Siheyuan: The Era of Struggle

Chapter 211 The Dowry
Seeing that the real master had been caught, everyone in the room, except Tong Yantao, who was pulled by his hair and pushed to the bed, smiled unconsciously on their faces.

Xia Shuliang pretended to be reserved and said, "Okay, finish the work quickly and have fun when you go back."

"Yes."

After everyone agreed with a smile, they began to get busy.

The house that Tong Yantao lived in was not big, with the two rooms together covering about fifty square meters. After nearly 10 minutes of careful search by four police officers, a large amount of enviable money and belongings were placed in front of Xia Shuliang and He Yuanchao. on the table in front of you.

Not counting the gold bars, jewelry, and various bills, the bundles of money that took up half of the table alone, He Yuanchao estimated, would be about [-] yuan.

In this era when the per capita salary is 50 yuan, many people may have never seen so much money in their lives. Hearing the sound of everyone swallowing, He Yuanchao hurriedly touched Xia Shuliang next to him secretly.

After being poked like this by He Yuanchao, Xia Shuliang, who was thinking about something good, finally came back to his senses. He glanced at the people with flushed faces staring at the things on the table, and said with a smile: "Don't even look at it. Okay, this time we have caught up.

Clean up and bring everyone and everything back to the bureau. Everyone is waiting to receive awards for meritorious service. "

Seeing that his future was about to be secured, Xia Shuliang didn't want to spoil it by being too short-sighted.

Hearing Xia Shuliang's greeting, some of them were reluctant, but when they thought of the highlight moment when the medal was pinned to their chest, they had no choice but to suppress the greed in their hearts and looked away from the table. They really wanted to keep looking at it. , maybe you can’t control your own hands.

After watching a policeman count the money and items on the table and put them away, Xia Shuliang breathed a sigh of relief. After whispering a few words in He Yuanchao's ear, he began to direct everyone to escort Tong Yantao out, who was fully clothed. .

There was such a big commotion at Tong Yantao's house in the middle of the night. It was not that some neighbors came out to check. But when they saw that it was the police in uniform arresting people, everyone in the courtyard put down the sticks and tongs in their hands in unison. Stop and watch.

"Old Xu, what's going on with Tong Yantao's family? Are they recruiting thieves?"

"I don't know. I just came out. I guess there might be a thief hiding in."

"You said it couldn't be Taozi who did something wrong, right?"

"Don't be ridiculous. How long has Xiaotao lived here? You don't know what his character is like. If anyone in our courtyard is in trouble, you see, he has never reached out to help."

"It's Wu Da'er, don't be so silly, or you're really crazy."

Neighbors in the courtyard were busy talking about it when they were surprised to see two police officers pushing the handcuffed Tong Yantao out of the house.

"Hey, stop arguing. Look how the police cuffed the child and escorted him out. Did they arrest the wrong person..."

Before the middle-aged woman could finish her words, a 60-year-old man in the crowd pulled her away, walked up to the police officers, and asked cautiously: "Comrade police officers, Xiaotong is a kind and righteous child. There’s no misunderstanding!”

Before the policeman who was escorting Tong Yantao could say anything, Xia Shuliang, who came out of the house, heard the noise and hurriedly took two steps forward to the uncle and said with a smile: "Old comrade, our policemen came to arrest people only if they have conclusive evidence." , and he was definitely not wronged."

The uncle looked at Xia Shuliang who was speaking. He looked like an official, so he said nothing else. He glanced regretfully at Tong Yantao who was being held in custody, and then sighed and got out of the way.

Seeing this, Xia Shuliang stopped writing. After nodding with the uncle, he led others to escort Tong Yantao out of the courtyard.

The car parked at the intersection had already stopped at the entrance of the courtyard. When he saw Xia Shuliang and others coming out, the driver quickly opened the door of the car and followed his colleagues to get Tong Yantao into the car, and then returned to the driver's seat with a smile. waiting for the next order.

Since there was too much money and materials, and their place was close to the Chengxi Branch, Xia Shuliang and He Yuanchao had a brief discussion and decided to send Tong Yantao back first before going out to arrest other targets.

As Xia Shuliang's Gas Jeep started driving, two cars from the Chengdong Branch roared towards Erlong Road.

Chang'an Street Coal Ministry Family Home.

Zhang Min's mother, Ma Xiufang, saw that her daughter was worried as soon as she came back from get off work. After eating, she couldn't help but pull her to the sofa and asked: "What's wrong with my daughter? Has she encountered any difficulty?" "

It wasn't something to be embarrassed about. When his mother asked, Zhang Min told him about He Yuanchao's arrest mission with the branch that night.

After hearing this, Ma Xiufang was a little worried about her uncle, but she didn't take it too seriously. After all, He Yuanchao had walked out of a hail of bullets, so this little thing probably wouldn't hurt him.

Thinking of this, in order to ease her daughter's mood, Ma Xiufang changed the subject and said, "My daughter saw Yuan Korea today."

"Ah."

"Then Yuan Chao didn't tell you how the preparations for the wedding banquet are going. Is there anything you need our help with?"

Seeing that her daughter was willing to answer, Ma Xiufang hurriedly asked again while the iron was hot.

When her mother asked about this matter, Zhang Min remembered that she had originally planned to go home and talk about it, but after learning that her husband had taken action at night, she stopped worrying and had long forgotten about it. .

"Mom, Yuan Chao has been discussing with me and said that he wants to invite some people close to us and arrange two tables in Fengze Garden."

Originally, Ma Xiufang asked Zhang Min these things just to divert her mind, but she unexpectedly found something unexpected. But when she heard that her uncle was going to hold a banquet in Fengze Garden, she couldn't help but murmur in her heart. .

On the one hand, I felt that my uncle did this because he did not want to wrong his daughter, but on the other hand, he was afraid that this matter would affect his future.

After thinking for a while, Ma Xiufang, who had no idea in her mind, muttered, "If you don't decide on foreign affairs, ask Lide." Then she said with a smile: "Is it a good idea to arrange Fengze Garden, but you still have to ask your father. What kind of negative impact will it have on aiding North Korea?"

Hearing that his mother's thoughts were the same as his own, Zhang Min no longer wanted to worry about his man's arrest mission. He got up and walked to the living room where the phone was placed.

Seeing this, Ma Xiufang took Zhang Min's hand and said doubtfully: "You kid haven't finished speaking yet. What are you doing in such a hurry?"

"Mom, why are you holding me back? I'll call my dad and ask about this."

As he spoke, Zhang Min raised his hand to pull away his mother's hand.Seeing her daughter looking afraid that He Yuanchao would suffer a loss, Ma Xiufang couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"This time I can tell the difference. Your father has never seen you so concerned about big things in the past. Now the aid to Korea has not even happened yet, and you are so anxious. , your father's love for you is in vain."

Zhang Min is now anxious to call his father, and he doesn't care about his mother teasing him. After freeing his hand, he continues to call in a hurry.

Seeing this, Ma Xiufang quickly put away her teasing thoughts and said with a smile: "Okay, you can calm down for a while. It's been half a day since get off work. Where can you call him?"

Besides, Yuan Chao hasn’t gone to book a table yet. It’s too late to wait until your dad comes back in the evening to discuss this matter. What are you anxious about? "

After listening to his mother's words, Zhang Min also reacted, then stopped and sat back on the sofa with a little embarrassment.

Looking at her daughter with a slightly red face, Ma Xiufang's eyes became red when she thought that her daughter, whom she had worked so hard to raise, would become someone else's daughter-in-law in the blink of an eye, and tears flowed out.

Seeing this, Zhang Min hurriedly came to his mother, wiping her tears with his hands, and asked anxiously: "Mom, you were fine just now, but you cried in the blink of an eye. What's wrong with you? Are you feeling uncomfortable somewhere?"

Ma Xiufang pulled her daughter's hand that was wiping her tears from her face to her arms. While patting her, she said with tears in her eyes: "Mom, it's okay. I just watched you grow up and become someone else's daughter-in-law." Son, I am happy and sad at the same time."

Seeing that his mother was sad about this matter, Zhang Min moved closer to her, and then comforted her: "Mom, I'm not married far away, right in front of your eyes. Do you want to see if I'm not here anytime?" I can see it!
Besides, if you don't find it annoying in the future, I will bring the aid to Korea to stay at my parents' house every day, which will save us trouble. "

After listening to her daughter's words, Ma Xiufang couldn't bear to be sad. She knew her daughter's virtues very well. If she didn't talk about it now, she might not be able to bully her uncle in the future.

After a period of contact, Ma Xiufang finally figured out that He Yuanchao cared about his daughter from the bottom of his heart. He would definitely let her do anything in the future, but one thing was another thing, and a couple couldn't live a life with just one person paying for it. , always like this, problems will definitely arise after a long time.

Thinking of this, Ma Xiufang rolled her eyes at Zhang Min and scolded: "The more you talk, the more you talk, the more you talk. When you leave the house, you are someone else's wife. You can't do anything according to your temper." "

After saying this, Ma Xiufang saw that Zhang Min looked unconcerned, so she started to lecture again: "Yuan Chao is also a well-established man. How can you lead him back to his parents' house so blindly?" If you spread the word, you must not make other people laugh!
My daughter, listen to your mother. When you get married, you must not do everything according to your own temper. No matter whether it is a big or small affair, you and the couple should discuss it and deal with it. Don't argue with you just because you are not generous in aiding the DPRK. He kicked his nose and his face, remember? "

Seeing Ba Cha's mother who was still crying just now, she turned around and started to educate herself in a long and vicious way. Zhang Min could only nod helplessly in agreement.

"Mom, don't worry, I will definitely discuss everything with Yuan Chao after we get married."

"Hmph, you'd better keep your word, otherwise you two will get into trouble over this matter. Don't say I don't care about you."

Zhang Min saw his mother's serious expression and was afraid that she would continue to educate him, so he quickly changed the subject and said: "Mom, what kind of ecstasy soup did Yuan Chao give you to drink? Why are you talking to him?"

How could Ma Xiufang not see her daughter's little thoughts, but she had no intention of accommodating her this time.

"Don't talk nonsense to me. Yuanchao didn't give me any ecstasy soup. I'm doing this for your own good. You know how Yuanchao treats you, and you must cherish the feelings others have for you."

Seeing that he couldn't escape, Zhang Min could only put on an obedient look and promised: "Mom, don't worry, I promise that I will live a good life with Yuan Korea in the future."

Ma Xiufang also knew about her daughter's feelings for He Yuanchao. She was also focused on her uncle. The only thing she was worried about was her daughter's temperament. Now that she said this, she felt less worried.

She has already said what she needs to say. Whether she can figure it out is her own business. After all, it’s up to her to decide on her future path, and being a mother can’t be the same for the rest of her life.

Ideological education is done, but I can't let my only daughter lose in terms of material things. I took advantage of today's opportunity to do it together, and I can forget about one of my worries.

"Okay, now that you've said that, Mom won't say much else. Just sit here and wait for me, and I'll get you something."

With that said, Ma Xiufang stood up and walked to her bedroom on the second floor.

It didn't take long, and before Zhang Min could figure out what kind of drama his mother was playing with him, he saw his mother coming back with a dark red wooden box in her hand, smiling.

Ma Xiufang walked to the sofa and as soon as she sat down, she put the wooden box in her hand in front of Zhang Min and said, "Open it and take a look."

After looking at his mysterious mother, and then taking a closer look at the book-sized dark red wooden box in front of him, Zhang Min curiously opened the delicate brass lock on the wooden box.

As soon as the wooden box was opened, Zhang Min saw a neat bundle of bills, five bundles of big black tens, a passbook and something wrapped in red velvet.

"Mom, why are you showing me these things?"

Zhang Min pointed at the contents of the wooden box and looked at his mother with some confusion.

"Silly boy, my daughter is going away, how can she not have a dowry? These are your dowries."

After listening to her mother's words, Zhang Min, whose face was red, was stunned for a moment, and then hurriedly declined: "Mom, this is too much. Yuan Korea and I both earn wages, so we don't need these."

"I said you are stupid, but you are really stupid. Just take what is given to you. Why should you be embarrassed to your mother? Besides, these things are the dowry that your father and I have prepared for you a long time ago. You No, who do you want me to go to?"

Waving her hand to stop her daughter who was about to speak, Ma Xiufang continued to explain: "It's a special time now, and dad and mom don't dare to do anything big for you, otherwise they should buy you some things.

The sewing machines, radios, etc. mentioned in the receipt should be purchased one by one after you and Yuan Chao get married. Don't buy them all at once, lest you make some people jealous.

With this 500 yuan, you two can buy some clothes, shoes, etc., and the 2000 yuan in the passbook will be given to you two to support your family, and will be kept for your daily life in the future.

As for the remaining jade bracelet, you have put it away, it was left to you by your grandma. "

After saying that, Ma Xiufang took out the jade bracelet wrapped in red velvet from the wooden box, put it on Zhang Min, and talked about the origin of the bracelet.

(End of this chapter)