Siheyuan: Starting from the driver

Chapter 777 Wandering Around Turns Dark
After the performing arts troupe left, Li Kailang didn't stay long and wandered around for a while.

Before I knew it, I looked up and saw that familiar sign – Xinhua Bookstore.

Just then, they saw three familiar figures at the door—Xiao Zhao, Huang Jin, and He Yu.

Several people huddled together, their expressions shifting between confusion and sudden realization as they intently looked at the books in front of them.

Beside them were two other young faces that Li Kailang felt vaguely familiar with.

"They must be their classmates."

Only when he approached did Xiao Zhao look up from his book, his face first showing surprise, then breaking into a wide smile:
"Brother Li! What a rare guest! What brings you here?"

"I was just browsing around when I had nothing to do, and I didn't expect to run into you guys studying so hard," Li Kailang said with a smile as he approached.

Huang Jin and He Yu quickly put down their books, stood up, and greeted him.

The two newly joined youths seemed a little uneasy. They both knew Li Kailang's reputation, after all, Yan Wanbin had introduced him to them.

"Hello, Senior Li, my name is Wang Jianguo."

"Hello, Senior Li, my name is Liu Zhiming."

Li Kailang was slightly taken aback by the title "senior," and then realized his status as a "graduate."

"Hello." Li Kailang nodded to the two of them in greeting.

"Don't be so polite, you're all young people, what are you doing here?"

Xiao Zhao immediately perked up: "What else can I do but study! It's too hard for me to stay at home alone and ponder things, so I 'gathered a group' and came to the bookstore."

The other four nodded in agreement.

He Yu said, "Yeah, I just can't concentrate on studying at home. Classes start next week, so we've called our whole group over to get together and familiarize ourselves with each other."

It would be a good thing to get to know each other better through this gathering.

They've already reported for duty. Letting them suspend their studies is up to them, but the factory certainly won't let them off the hook.

Looking at the familiar books on the table, Li Kailang couldn't help but think of himself back then.

Xiao Zhao's eyes darted around, and he said with ill intent, "Brother Li, it's perfect that you're here. Why don't you come along? You can explain it to us."

"No, no, no."

Li Kailang smiled and waved his hand: "I need to rest my brain today, so I won't get involved in your discussion. You guys continue, don't mind me."

After saying that, he fled the scene.

Having finally graduated, he was reluctant to pick up his books again.

Besides, he had only put down his books a little over a month ago.

After leaving the bookstore, Li Kailang felt more at ease and strolled around the streets.

But before they knew it, they had wandered to the courtyard of their master, Zhang Jinwu's house.

After he joined the technical department, and then the materials department, he rarely went to the transportation team.

I'm busy all the time, and the only time I'm really free is the ten or so days between the exams and graduation.

After parking the car, he shouted, "Master? Mistress? Are you home?"

"Kai Lang! Is that you?"

A familiar voice rang out, and there came Han Xiaohui, the teacher's wife.

Upon seeing who it was, her face instantly lit up with a delighted smile: "Oh my! It's Kailang! What a rare guest! Come in, come in! What brings you here today? Have you eaten yet?"

"Master's wife, are you busy? Sorry to bother you. I've already eaten." Li Kailang said with a smile as he entered the courtyard.

"I just had nothing to do on the weekend, so I was just taking a walk around. I happened to be passing by and thought I'd come and see you and my master."

"Don't be so polite! Come in and sit down!"

“Master!” Zhang Jinwu appeared at the door.

"Hmm." He nodded, feigning authority. "Come in and sit down."

Since Li Kailang graduated, Zhang Jinwu has gradually had more free time.

He was worried about Li Kailang because he hadn't graduated yet.

Since graduating, Zhang Jinwu has felt relieved and, now that he's getting older, he's gradually relinquishing his power to Lu Wenjiang.

Logically speaking, Lu Wenjiang shouldn't even be in a position to be in charge of the transportation team based on seniority.

But who could blame him for producing Li Kailang, a college student, in his department?

His status was significantly higher than that of other senior masters, by a factor of three.

Some masters were naturally dissatisfied, but when other masters brought up Zhang Jinwu's success in training college students, they asked, "Can you train someone like that?"
After comparing the two, even the disgruntled master had to admit defeat.

Of course, the most important thing is that everyone's tasks are already clearly defined, and earning this right only means not having to go out for transportation.

Thinking about it, transportation is a bit easier than managing a bunch of other things.

"Hey kid, did the sun rise in the west today? Tell me, did something happen?"

Han Xiaohui poured Li Kailang a cup of tea. "Come on, have some tea and some melon seeds. What's served today?"

It was quite nice for his teacher's wife to sit on the long bench opposite him.

Facing his father, teacher, and wife, Li Kailang felt a sense of relaxation, as if he were back home.

"Nothing serious." He took a sip of tea. "I introduced someone to Matchmaker Wang first thing this morning, and that matchmaker is really reckless."

It can be explained clearly in just a few words.

"Oh—!" Han Xiaohui immediately drew out a meaningful sound and exchanged a knowing look with Zhang Jinwu.

"I knew it! You're such a busy person, suddenly thinking of visiting neighbors. Oh, Wang the Matchmaker, you're kind-hearted, but the person you introduced is really no good. What kind of person is this?"

The teacher's wife was quick-witted and outspoken, clearly siding with Li Kailang and scolding Wang the matchmaker a couple of times.

Zhang Jinwu put down his teacup. “Your teacher’s wife is right. When looking for a partner, you have to like them first, otherwise it’s all for nothing. You have to have your own opinions.”

"Your teacher's wife and I won't play matchmaker for you. Find someone yourself."

Zhang Jinwu initially supported the idea, but then quickly changed his tone.

"But you're not getting any younger, it's time you started paying more attention to this."

Upon hearing this, Li Kailang immediately wore a bitter expression.

Just then, Zhang Ya came out.

"Dad, Mom, what are you talking about?" she asked subconsciously, then looked up and saw Li Kailang, casually saying, "Brother Li."

“Xiaoya.” Li Kailang nodded in response.

"Hmm," Zhang Ya responded, her eyes quickly sweeping over the sunflower seeds on the table before grabbing a handful.

"I won't disturb you, you guys chat, I'm going back to my room to do my homework." After saying that, she turned around and went back to her room.

Watching her daughter's disappearing figure, Han Xiaohui sighed softly and explained:
"Your sister is also a senior in high school this year. This senior year is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for her to achieve great things!"

"The teacher said that she can be one of the top students in the grade at times, but... sigh, she's just inconsistent, sometimes good and sometimes bad, it's really worrying!"

As it was her final year of high school, Zhang Ya naturally had to work extremely hard.

Her grades, just as Han Xiaohui said, were like a rollercoaster, sometimes good and sometimes bad.

With Zhang Ya's abilities, she naturally has to work hard to get into university.

When talking about schools, one cannot forget Cui Yuan's younger brother, Cui Gang.

He also graduated from junior high school last year, but unfortunately he didn't perform well and failed to get into a vocational school. Fortunately, he was admitted to high school and still has a chance.

If the Cui family hadn't improved their financial situation considerably, Cui Gang would have planned to start working right after graduation.

Closer to home.

Han Xiaohui had previously considered keeping the benefits within the family and planned to let Zhang Ya and Li Kailang give each other a try.

However, their personalities didn't mesh, so they didn't have that idea.

After chatting with his master and mistress for a while, Li Kailang felt much better and then took his leave.

courtyard.

Ever since that day when Banggeng made a mistake, he stopped pretending and has finally shown his true colors, returning to his original nature.

Upon entering the second grade, looking at his well-behaved and naive classmates, Bang Geng couldn't help but harbor wicked thoughts.

I really wanted to show off the 'achievements' I'd made at the juvenile detention center and bully them. But it was only the beginning of the semester, so I couldn't just start doing it myself, lest I leave a bad impression on the teachers.

However, this idea is like a seed, taking root and waiting for it to sprout.

Today is a holiday, and Banggeng is making matchboxes with Jia Zhangshi.

His fingers flew across the paper, the whole process flowing smoothly and swiftly, without the slightest hesitation or pause, leaving Jia Zhangshi amazed.

"Hey, this is weird!" Madam Jia couldn't contain herself. "Sticks? Your...your skill? Where...where did you learn this? So fast? So neat?"

Banggeng's fingers paused for a moment, then resumed their smooth movements.

Madam Jia was still clicking her tongue, her face wrinkled like a dried walnut: "It's really strange, why does it seem like I've learned some new skills since I came back?"

Her fingers unconsciously twirled the half-finished matchbox, and she pondered:

This skill is so refined, it's like that of a convict who has been drained of all their energy in prison for years!
Those repetitive, precise, almost numb movements exude an indescribable air of discipline!

Is this technique so similar to the result of her early training by prison guards when she was doing sewing in a women's prison?

In an instant, Jia Zhangshi realized something was wrong; she had said the wrong thing. She turned sharply to Banggeng:

"Bangbang geng'er. Cook it slowly, don't tire yourself out. Good boy, no, no rush."

Banggeng seemed not to hear what Jia Zhangshi was saying and continued pasting the paste by himself.

Seeing that Bang Geng hadn't fallen ill, Jia Zhangshi breathed a sigh of relief: "It's good that he's alright, it's good that he's alright, he almost caused a disaster."

However, she dared not let Bang Geng fester any longer, for fear that he would have a relapse.

"That's enough, you can go play now. Ah, Grandma can handle these, ah."

As she spoke, Jia Zhangshi pulled up the stick and pushed him out.

Banggeng followed the trend and left the central courtyard.

Looking around, I didn't know where else to go, but then I thought of a new place.

That's the grove of trees at the base of the school's back wall.

It's a secluded and quiet place where students who stay after school or children who don't want to go home sometimes gather.

Good luck.

From afar, he saw several teenagers dressed in similarly patched clothes kicking a small, tattered leather ball.

They are "Wai Mao" and "Di Gua," two notorious troublemakers in the class with terrible grades.

Banggeng stopped and didn't get close, but stood behind a tree and watched.

They clumsily chased after the ball on the uneven, muddy ground, arguing heatedly over a broken ball, their movements ridiculously awkward.

An indescribable sense of superiority mixed with annoyance welled up inside me.

"How childish, just like a kid."

This chaotic scene of running and kicking reminded him of the meaningless chases during his time in the juvenile detention center.

Banggeng emerged from behind the tree, his appearance abruptly silencing the laughter and chatter of chasing the ball.

"Wai Mao" and "Di Gua" were holding the ball when they saw Bang Geng walking towards them with a blank expression. Their playful expressions froze, and then turned into obvious wariness.

"Hey, Jia Bang? What are you doing over there!" Wai Mao shouted, mustering his courage.

Banggeng didn't respond, but walked straight to them and stood a few steps away.

His gaze swept over the ball in their arms, then fell on their faces.

He was slightly shorter than the two of them, but his cold and silent aura and the look in his eyes made Wai Mao and Di Gua unconsciously swallow.

This is a skill honed in a juvenile detention center; it's not something a bunch of kids can handle.

"What's wrong?" Sweet Potato's voice sounded a little weak.

Banggeng finally spoke, his voice carrying an unquestionable, commanding tone, imitating that of an "old man" in a juvenile detention center:
"Let me play with the ball."

Wai Mao and Di Gua exchanged a glance; they treasured this ball dearly.

"Give it to you to play with? No way. We just..." Wai Mao wanted to refuse.

Banggeng took a step forward, his eyes narrowing: "Let's play for a bit."

Wai Mao and Di Gua felt the pressure.

"It's just a ball, isn't it?" Wai Mao tried to save face by tossing the ball forward.

"Here, take it! Just play with it for a little while, be careful not to break it!"

The ball rolled to the feet of the batter.

Banggeng didn't rush to pick it up, but just stared coldly at Waimao and Digua, making the two of them feel uneasy.

After a while, Bang Geng finally looked down at his head, which made the two of them breathe a sigh of relief.

boom!
Banggeng kicked him away.

The two watched the ball fly away, expecting the baseball bat to catch it, but instead saw him standing still.

He was immediately filled with confusion.

Banggeng stretched out his hand and pointed towards the ball: "Go! Retrieve the ball!"

"Why should I! You're the one who kicked it away." Wai Mao immediately refused.

"Retrieve the ball!" Bang Geng's words were still cold and impersonal, his gaze fixed on the two of them, instantly making them panic.

"Go and go!"

Sweet Potato ran towards the lone, tattered ball lying in the distance.

He bent down to pick up the ball, feeling as if he had found a lost treasure.

I patted the dust off it.

Sweet Potato, holding the ball, returned to the stick.

Banggeng didn't reach out; he silently stared at the sweet potato in front of him.

The brief sense of power I felt just now, ordering someone to fetch the ball, felt pretty good, like when Scar ordered me around in the juvenile detention center. It felt quite nice.

Sweet Potato felt a chill run down his spine as the stick stalk stared intently at him, fearing that he might hit him directly.

"Jia Geng, you...you're really good with your feet! You kicked it that far! Why don't you kick it, and we'll guard the goal for you?"

"It's boring."

"get out."

The two words stunned Wai Mao and Di Gua.

They thought the stick would kick at least a few more times.

However, this sudden "pardon" left them bewildered, even more anxious than being ordered to fetch the ball.

"Huh?" Wai Mao opened his mouth.

"I told you to get out!" Bang Geng's voice suddenly rose.

In an instant, the two turned around almost simultaneously, like two startled rabbits, and scrambled away, not even daring to look back.

The tattered ball that Digua had picked up was abandoned in his panic and rolled alone again at Banggeng's feet.

"Hahaha~"

It actually felt pretty good to bully these two cowards.

Suddenly, Bang Geng also became somewhat interested in the other students.

Looking at the ball at his feet, he suddenly raised his foot and stomped it down hard!
One, two! The ball is still barely holding on.

He used all his strength on the third strike, and the sole of his shoe slammed heavily onto the ball.

With a soft "plop," the ball finally burst and deflated, revealing its equally dilapidated inner lining and dried-out filling.

Looking at the completely ruined ball, Bang Geng seemed to finally feel a little better.

Then he kicked it away with a big kick!
The depression in my heart has dissipated considerably.

Turn around and go home.

(End of this chapter)