A century of poverty

Chapter 65 Black Heart

There's an optimal time to build a house, especially an earthen house. If it's not finished before the rainy season, not only will you be unable to work during the rainy season, but you also won't be able to build the walls. Once it's built, you have to put it on. My father was anxious, but he didn't want to keep urging me, so he had to do other work first and prepare everything, just waiting for the purlins to arrive so he could start building.

The next thing to do is to make the door and window frames; the doors and windows need to be made on the spot. We need to find a carpenter, and the materials will be my grandmother's coffin, which we brought from inside the city. This coffin has been prepared for over twenty years; although it hasn't been rained on, it's been infested with insects and is no longer suitable for use as a coffin.

The materials used for doors and windows weren't good either; it was a last resort, but at least they were readily available so I didn't have to spend money to buy them.

Father and Grandma discussed, "Building a house is a real problem. Li Feng, those two hundred won't be enough. Even the money the eldest daughter brought isn't enough. We need to call a carpenter now. I see your planks have been eaten by insects. I'm thinking of using them for now and getting you a better set later. What do you think?"

Grandma said worriedly, "My eyesight isn't very good, but my mind is crystal clear; I know everything. Li Feng, that bastard, sigh—. What can I say now? Just use it!"

They took the plank out and broke it, so they hired a carpenter. It cost three yuan and fifty cents a day, plus a thermos of water in the morning and another in the afternoon, two thermos of water a day, and three meals a day, prepared in different ways. This man was from the south, plump and fair-skinned, working slowly and always drinking water from a large tea mug. We complained to Dad, but he said, "There are all kinds of craftsmen." He didn't treat him any differently because of this.

One weekend morning, my younger brother came back carrying a small bucket of a thin, sticky, black substance.

I asked, "What's this? Why are you bringing this thing home?"

Younger brother: "This is oil. Xiaoqian said this stuff is really good for burning. There's some in a small ditch by the county road. He bought some, and he told me to buy some too, so we can take it all home to use for firewood. Also, mud is good for burning. I collected a whole bunch, but I couldn't carry it all back by myself, so I came to find Mom."

As we spoke, Mom had already found two baskets, lining each with a piece of tattered plastic sheeting. My younger brother led us towards the place he had indicated. Sure enough, not far away, there were signs of a car accident; the dirt road beside the painted road was a dark, grimy mess with a pile of grease. Mom filled the two baskets, threaded a shovel handle under the basket's crossbar, and used a stick for the other. Mom lifted the shovel handle with one hand and the stick with the other, while my brother and I carried each end, making our way home with the grease. We placed them against the wall next to the cowshed south of the window. Before we even reached the house, the postman rang his bicycle bell and rode in, calling out, "Telegram from Zhang Shuangxing!"

I took the telegram and looked at it in the house. It was from my eldest sister, saying that she wanted my eldest brother to pick me up at the station in Goubangzi tomorrow.

The third sister, who was lying on the kang (heated brick bed), sat up, and the fourth sister, who was tidying her clothes, stopped and asked for the telegram: "Let me see it."

"Oh—that's great!" My younger brother and I cheered. All the unpleasant and depressing things that had been happening lately vanished. The arrival of my eldest and second eldest sisters tomorrow was like a shot of adrenaline, and even my grandmother, who had been frowning all the time, was beaming with joy.

The next day, we went to school with great excitement.

As soon as I entered the outer room after school, I heard voices coming from inside. My second sister was on the floor watching over the two children. Xinmin was wearing a new jacket with bright red flowers. Xinhui was wearing a white shirt with blue stripes, and both children were wearing new blue pants, playing on the floor. My eldest sister was on the kang (a heated brick bed) chatting with my grandmother. My two nieces, the fourth sister Yanying and the fifth sister Yanyun, were beside my eldest sister. They seemed a little shy when they saw us come in and leaned against my eldest sister.

My second sister's two children are lively and cheerful. My second sister said, "Xinmin, dance for Grandma." Xinmin immediately started dancing with joy. We clapped, "Great! Who taught you to dance?"

Second sister: "She went to kindergarten, and her teacher taught her."

What should Xinhui perform? Sing a song!

Xinhui stepped forward confidently: "The little car is so beautiful, so very beautiful! Beep beep beep beep, horn sounds! I'm a little car driver, I'm a little driver, I'm busy transporting pigs for the revolution, busy transporting!"

We clapped, praised, and hugged the child affectionately.

My older sister's two children, dressed in matching floral tops and new pants, were both very cute. They came over to us and cuddled up to us. Yanying even told me, "Auntie, my uncle bought a big scallop."

I asked, "What kind of big sash?" Yan Ying gestured with her hand to indicate the name: "This long, and it has a handle."

Mom: "I had your brother buy a spatula/knife."

"Oh—haha! Haha!" This made everyone in the room burst into laughter.

My eldest and second eldest sisters arrived, and the money also arrived. Dad went to Panshan to buy some things, and first went to ask Li Feng if it had arrived. Li said it would be soon, it had already been mailed out, and it should arrive in two weeks.

Dad: "Can you make a precise date? I'll bring the car in two weeks, then we won't have to drive around so often."

Li: "You come, you can make an accurate prediction."

Dad: "Is this it?"

Li: "It's not here, there's no room for it. Once it arrives, leave it with my thirteenth brother; he has a courtyard there."

Dad: "Is it far from here?"

Li: "It's not too far, but I'm afraid you won't be able to find it. You're from such a place, so if you come here with nothing, he'll know his thirteenth uncle's house."

Dad: "That's settled then. I need to buy some other things, so I'm off!"

Dad bought vegetables. The next morning, the eldest and second eldest brothers didn't go to work; instead, they started mixing mud and building walls. About ten young and strong men from the team also brought their own pitchforks and volunteered to help. They were Zhang Laosan from Chaoyang, the two brothers from the Jiang family from Dalian, the two brothers from the Qu family, the local resident Si Tuzi, and Li, Mou, and Su from Shandong.

Mom, along with my eldest and second eldest sisters, cooked the dishes.

These young men, around twenty years old, are all top-notch. No matter who in the team has work to do, regardless of their relationship with each other, they will take the initiative to help. It's like a team, and they never need to ask for help; it's become a habit.

Look at them, two people facing each other, spread out, carrying water, digging mud, and spreading straw in an orderly manner, shoveling large stalks of straw and mud to form a wall. In one go, they built a meter high. After letting it dry, they would build it up higher. If they had enough time, they could finish in three stages; if they were short on time, they could finish in two.

My family performed the rituals twice on higher ground, but time was running out as the rainy season had already begun.

Finally, we can go to the county town to haul roof beams.

It was a gloomy day. The team of twelve horses was heading to the county town and could pick up the purlins along the way.

Last night I already told Li Kongzhi to come over early tomorrow morning, and after breakfast we'd go to his thirteenth uncle's place to get some wood.

The time came, but he didn't come. His older brother went over to check on him, but he still hadn't gotten out of bed. The second time he went to look for him, he dawdled and said he hadn't washed his face yet.

Four-Baldy had already urged him, "Aren't you leaving yet? What time is it? The car's in trouble and we'll miss it." He started the car. *Bang! Bang!* The deafening roar of the engine made everyone anxious, and he was already in the driver's seat.

Father had been standing by the window for a long time: "Go and see your second brother-in-law again."

The eldest brother came to find Li Kongzhi again: "Fourth Baldy has already started the car, let's go!" Li Kongzhi reluctantly followed his eldest brother outside.

Dad had already gotten in the car, which pulled up at the gate. My eldest brother reached the car, turned around, and saw Kong Zhigang had just arrived at Fangshan. He said anxiously, "Hurry up and go! We're waiting for you!"

Kong Zhi: "What are you waiting for me for? I'm not going!" He turned and went back.

The older brother came back and called him again. Seeing this, the mother, who was watching from the doorway, also rushed forward to coax and comfort him.

Kong Zhi angrily retorted, "You're the one who begged me to go, do you think I wanted to go or something...?"

Mom said, "Don't refuse to go, brother-in-law. They won't be able to find you if you don't go. Your eighth uncle asked you to go. Don't hold it against him, for your parents' sake." At that moment, the vacant houses, children, and workers all gathered around to watch. My second sister also came over to persuade him, and Mom said to her, "Give your brother-in-law some pancakes; he hasn't eaten yet, has he?"

The second sister quickly went back inside to wrap a stack of pancakes. She stepped forward and said, "Second sister, why don't you try to persuade him?"

Yin Huan said slowly, "Go ahead—what else can I do if I don't go?"

After much coaxing and persuasion, he finally didn't go back. Once in the car, his second sister put the pancake in his arms.

The older brother suppressed his anger, thinking to himself: "How can someone be so unreasonable?" But he couldn't lash out.

The car picked up Li Feng in the county town and then went to his thirteenth brother's house.

Li Feng lifted the tarpaulin: "You guys keep pretending."

Dad and my eldest brother laid them out side by side, lifted them up and loaded them onto the truck, without picking and choosing.

After installing the sixth tree, Li Feng said, "That's enough, stop installing!"

Father's heart sank: "These old, crooked, rickety timber beams of yours, even a new one costing ten yuan would be thicker and straighter. And you won't let me install them? You're so greedy!" Helpless, he knew these people were just bullying him. It was too late; he had to accept his fate, whether he liked it or not. Thinking this, Father said, "Brother Ba, I won't say whether these six beams are worth my two hundred yuan, but at least add one more. I won't say anything; you decide."

Li Feng looked at the car bumper he found and said, "Great!"

Four-Baldy cranked the cart, tossing the crank handle onto the small bucket hanging on the ground with a loud bang: "What a fucking piece of junk!" He chugged it out of the yard. Li Kongzhi stood in front of his eighth uncle and shouted, "You guys go! I'm not going back!"