yuan, scrambled eggs with tomatoes is 1.50 yuan, tofu soup is 80 yuan, and two bowls of noodles with soybean paste are 80 yuan. That's 6.43 yuan in total. Give me 6.40 yuan."

These days, it is normal for state-owned restaurants to charge extra fees if there are no tickets.

He Weiguo took out the money without saying a word, counted out six yuan and four cents and handed it over.

This little money is nothing to him.

After ten years of military service, his pockets were fairly full from his retirement pay and the allowances he had saved.

The waiter took the money and tore off a receipt for him:

"Just sit and wait. I'll call you when it's ready. Come and get it yourself."

He Weiguo nodded and returned to his seat with the receipt.

When He Yushui saw him coming back, he quickly whispered:

"Brother, this is really too expensive... Let's go home, I... I'm not hungry!"

She felt so heartbroken when she saw the money her elder brother took out.

He Weiguo sat down opposite her, looking at his sister's expression of worrying about his money, he felt both amused and sad:

"Hey, you little girl! It's not your money, it's my treat, what are you afraid of?"

He Yushui's thoughts were completely different from his.

She was used to living a tight life, spending every penny carefully, and was traumatized by hunger.

She looked at the older brother who had just returned and was wearing an old military uniform, and mustered up her courage:

"Brother, you just got discharged from the army and don't have a job, so you need to be frugal with your money!"

"What if...what if we run out of money later, life will be difficult!"

She was young and inexperienced, and she thought that her brother, who had just returned from the army, must be like those unemployed young people, having to ask for a job everywhere.

In her opinion, it was a stroke of luck that Silly Brother could work in the steel mill.

She said eagerly:

"Brother, this job is so hard!"

"I...I heard from people in the hospital that jobs now require waiting in line, and you also have to...you have to pay for it!"

"Brother, how about...how about you use this money to buy a job?"

In her simple little head, having a job is the greatest security. Only with a job can she get a salary, a fixed amount of food, and survive.

Brother, you shouldn’t waste this money on eating!

He Weiguo was about to explain it to her in detail when the waiter's voice came from the window:

"Stir-fried lamb with green onions, scrambled eggs with tomatoes, tofu soup, and two bowls of noodles with soybean paste—ready! Serve!"

"coming!"

He Weiguo immediately stood up and hurried over to bring the hot meal.

When four dishes and two bowls of noodles were placed on the table, He Yushui's eyes widened instantly!

Her little mouth was slightly open, and she held her breath!

Oily and fragrant stir-fried lamb with green onions!

Scrambled eggs with tomatoes and a thick broth! Tofu soup with chopped green onions and oil!

And those two big bowls of fried noodles with diced meat and rich sauce!

These delicious meals were like a scene from another world to her!

She couldn't remember the last time she had seen such a sumptuous meal.

When I was very young, my father was still at home. Our family was relatively well off and we could even have some meat on the dinner table.

But ever since He Daqing ran away with someone, the family's life has fallen into a slump.