Siheyuan: A Very Happy Era

Chapter 616 Becoming a Live-in Son-in-Law?
Before they knew it, it was the morning of the second day.

Sha Zhu got up early in the morning, put on his newest and neatest clothes, applied some hair oil, and combed his hair into a slicked-back style.

"Shazhu, where are you going?" Yi Zhonghai, who was leaning against the window, couldn't help but rush out of the house when he saw Shazhu acting so arrogantly.

"I...I want to see my son!" Sha Zhu paused for a moment, then answered with a smile.

"..." Upon hearing this expected answer, Yi Zhonghai's lips moved slightly, as if he wanted to say something, but in the end, he said nothing.

After all, Lou Xiao'e gave birth to a son for Sha Zhu. Even if he was unwilling, he had no reason to stop Sha Zhu from seeing his son.

"Hey sir, I've already made an appointment with my son, so I won't talk to you anymore. We can talk later!" Sha Zhu glanced at the watch on his wrist, then said this and hurriedly walked away.

Upon seeing this, Yi Zhonghai's face instantly darkened, and he angrily turned around and went into the house, slamming the door shut with a loud bang.

Immediately afterwards, he plopped down in a chair, staring intently at the teapot and cups on the table, his face ashen, and remained motionless for a long time.

He knew that if he couldn't find a way to tie up Sha Zhu, he would really be left with no one to take care of him for the rest of his life.

It's all Li Guoqiang's fault!

If Li Guoqiang hadn't interfered and captivated Qin Huairu, he wouldn't be in such a passive position now.

However, given Li Guoqiang's current status and position, this retired, widowed old man, no matter how angry he is, can only stand by and watch helplessly, completely unable to do anything about Li Guoqiang.

He couldn't even let Li Guoqiang know what his opinions were.

Otherwise, let alone finding a way to get Sha Zhu to support him in his old age, it's questionable whether he can even live a peaceful life.

Therefore, after thinking it over, he realized that the only person he could use his brain on was Sha Zhu himself.

What can we do?

Just as Yi Zhonghai was racking his brains trying to figure out a way to get Sha Zhu to stay and take care of him in his old age, Sha Zhu also went to the hotel where Lou Xiao'e was temporarily staying, carrying an old wooden box.

Then, as soon as he entered the door, he saw Lou Xiao'e's mother, Lou Tanshi, sitting on the sofa, looking at him with a somewhat ardent gaze.

"You're here! Come in and sit down!" Lou Xiao'e saw Sha Zhu arrive as promised, and that he looked quite neat and tidy. A happy smile immediately appeared on her face, and her voice became much gentler.

"Yes!" Sha Zhu nodded in agreement, then walked somewhat awkwardly to the sofa diagonally opposite Lou Tanshi and plopped down.

"He Yuzhu, if I remember correctly, it's been more than ten years since we last met. You're still as upright and kind as ever." As soon as Lou Tanshi saw Sha Zhu sit down, she immediately smiled and began to flatter him.

"Hey! You flatter me, you flatter me!" Sha Zhu hurriedly waved his hand and said modestly.

"Alright, you two chat. I have something to do, so I'll go out for a bit!" Lou Tan gave Lou Xiao'e a wink, then stood up and made an excuse to give Lou Xiao'e and Sha Zhu some space.

After all, this time they were going to get their Lou family heirloom back from Sha Zhu.

If she were here, it would inevitably make the atmosphere a bit awkward.

The best way is for Lou Xiao'e to talk to Sha Zhu about this, so as not to accidentally touch on Sha Zhu's sensitive nerve.

Soon, Lou Xiao'e sent Lou Tanshi away, and also gave her a reassuring look.

Then she came back and sat down next to Sha Zhu without saying a word, just staring straight at him.

"Um, where's my son? I haven't seen him." Sha Zhu felt a little uncomfortable under Lou Xiao'e's gaze, so he quickly tried to start a conversation.

"He Xiao hasn't woken up yet! If you want to see him, I'll go wake him up right now?" Lou Xiao'e smiled slightly upon hearing this, and then pointed to the inner side bedroom.

"Oh, is that so? Then no need, let him sleep a little longer!" Sha Zhu waved his hand, looking like a loving father.

"Um, did you bring what I told you about yesterday?" Lou Xiao'e asked directly when she saw that the atmosphere was about right.

"Oh! It's here!" Sha Zhu was slightly taken aback, then hurriedly took the old wooden box out of his pocket.

He had kept this old wooden box hidden in the cellar of the courtyard house for a long time, and would take a look at it from time to time. Before he knew it, he had been looking at it for more than ten years.

He was actually a little unaccustomed to taking it back to Lou Xiao'e now.

However, when Lou Xiao'e handed the jade bracelet to him, she had already agreed that he would keep it safe for her.

Given his character, there was nothing to regret.

In comparison, he was more eager to rekindle his relationship with Lou Xiao'e through this incident.

"He Yuzhu, thank you!" Lou Xiao'e took the wooden box, opened it, carefully examined the jade bracelet, and then thanked him with great emotion.

After all, whether from the perspective of value or commemorative significance, this jade bracelet is very important to her and to the Lou family.

Sha Zhu's ability to keep his promise and return the jade bracelet to her undoubtedly moved her deeply.

"Don't be so polite, we're like family!" Upon hearing this, Sha Zhu waved his hand with a smile, feeling a great sense of accomplishment.

"Well! Let me tell you the truth! This time I came back to Beijing, besides getting this jade bracelet back, the main reason I wanted to ask you is if you would be willing to come and live with me in Hong Kong?" Lou Xiao'e held the wooden box, pondered for a moment, and then decided to have an open and honest conversation with Sha Zhu.

Because she could see the possibility of reforming Sha Zhu from his clothes and appearance today.

Since that's the case, she wouldn't mind giving Sha Zhu a chance to marry into the family, letting him accompany her to live in Hong Kong and become a live-in son-in-law for the Lou family.

As for marrying Sha Zhu and staying to live with him in the courtyard, that's absolutely impossible.

Putting aside whether she could tolerate the simple environment of the courtyard house, the mere presence of old enemies like Xu Damao and Liu Haizhong was enough to make her unwilling to live in the courtyard house anymore.

"Go to Hong Kong?" Sha Zhu's eyes widened, and he asked in surprise.

“Yes! Go to Hong Kong, stay with me, and live with your son!” Lou Xiao’e nodded, her face serious.

"This..." Sha Zhu hesitated for a moment, glancing at Lou Xiao'e, unsure how to answer. Although he didn't mind being a live-in son-in-law, and he had promised Lou Xiao'e that he would become a live-in son-in-law for the Lou family when they first became a couple.

However, like many Chinese people, he also has the problem of being reluctant to leave his homeland.

The thought of having to abandon everything in the courtyard house and follow Lou Xiao'e to live in Hong Kong, a place where he knew no one, filled him with an indescribable sense of resistance.

"What? You don't want to?" Lou Xiao'e frowned slightly when she saw Sha Zhu's reaction.

You have to understand that compared to more than ten years ago, she now has nothing that Sha Zhu needs to tolerate, and nothing that makes her unworthy of Sha Zhu.

On the contrary, if Sha Zhu goes to Hong Kong with her, he will not only get a young, beautiful and elegant wife, but also a well-behaved son, and live a life free from worries about food and clothing.

Isn't this good enough?
"Um, I haven't thought about it yet. Could you give me some time to think it over?" Sha Zhu hurriedly tried to stall for time when he saw that Lou Xiao'e seemed a little angry.

"Alright, I'll give you three days to think it over. I hope you can give me a satisfactory answer by then!" Lou Xiao'e didn't make things difficult for Sha Zhu and nodded in agreement.

Coincidentally, she also wanted to take advantage of these few days to find a way to get in touch with Li Guoqiang, and also to let Sha Zhu and He Xiao get to know each other better and cultivate their relationship.

She refused to believe that Sha Zhu would actually be willing to abandon his beautiful wife and his biological son, He Xiao.

Afterwards, she chatted with Sha Zhu about the changes over the years and agreed to bring He Xiao back to the courtyard house another day so that He Yushui, her aunt, could take a good look at her.

Just as the two of them were getting into a lively conversation, Lou Tanshi suddenly opened the door from outside and walked in.

When Sha Zhu saw Lou Tanshi, he suddenly felt a little depressed, and the smile on his face faded.

After all, his current status and position are vastly different from Lou Xiao'e's.

With his experience, he could easily guess that if he really went to Hong Kong with Lou Xiao'e, he would definitely be mistreated.

"Mom, you're back! Look what this is!" Lou Xiao'e knew that Lou Tanshi was anxious when she saw that she had returned so quickly, so she hurriedly got up and handed her the wooden box.

"This..." Lou Tanshi took the wooden box, opened it, and couldn't help but show an excited expression on her face.

"Mom, you have to thank He Yuzhu for this. If it weren't for him helping to keep it back then, we wouldn't be able to find it now!" Lou Xiao'e pointed at Sha Zhu and the bracelet respectively, with a slight look of pride on her face.

Over the past ten years, Lou Tanshi has often complained to her, saying that she shouldn't have so hastily entrusted the Lou family's prized possession to Sha Zhu for safekeeping.

They also said that Sha Zhu might sell the bracelet or give it away at any time.

Now, she can finally prove to Lou Tan that she did not misjudge him back then.

"He Yuzhu, thank you, thank you for keeping this bracelet so well for us!" Upon hearing this, Lou Tanshi immediately thanked Shazhu.

"It's nothing, it was just a small favor, no need for you to say that!" Sha Zhu quickly waved his hand and said modestly.

"How about I treat you to a meal?" Seeing Sha Zhu's state, Lou Tanshi couldn't help but feel ashamed when she thought of the kindness Sha Zhu had shown to her family back then.

After all, given the kindness that Sha Zhu had shown their family, it would be perfectly reasonable for Sha Zhu to take the bracelet for himself.

However, their eagerness to get the bracelet back made them seem somewhat ungrateful.

"No need, please don't be so polite with me. I have to go to work at the steel rolling mill later!" Sha Zhu hurriedly waved his hand and declined.

Even if he didn't have to go to work later, he had no interest in having dinner with Lou Tanshi.

One reason is that he himself is a chef and has a very discerning palate, so he doesn't really like the food prepared by others.

On the other hand, he hadn't decided whether he wanted to become a live-in son-in-law in Hong Kong for the sake of his son and Lou Xiao'e, so he didn't want to get too involved with Lou Tanshi at this time.

"Oh, I see! Then let's reschedule for another day." Lou Tanshi still felt a little guilty and wanted to use this meal to repay the debt she owed to Sha Zhu.

"Alright, then let's do it another day!" Seeing that Lou Tanshi had already put it this way, Sha Zhu could only nod and agree.

Afterwards, he glanced at the room where He Xiao was staying, refused Lou Xiao'e's suggestion to wake He Xiao, and got up to say goodbye and leave.

Immediately afterwards, he worked a day at the steel rolling mill, but he was so distracted that he almost ruined a whole pot of food.

It wasn't until he got off work that evening and returned to the courtyard house, where Yi Zhonghai called him back, that he finally snapped out of his daze.

"Zhu Zi, what are you doing? I've called you several times and you haven't responded?" Yi Zhonghai asked with a sullen face and some displeasure.

"By the way, sir, there's something I can't figure out. Could you give me your advice?" Sha Zhu looked at Yi Zhonghai's face, his eyes lit up slightly, and then he hurriedly pulled Yi Zhonghai into the house.

"What's going on? Why are you so flustered?" Yi Zhonghai's heart tightened when he saw Sha Zhu's appearance, and he asked, pretending to be puzzled.

"Sir, here's what happened."

Soon, Sha Zhu told Lou Xiao'e in detail about how she wanted to take him to live in Hong Kong.

"What? You're going to Hong Kong to become Lou Xiao'e's live-in son-in-law?" Yi Zhonghai was shocked and furious upon hearing this.

He originally thought that Lou Xiao'e at most wanted to get back together with Sha Zhu and then stop Sha Zhu from taking care of him in his old age.

To his surprise, Lou Xiao'e actually wanted to cut off all their resources and take Sha Zhu to Hong Kong.

If Lou Xiao'e really succeeds, then even if he has great abilities, he won't be able to bring Sha Zhu back from Hong Kong!

So vicious!

Lou Xiao'e, that woman, truly lives up to her reputation as the daughter of a big capitalist; her heart is far too vicious.

She's not coming back to find her husband at all!
She's practically come back specifically to take Yi Zhonghai's life!
"no!
"No matter what, I can't let her do this." Yi Zhonghai silently vowed in his heart.

(End of this chapter)