As the year draws to a close, Xu Damao's workload in rural areas has increased.
However, he didn't mind being busy and tired, since he could gain a lot of benefits; things are things, and money is money.
Every time a movie was shown in the countryside, people from all around would arrive two or three hours in advance. The crowds were so huge that people would fill the rooftops, treetops, and hillsides.
Before showing a movie, Xu Damao would receive a feast from his commune, with plenty of chicken, duck, fish, and meat.
Of course, there would be alcohol, but according to the rule passed down from his father Xu Fugui, drinking was strictly prohibited before the movie screening. However, if the movie went on very late and the commune prepared a late-night snack, then a little alcohol was permissible.
After all, if the projectionist didn't drink, the commune leaders would think they hadn't been treated well, and they were afraid of leaving a bad impression and having fewer visits in the future.
Similarly, wealthy communes rarely showed a film twice in order to maintain appearances, which required Xu Damao to prepare two film reels.
Where did the film come from? It was rented by Xu Damao. After the screening, the commune would hand over the rental fee to Xu Damao. The sensible commune certainly wouldn't just give the amount of the rental fee!
Every time Xu Damao went to the countryside, he was treated to good food and drink, and he would bring back a lot of things when he left, such as hens and mushrooms.
Of course, the charges that Sha Zhu and Yi Zhonghai tried to frame Xu Damao for a few days ago are unfounded; no commune would dare to do that.
Xu Damao dared not cause any trouble in the countryside. Despite the villagers' enthusiasm, if he did something like that, they would kill him with a shovel.
Even if the police come, they might not be able to do anything; this is no joke.
Xu Damao has recently become the manager, and his competitive spirit has shifted from Sha Zhu, Jia Dongxu, and others to Wang Dabao's wristwatch. He is obsessed with buying a watch to show off.
After these days of working in the countryside, Xu Damao felt that his savings had become much more substantial.
Finally, after returning to the city, he mustered up the courage to go into the supply and marketing cooperative and spent 120 yuan to buy a watch.
Although it's not as expensive as Wang Dabao's watch, they both cost around a hundred yuan, so the difference shouldn't be that big.
In the dead of winter, Xu Damao felt that rolling up his sleeves would be too conspicuous, and others would be able to tell at a glance that he was showing off. So he simply rolled up both sleeves to his elbows, grabbed his briefcase, quickly hopped on his bicycle, and headed towards the compound.
As long as you sweat profusely when you arrive at the compound, others won't think you're deliberately rolling up your sleeves to show off your watch.
After Yan Bugui moved all the flowers back inside, he was sitting in a chair enjoying tea.
It was supposed to be tea tasting, but there were only a few specks of tea foam in the cups, although hot water was kept being added cup after cup.
Seeing Xu Damao panting as he pushed his bicycle in, Yan Bugui hurriedly put down his cup and rushed out of the house.
"Hey Da Mao, where have you been? Is a dog chasing you?"
Yan Bugui bent over, pinched the temple of his glasses with his fingers, and leaned closer to his face, staring at the doorway carefully for a while. "How big is the dog? Does it bite?"
Xu Damao, holding his bicycle, was a little speechless. "Hey, don't look at me like that, there's no dog. I was just in a hurry to get back, so I pedaled hard for a while. Who knew it would be so cold? I'm sweating so much during the sports meet."
As he spoke, Xu Damao raised his right hand and rubbed his forehead left and right. The dazzling light reflected off Yan Bugui's glasses, almost blinding his squinty eyes.
"Oh my, Da Mao, this is incredible! Quickly, take it down and let Second Uncle take a look."
Yan Bugui's small eyes were practically glued to Xu Damao's wrist; if Xu Damao didn't take it off himself, he probably would.
Xu Damao took off his watch and gave it a half-hearted look as Yan Bugui reached out to take it. "Old Yan, you need to change how you address me from now on."
"Look at my mouth, Da Mao, don't mind it, take it off and let me, Lao Yan, see what it's like."
Hearing that Yan Bugui no longer referred to himself as "Second Uncle," Xu Damao handed over the watch, saying, "You'd better hold on tight, it's worth over a hundred yuan."
"Over a hundred, Da Mao?"
Yan Bugui held it in his hand, wishing he could zoom in to see it. "It's really nice! Actually, compared to you guys, Da Bao, I'm the instructor who should be wearing a watch!"
Xu Damao gave a forced smile, snatched the watch and put it on his wrist: "Old Yan, stop pretending to be poor. A hundred-odd yuan shouldn't be a big deal for you."
For so many years, the neighbors had lived together, and Yan Bugui always complained about being poor, but Xu Damao knew that the Yan family was definitely not as poor as he claimed.
"Oh, Da Mao, you think too highly of your second... Old Yan."
Yan Bugui almost blurted out something again, but seeing the change in Xu Damao's expression, he stopped himself in time. "Damao, you and Dabao are both young people who only have one person to feed and no one to worry about. It's understandable that you would buy a watch if you have money. But I can't do that. This whole family depends on my salary to live. We can't even afford to eat, so how can we have spare money to buy this?"
"That's true. Haven't you seen that Yi Zhonghai, the 'ten-thousand-yuan household' in our compound, hasn't even bought a bicycle?"
Xu Damao grunted twice, then tried to push his bicycle away to say goodbye.
"Da Mao, don't go yet. I just saw Yi Zhonghai. Old Yi has been acting a bit strange lately. He even wanted to help me move the flowers after get off work."
Sure enough, Xu Damao immediately stopped in his tracks when Yan Bugui mentioned Yi Zhonghai.
He had actually taken the position from Yi Zhonghai, and he was also afraid that Yi Zhonghai would one day gain power and take it back. So, any slight movement from Yi Zhonghai would make him extremely nervous.
"Explain in detail, Lao Yan, what's wrong with you?"
"Da Mao, you've been going to the countryside to show movies and haven't been home much lately, so you might not know what's going on in the yard."
Yan Bugui shook his head and slowly said, "Ever since Lao Yi got the belt last time, he's like a different person. He's all smiles and grins at everyone. I don't think I can wear the hat of being the good guy in this compound for long. I'll have to hand it over to Lao Yi soon."
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