The Headman's toothache eventually drove him to want to
blackmail Luo and the narrator after discovering them telling "anti-revolutionary trash". It's ironic, because Luo and the
Narrator were sent to re-education because their parents were educated,
learned people. Luo's father was a famous
dentist. Yet after the
dismissal of these experienced professionals, the cretins left in the
hospitals and medical facilities were unable to properly tend to the
population's woes. When the narrator and Luo are asked to help fix
his toothache, the narrator is told to pedal a makeshift drill made with parts of the tailors sewing machine. Suddenly, he discovers how easy it was to abuse the
power one is given. He ends up
torturing the Headman for revenge by pedaling the drill slower and slower....
