Chapter 88 two old men

"Crime is fun," Morley said. Buck grunted without retorting, since Molly would explain what he meant anyway, and Buck had plenty of time. The two of them sat on two folding chairs against the wall. In front of them was the green lawn, and beyond that were the iron railings and the street. The iron railings surrounded the entire retirement center. This center is so nice that most people who live here don't want to leave. This morning, the lawn was glistening with dew, and the sun had not yet passed through the leaves of Yimi.Molly and Buck sat under the tree, and the others were still having breakfast in the dining room.

Molly picked up the binoculars on his lap and looked across at the apartment.Molly was skinny, with a large floral sweater on his shoulders, white hair tousled, a wrinkled face, blue eyes, and at seventy-five years old, he looked youthful without being dull or dull. "That woman on the fifth floor," he said, "is on the balcony again. She must be sunbathing in a bikini at the same time every morning." "What's so special about bikinis, there are plenty of them on the beach," Barker said. Molly handed him the binoculars and said, "It's not like that on the beach."

Buck picked up the binoculars and looked at the apartment. "I don't like her being tanned. A woman with such a good figure should be white, tender and soft." He said, put down the binoculars, and reclined on the back of the chair.He was short, with a flabby face and sweat glistening on his bald head.Buck is afraid of heat, and even in the shade in the morning he sweats.He would rather go back to the house with Molly and talk.He carefully stroked the side of the iron-gray hair, as if the thinning hair was some kind of treasure. "It's also boring," he said. "What can I do?"

"Crime," Morley said. "I should have lived a life of crime, otherwise, I would not be here now. What do I have now? A few pensions, a few social welfare payments, all given to this center. The money in my pocket, what else? Not enough to buy a bus ticket into the city. Even if you have money to hitch a ride, what are you going to do if you don’t have any money in your pocket? " "I have money," Buck said. "My son sent me five dollars for allowance." "What's the use of that," Molly complained. "We both worked hard all our lives, what's left?

Two sleeves Qingfeng, nothing.We are honest and law-abiding people, but we have nowhere to go.The little money we have saved is used up by inflation.I'll tell you, Buck, the head of the center called me into the office yesterday, and told me to pay another ten dollars a week or leave.Where can I get ten dollars?If I don't live here, where will I live? " "He's going up ten dollars a week? That didn't tell me." "I will." Buck sighed: "Then we both have to get out of here together, and I can't afford ten dollars a week." "You have a son to help, but I don't."

"No, he has a family to support himself, and he can't pay ten dollars more a week." "Give me the binoculars," Molly said. He looked at the apartment opposite again.He said: "Every morning, as soon as her husband goes out, the young man comes. Then the curtains are drawn down. Think about it, aren't they tired every morning?" "You were young before," Buck said. "You know what it is." "I've never been to that," he put down the binoculars. "If I go to her and tell her, if I don't get ten dollars a week, I'll tell her husband about it.

Do you think she would agree? " "Extortion?" Buck was taken aback. "Why not? There are so many thieves in the country, you can read about them in the newspapers every day. Big consortia manipulate money, businessmen evade taxes, police take bribes, even if they are caught, it doesn't matter. There are also drug dealers, Bank robbers, fraudsters. Buck, I tell you, they're right. When they're old and they've got enough money, they won't have to worry about adding ten dollars a week. I've been thinking, last night There was a message that a man walked into the bank and handed a note to the teller saying he had a gun and would shoot if he didn't give him all the money. So she did, and when he got it, he took Five thousand yuan to escape into the crowd. How easy! Do you think, in such a big city, he will be caught?

Tell you, never!Really, I should have thought of doing that a long time ago. " "So you want to rob a bank?" Buck asked. "Why not? It just takes a little guts, and I have a little." "You don't have a gun, and even if we pooled our money together, we couldn't afford a gun. If you had a gun, you wouldn't be able to use it. You've got arthritis and you can't hold a gun steady, and you don't know anything about guns." "I've been thinking about it," Molly said. "I don't need a gun. I can build a little package and tell the cashier I have a bomb in it. She'll pay for it, I think."

"You really mean it." Molly held up the binoculars, looked at it for a long time, and said, "I mean it. Think for yourselves, the two of us sitting here. Worrying about the ten dollars a week added, if you don't have any money, you'll get out, you'll be kicked out." Let's go. At that time, we had to find a house in the slums, afraid to go out day and night, for fear of being robbed. At the same time, due to the soaring prices, we were bound to starve to death slowly. For a mere ten yuan, we could not live in this good place, Looked after! It's not the best here, but would you like to go, Buck?"

"No," said Buck. "When they play chess, poker, it's a little noisy, but that's because I don't like that kind of thing." He looked around, and the other chairs started to fill up, and people started walking around. "There are people like us here. I really doubt they can get ten yuan." "I don't know, and I don't care. I didn't sleep last night, I was only thinking about myself, and I came to a conclusion." He handed the binoculars to Buck. "Look at the house past the apartment house." sign, tell me what you see."

Buck took the telescope. "What's so cool about a car wash?" "The other way," Molly said irritably. Buck turned around, looked at it for a while, and then put it down: "You mean the bank?" "Yes, we don't even need a fare to go there." "us?" "I need your help." "But I don't know anything about banks." "To rob a bank, you don't need to know anything. Do you think the people who rob banks know more than we do? They just go in and rob, cleanly." "Go in and rob. It's easier said than done. The bank has guards and police, and they have guns and they'll shoot." "It was easy," Morley said. "That's why there are so many people robbing banks. I made a plan last night. We will continue to do it and we will succeed." "What if we're arrested?" "We won't get arrested," Molly shrugged. "Even if we are caught, what can they do to us? How long can we live?What does it matter if you spend a few years in prison?At least in those days we don't have to worry about the ten yuan increase in board and lodging fees every week. "He took the binoculars from Buck and looked out at the bank again, a little smile on his face." We're not going to get caught, though, and I've considered all the possibilities. I've considered savings banks, retail stores, bars. , or even a car wash, there is no place where it is easier to start than a bank. " "If you want to rob anybody, I suggest you go to the Green Heather and rob one of our butchers, that rascal, who's always short of money." "How much money does a butcher have?" “They have cash” "Forget it, it's best to rob a bank. This small bank has only one entrance. At noon, the sidewalk is crowded with people. The guards or police will not shoot randomly at the crowd, so it is easy to escape." "I have varicose veins on my legs, you expect me to run fast?" "You don't have to run," Molly said impatiently. "Go slowly so as not to attract attention. If you need to run, I'll run." Buck said disdainfully, "You're going to have a heart attack." A white-haired old woman on crutches walked beside them with difficulty, then sat down on a chair as if relieved, and smiled at them. Molly leaned close to Buck's ear and whispered, "Go back to my room, I don't want Miss America to hear our conversation." Molly's room was on the second floor, small but cozy.The host sits on the bed and the guest sits on the only chair. "I'm not sure about that," protested Buck. "I always feel that something is wrong." "Banks don't lose money," Morley said. "They're all insured, and besides, we don't get much, just a few thousand yuan, and it's enough to pay for a few years. You and I are going to die soon anyway." "I feel good physically," Barker said. "You can live another twenty years, and so can you." Molly gestured impatiently, interrupting Buck. "That's your wishful thinking. All we care about is the ten yuan added every week." "At such a great age, I don't want to become a bad person and commit crimes." "Did you save money in the bank when you were young?" "Saved, but not often." "The bank uses your money to make money, but only pays you a little interest. What you are doing now is just charging a little more interest. Don't you think you have the right to take back more?" "Think about it," Buck said thoughtfully, touching his chin. "Just, how are you going to do this?" Molly reached into the drawer and took out a rectangular box wrapped in brown paper. He smiled triumphantly and said, "This is my bomb." "It looks like a shoebox wrapped in paper." Molly's face darkened. "It's supposed to be a shoebox, but the bank teller won't know what's in it." "What's inside?" "Nothing," Molly admitted. "I don't think there is any need to put anything." As he said, he took out a note from his pocket and handed it to Buck. "Here's my note." Buck narrowed his eyes and stretched his arms to look.It read: "There's a bomb in the box, put all your money in a paper bag, don't shout until I leave, or I'm going to blow up the whole bank and blow everyone up, including you." Barker said, "Isn't it too long? You don't have to tell her she's going to die if you blow up there, she knows that. If it were me, I wouldn't write those lines." "Just as long as she understands," said Molly petulantly. "Okay, you give her a note. What about the paper bag?" "Right here." Molly handed him a greasy bag. "I got it in the kitchen this morning." Buck wrinkled his nose. "It's hard to find anything, but I want to find them to hold fish." Molly said impatiently, "That's good enough, she puts the money in and I'm off." "and then?" "You have to wait outside. I will give you the paper bag. Even if I am caught, there is no evidence." "The guards will shoot you." "As long as the cashier thinks I have a bomb, no." "He'll chase outside." "In a crowd, he can't do anything, he dares not do anything." "You are crazy." "That's the way to succeed. Do you think other people have a better way? I often study these kinds of things in the newspapers, and they have no special way." "When you hand me money, they grab me." "No one will notice. Just cross the road and come back here. I'll meet you when I escape." "You'll join me in the cell." "No," Molly said. "They don't think of old people robbing, they think old people only do petty theft. Only the cashier saw me, and then she was too frightened to recognize anything.As for us, we became two old people who went out for a walk in the afternoon. " Buck didn't speak. "Ten dollars a week," Morley said. "We only need ten dollars a week. The bank won't make a fuss about a few thousand dollars." "You're crazy," Buck said. "I don't believe you would do such a thing." "Of course, I'm crazy. I'm really going to do it. I want to get what I need like everyone else. If you don't want to help, I will do it by myself." Buck touched his face, tugged at his collar, brushed his precious hair, and looked melancholy. "Okay," he finally agreed. "If you insist on going to jail, I'll go with you so you won't be alone. Is today a good day?" "Today is as good a day as any. Let's go downstairs and wait until the moment comes." Just after twelve they walked across the lawn and through the gate.Molly was in front and Buck was behind. Molly clutched the empty shoebox to her chest, the paper bag in her hand.The two walked across the street slowly, paying attention to the traffic lights. Buck lowered his head and followed behind with a limp. In front of the revolving door of the bank, Molly turned his head and gave Buck a meaningful look. It was quiet inside, and there was an absent-minded queue at the teller's window.The cashier at the three windows smiled professionally at the customers.Molly stood in the row near the door. His palms were sweating, his stomach tightened like indigestion, and he remembered forgetting to take his stomach medicine that morning. When he explained it to Buck, things seemed very simple, but now, it seemed not so simple. Add ten yuan for room and board every week, he thought. He is fourth.In front of him was a tall figure, blocking the view between him and the teller.Feeling a little agitated, Molly turned away slightly.The cashier was young, with a lively, cheerful appearance, short blond hair, and a healthy complexion. The team moves forward. Molly glanced out. Buck was standing by the door, looking in, his bald head gleaming.Molly thought: Stupid, that's going to get people's attention. Now it was the tall man's turn, and Molly craned his neck to look at the cashier. Her complexion no longer had a healthy luster, but was pale.She was stuffing bills into a paper bag - and not counting them. Not at all! Molly became alert. When the girl gave money to others, she always counted it twice calmly. Why did she stuff it in the bag without counting it now? Her eyes were fixed on her busy hands, as if afraid to look up, and Molly noticed that she was shaking a little. The man reached into the counter and took the paper bag from the lady.She looked up so her eyes just met Molly's, and he saw that those eyes were full of terror and plaintiveness. The man turned and walked away.For some reason, Molly followed the man. He knew that the man had forced the cashier to give him money, but he didn't know how the man did it. Molly thought angrily: That is my money, he has no right to take it. The man hurried to the door.At this moment Buck entered the bank, fixed his eyes on Molly, raised a hand, and took a step forward, just blocking the man's path.The man cursed and pushed Buck violently. Buck staggered a few steps, and then fell to the ground with a bang. Molly remembered a trick from his youth. At that time, he used to walk behind others, stretch out his foot, hook the other's ankle, and force the other person's body to lose his balance and fall.The trick required luck and good timing, and Molly was an expert at it. Now, when he made this move, the man was hooked unexpectedly, leaned forward, hit his head on the copper frame of the revolving door, there was a loud bang, the paper bag fell from the man's hand, and the banknotes scattered all over the ground .The small pistol slid across the marble floor, making a crisp sound. The cashier lady behind Molly finally woke up from the shock and screamed loudly.A uniformed guard came running up. Buck stood up in pain, looked down at the person lying on the ground, then at Molly, shrugged and said, "What's so strange?" As he spoke, his whole body trembled and his face turned pale. It was a sunny morning, and the lawn grass was still glistening with dew.Molly and Buck sat in chairs as usual. Looking into the distance through binoculars, Moore said: "She's out again, still in a bikini." "I'm not interested," Buck replied. "I still have pain all over my body. It's no good for an elderly person to do that kind of thing." "That man deserves it. Now he is in prison. What can you do with him?" "Maybe you're in jail, not him." "I don't think so. You should have noticed that if I hadn't hooked him, he would have run away. Nobody hooked me. I still think it was a good idea. They didn't ask me why I was there. I told But you, Buck, no one suspects a man of seventy-five. I ask you, what are you doing in a bank? You spoil our plans." "I was going in there to stop you. People of our age shouldn't be committing crimes, and besides, we can't do it well." "I don't think so, we've got a lot of capable people here, and we ought to form a gang—" "That's all right," said Buck listlessly, "and we can get away in wheelchairs, don't talk nonsense." "So, you can bear the suffering of money, spirit and body?" Buck shrugged and said, "After seventy-five, it doesn't matter if we suffer a little bit. We can figure out a way to get through it." Molly sighed and said, "At least we won't have to worry about money for a while. The bank manager told me he'd pay ten per cent. That should be a thousand dollars. Also, the newspaper will pay me how to get the money." A check for a gangster story, an old man who rarely does justice and is desperate to catch gangsters. They don't know I'm angry because he took our money and pushed you again. So, we can still sit here quietly Stay still for a while." "We can stay longer," said Buck, and handing Molly a wad of bills from his pocket, which said a thousand dollars on the tape. "Picked it up off the ground when I was down. Do you think they'll look it up?" "Of course it will be checked, but there are many people there, and anyone can take it away." "I think we should back off." Molly thought for a while and said, "Don't worry, we left the money. We don't need it now, maybe never. Then we can leave a will and return it to the bank. We will treat it as an interest-free loan." .” "Well," said Buck. "Now we can sit down and watch in peace and peace. Give me the telescope." "There's something we have to do," Molly said. "Buy another pair of binoculars, your eyesight is different from mine, and I have to adjust the focus every time." Buck said angrily, "I'm bothered about this too. We'll go shopping this afternoon." "After the midday crowd," Morley said. "There will be a lot of beautiful young girls out for a walk." "Yes, God bless those pretty girls, it's a good thing you didn't rob the bank." "why?" "What is there to see in prison in case of arrest?"