Chapter 5

Chapter 5: Pork and Glass Noodles “Sizzle—” The firewood burned fiercely in the earthen stove. As soon as the thick, fatty pork hit the pot, the rich aroma of rendered fat burst through the shabby earthen house. When Lin Xiulan added the cabbage stems, she scattered two handfuls of dried glass noodles on top, poured in a ladle of water, and covered the pot. “Hongying, add some firewood.” “Sure…” With the flames roaring, the meat bubbled away, sending white steam rising into the air. The whole courtyard seemed to come alive with it. ………… While they waited for the meat, Liu Cuihua looked at the stack of money and hesitated for a long moment before finally speaking. “Brother Xiangyang, this money…” “Mom, here’s fifty yuan. Pay back what you borrowed, and use whatever’s left for household expenses.” Before Liu Cuihua could finish, Brother Xiangyang counted out five ten-yuan notes and handed them to her. Then he split off three more portions and pushed them in front of Lin Xiulan, Su Hongying, and Li Yuxiang. “The three of you get ten yuan each. Keep it to buy yourselves something.” “Well, I’ll be! Did the sun rise in the west?” Li Yuxiang snatched up the small bills and turned them over and over, making sure they weren’t counterfeit. “I thought I’d never get to spend your money in my whole life!” Brother Xiangyang gave a wry smile and tucked the remaining twenty-odd yuan into his pocket. “I’m keeping the rest. I have a use for it.” He already had a plan. His family’s house was in terrible shape, and he wanted to save up some money to fix the old place. Liu Cuihua clutched the money in her hand, but her brow furrowed tighter and tighter. She quickly worked out the figures in her head. “Brother Xiangyang, these numbers don’t add up. You said that pig weighed nearly three hundred jin. Leaving aside the forty jin of meat and the bones you brought back, how did selling the rest bring in only a hundred and five yuan? What happened to the other several dozen jin of meat and the pig’s offal? Did you hide some of the money?” As she spoke, Liu Cuihua’s eyes reddened again. “Son, I’m begging you, don’t gamble anymore. Our family really can’t take much more of this…” Su Hongying sneered without a trace of pity. “Mom, are you still expecting him to change? Old habits die hard. Who knows whose gambling debt he’s run up this time? Maybe he traded the meat to settle it.” Brother Xiangyang wasn’t offended by Su Hongying’s mockery. He had to pay the price for what he’d done wrong. Only by explaining things properly could he put his family at ease. He lifted the lid and stirred the meat. “Mom, you’ve got it wrong. That wild boar was too big for me to bring back or butcher on my own, so I went to Uncle Bai for help. I promised him twenty jin of good meat and a set of offal as payment…” “Oh?” Liu Cuihua froze for a moment, then nodded, her expression softening. “You did the right thing. Uncle Bai’s whole family are good people. When your father was alive, they helped us plenty. That boy Tiejun has had a hard time, too. We ought to help his family more.” “Come on, the meat’s tender now. Let’s eat!” “Coming!” Brother Xiangyang tossed a generous handful of chopped scallions into the pot, then shouted toward the yard, “Yaya, Dandan, quit playing and come home for meat!” A large basin of pork, cabbage, and glass noodles was set on the three-legged square table. The cabbage had soaked up the meat juices, the glass noodles gleamed, and the fatty pork belly quivered with a sheen of oil. Beside it sat a large winnowing basket full of freshly cooked cornmeal cakes, browned on one side and soft on the other. Yaya and Dandan were so hungry their stomachs were practically touching their backs. The two little girls didn’t even care whether the food was hot. Each grabbed a cake, picked up a piece of fatty meat from her bowl, and stuffed it into her mouth. “Slow down. There’s more in the pot…” Watching his family gathered around the steaming food, cheerful and close, Brother Xiangyang felt a happiness he’d never known before. Even though he’d made so much money in his previous life, he’d never been able to buy the sense of security he felt right now. He picked up a piece of meat and put it in Liu Cuihua’s bowl. “Mom, have some more.” But Liu Cuihua picked the meat back out and put it in Yaya’s bowl. “I’m old. I can’t get used to greasy food. Let the children have more.” Liu Cuihua lifted her bowl and drank only the broth, eating the cabbage. She only ate a piece of meat when she could no longer refuse. Brother Xiangyang knew Liu Cuihua wasn’t avoiding the meat because she didn’t like it. She was saving it. Parents were the same in every era. They’d rather eat a little less themselves than let their children go without. He looked at his elderly mother’s graying hair and sunken cheeks, and his heart ached. “Oh, right!” He suddenly remembered that what his mother loved most was fish. But he’d forgotten when the family had last eaten fish. All he could remember was that his father—the original Zhang Xiangyang’s father—had still been alive then. His father and Bai Baoguo had spent the whole day working by the river before bringing home two carp, each weighing a little over half a kilogram. That night, Liu Cuihua had been so happy she ate two extra corn buns, and she drank every last drop of the fish soup. “I’ll go check the river tomorrow.” As Brother Xiangyang picked at the rice in his bowl, he considered the idea. “If that pink cloud can help me find wild boar, maybe it can lead me to a school of fish, too.” ………… After dinner, Brother Xiangyang took a boning knife and sat on the threshold. He carefully cleaned the four knucklebones left over from the game they’d played earlier. Then he rummaged through the house and found a small scrap of blue fabric with a floral pattern. He went to the kitchen and grabbed a small handful of soybeans. In less than ten minutes, he had sewn a little square cloth pouch. Yaya and Dandan stood by the kang, craning their necks to watch him. Their eyes were full of curiosity, but because the original Zhang Xiangyang had once tried to sell them, neither girl dared to come near. Carrying the four knucklebones and the pouch, Brother Xiangyang went over and sat on the kang. “Yaya, Dandan, come here.” Brother Xiangyang beckoned. The two little girls took a frightened step back and pressed themselves against the wall. Zhang Xiangyang didn’t insist. He scattered the four knucklebones across the kang mat. Then he tossed the pouch into the air. As it came down, he quickly swept up a knucklebone with one hand. Then he caught the pouch neatly. “Isn’t it fun?” Zhang Xiangyang asked with a smile. Yaya’s eyes lit up. Dandan couldn’t help edging two steps closer, either. Zhang Xiangyang handed the pouch to Yaya. “Want to try?” Yaya hesitated and glanced at Lin Xiulan, who was washing the dishes. Lin Xiulan dried her hands, came over, and nodded. Only then did Yaya cautiously take the pouch. She copied Zhang Xiangyang, tossing it into the air before scrambling to grab a knucklebone from the kang. But she missed the knucklebone, and the pouch fell onto the kang, too. “Aw.” Yaya looked frustrated. “It’s okay. Move your hand quickly, and keep your eyes on the pouch.” Zhang Xiangyang took Yaya’s little hand and guided her through it. Dandan watched, eager to join in, and came over, too. “I want to play!” Dandan shouted. “All right. We’ll take turns.” Zhang Xiangyang set the knucklebones back in place. Before long, the clear laughter of the two little girls rang through the room. It had been a long time since laughter like that had been heard in the Zhang family’s dilapidated courtyard. Lin Xiulan, Su Hongying, and Li Yuxiang efficiently cleared away the dishes. The three women bustled around the stove, occasionally exchanging glances. “He really didn’t mess up today,” Li Yuxiang murmured, touching the ten yuan in her pocket. “Who knows how long he can keep up the act,” Su Hongying said, carrying a basin of water, her tone still cold. Lin Xiulan said nothing. She only watched Zhang Xiangyang’s back in the main room, her expression complicated.