Siheyuan: Start with a Truck Driver

Chapter 1098 Sha Zhu is blackmailed

At this time, Jia Zhang was sitting on a small stool at home, squinting her eyes, muttering to herself, and began to figure out how to spend the money she had borrowed from Sha Zhu's family.

"Buy two bottles of painkillers first. My old arms and legs hurt from time to time. Use the rest of the money to buy meat. Hehe, I haven't eaten meat for a long time. It makes me happy just thinking about it." As she spoke, Jia Zhang smacked her lips, as if she had already smelled the aroma of meat.

Just as she was daydreaming, Qin Huairu came back with a frustrated look on her face. When Jia Zhang saw Qin Huairu's expression, she immediately asked impatiently, "How is it? Did you borrow the money?"

Qin Huairu shook her head helplessly and said, "Mom, Shazhu won't lend it to me."

When Jia Zhang heard this, her eyes widened and she started to curse: "You useless thing! You can't even borrow a little money. Isn't that Sha Zhu usually very nice to you? Why doesn't he lend you money now? Didn't you talk to him properly?"

Qin Huairu said aggrievedly: "Mom, I've told you that our family can't make ends meet anymore, but Shazhu won't lend me the money. What can I do?"

Jia Zhang was relentless and continued to scold, "You are useless! Look at you, you can't even control a man. If that stupid Zhu doesn't lend it to you, can't you think of other ways? You just come back like this?"

Qin Huairu was scolded so much that tears welled up in her eyes. She said, "Mom, what do you say I should do? If Shazhu doesn't lend it to me, I can't do anything about it."

Jia Zhang snorted and said, "You won't go and beg him, right? Just tell him that if he doesn't lend us the money, we will starve to death. I don't believe he can be so cruel."

Qin Huairu hesitated and said, "Isn't this bad? It's not easy for Shazhu either."

Jia Zhang got even angrier when she heard this and shouted, "What's wrong with that? He's a bachelor, why would he keep so much money? Our family is in such a difficult situation, he should help us. You should go again and borrow the money."

Bang Geng heard the quarrel between Jia Zhang and Qin Huairu and walked out of the house. He looked at Qin Huairu and said anxiously, "Mom, just go and borrow some money. We haven't eaten meat for a long time. I'm so hungry."

Qin Huairu looked at Banggeng, feeling a little reluctant, but still shook her head and said, "Banggeng, it's not that Mom doesn't want to borrow, it's Shazhu who doesn't want to lend it. Mom can't do anything about it."

Bang Geng was disappointed when he heard this. He thought for a moment and said, "Then go ask him again. Maybe he will lend it to you."

Qin Huairu still said firmly: "No, Mom can't go again. Sha Zhu has already refused once, there is no point in going again."

Seeing that Qin Huairu still didn't go, Banggeng could only look at Jia Zhang helplessly. Seeing this, Jia Zhang immediately yelled: "Look at your mother, she is useless. Banggeng, let's go and borrow together. I don't believe that he, Shazhu, can't give us face."

Banggeng hesitated for a moment and nodded. He thought that if Jia Zhangshi went to borrow money, there might be hope, after all, Jia Zhangshi was usually quite aggressive.

So Bang Geng and Jia Zhang walked towards Sha Zhu's house together. Qin Huairu looked at their backs, her heart full of worry.

Jia Zhang came to Sha Zhu's door in a rage, and without even thinking about knocking, she kicked the door open fiercely. With a loud "clang", the door was kicked to the point of being shaky.

Sha Zhu was startled by the sudden noise. He stood up from his chair and looked at Jia Zhang who had come in with wide eyes. "Jia Zhang, what are you doing? Why are you kicking my door?" Sha Zhu asked loudly.

Jia Zhang put her hands on her hips, looking like a shrew. "Silly Zhu, how dare you ask? You insulted Qin Huairu, you have to give an explanation today."

Sha Zhu was confused, his eyes widened and he said, "When did I insult Qin Huairu? Don't talk nonsense."

Jia Zhang sat on the ground, slapping her thigh and yelling, "Shazhu, don't deny it. You must have taken advantage of Qin Huairu. Otherwise, why didn't you lend us the money? You just feel guilty."

When Sha Zhu heard this, he wanted to cry but had no tears. He widened his eyes and said with a wronged look on his face: "Jia Zhang, please don't slander me. I haven't even touched Qin Huairu's hand, how did I take advantage of her? Aren't you wrongly accusing me?"

Jia Zhang didn't care and continued to make a scene, "I don't care, you just took advantage of Qin Huairu. You have to pay us mental damages, otherwise I will come to make trouble every day."

Sha Zhu was so angry that his face turned red. He pointed at Jia Zhang and said, "You old woman are too unreasonable. I am Sha Zhu and I have never done such a thing. If you talk nonsense again, I will not be polite."

Jia Zhang was not afraid at all. She stiffened her neck and said, "What can I do if you are rude? Do you still want to hit me? If you have the guts, just hit me. Let everyone see what kind of person you are, Shazhu."

Sha Zhu was so angry at Jia Zhang that he was shaking all over, but he couldn't really hit an old woman. He could only stand there helplessly, not knowing how to deal with this unreasonable Jia Zhang.

Bang Geng saw that Sha Zhu and Jia Zhang were in a stalemate, so he quickly came out to play pitiful and smooth things over. He hung his head, tears glistening in his eyes, and said weakly, "Uncle Sha, don't be angry. My grandma is just anxious. Please be kind and lend us twenty yuan. As long as you lend us the money, this matter will be settled, and we will definitely not bother you again in the future."

Sha Zhu was so angry that he could not listen to Bang Geng's words. He pointed at Jia Zhang and Bang Geng with his eyes wide open and said, "You two, get out of here! I won't lend you a penny. You want to extort 20 yuan from me? Dream on! I, Sha Zhu, am not someone you can easily bully."

Seeing that Sha Zhu was determined not to lend them the money, Jia Zhang was furious. Her wrinkled face showed a hint of cruelty. She had no choice but to yell at the top of her voice: "Sha Zhu bullied Qin Huairu! Sha Zhu bullied Qin Huairu!"

Her voice was sharp and piercing, echoing in the air above the courtyard. The residents in the courtyard were originally busy with their own affairs, but when they heard the shout, their curiosity was immediately aroused. Especially when they heard about the romantic news, everyone couldn't help but gossip and came over.

Some residents were talking quietly as they walked: "This silly Zhu usually looks quite honest, why did he bully Qin Huairu?" Another resident responded: "Who knows? Maybe there is something hidden. Let's go and see what's going on."

Soon, the front door of Sha Zhu's house was crowded with people. Everyone looked at Jia Zhang and Sha Zhu's closed door, with various complex expressions on their faces. Some were curious, some were suspicious, and some were gloating. Seeing so many people gathered around, Jia Zhang was secretly proud.

Sha Zhu was furious when he heard Jia Zhang's shouting and the noise outside. He didn't expect Jia Zhang to be so shameless and would do anything to borrow money.

Xu Damao was upset about not being able to deal with Sha Zhu this afternoon. When he heard Jia Zhang's shout, he was delighted and felt that the opportunity had come. He immediately rushed into the crowd excitedly as if he had been injected with chicken blood.

Xu Damao asked Jia Zhang with curiosity: "Hey, what's going on? What happened?"

When Jia Zhang saw Xu Damao, she seemed to have found a savior. She immediately pointed at the door of Sha Zhu's house and loudly accused: "Xu Damao, you are here. Sha Zhu bullied my daughter-in-law Qin Huairu. You have to take care of it for us!" When Xu Damao heard this, his eyes lit up immediately. He was secretly happy in his heart, thinking that he had a chance to punish Sha Zhu. He deliberately pretended to be indignant and said, "What? Sha Zhu dared to bully Qin Huairu? This is unacceptable! Let's go find him."

Xu Damao turned around and shouted to the crowd around him, "Everyone listen, Sha Zhu is going too far. We can't let him bully people like this. Let's go find Sha Zhu and ask him to give an explanation."

The crowd immediately started talking about it. Some people thought Xu Damao had a point and they should ask Sha Zhu for an explanation. Others were skeptical and thought things might not be that simple. But no matter what, everyone was incited by Xu Damao.

Sha Zhu was forced into a corner by Xu Damao and the shouts of the crowd, and had to walk out angrily. As soon as he came out, he saw Xu Damao standing in front of the crowd, looking at him with a smug look on his face.

When Xu Damao saw Sha Zhu, he immediately frowned and scolded him, "Sha Zhu, you are so shameless! You actually bullied the young widow Qin Huairu. Are you still a man?"

When Sha Zhu heard this, he was immediately furious. He shouted, "Xu Damao, stop slandering me! When did I ever bully Qin Huairu? This is all nonsense from Jia Zhang."

Xu Damao didn't believe it. He sneered and said, "Humph, how could Jia Zhang wrongly accuse you for no reason? You must have done something shameful."

Sha Zhu looked at Xu Damao's smug face, his heart filled with anger and helplessness. He knew that he couldn't clear himself even if he jumped into the Yellow River today. But he was unwilling to be wronged by Xu Damao, so he decided to fight Xu Damao to the end. He straightened his chest and said loudly: "Xu Damao, don't think you can wrongly accuse me. I, Sha Zhu, am upright and not afraid of you. If you have the guts, send me to the police station and see what the police say."

Xu Damao was frightened by Sha Zhu's momentum, but he quickly regained his composure. He said, "Okay, since you are not afraid, let's go to the police station and let the police judge the matter."

After saying that, Xu Damao turned to the crowd and said, "Everyone saw it, right? Sha Zhu bullied Qin Huairu and refused to admit it. We can't let him be so arrogant. Let's go and send him to the police station together."

When Sha Zhu saw that Xu Damao was serious, he immediately became timid. He knew that his money was obtained by blackmailing Yi Zhonghai, and if he was sent to the police station and found out, he would be in big trouble.

He quickly pulled Jia Zhang aside, put on a flattering smile, and whispered, "Aunt Jia, can we stop making trouble? I'll give you two dollars and let this matter go."

When Jia Zhang heard this, her eyes widened and she shouted, "Two dollars? Are you giving money to a beggar? No, at least fifteen dollars."

Sha Zhu was anxious and said, "Aunt Jia, this is too much. I don't have that much money. Besides, I didn't bully Qin Huairu, you can't blackmail me like this."

Jia Zhang snorted and said, "You didn't bully Qin Huairu? Then why don't you lend us the money? You just feel guilty. Fifteen dollars, not a cent less."

Sha Zhu said helplessly: "Aunt Jia, I really don't have that much money. Please be flexible and ask for less."

Jia Zhang said firmly: "No, fifteen yuan, not a cent less. If you don't give it to me, I will let Xu Damao send you to the police station."

Sha Zhu gritted his teeth and said, "Aunt Jia, please don't go too far. I can only give you eight dollars at most. This is my limit."

Jia Zhang hesitated for a moment and said, "Eight dollars is eight dollars, bring it here quickly."

Sha Zhu took out eight yuan from his pocket, handed it to Jia Zhang, and said distressedly: "Aunt Jia, please keep your word. Let's just leave it at that."

Jia Zhang grabbed the money and said, "Don't worry, as long as you give me the money, I won't make trouble."

Sha Zhu looked at Jia Zhang's greedy look, and his heart was filled with helplessness and anger. But he had no choice but to admit that he was unlucky.

Xu Damao saw Jia Zhang taking the money and about to leave, so he quickly stopped her and asked with a puzzled look on his face: "Jia Zhang, why don't you sue Sha Zhu? Didn't you just say you were going to send him to the police station?"

Jia Zhang shook off Xu Damao's hand, glared at him, and cursed: "Xu Damao, what are you thinking? I can sue if I want to, and I won't sue if I don't want to. What does it have to do with you? Stop meddling in other people's business."

Xu Damao was stunned by the scolding, and a surge of anger surged in his heart, but he couldn't vent it, so he could only say unwillingly: "Jia Zhang, you can't just let it go. Sha Zhu bullied Qin Huairu, this matter can't be let off so easily."

Jia Zhang snorted and said, "You talk nicely, but you just want to take advantage of the opportunity to punish Sha Zhu. I tell you, no way. I took the money and the matter is over. If you dare to cause trouble again, I will scold you too."

Xu Damao was so angry that his face turned blue, but he was helpless. He looked at Jia Zhang's unreasonable look and knew that it was useless to continue pestering her. He could only glare at Sha Zhu fiercely and turned away.

Jia Zhang looked at Xu Damao's departing back and snorted with pride. She held the money tightly in her hand, thinking about how to spend it.

  ....

Wang Weidong rode his bicycle, and the wheels made rhythmic sounds on the quiet road.

There was a trace of fatigue on his face. After all, he had been busy at the Orchid Automobile Factory all day. It was past ten o'clock in the evening, and the night was deep. Everything around him seemed exceptionally quiet.

As he passed a dark alley, a burst of noise suddenly came into his ears.

His heart tightened and he slowed down. As the bicycle got closer, he was surprised to find that it was Zhou Xiaobai who was bullied by a few hooligans again.

A strong sense of doubt and anger surged in Wang Weidong's heart.

  He really couldn't understand why those little hooligans dared to come today when he had beaten them away last night? Aren't they afraid of being taught a lesson again?

He stopped his bike and stared at the gangsters. Under the dim light, the gangsters looked ferocious. They surrounded Zhou Xiaobai, saying unbearable words and pushing her with their hands. Zhou Xiaobai was terrified, with tears in her eyes, and her body was shaking slightly, like a helpless lamb.

Wang Weidong lit a cigarette and watched the scene calmly.

...