Chapter 403 Don’t Shoot
By investing in the training school and Lin Xiangxi's small workshop, Lin Xiangnan has a stable income every month and is becoming more and more generous.
"This month's enrollment is full again. Let's go buy two new clothes to celebrate!" Lin Xiangnan encouraged Aunt Hua to join in.
"Let's go, let's go." Aunt Hua couldn't resist the encouragement and followed as soon as she was called.
There are many stores selling trendy clothing from Hong Kong and Taiwan this year. Lin Xiangnan bought several pieces just by browsing around.
Aunt Hua bought them for her daughter-in-law and granddaughter, but didn't buy any for herself. "These clothes are too trendy. They don't suit me. I'd better go to the tailor shop and have a look."
"That's perfect. The two pieces of clothing I ordered last year should be ready soon. Let me ask about it."
Because they were regular customers, when the chef in the store saw Lin Xiangnan and Aunt Hua, he took the initiative to take out the things.
"These two pieces of clothing were ready last week. I thought you would come over in the next few days, so I didn't send them to you."
The patterns on both pieces of clothing are very complex; one is a Suzhou embroidery of a phoenix wearing a peony jacket, and the other is a cheongsam with gold and silver embroidery of cranes. The production process took nearly a year. I bought them last year, but I could only wear them this year.
In fact, Lin Xiangnan rarely wears this kind of clothes. He only wears it for fun on Sundays when he is resting at home.
They are not very practical, but they are very beautiful. Lin Xiangnan buys these things as collectibles.
Aunt Hua was short of money last year and not as generous as Lin Xiangnan. This year, she started a training school and made money. She immediately kept up with the pace and made arrangements for herself.
After delivering the clothes to his son's home, Xu Wende felt distressed when he saw that Aunt Hua didn't have any of her own.
"Mom, you should use your money to buy yourself some nice clothes, instead of just buying them for the children."
"You don't have to tell me. I know the answer." Aunt Hua complained calmly. She bought several pieces of clothes for her granddaughter, and spent only a little over 100 yuan, which was a fraction of her spending today.
"I secretly kept ten dollars from this month's bonus..." Xu Wende wanted to give it to Aunt Hua, fearing that she was short of money.
Aunt Hua looked at her son with disdain and said, "Okay, keep this little money for yourself. If I lose money, no one else will lose money."
As for her son being short of money, Aunt Hua pretended not to notice it. Her son and daughter-in-law both had salaries, and the daughter-in-law was strict with the money, but Xu Wende had enough food and clothing, so it was not Aunt Hua's turn to give her money as subsidy.
The son is still young, but she is old. If she doesn't enjoy the good life now, she will not have many opportunities. It is better to keep the money for herself. Xu Wende will not spend money anyway.
Leaving behind the clothes she brought, Aunt Hua patted her butt and left.
When she got home, Lin Xiangnan was not home yet. The tire of her bicycle was punctured by a nail on the road, so she could only push the bike.
"What a wicked thing, spreading nails on the road, thinking they can earn money to repair cars, they must be crazy. The road bullies in the countryside are arrogant, and the road bullies in the city are not bad either..."
Lin Xiangnan cursed while pushing his bicycle and looking around for a bicycle repair stall.
But before she had taken a few steps, two young men approached her casually, ready to snatch the bag and run away.
"Hey? Hey!" He pulled it once, it didn't move. He pulled it twice, it still didn't move.
Lin Xiangnan looked helpless. He looked at the bag in his hand, then at the robber on the roadside, and angrily drove them away: "Get lost, you two, you look like you're sick."
Upon seeing this, the two little hooligans immediately turned ferocious and threatened Lin Xiangnan: “Let go! If you don’t let go, I’ll chop off your arms!”
As he spoke, a man pulled out a knife from his pocket.
Lin Xiangnan was speechless. Last year, the people who stole things were so sneaky and cunning. If they failed to steal, they would just run away. But this year, are they so arrogant?
Soon, enthusiastic people on the roadside would come to help. The two robbers were also in a hurry, so they took out a knife and prepared to cut Lin Xiangnan's arm, wanting to teach Lin Xiangnan a lesson.
The best defense is offense.
Lin Xiangnan had a wooden face as he swung his bicycle across and knocked the two men to the ground.
"Fuck, I met a tough guy."
The wheels were still spinning in the air when the two robbers ran away.
After seeing the man run away, Lin Xiangnan gently put down his bicycle, lowered his head and looked at the bag he was carrying. It was just a little bulging, and nothing was exposed.
The next day she went to the research institute and school and spoke of the matter with indignation, and no one was surprised.
"Maybe it's because you dress fashionably and look rich."
"If there were fewer people around, they would not only snatch your bag, but also your watch."
"The research institute is better, there are no night shifts. My aunt's workplace has night shifts, and she doesn't dare to go out alone at night. My uncle picks her up and drops her off all the time, and she doesn't dare to let the child go out to play. You live in the staff quarters, so at least you don't have to worry about the child..."
The victims have summed up their experience, and the general word is one word, that is, be patient. Because there are many people in this group of robbers, and they are also highly mobile, they rob one place today and move to another place the next day. It is also difficult to catch them even if you call the police.
If you get robbed, you can only consider yourself unlucky and pay money to ensure your safety.
Fortunately, this chaotic situation did not last long, and the crackdown campaign in 1983 officially began.
After seeing this news in the newspaper, Hu Meili immediately became alert. She took her handwritten list and secretly went to the street police to file a complaint.
"The fat guy who lives at No. 82 was a hooligan and bullied the little girl from the store next to mine. He scared people so much that they dared not come here anymore."
"Grandma Wu's grandson steals things. He doesn't steal much each time, but he steals frequently."
"And the cigarette seller, he secretly runs a casino and cheats young kids out of their money..."
She was filled with righteous indignation when she made the complaint, but when she finished her report and left, Hu Meili's momentum was gone in an instant. When she went out, she looked around carefully and no one dared to take the first step.
After leaving the Public Security Bureau, she ran and almost bumped into someone.
"Why are you running? Are you in a hurry to be reborn?"
The person in front of her was someone she knew, and he had just reported someone's grandson to a lawsuit. Hu Meili wanted to curse back, but she swallowed the words back.
"I have an emergency at home. Grandma Wu, why are you walking this way?" Hu Meili pretended to be surprised and asked tentatively, "Are you here to report something to the Public Security Bureau?"
Grandma Wu nodded, "Yes. How about you come with me? Help me to be a witness."
"I'm not going!" Hu Meili shook her head firmly. "I think everyone around me is good. No one has any problems. Why should I go to the Public Security Bureau?"
Enthusiastic people still need to do it, but they should enter the village quietly and without firing guns.