Siheyuan: tomb robbing? I am serious about hunting.

Chapter 353: Light Footsteps

Chu Tian's heart sank to the bottom. Settle it privately? Where would he get the money to pay compensation? Go through legal procedures? More than three years? His life would be completely ruined.

He closed his eyes in despair, feeling like a prey trapped in a spider web, at the mercy of others.

Suddenly, the door of the interrogation room was pushed open, and a man in a suit walked in. He was tall and slender, with a handsome face and a playful smile on his face.

"Hey, isn't this Chu Tian? Why are you here?"

Chu Tian opened his eyes and looked at the man in front of him, his heart full of doubts and uneasiness. Who is this person? Why is he here?

The man walked up to the burly policeman and whispered a few words. The burly policeman's face changed, then he stood up respectfully and said to the man, "Mr. Li, why are you here?"

"I came to see my old friend." The man smiled and patted Chu Tian's shoulder. "Long time no see, Chu Tian."

Chu Tian looked at him blankly, and a name suddenly flashed through his mind - Li Haoran.

This man turned out to be Li Haoran! His archenemy in high school and also the pursuer of his former secret crush Lin Wei.

Why is he here? What does he want to do?

An ominous premonition surged into Chu Tian's heart, and he felt that he was about to be caught in a bigger storm...

The autumn wind blew a few yellow poplar leaves, rustling on the shabby window paper of the Jia family, which was very similar to Jia Zhang's mood at the moment - anxious, uneasy, and a little desperate. Since her son Jia Dongxu was paralyzed, this originally sarcastic old lady seemed to have been drained of her energy and spirit. She was frowning all day long, and the wrinkles at the corners of her eyes became deeper and deeper, like knife cuts.

"Oh my god, my life! What a sin!" Jia Zhang sat on the edge of the kang, pounding her already sore leg and complaining. The room was filled with the smell of medicine and urine, which made people want to vomit. Jia Dongxu lay on the bed, skinny, staring at the ceiling with lifeless eyes, like a living dead.

Qin Huairu came in with a bowl of cornmeal porridge so thin that you could see your reflection in it. As soon as she put it on the bedside table, Jia Zhang spoke in a sarcastic tone: "Hey, what is this? Rice soup? This little thing, what good can it do? My son is a patient, he needs to eat well and replenish his nutrition!"

Qin Huairu suppressed her anger and forced a smile: "Mom, there is only this much corn flour left. When Banggeng comes back from school, I will go to the street to ask if I can borrow some food."

"Borrow, borrow, borrow! You only know how to borrow! Why don't you go out and sell it? You can still get some money!" Jia Zhang's sharp voice pierced Qin Huairu's heart like a needle.

Qin Huairu took a deep breath and tried to control her emotions: "Mom, please stop talking, Dongxu is still lying down."

When Jia Dongxu was mentioned, Jia Zhang became even more furious. She pointed at her son lying on the bed and cried, "My son! Why are you so miserable? You married such a loser and can't even have a full meal! If you can stand up, I will sell everything I have to find you a good wife!"

A trace of pain flashed across Jia Dongxu's originally dull eyes. He opened his mouth with difficulty, but only uttered a few unclear syllables.

"Look, look! You've made my son so angry that he can't speak!" Jia Zhang pointed at Qin Huairu's nose and cursed, "You're a jinx! It's all your fault!"

Qin Huairu couldn't hold back any longer and burst into tears: "Mom, I work hard for this family from dawn to dusk. Is it easy for me? I haven't even worn a new piece of clothing. All my money is spent on Dongxu's medicine. I..."

"You still have the nerve to cry! You eat my food, drink my drinks, live in my house, and you still feel wronged?" Jia Zhang jumped off the kang, pointed at Qin Huairu's nose and cursed, "You money-loser! If it weren't for you, would my son be paralyzed? If it weren't for you, would our family have lived such a hard life?"

Qin Huairu covered her face and cried even harder. She felt wronged and heartbroken. She had given everything to this family, but she didn't get a single bit of understanding and respect.

Jia Dongxu lay in bed, listening to the endless quarrels between his mother and wife, his heart filled with despair. He wanted to stand up, protect his wife, and give his mother a warm home, but he could do nothing but watch the family collapse bit by bit.

In the evening, Banggeng came home from school and saw his mother's red and swollen eyes. A worried look appeared on his tender face: "Mom, what's wrong with you? Did grandma bully you again?"

Qin Huairu wiped away her tears and forced a smile: "It's okay, Banggeng, Mom is fine. Are you hungry? Mom will cook for you."

"Mom, I want to eat meat." Banggeng licked his lips and looked at Qin Huairu eagerly.

Qin Huairu's heart ached as if it was stabbed by a needle. She touched Banggeng's head and said helplessly, "Good boy Banggeng, there is no meat at home. Mom will go and see if she can get some meat tomorrow."

"Mom, you're lying! I just saw Shazhu taking a piece of meat in!" Banggeng said, pointing at the yard next door.

Qin Huairu's face changed, she gritted her teeth, turned around and walked to the next room.

Jia Zhang looked at Qin Huairu's back with a cold smile on her face. She knew that Qin Huairu was going to look for Sha Zhu again. This Sha Zhu was interested in Qin Huairu, and Jia Zhang had already seen it. She was thinking about how to use Sha Zhu to get some benefits from him.

It was late at night, and the courtyard was silent. Only the dim lights were on in Jia's house. Jia Zhang lay on the kang, tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep. She thought about her son, the plight of her family, and how to change the status quo. Her heart was filled with anxiety and uneasiness. Suddenly, she heard a slight sound of footsteps coming from the yard...

The footsteps were getting closer and closer. Jia Zhang sat up alertly and squinted her eyes to look out the window. In the dim moonlight, she saw a tall figure sneaking up to her window.

"Who?" Jia Zhang shouted in a low voice.

The figure paused for a moment, and then Sha Zhu's voice came: "It's me, Sha Zhu."

Jia Zhang was secretly delighted and quickly got off the kang and opened the door. Sha Zhu was holding an oil-paper bag in his hand, and a smell of meat wafted in.

"What are you doing here so late?" Jia Zhang asked calmly, but her eyes were fixed on the oil paper bag in Sha Zhu's hand.

Sha Zhu smiled, walked into the house, and put the oil paper bag on the kang table: "I saw that you didn't have much to eat, so I brought you some meat."

Jia Zhang's eyes lit up, she grabbed the oil paper package, opened it and saw a large piece of soy sauce pig's trotter inside. She couldn't wait to tear off a piece, put it in her mouth, and said incoherently: "You are still kind-hearted and know that our family is in trouble."