Siheyuan: The Era of Struggle

Chapter 384 He Yuanchao, the troublemaker

"Dad, I want to talk to you about something."

In his memory, He Yuanchao was always decisive and rarely hesitated. Zhang Lide was a little curious and quickly asked:

"What's the matter?"

He Yuanchao's actions were somewhat presumptuous. He glanced at Zhang Lide's expression again, gritted his teeth, and said:

"Dad, before we talk about this, I want to ask you what your plans are for my brother and his wife's future. Do you want them to stay in Yangqu, or take this opportunity to transfer them back to Kyoto?"

Zhang Lide knew that his son-in-law wouldn't bring up this topic for no reason, and he was momentarily at a loss for how to answer.

To be honest, he had many ideas before coming to Yangqu, but he was somewhat disappointed after seeing Zhang Zhao's performance today.

"Ugh!"

After a moment of silence, Zhang Lide sighed heavily, his face full of helplessness, and said:

“I won’t lie to you, Yuanchao. Ever since I found out that Xiaozhao was going to change careers, I’ve come up with several arrangements for him back in Kyoto. But you’ve seen what happened today. I reckon that bastard won’t listen to me at all.”

Thinking about what he had learned about Zhang Zhao today, He Yuanchao nodded in deep agreement, then took out a cigarette and offered one to Zhang Lide.

"Dad, would you agree to let my eldest brother get a divorce?"

These words struck Zhang Lide like a bolt from the blue, leaving his head spinning and nearly causing him to drop the cigarette he had just picked up.

It's not that Zhang Lide lacked composure; it's just that He Yuanchao's words came as quite a surprise.

Besides, the national divorce rate in the 1950s was less than one percent. If people could make do, no one would choose to take this step. Putting aside the difficulty of divorce procedures, the gossip from busybodies could drown a person.

It took Zhang Lide a while to catch his breath before he asked incredulously, "What did you say? You want Xiao Zhao to divorce Lü Wenli?"

"Yes, divorce."

He Yuanchao lit a cigarette for Zhang Lide with a match and said, "But it's not a real divorce, it's just a pretext to make the Lü family pay some money. After all, this whole thing was started by them, we can't let them get away with it."

Seeing He Yuanchao's indignant expression as he spoke, Zhang Lide felt extremely comforted. This was how a family should act—supporting relatives regardless of right or wrong.

With this comparison in mind, and thinking of his good-for-nothing son, a bold idea suddenly popped into Zhang Lide's head.

The son-in-law said he would use divorce as an excuse to force the Lü family to comply. Couldn't they make this a real divorce? Even if they don't divorce, they should at least take this opportunity to bring their son and his family back to Kyoto, away from his troublemaking mother-in-law and father-in-law.

Once Pandora's box is opened, it is very difficult to close it again.

After having this idea, Zhang Lide changed his previous hesitant demeanor, suppressed his excitement, and urged He Yuanchao to quickly tell him his specific thoughts.

He Yuanchao was startled by Zhang Lide's sudden change in attitude.

I wondered if I had made a mistake by trying to outsmart everyone. But since I had already said all that, I couldn't just pretend I hadn't said anything before! So I gritted my teeth and blurted out everything that was on my mind.

The solution was simple: use Lü Wenliang's trouble as an excuse to get the Lü family to reimburse all the expenses incurred. If the Lü family disagreed and shifted the blame onto Zhang Zhao, then Zhang Lide would step in and play the good cop. The Zhang family could take the money, but only on the condition of a divorce. Zhang Lide listened carefully and seriously considered the feasibility.

The son-in-law's method lacked any technical sophistication and was even considered somewhat crude by him.

However, it cannot be denied that this simple and crude method might be extremely effective in dealing with the Lü family. He and Ma Xiufang had been too reserved and accommodating towards the Lü family in the past.

Just as Zhang Lide was thinking about how the Lü family had previously taken advantage of him, He Yuanchao, who had just finished expressing his thoughts, suddenly said something else, which brought Zhang Lide back to his senses.

“Dad, I just thought about it, and there’s still a loophole in this plan. What if my older brother comes out with the money himself? Then our whole show will fall apart.”

Hearing He Yuanchao's concern, Zhang Lide confidently said, "Don't worry, that bastard won't come up with the money."

Seeing his son-in-law's incredulous expression, Zhang Lide added, his face slightly embarrassed:

“I know that bastard. Ever since he got married, he’s listened to Lü Wenli in everything, and he hands over all his salary to her. He’s as clean as his face.”

He Yuanchao had no say in who was in charge of Zhang Zhao's family, and knowing that his brother-in-law couldn't come up with the money, his last worry disappeared.

After thinking it over, just to be on the safe side, He Yuanchao still instructed Zhang Lide: "Regardless of whether my brother has money or not, we should talk to him tomorrow and tell him about using divorce as a pretext, otherwise I'm afraid he'll resent me later."

Everyone says that a good wife should be virtuous. Zhang Lide felt that Lü Liping bore the main responsibility for Zhang Zhao's current predicament. There was still a way to remedy the situation this time, but what if there was a next time? And the time after that? What if he couldn't help her in the future?
In addition, his growing resentment towards the Lü family over the years has further solidified his resolve to have his son truly divorce. He originally didn't want to tell He Yuanchao, but then he thought that it might create a rift with his son-in-law, so he told him his true thoughts.

"Yuanchao, what do you think about letting Xiaozhao and Lü Wenli really get a divorce?"

"A real divorce?"

He Yuanchao's face was full of surprise. He carefully looked Zhang Lide over a few times, and seeing that he was not joking, he thought for a moment before speaking in a serious tone:

"Dad, this is no small matter. You need to think this through carefully. Let alone whether the Lü family will agree, we can't even bring ourselves to ask my eldest brother for help!"

"I've already thought this through. When you see Zhang Zhao and the Lü family tomorrow, don't say anything. I'll explain everything to them."

The reason Zhang Lide was so eager for Zhang Zhao to divorce was not only because the Lü family always used their son to ask for favors, but also because he genuinely looked down on the Lü family's social standing.

They felt that not only did they not help Zhang Zhao's future, but they also dragged their son down with their troubles, becoming stumbling blocks on his path to advancement.

He Yuanchao was feeling rather frustrated. He knew he had started the whole thing, but he hadn't intended for his brother-in-law to actually get a divorce! What would his mother-in-law, Ma Xiufang, and his wife, Zhang Min, think of him if word got out?

The thought of Zhang Zhao getting a divorce and his mother-in-law and wife staring at him without saying a word of complaint gave him a headache. He wished he could slap himself twice to teach himself a lesson.

Seeing He Yuanchao remain silent for a long time with a troubled expression, Zhang Lide guessed what he was thinking.

“Yuanchao, don’t overthink it. I’ve had the idea of ​​getting Zhang Zhao to divorce for a long time. Whether you tell me or not is irrelevant. Okay, let’s leave it at that for now. I’ll go call your mother while the telecommunications bureau is still open.”

After Zhang Lide finished speaking, he got up and walked outside without delay.

He Yuanchao also wanted to talk to Zhang Min, and seeing this, he quickly got up and followed behind Zhang Lide.

(End of this chapter)