r18novel Chapter 992 Xu Damao gives Gu Nan a gift
Chapter 992 Xu Damao gives Gu Nan a gift
Xu Damao chuckled first, his tone laced with sarcasm. He deliberately raised his voice so that the passing households in the courtyard could hear him: "Besides, Second Uncle, back when the factory showed open-air movies, you brought your two kids, like eels, to squeeze in front of the projector, making the people in the front row curse. Did I ask you for the tickets back then?"
He took half a step closer to Yan Bugui, his eyes brimming with undisguised sarcasm: "Back then, you were stuffing snacks for the two kids into your mouth, praising me as 'Da Mao knows how to handle things,' and you didn't say I was being unreasonable. Now, you're criticizing me for such a trivial matter? If I had really made a mistake, would the police have released me so easily? They would have detained me and put me in jail long ago!"
These words struck Yan Bugui squarely in the heart like a punch. He opened his mouth, wanting to retort, but the fact that he had ripped off Xu Damao at the movie screening was true, and he had indeed praised Xu Damao quite a bit back then. Now that it had been exposed in public, his face flushed red and then turned pale. He twisted his hands in his sleeves, unsure of what to do. A few low laughs drifted from the surroundings, making his face burn even more.
Seeing his embarrassment, Xu Damao finally felt a little better and lost interest in arguing with him. He picked up the net bag in his hand—containing the two pounds of apples he had just bought, which he planned to use to apologize to Gu Nan's family—and quickened his pace, almost walking briskly towards Gu Nan's house, afraid that if he slowed down even a step, he would be pestered by this second uncle again. He muttered to himself: This Yan Bugui, he really can't resist a bargain, it's a waste of breath to even say a word to him.
Yan Bugui watched Xu Damao's retreating figure, his anger flaring. He had been thinking of nagging a few more times, hoping to get some benefit from Xu Damao, even just two apples would do, but the other party didn't respond at all and turned to leave. He stood there, his throat feeling like it was stuffed with cotton, wanting to curse but unable to utter a word, and could only watch helplessly as Xu Damao entered Gu Nan's courtyard.
"Pah! What a load of crap!" Yan Bugui spat on the ground and stormed back home. The further he walked, the more aggrieved he felt—he had originally wanted to gain some advantage, but he hadn't gotten anything and had been rendered speechless by Xu Damao. If word got out, the people in the courtyard would probably laugh their heads off.
Reaching his own doorstep, he suddenly stopped, belatedly shivering: Had he lost his mind? Had he actually thought of picking a fight with Gu Nan? Although Gu Nan wasn't the patriarch of the courtyard house, he was the deputy director of the steel rolling mill, wielding real power. If he offended him, Gu Nan could easily find a pretext to make him suffer at the factory.
"I'm getting senile!" Yan Bugui slapped his thigh and pushed open the door in a huff. The dim light inside illuminated his face, which was filled with regret—today's affair was a classic case of trying to steal a chicken but losing the rice instead; he'd better just stay put.
Xu Damao carried a bulging net bag, his steps light as if he were walking on cotton. As soon as he entered the courtyard, he straightened his back, but his eyes unconsciously darted to the windows of each household—he wanted everyone in the courtyard to see that he was going to deliver gifts to Deputy Factory Director Gu. The net bag contained gleaming canned fruit, a sweet aroma emanating from the oil paper wrappings of milk candy, and two packets of steamed rice cakes carefully wrapped in oil paper, with bits of golden, flaky crust peeking out from the edges—all rare items that could only be obtained through connections in those days.
The commotion didn't escape Jia Zhangshi's notice. She was leaning on her paper-covered windowsill, rubbing her still-aching buttocks—the spot where a stray bullet had grazed her during the chaos was still bruised and purple—while craning her neck to watch the commotion in the yard. Seeing Xu Damao carrying so many good things straight to Gu Nan's house, she immediately smirked in anger, muttering through the crack in the window, "What the hell! My injury hasn't even fully healed yet, and everyone in the yard is acting like they didn't see it, rushing to curry favor with Gu Nan—what's so great about an injured guy like him? He's just a lousy deputy factory director, what's he so smug about!"
She grew angrier and angrier, spitting on the window paper as she began to curse Gu Nan again, but her voice was so low it was barely audible, like a mosquito's hum. After all, Gu Nan was the deputy director of the factory, wielding real power, and notoriously difficult to deal with. Last time, she had been glared at by him for being too talkative, and the thought of that look still made her shudder. She wouldn't dare to openly challenge him, even if she had the guts. After cursing Gu Nan for a while, she vented her anger on Xu Damao: "It's all Xu Damao's fault! If he hadn't interfered with showing that open-air movie, would I have gotten shot for no reason? Now look what's happened, he's bringing gifts to curry favor with me, and I'm in so much pain I can't even sit up! Who can I complain to? There's no justice in this place!"
As he was cursing, Xu Damao reached Gu Nan's doorstep. Just as he was about to step forward, he was blocked by Heizi, a black dog about half his height. Xu Damao shrank back in fright, his hand unconsciously pressing against his waistband—last time, this dog had chased him around the yard three times, tearing his trousers to shreds; the thought still made his legs weak. But this time, Heizi merely glanced at him sideways, its amber eyes filled with disdain, as if looking at an insignificant object. Xu Damao then remembered that this dog was shrewd; it knew he was looking for Gu Nan. So, it lazily lay down beside the doorstep, resting its head on its front paws, not even bothering to lift its eyelids, leaving only its tail gently sweeping the ground.
Xu Damao was stunned for a moment. Seeing that the black dog ignored him, he breathed a sigh of relief, tiptoed to the door, tapped lightly on the door panel with his fingers, and put on a smile sweeter than honey: "Deputy Factory Director Gu, it's me, Xu Damao."
Inside, Gu Nan had just placed the last plate of braised ribbonfish on the table, oil splattered on his apron without him wiping it away. Hearing a knock on the door, Ran Qiuye was about to get up when he waved his hand, saying, "I'll open it."
Ran Qiuye then turned and went to the inner room to pick up the child—the little guy had somehow woken up and was crying loudly for his mother, his little voice red from crying.
Gu Nan opened the door, the doorframe creaking open. He saw Xu Damao and the net in his hand, his face expressionless, but he raised an eyebrow slightly and asked calmly, "Xu Damao, is something the matter?"
Xu Damao tried to go inside, but before he could even step halfway across the threshold, Gu Nan subtly blocked his way—Gu Nan simply took a half-step back, effectively cutting off his path. Normally, everyone in the compound would give Xu Damao some face. But this man was the deputy factory director, in charge of the film projection team, so he could only stand awkwardly at the door, forcing a smile and saying, "Deputy Factory Director Gu, I made a mistake recently, so I bought some things to come and apologize."