Sha Zhu's Rebirth in the Courtyard: Starting with Hitting Someone in the Head

Chapter 35 Yi Zhonghai Released from Prison

April 1953.

After being released from the labor camp, Yi Zhonghai went to the Military Control Commission first. He was greeted by a young officer who pulled an envelope from a filing cabinet and placed it on the table. "This is the two hundred yuan you received in your divorce settlement. I've been keeping it safe for you. Count it."

Yi Zhonghai picked up the envelope, reached inside and poked around with his fingers. He glanced at the banknotes, didn't count them, and put them in his pocket.

"signature."

He picked up the pen and signed the form.

Emerging from the Military Control Commission, the sun shone brightly. On the street, some people carried vegetables on shoulder poles, others hauled goods on tricycles, and children ran out of the alleyways. Yi Zhonghai stood at the entrance of the Military Control Commission, squinting for a long time.

It's been a year. Have the people in the compound all forgotten about him?

She was still wearing the same clothes from last year, faded and frayed at the cuffs. She'd lost weight, her cheekbones were prominent, and her eyes were sunken. Her crooked face looked even uglier now, and she'd gotten used to her dentures.

When he arrived at Nanluoguxiang, the courtyard gate was ajar. He pushed the gate open and went inside.

Arrive at the front yard.

Yang Ruihua was squatting by the door washing clothes. Hearing the door open, she looked up, saw it was him, and her face immediately fell. She wiped her hands on her apron twice, stood up, and spat at Yi Zhonghai. Spittle landed on his shoes.

"You childless bastard, how dare you come back?" Yang Ruihua's voice was shrill. "It's all your fault for instigating Lao Yan to write the whistleblower letter. You've lost your teaching job, and Jie Cheng has also lost his. You wicked seed."

Yi Zhonghai stood there, his face turned to the side, without saying a word. His dentures moved up and down a couple of times before closing again.

Yang Ruihua picked up the wash basin, splashing water all over the floor. "Just you wait, your retribution is coming."

He turned and went inside, slamming the door shut with a loud bang.

People in the courtyard came out when they heard the commotion. Old Li stood at the entrance to the hall, holding a cigarette, glanced at Yi Zhonghai, took a couple of puffs, and said nothing.

Madam Jia peeked out from the west wing, her eyes darting around, and then sat down with a pair of shoe soles and a needle and thread.

"The childless one has been released," someone in the crowd whispered.

"My wife ran away, I lost my job, and I only have one room left in the house."

"He still has the old deaf man..."

"Shhh."

Yi Zhonghai walked towards the central courtyard. As he passed through the passageway, the voices behind him continued to buzz like flies. He couldn't make out the whole sentence, only catching a few fragments: "extinct lineage," "deaf old man," "bad seed."

He didn't stop walking, but his fists clenched.

Jia Zhangshi was sewing shoe soles at the door. Seeing Yi Zhonghai enter, she smiled broadly.

"Hey, Lao Yi's back."

Yi Zhonghai stopped and turned his head to face her.

Madam Jia wrapped the cotton thread around her finger twice and pulled it tight. "Huai Ru gave birth, a big, healthy boy. Dong Xu has an heir." She turned the shoe over to check the stitches. "When Dong Xu comes back tonight, I'll have him treat you, his master, to drinks. You'll have to give him a big red envelope."

Yi Zhonghai looked at her. Beneath the smile on her chubby face, the beads of her abacus were clicking away. He knew what Jia Zhangshi was after. He nodded.

A smile spread across Jia Zhangshi's face. "Then you tidy up the house first, take a rest, and have a few more drinks tonight."

Yi Zhonghai walked to the east wing. There were two rooms; his room had a dusty door and a rusty lock. He took out his key from his pocket, inserted it, and turned it twice before it opened.

The door opened, and dust rushed out. The room reeked of dust; the blankets on the bed were covered in dust, and the windowpanes were coated with a layer of dust.

He took the envelope out of his pocket, counted the money, pulled out a bill, put it in the drawer, and found a rag to start wiping the dust off.

evening.

Liu Haizhong returned home from get off work and walked to the courtyard. He saw Yi Zhonghai squatting down wiping the door panel and paused for a moment.

"Old Yi."

Yi Zhonghai raised his head.

Liu Haizhong took two steps and stopped, looked at Yi Zhonghai, opened his mouth and then closed it again, lit a cigarette and took two deep drags.

"Old Yi, Xiulan has told you everything about you and the old lady." She rubbed her fingers along the seam of her trousers. "That happened more than ten years ago, let bygones be bygones. Now that you're out, be a good person and start over."

Yi Zhonghai's rag stopped on the door. The muscles in his crooked face twitched, and he clenched his dentures tightly. "Old lady, for over ten years, Xiulan has said it all... what kind of talk is this... throwing dirty water in my face!"

He slowly stood up and looked at Liu Haizhong.

Liu Haizhong took half a step back, turned around and walked away, his pace quickening considerably.

Yi Zhonghai stood at the doorway, watching Liu Haizhong's figure disappear through the doorway in the wall. He clutched a rag in his hand, dirty water dripping from his fingers.

Night fell. The courtyard fell silent. All the windows were dark.

Yi Zhonghai pushed open the door of the east wing and walked towards the backyard. His footsteps were light, close to the wall. The windows of the rear building were lit by the dim yellow light of kerosene lamps. He knocked on the door three times, paused, then knocked twice more.

The door opened a crack. The old deaf man, holding his oil lamp, saw it was him, opened the door, and glanced left and right. A hand reached out, grabbed Yi Zhonghai's sleeve, and pulled him inside. The bolt was then bolted shut.

The old deaf woman sat on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), her jujube wood cane resting beside her legs. A kerosene lamp sat on the kang table, its flickering flame deepening the wrinkles on her face.

Yi Zhonghai sat down opposite her, his face tilted to one side under the light, half bright and half dark.

"It's good that you're out." The old deaf man said in a very low voice.

Yi Zhonghai remained silent.

The old deaf man tapped his cane. "That bitch Tan Xiulan, she threw a basin of dirty water on me before she left. She said that I had been with you for over ten years..." She slapped her leg, "Now it's all over Nanluoguxiang. It's like mud dripped down her pants, she can't explain it anymore."

Yi Zhonghai looked up. The muscles in his crooked face twitched, and his dentures creaked in his mouth. "Grandma, what do you suggest we do?"

"The Three-Anti and Five-Anti campaigns are over." She looked at Yi Zhonghai. "I'll go to the district office tomorrow or the day after to ask. Our old connections can still be used. I'll also find you a job while I'm at it."

Yi Zhonghai nodded gratefully.

The old deaf man continued, "You need to find a wife too. Everyone in the neighborhood knows you can't have children, so forget about city women. Find a widow from the countryside, someone who can work and take care of you." She slowed her speech, "I'm getting old, and I need someone to take care of me too."

Yi Zhonghai tilted his head to face the kerosene lamp, the flame dancing in his pupils, and he felt a sense of anticipation for the future.

The courtyard was separated by an outer wall. The lights were on in the main room. He Yuzhu sat in a grand chair, a cigarette between his fingers.

Old Li told him that Yi Zhonghai was actually taught a lesson by Liu Haizhong in the evening, and it was a pity that he missed this good show.

Yi Juehu, now you know how painful it is to be framed. Don't worry, Master Zhu has plenty of tricks up his sleeve.

He Yuzhu stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray, stood up, and walked around the room twice. He went to the window and looked outside; the moon was hiding behind the clouds and hadn't come out.

The courtyard fell silent.

The entire courtyard was shrouded in darkness, with only the lights in the main hall of the side courtyard still on.

He Yuzhu walked back to the armchair, sat down, took a sip of tea, and lit a cigarette. The smoke slowly dissipated in the lamplight.

The courtyard house is about to get lively again; the show is about to begin.