Under the Hawthorn Tree (30 page)

This talk made Jingqiu even more scared that Granny Copper might tell everyone about what had happened between her and the hunchback. If other people found out that Mr Wan had taken advantage of her they might suspect her boyfriend or older brother. She had always believed that people who broke the law could never escape the police.

That day they waited until nearly nine o'clock before the factory sent someone to tell them that for the next few days Master Qu would assign them work until Mr Wan was better. Master Qu handed out the tasks, asking Jingqiu to help him tidy a long disused and dilapidated workshop. While working, Jingqiu asked Master Qu when the boss would come back to work.

‘Your guess is as good as mine,' he replied, ‘but the factory has asked me to fill in for a week at first.'

‘You went to Mr Wan's house today. How bad were his injuries? Serious?'

‘He won't be back at work for at least ten days, if not a couple of weeks.'

‘Do you know who did it? Why did they hit Mr Wan?'

‘It's all rumours at the moment. Some people say he took part of someone's wages, and others say he picked on someone's relative. Who knows? Maybe they got the wrong person.'

‘Have they caught the person yet?'

‘Doesn't look like it, but you've got nothing to worry about, they definitely will. It's just a matter of time.'

Jingqiu was dumbstruck. The fact that Master Qu was so certain that the police would catch the person meant that they had leads and Old Third would struggle to escape. She was heartbroken. She didn't dare cry, nor continue her questioning. If Old Third gets caught and sentenced I'll wait forever for him, I'll visit him every day, all I ask is that he isn't sentenced to death. As long as he's going to be released one day I'll wait a lifetime until he is set free.

Jingqiu plucked up the courage to ask Master Qu, ‘Do the police have a lead? Or else how do you know that he will be caught sooner or later?'

‘I'm not a policeman, how do I know if they'll catch him or not? I only said it to reassure you, you seemed so worried about the boss. It happens all the time that people don't get caught. My foot got badly hurt by someone, I even know who did it and I told the police, but did they catch him? No. If you're just an average man, who is going to waste their energy catching your wrongdoer?'

This was brilliant news. But over those next few days she was constantly worrying. Later she heard that the hunchback hadn't reported the incident, maybe because he had committed some reprehensible act and was afraid that if he reported it to the police they would weasel it out of him during questioning. It would be better just to keep it to himself. Jingqiu relaxed when she heard this, although she still worried that Mr Wan was creating a smokescreen, so she continued to be on her guard. Old Third would only be safe once the hunchback was dead.

Under Master Qu's tutelage, things were easier because he didn't assign work as Mr Wan had done, using it to extract praise and suggestions. Master Qu didn't let things get personal, and distributed the heavier and lighter work fairly. It didn't matter to Jingqiu if she was physically exhausted.

But this beautiful communist ideal didn't last long, as Mr Wan was soon back at work. There were no scars on his face, but if you looked closely you could detect that the beating had been serious. His back seemed to hunch over even more than before and he looked even closer to death. Someone who didn't know him would have guessed that he was at least fifty years old.

But his former acid tongue seemed to have been neutralised, he no longer lectured people harshly for the smallest thing, and instead simply said, ‘Today everyone will transport the materials for fixing the basketball court, and then start resurfacing it.'

All the temporary workers began to complain, this was the hardest work. ‘What do you take us for – coolies?'

‘What are you moaning about?' the hunchback shouted back impatiently. ‘Those who aren't willing can leave now.'

This shut them up. Everyone went to the basketball courts in silence to start work. As Jingqiu was going to the storeroom to collect the tools, Granny Copper said, ‘Girl, hasn't anyone told you that you should be wearing rubber boots?'

Jingqiu looked and saw that most of them were indeed wearing rubber boots, and the few who appeared not to own any had instead tied rags around their feet. Jingqiu had never resurfaced a court before so she didn't know to wear rubber boots – she didn't own any anyway – and couldn't find any rags either, so she had to wade in barefoot.

Everyone measured out the correct proportions of cement, lime and a type of coal cinder. Once these were thoroughly mixed with water they were to spread the mixture on to the court, and after that layer had dried they were to spread a layer of concrete. And there you had it, a simple basketball court. As this was apparently a money-saving technique, the factory was using its temporary workers.

Everyone refused to work with Granny Copper because she didn't pull her weight, so Granny Copper stuck to Jingqiu. Jingqiu worried that Mr Wan might ask them to redo the work, but then, Granny Copper really didn't have any choice. How could she work as hard as the rest of them? And yet circumstances forced her to go out and slave away, to grind the last of her life down in this wretched labour. It was better that Jingqiu do a bit more.

The hunchback split them into two groups that took turns to work, swapping only when Mr Wan shouted ‘change', leaving one group to rest for a bit while the other took over. Jingqiu sensed that the hunchback might be punishing her by purposefully making her group work longer than the other. Crazy Lady Qin, however, thought otherwise. ‘Boss, you can't go treating that group differently just 'cos they've got a youngster with a tender pussy, it's favouritism. You're hiring her for her muscle, not her pussy, and if not, then it'd be better to take her straight home with you.'

Jingqiu was fuming. Crazy Lady Qin said whatever she pleased and you were left cowering in a corner. You'd say one thing and she'd reply with a hundred. It was not clear why, but from the start Crazy Lady Qin took a deep dislike to Jingqiu. She was always hurling obscenities to get at her. A day at work with Crazy Lady Qin felt like a year to Jingqiu. The only thing to do was ignore her.

The way Jingqiu's fellow workers didn't work together, and instead fought and tormented each other, made her spirits sink and time seemed to pass at a painfully slow pace. With great effort, she dragged herself though to the break, when she finally got to wash her feet under the hose, and discovered a layer of skin on the soles of her feet had been burned off by the lime. She hadn't noticed while engrossed in work, but now she felt a stabbing pain when she walked. After work, she went home and washed her feet again in clean water and then rubbed some cream into them, which seemed to relieve the pain a bit. That night, she didn't dare sleep too deeply in case she groaned too much and her mother heard her.

After a few days of resurfacing, she found she had adapted to the intensity of the work, but two things still troubled her. One was that Crazy Lady Qin was always picking on her, and the other that the soles of her feet were covered in blisters and sores. These weren't big but they were deep. Every day when she got home she had to spend ages picking out the bits of coal cinder with a needle, and soon her feet had swollen so much that she couldn't squeeze them into any of her shoes. Luckily her mother left early and didn't get home until late, and once home she was so exhausted by her day's work that she slept deeply, so she never discovered Jingqiu's injuries.

One morning, as Jingqiu was preparing to leave for work, she heard a strange kind of knocking at her door. It was Old Third with his hands full of paper bags. He must have used his foot to knock lightly at the door.

He didn't wait for her to invite him in, but stepped in and put the bags down. ‘Don't be afraid, no one saw me.'

She looked at him, amazed. ‘They haven't taken you away?' she asked quietly.

‘Taken me where?' He didn't understand.

‘To the police station,' she replied. She told him all about how the hunchback had been beaten up. ‘So you didn't hit him?'

‘No,' he replied. ‘Didn't you tell me not to cause trouble?'

He's right, I did, she reflected. ‘Then who else could it have been? Zhang Yi denied it too.'

‘Maybe Wan's offended a lot of people. There must be more than a couple who would want to beat him up. Who cares about him anyway?' He opened one of the bags and asked, ‘Have you eaten breakfast yet? I bought some food.'

‘I've already eaten.'

‘Have some more, I bought enough for you and your sister.'

Jingqiu took a fried dough stick to her sister in the other room and told her, 'Don't tell Mother he came over.'

‘I see.'

Jingqiu went back to the front room and ate a dough stick herself. Old Third took out a cardboard box and gave it to her. ‘Don't get angry,' he said quietly, ‘I'm begging you.'

Jingqiu opened the box and saw inside a pair of gum boots in her favourite colour, a rice-yellow.

‘They're for when you're working,' Old Third said. ‘I saw you yesterday on the basketball court. How can you possibly work there and not wear gum boots?' He looked down at her feet, swollen like steamed buns, her toes red and inflamed.

‘You came to the factory yesterday?'

‘Relax, no one saw me,' he said hoarsely. ‘Why don't you try them on?'

Jingqiu gently stroked her new rubber boots. They were so shiny you could almost see your reflection in them. She was eager to try them on but asked apprehensively, ‘Wear a new pair of boots to work? Won't . . . people think I'm spoiled?'

She looked up to see him staring at her feet, his cheeks covered in tears. Flustered, she said, ‘You . . . what are you doing? Since when do men cry?'

He brushed away the tears. ‘Just because men don't cry over their own troubles, doesn't mean they can't cry over someone else's. I know I've told you not to do this kind of work but you won't listen. I've given you money and you don't want that either. But if you have even an ounce of compassion, if you even care about me even . . . a little bit, you'll wear these boots.'

‘If you want me to wear them I will, but why get like this?' She removed her flip-flops quickly and shoved her feet into the boots, fearing that he might see the sores. If he cried at the sight of the tops of her feet, how would he react to the sight of the soles?

She just managed to get her swollen feet into the boots and paraded them for him to see. ‘Look, perfect.'

But he was still crying and she didn't know how to comfort him. She wanted to take him in her arms but she was afraid her sister might appear and see them. She pointed to the other room and said under her breath, ‘Don't be like that. If my sister sees she'll tell my mother.'

He wiped the tears. ‘You must remember to wear them, I'll be hiding nearby to check up on you. If you take them off . . .'

‘Then what?'

‘I'll come, barefoot, and stomp in that lime until it burns my feet.'

Afraid that she too might start crying she broke in, ‘I've got to go to work, wait for me this evening at the pavilion.'

‘Don't, stay at home and rest instead. You shouldn't walk so far with those feet.'

But she didn't listen and left, saying, ‘Don't forget to wait for me.'

That day the other workers called her a show-off for wearing a new pair of rubber boots to work. Her feet were already burned to a crisp so what did she need shoes for? The skin on her feet would mend, but if she ruined a pair of new boots they'd be useless.

Crazy Lady Qin started on her insinuations. ‘She's young, she can sell herself to get whatever she wants.'

Jingqiu didn't care what they said and carried on wearing the boots in case Old Third came to check up on her. One pair of burnt feet was enough.

When she got back from work that afternoon, she found her younger sister putting the finishing touches to their dinner. Jingqiu ate, washed and then changed into her skirt and short-sleeved blouse and said to her sister, ‘I'm going to a friend's house.'

‘Going to ask about your job again?' her sister asked, seeing Jingqiu had put special effort into her appearance.

She gave an ‘uh-huh' and thought, she mustn't tell Mother. ‘I've got something on, something very important. Don't say anything to Mother.'

‘I know. Is it the same person as this morning? He really likes you.'

Jingqiu's face turned crimson. ‘What do you know about that sort of thing? You're too young.'

‘How could I not know?' Using her forefingers she acted out Old Third crying, and like a traditional story-teller clapped as she recited, ‘Old Man Sob, sold his cob, to a certain Mr Bob. Then Bob sold it on, to Mr Long. Long's dog came up, to make a ruck, scaring Old Man Sob away.'

‘Did you see him crying? Don't tell Mother.'

‘I know. Sister, if a boy cries over you that means he really likes you.'

Jingqiu was startled. Not only had her little sister seen everything but she understood as well. She forced her to promise not to tell their mother before eventually setting off to meet Old Third.

She couldn't wear shoes so she slipped on a pair of her brother's old flip-flops, the type she normally most detested wearing as it was so uncomfortable having them wedged between your toes. Today she had no option, however. Surely she couldn't go see Old Third barefoot? And it didn't look right to wear the rubber boots.

Her feet were so swollen she looked flat-footed, and although each step was excruciating, she walked as fast as she could, desperate to see Old Third. She had only just boarded the boat to cross the river when she saw him waiting for her, pushing a bike. He told her to jump on the rack at the back and no sooner had he started pedalling, they were riding up on the road by the river. ‘Didn't you say your mother works near here? Now we've got a bike, we can go a bit further.'