Chapter 340

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Protagonist:

Chai Mi

Liu Xiaochun had been beaten until his mouth was crooked and eyes slanted, his head covered in lumps, and he had even written an IOU.

He had also been frightened by Chai Mi and the others, not daring to go out all afternoon.

By evening, Liu Xiaochun was getting anxious; there was no money at home, but the debt still had to be repaid.

Moreover, his family was dirt poor; after selling the stolen corn, they really spent it all on drinking. He had only finished drinking last night...

Now there was no money at home either; wanting to repay the debt was pure fantasy.

Liu Xiaochun's family situation was this: his old father had died a bit early. His old mother, because Liu Xiaochun was unfilial, had been driven away by him and went to live with his two half-brothers.

Because of this, those two brothers had almost no dealings with Liu Xiaochun, and their relationship was like fire and water.

Liu Xiaochun's father's generation were "la bang tao" men, meaning that when Liu Xiaochun's biological father came, the father of those two brothers had not died immediately; that kind is called "la bang tao."

So one can imagine that Liu Xiaochun's biological father, back then, was actually in a similarly tragic state.

Normal men who marry into a wife's family feel it's face-losing and hurts their pride, let alone being a "la bang tao" man?

So these men of the father's generation were impossible, and had no ability, to help Liu Xiaochun.

Getting back to the point, the family Liu Xiaochun's father went to "la bang tao" was the Chai Family, namely Chai Zhongming's fifth brother; there were quite a few brothers on that side, but each was poorer than the last.

Chai Zhongming had six brothers: the eldest died young, the third starved to death, the fourth was sent out to "la bang tao" by others, the fifth was Liu Xiaochun's stepfather, and the sixth died early...

One could say... the whole family were poor ghosts, not to mention almost all were dead. Only one old bachelor, Chai Zhongming, remained.

And Chai Zhongming actually lived next door to Liu Xiaochun; after dark, Liu Xiaochun climbed the wall over.

Chai Zhongming's room had no electricity, nor any oil lamps or such; he practiced environmental protection and hygiene above all.

Liu Xiaochun entered the room and knocked on the door: "Second Uncle, why don't you light a candle?"

Chai Zhongming said unhappily: "Where would I get money... what are you here for? No money to lend, take my life instead."

Liu Xiaochun: "......"

He hadn't even opened his mouth before being directly refused.

This Chai Zhongming just couldn't stand Liu Xiaochun.

Although Chai Zhongming was also a bachelor, and was also a slippery character, he was extremely dissatisfied with Liu Xiaochun because Liu Xiaochun's father had screwed over his own brother back then.

This fifth brother of Chai Zhongming's had been starved to death back then.

Because Liu Xiaochun's father went to "la bang tao," Chai Zhongming's fifth brother was paralyzed on the kang; how long could Liu Xiaochun's father let him live?

The result was that Liu Xiaochun's father had been "la bang tao" for less than two years when this fifth brother of Chai Zhongming's died.

As for whether he was starved to death, Liu Xiaochun's father denied it, but in fact he was starved to death. So Chai Zhongming couldn't stand Liu Xiaochun.

Fortunately, Liu Xiaochun "followed in his father's footsteps" and starved his own father to death too, so Chai Zhongming finally calmed down a bit and had some dealings with Liu Xiaochun, though not many.

Mainly because these two were both disliked by everyone, so they could brag to each other and make themselves feel like they were still human.

No other connection.

"Second Uncle, lend me some. You're a bachelor, how much money can you spend? You can't take it with you when you die..."

"Fuck your mother, I'm a bachelor, I should die! Damn it, I'm a bachelor, did I eat your food or drink your drink? Can't you speak human language?" Chai Zhongming was furious.

"What? Not lending?" Liu Xiaochun immediately became unhappy: "I'm not asking for much, lend me one hundred yuan; after the New Year, I'll pay you back principal and interest."

"None."

"I'm sincerely asking to borrow."

"Whether you're sincere or not, I'm not lending." Chai Zhongming said: "Why should I lend to you? You got beaten by Chai Mi and her people, and wrote an IOU; isn't that because you stole one mu of someone's corn?"

"Damn it! You old bastard! You didn't steal? We stole it together; I took the whole blame myself and got beaten too, and I only asked you to cover half, but you won't even give that?" Liu Xiaochun grabbed Chai Zhongming's clothes and cursed: "Damn it, I can't beat them because there are too many of them, but can't I beat you?"

Chai Mi's corn was indeed stolen by Liu Xiaochun and Chai Zhongming together. Back then Chai Zhongming was smarter and ran into the field; Su Wan didn't catch up.

The two of them together stole a total of two thousand seven hundred catties of corn, of which about eighteen or nineteen hundred catties were from Chai Mi's family.

The two had different purposes for stealing corn.

Chai Zhongming stole corn to eat; he stole every year, a bit from this family, a bit from that. He didn't steal too much, just enough to eat.

Sometimes he stole two thousand catties a year, sometimes four or five hundred. It mainly depended on the situation.

If someone caught him, or it was hard to steal, he stole a little less.

If no one cared and no one caught him, he stole more.

This year was like that; originally Chai Zhongming had already started stealing corn some time ago, stealing from any family, but since Chai Mi's corn grew better, he stole a lot. Up to now, he had already stolen fourteen or fifteen hundred catties. The result was that Liu Xiaochun saw him stealing corn.

Normally, if someone saw a neighbor stealing, they would advise them... or pretend not to see.

But Liu Xiaochun went to learn from the experience.

Since Chai Zhongming could steal without trouble, what was wrong with Liu Xiaochun stealing some corn?

So Liu Xiaochun and Chai Zhongming formed a corn-stealing squad. The two cooperating immediately increased their stealing speed.

The problem was that they still felt it was too slow.

After all, stealing was generally done at night; besides not seeing the road, they also had to carry things, so they could steal at most a few trips a night, and that speed wasn't good enough.

After that, Liu Xiaochun and Chai Zhongming started stealing during the day.

And they found that apparently no one cared about them.

Their guts grew bigger and bigger, and they simply stole brazenly in broad daylight.

Of course, the result was that they were caught by Su Wan...

Chai Zhongming naturally wasn't afraid of Liu Xiaochun: "Oh, damn it! You still want to hit me? Robbery in broad daylight..."

Liu Xiaochun saw Chai Zhongming was stubborn and unyielding, so he went up and gave him an electric cannon: "You old bastard, you stole something and got off scot-free, but I got beaten? Why the hell? Today I'm definitely going to vent my anger properly."

Liu Xiaochun was strong; although he had been beaten today, leaving him disfigured, covered in bruises, and his head full of lumps, this did not affect Liu Xiaochun's youth.

Being young meant he could take a beating, not to mention he recovered quickly.

Chai Zhongming still wanted to say something, but before he could speak, Liu Xiaochun hit him with an electric cannon, making his head buzz.

"Are you fucking sick? You got beaten, so why are you hitting me?" Chai Zhongming cursed: "You beast! I'll fuck your grandfather!"

Liu Xiaochun coldly laughed: "No reason, you don't give me money, so I'll beat you."

Liu Xiaochun then gave him another big slap, knocking out Chai Zhongming's false teeth.

Chai Zhongming screamed in pain.

It really hurt!!!

Chai Zhongming covered his gap-toothed mouth, blood foam seeping out between his fingers: "Ouch... my teeth... Liu Xiaochun, you donkey... thing! Dare hit your second grandpa?!"

"Hit you, so what?!" Liu Xiaochun's eyes were bloodshot, covered in lumps, looking like a wounded mad dog: "Letting you pay half is a bargain for you! I took the heat for you, got a fat beating, and even paid for the pig and signed an IOU! You fucking well hid inside pretending to be dead? Where's the money? Where's the corn? Give me half of the money you got from selling it!"

Chai Zhongming was beaten until he saw stars, in pain and afraid, but still refused to submit: "Fuck... fuck your mother's nonsense! Who... who partnered with you?? You courted death yourself, don't drag me into it! I said fucking someone shouldn't steal in the daytime, you stole it yourself and acted cool, who's to blame?!"

"You didn't steal, so what?!" Liu Xiaochun got even angrier, went up and kicked Chai Zhongming in the stomach: "Ah? Were those few furrows at the East side dug by you? Was that big hole at He Tao dug by you? Now you're pretending to be fine? I'm telling you, old coffin wood, if you don't spit out the money today, I'm not done with you!" He casually picked up a chipped broken bowl from the edge of the kang, making a motion to smash it.

Chai Zhongming was furious... he had stolen, but he hadn't been caught.

This Liu Xiaochun was a real dog; he stole, got caught, got beaten, and now had to drag Chai Zhongming to pay compensation.

The problem was Chai Zhongming couldn't beat Liu Xiaochun...

Seeing Liu Xiaochun really wanted to use a weapon, he cowered, hugging his head and shrinking into the wall corner: "Don't... don't hit! Xiaochun! We... we can talk it out! I really have no money, the corn... the corn I did get some, but... but I haven't sold it yet!"

Liu Xiaochun's hand holding the bowl paused, staring at him suspiciously: "Not sold? Perfunctory ghosts? So many sticks, you're not selling them to keep for breeding?"

"Really... really not sold!" Chai Zhongming panted, wiping the blood from his mouth, "I kept them to eat... they're all hidden in the cellar! Thinking of waiting until the wind dies down and then..."

"Hidden in the cellar?" Liu Xiaochun's eyes rolled, his ferocity fully exposed, "Good, you old fox! Say it quickly! How much did you hide? Where?"

"Just... just that old vegetable cellar behind my house..." Chai Zhongming gritted his teeth in pain, "Not... not much, maybe a thousand catties..."

"A thousand catties?! Who the fuck are you perfunctorily fooling!" Liu Xiaochun grabbed his collar, "The two of us dug at least two thousand catties! Did you hide more elsewhere?"

"Really... really just those! I... I can't eat that much, just... just wanted to save some..." Chai Zhongming's eyes darted around.

"Bullshit!" Liu Xiaochun threw him to the ground, "Are you a mouse? Storing grain for winter? There must be more! Where's the money? Where's the money from selling it?"

"I didn't sell it, where would the money come from!" Chai Zhongming wailed, "I really have no money! That corn... the corn is all in the cellar, you... you take it all! All for you! Count it as second grandpa compensating you, okay?"

Liu Xiaochun trembled with anger: "Give it all to me? What's the use of that! I want cash! Two hundred yuan! Three days! In three days, Chai Mi, that living King of Hell, will come to tear down the house! Where the fuck am I supposed to get it?" The more he thought, the more desperate he became; looking at the pathetic Chai Zhongming on the ground, a surge of evil fire rose again, and he raised his foot to kick again.

"Ow—Murder—Liu Xiaochun is murdering—My head is split open—" Chai Zhongming screamed with a broken gong voice, his voice especially piercing in the quiet night.

"Shut up! You old bastard!" Liu Xiaochun was anxious and angry, went up and covered his mouth. "Give me the money quickly, or I'll kill you."

Chai Zhongming didn't dare shout anymore, afraid Liu Xiaochun, this dog thing, would beat him to death, but he had no money to give.

Anyway, not a single cent.

Liu Xiaochun rummaged through Chai Zhongming's room, turning boxes and cabinets upside down, but didn't find a single cent.

Afterwards, Liu Xiaochun grabbed Chai Zhongming's hair and said viciously: "Where's the money? Don't force me to beat you to death."

Chai Zhongming's eyes darted even more, and the hand subconsciously covering his crotch tightened: "No... really none... I... I'm so poor I'm clinking..."

Liu Xiaochun had sharp eyes and suddenly noticed Chai Zhongming's hand tightly covering his crotch, and the sudden panic on his face. His head buzzed, and a thought exploded—this old thing, the money is hidden in his crotch!

"Fuck... your mother!" Liu Xiaochun's anger rose from his heart, his courage grew, he didn't care about the pain anymore, and pounced like a hungry tiger pouncing on food, tightly grabbing Chai Zhongming's wrist that was covering his crotch, "Old bastard! Are you a mouse! Money hidden in your crotch, right? Take it out for me!" He used all his strength to pry open Chai Zhongming's hand.

Chai Zhongming howled like a pig being butchered: "Ouch! Let go! Let go, Xiaochun! None! Really none! Save me! You want to rob my coffin money!"

"Coffin money?!" Liu Xiaochun's eyes turned even redder, his fingernails digging into Chai Zhongming's flesh, "You fucking still have coffin money? I took the heat for you and almost got beaten to death, and you hide your coffin money to watch the excitement?! Give it to me!" He went all out, using his knee to press against Chai Zhongming's stomach, and with his other hand, forcibly reached into his crotch.

"Ow—!" Chai Zhongming rolled his eyes in pain, feeling his crotch was about to be torn apart.

Liu Xiaochun didn't care about these things, his hands rummaging wildly, finally feeling a hard little package wrapped in torn cloth! He pulled hard!

"Hiss—!" With a sound, Chai Zhongming's torn pants were ripped open with a big hole, and a small roll of oil-stained twisted dough, tightly wrapped with torn cloth and a rubber band, fell to the ground.

Chai Zhongming was like he had been hamstrung, instantly going limp, letting out a desperate wail: "My money... my money..."

Liu Xiaochun panted, grabbed the small roll, and tore open the torn cloth and rubber band in two or three strokes. Inside were wrinkled, greasy bills, a thick stack! Ten yuan, five yuan, one yuan, and even cent notes, smelling of sweat and livestock pens.

Liu Xiaochun counted quickly, his eyes getting brighter: "... one hundred... one hundred twenty... one hundred fifty... fuck! One hundred eighty-seven yuan and three jiao six!" He suddenly raised his head, his blood-red eyes staring fixedly at the ashen-faced Chai Zhongming, his voice hoarse and full of the joy of surviving a disaster: "Old bastard! You're really something! One hundred eighty-seven yuan and three jiao six! Still saying you have no money?!"

Chai Zhongming slumped on the ground, trembling all over, only humming: "Give... give me back... that's mine... my coffin money..."

"Coffin money?" Liu Xiaochun gripped the money tightly in his palm, feeling its substantial texture, and spat at Chai Zhongming: "Pfft! When I took the beating, paid for the pig, and signed the IOU for you, why didn't you think about my life or death? This money, count it as my hard work fee for taking the heat for you!"

He kicked Chai Zhongming, stood up unsteadily, clutching the stack of bills stained with blood and sweat, and without looking back, rushed out of Chai Zhongming's dilapidated house.

Afterwards, Liu Xiaochun climbed over the wall back home.

Although Liu Xiaochun had beaten Chai Zhongming, and the commotion in the middle of the night was quite big, no one came out to meddle.

Both families were down-and-out households, and no one cared about them at all. So Liu Xiaochun was fearless.