Returning to Before Husband’s Castration

 Wei Cai Wei pushed Wang Da Xia away.

Wang Da Xia only felt a soft little fist hitting him in the chest, it didn’t hurt at all, this wasn’t the first time they’ve been in physical contact.

Last night when he had slipped off the ladder, Wei Cai Wei had held his head and waist preventing him from disfiguring his face from the fall. A widow, disregarding her own reputation to save him. 

Wang Da Xia concluded from this, the young widow still considered me as a substitute of her deceased husband Wang Erlang from the memorial tablet, last night she had not succeeded in being a pillow, hearing I want to go to Miss Ying Ying, she’s jealous, that’s why she pushed me.

However I am the substitute of Wang Erlang, the young widow loves the house and its crow, so she wasn’t willing to push him hard, weakly reaching out her hand, it was like a tickle.

This was also fine.

Letting the young widow realise I’m not willing to be a substitute for her dead husband, she’ll give up sooner. That’s why, Wang Da Xia pretended to be pushed over by Wei Cai Wei, lying on the floor he clutched at his chest, clasping at his heart: “Doctor Wei, fine if you don’t want to sell, why did you hit me?”

“Don’t pretend, in the capital this behaviour of yours is called scamming by setting up an accident in which one appears to have sustained damage or injury caused by the scam victim, then demand compensation.” Wei Cai Wei said: “You capital city people know how to bully us countryside outsiders who enter the capital, your current behaviour is the same as the tavern shopkeeper who demanded two nights' rent from me. I don’t have time to deal with you, leave.”

Wang Da Xia continued to act shamelessly, seizing the opportunity to break off relation with Wei Cai Wei, turning it into medical abuse, he shouted: “Come quick, doctor pushed a patient, there’s not even a word of apology, where’s your medical ethics!”

Wei Cai Wei got angrier as she listened, quickly walking away from the embroidered uniform guard office---if she left a little later, most likely she wouldn’t be able to control herself from murdering her husband.

This commotion was quickly reported to the person watching over her to Lu Ying, “...This subordinate is scared of exposing himself, I didn’t dare follow too closely. It seems Wang Da Xia chased after Wei Cai Wei to give her trouble, I’m not sure what was said, Wei Cai Wei got angry and pushed Wang Da Xia onto the ground.”

“Oh?” Lu Ying didn’t think there would be intel so soon, “Wang Da Xia is tall and strong, a group of you chased after him yet he wasn’t disadvantaged, my two hands might not be able to push him over, doctor Wei’s one hand can easily push him over? It seems this doctor Wei isn’t simple, maybe she’s learned martial arts before. Send more people, switch around the people tailing her, don’t let her notice.”

“Yes!” The subordinate accepted the order and left.

Thus Wang Da Xia became a victim of medical malpractice, but this was the embroidered uniform guard’s territory, no one cared about him, they knew he was exaggerating, the embroidered uniform guards merely kicked at his door but he had kept on saying the embroidered uniform guards wanted to kill him.

Wang Da Xia was completely untrustworthy, seeing him being pushed over by a young widow, the embroidered uniform guards didn’t care, and loved to see him be out of luck.

Lu Ying wanted to see just how great Wei Cai Wei was, he ordered someone to bring Wang Da Xia over.

Wang Da Xia entered the house, he felt it was refreshing, the doors and windows inside were tightly closed, a large blue and white water jar was filled with ice, Lu YIng had switched to new clothes, it was still a stifling hot stiff collared gown, the chrysanthemum button was also neatly fixed.

“Using ice already at the beginning of summer, really extravagant.” Wang Da Xia said this while his hand used a handkerchief to wrap up a piece of ice, rolling it around his face to cool down, “Leader Lu asked for me for what reason?”

Lu Ying said: “I heard you were pushed over by doctor Wei, I want to see if you’re hurt.”

“You want to undress me.” Wang Da Xia crossed both his arms over his chest, “We’re men, what I have you have, it’s not that you can’t take a look---I’m hungry, give me a meal first.”

It was already lunchtime, the soft bean curd and three deep-fried breadsticks from this morning had long disappeared, Wang Da Xia was growing, he was so hungry his mind was burning, but if he leaves the embroidered uniform guard office for food, he would be taken back home and placed under house arrest by Mu Baihu and the others outside.

The lesser of two evils, Wang Da Xia decided to linger at the embroidered uniform guard office so he can think of a way to get away.

Lu Ying knew Wang Da Xia would shamelessly take it up to another level, “Prepare a meal for the visitor.”

Wang Da Xia had his fill, it’s easy to do what he said he would do, he took off his thin summer clothes on the spot, he took off the belt at his waist, pulling apart the lapel, exposing his shining white upper body, stripping down to his navel.

“Leader Lu take a look.” Wang Da Xia stood up from the dining table, walking towards Lu Ying.

Lu Ying immediately felt like chilli entered his eyes, facepalming he turned around, “Get back and sit down! I haven’t even summoned the coroner yet!”

Wang Da Xia clicked his tongue saying: “Leader Lu is also making too much of a fuss over nothing, there wasn’t even a scratch on the outer skin, where is the need for the coroner to examine.”

Lu Ying still didn’t look at him, “Your clothes aren’t tidy, whatever next! Put your clothes on! I will chase you out!”

Wang Da Xia put on his clothes.

Lu Ying turned back around, asking: “Since you weren’t hurt, why did you shout so loudly?”

Wang Da Xia was very frank, “I faked it, there’s been a little misunderstanding between doctor Wei and I, she pushed me, I as a man, couldn’t push her back, I simply fell to the ground and surrendered, she saw I had fallen over and didn’t hit me again.”

Lu Ying mockingly said: “You are experienced.”

Wang Da Xia didn’t think it was shameful, rather he was proud, “Of course, I Wang Da Xia have my own way to deal with women.”

Lu Ying felt a lot of disdain for Wang Da Xia, then asked: “What is the misunderstanding between you two? Such a gentle widow as doctor Wei was infuriated by you.”

Of course Wang Da Xia couldn’t say he spent the night in the same house as the young widow and the young widow tried to get her hands on his handsome body, he lied, “I praised the young widow as being beautiful, not inferior to the good-looks of Miss Ying Ying, she instantly turned hostile, scolding me as a lecher, didn’t she just misunderstand me.”

Lu Ying said: “You deserved it, putting a young widow and a prostitute on par with each other, if it was someone else they would also beat you up.”

Wang Da Xia said: “Miss Ying Ying has already been redeemed, she isn’t a prostitute, she’s an ordinary person.”

Clearing up everything, Wang Da Xia was no longer of any value, Lu Ying waved his hand like waving away a fly, “Get lost, the embroidered uniform guard office doesn’t welcome you.”

Wang Da Xia said: “I can’t leave right now, if I do I’ll be taken back home.”

Lu Ying said: “Nothing to do with me.”

“Of course it does.” Wang Da Xia leaned close saying: “Aren’t you embroidered uniform guards busy trying to solve the double murder case of Chen Qianhu and son? I can give you a clue in exchange for use of one of your carriages, get a driver to get me out.”

Lu Ying didn’t believe him, “You extorted a meal from me just now, now you want to swindle me into helping you slip away? Someone come! Drag him out!”

Wang Da Xia saw things weren’t going his way, sure enough the same strategy couldn’t be used twice so he opened a window, climbing through he ran off!

It wasn’t known where he was hiding in the office, he seemed to have disappeared without a trace, Lu Ying’s subordinates looked for an afternoon but weren't able to find him.

On the other hand, Wei Cai Wei began setting off from the southern city, swaying her tiger palm as she practiced medicine along the way. Stopping and starting, she had a few customers, at dusk she arrived at her home on Tianshui lane.

Manager Chen had taken all kinds of people to view houses throughout the day, he heard the embroidered uniform guards had taken his old client Wei Cai Wei for questioning so he hurried to see her and brought a huge watermelon as a gift to settle her anxiety.

Wei Cai Wei said thanks: “I’m fine, the embroidered uniform guards just asked routine questions, afterwards they let me go, thank you manager for your concern, I’ll treat manager to a meal.”

Manager Chen had given her a watermelon, she didn’t want to owe him a favour.

Manager Chen cupped his hand: “I can’t thank you for this honour enough but my grandmother is waiting for me to have dinner, I will come to disturb you another day.”

Hearing this Wei Cai Wei guessed manager Chen had lost both his parents, growing up with his grandmother, she kept this in mind so next time she spoke she would refrain from this topic.

Manager Chen had recently earned five silvers in management fee because of Wei Cai Wei, he was more liberal, he hummed a northern song as he went to the cooked food store to buy a marinated pig’s face as large as palm-leaf fan and took it home.

Manager Chen’s home was on Machang lane at Gulouxixie street, those who lived here were all normal small families, it was hot, each family placed their meals on the lane, it was pleasantly cool and bright.

Sure enough, it was as Wei Cai Wei guessed, manager Chen had lost both his parents, suffering a reversal of fortune, the grandmother and grandson relied upon each other, elderyly lady Chen also placed their meal on the lane, using bamboo food dome to cover the table, keeping the flies, mosquitoes and moths away while she waited for her grandson to come home and eat.

When manager Chen carried the pig face home, elderly lady Chen was making a shoe at the table.

Elderly lady Chen seeing her grandson carrying such a huge pig face said: “There are only two mouths in our family, we can’t finish this and the weather is hot, we can’t keep it overnight, split it up, give some to the neighbours.”

In a marketplace neighbourhood, you would be criticised behind your back if you didn’t share.

Manager Chen left a portion smaller than half for his own family, the rest he split it into seven bowls, giving it to the neighbours on his left and right.

When he was cutting up the pig face he had his own intentions, one bowl he packed it tightly with meat from the pig face using a spoon, on the surface the meat from all five bowls looked about the same, they were piled up in the bowl in a pyramid shape, that one bowl had at least more than half of the others.

Manager Chen delivered the pig face from house to house, getting quite a lot of praise: “Oh, manager Chen completed a large transaction? May you be prosperous!”

“Reviving the Chen family’s business is imminent!”

When he came round to the neighbouring bricklayer Li house, manager Chen especially neatened up his clothing, carrying that bowl with the most meat, he knocked on the door frame, “I’ve come to give your family an extra bowl of meat.”

The weather was hot, windows and doors were open, a bamboo screen was hung over the front door to stop the mosquitos, a white hand pushed the bamboo screen aside, revealing a cotton rose face, it was bricklayer Li’s daughter Li Jiu Bao.1

Li Jiu Bao was the flower of Machang lane. But, to manager Chen, out of all the women of the same generation in Gulouxixie street’s lanes and alleys, Li Jiu Bao was the most beautiful.

Her father bricklayer Ji was a gambler, when his daughter was born, he was still playing pal gow at the casino, he just happened to get the biggest hand of pai gow2---the supreme treasure, top three with two and four, added together it equaled nine.

Bricklayer Li had a son and he had beat everyone with the supreme treasure, his neighbour had run to the casino to tell him he had a new daughter, son and daughter, bricklayer Ji had two simultaneous happy events in the family, he felt it was his daughter who brought him the luck of supreme treasure, nine points, that’s why he gave his daughter the name Jiu Bao.

Not only was Li Jiu Bao pretty, she also had a trace of briskness as found in women in the capital, she was not constrained, she welcomely invited manager Chen inside.

Manager Chen placed that bowl packed with pig face down on the table, there was a bowl of millet porridge on the table, two maize pancakes, and a small plate of pickled cucumber.

This was Li Jiu Bao’s dinner, it was a little pitiful, there wasn’t a drop of oil, that’s why it wasn’t placed in the lane to eat.

Manager Chen pretended not to see, exchanging conventional greetings: “Bricklayer Li and brother Li still haven’t returned home.”

Li Jiu Bao said: “They received a new job outside the city at Sanlitun, they’ll be busy for a few months, they can only return home when given a break.”

Sanlitun again? Such a coincidence. Wang Ya Nei had sold his mother’s dowry farm at Sanlitun to help a prostitute.

Manager Chen rubbed the back of his head slightly ill at ease, “There’s work, that’s good, then...you should eat first, I’m going to go.”

“Many thanks brother Chen.” Li Jiu Bao walked manager Chen to the door.

Manager Chen went back home to have dinner with his grandmother, there were surprisingly a few more dishes on the table, there was dumplings from the east family, flat breads from the west family, pockmarked face Wang Er’s homemade rice wine, they were all gifts in return for the pig face he had given.

Manager Chen had a sumptuous dinner, thinking bricklayer Li father and son were working away, Li Jiu Bao would be eating that bowl of meat alone to avoid insulting his good intentions----Li Jiu Bao liked to eat marinated pig face the most, he had intentionally bought it for her.

It was good to have money, when will he next come across such an easy business deal to make five silvers?

It was easy to buy marinated pig face, not so easy to earn money for a wife.

If he wanted to marry Li Jiu Bao, betrothal gifts couldn’t be lacking.

Tomorrow was another day of working hard to make money to marry the only flower in Machang lane.

1 Name literally means nine treasures.↩

2 Gambling game played with dominoes. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pai_gow↩