Chapter 5 (1/2)
Chapter 5: Niu Jia village
Unfolding the paper, Zhuo Qing was flabbergasted. Zhuo Qing’s mother is a professor of Studies of Ancient Chinese Civilization, she saw several traditional Chinese characters on the paper and understood what she has seen, however, these cockamamy circles, what do they mean, the writing here consisted of characters and symbols? This could be hard for her.
“Ahem!” Zhuo Qing cleared her throat strongly a few times, seeing the young Liu Yu, she asked, “Can I. . . can I ask you?”
Liu Yu nodded innocently.
“The circle of pork on a skewer what does it mean?”
“Uh . . .” Liu Yu’s face reddened, scratched his hair, smiled and replied, “it means the benefactor to our village for food and blankets.” He learned for only two years, he does not know how to write the word, so instead he drew a picture.
So that’s it! So, he replaced words he does not know with pictures instead, okay, here the text should be traditional Chinese characters.
Reading further on, Zhuo Qing’s brow wrinkled and asked: “and what is the meaning of these little dots?”
Liu Yu laughed: “ah that . . . that means . . . to get a redress.” His father had taught him the word, saying that it was a word a very knowledgeable person would use, but unfortunately he did not teach him how to write it.
Zhuo Qing’s mouth froze, his idea of expressing the word, these dots look like snow falling? Creative, very creative indeed! She has to bear it!
Reading on again, pretty soon, the paper also has a drawing of a mesh-like thing. “This one?” According to how his mind runs, Zhuo Qing guessed and said, “I know, the meaning of this is a net!”
“Not really.” Liu Yu muttered, “it means a prison cell.”
This is a prison cell?
“I really . . . ” Do not get angry, do not get angry, taking several deep breaths, she threw back the appeal to Wu Si, Zhuo Qing uttered a few words through her teeth, “admire Wu – in this form – to send – – to – ” Can it also be considered an appeal? She suddenly wanted to see the face of Prime Minister Lou reading this appeal, it must be very exciting!
Listening to the question-and-answer exchange, Xiao Wuzi whacked Liu Yu’s head very hard, berating: “Damn you, Liu Yu! Elder brother Wu asked you to write an appeal, but you just scrawled some undecipherable scribblings, ah!”
“Hey, do not fight with me.” Grumbling, Liu Yu covered his head, and exclaimed, “I would not have had to write ah, but you, you forced me to write!”
“You also talk back, ah!” The two men scuffled with each other.
“Knock it off!” Wu Si yelled, miserably sitting on the ground, his honest face was full of disappointment. The appeal he was tightly holding in his hands was now crumpled together. “Without an appeal, how can we help the benefactor seek justice!”
You’re to blame! Xiao Wuzi glared at Liu Yu, crouching beside Wu Si, he cautiously urged: “Elder brother Wu, how about when Prime Minister Lou comes, we just kowtow to him, yes, we cannot write, but don’t we have the ability to speak!”
“I’m afraid, we’re just a bunch of ignorants, if we cannot explain clearly in a short time, what if Prime Minister Lou gets impatient and walks out, what are we going to do?” They have not gone to explain to the officials, apart from being driven away, continuously the officials would not see them at all! But, this is a different matter, they kidnapped the Prime Minister’s woman!
Xiao Wuzi pointed to Zhuo Qing, saying: “Is she not literate?! Well, let’s ask her to write it!”
Zhuo Qing coldly turned her head away, turning a blind eye to them. These people have lots of passion but no brains, an appeal is futile.
Wu Si suddenly stood up, walked over to her, and dropped, seriously kneeling in front of her, he was only in his thirties but his face is weathered, full of pleading, “Miss, abducting you, it was our wrongdoing, but we did it because we are truly desperate! Please, help us write an appeal now!”
Zhuo Qing was startled, living in the twenty-first century, she really is not used to having someone kneeling down before her. She got up and took a step back, her voice was still cold, but her heart was already moved, “regardless of the reason, a forceful kidnapping means breaking the law, even if Prime Minister Lou really comes, your so-called appeal may not necessarily get the attention you want, but you are bringing trouble to the village!”
Wu Si drew himself up, his face defiant, he shouted back: “the kidnapping was my idea, I would assume responsibility, as long as Prime Minister Lou comes, to hear the appeal, I, Wu Si, willingly takes the blame!” Anyway, his wife and children already died of that disease, in life and death he is alone!
As soon as Wu Si’s voice faded, the quiet villagers immediately cried excitedly.
“No, the hostage-taking was our idea!”
“It was my idea!”
“Well, to get a public hearing, it was worth the trouble!”