Brothers (72 page)

With reporters Baldy Li was extravagantly generous, inviting them to eat, drink, and enjoy themselves and sending them on their way with large piles of gifts. By contrast, he would never spend a cent on people who came to discuss business with him. He would meet with them at his company headquarters's café, and upon concluding their business, he would insist on splitting the bill, saying, "In accordance with international business protocol, each pays his own bill."

Baldy Li's café was the most outrageous rip-off in all of China. Even at the cafés in Beijing's and Shanghai's five-star hotels, where they served coffee made from freshly ground imported coffee beans, a cup of coffee would cost you only forty yuan. At Baldy Li's, you would be charged one hundred yuan for a cup of instant Nescafé. The swindlers would quietly fret that not only did they not manage to swipe a cent from Baldy Li's coffers; they were being extorted themselves.

Liu Town's hotel, restaurant, and retail industries began to take off. Crowds of visitors blew through like blizzards, and they would stay in Liu Town's inns, dine in its restaurants, and shop in its stores. Coming from all over the country, they spoke many different dialects, but when they arrived in Liu, they communicated with one another in standard Mandarin. The townspeople, who were used to conversing only in the local dialect, now found themselves rolling their tongues all day speaking Mandarin. If they weren't paying attention, they might continue rolling their tongues upon returning home or when eating dinner— even after going to bed, couples often found themselves rolling their tongues and lapsing into Mandarin.

The people of Liu saw Baldy Li every day—when they opened their newspapers, they would see him smiling at them; when they listened to the radio, they would hear his chuckle; and when they watched television, they would see his smiling face. Not only did Baldy Li become famous, but he brought fame to the entire town. It might have had an illustrious history going back more than a thousand years, but now people hardly remembered to call Liu Town by its name. Everyone
had fallen into the habit of mentioning Baldy Li every time they opened their mouths, and as a result they naturally began referring to Liu Town as Baldy Li's Town. When visitors happened to drive through, they would roll down their windows and ask, "Is this Baldy Li's Town?"

CHAPTER 58

W
HILE BALDY LI
was at the peak of his good fortunes like a sun at high noon, Song Gang was still wandering around town wearing his face mask and looking for part-time work. Lin Hong continued to be called into chain-smoking Factory Directory Liu's office, and now Liu didn't stop with verbal harassment but instead began to harass her physically as well. He would position his chair next to hers and caress her hand with feigned affection. She wanted more than anything to stand up and slap him, but remembering that Song Gang was unemployed, she restrained herself and settled for merely brushing his hand off. Director Liu was someone who, if you gave him an inch, would take a mile. Therefore he started kissing her face with his black-toothed mouth, nauseating Lin Hong. She pushed him away, got up, and walked toward the door. Just as she was about to open it and walk out, he came up behind her and, with one hand grabbing her breasts and the other stuck down her pants, pulled her back toward the couch. Lin Hong desperately clutched the door handle with both hands, knowing that her only hope was to open the door. At that point someone happened to walk in, and Director Liu immediately released her. Lin Hong sprinted out the door, hearing Liu cursing behind her. She then straightened her clothes and her hair and hurriedly walked away. It was not yet time to get off work, but she nevertheless rode her bike out the main gate and, tears streaming down her face, rode home through the streets of Liu.

Song Gang had just returned and sat down on the couch. He hadn't yet taken off his face mask when he saw Lin Hong walk in crying. Song Gang, not knowing what had happened, anxiously stood up. When Lin Hong saw him, she starting crying even harder, and Song Gang urgently asked what had happened. She opened her mouth, but upon seeing Song Gang standing there pathetically with his face mask, she decided not to tell him how Director Liu had tried to take advantage of her, remembering that Song Gang was already suffering an unbearable burden. The reason she had endured Director Liu's advances for so long was precisely because Song Gang had lost his job, and she kept
telling herself that if he were to get a good job, she wouldn't need to continue subjecting herself to this abuse. Therefore, she told him, "You need to go see Baldy Li."

When she saw Song Gang hesitate and then obstinately shake his head, she couldn't help crying out, tears streaming down her face, "When Baldy Li made his fortune, he thought of you, his brother, and came expressly looking for you. But you turned him down."

"You were also here with me," Song Gang muttered.

"Did we discuss it?" Lin Hong shouted back. "Such an important thing, but you didn't discuss it with me first and instead simply turned him down."

Song Gang bowed his head. When Lin Hong saw this, she shook her head angrily, saying, "That's all you can do, bow your damned head."

She kept shaking her head, unable to understand how Song Gang could be so stubborn. There are some people who don't start crying until they see the coffin, but Song Gang seemed to be the sort who wouldn't cry even after the coffin was laid out in front of him. Lin Hong therefore decided to go see Baldy Li herself. She told Song Gang about her plan, saying that even aside from their history of depending on each other for survival, the mere fact that they grew up together made it incumbent on Baldy Li to give Song Gang a job. Wiping away her tears, Lin Hong told Song Gang, "I'll just tell him you are ill and ask him if he would be willing to give you a job."

As she was saying this Lin Hong opened her dresser, wanting to find something pretty to wear to see Baldy Li. She laid her clothes out on their bed and spent about an hour trying to choose something, weeping the entire time. She noticed that all of her presentable outfits had been purchased many years earlier and had long since gone out of style. Still weeping, she put on an outfit that, though out of fashion, was nevertheless still presentable. Having gained weight since she bought it, she found that it was now as tight as a bandage wrapped around her body.

Song Gang watched her sadly, feeling that he had truly let her down. He got up from the sofa and said firmly, "I'll go."

Song Gang went outside and headed toward Baldy Li's company. The poorest person in Liu Town was going off to meet the richest one. They had formerly been brothers and were still brothers now. When Song Gang walked into Baldy Li's company, he stood in the lobby and stared for a while until he finally spotted Baldy Li in the café, holding
forth with a group of reporters. He walked over and said quietly, "Baldy Li."

It had been many years since anyone had addressed Baldy Li thus— these days everyone addressed him as Boss Li. Suddenly hearing someone using his old nickname, Baldy Li wondered who this could be. He turned and saw Song Gang standing there in his face mask, his eyes smiling behind his glasses. Baldy Li stood up and told the reporters, "I must excuse myself for a second."

He pulled Song Gang into the elevator and then into his office. After closing the door, the first thing he said was "Take off your mask."

From behind the mask, Song Gang replied, "I have a lung infection."

"Fuck your lung infection." Baldy Li ripped off Song Gangs mask and said, "This kind of thing is not necessary between brothers."

Song Gang said, "I'm afraid I'll infect you."

Baldy Li said, "I'm not afraid."

Baldy Li told Song Gang to sit down on the couch, and he sat down beside him and said, "So you have finally fucking come to see me."

Song Gang looked about Baldy Li's enormous office and said in wonder, "If Mama were still alive, how delighted she would be to see you in this office."

Baldy Li felt a pang of tenderness. Placing his hand on Song Gang's shoulder, he asked, "Song Gang, what's happened to your health? I've been so busy the past few years, I haven't had a chance to look after you. After hearing that you were injured, I wanted to come and see you, but I got busy with other matters and forgot."

Song Gang smiled sadly and described to Baldy Li how he had hurt his back working on the docks and then ruined his lungs working at the concrete factory. After hearing this, Baldy Li leapt up from the couch and started cursing him, "You fucking idiot. Why do you go everywhere looking for a job when you could have just come to me? You fucking idiot, look at what you've done to yourself. Now your back and lungs are both ruined. You fucking idiot, why didn't you come to ask for my help?"

Baldy Li's curses warmed Song Gang's heart, making him feel that they were indeed still brothers. Song Gang laughed and said, "Well, now I've come."

"Now it's too late," Baldy Li said, exasperated. "You are already disabled."

Song Gang nodded and then asked with embarrassment, "Can you give me a job?"

Baldy Li sighed and nodded his head. He sat down again next to Song Gang and patted his shoulder, saying, "First you must recover your health. I'll have someone send you to the best hospital in Shanghai for treatment. We need to get you cured."

Song Gang shook his head. "I didn't come to you for medical treatment. I came because I need a job."

"Fuck," Baldy Li cursed, then said, "Okay, why don't you come take a vice president position in my office? If you want to come to work, you can, but if you prefer, you can just stay at home and rest. The important thing is for you to get well."

Song Gang shook his head and said, "I can't do that job."

"You fucking bastard," Baldy Li cursed again. "What can you do?"

"Everyone calls me Chief Sub," Song Gang replied in a self-mocking tone and then laughed. "I can only do jobs like cleaning up, sorting letters and newspapers, et cetera I am incapable of doing anything else. I don't have the ability—"

"You good-for-nothing fucking bastard. When Lin Hong married you, she must have been blind." Baldy Li shook his head. "How could I, Baldy Li, ask my brother to do those kinds of things…"

After cursing for a while, Baldy Li realized that it was useless to continue reprimanding Song Gang and said, "Why don't you go on home? I still have a gaggle of reporters waiting for me. We'll discuss your situation later."

Song Gang put his face mask back on and felt content as he emerged from Baldy Li's office. Even though Baldy Li had repeatedly called him a fucking bastard, the more Baldy Li cursed him, the happier Song Gang became. When he returned home, he took off his mask, sat down on the couch, and delightedly said to Lin Hong, "Baldy Li is still the same as ever. He called me a fucking bastard over and over again, saying that I was good for nothing and that you must have been blind to have married me."

At first Lin Hong was also happy, but soon she became confused. She asked him, "Did Baldy Li give you a job?"

"He told me to get well first," Song Gang replied.

Lin Hong asked skeptically, "So he didn't give you a job?"

"He wanted to make me a vice president, but I didn't agree," Song Gang replied.

"Why not?"

"Because I'm not qualified," he explained.

Lin Hong began crying again. She wiped her tears and couldn't help saying, "You are truly hopeless."

Song Gang began to feel uneasy and said softly, "He told me to first recover my health."

"But where are we going to get the money to pay for your medical care?" Lin Hong began crying brokenheartedly

At this point there was a knock on the door. Lin Hong wiped her tears, opened the door a crack, and saw the CFO from Baldy Li's company waiting outside. He gestured for her to come out. Lin Hong stared for a second, then wiped her eyes and followed him out. She walked about thirty yards down the street with him, whereupon he stopped and handed her a bankbook. He explained that the account was in Lin Hong's name and contained one hundred thousand yuan, which Baldy Li was giving Lin Hong and Song Gang to cover their living and medical expenses. He added that Baldy Li was worried that Song Gang wouldn't accept the money and therefore was giving it to Lin Hong instead. He asked Lin Hong to keep it a secret from Song Gang. As he was about to leave the CFO said to Lin Hong, "Boss Li says Song Gang's illness is quite serious, so you should take him to the hospital as soon as possible. Boss Li says that you need not worry about money, and that from now on he'll deposit another one hundred thousand yuan into this account every six months. And if that isn't enough, just let us know. Boss Li says that he will make sure you are taken care of."

With the bankbook in her hand, Lin Hong stood there staring blankly. How much money was one hundred thousand yuan? She had never before even thought of this number. She noticed various passersby staring at the bankbook and jumped in alarm before collecting herself. She quickly hurried home, but as she was about to go inside she abruptly changed her mind. Baldy Li's CFO had instructed her not to tell Song Gang, and therefore she turned around and went to the bank and withdrew about two thousand yuan, deciding to take Song Gang to the hospital the very next day. Then she slowly headed home, with memories of the grinning Baldy Li flooding her mind. She decided that Baldy Li was actually a very good man and that she had been wrong to have despised him.

CHAPTER 59

L
ESS THAN
two months after Writer Liu first enjoyed his moment of fame, he noticed that he had become passé. It seemed as if no one noticed him anymore, and the royalty checks also stopped arriving. He became indignant, feeling that he had single-handedly created Baldy Li's current supercelebrity status, while he himself, by contrast, had been promptly forgotten. Without exception, all of the reporters who arrived in town wanted to talk to Baldy Li and none even deigned to glance at Writer Liu. Once he pulled aside several reporters in the street and told them that he was the one who had written the original article about Baldy Li. They grunted but then hurried on to interview Baldy Li, afraid that if they arrived late, they would miss their turn for the day.