His Wife Was Gone

"Brother Chuan, Xiao Mo, come out and have breakfast."

Chen Mo chatted with Chen Dachuan for a while, then the two of them stepped out of the shop at Aunt Liu's call.

Breakfast was laid out on the stone table in the courtyard.

There was a pot of somewhat watery rice porridge, a plate of dark, lumpy pickled vegetables, and a few steamed corn buns mixed with bran, their edges already getting hard.

Yuanyuan held a chipped pottery bowl in both hands and took tiny sips of porridge, but her eyes kept drifting toward the brown-paper package at the edge of the table.

Aunt Liu had put the package of pastries away, saying she would save them to eat little by little.

Chen Mo picked up a steamed bun and broke it open. The inside was dry, hard, and coarse. He forced himself to finish one before looking at Chen Dachuan. "Dad, do we still have enough grain at home?"

Chen Dachuan lowered his head and drank his porridge, answering vaguely, "Enough. I bought some the day before yesterday. We can mix it in and make do."

He didn't say whether he had used any of the silver dollars in the cellar to buy the grain.

Chen Mo didn't press him. Instead, he asked, "Did a new family move into the neighboring courtyard? I heard some noise this morning."

Chen Dachuan paused, not even lifting his eyelids. "Mm. They moved in seven or eight days ago. They're secretive, hardly ever seen in the daytime, though there's sometimes noise at night."

"Don't get too close. Better not invite trouble."

The warning in his words was unmistakable.

Chen Mo nodded and asked no more.

After breakfast, Chen Dachuan gathered his carpentry tools and said casually, "The sun's out today. Take Yuanyuan for a walk around town. The child's been here for days, and she hasn't had a proper chance to go out."

He glanced at Aunt Liu, who was quietly washing the dishes. "You should take a rest, too."

Aunt Liu hurriedly wiped her hands. "There's no need to trouble Xiao Mo. Yuanyuan's fine at home..."

"Go on. It's not good for her to stay cooped up all the time."

Chen Dachuan's tone left no room for argument. Then he added to Chen Mo, "Pick up a packet of candy while you're out."

Chen Mo nodded and held out his hand to Yuanyuan.

The little girl hesitated, wiped her hand on her old clothes, then timidly placed it in Chen Mo's palm.

The streets of Linshui County were far from lively now. The shops on either side had their doors half open, and the whole place wore a desolate air.

Inside the shops, the owners and assistants looked listless, too.

But there were plenty of people in the streets—or rather, the streets were crowded with them.

Most were dressed in rags and carried battered bundles. Some sat leaning against walls; others lay sprawled on the ground.

They were all refugees.

Yuanyuan's little hand tightened in Chen Mo's palm, and she instinctively edged closer to his leg.

Chen Mo drew her closer to his side, steering around the people sprawled every which way on the ground. His pace slowed even more.

Now and then, a peddler passed by with a shoulder pole, selling crude food. The refugees immediately crowded around, digging out filthy copper coins or simply holding out their hands to beg.

A woman exchanged the only few copper coins she had for two hard, black multigrain cakes. Several people nearby fixed their hungry, gleaming eyes on her. She hurriedly stuffed the cakes inside her clothes, clutched them tightly, then staggered away to a more distant corner.

The little shop on the street corner, which had once sold needles and thread, now had a battered pot set up outside, cooking a thin vegetable porridge.

The shopkeeper held a long ladle and impatiently shooed away the people crowding too close. "Line up! Everyone, get in line! Money! If you don't have money, move along!"

Chen Mo watched in silence.

This wasn't the Linshui County he remembered.

The world had grown even worse than before.

He sighed to himself as he led Yuanyuan along at an unhurried pace, pointing out the occasional shop sign they passed.

At first the little girl was reserved, but gradually her eyes brightened. She softly asked, "What's that?"

As they neared the end of the street, a young woman walked toward them with graceful steps.

She wore a blue cotton blouse and a black skirt, her short hair cut to her ears. She carried a wicker suitcase. She was Widow Li's daughter, Li Siqing.

She seemed to have just gotten off a boat. Fatigue showed on her face, but she still had the fresh, bookish air about her.

Li Siqing saw Chen Mo, too. Her steps faltered, and her brows knitted almost imperceptibly.

Her gaze swept over him, then fell on Yuanyuan, whose hand he was holding. A flicker of surprise crossed her face, quickly replaced by even deeper indifference.

As they passed each other, Chen Mo gave a slight nod in greeting.

Li Siqing acted as if she hadn't seen him and walked straight on, leaving behind only the clean scent of soap mixed with ink.

Yuanyuan looked up at Chen Mo, then at Li Siqing's retreating figure. In a small voice, she asked, "Brother, is that older sister unhappy?"

Chen Mo looked away and replied calmly, "No. There's something wrong with her."

He remembered that they had once been classmates in high school. Why did it feel as if he owed her money and had never paid it back?

Leading Yuanyuan to the quieter end of the street, he found a small general store still open there.

The shopkeeper was a thin old man. He listlessly swept dust off the counter with a feather duster, keeping a wary eye on the doorway.

"A packet of candy," Chen Mo said.

The old man looked at Chen Mo's neat clothes and Yuanyuan beside him. His expression softened a little as he pulled a rough paper packet from beneath the counter. "One silver dollar."

That much?

Chen Mo was startled, but he paid anyway.

He remembered it used to cost only three hundred copper coins.

Yuanyuan looked at the packet of candy and licked her lips, but didn't ask for any.

Once they left the shop, Chen Mo opened the packet and picked out a piece of rock candy for her.

The little girl happily popped it into her mouth. The sweetness melted across her tongue, and she narrowed her eyes. At last, her face showed a childlike contentment.

"Is it sweet?" Chen Mo asked.

"Mm." Yuanyuan nodded hard, then asked in a small voice, "Brother, those people lying on the ground... don't they have anything to eat?"

Chen Mo looked toward the far end of the street, still packed with a jostling, chaotic crowd. Faint arguing and wailing seemed to drift over from the distance.

He raised a hand and gently ruffled Yuanyuan's hair.

"Mm," he answered in an even voice. "A lot of people have nothing to eat."

When they got home and entered the courtyard, they heard Widow Li's voice rising from next door, edged with tears. "...You've grown wings now! Have you forgotten that if Master Chen hadn't gritted his teeth and lent us that money, you'd never have gotten where you are today? Was all that university for nothing? Has ink soaked away your conscience?"

Then Li Siqing answered clearly. Even through the wall, they could hear her stubbornness. "Mom! Those are two different things! I remember the favor of the loan. I'll pay it back once I start earning money! But you can't use it to bargain over my marriage!

"I've told you before, I could never marry Chen Mo! I... I already have someone I like!"

"You! Can the one you like put food on the table? Can he help you find your footing in this world? What's wrong with Chen Mo? He's a good, steady boy!" Widow Li's voice was full of anger and anxiety.

"Even if he's wonderful, I don't like him!" Li Siqing's voice was resolute. "What age do we live in now? I'll walk my own path! Don't bring this up again!"

On this side of the courtyard wall, Chen Mo gave Yuanyuan another piece of candy.

The little girl held the candy in her mouth, gazing at Chen Mo, whose expression had turned strange.

At some point, Chen Dachuan had come to stand in front of them, a hand plane in his grasp and his face dark.

He looked at Chen Mo, then listened to the argument next door, his tone full of exasperation at his son's failure to live up to expectations.

"You good-for-nothing, you've lost your wife!"