“Smack, smack, smack, smack!”
Xu Damao was at a life-or-death juncture, and he had truly thrown away every last shred of dignity.
Ignoring the fact that he was stark naked, he crawled out from beneath the table, knelt on the ground, and frantically slapped his own face.
In the early 1960s, appearing naked in the street and committing hooliganism was a crime punishable by death.
Let alone calling He Yuzhu “Grandpa”—even if he had to treat him as his own grandfather and provide for his elderly care, he would agree without the slightest hesitation!
He Yuzhu’s gaze was solemn, as though his soul had drifted beyond the heavens and wandered through the great void. This frightened Xu Damao so badly that his soul nearly flew from his body.
“Sigh... Looks like this is the end of the road.” He Yuzhu spoke in disappointment.
After waiting for such a long time, the system’s total System Currency had remained fixed at 9,999. It seemed this was the upper limit for accumulating negative emotions.
Now, no matter how frightened Xu Damao became or how desperately he begged for mercy, all those negative emotions could only go to waste.
Since that was the case, there was no point in continuing to frighten and torment the boy. It was better to spare someone when possible.
At this thought, He Yuzhu’s expression gradually softened. He said, “You may be unkind to me, but I cannot be unrighteous to you. At the very least, we live in the same Siheyuan, so we’re bound to see each other every day.”
“You’ve spread quite a few rumors about me lately, haven’t you? They’ve already reached my ears, so don’t even think about denying it. Since I waited until today to tell you about this, it means I’m leaving you a way to survive.”
“Remember this: the photographs are in my hands. The next time you want to do something wicked, think it over carefully. Don’t bring trouble upon yourself!”
Xu Damao was already crying uncontrollably. How could he dare say no? His life was effectively in the other man’s hands. If he so much as said the wrong thing, he would end up paraded through the streets with a placard around his neck.
“Grandpa He, I was truly wrong this time. If there’s anything you need done in the future, just say the word. I, Xu Damao, would brave mountains of blades and seas of fire...”
“All right, all right, spare me the slogans.” He Yuzhu said impatiently, “Your clothes are buried in the snow to the right of the Canteen entrance. Go get them yourself.”
After He Yuzhu finished speaking, he turned and left the Canteen. This time, he had enough money. With 10,000 yuan, he could buy goods at the small supermarket’s prices; there was enough rice and white flour to buy several thousand jin.
With this food, the Hongxing Commune would surely worship him as a God of Wealth. Exchanging some of it for pork and eggs would be effortless.
After hearing that there was no movement outside, Xu Damao secretly lifted the door curtain and observed for a long while. Only after confirming that no one was there did he bare his buttocks and dig his clothes out of the snow as quickly as possible.
It was dozens of degrees below zero outside in this freezing weather. The clothes had been buried in the snow for half a day, making them wet and cold, practically like something pulled from an ice cave.
Even so, Xu Damao did not dare hesitate for half a second. He hurriedly pulled the clothes over himself, shivering violently from the cold.
Thinking of how he had called someone Grandpa, slapped his own face, and knelt to kowtow just now, he felt he had humiliated himself beyond redemption.
From then on, he truly could not hold his head up whenever he saw Silly Zhu. To make matters worse, the other man had leverage over him. How was he supposed to live like this in the future...?
In barely half an hour, Xu Damao had gone from arrogant and overbearing to utterly crestfallen.
On top of that, the clothes he had dug out of the snow were soaked and freezing. By the time he returned to the Siheyuan Courtyard in a daze, he immediately came down with a fever.
He Yuzhu had already returned home by then. Since the System Currency had reached its limit, he had also brought home the thirty-plus jin of pork left in the Canteen.
Because the load was simply too heavy, he had not bothered to take any other lunchboxes. This made Third Uncle Yan Bugui anxious.
Over the past few days, He Yuzhu had indeed kept his word. Every day, he brought one lunchbox home for him, helping his spouse improve her nutrition.
But today, it seemed there was not even a single lunchbox. His family also had several children, and his spouse’s health was poor. It truly felt as though they would not be able to get by.
In fact, when he entered the courtyard gate, He Yuzhu had already spotted Yan Bugui poking his head around near his own front door.
Seeing that he seemed to have something to say but could not bring himself to say it, He Yuzhu understood most of the situation.
After returning home, he immediately cut up the pork and set it to stew. Before long, its aroma had spread throughout the entire Siheyuan Courtyard.
Recently, the fragrance of meat had practically drifted from He Yuzhu’s home every day. The people of the Siheyuan Courtyard were so envious that their eyes seemed ready to bleed!
They also knew that he had recently become the Canteen Director and obtained a driver’s license. He was truly a different man now. Though nobody said so aloud, everyone had gained a new understanding of the former Silly Zhu.
“Qin Huairu, bring the children over!”
The Jia family was practically like soldiers preparing to charge from a trench. The three children held their breaths, pricked up their ears, and stood ready to rush outside at any moment.
When Qin Huairu heard the shout, she hurriedly stuffed the lunchbox into Bang Geng’s hands.
She instructed him in a low voice, “Whatever you do, don’t offer the lunchbox to Uncle He first. If he gives you more, don’t take anything you see in the room on your own. Understand?”
Bang Geng had received a good education during this period. Now that even his own mother had spoken to him this way, he nodded solemnly, then grabbed the lunchbox and rushed out with his two younger sisters.
Third Uncle Yan Bugui listened from inside his room, feeling as though a hundred claws were scratching at his heart.
“Sigh, it looks like being a widow really is convenient. Those three children eat meat every day, while getting our hands on some nutritional supplements is difficult. If all else fails, I’ll go outside the city tomorrow, break through the ice, and fish.”
With Yan Bugui’s small and frail build, he probably could not even break through the ice. Those words were nothing more than talk.
Looking at the three half-grown boys who could eat him out of house and home, along with his spouse lying in bed, he was truly on the verge of tears.
After an unknown amount of time, knocking suddenly came from outside the door. When he opened it, he found that it was Qin Huairu’s daughter, Xiaodang.
“Third Uncle, Uncle He asked me to give this to you.”
Xiaodang held up an aluminum lunchbox with both hands. Yan Bugui accepted it with trembling hands, and it felt heavy inside.
Although he had not opened the lid, the rich aroma of meat was perfectly clear. It seemed He Yuzhu had not forgotten his promise after all—he had sent the child over with meat!
After handing over the lunchbox, Xiaodang ran home. Yan Bugui hurried back inside with it and opened the lid. It was filled entirely with red-braised, skin-on pork belly.
“Dad, I want some!”
The children were like a pack of starving wolves, surrounding him and jumping up and down as they shouted.
“Have you no manners? Your mother is sick from malnutrition. You can have some after she finishes eating, and then I’ll divide the rest among you!”
Yan Bugui brought the lunchbox to his spouse’s mouth. Without any other staple food, he fed her pieces of red-braised pork one after another.
In fact, that night’s red-braised pork was not only for the Jia family. Third Uncle’s family and the Deaf Old Madam also received a portion.
He Yuzhu was carrying a lunchbox as he arrived at Xu Damao’s door.
“Xu Damao, open the door. Why didn’t I see you lighting the stove today?”
Xu Damao was lying in bed, shivering violently. For one thing, he had genuinely been frightened today; for another, he had caught a chill and now had a fever.
But when he heard He Yuzhu’s voice, he hurriedly scrambled down and opened the door.
“Here, have a good meal. Look at you, you pathetic mess.” He Yuzhu shoved the lunchbox into his hands and turned to leave.
Xu Damao’s heart was filled with mixed emotions, and for a moment, he did not know what to say.