Trees Without Wind

by Li Rui

  I just pulled open my clothes and shoved my tits in his face. I said, Don’t say such impractical things to me. Are you trying to tell me you’ve never wanted to take advantage of me? Don’t you think I know what it is you dirty men have on your minds? Come here! Aren’t you hankering to take advantage of your auntie? I never imagined that Kugen’r’s face would blush such a vivid shade of red. Kugen’r suddenly covered his eyes with his hands and shouted, You … you … as he ran off. I just sat on the threshold and laughed until I cried. I said, Showing you the true color of a female comrade really frightened you…. I have some more true color that I haven’t shown you yet … it would scare you to death…. Since then, Kugen’r blushes every time he sees me. When he blushes, I laugh. I love to see him blush.

  I said, When will you learn shyness? When will you learn to blush?

  He didn’t understand, he just kept on laughing, Ha-ha-ha. He said, What would a big guy like me blush for?

  I said, I never expected to meet a man who blushes in my lifetime.

  He still didn’t understand. He said, It won’t be easy to show you a red face. I’ll drink two liang.

  I couldn’t help it and began to cry.

  He said, Look at you, look at you. Okay, I’ve made you cry again.

  I didn’t pay attention to him and went on crying.

  Later, I stopped crying. I put on my clothes, washed my hands, and cooked him something to eat.

  He picked up the warm wine pot and drank three cups straight. His face was so red for a while that it looked like he was bleeding.

  He said, How’s this, is it red?

  I said, Red.

  What else could I say besides red? I’m no mute.

  8

  I think … forget it … I’m not going to bother telling them; I’ll just keep it to myself.

  Standing on the stone step, I dumped the straw in the manger. Several donkeys thrust their mouths in together. I scolded them: Hey! You’re all like a bunch of kids. I say eat and you’re all in a rush, can’t you modestly decline? Don’t you know any shame? Let me see, who’s still pushing? Who’s still pushing? Hearing me scold them, they felt ashamed; they stretched their necks and backed away from the manger, looking at me with their big moist eyes. I went soft. I encouraged them, I didn’t say don’t eat; the feed hasn’t been mixed yet, has it? I still have to add the bran and the soybean cakes. What’s so good about straw all by itself?

  I hurried and added the bran and soybean cakes, sprinkled in two ladles of water, and stirred it together, letting the water soak in, the aroma of the bran and soybean cakes spread. I patted the remnants from my hands and said, Okay, eat, hurry and eat. Once again they thrust their mouths into the manger and began eating, crunch, crunch, crunch. Taste good? I asked. They flicked their ears in response. I leaned against the manger, watching them eat. I love to listen to them chewing, crunch, crunch, crunch, more than listening to opera. Eat, eat up. Erhei butted Dahei with his head; I quickly reached in to block Dahei. I said, Okay, okay, brothers shouldn’t fight. You’re the oldest, so you have to give way. I scolded Erhei: Erhei, Erhei, behave. If you cause any more trouble, I won’t let you eat. Do you see how well behaved Heini and Laoni are? You have no sense of shame. I stroked Erhei’s head as I scolded him, and he thrust his head into my bosom. Erhei is very clever, but he knows whose favorite he is. But there is not a mom or dad under Heaven who doesn’t favor their own.

  I lowered the door curtain, placed the lantern on the windowsill, sat on the bench, and watched the family eat. I’m always saying to Tianzhu that there are not nine households in Stunted Flats but ten. Whatever you say, you’ve got to add mine. Tianzhu just laughed and said I really need a wife. Tianzhu said, That’s fine, Uncle Gimpy, we’ll send a palanquin around another day and carry Heini to your kang so you two can get married. I too laughed. I said, We can get married—Heini isn’t bad looking. Tianzhu said, Bad looking? What are you talking about—look at those ears, look at that face, so slender and pretty! We both laughed, laughed until our tears flowed.

  Sitting there, I could see the kitchen fire at the head of the kang. The flames were burning and the black beans cooking in the pot were nearly done. I could smell the aroma from there. The lantern shone bright and within its circumference of light, it felt warm. They were enjoying their food. Oh, happiness in this life is having someone love you. I wondered if they understood how fortunate they were. I wish I could grow another pair of legs and stand with them in front of the manger. That would be so nice, having food, a place to live, and someone who loves you. There’d be no need to pass on documents or worry about purifying class ranks.

  I’m thinking … forget it … I’m not going to bother telling them; I’ll just keep it to myself.

  She lifted the door curtain, came in, and rushed toward me with her hand extended, shouting, Wa-wa-wa.

  I said, You are more on time than a farm animal. How would you like a fried soybean cake?

  She was still holding out her hand going, Wa-wa-wa.

  I went inside and grabbed a handful and shoved it into her palm. I said, Eat up, you. Oh, I feed you every day, I feed you every day, and now you come back for more. Doesn’t Tianzhu ever feed you?

  She opened her mouth and was all smiles, crunch, crunch, crunch.

  I threw open the door curtain and said, Hurry home, you mustn’t worry Tianzhu.

  She was still smiling and chewing. As she left, she shouted, Wa-wa-wa.

  The sky was all black. It was so dark you couldn’t see a thing. You couldn’t see the mountains in front of you; you couldn’t see the trees, or the houses. All you could hear was Wa-wa-wa coming out of the darkness.

  Wa-wa-wa!

  What is enjoying happiness? What is enduring suffering? Not knowing anything is great happiness; the more one understands, the more one suffers; the greater the understanding, the greater the suffering. Erhei, what I’m saying is right, isn’t it? Forget it … there’s no point in telling you. I’ll just keep it to myself.

  The sky was really black; it was so dark you couldn’t see a thing. I couldn’t see a thing. It was the same as closing your eyes, wasn’t it?

  9

  When I lifted the lid off the pot, a burst of steam extinguished the oil lamp on the stove. The cave was so dark that nothing could be seen. Third Dog cried, Wa-wa-wa, and she shouted, Wa-wa-wa. Holding the lid, I couldn’t move; all I could do was shout, Big Dog, Big Dog, hurry up and find the damned matches and light the lamp. You’re as fucking dumb as your mother. Big Dog muttered in the darkness, I found them, stop crying, Third Dog, okay? Big Dog lit the lamp, but she kept crying, Wa-wa-wa. I put down the lid and took off the steamer baskets of cornbread. I pushed her aside. You’re always in such a rush, you are; don’t you see the little ones haven’t eaten? Don’t you see I haven’t eaten yet, either? After eating, I have to go to a meeting. Why are you in such a rush? Sit down!

  I took some steamed cornbread for the little ones, ladled out the thin rice gruel, and placed the pickled vegetables on the table on the kang. I said, Big Dog, call Second Dog, Third Dog, and Fourth Dog to come and eat. I placed another portion on the stovetop and said, Okay, stop that caterwauling and eat! If I didn’t have these four sons, I’d have fucking got rid of you a long time ago.

  By the time I had my bowl in my hands and saw the family by the light of the lamp, I felt disheartened. I’d be better off joining the oxen in the pen to eat. Fuck it all to hell.

  This afternoon I went to Nuanyu’s place and the courtyard gate was shut tight in the middle of the day. The bastard has time for a break, so he comes up here and keeps you busy. Big Dog, hurry up, Fourth Dog spilled his rice gruel. You’re his eldest brother, and all you do is take care of yourself. Can’t anyone eat one meal in peace? Third Dog, it’s okay, don’t cry; if you cry again, I’ll beat the fuck out of you.

  I soon saw Uncle Gimpy. The door was open and he came in without making a sound.

  I said, Uncle Gimpy, have you eaten?


  He said, Yes.

  The tobacco basket is on the kang, help yourself. I continued eating thin rice gruel; he said nothing but smoked pipe after pipe of tobacco. I could see that he had something on his mind. I said, What is it, Uncle Gimpy?

  He said, Commune Head Liu is here.

  I said, I know, this afternoon I finally got him to open the door at Nuanyu’s place.

  He said, Tianzhu, he’s here to purify class ranks, for class rectification, but it’s actually about me. They want to bring up that business of mine again. Tianzhu, can you go after someone else this time? You can’t go after me every time.

  I put down my bowl of thin rice gruel and said, Uncle Gimpy, this matter is really troublesome; I don’t have a say in it. Besides, here in our Stunted Flats, you’re the only one with a high enough class status, and then there’s Kugen’r, that weak, incompetent baby, who, from morning till night, has to struggle against this and criticize that to score points for himself. At Stunted Flats, we haven’t had a day of peace since he arrived—if it’s not repairing ditches, then it’s building some stockade or the scientific raising of pigs or class struggle, and on top of everything else, I stay up all night writing volumes by the light of a lamp. That weak and incompetent guy won’t be satisfied unless he scores points for himself.

  Uncle Gimpy asked, Does he score points by purifying my class rank?

  Taking a bite of cornbread, I said, That’s hard to say; anyway, he wants to score points.

  Uncle Gimpy said, All that land is my brother’s, not mine. I just look after it for him.

  I said, Uncle Gimpy, if I were you, I damned well would have left during land reform.

  Uncle Gimpy didn’t say anything, but smoked one pipe of tobacco after another. After smoking for a while, Uncle Gimpy said, Purify the class ranks, then purify the class ranks. If the state wants to purify things, can the people do anything but listen? Tianzhu, don’t worry; I don’t hate you, I just wanted to find someone to talk to.

  I said, Uncle Gimpy, just stick it out for two days until Commune Head Liu leaves. It’ll all blow over by then. Uncle Gimpy nodded and continued smoking in low spirits.

  She shouted, Wa-wa-wa. I said, What are you shouting about now? She put down her bowl and ran into the courtyard, where she squatted and peed. After she finished, she didn’t pull up her pants but stood up and shouted, Wa-wa-wa. I walked out and smacked her with the palm of my hand. I said, Are you so shameless? How many times have I whacked you and you still don’t remember? I’m going to beat the hell out of you, you shameless thing!

  Uncle Gimpy tried to intervene from the cave, Forget it, Tianzhu, she’s just a dumb mute. Beating and scolding her won’t do any good. Four sons are good enough. Don’t beat her.

  I pulled up her pants, hauled her back into the cave, and pushed her onto the kang. I said, Big Dog, take care of your mom and put your little brothers to bed, I have to go to the meeting. I took the brass gong from the top of the chest and said, Let’s go.

  Standing in the courtyard, I banged the gong—guang! I struck it again—guang! The meeting is about to start.

  Uncle Gimpy said, That’s a pretty old gong. It was used when the Japs were here harassing us. Someone would stand on the mountain opposite, and when they saw the Japanese soldiers coming, they’d bang the gong and everyone would run. In those days you couldn’t run and your mom couldn’t carry you, so I had to carry you for her.

  I banged it forcefully, Guang! guang!

  Uncle Gimpy didn’t say anything more and just shuffled off, shuffled off. At a distance, I heard him sigh.

  Near and far, I heard the door hinges creaking. High and low, I saw lanterns and hemp stalks being lit and saw them swaying.

  Again I forcefully banged the gong—guang! guang! The meeting is about to start!

  I looked up. The sky was full of stars, so many of them and so bright!

  I seemed to recall having seen this before … right! I was pressed against my mom’s bosom. I woke up at midnight, covered with dew. When I looked up through the tree branches, I saw the sky, full of stars. My mom covered my mouth with her hand and said, Don’t make a sound or the Japs will find us! At that moment, the stars filling the sky fell into my eyes.

  10

  There was a lot of smoke and a confusion of people, and the lamplight was dim. Commune Director Liu’s face was very red. But Kugen’r was very excited. He put on his glasses.

  When he was being fitted for glasses, the old man in the shop asked, Are you a student? Are you nearsighted? No, he said. The old man said, You’re farsighted, then? No, he said, I just want to wear glasses. The old man laughed and handed him a pair of glasses. The old man said, Try these plain glass spectacles. He said, Okay. He put on the glasses and looked at himself in the mirror. Wow! They had black frames, just like the pair worn by that writer. The old man said, Are you a student taking the university exam? He laughed and said, No, I’m not taking the exam; I’m going down to the countryside, to Stunted Flats Village. The old man said, Where? He said, Stunted Flats Village, the farthest village from the county seat at 165 li. In the mirror, the old man’s eyes grew as round as green walnuts. He said no more. How could the old man, whose eyes grew as round as green walnuts, understand him? How could he know that when County Party Secretary Chen asked him, that’s what he had said. Kugen’r, pointing to a map on the Party secretary’s wall, said, I’ll go here. As Kugen’r spoke, he searched out the farthest black dot on the map. He still didn’t know it was called Stunted Flats Village, nor did he know that there was Kashin-Beck disease there. Excited, Secretary Chen clasped his hand and said, You’re a good youngster, you have ambitions, like the descendant of a revolutionary martyr. Wearing his glasses, he walked around the streets of the county seat with his head held high. Most of the people in the county seat were familiar to him. He was very pleased with his decision to wear glasses when he saw the startled looks on those familiar faces. He felt he was different from ordinary people in every way.

  He was very excited every time he saw the document that Chairman Mao himself had commented on. It was simply a miracle that Chairman Mao’s directives could travel over countless mountains and rivers to arrive at Stunted Flats. Peeping through his glasses, he personally read out Chairman Mao’s words, one by one:

  “This is the best written of all the documents of this type that I have read.”

  Smoke was rising in the cave, and amid the hubbub, Commune Head Liu became impatient. Commune Head Liu said, Shut the hell up, all of you. Are you listening to Chairman Mao’s words or your damned selves? There isn’t the least bit of political consciousness among you, is there? Do any of you have the slightest damned idea of the importance of the policies of the Party Central Committee? The cave fell silent after his excoriating rebuke. Commune Director Liu said, Okay, everyone, listen up as Comrade Zhao Weiguo continues reading. Kugen’r, please read.

  Kugen’r adjusted his glasses; behind the glass lenses, he sneered. Kugen’r felt there was an immense difference between himself and Commune Head Liu, which was that Liu simply did not understand the masses. The eyes of the masses are as bright as snow. This afternoon you slept with Nuanyu on this kang, and when you slept with her you were carrying Central Committee documents. Do you think the masses trust you? What do you think? In the presence of the Central Committee documents, you stripped off Nuanyu’s clothes piece by piece until she was naked, then you got undressed yourself. How can the masses be concerned about Party Central Committee policies? The only thing the masses are concerned about right now is the matter of you and Nuanyu. Don’t think I don’t notice, and don’t think you can escape Zhao Yingjie’s eyes.

  Commune Head Liu said, Kugen’r, hurry up and read.

  “… we have also organized the masses to study Chairman Mao’s theory, guiding principles, method, and policies for carrying out revolution under the dictatorship of the proletariat, and for mass criticism of the plot by the Chinese Khrushchev and his representatives to subvert the dict
atorship of the proletariat and the crime of vainly attempting to restore capitalism … ‘the tree may prefer calm, but the wind will not subside’; class struggle is independent of man’s will….”

  Do you know who Khrushchev is? What country he is from? Do you know who the Chinese Khrushchev is? Chairman Mao says that we must constantly be vigilant against the Khrushchevs sleeping beside us. Understand? You don’t understand a damned thing except that it’s your old lady sleeping beside you. Now isn’t that the same as the restoration of capitalism? Do you know what “the tree may prefer calm” means? It means the tree wants to stop and rest, but the wind blows and blows, and even if the tree wants to stop, it can’t; even if it wants to stand, it can’t. That’s the way class struggle is, no one has a choice—you might not want to struggle, but you have to! Understand? All of this is principle. Kugen’r, read.

  “Organize the masses to recall past suffering and think over the source of present happiness, eat a poor meal to recall past suffering, perform operas to recall past suffering, sing songs to recall past suffering…. Once, when eating a poor meal to recall past suffering, everyone wept as they ate. Some sang ‘Forget Not Class Suffering.’ At such a time, everyone’s criticism of China’s Khrushchev grew angrier. In anger they took a group of capitalist roaders to the factory cafeteria to criticize and denounce them.”

  At Stunted Flats, we must recall past suffering and think over the source of present happiness, and we must recall the sufferings in the old society and think about the present happiness in the new society. Can you all sing songs about past suffering? Never heard one? Let me sing a bit for you: Stars above fill the sky, the crescent moon is bright and shiny; the production team a meeting holds, pouring out grievances, righting wrongs; the evil old society, hatred of blood and tears of the poor; hatred beyond measure, hatred beyond measure fills my heart; bitter tears I cannot hold back, it all fills my heart. Okay, that’s enough. You get the idea. Where there are wrongs, there is hatred; where there is hatred, there is drive; only where there is drive can there be firm, accurate, and victorious struggle. Tell me, whom should we struggle against here in Stunted Flats? You don’t say anything when asked. Are you all mute? Speak up!