The Game of Life

Han Guishan pretended not to notice everything happening outside and continued to talk about Shenzhen.

His voice wasn’t loud, but it was loud enough for the people outside to hear. “What’s Han the peddler talking about?” the villagers stretched their necks curiously.

‘■He’S talking about his experiences in Shenzhen. Han the peddler came from Shenzhen!” the brigade leader said.

“Shenzhen? Is that the one near Hong Kong City, the really developed and wealthy one?” The villagers were shocked and exclaimed, “Incredible! What does he sell?”

-All good stuff, enamel cups that look nicer than the ones at the supply and marketing co-op, and they’re two yuan cheaper too! And the Sea Soul Shirts- didn’t the accountant’s daughter from Shangliang Brigade bring one back from the provincial city? The ones Han the peddler has are even nicer looking than hers,” boasted the brigade leader, eager to praise Han Guishan’s merchandise because he got a good deal.

■■She spent over thirty yuan on that Sea Soul Shirt. If I spent thirty on clothes, my family would be left with nothing but the northwest wind this year. Can’t compare,” said a villager, full of envy.

“You don’t need to spend over thirty, just nineteen. Plus, there are flared pants. Hong Kong stars all wear those, only twenty-three yuan. Isn’t your San getting married at the end of the year? Wearing that would definitely look impressive,” the brigade leader said.

“That’s too expensive, too expensive. My eldest and second son would definitely have something to say about it,” the villager protested, though his eyes betrayed his true desire.

The two exchanged a bit of information at the doorway, the villager got the intel he wanted, and after hearing the brigade leader’s nonstop praise for Han Guishan, without even seeing the goods, he already believed they were excellent and rushed home to share the news with his family.

When the brigade leader returned, Han Guishan’s story was finished, and everyone’s dinner was done too. The brigade leader slapped his forehead, regretting that he missed the story about Shenzhen-after all, that’s Shenzhen, a place not even some in County Yalom had ever visited!

-Hey, Han the peddler, stay here tonight. You can sleep in San’s room. My San is studying in town, he’s doing really well, his grades are excellent. His teachers all say he’s sure to get into the high school in County Yalom!” the brigade leader called out, leading Han Guishan to the room.

Jiang Feng had already looked around the brigade leader’s house, and it was San’s room that was the best. Even if unoccupied, it was kept spotlessly clean, and the bedsheets and covers were fairly new. There was also a bookshelf and a desk.

Exhausted from a full day, Han Guishan wiped down with some water, soaked his feet, and went to bed.

Before sleeping, he didn’t forget to check the doors and windows to prevent any thieves from stealing his sack.

The next morning, Han Guishan woke up early, but the villagers were up even earlier, neatly gathered at the brigade leader’s house waiting for him to get up, without a single complaint.

It was just like the supply and marketing co-op: if it wasn’t open, you had to wait, and if they were out of stock, you’d wait for the next time. Everyone was used to it.

Jiang Feng’s range of activities was limited. He had familiarized himself with all the accessible places over the course of the night, and now he listened to the villagers chatting outside. Even though some of them had heavy accents and he couldn’t understand their speech, it didn’t prevent him from enjoying the gossip.

Last night, after that villager went home, there was a session of unreserved bragging, and then you’d brag and I’d brag, until the whole village knew what Han Guishan was selling and for how much, and that Han Guishan came from Shenzhen bringing fancy goods from the big city.

The daughters-in-law of this production team, mostly from neighboring teams, feared Han Guishan might not visit their parental homes, so they set off early in the morning to go back.

After Han Guishan got up, the villagers crowded around to buy his goods. Even though they were prepared, they couldn’t help but gasp in awe as he laid out his goods one by one.

“Wow, so that’s the Sea Soul Shirt! I saw a salesperson at the supply and marketing co-op wearing one last year!”

“This towel is so soft!”

■■Brushes from Shenzhen really are different, so soft. They definitely won’t make your mouth bleed.”

“Wow, this…”

Everyone had already decided the night before what they wanted to buy; getting a good look was sufficient. Most bought toothbrushes, towels, and enamel cups. Even the poorest families clenched their teeth and bought a toothbrush to experience what a Shenzhen toothbrush felt like. Six Sea Soul Shirts and four pairs of flared pants were sold, mostly to families with upcoming weddings.

Han Guishan gifted a free toothbrush to everyone who spent over twenty yuan, and villagers who received the free toothbrushes were all smiles. They didn’t mind spending most of their half-year’s earnings, feeling like they got the deal of a lifetime.

All the households had bought what they needed, and Han Guishan was ready to head out to the next production brigade.

As soon as he hinted at his intention to leave, he was stopped by a man on his way to his wife’s family home, and after a flurry of explanations in the local dialect, Han Guishan finally understood what they were saying.

Seeing that Han Guishan stayed put, the villagers breathed a sigh of relief. There were seven or eight production teams of various sizes in the nearby area, all located in the mountains and quite far apart; if Han Guishan missed any of them that just happened to be where their wives’ families were from, family feuds were likely to erupt in the village.

Han Guishan himself had never thought such a strategy would work: he was a peddler who didn’t need to walk the streets, as the buyers would come to him, traveling dozens of miles over mountain roads.

By evening, people from the production teams that were close by started to arrive.

In 1987, the villagers in the Shu mountains, when shopping, were in no way inferior to the girls of the 21st century indulging in retail therapy on Taobao; in just four days, as the nearby production teams’ villagers arrived one after another, Han Guishan’s two large sacks of goods were completely sold, even the tin frogs were all gone.

He even gave away three tin frogs to the three children of the brigade leader—the children discarded their mud toys and played with the tin frogs, becoming the kings of children.

Han Guishan spent another day tallying the things that villagers from each production brigade wanted and also inquired about the location of some even more remote and further production brigades before leaving.

When Han Guishan arrived, he was dragging two sacks, looking bedraggled and disheveled; when he left, he pocketed a full bundle of crisp banknotes of various denominations, heading back to the provincial capital.

The brigade leader sent his eldest son to show Han Guishan a shortcut to the town, even though it was in the opposite direction of the provincial capital, but after a whole day’s journey, he could reach the nearest town. Then, by catching lifts on fellow villagers’ tractor rides and changing a few buses, he would get to the provincial capital. It might take more time, but it was less taxing overall. Throughout the trip, Jiang Feng was nearly shaken apart by the tractor. After several days, Han Guishan finally made it back to the provincial capital. He went to the bank and exchanged most of the big bills into smaller twenties and fifties, amounting to several thousand. After changing the money, he finally arrived at the state-owned restaurant that Jiang Feng had been longing for.

The restaurant was quiet, and Wang Jing still sat idly inside.

“You … you …” Han Guishan tried to greet Wang Jing, but as soon as he opened his mouth, he realized he didn’t even know her name.

“You’re back!” Wang Jing saw Han Guishan and stood up abruptly with a swish, seeing that his hands were empty, “You weren’t robbed on the way, were you? Or did you lose your goods in some mountain ravine? Are you hungry, do you want me to get you a bun?”

“I sold everything,” said Han Guishan.

“What?” Wang Jing was stunned.

“I sold everything. I went to the production teams in the mountains under County Yalom, just like you said. Sold it all. Thank you,” Han Guishan said, bowing deeply at a precise 90 degrees, “I… I’d like to treat you to a meal.”

“Really?”

“Really! Whatever you want to eat, it’s my treat!” Han Guishan’s face suddenly turned red.

“Master Jiang is working today, and his chopped pepper fish head is the best. Today we have a carp that’s over 4 pounds. Are you really treating me? You’d better think carefully, this dish is over thirty yuan!” Wang Jing feigned seriousness.

“Whatever you want to eat, it’s my treat, even if it’s three hundred yuan,” Han Guishan said.

“Master Jiang, chopped pepper fish head, use the biggest one!” Wang Jing shouted into the back.

Jiang Feng wasn’t interested in the two outside who seemed to be flirting; he was focused solely on Master Jiang. Hearing that Master Jiang was in the kitchen, he hurried inside.

In the kitchen, Master Jiang was busy grabbing the biggest carp, over 4 pounds and still alive, from the bucket and placing it on the chopping board.

Picking up a mallet, he thudded it down, and the fish was knocked unconscious. Master Jiang put down the mallet and picked up a knife. His arms were clearly very strong. With one swift cut, a perfect fish head was severed. This method of killing the fish without scaling it and gutting it right away was definitely that of a Jiang Family member!