Yu Chuxia glanced at her cousin with some surprise, wondering what he was so nervous about.
She rarely saw He Lixuan act like this in public.
However, she didn't think much of it, assuming that He Lixuan was embarrassed because he had broken his promise to Shiyue.
So she quickly reached out and took the lamp from Shiyue, and explained, "Shiyue, thank you. My cousin has something urgent to tell me, I didn't mean to come so late. Besides, he wasn't planning on coming in."
“I know.” Shiyue nodded.
"Remember to lock the door before you go back inside," she instructed before preparing to leave.
She also noticed that He Lixuan was acting strangely, and felt that it would be inconvenient for the brother and sister to talk while she was there.
But as soon as she turned around, He Lixuan's voice rang out behind her: "Shiyue, have you ever thought about getting a dog?"
Shiyue stopped walking.
She didn't expect He Lixuan to say this to her.
She turned and glanced at the man standing in the night, and said calmly, "I can't afford to support him."
He Lixuan swallowed back the words he was about to say.
He was silent.
Yes, the situation across the country is not good right now.
People are starving, so who can afford to feed dogs?
He immediately realized he had said something pointless.
He Lixuan did not intend to conceal the fact that he had just caught the thief.
Mainly because it was late at night, he was afraid that if he told the two young women, they would be frightened.
He can't stay here.
Moreover, he didn't catch anyone, so he couldn't spread the word.
After all, Shiyue's identity is special. If word gets out that a man climbed over her yard wall in the middle of the night, the harm it would cause her would be immeasurable!
Fortunately, that person definitely won't dare to come again tonight.
He Lixuan pursed his lips and decided to think of another way to solve this problem.
Shiyue paused, and seeing that he had nothing else to say, she turned and left.
Although she rejected He Lixuan's proposal, Shiyue was undeniably tempted.
She didn't feel it when her father was alive, but now, even with Yu Chuxia by her side, she still feels a little lonely living in this courtyard.
If she had a puppy... she wouldn't be lonely, right?
Moreover, thanks to that amazing group-buying group, Shiyue no longer worries much about food supplies.
She felt that as long as she was careful, she could manage to keep a dog.
She silently pondered how to get a dog.
Seeing that Shi Yue had walked away and could no longer hear the two of them talking, Yu Chuxia took another step closer to He Lixuan and asked anxiously, "Third Brother, will everything be alright?"
"It's okay, just mind your own business and don't get involved in anything else."
"But……"
"No buts! I'm going back first, you should go back too, and make sure the doors and windows are locked!"
After finishing speaking, He Lixuan waved to Yu Chuxia and turned to leave.
Yu Chuxia hugged the things tucked into her arms tightly, watching He Lixuan's back as she felt a wave of helplessness wash over her.
When He Lixuan rushed back, their mud-brick house was packed with people.
Brigade leader Sun Yongfu sat on their kang (a heated brick bed), holding a pipe in his hand.
The pipe definitely didn't contain tobacco leaves; it was made from leaves of some kind of tree. When burned, it emitted a strange, pungent smell.
Two men were standing opposite Sun Yongfu.
He Lixuan recognized the older one; he was the owner of the house and also the brigade's animal feeder, Li Yousheng.
He was the one who picked them up when they came to the city.
He Lixuan had never seen the young man with a slight limp before, but he knew that this must be Li Yousheng's only son, Li Wantian.
At this moment, both father and son had their heads hanging low and looked pale, indicating that they had been severely reprimanded by Sun Yongfu.
Next to them, an old woman sat cross-legged on the ground, sobbing. She was covered in dirt, her hair was disheveled, and she was wiping her snot off her face.
He Lixuan glanced at it and quickly looked away.
Then he saw a box of cigarettes that had been crumpled to pieces and a bucket of malted milk powder that was less than half full on the table.
He looked at Jiang Dong and Ye Pu'an standing by the kang (a heated brick bed).
Ye Puan nodded to him without making a sound.
He Lixuan knew that this thing must have been stolen by those children.
When He Lixuan came in, Sun Yongfu glanced at him but didn't ask him what he had been doing.
It goes without saying that he must have sent his valuables to his cousin for safekeeping.
Thinking of this, Sun Yongfu felt a surge of anger again!
He just felt like he was having a run of bad luck!
They were living a good life until Sun Cheng came back and started making a scene about getting a divorce, which made them lose face in the commune!
The divorce proceedings aren't over yet, and now Li Yousheng's family is stealing things from the educated youth again.
If this gets taken to the commune, where will he, as the brigade leader, put his face?
He just quit!
Li Yongfu grew angrier the more he thought about it. He snorted angrily, slammed his pipe against the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), and then looked at Li Yousheng, saying, "Keep an eye on your wife! If you can't, don't blame the brigade for helping you manage her!"
Li Yousheng trembled at these words and quickly nodded, "I know, I know, I'll deal with her in a bit!"
Upon hearing this, Li Yousheng's wife, Wang Erni, burst into tears: "The child was hungry, and he came in by himself. It's not my fault."
As she spoke, she raised her voice: "Our poor Shidan'er lost his mother when he was young. What can I do if the child is hungry?"
Jiang Dong finally couldn't hold back his anger any longer and snapped at her, "A five-year-old can pick locks? How come your kid is so capable! And what is he doing with the cigarette? Is that malted milk powder container something a little kid could open?"
Wang Erni was speechless for a moment, and didn't respond. She just kept repeating with her head down, "My poor Shidan'er, my poor Shidan'er has no mother..."
They acted like they were completely unfazed.
Jiang Dong and Ye Pu'an were so angry that their chests heaved and their faces turned red!
Jiang Dong clenched his fists, clearly about to burst out and rush over to fight!
Sun Yongfu grunted again, but Wang Erni closed her eyes and pretended not to hear him.
Sun Yongfu was so angry that he had no choice but to give up.
Just when Jiang Dong and Ye Pu'an were about to explode with anger, and the situation was about to spiral out of control,
He Lixuan, who hadn't uttered a word since entering the room, suddenly spoke.
He said calmly, "Pay me the original price."
As soon as these words were spoken, the room fell silent, and even Wang Erni's crying stopped.
The group of people all looked at him.
He Lixuan's face was cold and expressionless.
He looked at the things on the table: "Daqianmen cigarettes are two yuan a pack, and you need one cigarette coupon; malted milk powder is two yuan and fifty-six cents a barrel, and you need three sugar coupons or one food coupon."
Regardless of whether it's because the child is hungry or something else, it's only right to compensate for damaged property!
Whoever is responsible for it will bear the responsibility; no one can shirk it.
At this point, ignoring the family staring at him with wide eyes, he turned to Sun Yongfu and asked him for confirmation, "Captain, am I right?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
