Siheyuan: Hang Jia Dongxu, smash Banggeng to death!

"Officer, please wait!"

The woman wore a simple blue cloth dress, her hair was tied back, revealing a fair face.

Her eyes and brows held a hint of sorrow and fragility, making her a truly pitiful sight.

Two teenagers followed on either side of him. One was tall and thin with darting, bright eyes; the other was short and stout.

Qin Ming stopped and looked at the mother and her two children.

"Comrade, you are...?"

The white widow walked quickly to him, slightly out of breath, her large, watery eyes looking at him:

"Officer, we just came from Baoding. My husband's name is He Daqing. We received a call from your police station yesterday."

They said my husband's two children with his ex-wife died, so he came over first.

The three of us arrived later.

But when we went to find him at No. 95 Nanluoguxiang, it was just an abandoned area, and the police had cordoned it off. We had no choice but to come here.

After saying that, she raised her hand and gently wiped the corner of her eye with her sleeve.

Her movements and expressions were indescribably weak and pitiful.

Qin Ming looked at her, searching his mind for relevant information.

"He Daqing? Isn't his son named He Yuzhu, nicknamed 'Silly Pillar,' and his daughter named He Yushui?"

"Yes, yes, yes!"

The white widow nodded repeatedly, a glimmer of hope flashing in her eyes. "Officer, where is my husband now? We're looking for him. His son and daughter are both dead, and I'm afraid he might do something rash..."

Suddenly, Xiao Wang spoke up: "Hey lady, isn't He Daqing wearing a blue outfit and a pair of liberation shoes?"

"Yes, yes, yes!"

The white widow nodded again, then turned to Xiao Wang, her eyes filled with urgency, "Officer, have you seen him?"

Xiao Wang glanced at Qin Ming but didn't say anything.

Qin Ming sighed, his voice heavy: "Comrade, please accept my condolences. Comrade He Daqing died not long after getting off the train last night, not far from the train station."

The white widow's smile froze on her face, and she stood there stunned.

"What?"

"He Daqing...is he dead?"

Qin Ming nodded without saying a word.

The white widow's mind went blank.

He Daqing is dead?

That hardworking man, who worked tirelessly like an ox, who handed over his salary to her on time every month.

The man who never dared to spend a penny more than necessary, the man she bossed around and who never dared to utter a word in reply.

died?

What will she do in the future?

Who will support the mother and her two children?

Who will be her indentured servant?

The white widow stood there, stunned, her expression a complex mix of shock, bewilderment, and a barely perceptible hint of panic.

Seeing her in a daze, Qin Ming assumed she was too shocked and gently comforted her:

"Comrade, please accept my condolences. He Daqing's body is in the morgue inside. If you want to see him, you can go in and take a look."

He paused, then pointed to the police station compound:

"We still have a mission, so we'll be leaving now. Once you're inside, someone will take you there."

After saying that, he shook his head and left with everyone.

Xiao Wang followed behind, and even after walking a distance, he turned back to look at the mother and her two children.

"Captain Qin, that woman... she seems a bit strange?"

Qin Ming didn't turn around:

"What's so strange? A man died, is that normal? Let's go, let's get to work."

The footsteps gradually faded into the distance.

At the entrance of the police station, only the widow and her two children remained, standing there dumbfounded, looking at each other in bewilderment.

After a long while, the tall, thin boy, Xiao Hu, spoke first: "Mom, He Daqing just died like that?"

The white widow did not answer.

Little Leopard, the short and chubby boy, also asked, "Mom, He Daqing is dead, what will we do now?"

He sniffed and said, looking aggrieved, "I haven't gotten married yet."

The white widow finally came to her senses, glared at her two sons, and lowered her voice:

"You two little brats, can't you be a little more dignified? What are you saying now?"

Xiao Hu was unconvinced:

"Mom, then tell me what? He Daqing is dead, who will earn our family's money? Who will buy the house? Who will pay for my bride price?"

The little leopard nodded in agreement.

"That's right, that's right. Mom, didn't you say He Daqing was our family's hardworking ox? If the hardworking ox dies, who will plow the land?"

The white widow was speechless when her two sons asked her questions.

Yes, He Daqing is dead, who will cultivate the land?

What will she do if she becomes lonely and isolated in the future?

Should I go sell steamed buns made of white flour?

Or perhaps you're eating a cucumber?

The White Widow took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down.

"Let's go check on the body first. He's dead, but he's still working."

Little Tiger's eyes lit up:

"Work? Mom, you mean a job at a state-run restaurant?"

The white widow nodded:

"Yes. I heard that his son, Shazhu, is also a cook at the steel rolling mill. He has a job there too, and someone has to cover both jobs."

The little leopard scratched its head:

"But Mom, can we handle it?"

The white widow glared at him:

"Are you stupid? Your mother and I are legally married. His job and his son's job will only belong to the three of us."

The little tiger and the little leopard exchanged a glance and smiled at the same time.

"Mom, brilliant!"

The two said in unison.

The white-haired widow waved her hand, looked in the direction of Nanluoguxiang, a hint of resentment flashing in her eyes, and sighed, "It's just a pity about the house..."

Little Tiger asked, "Mom, what should we do?"

The white widow was silent for a few seconds, then gritted her teeth: "Let's go see the body first. We slept in the same bed for years, and then...we'll talk about it later."

She turned and walked towards the police station compound.

He took two steps, then stopped and looked back at his two sons.

"You two, when you go in here, cry. The more pitiful you cry, the better. Understand?"

The little tiger and the little leopard nodded repeatedly.

"I understand, Mom!"

"Mom, don't worry, I cried even more than if my own father had died."

The white widow nodded, turned around, and continued walking forward.

After taking a few steps, she suddenly stopped and muttered something to herself.

Xiao Hu leaned closer:

"Mom, what did you say?"

The white widow shook her head and did not answer.

But in her heart, she had already cursed the person who set fire to the courtyard house at No. 95 hundreds of times.

A son born without an anus!

May they be childless and without descendants!

May he be struck by lightning!

Yi Zhonghai (whose body was whipped): ...

If it weren't for that fire, the house in the courtyard house would have belonged to He Daqing and her son.

Now look what's happened, the house is gone, everything is gone.

The white widow took a deep breath and stepped into the police station courtyard, followed by Xiao Hu and Xiao Bao, who were already beginning to brew tears.

Inside the morgue, the widow and her two children stood before He Daqing's body.

The little tiger and the little leopard cried their hearts out, their faces covered in tears and snot.

The white widow stood to one side, head bowed, shoulders trembling slightly, looking as if she were crying.

But if someone gets closer, they can see the expression on her face.

That's not sadness.

That was a calculated move.

She was wondering what to do next.

He Daqing is dead. I can take over his job, but I'll lose his house.

Will the steel rolling mill accept them?

Should we assign them tasks based on their own preferences?

What will happen to the mother and her three children if they don't acknowledge it?

Go back to Baoding? There's nothing left there.

Stay in Beijing? Where to live? What to eat?

The white widow's brows furrowed more and more as she looked up and glanced at He Daqing's corpse.

The man lay there quietly, his face ashen and his lips tightly closed.

While he was alive, he served her like an ox, raised two sons for her, and even after he died, he left behind a job quota.

"He Daqing, go in peace. I will find a stronger man to replace you."

As for He Daqing's ex-wife's two children, Shazhu and Yushui, what business is it of hers?

If you're dead, you're dead.

The white widow withdrew her gaze and turned to walk out of the morgue.

"I'm gone."

Little Tiger and Little Leopard quickly followed.

"Mom, where are we going?"

"Let's go eat first. Only when we're full will we have the energy to go to the steel mill and ask about the quota for replacing Sha Zhu."

The mother and her two children walked out of the police station.

……