Under the Hawthorn Tree (27 page)

She ran to a tap outside the men's dormitory to wash her hands. Only once she had removed the dirt did she see that there was a bit of glass wedged in her palm. She pulled it out, causing more bleeding. Using her right thumb she pressed on the cut to try and stop the flow of blood and a surge of pain shot through her hand. Maybe there's still more glass in there, she thought. I'll have to go home and use a needle to get it out.

Just then Zhang Yi came running towards her. ‘Someone said your hand's bleeding. What happened?'

‘I fell over.'

Zhang Yi clasped her hand to look at the cut. ‘It's still bleeding! Let's go to the factory medical room.'

Jingqiu tried to make excuses but Zhang Yi paid no attention, and grabbing her by the right arm he started walking towards the medical room.

‘Okay, okay, I'm coming. Don't pull me.'

Zhang Yi didn't let go. ‘What are you afraid of? How many times did you pull me around when we were kids?'

At the medical room the nurse removed the last of the glass and stopped the bleeding, dressed the wound, and because Jingqiu had fallen from the wall on the south side of the factory complex, she also gave her a tetanus jab. ‘It's dirty over there, what were you doing?'

‘You're not going back to work today, are you?' Zhang Yi asked after they left. ‘Go home and rest, and I'll speak to the hunchback. Wait a minute and I'll take you on my bike.'

Jingqiu didn't know what to do. She didn't want to see Wan Changsheng again, but she couldn't work with her hand bandaged. ‘I'll go now, you don't need to take me. You go off to work.'

‘My shift doesn't start till later. Wait for me here and I'll get my bike.'

Jingqiu waited for him to leave and then sneaked off back home.

Her sister was the only person at home; her mother was out, having got a job pasting envelopes at the neighbourhood committee. She was paid according to the quantity she completed. Jingqiu didn't want her mother to work too much and get sick but she insisted. ‘If I do a bit more you can work a bit less. I'm only sitting there gluing envelopes. As long as I don't get greedy and work too much there shouldn't be a problem.'

Jingqiu ate and then lay down on her bed. She worried that Wan Changsheng might tell Director Li that she was a lazy worker who didn't follow instructions, and ran away. If so, she thought, Director Li won't give me any more jobs and I won't get any money from the work I've already done as the boss has to pay it through the neighbourhood committee at the end of the month. If Wan Changsheng is dishonest and doesn't report my hours I'll get no money at all. The more she thought about it, the angrier she got. What possessed him? Was it because he's my boss? He comes from a family of wage labourers, and yet the factory knows that he'll ingratiate himself to them by exploiting the temps, that's the only reason they put him in charge. I've been taken advantage of by such a wretched-looking man, he's a complete scoundrel. If I'd fallen down and killed myself I bet they wouldn't have even provided compensation for my family. She was desperate to report him but she had no witnesses. Who would they believe, him or her?

Maybe she would tell Old Third and let him sort that Mr Wan out. But then if he beat him, or worse killed him, Old Third would be locked up forever. It wouldn't be worth it just to get back at such a horrible man. She wasn't fooled by Old Third's gentle appearance. That day when he had been playing with the knife a look came across his face that showed he was capable of violence, if necessary. It was probably best not to tell him after all.

The thought of going back to Director Li the next day put her into a terrible mood. She was not afraid of hard work and exhaustion, but she did not like to look like she was asking favours of people. If Kunming had been at home then that would have been fine, he would definitely have helped, but Jingqui knew he had already left for the army. She told her sister not to tell their mother that she had come home early that afternoon. The last thing she needed was her mother worrying.

At around six o'clock Granny Copper came to call on Jingqiu. ‘The boss told me to tell you that he was joking today, he didn't realise you would take it so seriously. He heard you hurt your hand and told me to say there's no need to rush back to work. He'll count today and tomorrow as full days. You can rest for two more days without pay and he'll keep your place.'

Jingqiu couldn't help herself. ‘Joking? There's no way he was joking! He was dead serious.' She explained what had happened to Granny Copper, although she couldn't bring herself to repeat his exact, dirty, words.

Granny was dismissive. ‘Oh, what's the big deal? What could he have possibly done up on that wall? Why get so worked up? You can't be so precious when you're trying to scrape a living through temp work.'

Surprised and angry, Jingqiu replied, ‘How can you say that? If he had done it to you would you have thought it was nothing?'

‘I'm an old woman, he wouldn't waste his energy trying to touch me. I'm afraid you're going to be the one to suffer most out of this. If you had broken your leg jumping off that wall what insurance would you have to fall back on? My advice is that you rest tomorrow and go back to work the day after. If you don't go back to work he'll retaliate. He'll make sure you can't get work anywhere.'

‘I don't ever want to see that man again.'

‘Put your head down, and ignore him. He took advantage of you, but if it means you lose your job as well, isn't that double the misery? It's not his job to give you anyway.'

Jingqiu rested at home the next day and went back to work at the paper factory the day after that. Granny Copper had made a lot of sense. The job wasn't his so why give it up? Next time he behaves like that, she consoled herself, I'll smash him with a brick.

Wan Changsheng obviously felt guilty because he couldn't bring himself to look Jingqiu in the eye. ‘Your hand still looks sore, so today you can help the propaganda team organise the noticeboard.' Then he warned her, ‘I was joking with you, don't take it so seriously. If I hear you've been talking about it to anyone . . .'

Jingqiu ignored him and said, ‘I'm off to the propaganda department.'

Over the next few days Jingqiu helped organise the factory noticeboard, as well as distribute their magazine. The head of the department, Mr Liu, greatly appreciated Jingqiu's talents. Her writing on the noticeboard was beautiful, as were the characters she etched on to the steel plate for printing. She was excellent at drawing. When he gave her some manuscripts to look over she had so many constructive comments that he asked her to write a few pieces herself.

‘Oh, what a shame the factory isn't recruiting, otherwise I would definitely have you come and work for us here.'

‘I'm soon taking over my mother's job, but my brother is still in the countryside and his writing is better than mine. He also plays the violin. If the factory starts looking for workers could you call him back to the city? He can do anything, you wouldn't regret it.'

Mr Liu took out a small notebook and wrote down Jingqiu's brother's name and address saying that if they started looking for workers he would definitely recommend him.

When they finished work Mr Liu was still discussing the possibility of jobs at the factory with Jingqiu and as they both lived in the same direction they left together. Just as they were leaving through the factory gate Wan Changsheng rushed up from behind. ‘Oh, you two are getting on famously, aren't you? Where are you off to?'

‘We're going home,' Mr Liu replied, ‘we're going the same way.'

Wan Changsheng didn't say anything else and left them. Feeling uncomfortable Jingqiu rushed to say goodbye to Mr Liu. ‘I've just remembered I have to meet a friend, I have to go.'

Jingqiu was entering the school campus by the back gate when she heard someone calling from behind. It was Old Third! She spun round, first checking to make sure they were alone.

‘No need to look.' Old Third appeared, laughing. ‘There's no one else here otherwise I wouldn't have called out.'

‘When did you get here?' she replied, blushing.

‘In the morning. I thought it best not to look for you at the factory.'

‘It's a weekday, how come you're here?'

‘What's up, not welcome, am I?' he teased. ‘If not, then I'll go home. You've no shortage of people to walk you home, after all.'

He must have seen her with Mr Liu. ‘That's the head of the propaganda team, Mr Liu. I was asking him to help my brother get a job, we were just walking for a few minutes together.' She looked around again in case someone was watching. ‘Wait in the pavilion. I'll come as soon as I've eaten.'

‘Aren't you afraid your mother will come looking?'

‘My mother won't be back until around nine o'clock.'

‘Then let's walk a bit now, we can eat together.'

‘My sister's at home, I have to go speak to her quickly.'

‘Okay, off you go. I'll wait in the pavilion.'

Jingqiu floated home in a state of euphoria. Once through the door she no longer had any appetite for dinner but went straight to wash. That day she'd got her period and was afraid that she might be giving off a bad smell. She changed into a dark-coloured skirt that she had made. It had originally been white but she had dyed it red at one point. Then, after it had faded in the wash, she re-dyed it a dark blue and re-sewed it in a different style. She matched it with a short-sleeved nearly new blouse that Yamin had given her. She grabbed her bag and filled it with toilet paper.

She ate distractedly and as she left she said to her sister, ‘I'm going to my friend's to ask about my teaching job. Will you be all right on your own?'

‘Yes, Zhong Qin is coming soon to play. Which friend?'

Perhaps I'm looking a bit dressed up, she thought, even my sister has noticed. ‘You don't know them. I'm off. I'll be back soon.' She felt guilty leaving her sister all alone, but she comforted herself that Zhong Qin would soon be there.

She walked to the ferry crossing, excited, thinking, this is our first date. Every other time they had met by chance and she had had no time to get changed. Would he like what she was wearing? He knows a thing or two about life, he must have seen lots of pretty, well-dressed people, how can someone like me, not particularly good-looking and not especially well dressed, hope to catch his heart?

It felt like everyone she met on the way was looking at her as if they knew she was going to meet a boy. She was extremely nervous, and couldn't wait to get across the river where no one knew who she was. As she stepped on to the bank on the other side of the river she caught sight of Old Third standing near the pavilion. As she had done last time, Jingqiu walked on ahead before eventually stopping to wait for him.

Old Third rushed up and said, ‘You look amazing today, I hardly recognised you. Pinch me, I want to know if I'm dreaming. Is such a beautiful girl really waiting for me?'

‘I've got used to your sweet-talking, it doesn't give me goose pimples any more,' she teased. ‘Live with a fishmonger and you no longer smell the stench of fish. Let's walk by the river. That way if my mother gets home from work early she won't see us, she walks home this way.'

‘Have you eaten?' she asked. He hadn't, he was waiting for them to eat together. She had learned her lesson from last time, there was no point in refusing politely, he always found a way.

They returned to the pavilion after they had eaten, but as it was summer, and still early, some people were milling around, so they escaped to an empty part of the river, and sat on the bank.

‘It's not Sunday today, how come you're free to visit?' she asked.

‘I'm here trying to get work. I want to move to Yichang.'

She was surprised and delighted, but asked pointedly, ‘You're doing so well at the geological unit, why would you move to Yichang?'

‘You have no idea why I want to move to Yichang?' He laughed. ‘Then I'm just wasting my time going to all this trouble, aren't I?'

‘Which work unit do you want to move to?' Jingqiu asked.

‘I'm still contacting people. Maybe the performance troupe, or another would be fine, wherever they need me as long as it's in Yichang. I could be a street cleaner, or better yet a street cleaner on Jiangxin Island, as long as I got to clean outside your house.'

‘What do you mean, outside my house? It's a passage about a metre wide, there'd be no room for you to dance your broom through there. Try for the performance troupe, you could play the accordion for them. But as soon as you're one of them you'll forget all about your old friends.'

‘Why would I do that?'

‘Because the girls in the performance troupe are beautiful.'

‘I used to be in the army's one, but I didn't think the girls were that beautiful.'

‘You used to be in the army performance troupe?' she asked in amazement. ‘How come you don't walk like the performers do, with their toes pointing outwards?'

He chuckled. ‘Does everyone in the performance troupe walk with their feet pointing outwards? Anyway, I wasn't a dancer, I played the accordion. I think you're the one that walks with their toes pointing out, you danced in the model opera
The White-haired Girl
, didn't you?'

She nodded. ‘When I was at primary school. At first I was one of the leading dancers in the paper-cut dance, and then I got to play the lead, Xi'er. Then after that I didn't like dancing so I played the accordion while the others danced. Will you teach me to play when you get into the Yichang performance troupe?'

‘Once I move to Yichang, are we going to be spending our time together with me teaching you the accordion?'