Siheyuan: I just came across and wanted to chase me away

Chapter 911 Go to the Quadrangle to Investigate

The monkey found a beggar huddled against a wall on a street corner. His hair was matted and yellow, and his clothes were torn like a sieve, covered in dirt and other stains. The monkey fished a few dollars from his pocket and waved them in front of the beggar's eyes: "Sell me your clothes."

The beggar's eyes lit up at the sight of the money, and without a second thought, he took it off, revealing his equally tattered underwear underneath. The monkey frowned in disgust, but still took the clothes and quickly changed into them in a deserted corner. The clothes were dirty, smelly, and had a sour, rancid odor, clinging to his body uncomfortably, but he knew it was the perfect disguise.

He grabbed a handful of mud from the ground and smeared it on his face, then ruffled his hair. At first glance, he looked like a desperate beggar. Even if Xiao Bao was standing in front of him, he would probably be stunned for a long time before recognizing him.

After packing up, Monkey strolled to the courtyard gate and ran into Yan Bugui, walking around with his hands behind his back. Although Yan Bugui had been a teacher and was a man of respect, he was terrified by the sight of beggars, believing them to be unlucky. He glanced at Monkey, his brows knitted into knots, and without a word, he turned and walked back into the courtyard, his steps quite fast, as if he was afraid of being contaminated by something.

He muttered to himself: If I stand here and don't leave, who knows if the beggar will come up and ask for money. If we get into a fight, what will happen if the news gets out? Better to stay away.

Monkey originally wanted to find a reason to talk to the old man and find out what was going on in the yard, but he didn't expect him to leave so abruptly. He could only pout and walk in with his head down.

As soon as he entered the middle courtyard, he ran into a middle-aged man locking the door, looking like he was about to leave. The monkey's eyes rolled, and he quickly approached him, hunched over, and pleaded in a hoarse voice, "Kind brother, please be kind. I haven't had a grain of rice in three days. Please have pity on me and give me something to eat."

This man was Tiedan's father. He was a simple, honest, and soft-hearted man. Seeing his expression, he frowned and a look of sympathy appeared on his face. He hesitated for a moment, turned back to the house and searched for a while. When he came out, he was holding a yellow cornmeal bun and a few crumpled coins.

"Alas, you are also a poor man." Tiedan's father handed the things over, his tone somewhat helpless, "Our family is not well off, this is all I have, please don't despise it."

Monkey took the steamed bun. It was rough and had a smell of raw dough. He didn't want to touch this coarse grain from the bottom of his heart, but he still held it in his hand with forced gratitude and carefully put away the few cents.

Seeing that Tiedan was just holding the food but not eating it, his father asked curiously, "Why don't you eat it? Is it too dry? How about I pour you a glass of water?"

The monkey quickly shook his head, forced a sad expression on his face, and sighed: "Brother, to be honest, I came here to escape famine from outside the Great Wall, and I have a hungry baby waiting for me at home. I can't bear to eat this steamed bun, I have to take it back to fill the child's stomach." As he spoke, he carefully put the steamed bun into his arms, and he looked quite sincere.

Tiedan's father knew everything clearly and knew that there were many things going on in the courtyard. He didn't ask any more questions, but just nodded, turned around and prepared to leave.

But Monkey suddenly stepped forward and called out to him, a deliberately warm smile on his face and a somewhat flattering tone: "Hey, big brother, I want to ask you something. Do you know where Xu Damao lives? He's a distant relative of mine, and I have something urgent to ask him."

Tiedan's father didn't think much of it, thinking that since they were all neighbors in the same courtyard, it wouldn't be a big deal to ask for directions, so he readily replied, "I know, I'll take you there." He then led the monkey towards the middle courtyard. As they reached the gate of the middle courtyard, they saw Aunt Tan coming out of the house, lifting the door curtain.

Aunt Tan noticed a stranger accompanying Tiedan's father and immediately frowned. She asked with a hint of caution, "What are you doing? Why are you bringing a stranger into the courtyard for no reason?"

Although the word "guard against thieves" was not mentioned explicitly, the security in the courtyard was not very good at the moment. If this stranger came to scout the place and steal things, it would be a big trouble and every household would be worried.

Tiedan's father quickly explained, his tone sincere: "Aunt Tan, don't think too much. This is Xu Damao's distant relative who came to seek refuge with him. I just happened to meet him and brought him here on the way."

After hearing this, Aunt Tan thought that she had never heard of the rule of recognizing the wrong relative, so she stopped being suspicious, nodded, and turned to walk out of the yard.

Monkey quickly thanked Tiedan's father: "Brother, I know where he is. I'll go find him right away. Thank you very much."

Tiedan's father waved his hand, thought nothing more, and turned back to the front yard. In his opinion, since they were looking for Xu Damao, he must be an acquaintance. They would meet each other every day in the yard, so there would be no problem.

In fact, Monkey had already figured out the location of Gu Nan's house. He pretended to walk towards Xu Damao's house. When he passed by Gu Nan's door, he deliberately slowed down his pace, his eyes rolling around, carefully observing the movements around him. Just then, he saw Ran Qiuye leading the child out of the house, holding a small coat in her hand, as if she was going to take the child out.

The monkey suddenly had an idea. He was about to pretend to be a beggar, asking for food and exploring the situation. Before he could speak, a dark figure suddenly jumped out from behind the nearby firewood pile. It was Gu Nan's black dog named Heizi.

Heizi seemed to sense the monkey's subtle aggression, a scent concealed beneath a humble disguise, yet it couldn't hide from its keen sense of smell. It immediately arched its body in alert, blocking Ran Qiuye and the child. It growled softly at the monkey twice, a warning "woooo" emanating from its throat, its eyes piercing as if it could see through people.

The monkey was startled by the sudden noise and subconsciously took a half step back, secretly cursing the dog for coming at the wrong time. Ran Qiuye saw the monkey's ragged clothes and messy hair, which really looked like a poor beggar. He quickly called out to Heizi and said in a gentle tone: "Heizi, come back and don't scare anyone."

The monkey knew that he couldn't show any flaws at this moment, so he quickly lowered his head, deliberately hunched his body, and looked pitiful. He pleaded to Ran Qiuye, "Kindhearted person, please be kind and have mercy on me. I haven't eaten for several days. Just give me something to eat."

Ran Qiuye's heart softened when she saw him like this. Who doesn't have difficulties? She said, "Wait a minute, I'll go into the house and get you some steamed buns." After saying that, she turned and went into the house, pulling the child behind her.