books44 Chapter 315 Madness
Chapter 315 Madness
Forced back to the factory by his children, Song Wanxing sat on the edge of the bed, growing angrier the more he thought about it. He got up and started smashing, breaking, and stomping on the flower baskets, buckets, hampers, and crates that had been made in the factory.
But instead of feeling better, he became even angrier because the bamboo strips pierced his hand. "You cripple, how dare you yell at me and hit me! And my mother and those little devils, they're all so annoying. If they won't let me have a good time, then none of you will have a good time either."
He vented his anger in the room, his eyes landing on a matchbox in the corner.
To shape bamboo products, they need to be singed over a fire to soften the bamboo strips and make them more flexible. Because he uses them frequently, Song Wanli keeps a box of them in a corner.
Song Wanxing picked up the matchbox and shook it. There were still matches inside. He took out two, and with a "hissing" sound, he ran them across the side of the matchbox. They lit! The sparks were beautiful!
He watched with fascination, and then, with a 'whoosh, whoosh, whoosh,' he threw the lit matchstick into the pile of flower baskets, and it caught fire!
He took out a few more matchsticks, rubbed them together in the matchbox, and then threw them into the dried bamboo container. Crackling and popping, a big fire broke out! Hahaha... It's so much fun, like the sound of firecrackers during Chinese New Year.
Adhering to the principle of honesty and fair dealing, Song Wanli used nan bamboo to make the products. After completion, he placed them in a cool, ventilated place to air dry before selling them, which prevented the bamboo strips from getting moldy.
But these bamboo strips were more flammable, and the fire spread rapidly. Song Wanxing jumped around wildly; he hadn't felt this relaxed in a long time. Listening to the crackling sounds in the fire, he felt very warm and enjoyed himself immensely.
Yali was the first to discover the fire. She was so angry that she couldn't sleep. Her window faced the factory. How could it be on fire? She had been warned countless times since she was a child about what a factory fire meant. Terrified, she rushed to knock on her brother's and uncle's doors.
Song Wanli, thinking that Song Wanxing had already caused a scene that night, went to rest in peace.
By the time family members arrived with buckets and basins, the fire was growing larger and spreading in all directions.
Song Wanli shouted until his voice cracked, "Fire! Fire!" Seeing that his own family couldn't handle the fire, he told Song Mingfu to quickly wake up the neighbors to help put it out, because if the fire spread to their houses, the losses would be even greater.
He couldn't run anymore and could only watch anxiously from the sidelines; his cane was blackened by the fire. Taking a deep breath, he calmed himself, thinking, "Money is just an external thing." He looked around but couldn't see Song Wanxing. He panicked—had he drunk too much and fallen asleep?
Seeing his uncle pacing anxiously back and forth, and finally about to crawl into the factory, Song Mingli quickly stopped him, "Uncle, let me do it!"
He bit his lip, poured a bucket of water over himself, and ran inside...
"Third Brother!"
"Ming Li!"
Song Mingli rushed into the factory and saw Song Wanxing standing there laughing and jumping, with matches scattered all around him. He understood everything immediately. He had set the fire on purpose. Why hadn't he been burned to death first?
Song Mingli wanted to turn around and leave, but he knew his uncle would definitely come back in. He had no choice but to rush up, deliver a powerful chop to the back of his neck, and then drag him out.
Flames shot into the sky, and the villagers, awakened by the fire, spontaneously brought basins and buckets to help put it out.
The fire department was notified, but it will take some time for the fire brigade to arrive from the county seat.
With everyone working together, they first cleared away the flammable materials around the factory. Fortunately, it was still some distance from the main building. As a last resort, they decided to sacrifice the pawns to save the king!
Song Wanli watched the fire in the factory from the side. He was anxious but there was nothing he could do. He comforted himself that as long as everyone was safe, that was all that mattered.
The fire kept burning until the fire brigade arrived and extinguished it, by which time the bricks of the factory walls were charred.
Seeing his uncle's distraught state, Song Mingli poured a bucket of cold water on Song Wanxing's head, forcing him to look at the factory that was still emitting black smoke.
How much labor and money did his mother, uncle, and aunt spend making this? Is Song Wanxing's heart made of stone? He just burned it like that? His uncle even said that once he recovered, he would have a good talk with him, then they would go into business together and split the profits. He said that once they had money, Song Wanxing would settle down. Why should he? What does he have that makes his uncle go to such lengths for him?
The cold water forced Song Wanxing to confront the reality of the situation. He had done all of this? Staring at the still-smoking factory, he couldn't believe his eyes and collapsed to the ground.
"Woo...woo...woo..." The police car arrived.