by Zhou Daxin
“What a righteous man would do this!” Nuannuan felt her gut flaming with anger.
“I hate them!” Xiang Xiang started weeping again.
“I will call the police now. They will take care of them!” said Nuannuan as she reached for the telephone. Xiang Xiang saw her move and pushed the telephone down. She begged through tears: “Big sister Nuannuan, the police will only make it worse. They will definitely want my testimony and everyone will know about what happened! I can’t take that much shame! If my parents knew that someone touched me, kissed me and sucked my breasts, they will not survive the anger and disappointment!”
Hearing her words, Nuannuan put down the telephone and asked: “What do you want, then?”
“I just want to work for you here. Even if they let me work there, I do not dare go.”
Nuannuan sighed and nodded. She said: “You can come to work in Chu Di Ju tomorrow.”
After she sent Xiang Xiang home, Nuannuan could not stop the angry feelings, churning around inside of her. Kuang Kaitian, what Leader are you to dishonor girls from your own village?! Several times she wanted to go to Shang Xin Yuan and curse Kuang Kaitian and Xue Chuanxin face to face. But in the end she stopped herself, worried for Xiang Xiang.
Chapter 53
Nuannuan was so upset that she wanted again to go to the provincial city to report on Kuang Kaitian and Xue Chuanxin. However, she understood that they would immediately send someone to follow her and deal with the officials once she moved. Moreover, they may again sabotage Chu Di Ju. She must think of another way that would not set an alarm on them. She thought for a whole night, and decided to write a letter of accusation. This would be the only way to conceal her plan, so that they could not do anything to stop her. She spent the next night writing eight letters to officials in the city and the province office, the security bureau, the People’s Procurator and the People’s Court. She asked Shallot to go to Juxiang Street with the excuse of grocery shopping for Chu Di Ju, and then send them as registered letters in the post office.
After sending out the letters, Nuannuan paid all her attention to work around Chu Di Ju, and waited for further information. She believed that if even one letter made it, it would bring about enough attention to help her.
One evening when Nuannuan was sending Dangen to bed, she heard a siren as police cars entered the village. She did not know what had happened and ran out. Three police cars parked in front of Shang Xin Yuan. Several police officers jumped out and ran inside. Nuannuan felt a sudden joy: she was sure that her letters of accusation had done their job. Kuang Kaitian, Xue Chuanxin, do you really think that no one can punish you for what you did? Just you wait! She walked closer with quiet steps, and kept her gaze locked on the gate of Shang Xin Yuan. The neighbours had all been woken up by the siren. They stood quietly in front of their houses and looked at what was happening. The wife of Spotty Laosi walked out and saw Nuannuan under the distant light. She stepped up and whispered to her: “Finally, someone has answered us!”
Nuannuan thought that at least one of the pair would be arrested that night. However, much to her surprise, the police officers emerged after a short while, and they did not have anyone with them. Kuang Kaitian and Xue Chuanxin walked out after them. They did not look panicked. On the contrary, they were both smiling with cigarettes in their mouths. Nuannuan felt her heart sinking slowly. One of the police officers shook the hands of Kuang Kaitian and Xue Chuanxin and spoke in a friendly tone: “My apologies for disturbing your normal business and your guests. Please excuse us.”
Nuannuan was left in shock standing in the dark: “What is this? How can they not find a problem at all?”
The joy that had just filled her heart had dispersed. Instead, she was paralyzed by an enormous feeling of disappointment.
“Are they blind? Where can they hide the massage girls?” mumbled the wife of Spotty Laosi.
Nuannuan watched in silence as the police cars exited the village and bumped along the dirt road by the side of the Red Lake towards Juxiang Street. She did not move, holding her breath in angst until a flashlight shone on her. She turned to look.
“I thought you would still be up.” Kuang Kaitian’s voice rose behind the light from the torch.
The wife of Spotty Laosi and the other neighbours all hastened to leave when they heard the voice of their Leader. Nuannuan did not answer him. She turned to leave when Kuang Kaitian suddenly shouted out: “Don’t move!”
“What do you want?” said Nuannuan in a cold voice.
“You have seen it all, haven’t you? The police came in to search and found nothing. They even apologized to us.”
“Bah!”
“We all know that the police came over because of your great work. But what did you get? We won again! You should understand from what happened tonight, that you will never win by reporting us! To tell you the truth, the Five Continents Group has connections on every level, everywhere! We will know in advance about everything, be it good or bad!”
Nuannuan did not say anything. She turned and left.
“This is my last warning!” Kaitian’s voice called out behind her.
Chapter 54
Nuannuan did not sleep well that night. She could hear Kaitian’s warning in her sleep: “the Five Continents Group has connections on every level, everywhere!”
She knew he was not lying. It is very possible that a successful company would have several important people in the government. What sense would it make if she continued trying to report them? Should she continue at all?
Nuannuan did not get up to have breakfast. She allowed herself to lie in bed with vague thoughts. She could not feel the slightest strength in her. Shallot came over and spoke to her outside the window: “Uncle Tan from Beijing is here.”
She hastened up and put on her clothes. She was in surprise: “I didn’t know that he was coming.”
Uncle Tan was as skinny as she remembered. All of his hair had turned grey, but he still looked full of energy. He laughed happily when he saw Nuannuan: “A guest has invited himself! Have I brought you trouble?”
Nuannuan stepped up and helped him sit down. She said: “We are more than happy to see you! How can you be a trouble?”
She poured him some tea.
“I travelled south for an academic conference and I thought I should drop by to see you on my way back. I saw a piece of news in the newspaper a few days ago about the discovery of the Chu citizens’ burial complex in the forest valley nearby. I want to see that, too. It has been some time since my last visit to this ancient land of Chu and I really miss it. How is everything? Have you had many visitors to see the Great Wall of Chu?”
“Yes, a lot. Everyone visiting the west bank of the Red Lake wants to see the wall. I will go with you if you want to go up the hill today,” said Nuannuan with a smile. The arrival of the old man had driven away her unpleasant mood for the moment. She had always felt grateful to Uncle Tan: it was he who had discovered the Great Wall of Chu; and the discovery had changed her life.
“Great! Let’s go see my old pal the wall first. We will go to the burial complex later.” Uncle Tan stood up to show his satisfaction.
As they walked to the Great Wall of Chu, Uncle Tan learnt about Nuannuan’s divorce through their casual conversation. The old man was astonished. He said to her: “Hmm, they say that divorce has become a trend in the capital city, but I didn’t realize that the wind has blown this trend to your west bank of the Red Lake. May I ask for the reason of your divorce?”
Nuannuan blushed and briefly told him the reason. The old man did not speak for a while. He walked in silence. Then he sighed and said: “Nothing is impossible in one’s life. To experience something may not always be so bad; what Kaitian did, if you ask me, is the result of getting drunk in power. There are many things in this world that a man can get drunk from, but nothing compares with power. Power causes many mysterious things to occur; it demands obedience, brings enormous economic advantages, allows mastery
of social resources, etc. Once a man gets drunk on it, he knows no limit, and will become indulgent in his life, no longer seeking such desires. Without desire, a man is not a man. However, indulgence of all desires will turn a man into a monster. If a man forbids himself from being drunk, he will also learn to adjust his desires to cooperate the tolerance of the society.”
Nuannuan listened quietly; she knew that Uncle Tan was trying to comfort her.
“I study history so I know how various men in all the dynasties in China had been drunk on power. I also know that many people wanted to regulate and constrain power. However, to constrain power is never an easy job. First it requires the man in power to acquire a vision beyond material benefits, so that he can be willing to create a system that restricts his own power. What a shame it has …”
Seeing Uncle Tan upset for the sake of her situation, Nuannuan quickly put up a smile and interrupted him: “Uncle, let’s not talk about it now. We should talk about something good. I heard that you are writing a book about the Great Wall of Chu, is it true?”
“I am in the progress of writing, yes. But I don’t know when I can finish it. Right, I have another task here. I need to tell you another folktale that I learnt recently about the reason why King Zi transferred the capital of Chu. I hope this can add up to the introductions that your tour guides are giving.”
“What folktale is that then?” Nuannuan was quite keen.
“Most academics hold two theories about transfer of the capital: the first states that the southeast expansion of Chu caused a large distance between the original capital and the center of the state. The other theory states that King Zi had felt threatened because the original capital was too close to the royal capital of Zhou. However, I have recently read about another story in a book of folktales: King Zi had lived an obscene life. In one of his trips of amusement he had his eyes on a beautiful woman who belonged to one of his generals. He used many excuses to call the woman to his court and indulged his proclivities with her. The general, on the other hand, concealed his grudge and even voluntarily sent the woman to the king’s court. However, he had been secretly planning a revolt and united with various officials and generals who held the same grudge. He even bought over many others who served in the King’s palace. Yet he did not expect the leak of his plan before he raised the banner of revolt. King Zi was furious with shock, and he sent out his guards to arrest and murder those involved. Hundreds were killed. Though the revolt was cracked down, King Zi knew that he had roused hatred in the capital city due to the enormous number of people killed and the connections they had with those alive. Therefore, he no longer felt secure, and suspected that everyone in the city was planning to murder him. He could not sleep in the night because of the fear. The fear had also driven him to make the decision of transferring the capital.”
“I didn’t know that!”
“It is a story about a man drunk with power, too. If King Zi did not indulge himself, he would not have seized the woman from his general. Of course the story might not be consistent with the historical facts. But I’m sure it will interest the visitors as a tour guide’s tale.”
“It is true. I have had so many visitors here. Every time we told them a story about the sight from you, they became more than happy to explore more.”
It was dark when they came back from the Great Wall of Chu. Nuannuan sent Uncle Tan to rest in his room after dinner. Before she could wash herself and go to bed, Shallot came over and passed a scarf and a hat to her. She said: “Your sister Hehe came with these in the afternoon. The scarf is for you and the hat is for Dangen. Hehe told me that your dad bought both of them.”
Nuannuan knew that Dad had decided to make peace with her divorce and she wanted to go straight to his house to see them. She had missed her family so much. She fetched the beef and pork that she prepared for the visitors from the kitchen and put them in a basket. She picked a chicken up from the nest before she held Dangen’s hand to leave for home.
It was late at night when they left her parents’ house. Dangen could not stop yawning as he walked besides his mother. He did not walk far before he had to close his eyes. Nuannuan smile and said: “Who is this sleepy kitty?”
She bent her knees to lift him and carried him on her back. As she walked and rocked her son on her back, two people suddenly emerged. They were carrying a small bed made of bamboo. Nuannuan asked: “Who is it?”
“It’s us, big sister Nuannuan,” answered the two as they walked closer. Nuannuan saw their faces under the moonlight. They were two security guards from Shang Xin Yuan. Nuannuan had once sent them to the capital city for training.
“Who are you carrying on this bed?”
“Zhan Shideng.”
“Zhan Shideng?” said Nuannuan in astonishment. She lowered her head to have a better look. It was Zhan Shideng. Under the pale moonlight, he was lying on his back on the small bamboo bed. His eyes were wide open and he was staring at her.
“What’s wrong with him?”
“He’s had a stroke. He can only move his right hand. His legs and left arm are of no use now. He can’t talk, either. He has to eat, drink, piss and shit in bed. Caring for him has cost all of the money of his house. But his brain is still working. He can understand everything we say.” One of the guards explained to Nuannuan.
“Wow. Where are you taking him?”
“Leader Kuang asked us to take him to Shang Xin Yuan,” answered the other man.
Nuannuan did not understand: “What is he going to do in Shang Xin Yuan this late?”
“I don’t know. I heard he is invited to a show.”
“A show? What show?” Nuannuan was more confused. She did not know that Kuang Kaitian could be kind enough to entertain him.
“I don’t know. The Leader only told us to carry him there.”
“Does he want to go?” Nuannuan took another look at Zhan Shideng. He seemed quite angry because she stopped him.
“The Leader said he would give Zhan Shideng 100 yuan as long as he comes to see the show. We gave him the money and he used his only useful hand to write down a ‘yes’ on a piece of paper. He really needs money now that everything in his house was sold to pay for his medical fees. His wife has left with her parents and his son. His daughter Ruirui is the only one taking care of him now.”
Nuannuan returned to Chu Di Ju and sent Dangen to bed. As she lay in her bed, she could not help thinking about Zhan Shideng again. The sight of him lying on the bamboo bed under the moonlight was still vivid in her mind. She did not know that time could change a person as much. Zhan Shideng, you must have never thought that you would end up like this. The thought of Zhan Shideng had reminded her of Kuang Kaitian. What show could he possibly have for Zhan Shideng at this time of the night? No one talked about a show company in Shang Xin Yuan either. Even if they had hired one, for what reason could Kuang Kaitian be generous enough to pay 100 yuan to treat Zhan Shideng? Nuannuan knew that Kuang Kaitian had always held his resentment since Zhan Shideng told him how he tainted her. As she thought about it, she felt herself more in doubt. What on earth is Kuang Kaitian planning by sending the security guards to fetch Zhan Shideng?
Nuannuan found herself walking out of Chu Di Ju as she could not withhold her doubt. Shang Xin Yuan was lit up glamorously as usual. The security guard on duty knew Nuannuan. He asked him in a soft voice as she approached:“How can I help my big sister Nuannuan?”
“Did they carry Zhan Shideng inside just now?”
The guard nodded and said: “They took him into the farthest end of the houses. He is in No.3 now.”
“Are they really treating him to a show?” asked Nuannuan.
The guard looked around and made sure that no one was listening. He lowered his voice and said: “I just heard about it and you must not tell anyone else or I will get fired. You know that Zhan Shideng is very sick and he needs money to treat his illness. But he has no money left and his wife has left him in despair. His daughter Ruirui is indeed a pious
girl. She came here to give the guests foot massage every night to earn money for her dad. She is a good foot masseuse and she can earn three Yuan per person. But that girl, she really is a masseuse. She does not provide any service other than foot massage. Last night a rich boss guy came from the South and he saw Ruirui enter during dinner. He found her very pretty and told her if she was willing to massage him tonight, she would earn some big money. By massage the man meant dirty business. I heard that Ruirui flushed and refused. But after some thought today, she went to inform the receptionist after dinner that she agreed to the man’s conditions. Do you think Leader Kuang sent for Zhan Shideng because of sympathy so that he can ask for more money from that man? I don’t really understand.”
Nuannuan exhaled in shock.
“I heard that Ruirui has been engaged; it will be seriously bad if they know.”
“Does Ruirui know that her dad is here?”
“No, she doesn’t. She came in first. She must be giving foot massage to some other guests now. That rich man likes his Mahjong and he won’t miss a game after every dinner. The receptionist told Ruirui to go to his room at 11.”
Nuannuan checked her watch on her wrist and turned to enter Shang Xin Yuan. She knew her way around; it took no time for her to find No. 3 amongst the houses. She knocked the door and it took a short while before the door was opened. Nuannuan pushed the door to enter and found it was Kaitian who opened from inside. Kaitian did not expect to see Nuannuan as he sounded surprised: “You?”
Nuannuan ignored his question and looked around the room. There was no one else expect for Zhan Shideng, who was placed to sit in a round chair. He looked confused. The room was dimly lit by a step light on the wall.
“What do you want, having him here?” asked Nuannuan, She did not look at Kaitian. Her instinct told her that he would never mean well towards Zhan Shideng. Yet she could not figure out his true intention.
