Yu Hua - Brothers

When Baldy Li saw Song Gang rush out as if he had seen a ghost, he delightedly asked him, "Did you succeed?"

Song Gang unhappily nodded his head, tears streaming down his face, then hurried away, determined never to look back. Baldy Li watched him leave and muttered, "What's he crying about?"

Then Baldy Li sauntered into Lin Hongs house, stroking his bald head as if he were combing his hair, and weighing the apples in his hand.

While Lin Hongs parents were trying to figure out what had just happened, Baldy Li sauntered in and greeted them as Auntie and Uncle, then continued on into Lin Hongs room. He turned around and closed her door, and as he did so he winked mysteriously at her parents. Both parents scratched their heads and stood there staring at each other.

Baldy Li smiled as he walked toward Lin Hongs bed and said, "Lin Hong, I heard that you were sick, so I bought you some apples."

Lin Hong, who had not yet recovered from the preceding shock, stared at Baldy Li with a look of utter incomprehension. He was secretly pleased that she was not kicking him out, and so he sat down on her bed and took the apples one after another, placing them next to her pillow, and bragged, "These are the reddest and biggest apples Liu Town has ever seen. I went to three separate fruit stalls to find them."

Lin Hong was still staring speechlessly at Baldy Li, and Baldy Li felt as though he were on the verge of success. He tenderly grasped her right hand, caressing it and lifting it to his face. At this point she finally came to her senses, immediately pulled back her hand, and let out a bloodcurdling scream.

Lin Hongs parents heard the scream and rushed into her room. There they saw Lin Hong, huddled in the corner of the bed, pointing at Baldy Li and shouting, "Out! Get out of here!"

Without even having a chance to explain himself, Baldy Li again fled from Lin Hongs house. This time her parents didn't use broomsticks and feather dusters to kick him out but, rather, their own hands and fists. In front of all the assembled onlookers, they cursed Baldy Li again and again, using not only the "ugly toad" and "cow dung" curses from before but also adding "hooligan," "bum," and "bastard" to the mix.

Amid their curses, Lin Hongs parents finally remembered their daughter and rushed back into the house to see her. Baldy Li stood there resentfully; his own belly was full of curses, but at that moment he couldn't think of a single one. The onlookers laughed as they watched him, and one after another they asked him what had happened.

"Nothing." Baldy Li shook his head as though nothing were wrong, and said simply, "It is merely a lovers’ quarrel."

With this, Baldy Li prepared to turn around and was about to leave when Lin Hong's parents reemerged, carrying the apples. They called out to him and hurled the apples like hand grenades at his head. Baldy Li ducked and dodged, and after Lin Hong's parents had finished throwing the apples and headed back inside, he turned to the onlookers and innocently shook his head. He squatted down and picked up all the apples, saying, "These are my apples."

Baldy Li walked home with his smashed apples. The townspeople watched him rub one against his shirt, lift it to his mouth, and take a bite, mumbling, "This tastes good." While he was walking away chewing his apple, the onlookers heard him recite a verse of Chairman Mao's poetry: "This is the start of a Long March, a Long March…"

AFTER SONG GANG left Lin Hongs home that evening, tears streaming down his face, he wandered the streets of Liu, heartbroken and hopeless. Lin Hongs terrified gaze repeatedly appeared before him, again making him feel as though a dagger had been driven through his heart. Every time he crossed a bridge, he wanted to throw himself into the river below; and whenever he passed an electrical pole, he wanted to hurl himself into it headfirst. Someone passed by pushing a cart containing two folded wicker baskets and a pile of rope. Song Gang immediately grabbed the rope and scurried away. The person put down his cart and chased Song Gang down, grabbing him and asking, "Hey, what're you doing?"

Song Gang froze and stared fiercely. "Committing suicide, can't you see?"

The cart pusher did a double take. Song Gang tied the rope around his neck and yanked it upward with his hand, sticking out his tongue for good measure. He laughed fiercely and said, "I'm hanging myself, can't you see?"

The cart pusher did another double take and stared, speechless, as Song Gang walked away. He then cursed as he returned to his cart, complaining that he was fucking unfortunate — that it wasn't even nightfall yet and already he'd had to deal with a nut job. Not only had the nut job startled him twice, but furthermore he had stolen his rope. He cursed incessantly as he pushed his cart, and after walking the length of the longest street in Liu, he arrived at the front door of Lin Hong's house. Baldy Li had just finished picking up his apples and was eating one of them as he walked over. The cart pusher cried out aggrievedly to Baldy Li, "I've had such fucking bad luck, running into a nut job…."

"You're the fucking nut job," Baldy Li answered scornfully and walked off.

After Song Gang tied the rope around his neck, he simply left it on, as if it were a scarf made of twine. He walked briskly, looking as though he were rushing to his death. The rustling of his clothes and his rapid pace made him feel as though he were walking on air. It seemed to him that he covered the length of the street in a flash, and in no time he turned into the alleyway and arrived at his own doorstep.

Song Gang took out his key and opened the front door, and after entering the dark room it was a while before it occurred to him to turn on the lights. He then looked up and inspected the ceiling beams, telling himself that these would do just fine. He placed a bench under one of the beams and stood on it. Only then did he notice that he no longer had the rope in his hand. He looked around suspiciously, not remembering where he had left the rope and thinking that maybe he had left it in the road. He jumped down from the bench and headed toward the door. When a burst of wind blew in his face, he heard a rustling sound. He then laughed as he realized that the rope was tied around his neck.

Song Gang stood again on the bench, removed the rope from his neck, carefully tied it around the beam, and then made a noose. He yanked it firmly, placed his head into the noose, and tightened it. He then exhaled deeply and closed his eyes. A gust of wind reminded him that he had left the door ajar. He opened his eyes and saw that the door was swinging open and shut. Therefore, he removed his head from the noose, jumped off the bench, and went to close the door. Then he once again stood on the bench and placed his head in the noose. Closing his eyes, he inhaled one last time, exhaled, then kicked the bench out from under himself. He immediately felt as though his body had been stretched out and his breathing cut off. It was at this point that he got the vague impression that Baldy Li had returned.

When Baldy Li pushed the door open and walked in, he immediately saw Song Gangs body flailing about in midair. He cried out in horror and rushed forward to grab Song Gangs legs, struggling to support his body. Quickly realizing that this wasn't working, he started rushing around the room like a caged beast. When he saw a vegetable knife, he suddenly had an idea. He picked up the knife, righted the bench, stood on it, and proceeded to jump, using the knife to slice through the rope. When Song Gangs body dropped, Baldy Li also fell to the ground. He turned over and knelt there, hugging Song Gangs shoulders and rocking back and forth. He wept as he cried out, "Song Gang, Song Gang …"