Too Chaotic

Four years later, Jiang Xueming had returned to this place.

His heart was a jumble of emotions, too complicated to put into words. It was a bitter feeling, aching and sorrowful.

His hometown had barely changed. Time seemed to have left few traces on its roads and houses.

The yellow dirt roads in the countryside, the little ditches by the roadside, the broad lotus leaves in the water, and the wild red berries beyond them.

None of it had changed. Only Jiang Xueming was no longer a child.

He found a small hotel in the county town with Seventh Brother. They handed over their IDs and got a room.

Seventh Brother was nervous as hell while they checked in, because they'd booked a room with just two beds.

Jiang Xueming seemed to have figured out what was going through Seventh Brother's mind. Once they were in the hotel's twin room, he said frankly, as casually as if discussing the weather, "I don't feel right about staying apart from you."

Then he tossed the clothes he'd picked up outside Pingyang University Town onto the bed, walked out, and pulled the door shut behind him. "Change into those. Be quick about it."

Xiao Qi sat on the edge of the bed, lips pressed together. Only after Jiang Xueming left did she come back to herself, looking lost. She clutched the hem of the red dress as if she'd been thinking about it for a long, long time. One hand twisted a lock of hair while she bit her fingernail.

When it came to this sort of thing, she didn't seem so brave anymore. She no longer had the courage to truly break through that invisible barrier. When she was alone in a room with Jiang Xueming, she could barely bring herself to speak.

Jiang Xueming knocked on the door.

"Seventh Brother, are you ready? You were pretty quick at changing earlier."

"Oh! Oh! Just a second!"

Xiao Qi quickly changed into casual clothes, took off the mermaid skirt and wiped off her makeup. Then she spent a moment admiring her own long legs before happily pulling on jeans and a T-shirt.

She smoothed her hair and tied it back into a neat ponytail, threading it through the opening in her baseball cap.

After straightening out her clothes, she still wasn't satisfied. She twirled in front of the mirror and touched up her eyebrows a few times. Only then did she finally feel content with how she looked.

The moment Xiao Qi opened the door, she saw that Jiang Xueming had already changed.

Xue Ming glanced at Seventh Brother, nodded, and said nothing. He tossed his old clothes into the laundry basket.

"You just..." Seventh Brother toyed with her fingers, a little confused. "Changed in the hallway?"

Jiang Xueming took the key card, picked up the brocade box and backpack, and closed the door behind him.

He answered offhandedly, "Where else? You want me to get naked in front of you?"

"Heh heh heh." Seventh Brother giggled to herself, then changed her tune. "No, no. Aren't you worried someone might see you?"

Jiang Xueming didn't care what other people thought, and skipped over the question. "Let's go."

Xiao Qi followed Mr. Xue Ming, asking him now and then, "In such a hurry?"

"We've got time. We'll go home and have dinner. Once we've taken care of things, we'll come back." Jiang Xueming walked quickly. On the way out, he stopped at the front desk and bought two packs of cigarettes and a bottle of liquor to take home.

At that moment, Seventh Brother suddenly lost her nerve. "Honestly, I'm a little nervous. It's my first time going to a guy's house. Isn't this too soon?"

"I asked you to act out a scene. You don't have to take it seriously. If you don't want to do it, I can handle it by myself." Xue Ming walked out of the hotel and onto the paved road leading from the county town to the countryside. "You just need to keep an eye out from outside the house and do your job."

Xiao Qi hurried after him. "Oh, no, no, no! Director, that's not what I meant. Just pretend I didn't say anything. I'll do it, I'll do it!"

Jiang Xueming suddenly said, "Thank you, 9527."

Hearing him thank her so seriously by her full name, Xiao Qi froze for a moment.

She walked shoulder to shoulder with Xue Ming. Crickets chirped noisily in the fields on either side, moonlight falling across their shoulders. Frogs croaked in the fields beneath the clear, brilliant stars. Smoke rose from the chimneys of distant farmhouses, and the dogs by their gates barked in low voices.

A touch of ordinary life, and a touch of peaceful quiet.

It all seemed incredibly romantic to her.

"Xue Ming." Xiao Qi lowered her head, afraid to look at the person beside her. "Have you ever thought about us walking together like this, forever and ever? I mean, every afternoon or evening, we could walk together. I wouldn't say anything, and you wouldn't say anything. We'd just walk side by side for a while."

Xue Ming didn't understand what Xiao Qi really meant. "Every day?"

Xiao Qi hurriedly backtracked. "Not every day. Just whenever you like."

Jiang Xueming answered casually, "Sure."

Xiao Qi jumped with delight. "All right! It's a promise!"

Even someone as wooden as Jiang Xueming could tell what her excitement meant.

To Jiang Xueming, the woman named 9527 was full of mysteries.

As far as he could tell—

—Xiao Qi had only a code name. Her age and background were unknown, and even whether she was human was still an open question.

According to the journal, attendants were very important to passengers. But it never said that passengers had to be friends with their attendants, let alone have a relationship beyond friendship.

Whenever he thought of Seventh Brother's strange, eerie smile, it kept Jiang Xueming up at night. That smile was beyond anything he could understand.

Jiang Xueming usually kept his distance from things he didn't understand. But he was willing to agree to "going for a walk together."

They crossed the long, narrow paved road, then took the gravel path beside a small fishpond. After a long trek, they reached Xue Ming's old home.

Dried radishes hung on the wooden frame in the muddy yard. Beside the two-story house was a pigsty that had been abandoned for over a decade.

Ever since the house had been connected to natural gas, the woodshed had become the guard dog's kennel. The puppy had grown up now, and its whole body was covered in black fur. The moment it saw strangers, it charged out, barking furiously.

Jiang Xueming merely raised a hand and bent at the waist.

The big black dog seemed to recognize its nemesis. Its tail immediately began wagging like a fan, while both ears flattened against its head and its eyes grew watery.

It bounded over, whining, paws resting on Xue Ming's thigh as it stretched out its head and tongue, panting enthusiastically.

"I'm back." Xue Ming scratched the big black dog's head and neck.

Xiao Qi itched to pet it, but didn't dare. She asked curiously, "What's its name? Does it have one? If I call it by name, will it recognize me?"

"It doesn't have a name," Jiang Xueming replied. "My parents are country folk. They barely know how to read. They said they spent quite a bit of money having a fortune-teller name Bai Lu and me, so they just called the dog 'Dog.' It doesn't have a name."

"Dog!" Xiao Qi leaned forward and shouted with all her might. "Dog! Dog!"

Every time she shouted, the big black dog barked once.

She happily crouched down and scratched the black dog's neck, following Xue Ming's lead. The big black dog lay down too, nodding eagerly at her.

Xiao Qi's voice rang out like a melodious violin, carrying far across the countryside hills.

The commotion outside soon brought the old house's owners to the door.

Old Jiang came to the front door, leaning on his cane. His beard was white, and his eyesight wasn't very good. He barely had any hair left on his head, but he still kept it styled with flair.

When the old man finally made out Jiang Xueming in the muddy yard—his son, who had left home more than four years ago—

Jiang Xueming had just greeted him.

"Dad, I'm home."

Xiao Qi murmured, "The old man looks like his legs aren't doing too well."

Old Jiang's expression grew more and more suspicious. His face turned from pale and bland to blazing with rage.

He raised his cane and charged toward Jiang Xueming at a brisk pace, shouting as he cursed, "You little bastard! You've got some nerve! I'll beat you to death today!"

Xue Ming was quick enough to grab the dragon-head cane and hold it firmly.

Xiao Qi watched in alarm, then clicked her tongue in amazement. "Dad's legs seem fine to me. He's in great shape. Why's he using a cane?"

Jiang Xueming held back his father's fierce flurry of blows and found a moment to answer Xiao Qi.

"He's putting on airs. He likes pretending. Carrying a cane makes him feel like some kind of nobleman."

"What did you say?! You little bastard!" Old Jiang's eyes bulged, making him look terrifying. The arteries in his neck throbbed along with the veins at his temples. He yanked hard at the cane, but couldn't pull it free.

The oppressive atmosphere made Xiao Qi feel like she couldn't breathe.

It was like two wild beasts wrestling over their territory, neither willing to yield.

A long, long time passed. A very long time.

Old Jiang seemed like a defeated rooster. Then he started pleading and throwing a tantrum. "Let go of me! Let go! Let go of the cane! I'm your father!"

Jiang Xueming yielded to the force and slowly let go.

But the moment he released it, Old Jiang suddenly raised the cane and swung it at him again.

And so the situation began all over again, returning to the first round.

The same familiar curses rang out.

"You little bastard! I'll beat you to death!"

Jiang Xueming had nothing left to say.

He simply grabbed the redwood cane in one hand, held up the cigarettes and liquor with the other, and said gently, "I'm home. I brought you some things. And I brought my wife home, too."

"Let me hit you a few times!" Old Jiang insisted. "Don't make me lose face in front of an outsider! Let me hit you a few times!"

Xue Ming covered his forehead. "She's not an outsider."

Xiao Qi beamed. "I'm his wife."

Old Jiang looked at Xiao Qi suspiciously. His expression grew sinister, and his eyes sank deep into their sockets. The stench of rotten teeth, from years of drinking and smoking, seemed to waft out from his mouth.

"Don't lie to me. I won't hit you anymore. Let go of my treasure!"

Jiang Xueming let go again.

Xiao Qi was still preparing to introduce herself properly.

But before she could get a single word out—

A loud shout rang out.

"I'll beat you to death, you little bastard!" Old Jiang lifted his cane and brought it down again.

Father and son completed a perfect hat trick.

One striking, the other blocking, they were in exactly the same positions as when they'd first met.

Xiao Qi moved close to Xue Ming and whispered,

"Why's your dad so stubborn? Does he have Alzheimer's? Is he senile?"

Xue Ming set the cigarettes and liquor on the ground, told Xiao Qi to take some cash out of the backpack, and quietly explained,

"Cut him some slack. He's from the forties. He doesn't watch Saint Seiya."

Xiao Qi pulled out the money and asked, puzzled, "What's that supposed to mean?"

"You can only use the same move once against a Saint Seiya." Xue Ming whispered to Seventh Brother. He waved the money pouch in front of Old Jiang a few times.

"Oh! My son!" Old Jiang's expression changed in an instant. Tears trickled from his deep-set eyes. He dropped his cane at once, his legs going weak as he turned into a limping cripple and tried to hug Xue Ming.

"My son! My son's home! My boy's back!"

Xue Ming simply held out the money pouch. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted his mother watching the show from the second-floor balcony.

His mother had originally been leaning on the balcony, cracking sunflower seeds, her eyes full of resentment.

The moment her eyes met Xue Ming's, her expression turned kind. She made no move to come downstairs and greet him.

She just called out from afar, for the sake of appearances.

"It's good you're back. It's good you're back!"

Then a hoarse scolding came from his mother's throat.

"Old man! Why are you hitting our precious boy? If you call him a little bastard, doesn't that make you and me old bastards too?!"

Xiao Qi whispered to Xue Ming, "Director, I get it now. Your family is way too chaotic. Where'd you find such nationally treasured veteran actors? I can't keep up with this performance. You'll have to pay me more."

Jiang Xueming leaned toward Xiao Qi and spoke softly. "How much more?"

Xiao Qi held up a V sign. "Two meals a week. You eat with me."

Jiang Xueming folded one of her fingers down. "One meal a week. I'll eat with you."

Xiao Qi held out her hand. "Deal."

Xue Ming shook it. "Deal."

After settling things between them, Xue Ming raised his head and called out with a fake smile, "Hey, Mom!"

Xiao Qi did the same, smiling brightly. "Hey, Mom!"

His mother had a deeply wrinkled, elderly face, but she'd dyed her hair purple. She must have been a formidable figure in the county town's senior dance troupe.

She looked down at them from above, her eyes sweeping over Xiao Qi from head to toe like an X-ray, as if she wanted to see every inch of her skin, flesh, and bone.

"Who's this woman? Precious Xue Ming? Did she just say she's your wife? Have you told us about this? Did we give our permission?"

The old woman's string of cutting questions made Seventh Brother's scalp prickle.

"Where did you take Bai Lu? She still has a marriage arrangement to settle! You've made us lose face in the production team. We can't even hold our heads up! Do you know that?"

Jiang Xueming answered immediately, his tone calm and his words explosive.

"Mom, are you too old to hear properly? She's my wife. Do I have to say it more times? Should I buy a loudspeaker in the county town and play it on repeat for you every day, like the recordings they use to advertise knife sharpening and breakfast? Or should I take you to the hospital right now? The best hospital in Hengyin City! My friend Brother Ye knows a doctor. I'm sure they can cure you."

"Did I ask for your permission? Did I ever say I needed your permission to get married? Was there any need to tell you?"

"I took my little sister away because she didn't want to get married when she was fourteen, and she still doesn't want to now. Did you ask whether she agreed? Did you ask whether I agreed?"

"I don't know, I'm not aware, I have no idea how much embarrassment you've suffered in Pingyang County. I'm so sorry. Should I put up a billboard tomorrow that says, 'Jiang Xueming, historical criminal, brought shame upon the Jiang family,' then parade through the streets holding it? Maybe I could turn this whole affair into a sixty-four-chapter, five-volume tale and give it to the storytellers under the bridge, or take it to the teahouses and card rooms so the storytellers can give the whole neighborhood a refresher?"

"I love you, my dear Mom and Dad."

That barrage of retorts made his mother's face change.

Downstairs, his father raised the cane, ready to go for a grand slam and finish the match.

"I'll beat you to death, you little bastard!"

Before he could finish speaking, Xue Ming snatched the money pouch away and started toward the main road.

His mother smiled and called out, "That's enough, no more fighting. Come eat with us. I want to see you. Mom's missed you so much."

His father lowered his cane as well, his face still dark with anger.

Xue Ming's expression hadn't changed the whole time. Apart from the fake smile he'd forced onto his face, he was as cold as a block of ice.

Xiao Qi felt awful watching him. She could hardly imagine what Mr. Xue Ming's childhood had been like.

They stepped over the foot-high threshold and finally made it inside.

As soon as Seventh Brother entered, she grabbed Xue Ming's hand. Her heart was pounding wildly. This was even more exciting than the underground station.

She spoke in a low voice, her face bright red. "Were you always this fierce?"

Xue Ming didn't feel the need to hide anything. He held Xiao Qi's hand as they walked toward the main room.

His expression unchanged, he answered quietly, "You never understood me?"

Xiao Qi mumbled, "Before, I just thought you were handsome. That's why I liked you."

Xue Ming frowned, staying alert for any move from his parents in case that dragon-head cane swung at him again. He asked offhandedly, "And now you think I'm trouble?"

Xiao Qi's voice was as faint as a mosquito's buzz, almost inaudible.

"Trouble, trouble. I like you even more now."

The whole family sat down together in the main room.

Soup was still simmering in the kitchen. Aside from the hiss of the natural gas and the pressure cooker's rushing steam, no one spoke first.

Only the big black dog, still unaware of what was going on, sat at the doorway, wagging its tail happily.