In this chapter, the story is told from the point of view of the protagonist, who is a farmer in a village in central China. One day, a group of farmers are working in a field when they hear a loud noise, and the villagers are shocked to see a huge snake with a helmet and a bucket on its head. The protagonist does not do much farming, but he is not afraid to get his own medicine. He rides a tricycle to pick up the snake, and no one dares to stop him. The villagers laugh at him, and he tells them that he had a dream the night before in which the snake almost strangled him. They do not take his words seriously, but the protagonist reminds them that they have not paid for months, and that he is always like this. After the villagers hear of his death, they sell his house, and a bricklayer is hired to renovate it. When the bricklayer lifts the roof of the house, he finds a large snakeskin on the beam.