Chapter 20

Yang Yongchun’s mother died when he was seven. He became an orphan. He had to beg for food in many homes. Then, he was taken to Old Feng, a man who had been married for seven years and still had no child. Yang became a child in this family. He was called “son for son”, meant to bring luck to the childless family by means of blessing them in having their own children soon.

Poor Yang just stayed happily in Old Fong’s home for one year. Old Fong’s wife gave birth to a son soon, and then a second one, a third one…Yang had lived with the family for three years, and he was ten years by then. The poor family did have financial difficulty given so many mouths to be fed. Yang was asked to leave the family. Then, he came to another home as a “son for son.” He brought luck to that family, too. The wife in that family gave birth to two sons.

Although Yang seemed powerful for blessing the sonless families with sons, he had to live an unsteady life, begging from village to village and from home to home. At the age of 13, Yang stayed in a temple.

Yang was widely known for his magic power. Many families asked him for help. He got a big amount of food from them. Yet, he got wiser now. He did not want to be led by the nose. He chose to help some families only. That did disappoint some others who insisted that he help them.

Years went by. One day, a local mason came to him for help. Unlike the others who placed offerings on the shrine and kowtowed to the gods, this man put the food and fruits before Yang and bowed to him.

Yang was moved. The 30-year-old something told Yang that he had been looking for him for almost 10 days by traveling from village to village. Yang was amazed at his determination.

Yang was not in the position to become a “son for son.” Thus, he said to the mason, “But I don’t want to do that now.”

The man replied, “I’ll treat you like my ancestors as long as you come to may home.”

“If I did not bring luck to you, would you still treat me in that way?”

“Sure.”

Yang did not believe in the mason. He turned away to search for chestnuts in the mountains. He got back two pockets of chestnuts, and saw the mason in the distance standing on a ladder and mending the tiles on the temple. Yang wondered why the mason knew the situation.

It was a winter night. The mason placed three tiles on the fire, and put Yang’s chestnuts on the tiles. The sparks lighted up the mason’s face, a sincere one. He picked up the chestnuts whose shells were broken and with a smile passed them to Yang. Finding Yang tired, the man carried him to a stack of straws, with his own coat covered Yang’s exposed belly, and put Yang’s cold feet on his warm belly. They then fell asleep together.

Three days later, Yang felt that he had no reason to refuse to help the mason. In the early morning of the fourth day, he told the mason, “I’ll come to your home.”

The mason was amazed. He stared at Yang and then knelt down with cries. He carried Yang on his back, and with laughs they left for his home miles away from the temple.

The mason was eager to have sons. He treated Yang like a god: the best food and dresses. It was amazing indeed that the mason’s wife was pregnant half a year later. In a few months a fat baby was born. On the 30^th day celebration the mason kowtowed to Yang in public. Yang was a god that was able to send sons to those in need in the eyes of the mason.

Then, the mason’s wife had the second and third sons. The family ran into financial trouble. Yang’s food changed from rice to corn and then to corn porridge. Yet, the mason still fed him as much as possible. Yang was then 17 years old; he knew that he should help about.

He went with the mason for work. He learned the craft of masonry. At the age of 18, he left the family and started to make his own living.

Yang was still single at the age of 34. He cared nothing about dresses and make-up. He cared about food only.

There was an old saying: every dog has its day. In the early spring of 1935, Yang went to work in a neighboring village. A woman suffering from tuberculosis had trouble with her house. It was leaking. Yang helped her to mend the roof.

The woman’s husband died of tuberculosis, leaving his infected wife and a tall thin daughter alone. The girl was 17, and looked pretty but weak. She was suspected to have been infected with tuberculosis. Thus, she was not married.

The girl’s mother was dying. She heard that Yang was single and an orphan. She asked him to come close to the bed. She found Yang a kind and honest man. With coughs she motioned him to sit down, and asked if he would like to become her son-in-law. If he agreed, she would like to see the marriage carried out in three days.

Yang had never expected to get married. Although the girl seemed weak, he thought he was lucky enough to get married at such an age.

The girl was basically healthy. She was not lame, nor deaf; she was not mute, nor ugly. She was a little weak indeed; when she walked, her bottoms moved like a sifter. But where could he find such a lucky enough bliss? Yang was so happy that he held the dying woman’s hands and shouted, “Dear mom, I’ll take good care of your daughter from now on, and you’re just my own mom.”

The sick woman had hardly lived for three days before she died. The villagers arranged the wedding and funeral together according to the local custom. It was called “marriage as a filial devotion.” Yang thus got married.

However, the happiness did not last long. In less than two years the family was broken.

Farmers only knew solar terms, but cared little about dates. Yang was really happy, for he had his own family and wife. He did not spend time on gambling, nor did he idle away his time. He worked hard in the fields, and did some masonry work. The family lived a happy life. Nevertheless, Yang wondered why his wife was not yet pregnant given the fact that he had once brought luck to some many sonless families.

On the Dragon-boat Day Yang went to Scholar Wang’s house for masonry work. He was so busy that he could hardly come back home. His young wife felt bored at home, so she came to see her husband with some nice wine and food such as preserved pork and Zongzi. She wore a new dress and a layered skirt. Some water chestnuts and herbal bags were hung on her dress.

That day, Wang Yi the young master came back from a city for the festival. He stood at the gate and picked cherries from a tree there. He saw a nice-looking woman walking near. She had a basket in her hands and her air was just charming. Wang Yi stopped her and knew she was the mason’s wife. He was puzzled: why could such a rough man get such a pretty fairy as his wife?

In a few days the mason found his wife change a lot. She got up early in the morning, and made up her face and nose and lips. She got so happy that she sang in the daytime and danced at night by moving her waist here and there.

Yang was not happy at this. He said, “Why do you move your bottoms and waist this way? What a seducing way!”

His wife cast a glance at him, replying, “This is gentlewoman’s waist. Do you know? I guess you only know food and drink.”

His wife had not shown contempt for him in this way before. Yang got annoyed. But then he thought that it was not worthwhile quarreling with her over such trivial matters. Yet, he smelled the fragrance on her and saw her red lips. He asked her what those things were. She pretended to tell him that she made them with the flowers of kermes.

Yang thought that she probably made herself up in this way for him. So, he said to her in an amusing way, “What a silly woman! Why do you make yourself up this way?”

In a few days, Yang came back from the fields, and saw some satins in different colors on the bed. These satins were precious and expensive. Yang knew that his wife even seldom asked peddlers about them, but why did she get them now? He got suspicious. So he asked her:

“Dear, where did you get these things?”

She replied, “I got them from those traveling peddlers. They collected a lot of them and sold some to me at a low price.”

“How much?”

“Two silver coins.”

“What? Two silver coins for such useless things?”

She made a sign of contempt by saying, “Why are you so narrow-minded? Two silver coins are not much. In cities you probably have to pay over 20 silver coins for them.”

“Shit! I think you are money-possessed.” Yang said. But he was aware that it was a deal indeed. He turned away for wine.

At night his wife seemed intent on disagreeing with him. Yang wanted to hug her, but she bent her back and said his mouth was stinking. Yang had to sleep on the opposite side, and then she said his feet were stinking.

Yang could hardly bear. He kicked her bottoms with his feet, cursing, “Damn! What a bitch! Sleep somewhere else!”

That night, she left the bed and slept on a chair in the sitting-room. Yang was suspicious, asking himself, “Is she mad? Why did she do that?”

It was still the festival of the Dragon-boat Day. Yang had worked for a whole day in the fields. At dusk he came back home and found a bottle of wine and some preserved beef and pig hooves on the table. They were his favorites. Yang felt relieved at this. He found his wife look seducing indeed with her dress and make-up.

She held his arms, massaged him, helped him to food and poured wine for him. In two hours when the sun was still setting, Yang felt a little drunkard. But she was still asking him to drink. Drink and you can sleep with me tonight, she said. Yang got excited. He drank some more wine. Yet he was too drunkard to stay awake. She helped him to sleep on the bed.

It was a long time later when he felt like drinking some water. He fumbled for his wife, but she was not there! He opened his eyes, and saw the oil lamp still shine. He heard roosters crow.

Yang shouted, “Dear, where are you? Please fetch me some water.”

He kept shouting but she did not come. He struggled to walk out. Yet she was not visible. He woke up in the cool wind. He went to the toilet, but she was not there. He felt something unpleasant was about to happen.

In the summer moonlight he found his black dog sit on a stack of straws in the opposite side. Did something bad happen to his wife? Yang got a hoe and walked towards the straws. The dog saw him come close. It wagged its tail and led him to a corner of the straws.

He heard hushed laughs. He motioned the dog to stand still. It was his wife talking with a man.

The man said, “Have you decided to leave with me? You’ll live a happy life like a queen. Food, wear and shelter are nothing to worry about.”

She replied in a coquettish way, “No. You are deceiving me. Later you’ll get tired of me and leave me alone.”

The man said, “Dear, you’re so charming. I would be jealous if others just cast more glances at you. How could I leave you alone?”

“But what if my husband found me in town?”

“Don’t worry about that. He is just a rough man. He even won’t know our affairs. Please agree with me. I am teased.”

“No, I won’t go.” Hushed laughs came to Yang’s ears. The man went on, “How dare you reject my request? I’ll make that shit a cuckolded man. He won’t get your sex. Tell me if you gave sex to him last night.” “No. I have not made him touch me ever since I gave my body to you that day.” Yang was shocked at this. He couldn’t understand why his wife was so disloyal. He held his hoe tightly and walked close quietly, only to find her lie there naked with the man riding naked on her. Yang was infuriated. What a beast-like man! Yang cursed. He held up his hoe high and beat the man on the back of his head.

There! The man made no cry and fell down. It was quite a while before the woman got up. On her face, arms, breasts and belly was the man’s blood. She parted her hair aside and stared in shock at her dead lover. The man’s fair and tender hands were still on her belly. She rubbed them with love, and then she pointed at Yang, yelling:

“Why did you kill him?” She shouted at the top of her voice in the quiet night, “Help! A murder happened!”

She glared at her husband much older than her. She was mourning for her young dead lover.

Yang stared at her sadly. He was aware that she had no love for him as a husband; she only loved her lover. That was why she showed contempt for him!

Yang did not want to hurt her. They had once lived a happy life for two years. But the happiness was short-lived. She had no sense of regret for her own behavior. Instead, she just blamed and cursed her husband. Yang felt his wife was not what she used to be any more.

The woman yelled for help in the quiet, cool night. Yang’s sparks of life went off. He heaved a sigh, and then beat her on her head. She died. She did not plead to him for pity even though she was aware of the danger. If she had done that, he would probably not have killed her.

Yang separated the two corpses, and wanted to put her body in the sitting-room. But then he realized that she loved her lover only. So he did not move the bodies inside the house. He left his hoe aside, and packed his belongings in a hurry. At dawn he left the village for good.

Yang said so much that he had to clear his throat with some tea. He then asked the public security workers, “Do you think I’m guilty?”

Comrade Gao was sophisticated. He replied with his pen moving through his fingers, “Didn’t you say that Director Yan asked you to tell us about your bitter past? If so, how can you be guilty?”

Comrade Li said, “I’d like to…”