Courtyard House: Initial Donation of 50 Million

In the small courtyard in Baoding, just as He Daqing's footsteps disappeared at the alley entrance, a heart-wrenching wail erupted from inside the house.

The widow collapsed to the ground, cradling her two sons, their faces bruised and swollen, weeping uncontrollably, tears and snot streaming down her face. But her tears weren't for the sudden end of eight years of affection, nor for He Daqing's heartless departure; they were for her future—no more easy money, no more hot meals, no more guaranteed protection from trouble. Those carefree days of being waited on hand and foot were truly gone forever. Her two sons wailed along, crying that no one would give them money, no one would clean up their messes, and they could no longer use He Daqing's name to bully others. The three of them wept bitterly, the room filled with despair at the loss of their comfortable life, devoid of any genuine reluctance.

The neighbors who were watching from the gate saw everything clearly; they understood it perfectly.

Who wouldn't envy Widow Bai in the past? He Daqing was a renowned chef from Beijing, his skills were among the best in Baoding. His job as the canteen manager was respectable and lucrative, allowing him to raise his wife and two sons to be plump and healthy. Widow Bai didn't have to do any work all day, spending her days playing mahjong with her favorite older woman. He Daqing would bring back all three meals a day, packed from the canteen. Her two sons were idle and troublesome, and whenever they got into trouble and had to pay for it, He Daqing would grovel and apologize, paying for their messes.

Outsiders secretly despised the mother and her two children's behavior, yet couldn't help but envy their carefree life of enjoying themselves without lifting a finger. Now, seeing He Daqing decisively walk away, completely abandoning the mother and children, everyone thoroughly enjoyed the gossip, and felt a sense of satisfaction—a lazy, ungrateful person didn't deserve such a good life. Many secretly applauded He Daqing's decision, feeling that the messy eight-year history had finally been cleanly settled.

While the courtyard in Baoding was in complete disarray, the green train carrying He Daqing was already heading east towards the capital.

The scenery outside the train window changed from the desolate small town to rows of factories and blue-brick alleys. He Daqing sat upright in the hard seat, feeling a sense of peace he had never felt before. Eight years had passed; he had been on the run for eight years, hiding for eight years, and living in a daze for eight years. Now, he could finally return home with dignity and live a life with his own flesh and blood.

When the train arrived at the station, he carried his simple luggage out of the station, hailed a tricycle, and headed straight for No. 95 Nanluoguxiang.

The tricycle stopped at the alley entrance. He Daqing paid the fare and got off, walking steadily into the familiar alley. As soon as he stepped into the courtyard of number 95, the neighbors, who were basking in the sun and chatting, all looked up at him. They were startled at first, then quickly gathered around. Everyone knew He Daqing had gone to Baoding to handle personal matters, but no one expected him to return so quickly, and even fewer expected that he had completely severed ties with that place and settled back in Beijing.

He Daqing didn't exchange many pleasantries with the crowd. His gaze swept across the people and he immediately spotted Yu Li carrying a washbasin. He raised his hand to stop her and, in front of all the neighbors, took out a wad of money wrapped tightly in oil paper from his pocket and handed it directly to Yu Li.

"Yu Li, this is the 800 yuan I got from selling my workstation in Baoding. Please keep it."

As soon as these words were spoken, the courtyard fell silent for a moment, and everyone's eyes were drawn to the stack of money.

He Daqing spoke solemnly in front of everyone in the hospital, saying loudly, "I, as your father, have been unreliable in the past and have let Zhuzi and Yushui down too much. From now on, I will retire in Beijing, and the family affairs will be handled by you, my daughter-in-law. You can take the money, and you can decide on all household expenses and social interactions. Zhuzi and I will listen to you."

Yu Li, still clutching the laundry basin, froze on the spot, her eyes instantly reddening. She had never expected her father-in-law to relinquish control of the finances after marrying into the He family, much less that he would publicly show her such respect and trust. She hurriedly wiped her hands, momentarily unsure whether to accept the basin, and turned to look at Sha Zhu, who was rushing towards her from behind.

Sha Zhu was also dumbfounded.

He harbored resentment towards He Daqing, resenting him for abandoning him and his sister years ago, and for ignoring them for so many years. But seeing his father return travel-worn, immediately handing over all his savings to his wife, publicly giving Yu Li face, and making it clear that he intended to live a stable life from now on, the resentment that had accumulated in his heart for so many years melted away like ice being warmed by water, and most of it quietly dissipated.

The happiest of all was He Yushui. She ran out of the house, her eyes red-rimmed, but she couldn't suppress the smile on her lips. Her father was back, really back! From now on, she was no longer a child without a father, and she would no longer be gossiped about as an unruly wild girl.

Everyone in the courtyard watched this scene, each with their own thoughts.

Yan Fugui stood in the crowd, his eyes fixed on the eight hundred yuan in Yu Li's hand, his mind racing with calculations—his monthly salary was only a little over thirty yuan, and this eight hundred yuan was equivalent to two or three years' salary! He couldn't help but click his tongue, muttering to himself: He Daqing is too generous, handing over eight hundred yuan so easily, he really doesn't know how to manage money. If it were him, he would definitely save it to earn interest and stretch it into eight pieces.

Standing to the side, Madam Jia Zhang watched with envy, muttering to herself, "Tsk tsk, eight hundred taels of silver... If that were for our Jia family, we could buy so much meat and flour! It's such a bargain for outsiders..."

Qin Huairu, standing beside her, couldn't help but roll her eyes upon hearing this, thinking her mother-in-law was being delusional. He Daqing had no relation to the Jia family, so why should they give them the money from selling their property? Only her mother-in-law would dare to think that way.

Since Jia Dongxu's work injury left him disabled and unable to do fine work with his right arm, the whole family felt like their world had collapsed. Thankfully, Wang Huanbo lent a helping hand, providing study materials and helping him connect with an industrial vocational school in Northeast China, giving Jia Dongxu hope of learning a new skill and building a future. The Jia family's life began to look promising. Although Jia Zhangshi's nature was hard to change, she knew her place and dared not act as unruly and domineering as before, becoming much more restrained.

Yi Zhonghai, standing in the crowd, felt somewhat uneasy watching the reconciliation between the He family father and son. Years ago, in his own plans for his retirement, he had done many things that wronged Sha Zhu. Fortunately, he later adopted his nephew and niece, thus securing his old age, and also made amends to Sha Zhu. Now that He Daqing had returned, although he harbored resentment, he wasn't particularly anxious. He simply stood aside, watching the spectacle with a complex expression.

As lively as it is, there's absolutely no need to worry about where to stay.

To prepare for his marriage to Yu Li, Sha Zhu had completely renovated the original two main rooms and one side room in the courtyard, transforming them into a bright two-story house. It had four bedrooms, a spacious living room, a kitchen with a separate stove, a study, and two bathrooms, each fully equipped with a flush toilet, bathtub, and shower. A solar water heater on the roof provided hot water 24 hours a day. All of this was a wedding gift from Wang Huanbo, making it a truly exceptional and impressive house in the entire Beijing courtyard.

Now, Sha Zhu and Yu Li live in the master bedroom, He Yushui has her own separate room, and the remaining room has been cleaned up for He Daqing to live in. It is very spacious and not crowded at all.

That evening, the aroma of food wafted from the He family's kitchen. Father and son stood side by side by the stove, one cooking and the other assisting. Amidst the rising smoke, the eight years of estrangement and unfamiliarity gradually melted away in the familiar warmth of home cooking.

After eight years of wandering, He Daqing's heart finally found peace.

The He family in courtyard number 95 was finally reunited.