Siheyuan: Starting from the driver

Chapter 703 The Shame of the Haystack

"Pfft-"

Despite trying to suppress it, a few uncontrollable laughs still came from the nearby bushes.

It turned out that the little girl wasn't the only one attracted by Xu Damao's commotion; two or three boys were also lurking nearby, "watching the excitement."

This startling remark from a child was like a drop of water thrown into a pot of boiling oil, instantly igniting their suppressed laughter.

"Hahaha! The movie projectionist pooped his pants!"

"Exactly, exactly, hiding behind the haystack to poop!"

"Shame on you!"

The children's unrestrained laughter was suddenly filled with malice and mockery, making Xu Damao feel utterly ashamed.

I felt a surge of heat rush from the soles of my feet straight to the top of my head.

The pale face that had just turned pale from the pain instantly turned a deep purplish-red, more dramatic than the fight between the main characters on the screen.

What was more unbearable than the physical pain was this unprecedented humiliation! I wished I could find a crack in the ground to crawl into.

But his whole body was as limp as a lump of mud, and he could only manage to squeeze out an angry "Get out! Get out of here!" with a voice as weak as a mosquito's hum.

"Uncle, what are you joking about? I didn't hear you?" the little girl asked innocently.

This instantly sent Xu Damao's adrenaline soaring, and he roared, "You bunch of brats!"

"roll!"

"Run!" Xu Damao shouted, scaring the children away.

The commotion inevitably attracted the attention of those on the threshing ground. The adults, who had been engrossed in the movie, all turned to look.

"Doggy? Stinky Egg? Where have you been? Don't cause trouble!"

"What's going on over there? Who's making all that noise?"

"what happened?"

Several sharp-eyed members have already walked over here.

"Dong Dong~"

Hearing the approaching footsteps and questions, Xu Damao's heart pounded so hard it felt like it would burst out of his chest, gripped by immense fear and shame.

"Damn girl!" That wretched girl Peach Blossom has long since vanished without a trace. Expecting her to come back and help cover it up? Dream on!
My only thought right now is to disappear, immediately!
Xu Damao gritted his teeth and gathered his last bit of strength. Like a startled worm, he used both hands and feet to inch backward, desperately trying to burrow deeper and darker into the haystack, wishing he could embed himself into the earth.

Every movement pulled at his still aching lower abdomen, and large beads of sweat mixed with dust and grass clippings covered his once "smooth and shiny" face.

The naive little girl who "exposed" him completed her "major discovery," turned around and left satisfied, leaving Xu Damao alone shivering in the deepest part of the grass.

As the movie gradually ended, Xu Damao gradually recovered.

The side effects of the medication were still lingering; the dull pain in my abdomen had not completely disappeared; my lower back felt heavy and sore, as if filled with lead; and my legs were so weak that I could barely move them, feeling like I was walking on cotton with every step.

The night wind blew by, and the cold sweat soaking his body brought an even more biting chill, making his teeth chatter.

"Damn it, that damn girl, what bad luck, what a fucking bad luck!" Xu Damao cursed through gritted teeth.

"Li Kailang, you bastard, what kind of lousy medicine did you sell me! I can usually take one or two without any problems, but tonight you're causing all this trouble."

"That bastard definitely tricked me! I'm not going to let him get away with this when I get back tomorrow!" The angrier Xu Damao got, the more uncomfortable he felt.

"Damn it," he groaned to himself, clutching his stomach in the haystack.

After resting for a while, Xu Damao gritted his teeth, forced himself to stand up again, and went out to tidy up the projector.

This is his life and fortune; he absolutely cannot lose it.

After settling in, Xu Damao rested for the night in the room arranged by the village chief.

The next day.

As dawn broke and before the steel rolling mill had even begun its new day of production, Xu Damao was already up.

However, the pale, bluish complexion on his face, the heavy bloodshot eyes, and the lingering weariness between his brows and eyes were impossible to conceal.

"Li Kailang, you bastard, just you wait!"

Xu Damao got up so early just to settle scores with Li Kailang.

Without even saying hello to the village chief, Xu Damao went straight back to his yard.

courtyard.

"Li Kailang! Li Kailang! You little brat, get out here right now!"

"Damn it, you son of a bitch Li Kailang, you almost killed me!"

Many people in the courtyard hadn't gotten up yet when Xu Damao's roar woke them up first.

Everyone got up and rushed over to see what was going on.

Li Kailang was naturally woken up, and upon hearing Xu Damao's hostile words, he was naturally not in a good mood. No one would feel good being woken up so early in the morning.

"Oh, it's projectionist Xu? Isn't it hard work showing movies in the countryside so early in the morning? You're so energetic, running here to call me to welcome you?"

"Screw you!"

Xu Damao rushed to Li Kailang in three strides, his spittle almost hitting Li Kailang's face, but his steps were noticeably unsteady and his breathing was rapid.

"Li Kailang! What the hell kind of lousy medicine did you sell me?! It almost killed me! You ruined my plans! Do you even know that?!"

Li Kailang took two steps back to avoid being sprayed in the face, and then looked at Xu Damao's fierce but weak-willed face, especially his eyes which were covered with red blood vessels.

"Comrade Xu Damao, what kind of show are you putting on so early in the morning? What medicine? What's so deadly? What medicine did I sell you?"

"Xu Damao, speak properly! If you don't give me a clear explanation, believe me, I'll call the police and have you arrested for defamation!"

Seeing Li Kailang's feigned ignorance, Xu Damao became even more furious: "You fucking pretend!"

Snapped!
Li Kailang slapped Xu Damao with lightning speed, leaving him completely stunned.

He covered his face and looked at Li Kailang in disbelief.

"Xu Damao, let's talk this out. Everyone's watching. If you dare to slander me, my kung fu skills aren't just for show."

"Speak!" Li Kailang clenched his fist, making a 'crunching' sound, which startled Xu Damao and made him instantly realize what was happening, seeing the crowd that had gathered around him.

"What are you looking at! Get out of here!" Xu Damao shouted at everyone.

Seeing that Xu Damao had regained consciousness, Li Kailang nodded and walked inside.

Xu Damao immediately followed and closed the door!
The group exchanged glances, their eyes darting around: "Should we go up and eavesdrop?"

"Sure, you go first?"

"You go first. As soon as you go, I'll go right away."

"I'm not going. I can't beat Li Kailang."

After exchanging unsuccessful glances, everyone went home to tidy up and prepare for work.

"Tell me, what happened? What's wrong with my medicine?" Li Kailang said coldly.

Xu Damao immediately explained, "Last night! Last night I..."

"Ok!"

"I was showing a movie at the commune when I met a girl. Thinking I'd liven things up, I took two pills, and soon my stomach started hurting."

"I'm usually perfectly fine, taking two pills is no problem at all! Why did it suddenly stop working last night? It must be the medicine you gave me this time that's the problem!"

As he spoke, Xu Damao, with a hint of lingering fear, said, "Do you know how much pain I almost died in the field last night?! I was drenched in cold sweat, my stomach was cramping so badly! And then...and I was mistaken for..."

"What did you take it for?" Li Kailang asked, following his words, raising an eyebrow with pure curiosity in his eyes.

The words "pulling one's crotch" were too embarrassing to utter, so Xu Damao swallowed them back, his face turning a deep purplish-red as he growled in a fit of rage:
"What do you care what I think I am! Anyway, I've lost face big time! It's all because of your medicine! You have to compensate me!"
"Give me back!!!"

Snapped!
Another slap landed, leaving Xu Damao stunned once more.

Li Kailang blew on his slightly reddened hand and said calmly, "Speak properly if you have something to say, don't yell and shout. What kind of behavior is this so early in the morning, you know?"

"I know, I know." Xu Damao covered his burning face.

Li Kailang then continued, "Xu Damao, you know better than I whether there's a problem with this medicine. You've been taking it for months. If there were a problem, wouldn't it have been there already? There's no need for you to try and extort me."

"Okay, try eating two more in front of me. If you're fine after eating them, I'll let this matter drop since I slapped you twice."

"If there's really a problem, I'll take the loss and compensate you however you're owed, no questions asked. You're not 'incompetent,' are you?"

Li Kailang deliberately emphasized the words "it's no good".

"You!" Xu Damao almost choked on his breath. Two more? The "humiliation" he suffered last night was still fresh in his mind.

The feeling of being on the verge of death was harmless; the real problem was the humiliation, which he absolutely did not want to experience again.

But—a man can't say he can't do it!

Besides, we're in the courtyard now, this is his home turf, what could he possibly be afraid of?

"Okay! I'll eat it right now and show you!"

After saying that, Xu Damao deftly took out the medicine from his pocket and swallowed two pills in one gulp.

"Just wait!"

After saying that, Xu Damao went straight home, slammed the door, and went inside to find Sai Fengxian.

"Da Mao! Why are you back?" Sai Fengxian looked at Xu Da Mao in surprise.

Although Xu Damao's noise in the front yard attracted many people to join in, she was alone at home, so she could sleep peacefully no matter how noisy it was outside.

"I'll cook for you right away."

"Why bother cooking! Let's go back to sleep!"

Xu Damao pushed Sai Fengxian onto the bed, wanting to prove to Li Kailang that he wasn't incapable!

The problem is with his medicine!
After a passionate encounter, Sai Fengxian fell into a deep sleep, exhausted.

Xu Damao leaned against the headboard, smoking: "This is weird. How come he's perfectly fine and full of energy? Then why did he have a stomachache yesterday? That shouldn't be the case."

Xu Damao's small head was filled with big questions.

"The medicine is fine? If the medicine is fine, does that mean I've encountered a ghost?!"

Xu Damao shook his head repeatedly: "Impossible, impossible. When would there be any ghosts? You're just scaring yourself."

"If it's not a problem with the medicine, then what is it?"

Xu Damao thought about it carefully, and suddenly thought of something—

"Could it be that Peach Blossom deliberately harmed me?!"

The more Xu Damao thought about it, the more likely it seemed: "That shouldn't be the case. I don't have any grudge against this girl, why would she want to harm me?"

"What good would it do her to harm me? Besides, this little girl is a bit dim-witted, how could she possibly harm me?"

Xu Damao was puzzled and couldn't figure it out no matter what he did.

"Why don't we go and ask her?"

"Fine! I'll see who's behind this!"

Xu Damao stubbed out his cigarette, got dressed, and got out of bed.

Xu Damao headed straight back to his hometown.

He grabbed a commune member carrying a hoe, spitting as he asked, "Where does Peach Blossom live?"

The commune member glanced at his pale, bluish face and said, "Comrade projectionist, Peach Blossom went to town with her father early this morning. She said someone was sick and she wanted to go see them."

Upon hearing this, Xu Damao was struck dumb, and the fingers gripping the other man's collar suddenly loosened: "Go into the city?!"

Xu Damao's heart skipped a beat. 'Why did they have to come into the city of all times, right when I'm here to question them?'

What a coincidence! Just as he came down to confront her, Peach Blossom entered the city.

Regardless of whether it was Tao Hua'er's fault or not, it's all hers now.

"That's right," a villager suddenly lowered his voice. "By the way, projectionist, did you know? Last night after the movie, a few kids were running around the village yelling that there was a 'wild poop king' in the haystack."

"Do you know who it is? The whole commune is talking about it now. Have you seen this person?"

Upon hearing the cryptic remark from the commune member, Xu Damao's face instantly turned a deep shade of liver.

"Shut up!" Xu Damao's forehead veins bulged with anger, and the commune members around him, who seemed to be working, were all staring at him with knowing smiles.

Suddenly, a child's voice burst from a corner of the threshing ground, mimicking the words: "Hide from the haystack! Pull your pants! Shame on you—"

It was the skinny, dark-skinned kid who led the commotion last night!
"You little brat!"

Blood rushed to Xu Damao's head, and he grabbed a clod of dirt to throw, but was stopped by a sharp shout from behind: "Comrade Xu!"

The village chief, with a stern face, stood in front of the child: "The child is ignorant, so please don't take it to heart. You look terrible, why don't you go back inside and rest?"

"Hmph! No need!"

Xu Damao angrily turned and rode away.

The bicycle bounced along the bumpy dirt road, each jolt sending shivers down Xu Damao's spine.

The cart wheels rolled over the muddy water, splashing dirty slurry that soaked my trouser legs, sticky like the cold sweat and bits of grass I'd smeared on my face last night.

The jolting caused his lower abdomen to twitch slightly, and the tearing pain from last night suddenly pierced his mind.

He stared at the road, and the splashing water flew into his mouth. Instantly, the image of Tao Hua'er's lowered eyelashes when she handed him the water flashed repeatedly before his eyes—that bowl of water!

"It's water, not medicine?! There's something wrong with the water!"

Xu Damao recalled that Tao Hua had given him a cup of water to drink, and even said it was well water!
He gulped it down in one go and couldn't taste whether it was salty or bland. Could it be that she secretly put something in it?

Xu Damao slammed on the brakes, startled, and touched himself: "I'm fine, it shouldn't be poison, otherwise I would have died long ago."

"You little wench, you dared to tamper with things in the water and make me look bad! Fine! You just wait! I'll show you what I'm made of you!"

"I was kind enough to give you candy, and this is how you repay me?! You can know a person's face but not their heart!"

I rode my bike again.

The chain snapped with a "crack," and the front wheel got stuck in a mud pit.

"Bah!"

Xu Damao stumbled and fell, getting covered in mud, which splashed all over his face.

A mocking laugh immediately drifted from the distant field ridge: "Look! The movie projector's broken down again!"

"Hahaha--"

The children's unrestrained laughter made Xu Damao's face burn with pain.

(End of this chapter)