by Yu Hua
"He not only caused his parents to lose face," one of the onlookers added. "He even lost face on behalf of Writer Liu."
"That's right," the onlookers agreed.
Writer Liu's face became mottled with fury. He knew that these little bastards were simply trying to incite a fight, and cautioned himself that he must not, under any circumstances, act rashly and open himself up for another beating from Baldy Li. But with everyone staring at him, he felt it was necessary to come forward and say a few words. Therefore, he rose to the occasion, stepping forward and loudly agreeing with everyone, "Yes, Poet Zhao has lost face on behalf of all the Men of Letters in the world."
With this declaration, Writer Liu lived up to the title of one of Liu Town's Men of Talent. In a single sentence he evoked all writers and poets from the past and present, in China and abroad, to serve as his human shields. Seeing everyone standing there dumbfounded, Liu realized that with one stroke he had succeeded in turning the tables in his favor. Now that he'd gotten started, he was so proud that he couldn't stop: "Even Lu Xun has lost face with this, as well Li Bai and Du Fu, not to mention Qu Yuan. Mr. Qu drowned himself on account of his love for his country, but still Poet Zhao caused him to lose face by association. There are also foreign writers, such as Tolstoy and Shakespeare, and even Dante and Homer, who have now lost face on account of Poet Zhao!"
The onlookers burst into laughter, and even Baldy Li joined in. He appreciated Writer Liu's comments and said happily, "I didn't realize that I had made so many famous people lose face."
At this point Song Gang rode by on his shiny Eternity bicycle. He saw that the crowds had completely blocked off the street, so he repeatedly rang his bell. Song Gang was in a hurry to get to the knitting factory to pick up Lin Hong. When Baldy Li heard the sound of the bicycle bell, he knew that it was Song Gang. Supporting himself with the wutong tree, he stood up and called out, "Song Gang, Song Gang, I haven't eaten anything all day."
CHAPTER 43
IT HAD BEEN more than a year since Song Gang and Lin Hongs wedding, and their Eternity bicycle had been flashing through the streets of Liu for two years. Song Gang carefully wiped his bicycle down every day until it gleamed like the morning after a cleansing rain. Every day Lin Hong rode behind him, hugging his waist with both arms and pressing her cheek into his back, looking as screne as if she were pressing her head into a soft pillow. Their Eternity bicycle would not stop for wind or rain, and as the clear sound of the bell rang through the town, the town elders all remarked that the couple was indeed a match made in heaven.
Lin Hong was delighted to hear of Baldy Li's misfortunes. Before, whenever she heard his name, she would immediately become mortified, but now she would simply laugh and say, "I always knew that he would eventually come to this. That kind of person …" Lin Hong wouldn't continue—Baldy Li was a well-known hooligan, and if she said too much she might invite his fury to rain down on her.
One time Lin Hong turned around and asked Song Gang, "Don't you agree?"
Song Gang was silent. He was so troubled by Baldy Li's misfortunes that he lost all desire to eat or sleep. Displeased by Song Gang's silence, Lin Hong nudged him, "Say something!"
Song Gang had no choice but to nod but muttered, "When he was still a factory director, he was doing okay."
"Factory director?" Lin Hong said disparagingly. "How can you be considered a factory director if all you direct is something like the Good Works Factory?"
Song Gang looked at his beautiful wife and smiled gratefully at his own happiness. Lin Hong asked, "Why are you smiling?"
Song Gang replied, "I'm smiling at my own good fortune."
Though Song Gang was basking in connubial bliss, the thought of Baldy Li continued to haunt him like a shadow, and Song Gang felt as though a heavy stone were weighing down his heart. He secretly blamed Baldy Li for giving up his perfectly good job as factory director in order to try to start a business of his own, as a result of which he had lost every cent, now owed a fortune to his creditors, and furthermore had been beaten to a pulp.
One night Song Gang dreamed of Li Lan. At first, he dreamed of her holding his and Baldy Li's hands as they walked along the streets of Liu; then he dreamed of the scene immediately preceding her death, when she grasped his hand and made him promise to take good care of Baldy Li. In his dream, Song Gang began to cry miserably, and that woke up Lin Hong. She roused him and asked anxiously what was wrong. Song Gang shook his head. He pondered his dream, then told her that he had dreamed of Li Lan. Song Gang hesitated a moment, then told Lin Hong about the heartrending conclusion of the dream, when Li Lan grasped his hand and asked him to take good care of Baldy Li. Song Gang had promised her that even if he had just a single bowl of rice left he would give it to Baldy Li, and if he had just one last piece of clothing, he would also give it to Baldy Li. Lin Hong yawned and interrupted him, saying, "She wasn't even your mother."
Taken aback, Song Gang was about to respond when he heard her steady breathing and realized that she had fallen back to sleep; he therefore swallowed his retort. Lin Hong did not know much about Song Gang and Baldy Li's childhood and didn't appreciate how much their shared history meant to Song Gang. She simply knew that Song Gang was her husband and that he would embrace her every night when they went to bed, allowing her to rest peacefully.
Once they were married, Lin Hong took charge of the household finances. She felt that Song Gang, being so tall, probably got hungry faster than other people; therefore, she put twenty cents and two grain coupons in his pocket, saying that this was money to nourish his body, and if he was hungry he should go to an eatery and buy something. Lin Hong would conscientiously inspect his pocket every evening, and if had spent the money and grain coupons, she would replace them. For a long time, however, every time Lin Hong checked his pocket, she would find the same money and grain coupons. One day she finally became angry and asked him why he didn't spend the money.
"I wasn't hungry," Song Gang replied with a smile. "Ever since we got married, I haven't been hungry."
Lin Hong also smiled, but that night when she lay in bed, she tenderly stroked his chest and asked him to tell her honestly why he didn't spend the money. Song Gang hugged her and offered a variety of explanations. He said that Lin Hong was always so economical and could never bear to spend two cents when one cent would suffice. Nevertheless, she always gave Song Gang the best morsels of food, and whenever she went to the store, she would always think of what Song Gang needed and never buy anything for herself. To tell the truth, Song Gang couldn't help adding, he often felt hungry, but he could never bring himself to spend the money or grain coupons in his pocket.
Lin Hong said that since Song Gangs body belonged to her, he should take good care of himself for her sake. She therefore made him promise that when he was hungry, he would buy himself something to eat. Song Gang was dumbstruck by this, and all he could do was nod in response. Then Lin Hong fell asleep, as peaceful as an infant, with her breath gently blowing on his neck. For a long time Song Gang was unable to sleep and lay there embracing Lin Hong with his left arm and stroking her body with his right. Lin Hongs body was warm and smooth, like a flame.
Lin Hong continued checking Song Gangs pockets every day to see if he had spent his money or grain coupons, and she continued to shake her head and ask reproachfully why he still hadn't spent the money. Song Gang no longer tried to claim he wasn't hungry but, rather, replied honestly, "I couldn't bring myself to."
Periodically Lin Hong would remind him, "You promised."
Song Gang, however, would always stubbornly reply, "I just couldn't."
Once when he said this, he happened to be taking Lin Hong to work on his bicycle. She was sitting behind him with her arms around his waist and her cheek pressed against his back. She said, "Why don't you just consider it money spent on me, okay?"
Song Gang still insisted, "I couldn't," and rang his bell. As it turned out, Song Gang actually didn't have any money in his pocket at that point. The
last time he dropped Lin Hong off at the knitting factory and was on his way to the metal factory, he had run into a famished Baldy Li, who was gnawing on some sugarcane stalks he had picked up from the ground. During that period Baldy Li was so poor that he never knew where his next meal would come from, and though he was often limping and his elbows were out of joint, he still sauntered about as if he owned the town. He savored the discarded sugarcane stalks as though he were eating the best banquet food. When he saw Song Gang riding his way, he turned away, pretending he didn't recognize him. Song Gangs heart ached when he caught sight of Baldy Li's bedraggled state. He stopped in front of Baldy Li, took the money and the grain coupons out of his pocket, and called out, "Baldy Li!"
Baldy Li turned around while still chewing on the sugarcane. He looked about and asked, "Who's calling me?"
"It's me," Song Gang replied, handing Baldy Li the money and coupons. "Go buy yourself a steamed bun."
Baldy Li originally intended to keep up his act, but when he saw Song Gang hand him the money and the grain coupons, he immediately grinned and took them, saying warmly, "Song Gang, I knew that you wouldn't abandon me. Do you know why?" Baldy Li then answered his own question. "It's because we are brothers. Even if it were the end of the world, we would still be brothers."
After this, every time Baldy Li saw Song Gang ride by on his bike, he would call him over and accept the money and grain coupons Song Gang was carrying in his pocket. He did so with such an air of entitlement that it seemed as if it were actually his own money and was merely stored in Song Gang's pocket for safekeeping.
CHAPTER 44
THE DAY Baldy Li beat up Poet Zhao and also scared the stuffing out of Writer Liu, he rested under a wutong tree listening to everyone discuss what had just happened. As he gulped down his saliva to quell the rumblings in his stomach, he heard the ringing of the Eternity bicycle bell. Baldy Li knew that Song Gang was on his way over, so he immediately stood up and called out, "Song Gang, Song Gang. I haven't eaten anything all day."
When Song Gang heard Baldy Li's cries, he immediately stopped ringing his bell and pedaled over. Weaving through the crowd, he came up to Baldy Li and shook his head at his bedraggled appearance. He started to get down off his bike, but Baldy Li stopped him and said, "No need to get down, just give me some money."
Song Gang remained on his bike and pulled out two ten-cent bills from his pocket. Baldy Li cockily took them, as if Song Gang owed him the money. Song Gang then reached into his pocket to get the grain coupons, but Baldy Li, knowing Song Gang was on his way to pick up Lin Hong, waved him away as if he were brushing away a gnat and said, "Go on, leave."
Song Gang retrieved the grain coupons from his pocket and handed them to Baldy Li. Baldy Li, however, shook his head, took one look at them, and said, "I don't need these."
Song Gang asked Baldy Li, "Do you have grain coupons?"
Baldy Li replied impatiently, "Go quickly. Lin Hong is waiting for you."
Song Gang nodded and put the grain coupons back in his pocket, then rode his bicycle through an opening in the crowd. As he was leaving he turned around and said, "Baldy Li, I'm off."
Baldy Li nodded and watched Song Gang speed away. He then turned to the crowd and said, "This brother of mine is as garrulous as an old woman, isn't he?"
With Song Gang's two ten-cent bills in hand, Baldy Li walked away, his long hair flying in the wind. The crowd watched as he walked toward the People's Restaurant, thinking that he would have a couple of bowls of noodles. To their surprise, however, he walked right past the restaurant and into a barbershop next door. They all gasped— Wasn't Baldy Li absolutely famished? Did he consider a haircut as equivalent to a bowl of noodles? Someone remarked, "Hair and noodles do have some things in common—namely, they are both long and thin."
Someone else added, "Women's hair is like noodles, while men's hair is too short and doesn't resemble noodles as much as it resembles whiskers."
Everyone laughed out loud at the thought of Baldy Li eating women's hair as though it were noodles. Writer Liu decided that the crowd was imbecilic, so he corrected them in a loud voice, saying that even if Baldy Li were starving to death, he wouldn't eat hair. He further explained that Baldy Li had gone to shave his head bald again and suggested that Baldy Li was as hungry as a character in some story by Lu Xun (he couldn't remember which one) who, rather than thinking of how to fill his belly, was instead concerned with his shining bald pate. Writer Liu couldn't resist adding, "Baldy Li is fucking incorrigible."
Just as Writer Liu had predicted, when Baldy Li emerged from the barbershop, he was once again bald. At noon the next day, the people of Liu saw the bald-headed Baldy Li strolling down the street. His head was shiny, and even his swollen face seemed to give off a rosy glow, as though he had just eaten a whole fish and a bowlful of meat. Although the famished Baldy Li still limped like an injured soldier, he nevertheless cheerfully greeted all his acquaintances. Burping with hunger and rubbing his stomach, he walked along the road as though he had eaten an entire tableful of food. Everyone asked him, "What delicacies did you eat, to keep you burping like this?"
"I didn't eat anything," Baldy Li answered, rubbing his empty belly. "I am burping air."
Baldy Li then walked to the Good Works Factory. He hadn't been there for more than seven months, and as soon as he walked into the factory yard he heard the two cripples in the director's office cursing each other and knew that they were back to playing chess. He walked into the director's office, burping loudly, and when the cripples spun around and saw him, they flung down their chess pieces and rushed forward, calling out, "Director Li, Director Li!"
The two crippled factory directors led Baldy Li to the workshop next door, where the three idiots, four blind men, and five deaf men were all snoozing or staring off into space. The cripples shouted at them, "Director Li is here!"
After having been beaten mercilessly by his former partners for three straight months, Baldy Li had returned to his former factory and the site of his former glories. His fourteen loyal minions crowded around and curiously examined the bruises on his face and his braised-pork-feet-like hands. The fourteen loyal minions continued calling out "Director Li" for ten minutes, and after their shouts started to die down, Baldy Li again began to burp. He burped three times in a row, and the two cripples looked at him enviously, saying, "Director Li, what delicious food did you have for lunch?"
"I am just burping empty air. And why is that? It is because I haven't eaten anything all day. And not only today—actually I haven't had a full meal for three months, and as a result, I have been burping empty air for three straight months."
First the two cripples gasped in astonishment, followed by the four blind men. The five deaf men couldn't hear what Baldy Li was saying, but upon seeing everyone else's surprised expressions they also gasped in surprise. The three idiots just kept cackling away. Baldy Li took advantage of the situation and extended his open hands, saying, "Dig into your pockets, and take out all of your money and grain coupons. Help your Director Li get a good meal."
The two cripples understood what he was saying and immediately dug into their pockets. The four blind men heard Baldy Li and did the same. The five deaf men couldn't hear what was being said, but they could see, and they realized they were expected to donate their money and grain coupons as well, so they also dug into their pockets. The three idiots, however, just stood there cackling; therefore, the two cripples went to empty the three idiots’ pockets, but when they didn't find any money or grain coupons, they began to curse: "Damn it."
These loyal minions were able to come up with only a few coins and some wrinkled grain coupons, but they handed it over to Baldy Li, who lowered his head and carefully counted the pile. The grain coupons added up to precisely a pound of grain, and the coins totaled forty-eight cents. Swallowing his saliva, Baldy Li said regretfully, "If only I had twenty-six more cents, I could have two bowls of house-special noodles."
The two cripples turned
their pockets inside out to show that they had handed over everything they had. They told the four blind men to turn their pockets inside out as well, then told the three idiots and five deaf men to do the same. In the end, they had no choice but to shake their heads and inform Baldy Li regretfully, "There's no more."
Baldy Li gestured magnanimously. "Even if I can't have two bowls of house-special noodles, at least I can have five bowls of plain noodles."
Then Baldy Li, surrounded by his fourteen loyal minions, left the factory and headed toward the People's Restaurant. His minions’ pockets were all turned inside out, as though they had been robbed. The expressions on their faces, however, were as proud as if they had just received their paychecks. The two cripples still walked in front, followed by the three idiots holding hands, with the four blind men picking up the rear. Baldy Li and the five deaf men then divided into two groups of three and walked on either side of the procession to maintain order. Having learned from their experience when they marched on the knitting factory to help Baldy Li declare his love for Lin Hong, this time they marched in an orderly fashion, functioning as an honor guard phalanx.
They marched grandly into the People's Restaurant, where Baldy Li threw his fistful of coins onto the meal ticket counter. He had just added the wrinkled bills on top when the crippled factory director said, "Five bowls of plain noodles!"
