Afternoon.
It was nearly four o'clock.
Second by second, time passed, and the situation seemed to be escalating.
More than a hundred residents gathered inside and outside the alley. Led by Aunt Zheng and several other elderly men and women, more than a dozen old residents began pointing at the traffic cops and the five drivers, cursing them out. Capital City residents were already known for being good at cursing, and with so many people joining in, the air was instantly filled with Capital City profanity, flooding the entire alley from front to back. They cursed their ancestors all the way down to their descendants, leaving the drivers with no room to talk back.
"Idiot!"
"Move your cars already!"
"You can't park here!"
"Park at your own damn workplace! Stop throwing your weight around here!"
"You blocked our doorways, and you're still acting all high and mighty? Get lost!"
Even a little girl of four or five, holding her mother's hand, somehow chimed in with a childish, "Idiot!" Her mother promptly smacked her on the butt. That was Capital City for you—from old to young, men to women, practically everyone knew how to curse. It was just the local way of speaking.
Wave after wave of curses rang out.
The scene suddenly felt like a packed football stadium.
The drivers could no longer take it. Every one of them looked thoroughly embarrassed.
The traffic cop hurriedly shouted, "What are you doing? Huh? What do you all think you're doing?"
The young traffic cop saw that this might turn into a mass incident and began to worry. He lowered his voice to the drivers. "Brother Wang, Brother Sun, how about moving the cars first? The road's blocked, so the cars behind can't get through either. Everyone's pretty worked up. Maybe..."
Lao