1
In the winter of 1933, in a village in the border of southern China, a team to greet the bride stopped in front of a family in the sound of firecrackers.
Stepping on the fragments of firecrackers on the ground, the matchmaker and the chaperon (a woman who follows the bride’s temporary job) walk slowly to the door of the sedan chair and help the bride get off the sedan chair, step across the brazier at the door and enter the house.
Auspicious, hall before the altar, a woman holding a fierce rooster, and the bride knelt down to worship, worship heaven and earth gods, worship ancestors, worship high hall, and then together into the new house.
The rooster and the bride go to church, but the groom is nowhere to be seen.
Such a marriage, at that time, was not uncommon in my hometown. The groom who was not present was my great uncle, and the bride was my great uncle.
I remember when I was young, my grandmother took me back to my mother’s home for the Spring Festival.
As soon as we arrived at the village, my great uncle greeted us with a smile. I cry “big uncle,” she answered a, from the underwear pocket out of a small red envelope, handed me, “to you is, good luck.” I took the red envelope and smiled shyly.
Great uncle grandmother took the shoulder of the shoulder, carry their own shoulders, striding meteor walk in front. “Go to five uncle’s house, his house more spacious.” ‘she said, turning to us.
I trotted along, following close behind, looking up and down at my great uncle.
She was wearing old army shoes with white vamp, wide black trousers and bare legs that were dark and shrivelled. The black and blue thin cotton-padded jacket on the front, there is a patch on the shoulder side, very neat. The collar was upturned, part of the nape of the neck was covered by a bun, the hair was gray, and the bun was neatly combed and pressed.
Staring at my uncle’s hair, I thought of the woman who helped Xi ‘er escape in the model play “The White-haired Girl.” Her great – uncle’s bun was the same as hers; it was the style of old society. There are no women in our village wearing buns.
On the way home, I asked my grandmother: “Why is the great uncle still wearing a bun? Why haven’t I met my great uncle?”
Grandmother shook her head, smiled, then sighed, “It’s a long story.”
That was the first I heard of the great aunt.
2
My hometown is remote, but adjacent to Hong Kong and Macao. After Hong Kong opened its port, many people went abroad to seek gold by sea, reaching a climax in the 18th and 19th centuries.
Most of the migrant workers are young men, and when they are of marriageable age and fail to return home, their parents back home will look for wives for them. On the day of the wedding, the rooster was used instead of the groom to get married. And willing to and cock hall of worship, but also mostly poor women.
Just after the first lunar month of that year, my great uncle, 19 years old, and my second great uncle, 17 years old, followed a Jinshan guest (overseas Chinese) from a neighboring village, who had returned home from Citigroup (USA), to San Francisco.
Eight months later, the family received an unpostmarked, unaddressed, unsealed letter and a few silver dollars. The letter said that the brothers had arrived and were doing well.
In spite of a few words, every word is as good as every person. The silver coins were “return money” (money sent home by a migrant worker for the first time). When a man believed that he had money, his family was filled with joy. They killed chickens and worshiped God and bowed down to his grace. Then, we began to make preparations for the great Uncle’s marriage.
Great uncle when 16 years, yu-run, pleasing to the face, the birth of eight characters and great uncle. My elders think this is a match made in heaven.
To marry and a rooster to worship, the great uncle is not happy. But she could not disobey her parents’ orders, so she had to weep in the sedan chair.
“I didn’t think that far ahead and I didn’t believe there was anyone to rely on.” “I didn’t think that far ahead and I didn’t believe there was anyone to rely on.”
“Why not wait for the great uncle to come back and get married?” I asked my grandmother.
“People who go abroad usually come back after three or five years, buy land, get married and have children. But three or five years is not a short time. Besides, the elder brother and brother are all gone out, and we are short of labor.” “Said the grandmother, sighing again.
On the wedding night, the grandmother installed an extra board bed in the wedding room, and spent the night with the great uncle and the rooster tied to the foot of the bed.
The two soon became sisters with nothing to say. The central topic of the two of them is, of course, great Uncle. Grandmother’s brother is perfect. Especially the great uncle, whether appearance or character, are praise. Every sentence has a reference. For example, smart as a monkey, strong as a cow, handsome as a opera singer, and so on.
Three times back to the door, grandmother with the great uncle to her mother’s home. That day back, speaking of great uncle, and a new talk – uncle like brother-in-law.
My grandmother told her great-uncle that he and her brother were very much alike, with the same figure and hair. The head also has two curls, one on the forehead and one on the top of the head. The great uncle was stronger and darker.
Everyone thought it was a coincidence that my uncle was like my brother. Marriage is destined, we firmly believe.
After listening to the great uncle aunt is ashamed red face.
On the fifth day, my great-uncle went to work with my grandmother’s family in the fields. She can do all the farm work and transplanting rice seedlings is the fastest in the family. Later, when the community, also became the village transplanting the fastest and best one.
Great Uncle also cut and sewed clothes. In the evening, the three of them would gather in the room and mend the old clothes. Sometimes, also take on some sewing work to do at home to subsidize the family expenses. Under the kerosene lamp, three sister-in-law side work side chat, from time to time tease play, intimate.
It had been almost a year since I had received my first letter, but I had not received my second nor any money.
The mountains were long and the waters far away, they thought, and it would take time.
3
The beginning of the waiting and looking forward to, with how much sweet and calm.
Every morning when she woke up, her great uncle would make herself up. She always got up earlier than her grandmother, then sat at the dressing table and combed her hair carefully in front of the little dowry mirror. The bun, she tied it up nicely. The bang before forehead, use hairpin clip to clip tightly sometimes, drop intentionally a few to come out, hang to the ear, half block half cover, do not have charm.
Every time she came back, she would immediately clean herself up. Her grandmother laughed at her poverty, and her great uncle said, “If he should come back suddenly, how would I be seen?”
Just left and right, a year and a half later, still no news.
The son of a family in a neighboring village went abroad with his great uncle, but he was not heard from. But the don was not in a hurry. “Now that the army is in chaos and the government is busy with the communist party exonerations, no one will pay any attention to the letters from the people. Besides, it will be months before we get to Citi. Just be patient.”
This time, another year.
That day, the don from the neighboring village came to the door, looking sad, and gave an uncertain message: the group of people who were going abroad might have been captured in the middle of the journey, young men, heading north to fight.
The news made the grandmother’s family even sadder.
At the end of the year, grandma got married. On the eve of her marriage, my grandmother had a talk with her great uncle.
Grandmother said, “For three years, if you were alive, you would miss home. You would not have heard nothing.”
The great uncle was optimistic. “No news, no hope. I’ll wait five years, ten years, ten years, if my family doesn’t send me away, whether I’m in the army or across the sea…”
The latter words were covered by grandmother’s hand.
More than ten years passed in a blink of an eye. Taizu parents have died, grandmother’s sister married, five uncle, six uncle also grew up. But the great uncle, two uncle still did not hear from.
Village gossip, said the great uncle life hard, Kefke in-law; Some people say she is silly, bitter guard more than ten years. Uncle aunt pretended to be deaf and dumb, led five uncle, six uncle farming home a few acres, sunrise and do, sunset.
Later, the People’s Republic of China was founded. During the land reform, the superior working group entered the village.
One day, a female cadre came to my door and said directly to my great uncle, “I will make a match for you.” It turned out that there was a 40-year-old soldier in the working group, unmarried, in love with the great uncle.
“You are only in your early 30s and you still have a long way to go. You should not continue to be a victim of the feudal system, but bravely pursue a new life. People are veteran cadres, old revolutionaries, see you is your blessing ah.”
Laborious tongue, the great aunt is indifferent.
Grandmother also advised, the great uncle refused, “I am a peasant woman, will only plow, do not know a character. Besides, after all these years, I can’t think of anything else.”
My grandmother said, “You have been very kind to my family for more than ten years. You have to look after your own future, too.”
“I didn’t think that far ahead and I didn’t believe there was anyone to rely on.”
In this way, a marriage and great uncle passed by.
4
One summer, my grandmother and I went to market in the county town and visited my aunt.
My aunt, who is blind, lives in the busiest lane in the county. He was his grandmother’s brother-in-law. His aunt had died, and his only daughter had married in Hong Kong. His great uncle and grandmother went to look after him every day during the slack season.
That day my great-uncle was also there. My grandmother and great-aunt went to the kitchen to cook. My aunt and I stayed in the house.
My aunt sat on the edge of the bed, seized the pillow, held it in her arms, squeezed it, then put one hand into the pillowcase and pulled out a small cloth package. My aunt put a small cloth bag on her lap and opened it carefully. Inside was a small stack of coins.
My aunt felt the money up and down for a few times, then took out one of the coins, felt it on both sides, and then squeezed it again. “This one is five yuan, isn’t it?” Hearing my positive reply, he folded the money in half and pressed it under his leg. Then he pulled out the top one. “Is this fifty cents? Here you are. Come here.”
I hesitated for a moment and took the money.
At that moment, the great uncle walked back to the room. My aunt called, and took out the five-dollar note and thrust it into her hand.
The great uncle refused.
‘said my aunt, taking her by the hand.’ If you don’t want to marry me, we can live together without having to push. ‘
Her great aunt blushed to her ears, swished back her hand, stepped back, and scolded her aunt. “Aren’t you shy? Another drink at the bar! There are children here! ‘
‘Of what am I ashamed? What are you afraid of? Is it worth keeping watch for a chicken for decades? Am I worse than a chicken?”
“If you talk nonsense, I won’t come again.” Then the great uncle went to the corner of the house, picked up a few sticks of wood and went out.
I was stunned by what I saw.
My aunt stiffened, folded her small cloth bag, then grabbed the radio and tuned it as if nothing had happened.
During the meal, my aunt kept praising the food. He took out the five dollars and gave it to his uncle, “Next time, buy ribs.” Great aunt silent for a moment, took the money, into the underwear pocket.
After dinner, my great uncle, grandmother and I left together. The great uncle carried two buckets in front of her. She had to go home to feed the pigs and fertilize the vegetables. She walked faster and faster, leaving grandma and me far behind.
Watching her great-uncle walk away, I told my grandmother that my aunt wanted her to marry him.
Grandmother was calm. “I know,” she said, “your great aunt is in trouble! We are all tens of years old, and relatives. You must keep it a secret. No one can tell.”
As a matter of fact, I soon forgot about it. Later, I went to the provincial capital to study, work, away from home more and more, see the great uncle aunt opportunities are few and far between.
Afterword.
In the early 1990s, a county man who had been arrested and disappeared for decades returned home from Taiwan.
When grandma heard this, she said, “If your great uncle’s second uncle is alive and in Taiwan, it’s time to come back. So your great aunt will be satisfied.”
However, such a miracle did not occur in my family.
In 1997, she died in her sleep at the age of 80.
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