Siheyuan: Starting from the driver

Chapter 754 The Storm of Confinement
the other side.

The days of the sticky goat were not easy.

After the first two days of adjustment, Bang Geng experienced what real "discipline" meant.

The correctional officers treated Banggeng the same as everyone else, showing him no mercy or pity whatsoever.

Every morning, as soon as the sharp, piercing reveille sounds, we must jump up and stand up as quickly as possible, and resolve the issue of our assigned cell within 15 minutes.

If you don't stand up straight or move a beat too slowly during morning exercises, you'll be punished by running laps around the playground or doing deep squats facing the wall for 10 minutes straight, until your legs feel like they don't belong to you when you stand up.

When the meal bell rings, everyone must line up quietly to enter the cafeteria and sit in their assigned seats. If anyone dawdles or whispers, not only will their food be taken away, but they will also have to clean the toilets or be physically punished.

At night, when the lights-out signal sounds, you must lie down immediately and are not allowed to whisper to each other, as patrolling flashlights will sweep across the room at any time.

Once caught violating the rules, he will be greeted by the door of a cold, solitary confinement cell.

That small, dark room with only a narrow window, no sunlight, and nothing but a hard bed was a place that criminals feared to even mention.

Banggeng witnessed a troublemaker who had repeatedly gotten into fights being locked up in the next cell for a full day and night. When he was released, his eyes were vacant and his steps were unsteady, as if his soul had been taken away.

The stick was so scared that it didn't dare to breathe.

This is a hundred or a thousand times more powerful than Qin Huairu's broom or Jia Zhangshi's insults!
The boy was so scared that he would think about going home every night.

Physical torture and the constraints of rules are merely superficial; the deeper goal of juvenile detention centers is to "treat and save lives."

Aside from the relatively easy and relaxed ideological lesson on the first day, the lessons that followed were not so simple.

Two fixed hours every afternoon are designated for group "study".

Instead of attending academic classes, they were taken to a large auditorium.

The correctional officer stood on the podium, holding a megaphone, his voice loud and serious.

They would read current events from the newspaper, but they focused more on studying the relevant clauses of the "Regulations on Administrative Penalties for Public Security" and the specific requirements of "Five Stresses, Four Beauties, and Three Loves".

Listen to a report about the glory of labor, respect for the elderly and care for the young, and helping others.

The correctional officer's tone was resolute: "Why are you sitting here? Because you're all poisoned!"

"Those thoughts of stealing, robbing, and bullying others are the stinking ideas of landlords, rich peasants, hooligans, and bullies in the old society!"

His gaze swept across the audience like a scalpel, and Bang Geng always felt that gaze was directed at him.

"The youth of New China should be full of vigor! They should study diligently! They should love labor! They should be helpful to others!"

"Think about your behavior. Do you have any respect for the farmers who work hard every day to grow food and feed you? Do you have any respect for the workers who sweat and toil in factories to build our country?"

"You've done wrong! Your actions are criminal! You've brought shame upon your families! You've disgraced the nation that has nurtured you!"

Especially when the cadres talked about crimes and bringing shame to their families, Bang Geng suddenly lowered his head, his neck turning red.

This was the first time he had been so clearly defined as a "criminal," whereas all his previous actions had been insignificant to Jia Zhangshi.

Nobody here will tolerate his misbehavior.

The correctional officers noticed that many people had their heads down, whether out of shame or something else, but they also saw a few with utter disdain in their eyes.

"You don't understand? Fine! I'll make it clear to you!"

"Come on! Send those guys to the solitary confinement room and let them think it over! They can come out when they've figured things out, and then they can think about food!"

"No! No! I won't go!"

The boys were immediately so frightened that their legs trembled.

But the discipline officers didn't tolerate it and forcibly dragged him away.

They still wanted to struggle.

"Snapped!!!"

A series of loud slaps echoed throughout the auditorium.

The boys were completely stunned.

"Drag away!"

The correctional officer stood on the platform, pointing at them: "This is what happens when you disobey!"

"The purpose of coming here is to completely reform your erroneous thinking! To transform you completely! To start anew!"

The mental anguish of the afternoon did not hinder the physical labor of the morning.

Seeing how skillfully Banggeng pasted paper boxes, the correctional officer immediately gave him more responsibilities.

He was assigned to a group of more than a dozen people who were just as efficient as him, and each of them had a huge pile of paste in front of them.

These dozen or so people have a huge workload; they need to complete over a thousand cardboard boxes in a morning to be considered qualified.

This is a much larger quantity and much stricter requirement than what Jia Zhangshi makes at home.

The amount of paste should be just right, the cardboard should be glued flat and straight, and the finished boxes should be of uniform size.

At home, you can get away with things a little, but here nobody puts you through that.

The foreman was an elderly worker surnamed Zhou, with deep wrinkles on his face and a stern but not fierce look in his eyes.

He rarely spoke, but just paced around, and with a glance, he could tell who had done a sloppy job.

He wouldn't scold or beat them, but any substandard boxes would be thrown back and required to be reworked.

Occasionally, Old Zhou, the worker, would look at the towering pile of finished boxes and mutter softly:
"Well, I finally made it to this month's quota. I can make a little money by sending these to the supply and marketing cooperative, and they can also be used by the villagers. It's good."

"These guys are pretty useful; they do things for free."

He was getting free labor without paying, which made Bang Geng feel utterly dejected. At least at home, Jia Zhangshi would give him a penny or two.

There's not a single penny here.

In short, either way, it's torture for the stick-shaped pheasant.

this day.

A new person arrived at cell number 1, named "Xiao Liu Zi". He looked a year or two older than Bang Geng, but was equally thin and wiry, with a pair of frightened eyes like a startled deer.

The moment Bang Geng saw him, it was as if he were seeing himself from just a few days ago.

He was looking forward to watching the spectacle, seeing Xiao Liuzi being bullied by Scarface and his henchmen.

But unexpectedly, Scarface and his gang were much more "gentle" towards Xiao Liu.

Banggeng overheard that Xiao Liuzi was in jail for stealing, and that he was said to be "skilled" and "clever and resourceful."

He was quick to act from the moment he entered, offering a hidden piece of candy in exchange for Scar's protection.

Unlike the original Bang Geng, who was "wooden-minded and didn't understand the rules".

Xiao Liu became a scarred man in less than half a day. Although he still had to work, at least no one deliberately bullied him.

This stark contrast is like a needle piercing the heart of the stick.

'Why! Why is he spared from being bullied as soon as he arrived? While I have to suffer hunger and hardship, and still have to work! Why!'

He gritted his teeth in frustration.

I thought Xiao Liuzi was here to do the work for me, but in the end I still had to do the work myself.

A strong sense of injustice and jealousy made Bang Geng even more silent and gloomy.

The conflict between the two arose during a break.

Xiao Liuzi was new to the area, but he was protected by Scarface, so naturally he had some ulterior motives.

He wanted to demonstrate his abilities in the cell and also take advantage of Scarface's local prestige.

When choosing persimmons, you should pick the soft ones and squeeze them; the stem of the persimmon is the perfect choice.

Who told him to be the youngest and shortest?

During his time out for fresh air, he deliberately stuck out his foot and tripped the dazed Banggeng, sending him sprawling face-first into the mud.

Banggeng's palm scraped hard against the rough ground, tearing a large patch of skin, and blood mixed with dirt seeped out, causing excruciating pain. Just as he was about to struggle to his feet, Xiao Liuzi's big foot stomped hard on the back of his hand!

"Ahhhhhhh!!" Bang Geng let out a heart-wrenching scream.

"enough!"

A clear but weak voice rang out; it belonged to the thin boy whom Bang Geng privately called "Sick Ghost."

At that moment, he suddenly mustered up the courage and rushed over, shoving Xiao Liuzi hard. "Are you never going to stop bullying me?!"

Caught off guard, Xiao Liu stumbled and fell. Though he didn't fall, he was humiliated and immediately flew into a rage: "You fucking want to die?!"

The fist was raised high, ready to smash down.

Bang Geng also stopped screaming in astonishment, almost unable to believe that someone would stand up for him.

"Little Six!" Scarface's cold voice was like ice.

Xiao Liu's fist froze in mid-air.

Scarface strode over and gave him a light kick in the butt: "You dare to cause trouble for me as soon as you get here? Are you itching for a beating?"

"I'm sorry, boss!" Xiao Liu was kicked to the ground and immediately bowed his head to admit his mistake.

Seeing his younger brother's quick wit, Scarface nodded in satisfaction and then looked at Stick.

"go away!"

After saying that, he strode away with his men without offering any apology.

Xiao Liu was called away by Scarface, but before leaving, he glared fiercely at Bang Geng.

The little sick kid silently bent down and pulled up the stick that was still sobbing in pain.

Instantly, a warm current flowed through Banggeng's heart.

He wanted to say "thank you," but somehow, it felt like his throat was being squeezed tightly, and he couldn't utter a single word.

The struggle between the group was observed by the correctional officers from a distance, but seeing that no fight broke out, they didn't bother to intervene further.

Here, being bullied is considered normal behavior. Since no one can discipline them outside, they'll discipline them here.

Let's teach them a lesson so they won't become arrogant and ignorant.

Banggeng's tantrums and bullying tactics, which he learned from Jia Zhangshi, were completely useless here, and he even sought his own death.

The hatred and intense sense of humiliation in my heart grew wildly like weeds.

He stared at the direction where Xiao Liuzi had disappeared, his teeth grinding together.

He clenched his injured hand into a fist, and the stinging pain only fueled his anger.

"You bastard, you just wait!"

dinner time.

Banggeng had served his food and sat upright in his seat, waiting for the discipline officer to give him orders.

While getting food, Xiao Liuzi came to Banggeng's side, gestured with his hand, and the meaning was self-evident.

In the past, people would come to ask for things using bamboo poles or stools, but now it's Xiao Liuzi who's asking for them.

Banggeng looked up at Xiaoliuzi's smug and arrogant expression, as well as his provocative and contemptuous eyes, and instantly his face turned red with anger.

"Made!"

Banggeng roared and, with his uninjured hand filled with hatred, used all his strength to smash the heavy enamel rice bowl hard against Xiaoliuzi's hateful face!

With a loud crash, the rice bowl slammed into Xiao Liu's face.

The entire cafeteria fell silent instantly. All sounds of chewing, swallowing, and whispering vanished.

Hundreds of eyes turned to him, focusing on the suddenly standing stick and the little Liu lying on the ground.

"Ah!" The scalding hot rice water splashed on his face, and Xiao Liuzi lay on the ground groaning and screaming, rolling around with his face covered.

"Damn it! What's going on! You don't even dare to have a meal!" The warden's roar was like a thunderclap.

Several guards rushed over almost simultaneously.

Scarface and his henchmen also stood up abruptly, staring fiercely at Bang Geng; clearly, they wouldn't stand idly by.

Just as chaos was about to erupt, a more authoritative voice rang out at the cafeteria entrance: "What are you doing!"

Then, the tall figure of Chen, the cadre in charge of this area, appeared before everyone.

The air pressure in the cafeteria instantly dropped to freezing point, and even breathing almost stopped.

"Good, very good." Officer Chen's voice wasn't loud, but every word was clear. "You have plenty of energy!"

His gaze lingered on Banggeng, then swept over Xiao Liuzi, who was rolling on the ground, and Daoba, who was about to step forward.

Finally, it landed in that puddle of splattered paste that was everywhere.

"The cafeteria is a place to eat! It's not a market where you can fight like thugs!"

"Wasting food, disregarding rules, and disrupting collective order! Fine! If you don't want to eat, then nobody eats!"

He surveyed the entire room, his gaze causing all the prisoners to instinctively lower their heads: "Everyone stand up! Attention!"

"Crack!" The sounds of hundreds of cheap cloth shoes or bare feet stepping on the cement floor mingled together.

"All guards, disperse! Clean the entire canteen! Wipe the walls, floors, pillars, and tables three times! Everyone, fast tonight! Now! Immediately! Get moving!"

In the dead silence, only the stern commands of the correctional officers echoed.

There were no complaints, nor did I dare to.

Urged on by their guards, the hundreds of prisoners moved swiftly and reluctantly.

Banggeng and Xiaoliuzi were personally dragged out by Cadre Chen and taken to the open space in the center of the canteen.

Everyone moved while staring fiercely at the two of them, as if trying to remember them.

It's because of those two causing trouble that everyone is going hungry.

Banggeng kept his head down, ignoring everyone's hateful gazes and staring intently at Xiaoliuzi, who was covering his face.

He feels good seeing him in such a miserable state!

'Hmph! Trying to show off your power? Dream on!'

Officer Chen looked at them calmly and said, "You two seem to have a lot of energy. I hope you'll still be energetic at this time tomorrow."

He didn't bother to reprimand the two men, and directly ordered the guards watching them, "Send these two to the solitary confinement cell."

"Yes!" The warden looked at the two of them, his eyes seeming to spit fire.

Seeing that Banggeng was unmoved, he kicked it directly, making Banggeng fall flat on its face again.

Then, as if lifting a dead pig, she grabbed Xiao Liuzi by the collar, ignoring the pain in his neck, and dragged him away.

As soon as the two left, the others cleaned up the pots and pans and picked up their tools to start cleaning.

Dinner had just begun, and everyone was starving. They had barely eaten a few bites before having to work, and their complaints were overwhelming.

Banggeng and Xiao Liuzi are gone, but Daoba is still here.

He was the boss in his cell, but that might not be the case in other cells.

The steward dragged Banggeng and Xiao Liuzi into the solitary confinement room.

"Bang!"

Once the iron gate is closed, there is only boundless darkness.

Kebang felt no bad at all; on the contrary, he felt a sense of pleasure after getting revenge.

(End of this chapter)