They Destroyed Our Home

Tong Zhao and Shu Sizhuo spent some peaceful, happy days in the shantytown.

During the day, Shu Sizhuo went back and forth between the clinic and home, clumsily buying groceries and cooking. But he was clever, and his cooking improved with practice. Once, the red-braised potatoes he made were so good that Tong Zhao couldn't stop praising them. He ate three bowls of rice and ended up sprawled on the sofa, too stuffed to move.

Tong Zhao usually washed the dishes, but this time Shu Sizhuo beat him to it.

Watching the small figure in the kitchen, Tong Zhao suddenly felt an ache in his heart.

This child was the young master of the Shu Family, who had been treasured since birth. Before he could come to terms with the cruel reality of losing his parents, he had been sent to the hellish Ode Mountain House.

How much had he suffered at Ode Mountain House to become so overly sensible and cautious? It was heartbreaking.

Whenever Tong Zhao felt sorry for him, he wanted to treat him better, so he went over to the kitchen and suggested, "How about we take an hour to go to the supermarket tomorrow?"

Shu Sizhuo looked pleasantly surprised. Sure enough, there wasn't a child who didn't love going to the supermarket.

But the next second, his smile vanished, and he frowned. "We don't need to. There's nothing we need to buy."

"Yes, there is," Tong Zhao began listing things. "We're almost out of shampoo, and toothpaste too. I had such a hard time squeezing any out this morning. Oh, and I've been meaning to buy a couple of clips. That corner at the top of the curtain is loose and keeps falling down."

Seeing Shu Sizhuo start to waver, Tong Zhao pinched his cheek and coaxed, "Let's go, let's go, okay?"

Shu Sizhuo's face grew even redder, whether from being pinched or something else, and he hurriedly nodded in agreement.

The biggest supermarket in the shantytown occupied just two storefronts. Its selection of food, clothing, and daily necessities couldn't compare to a large supermarket's, but it was enough for Tong Zhao and Shu Sizhuo for the time being.

Tong Zhao chose mint shampoo and originally picked up a tube of mint toothpaste too, only to find Shu Sizhuo staring at a tube of strawberry toothpaste, unable to move on.

Tong Zhao found it surprising that a cool little guy would like strawberry toothpaste. Grinning, he put down the mint toothpaste and picked up the strawberry one instead. When Shu Sizhuo looked over, he smiled and said, "We'll buy whatever our Little Sizhuo likes."

Shu Sizhuo froze for a moment at his words, then pressed his lips together in what looked like a very happy smile.

They picked out some snacks and milk too. Shu Sizhuo was quite uneasy, afraid that a trip to the supermarket would leave Tong Zhao penniless.

Tong Zhao picked up a box of cookies, checked the production date, and tossed it into the shopping basket. "Relax," he said grandly. "I'll get paid before long."

It rained a lot this season, and the rain had fallen, sometimes heavily and sometimes lightly, for a whole week. A bucket sat beneath the leak in their dilapidated rental, the water dripping into it at night just as it had on Shu Sizhuo's first night there.

That night, Shu Sizhuo suddenly dreamed of his parents and how bloodied and mangled they had looked after the accident. In reality, Shu Sizhuo had never been to the scene of the crash. He hadn't even seen their bodies.

But the images in the dream were so real. His mother lay in a pool of blood, her usually beautiful, alluring eyes half-open and lifeless as they stared in his direction. He cried throughout the dream, wanting to throw himself toward her, but someone held him back.

He struggled, telling that person to let him go. He said he wanted his mom and dad; he didn't want to be alone!

The person suddenly hugged him from behind and soothed him. "There, there, Little Sizhuo. You're not alone. I'll stay with you."

Shu Sizhuo woke with a start and realized his face was covered in tears. Tong Zhao had his arms around him, soothing him and patting his back over and over. "I'm here, I'm here. Don't be afraid."

Tong Zhao carried a familiar, fresh scent, and his body was warm. Held in his arms, Shu Sizhuo was reluctant to move away.

After patting him for a while, Tong Zhao lowered his head to look at him. It was too dark to see clearly, so he reached out and wiped the remaining tears from his face. "Did you dream about your mom and dad?"

Shu Sizhuo's voice was hoarse. "Mm."

Tong Zhao sighed inwardly. He was still a child, after all. He drew Shu Sizhuo into his arms again. "Little Sizhuo, your mom and dad have become the wind. They're always around you, watching over you... Don't be sad. You still have me, and you still have your uncle. You're not all alone."

Shu Sizhuo buried himself in Tong Zhao's arms and gave a muffled hum.

In truth, Shu Sizhuo didn't understand why Tang Xu had so much faith in his uncle, whom he had never met. If his uncle considered him family, he wouldn't have gone all these years without visiting him.

But Tang Xu was poor. If he wanted to help him return to the Shu Family, he could only pin his hopes on that uncle, who was said to be very powerful.

He didn't want to throw cold water on Tang Xu's hopes, so he went along with everything Tang Xu said!

As long as Tang Xu stayed with him in the end, that was enough, whether they returned to the Shu Family or stayed in this shabby little house.

At noon on Tong Zhao's payday, he took Shu Sizhuo to the best restaurant in the shantytown for dry pot.

Afterward, they each took a bottle of soda and walked out of the restaurant, sipping as they went.

When they reached the foot of their apartment building, they saw that the big yellow dog wasn't as calm as usual. Instead, he paced anxiously and barked twice at them.

Tong Zhao chuckled. "You greedy little dog, did you know we went out for a feast? Don't worry, we brought you a ham sausage."

Beside him, Shu Sizhuo pulled out a ham sausage, tore it open, and tossed it to the big yellow dog.

For once, the big yellow dog ignored the sausage. Instead, he seized Shu Sizhuo's sleeve in his teeth and whimpered as he tugged him away.

"What's wrong?" Both of them were a little bewildered, unsure what Big Yellow meant.

Just then, they heard a noise upstairs, followed by the sound of a jumble of footsteps coming down. "We've turned that dump upside down. Nobody's there, but they're definitely somewhere around here. They can't get away. You two stand guard downstairs. You two come with me. Turn this place inside out if you have to, but find them!"

Tong Zhao and Shu Sizhuo exchanged a glance.

Both reacted quickly. Tong Zhao pulled out the bicycle leaning nearby and swung onto it as Shu Sizhuo jumped onto the back seat and wrapped his arms around Tong Zhao's waist.

Tong Zhao pedaled for his life. As he turned a corner, he heard a voice behind them shout, "Stop!"

Thanks to the shantytown's complicated, intersecting web of streets, Tong Zhao soon shook their pursuers. Drawing on his memory of a time he had helped his boss deliver food, he rode through a series of twists and turns to a hard-to-find abandoned residence.

Once inside, Tong Zhao locked the door behind them and quietly let out a sigh of relief.

He turned to look at Shu Sizhuo and saw that his little face was tense and his fists were clenched. He was still clutching his bottle of soda.

"What's wrong, sweetheart?" Tong Zhao thought the child was frightened. Though his own breathing was still unsteady, he hurried to reassure him. "We've shaken them off. We live in a peaceful society now; they wouldn't dare kick down doors from house to house. Don't worry."

Shu Sizhuo stood where he was. After a long while, he finally forced out a sentence. "They destroyed our home."

Tong Zhao froze. Seeing Shu Sizhuo's eyes gradually turn red, he immediately bent down and hugged him. "That was only a temporary rental. It's okay. The things at home... we'll go back for them later. It's okay..."