Since my parents decided to ask Widow the older Zhou about my
problem, Widow Zhou’s home was my father’s frequent destination for visits. To
avoid any gossip, my father often went there after 9 o’clock in the evening.
There was no recreational activity in the countryside. The days in
winter got shorter. Widow Zhou lived at the west end of the village, while we were
at the opposite end. The whole way from our home to hers consisted of field
paths which were narrow and bumpy. My father dared not use a flashlight,
fearful of others noticing him. Though he fell down on the paths numerous
times, he failed to persuade Widow Zhou to offer help.
Was my father not considerate? No. Every time he went, bringing a
variety of presents, like extravagant at that time, milk powder and preserved
meat which my family resisted eating but saved for Widow Zhou, my father even
promised to give her half of our harvest.
But every time, Widow Zhou gave the same response: “ah, Chen, we
are fellow villagers, if ah, I can, I will, ah help you. How I can I receive
your, ah, presents? Ah, now, with the current society, ah, you know better than
me, ah, if I am arrested by the government, ah, then who will look after my
child? Ah, and my whole family will be implicated, ah, don’t place me in
dilemma. Ah.”
Like her burp, Widow Zhou’s reply just disgusted my father, but
was there any alternative? My father had to try again and again.
Later, my father’s frequent visits finally drew suspicion from her
family, who questioned Widow the older Zhou and finally understood the matter.
Widow Zhou`s father-in-law responded: “Chen, your act is not appropriate. You
are making trouble for us, aren’t you? We don’t talk about whether my
daughter-in-law is able to cure your child. Even if she can manage it, dare we?
Your child’s life is cherished, but so are our lives. Leave us, please.”
When my father didn’t give up and went there again, the younger
Zhou, not allowing my father to speak a word, took up a hoe to beat him. The
matter seemed at an impasse.
My health remained weak. In particular, I cried occasionally as if
my throat was seized by someone, which made the whole family overwhelmed by distress.”
Though our house was so warm, with a hot stove in the freezing
winter, my family’s hearts didn’t feel bit of warmth. My litter sisters were also
worried about me. Every time I cried they would look at my parents. They were
afraid to hear my father’s sigh and to see my father’s sorrowful eyes.
Another bout of weeping, I began to cry again, but this time my
cry sounded more severe. As per usual, my mother scooped me up and patted me,
but it didn’t work this time.
“Maybe he is hungry. Bring some milk for him. There is still some
leftover milk that I fetched today, let me heat it up.” When a baby was crying
loudly, common sense said that he it was probably hungry. My father felt
heart-broken upon hearing my throat-held cry. He stood up to warm the milk on
the stove.
My family remained in somber silence, except for my intermittent
weeping and my mother’s gentle pacifying words for me.
Finally, the boiling milk broke the gloomy atmosphere. My father
took a bowl to pour out some milk, blew at it to help it cool down, and gave it
to my mother. And they all expected me to get better after sucking milk.
But after one minute, all of a sudden, my mother shrieked with
panic: “Chen, Chen, come here, have a look. What’s wrong with our child?”
My mother’s lips were shivering, and my father hastened to look at
me. Instantly, his face turned black.
I couldn’t swallow the milk. The milk was choked out by my coughs.
Not like the normal milk choking of other infants; I just couldn’t suck it in.
My whole face turned livid, my coughing sounded like an old man’s,
which was the severest condition since my birth. Looking at the swelling blue
veins of my neck, my father got panicky for the first time.
Still patting me, my mother tried to make me feel better. My
sisters also shed tears in fear but refrained from making any noise to further
upset my anxious parents. My father, with tearful eyes, gasped deeply with
fury.
Suddenly my father stormed out, and returned after taking up a
knife in the kitchen, then brandished the knife in the room madly.
“Damn it, I, Chen Hongjun never has done anything immoral, so why do
you possess my son? If you want to do harm to us, just target me, me, but don’t
hurt my son. You are so cruel, look at what you are doing to such a tiny baby.
Come out, I will kill you,”
My father seemed mad, but it was no wonder that my father became
like that, since he went to the clinic and several hospitals in the town, and even
the urban hospitals’ doctors found no problem but malnutrition.
But how could my condition be explained, since I didn’t suffer
from any respiratory tract disease? According to my sisters’ and my parents’
memory, it was as if my throat was being held by someone.
Initially, my father held some doubt about Granny Liu, but after
that he had to believe her. That is why he went crazy that night.
But his mad movements scared my sisters into crying. My mother,
showing a woman’s special toughness, turned out to be the calmest one.
Patting me, my mother grabbed my father`s swinging hand, “Chen, we
don’t only have a son. If you remain like this, who could the two daughters and
I rely on? You look at your daughters, how scared they are. Calm down!”
My father seemed to regain consciousness after hearing my mom’s
words. However, weirdly, I started getting a little better.
I could breathe better and my heart-broken crying gradually
ceased, while my livid face turned pale. My father finally quieted down when he
found that I was getting better.
My mother put me on the bed to soothe my sisters, and pacified
them enough to go to their room to sleep.
When she returned to the room, looking at my father, she said
calmly: “Chen, I will ask for Widow Zhou tonight.”
“It is said that ghosts are afraid of villains, Xiu Yun. I have
understood what is happening to our son, and I have the same opinion as you. We
are going tonight. Our son may lose his life if we cannot solve this problem
promptly.” my father agreed with my mother.
As they had made the decision, they held me in their arms and set
off without any hesitation. My father even used a flashlight, regardless of
anyone’s notice. They only tried to reach Widow Zhou’s home as soon as possible.
In the chilly wind, it took a little over ten minutes for them to
complete the journey, which usually took about twenty minutes. After I grew up,
I often imagined that if they hadn’t brought me, they would have taken even less
time.
Humans’ potential is unlimited. The mountain in metaphysics
highlights the cultivation of one’s morality. To put it simply, it tends to
inspire one’s potential.
When they reached Zhou’s residence around eight or nine o`clock,their gates
had already been shut, since there was no creational activity in the
countryside at that time.
Instead of shouting from outside, my father just banged on the
gate anxiously, which sounded extremely ear-piercing in the quiet night.
Soon someone replied from the courtyard: “who is that?” it was the
younger Zhou’s voice.
My father, knocking on the gate more harshly, didn’t speak, nor
allowed my mother to, for fear of the younger Zhou not opening the gate. Since
my father’s persistence irritated the Zhou family.
“Who is that? Why aren’t you speaking?” The younger Zhou got
angry, raising his voice.
My father still kept on knocking, and the younger Zhou roared: “If
you don’t speak, I won’t open the gate.”
Getting anxious, my mother whispered to my father: “Chen, you’d better
talk.”
“Nonsense! The younger Zhou definitely won’t open for us if he
recognized our voices, due to his personality. If I just keep knocking; he will
open the gate when he can’t stand it anymore. As you know, he is bold, (if he was
timid, how did he dare to go to west wing room at night).” at that time, my
father acted differently from his usual modest behavior.
As my father expected, after 10 minutes of persistent banging, the
younger Zhou, holding a chopper in hand, opened the gate furiously.
As soon as the younger Zhou opened the gate, my father rushed in without
a word, which gave The younger The older Zhou shock. He couldn’t figure out
what happened.
“Stop, what are you doing here? Why are you intruding into other’s
residence?” screamed the younger Zhou, as he could barely hold back my father.
Instantly my father pulled my mother into the yard, and slammed
the gate. Then he was relieved and started to reply: “The younger
Zhou, it is me, Chen.”
“You, Chen, what are you doing?” The younger Zhou breathed with
relief, he knew my father was coming for a bad purpose.
The younger Zhou was angry, but resisted bursting out laughing,
thinking it was somewhat amusing.
“The younger Zhou, we are fellow villagers. Let us enter the room
to talk, ok? You know I cannot force you to do something, but please listen to
me explain. Please tell me whether I am an honest man in the village, whether I
have once treated you without a consideration before?” well, it was not very easy
for him, a country man, to make such a speech embodying affection and
reasoning.
My father’s speech apparently worked. Given my father’s everyday honest
behavior, the younger Zhou softened his voice and replied: “Ok, come in, you
win.”
My father breathed in relief, considering that maybe he would
succeed tonight, since the younger Zhou, the toughest person of the Zhou family,
had allowed them in.
So my parents, carrying me, entered the main room. The whole Zhou
family was crowded around the stove in the room. There were some roasted sweet
potatoes on the stove.
Zhou’s father looked up and gave a sniff, recognizing my father.
When he found my mother carrying a baby in her arms, his grim face softened. He
couldn’t help to heave a sigh.
Widow Zhou, though she wanted to say something, only emitted 2
burps instead.
Biting a cigarette holder, Zhou`s father took a deep drag of tobacco,
said: “Yue
Shuang,take
Zhou Qiang and Zhou Hongjun to sleep.”
Yue Shuang was the wife of the younger Zhou. At the request of
their father, Yue Shuang, with a quick obedient response, took Zhou Qiang and Zhou
Jun out of the room. Zhou Qiang was the posthumous son of the older Zhou while
Zhou Jun was The younger Zhou’s son. They both went to primary school.
“No, grandfather, I will go to bed after I eat a roasted sweet
potato.” Zhou Qiang didn’t want to leave.
“Me, too.” Zhou Jun followed his elder brother.
Glaring at them, the younger Zhou reproached them loudly: “Roasted
sweet potatoes cannot fly. Hurry up and go to bed, or I will give you a sound
beating.”
In the face of their father and uncle’s authority, the two kids were
obediently taken away by the hand by the younger Zhou’s wife.
“Chen Hongjun,I
clearly understand your purpose. But I have made it clear that you cannot place
us in this dilemma.” Said Zhou`s father, tapping on his pipe.
It was not that they were ruthless. Besides not being able to
ensure they would cure me, as for the political atmosphere, they would be
risking too much in doing this.
With imploring eyes looking at Zhou’s father, my father didn’t
mention a word, but his tears welled up instantly. He knelt down before Zhou’s
father, and my mother, hugging me, also knelt down.
A man doesn’t shed tears until he is broken-hearted.
My father rarely shed tears in his whole life. For the sake of his
only son, he had to kneel down before others.
For what they did for me, I am so grateful, and whatever I do to
them will not be sufficient to repay them. Filial piety tops all virtues. Not
treating one’s parents with kindness is equal to committing the most serious sin.
“Chen Hongjun, you needn’t do this. What are you kneeling down for?”
said Zhou`s father, standing up as he saw my father kneeling down.
The old generation in rural areas was most concerned about the
custom that accepting other’s kneeling without giving them favor would be bring
bad fortune.
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