Siheyuan: Start with a Truck Driver

Chapter 1203 Depressed Xu Damao

The capital city is so big.

Led by the third uncle, everyone searched with flashlights in the dark night for Xu Damao in every place he might go, including every street and alley and every corner.

But after searching for more than two hours, they still found nothing, and everyone's face was filled with fatigue and anxiety.

At this time, Qin Jingru's eyes lit up, as if she suddenly thought of something, and she hurriedly said, "Uncle, we can follow the route Damao takes after get off work and look for him. Maybe we can find some clues."

When the third uncle heard this, he thought it was a good idea, so he nodded and said, "Okay, let's do as you say. Let's split up into several groups and look carefully along the route he takes after get off work, and ask more people passing by."

So everyone followed the route Xu Damao took after get off work, looking for him all the way, asking people they met along the way about the situation.

It was late at night and there were few people on the road. It was a rare opportunity to run into someone, so everyone rushed over to ask questions.

While I was looking for it, I ran into Master Chen from the steel mill. Master Chen had just finished his night shift and was riding his bicycle slowly towards home, with a tired look on his face.

Everyone hurriedly stopped him, and the third uncle asked anxiously: "Master Chen, you just got off work, I want to ask you something, have you seen Xu Damao? He hasn't returned home yet, and his family is worried."

When Master Chen heard this, he recalled and said, "Oh, Xu Damao, I saw him when I was off work. He went to the woods over there with a woman. He looked quite happy."

When everyone heard this, their hearts skipped a beat, thinking that Xu Damao going into the woods with a woman so late at night must be up to no good.

When Sha Zhu, who was following behind, heard this, he immediately perked up and laughed at the top of his voice: "Hey, what did I say? Xu Damao is a stubborn guy. He has a wife and children, but he still goes into the woods with other women. Now, who knows what happened in there. He really deserves it, hahahaha."

When the third uncle heard this, his brows knitted tightly, his face darkened, and he turned around and scolded Sha Zhu, "Sha Zhu, it's already this hour, and you're still here making sarcastic remarks! The person hasn't been found yet, and his life or death is unknown. Can you be more serious and stop making sarcastic remarks here?"

After being scolded by the third uncle, Sha Zhu curled his lips and muttered: "I was telling the truth. Who can he blame for the things he did?"

But even though he said this, his voice became much softer and he didn't dare to continue laughing so wildly.

The third uncle ignored Sha Zhu and hurriedly led everyone towards the forest that Master Chen pointed out.

The woods were dark and eerily quiet. Only the rustling of people's footsteps could be heard in the silence, and occasionally there were the cries of night owls, which made people tremble with fear.

After the group cautiously walked deeper into the woods for a while, they faintly heard some noises, like someone groaning in pain, mixed with faint gasps.

The third uncle's heart tightened, and he quickly quickened his pace and ran towards the direction where the sound came from. As he ran, he took out the flashlight he carried with him from his pocket, turned on the switch, and a bright beam of light cut a hole in the dark woods.

As the beam of light shone over, everyone followed and looked towards the light. They saw Xu Damao lying on the ground in a miserable state, his nose and face were bruised, and his face was covered in blood and dirt. His clothes, which were originally neat, were torn into tatters. He looked extremely weak and seemed to be dying.

Seeing this, Qin Jingru screamed, rushed forward, and knelt beside Xu Damao, tears welling up in her eyes.

With trembling hands, she gently lifted up Xu Damao's head and cried out in tears, "Da Mao, Damao, what happened to you? Who made you like this?"

There's nothing I can do, Qin Jingru is such a soft-hearted person.

Xu Damao opened his eyes with difficulty and saw that it was Qin Jingru. He opened his mouth and wanted to speak, but only a faint breath came out and he couldn't utter a complete sentence. Then he closed his eyes weakly, as if he had exhausted the strength to even open his eyes.

The third uncle frowned and shone the flashlight around to see if there was any clue as to who did it. He kept muttering, "Who is so cruel to beat someone like this? It's outrageous."

The others also gathered around, their faces filled with shock and confusion.

Sha Zhu stood aside, looking at the bruised and swollen Xu Damao, with a mocking look on his face again, pouting his lips and laughing again: "Humph, I told you, Xu Damao, you deserve it. You must have messed with the girls and wives again, and the family members couldn't stand it, so they made you into this state. You, a dog can't change its nature."

As soon as these words came out, some people around frowned, thinking that Sha Zhu's words were a bit too much, but no one immediately spoke up to stop him.

At this moment, Xu Damao, who was lying on the ground weakly, slowly woke up. When he heard Sha Zhu's sarcastic words, flames of anger suddenly ignited in his eyes. He didn't know where he got the strength from, but he jumped up from the ground and rushed towards Sha Zhu, waving his fist and using all his strength to punch Sha Zhu hard.

The punch hit Sha Zhu's face hard. Sha Zhu didn't expect Xu Damao to have such strength. He staggered and took several steps back before he could steady himself.

He felt a burning pain on his face and was immediately furious. He widened his eyes and roared, "Xu Damao, you are such a fool. You dare to attack me even after being beaten like this. I must teach you a lesson today!"

As he said that, he clenched his fists and rushed towards Xu Damao with a fierce momentum, as if he wanted to beat Xu Damao severely to relieve the hatred in his heart.

Seeing that Sha Zhu was about to hit Xu Damao, the third uncle was quick-witted and stepped forward, stretched out his hands to stop Sha Zhu, and shouted: "Sha Zhu, stop it! It's already late, and you still want to fight? Xu Damao has been beaten like this, and you still want to add fuel to the fire? If you have anything to say, we can talk about it when we get back. Now it's important to get him back." Although Sha Zhu was still furious after being stopped by the third uncle, he couldn't force himself to take action. He glared at Xu Damao angrily and cursed: "Xu Damao, just wait, I will never let you go!"

Xu Damao was not to be outdone. He covered his aching body and panted as he replied, "Humph, Silly Zhu, don't add insult to injury. This matter today has nothing to do with you. Stop meddling in other people's business."

The third uncle looked at the two men, sighed helplessly, and said, "Alright, alright, both of you stop arguing and go back first. Xu Damao needs to find a doctor to check his injuries. Stop fighting here. What kind of people are you?"

After hearing what the Third Uncle said, everyone agreed and persuaded Sha Zhu and Xu Damao, which temporarily calmed down their anger.

Afterwards, Xu Damao was rushed to the community hospital by everyone.

In the hospital, the doctor on duty was shocked when he saw Xu Damao's miserable appearance, and he hurriedly examined him and treated his wounds.

After a simple bandage, cleaning of the blood on his face and body, and some anti-inflammatory and analgesic drugs, Xu Damao was finally able to stand up and returned home accompanied by everyone.

As soon as she entered the house, Qin Jingru slammed the door shut. The sound was particularly harsh in the quiet house.

With a gloomy face, she turned around and picked up a small wooden stick that she usually used to scare children from the corner. She pointed at Xu Damao and started to scold him: "Xu Damao, you are really something! You didn't go home in the middle of the night and ran into the woods with a woman. What on earth do you want to do? Now you are beaten like a pig. You don't feel ashamed, but I do!"

Xu Damao was already covered in wounds, and after being scolded by Qin Jingru, he felt so wronged. He hung his head and hurriedly explained, "Jingru, you misunderstood me. I really don't know who that woman is. I didn't provoke her. I was just walking home from get off work, and she suddenly came up to me and said a few words, and then took me to the woods. How could I know that this would happen later? I really haven't provoked any women recently."

But Qin Jingru was so angry that she couldn't listen to Xu Damao's explanation. The more she thought about it, the angrier she became. She swung the stick in her hand at Xu Damao and cursed, "You are still trying to argue. You didn't provoke me. How could I beat you up like this for no reason? I think you are a stubborn person who keeps telling lies!"

Xu Damao was beaten so hard that he kept yelling “Ouch, ouch”. He kept begging for mercy while hiding: “Jingru, calm down, calm down, I’m telling the truth. I’m still confused and don’t know who did this.”

Qin Jingru ignored him and hit Xu Damao with a stick several times, saying, "Hmph, don't even think about going to bed tonight. Just sleep on the floor. Reflect on your own actions. I was really blind to marry such a restless thing like you!"

Seeing that Qin Jingru was determined not to let him get on the bed, Xu Damao grimaced in pain after being hit by the sticks. He dared not say anything more. He could only hang his head helplessly, limp to the corner, and slowly lie down, his heart full of grievance and helplessness.

Thinking about the inexplicable beating and making Qin Jingru so angry, I really feel so unlucky.

The next day, Xu Damao limped out of the house with a bandage on his head and bruises all over his face. He looked very funny and a bit embarrassed.

As soon as I walked into the yard, I ran into Jia Zhang.

When Jia Zhang saw Xu Damao's miserable state, she was stunned for a moment, and then a gloating expression appeared on her face. She put her hands on her hips and started to curse at him: "Hey, Xu Damao, what's wrong with you? You are being punished! Humph, you are so smug on weekdays. You don't even know your last name after making a little money. You don't even know how to show respect to me, your elder, and you don't even spend your money on me. Now you are beaten into this state. You deserve it!"

Xu Damao was already furious because he was beaten for no apparent reason yesterday. Now he was scolded by Jia Zhangshi, and he was immediately furious.

He glared at Jia Zhang and replied unhappily, "Jia Zhang, watch your mouth. What has my suffering got to do with you? Why should I spend the money I earn on you? You are not related to me. Stop making sarcastic remarks here. If you have the time, you might as well take care of your own family affairs."

When Jia Zhang heard this, she became even more excited. She took two steps forward, and her fingers almost poked Xu Damao's face.

He continued to curse, "Hey, Xu Damao, you dare to talk back, don't you? I am an elder in this courtyard after all, so what's wrong with me saying a few words to you? If you usually know how to respect your elders, would you end up like this? I think you have done too many bad things in your daily life, and God can't stand it anymore, so he sent people to punish you."

Xu Damao was so angry that his face turned red. He wanted to refute, but he was at a loss for words. After all, his wounds were still painful, and there was no point in arguing with her. He could only snort coldly and said, "Hmph, I don't want to bother with you. I have things to do. I won't waste my breath here with you."

Having said that, he wanted to bypass Jia Zhang and go out of the yard.

Jia Zhang refused to give in and continued to yell, "Why are you leaving? You dare not take responsibility for what you did. Who knows how much suffering you will have to endure in the future, hum!" Some of the residents around who heard the noise also poked their heads out.

Xu Damao knew very well that Jia Zhang was a notorious scoundrel. If he continued to argue with her, there would be no end to it and he would just get angry for nothing. So he simply pretended that he didn't hear her harsh words, suppressed his unhappiness, and limped straight out of the yard.

Along the way, Xu Damao felt very uncomfortable with the strange looks from others, but he could not care less. He just wanted to go to the factory and ask for leave so that he could recover at home. When he arrived at the steel mill, Xu Damao went straight to the workshop director's office.

After entering the office, the workshop director was shocked to see Xu Damao's bruised face and gauze wrapped around his head. He quickly stood up and asked, "Xu Damao, what happened to you? How did you become like this?"

Xu Damao looked helpless and said bitterly, "Director, you don't know, I was beaten up by some people who came out of nowhere on my way home from get off work yesterday.

My body is covered with wounds and I really can't come to work, so I came to ask for leave today so that I can stay at home and recuperate."

The workshop director frowned, looked around Xu Damao, and said with concern: "Oh, this is a serious matter. Have you called the police? We need to find those guys who beat him up."

Xu Damao sighed, shook his head and said, "I was so stunned at the time that I didn't even have time to call the police. By the time I came to my senses, the man had already run away. I had no clue what was going on. I could only focus on recovering from my injuries first."