Sheng Keyi - Death Fugue

‘Wild lotuses only open under certain conditions. I don’t know how our luck will be.’

When they reached a sheltered place behind a small hill, Mengliu stopped. He thought that, whether from a physical or a psychological perspective, this slope was very suitable for lying down on. The grass was dense and clean, and wouldn’t soil Juli’s dress.

‘Don’t you want to know what conditions are necessary for the wild lotus to bloom?’ He turned to face her. He was glad the fog was still thick, like a curtain hanging around them.

She watched his face, hesitating.

‘I do know. It opens when there are illicit sexual relations,’ she said, laughing triumphantly. ‘I also know there’s no such flower.’

‘Eh?’ Mengliu’s heart sank in awkwardness. ‘You…?’

‘Look at the flowers on this tree. I want you to pick me some.’ Her voice was still innocent. He pulled down a branch that held four or five blossoms. She sniffed. ‘I think this is called a wild lotus.’

‘Huh?’ Mengliu was taken aback. The situation had suddenly taken a one hundred and eighty-degree turn. He was the passive one. His mouth was now covered by Juli’s, and the crazed passion that came from her was not at all by his design, which made him feel that his careful schemes had been quite childish after all. He reflected on the situation. She had pretended to be confused. This discovery was unexpected, and also beyond his contemplation. It greatly stimulated his animal nature. All he wanted to do was press himself to her, to prevent any further interruptions. Their bodies intertwined in passion, they fell to the ground, and he felt the slope of the earth beneath helping as he eased himself into her. Without further ado, he began undressing. But suddenly, the sun shone directly on them with the glare of a spotlight. Juli’s body retreated instinctively, and even Mengliu was stunned. They stood up again, watching in amazement as the fog shrouding them disappeared. In the blink of an eye the air was crystal clear and they were standing not in woods, but in an open space, with only an old tree towering impressively overhead. As if grasping at the dissipating fog, there were two screeches from the sky and a pair of vultures rushed downwards into what looked like a meteor crater.

This omen destroyed Mengliu, completely defeating his spirits. He wanted to know what was in the crater. ‘Let’s have a look,’ he said.

‘Don’t,’ Juli held herself tightly, almost begging. ‘It is the waste disposal site. There is nothing good there. We should go.’

‘Wait here. I will take a look. I’ll be right back.’

‘I’m telling you, don’t. Really. If you look, you will be sick.’

The sky was like blue glass. There was not a speck of dust in the air. There were all sorts of weeds and flowers everywhere on the ground. The old gingko tree stood straight up, like a burning torch. Mengliu glanced back at Juli. Her words energised him, and he ran to the pit. She watched him stand there, then quickly turn away, bending over as if his stomach was cramping. She knew very well what he had seen, and that he would be vomiting for the next few days whenever he recalled the sight, expelling everything he ate.

8

At the thought of vultures pecking at the vacant bloody wreckage of the child’s flesh, Mengliu’s stomach did churn. He felt less and less like a doctor who had opened up the flesh of others and more like a fragile girl. He had thought there was nothing left that could disgust him, whether death, politics, poetry or desire. He wanted to vomit, but could not. He had gone for two days without food, and was feeling drowsy. The child seemed to be alive. He watched the vultures snap at its throat, devouring the innards. They pecked at its flesh, staining their feathers with the child’s blood, their eyes grim. No one told him why the pit was called the rubbish disposal site. Both he and the topic were unpopular. Even Shanlai would not explain it to him. He drank fermented tea, which made him hungry, but also calmed him. The intimacy between him and Juli had disappeared, as if it had all been of his own imagining. He could not get any confirmation from her. She remained as polite, civilised and indifferent as ever. He could not imagine her involved in debauchery any more than he could imagine Esteban, stern as the emblem of the nation, in that hidden moment of ecstasy, face twisted as he climaxed and ejaculated.

A week later, it was arranged for Mengliu to stay elsewhere, apart from Juli, a couple of kilometres away in a small house with a garden, built exactly the same as hers, though the plants in its garden were disorderly. The furnishings were exactly the same, with a painting of a forest on the wall in the living room, replete with snakes, butterflies and all sorts of creatures. The bedding was new, the batik linen embroidered with drums surrounded by groups of birds facing each other. Between the birds was a snake, which in turn held a gourd. Butterflies flew out of the gourd, filling the spaces between the snake and the birds. The room had an ambiguous wedding-night sort of atmosphere. Mengliu walked numbly in a circle around the bedroom then back to the living room. Juli’s student Rania was there, as if she had dropped from the sky, her plump body stuck in a wicker chair. Her golden hair was piled into a high beehive atop her head, her skin was pale and she had a cold aloof look in her eyes.

‘Where did you come from?’ His meaning was clear. He was not happy about being disturbed.

‘This is my home,’ she said deliberately, getting up from the chair to replenish her cup of fermented tea. Her fingers, pale and plump as maggots in contrast to the black tea, creating a strong visual impact. ‘Surely you cannot be completely ignorant.’

Rania had the charm of a noble lady today, and looked like the Mona Lisa, wrapped in a large loose scarlet robe with pale pinkish purple pyjamas underneath, which left her full bosom half exposed. Even so, Mengliu felt she was too young, with that unique naivety of wayward girls. ‘I would appreciate more information.’ He could not keep the note of sarcasm from his voice. ‘I’d like to see what fresh tricks there will be.

‘Have a good look at this. If you don’t understand it, I’m obliged to translate it for you.’

Rania took an envelope from her robe. Its sticky seal had been carefully opened so as to preserve its original appearance. Mengliu looked inside. It was an official document issued by the Swan Valley Council, a marriage-gene document. He was so shocked he felt the fear of someone about to be executed on the spot. He closed his eyes, as if he was waiting for his throat to be cut. At that moment his mind was in chaos, with red files surfacing above the mess, each as murderous as a bullet, with the list of the condemned giving off a charred odour, and birds like ashes flying in the sky.

The document was handwritten, a lean script on white paper. There was a fresh woody scent, and he could tell careful attention had been given to the document’s format. It was beautifully laid out, impeccable. At the top, in the centre, was a line of text in red and in a bold font. ‘Regarding the decision to arrange the marriage of Mr Yuan Mengliu and Ms Rania Fu…’

Mengliu started, the blood was rushing to his head. ‘Ha!’ he laughed, then said strangely, ‘Arranging for Mr Yuan Mengliu and Ms Rania Fu to be married?’

Rania sipped her tea indifferently. Mengliu’s mouth gasped as he continued reading. The document not only contained detailed information and explanations about the decision, but also described their race, height, weight, blood type, eating habits, hobbies, and included a variety of genetic data. The data was very precise. Scientifically, he and Rania were a perfect match, and their offspring would be a one-hundred-per-cent prodigy. At five or six, or even younger, the child’s thinking would be as mature as any adult’s. Their union would bring about the most perfect creation in history, a genetic legend. The document contained many more theories, such as that strong genes build strong countries, that when a country is involved in international conflict it is a contest based on the quality of the people and their knowledge, that riches and power begin with good genes, grasping the spirit of education starts from birth, and so on. At the end, it said, ‘We have not created a new society because we are better than others, but only because we are simple people with simple human needs. We want air and light, health and honour, freedom and spiritual pursuits. Our impartial behaviour is innate. We, the fine citizens of the new nation of Swan Valley, will capture the world’s attention in a few years.’