Fu Ping by Anyi Wang

Fu Ping by Anyi Wang

Author:Anyi Wang
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Columbia University Press


Chapter Eleven

XIAO JUN

As we have seen, Sun Daliang built a loft in his house, which had a front and a back room. The loft occupied the top half of the front room, which was the height of a man. The space itself was no more than half as tall as a person where you entered, but the height doubled at the center of the peaked ceiling. He framed a glass window on the sloped roof of the room, which was built for storage: lengths of wood, pieces of plywood, asphalt felt, cotton quilting, earthenware vats, old children’s textbooks, plus a rubber tire and a bundle of old newspapers. Items they had accumulated over time, and though none of it was being used at the moment, a use might be found for some of it one day. That was what home was about, a place to keep things they might use in the future. Now Aunt was making preparations for their niece to come stay with them, and she needed her own space, since she was no longer a child, and it would not do for her to share space with her uncle. Besides, their eldest son was twelve, and at school, as well as at home, the sexes were kept apart. So she cleaned out the loft for Fu Ping. While she was working in the space, Xiao Jun, a primary school graduate who lived in the neighborhood, dropped by to help move things around. Quick on her feet, she bounded up and down the ladder, providing plenty of help to Aunt. When she asked if she could come sleep with the new girl, her wish was granted.

Xiao Jun had a bunch of brothers, and as they brought wives into the family, she was shunted from place to place to sleep. She enjoyed the life, since as the only girl in the family, she was lonely at home. She made friends easily, but then so did all the local children. They were like one big family, related by place if not by blood. Xiao Jun was more outgoing than most of the others. The boys at home spoiled their only sister, turning her into a free spirit. After graduating from primary school, she failed the middle school entrance exam, and that kept her at home with time on her hands. She sometimes went out on a scow, but her family did not need her to work. They had plenty of help for the three scows, two of which were sailed by her brothers. With all those people, one more mouth to feed made no difference. She saw herself as a girl still, though she was already sixteen, having started school late and then repeated some grades. Still, she was the youngest at home, wasn’t she? She had no reason to worry about a future, and was happy with the way things were. Much of her time was spent dropping in at neighbors’ houses, where, given her aptitude and willingness to work, she was eager to help rather than hang around home with nothing to do.



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