Siheyuan's Silly Pillar has been replaced by someone else

Chapter 2582 A Clear Mind

As the two chatted, they drifted off into unrelated topics, but Xu Damao eventually steered the conversation back on track.

"Let me tell you, before the Eight Great Hutongs were abolished, Yi Zhonghai frequented them."

After the Eight Great Hutongs were abolished, he specifically sought out the women who had been "reformed".

That guy goes there at least four or five times a month.

Sha Zhu was clearly taken aback. It wasn't that he doubted Yi Zhonghai's visit to the Eight Great Hutongs.

If Yi Zhonghai can make a move on his apprentice's wife, it's not surprising that he goes to the Eight Great Hutongs.

What he didn't understand was how Xu Damao knew so much.

"You didn't just make this up, did you?"

"You're making this up. I saw it with my own eyes. I wasn't in school back then; I was just running around playing in the alley."

Seeing Yi Zhonghai acting suspiciously, they secretly followed him.

Yi Zhonghai's old flame, Xiao Hong, was incredibly attractive.

Oh, right, Uncle He also went to see that Xiao Hong. He went almost immediately after Yi Zhonghai.

Less than ten minutes after Uncle He left, Yi Zhonghai arrived.

Sha Zhu didn't know about He Daqing's visit to the Eight Great Hutongs before, but he does now.

He also remembered that several times, when He Daqing came back, He Yushui would hug He Daqing and say that He Daqing smelled especially good.

How could a grown man like He Daqing have a fragrance on him? There's only one possibility: he went to see a woman.

As for whether it was true or not, Sha Zhu couldn't be bothered to investigate. After all, He Daqing had been dead for several years, and there was no point in continuing to pursue it.

"You know quite a lot."

"That's right," Xu Damao said smugly. "I know about Yi Zhonghai's several mistresses."

Do you know when Yi Zhonghai visited most frequently?

"When?" Sha Zhu knew that Xu Damao was just showing off, so he played along.

Xu Damao was indeed very satisfied: "I knew you wouldn't guess. Let me tell you, he was the one who visited the second and third aunts the most frequently when they were pregnant with Liu Guangfu and Yan Jiekuang."

"Why now?" Sha Zhu felt he really couldn't guess.

Just now, he thought that Yi Zhonghai would be visiting more frequently after Qin Huairu married Jia Dongxu.

At that time, Qin Huairu was eighteen years old, and there was no one in the entire alley who was more beautiful than her.

Back then, Sha Zhu dreamed of Qin Huairu.

Every night, the yard is filled with the meows of stray cats.

Xu Damao became even more smug: "I told my dad about this, and do you know what he said?"

My dad said he was jealous because Liu Haizhong and Yan Bugui were going to have a third son, and he wanted to have a child with another woman.

"So he went to those women? Can women from those places get pregnant?" Sha Zhu hadn't expected it to be for this reason.

This guess seemed quite reasonable to Sha Zhu. When he was young, Yi Zhonghai was incredibly desperate to have children.

Even when everyone was starving, Yi Zhonghai still took the time to work the land on an old woman.

Before liberation, his family sold steamed buns, and they often had to get up before dawn to make them.

Once, Sha Zhu heard some noises coming from Yi Zhonghai's house and asked He Daqing about it.

As a result, He Daqing gave him a lecture, and then He Daqing went out for a few minutes.

When He Daqing returned, he was still cursing and swearing, saying that Yi Zhonghai was useless.

He was too young to understand what it meant then, but now he understands it all.

Sha Zhu then told Xu Damao all of this.

After hearing this, Xu Damao stared at him blankly: "You still remember these things? I thought you only remembered your Sister Qin."

Sha Zhu was too embarrassed to argue with Xu Damao, so he just sighed and said, "I don't know what's wrong with me, but lately I keep thinking about things from the past."

Things I couldn't remember clearly before, I remember them all now.

Xu Damao said, "Actually, it's the same for me. What I just told you was something I thought of recently."

Oh, and I also remembered Yi Zhonghai and the White Widow's affair. Before the Mid-Autumn Festival in 51, I saw Yi Zhonghai sneaking around.

At that time, I was on summer vacation and didn't have to go to school, so I went with him.

I saw him meet with the White Widow. The two of them entered the courtyard and began to embrace.

I thought the White Widow was also from the Eight Great Hutongs.

Later, in November, I saw Uncle He also go to see the White Widow.

"Then why didn't you tell me?" Sha Zhu asked.

“I’m telling you, and you have to believe me. Back then, you didn’t even listen to Uncle He, you only listened to the deaf old lady,” Xu Damao said irritably.

He had warned Shazhu, but it was no use. Shazhu started to turn against him around that time.

Sha Zhu was learning to cook at a restaurant at the time and rarely returned to the courtyard house.

Whenever he comes back, the deaf old lady will come to find Sha Zhu and talk to him about this and that.

Sha Zhu thought about the foolish things he had done in the past and felt a little regretful.

At that time, the deaf old lady came to see him with two things on her mind.

One option was to acknowledge him as her grandson, even though He Daqing disagreed; the deaf old lady would still call him her grandson to outsiders.

Another question was about his cooking skills. To save face, he patted his chest and said that his cooking skills were no problem.

Before He Daqing left, the deaf old lady bought some vegetables and asked him to cook a few dishes for her.

He remembered that the deaf old lady was very satisfied after eating those dishes and said a lot of strange things.

Those words were all hints that he should listen to the deaf old lady from now on.

Sha Zhu didn't pay attention at the time, thinking that since he had a biological father, he should definitely listen to him.

But less than a week later, He Daqing went to Baoding.

These things, taken individually, seem fine. But when connected, it becomes clear that it was all the deaf old woman's scheme.

Sha Zhu had something he couldn't understand: "Do you know how my father met the White Widow?"

Xu Damao first shook his head, then his eyes lit up: "I remember once, my dad came home and said he saw Yi Zhonghai and Uncle He going out together."

Not long after, I saw Uncle He go to Widow Bai's place.

"You mean, was it that time when Yi Zhonghai introduced the White Widow to Uncle He?"

Sha Zhu felt that was the case, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it: "He sought out the White Widow to have a child."

Then why did you introduce the White Widow to my father?

At this point, Sha Zhu felt a pang of regret. He hadn't communicated properly with He Daqing when he was alive.

It wasn't that he didn't want to communicate properly with He Daqing; it was that he simply didn't have the opportunity to do so.

He harbored resentment and never fully forgave He Daqing.

At that time, he treated He Daqing worse than he treated Liu Haizhong and Yan Bugui.

This resulted in him having very few opportunities to be alone with He Daqing.

In the few times they met, they would only talk for a few minutes before Yi Zhonghai and a few others would appear.

Either Yi Zhonghai needed to see him, or Yan Bugui wanted to chat with He Daqing.

The father and son really didn't have a chance to have a proper conversation.

Even when He Daqing was hospitalized, he was unable to stay by He Daqing's side properly.

Every time he wanted to be with them, Yi Zhonghai and his group would appear and use all sorts of excuses to stop him.

The most typical reason is that he is the eldest brother of the family in the courtyard, and the courtyard cannot function without him. He is in charge of the work in the courtyard, so the task of taking care of He Daqing is handed over to He Yushui.

Yi Zhonghai and Qin Huairu always earnestly told him that one should not be too selfish.

He didn't know what was wrong with him. Hearing those words made his mind go blank, and he just couldn't help but listen to Yi Zhonghai.

If he could have a proper talk with He Daqing, he would definitely ask him this question. (End of Chapter)