Before Yan Bugui could finish speaking, he caught a glimpse of the dazzling array of food on Xu Damao's bicycle.
For a moment, Yan Bugui was stunned.
He often said, "You won't get poor from eating or dressing, but you will if you don't plan ahead. When have I ever seen so much meat?"
The whole family eats cornmeal porridge every day, and steamed cornbread. Even when eating pickled vegetables, they have to share a few pieces with each person. The last time they ate meat was during the Chinese New Year when they chopped up some meat-filled dumpling filling.
The three older women weren't much better off; they kept swallowing hard as they looked at the things on the bicycle.
This is not an exaggeration at all.
Although the three-year famine had passed, most people still couldn't get enough to eat, let alone meat.
Why do many people use the excuse of buying meat to touch the meat at the butcher shop?
It's all just to lick the oil off your hands and satisfy your craving.
Yan Bugui is an eighth-grade teacher at Hongxing Elementary School, earning a monthly salary of thirty-seven. He has three sons, the youngest being a daughter. His eldest son, Yan Jiecheng, recently got married and started working, and he also has two children in middle school.
Previously, the family of six relied entirely on his salary. Only when the eldest son started working and contributed some money to the family did things become a little more comfortable.
Even so, Yan Bugui's four children all graduated from junior high school, and in the story, the youngest daughter even went to university. Later, the family acquired items such as a bicycle and a radio.
Although the bicycle was second-hand, its wheels were later stolen by Sha Zhu.
This life was forced out of Yan Laoxi by his own mouth, and of course, there's also the occasional exploitation of others.
Thinking about this, Wang Dabao suddenly realized that he seemed to be Yan Bugui's biggest target!
Just now, I sold the old furniture to Yan Bugui.
Wang Dabao shook his head with a wry smile, not caring about any of this.
In this compound, Yan Bugui is more worthy of friendship than Yi Zhonghai, Liu Haizhong, Xu Damao, Shazhu, and others. At most, he might take advantage of you, and if you get into trouble, he might lend you a hand. At worst, he won't kick you when you're down. You never know about others.
In the original storyline, Lou Xiao'e's family moved to Hong Kong after Xu Damao reported them.
But that's not how it is in the book. In the book, Lou Xiao'e's family was reported by the horse-faced man and ended up on the guillotine.
After waving goodbye to Yan Bugui, Wang Dabao pushed his bicycle and walked towards the Intermediate People's Court with Xu Damao.
Jia Zhangshi was hiding under the wall sewing shoe soles, while her buttocks were sticking out as she dried her urine-soaked trousers.
When the grandmother and grandson saw the meat on Xu Damao's bicycle, they were even more envious than Yan Bugui and the Third Aunt; their eyes practically popped into Xu Damao's bicycle. If there were a bowl under their mouths, it wouldn't take long for them to be drooling.
Jia Zhangshi rolled her triangular eyes and said, "Xu Damao, who was struck by lightning and has no descendants, has had his good days. With so much good food, he doesn't know how to respect the elderly and care for the young. He should give some to me and my dear grandson."
"Grandma, I want to eat chicken! I want to eat chicken!"
Banggeng didn't even care about sunbathing his backside anymore; he immediately darted to Jia Zhangshi's side, shaking her arm and shouting.
Wang Dabao had good hearing and overheard the old woman cursing Xu Damao for being childless. He was startled and glanced towards the Jia family's side, secretly thinking that the old woman was quite something!
"Da Mao, I just heard Jia Zhangshi cursing you to be childless."
Wang Dabao had a stern face and looked unhappy. Then he asked in confusion, "I heard you and Sha Zhu don't get along. You used to fight all the time?"
Xu Damao did hear Jia Zhangshi speak, but he didn't hear what she said clearly. After Wang Dabao pointed it out, and after thinking about the words again, he realized that she was cursing him for having no descendants!
"That old hag deserves to die a horrible death. I'll let it go today, but I'll teach her a lesson when I have the chance next time."
Xu Damao pushed his bicycle, glanced back at Jia Zhangshi with a fierce look on his face, and then turned to look at Wang Dabao. "That's right, I don't know why, but I've wanted to beat up that bastard Sha Zhu since I was a kid. We're like oil and water, fighting since we were kids, and our record is about even."
Hearing Xu Damao say these words in such a casual tone, Wang Dabao almost burst out laughing.
"50/50"? You've already been wiped out!
After a moment of contemplation, Wang Dabao stopped his bicycle and said solemnly, "Da Mao, I've fought with Sha Zhu before. That bastard is quite cunning; he either launches sneak attacks or kicks people in the crotch. Do you often get kicked by Sha Zhu?"
"Well... I have been kicked a few times."
Xu Damao frowned, somewhat puzzled. "No, what's going on here?"
"If Jia Zhangshi hadn't reminded me, I wouldn't have thought of this. I suspect that Sha Zhu deliberately kicked your thing. Didn't you see Jia Zhangshi calling you childless?"
Wang Dabao looked grave and patted Xu Damao on the shoulder. "Why don't you go to the hospital for a checkup sometime when you have some free time? I bet the whole compound is secretly cursing you for being childless."
Seeing that he had achieved his goal, Wang Dabao sighed heavily, glanced at Xu Damao with a sympathetic look, and then pushed his bicycle toward his home.
Xu Damao stood there for a moment, his horse-like face turning deathly pale with fright.
He was genuinely scared. Ever since he fought with Sha Zhu and was kicked in the groin again, he had been experiencing urinary tract obstruction. It had been a month, and he would still feel pain from time to time.
Is he really going to get some kind of health problem from being kicked out?
Xu Damao became increasingly frightened as he thought about it, and hurriedly pushed his bicycle home to check on things.
Wang Dabao closed the door and glanced through the window at Xu Damao's west wing, but there was no movement.
He chuckled inwardly, but his face turned pale with fright; he probably went home to check his testicles.
It's really hard to explain how Xu Damao became childless.
It could be a genetic issue, or it could be related to his affair with a widow in the village while showing movies in the countryside. But whatever the reason, the blame has now been officially placed on Sha Zhu's head.
Wang Dabao plopped down on the sofa.
I originally wanted to brew a pot of tea, but the thought of lighting a stove to boil water in the middle of the day made me uncomfortable, so I gave up in the end.
Meimei lit a cigarette, and Wang Dabao's thoughts turned to Lou Xiao'e, Xu Damao's blind date.
Lou Xiao'e isn't a bad person, she just lacks assertiveness. As a capitalist's daughter, she's just like the prevailing environment, and ultimately she can't escape the crushing force of history. It's inevitable that she'll be reported. Let's respect other people's fate.
Wang Dabao stubbed out his cigarette, thinking to himself that when Lou Xiao'e's family was reported, he had to make her leave as soon as possible. He couldn't let her have a child with that idiot Sha Zhu.
He secretly admired himself for being such a saint, having no intention of causing any trouble whatsoever.
Lou Xiao'e is really not my type!
Back in his bedroom in the west wing, Wang Dabao glanced at Xu Damao's house again, but there was still no movement. Damn it, he'd already made it so clear, was this kid still hoping to get away with it? If so, he wouldn't be able to watch the show!
Even if Xu Damao gets a diagnosis from the hospital, he won't make a big fuss about it when he returns to the compound. He will only secretly hold a grudge against Sha Zhu and look for an opportunity to take revenge.
For Wang Dabao, that was enough.
The hatred of having no descendants is enough to make them irreconcilable enemies!
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