Chapter 333: Fortune Telling
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Sitting in the taxi, Guo Dongyue held the birdcage like he was holding a baby, constantly urging the driver to speed up so that he could get home home immediately to show the red-headed lovebirds to his mother.
When the taxi drove past Embassy Street, he could see that the church was still brightly lit up. A lot of church members who didn’t have time during the day had to attend church services under the chilly winds in the evening. The church at night possessed a beauty different than in had in the day. If the church appeared solemn and awe-inspiring in the day, the atmosphere became mysterious and distant in the evening as if it were narrating the unpredictability of the divine providence.
After the taxi turned right and drove into the old alley, the surrounding area became quiet suddenly, with few vehicles and pedestrians on the street. This old residential district might be demolished sooner or later—the neighbors were all looking forward to that day so that they could have abundant compensation and move into new houses, except Guo Dongyue.
Once leaving this district — most importantly, once leaving the home that his mother was familiar with — her memory would be lost forever, never to be found, like the kite loosening from the string.
However, demolition and relocation were irresistible trends which would never be delayed just because of him.
While his thoughts were wandering around, the driver applied the brake and the taxi slowly parked at the entrance of the district.
“Can I just park here? It’s difficult to turn around inside.” The taxi driver discussed with him.
Guo Dongyue was hoping the driver could park in front of his home, but seeing the reluctance on the driver’s face, he didn’t insist. After all, the driver was probably thinking he could call it a day and get back home to his family.
After paying the fare, Guo Dongyue held the birdcage and got out of the car. He covered the birdcage with his coat so as to shield off the increasingly chilly night winds for the parrots.
Walking into the dark corridor, he coughed. The light still didn’t turn on, probably because the voice-controlled switch had broken again.
Using the flashlight function on his cellphone, he walked carefully to avoid the sundries piled on the corridor, Once he arrived at his home on the second floor, he pulled out the key to open the door.
Two completely different voices were heard in the house. One source of the voice was from the soap opera where the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law were having a fight, while the other one was the Kunqu Opera from his mother’s bedroom. The volume of the former one was much higher than the latter one.
“Oh, Dongyue, you’re home tonight? I thought you wouldn’t come back today. You don’t have to come back on such a late evening — your Aunt Bai is taking care of your mom, and everything will be fine…” said Aunt Bai, a little bit guiltily. She stood up from the couch and turned down the volume. Melon seed shells were everywhere, and would make creaking sounds when someone stepped on them.
Without saying anything, Guo Dongyue just nodded to her and went into his mom’s bedroom.
His mother was sitting on the bed with her back to the door. On the table in front of her, there was an out-of-date radio where the beautiful voices of the famous Kunqu Opera artists were coming from.
When he pushed the door and entered her bedroom, his mom didn’t move an inch. He wondered whether his mother was listening to the Kunqu Opera, or if she just wanted to drown out the sounds of the soap opera from the living room.
“Mom, I’m home…” he said, tentatively.
Mom still had no response.
He took the coat off the birdcage, lifted the cotton cloth that kept the birds warm, and put the birdcage in front of his mother.
Just like the snow and ice were melting when spring arrived, his mother’s dull face suddenly moved a bit, and then she smiled, “Little Purple, Yellow Pea Cake, where have you been? I’ve been looking for you for so long, so long…”
She took the birdcage with both of her hands, without glancing at Guo Dongyue in front of her.
Guo Dongyue felt a tinge of heartache. But seeing his mother smile, he was really happy.
“Little Purple, Yellow Pea Cake, you must be good, don’t chirp. Dongyue is studying in the next room, you must not disturb him.” Mother was whispering to them.
Little Purple tilted its head to look at her, and then looked at Guo Dongyue, and suddenly said, “Please sit.”
Yellow Pea Cake also said, “Huang Yin.”
Guo Dongyue just froze there.
“Please sit.”
“Huang Yin!”
Little Purple and Yellow Pea Cake took turns to repeat these words to him.
Stiffly and slowly, his mother’s neck moved towards him, and she raised her eyes to look at his face.
Hope was rekindling in his heart, though he knew it was a faint hope. Mother had forgotten what he looked like right now, and she probably would ask harshly—who are you? Why did you break into my home?
However, mother just smiled softly, “Little Purple and Yellow Pea Cake know you? Look at me, I seem to have forgotten a lot of things recently…please have a seat.”
Little Purple and Yellow Pea Cake didn’t stop their repetitive speaking until Guo Dongyue had sat beside the bed.
Mother was staring at his face curiously, “Who are you? Why would Little Purple and Yellow Pea Cake know you? I’ve never brought them outside, so how would they know others?”
Guo Dongyue hesitated again. Should he explain futilely that he was her son as usual? Or pretend to be someone else, as Zhang Zian did, to make her happy?
Just then, Little Purple spoke up again, “Dongyue, you’ve grown up!”
Yellow Pea Cake echoed, “Grow up. Dong Yue.”
Just like moments ago, Little Purple and Yellow Pea Cake kept repeating these words. They were faithfully executing the speaking strategy as Richard had instructed them.
Repetition. Time and again.
Language was the most profound memory that wouldn’t be forgotten till death, for words had been repeating numerous times on a daily basis.
Mother stared at his face, “Have I met you somewhere before? Do you know my child Dongyue?”
Guo Dongyue nodded, “Yes, I do. I watched him grow up. Do you want to hear about the things that will happen to him when he has grown up?”
Mother smiled, “You’re a funny person. Dongyue is just a kid, how do you know what he will be like when he grows up?”
“I am a fortune-teller, and my predictions have always been precise. I see you are not busy, would you like to hear about it?” he said with a confident smile.
Mother shook her head, “I don’t believe in fortune-telling, unless you can prove what you say is true.”
Guo Dongyue knew she was not a superstitious person.
“Okay, then let me tell you something supposedly only you and Guo Dongyue know about.” He thought about it, “Right, he will become an architect.”
Mother was stunned, “How do you know that the kid wants to be a designer?”
“Because I’m good at fortune-telling.” He smiled, “Do you remember that day when you and he finished buying groceries and it suddenly rained heavily? You went to the church to get shelter from the rain, and you looked at the dome of the church and said it was really beautiful. He said mischievously that when he grew up, he would build a big and beautiful house for you so that you wouldn’t have to live in this small, dark and broken apartment anymore…”
“Yes, I remember!” his mother said in an excited tone, “But how do you know about that?”
Guo Dongyue smiled and didn’t answer to that question, “I also know other thing. A thing you think only you know.”
“What is the thing only known by me?” she replied alertedly.
Guo Dongyue pointed at the two red-headed lovebirds in the cage, “I know that when Guo Dongyue is at school, you will teach them to speak, and I also know what you have been teaching them.”
“It’s impossible!” she shook her head resolutely, “I don’t believe you!”
Guo Dongyue sobbed out, “It’s the poem Hymn of the Traveller. When Guo Dongyue was very little, he read the poem to you on your birthday. He has forgotten about that himself, but you’ve always remembered that.”
There were complicated expressions on mother’s face. Confusion, delight, and doubt…it seemed that she wanted to cry, but also wanted to smile.
Hearing the key words of Hymn of the Traveller, Little Purple and Yellow Pea Cake had reactions instantly.
“Threads adeptly brandished by a loving mother, who sewed them into garments for her son so soon to depart.”
“Worrying that her son might not return in a short time, she sewed the threads densely.”
“Who dares to claim that the son’s fidelity as trivial as the green grass can repay the mother’s love as great as the spring sun?”
They recited the poem in unison with the most accurate and clear pronunciations among the expressions they had learned. Even Yellow Pea Cake, who had always pronounced words incorrectly, could recite it very well. Obviously, they had practiced many times.
Mother was constantly swallowing. Her hands clenched the bedsheets so tightly that they wrinkled from her grasping.
“Why would you know that? Why would you know that?”
Guo Dongyue stood up, stretched out his arms to her and smiled, “There’s also one thing I know—that the house Dongyue builds for you is about to be completed, but he worries that you might reluctant to leave the old house. Would you like to check on that?”
Mother stared at his hands. She hesitated for a while before she extended her hands to hold his. She looked at him, “I want to stay together with Dongyue, I will go where he goes.”
“Okay, let’s go.”
Guo Dongyue supported her to stand up from the bed, and helped her put on her coat, scarf and hat. Mother held up the birdcage with her other hand.
“Is it far?” she asked.
“Not very,” smiled Guo Dongyue. “There’s a pet shop around that area, Dongyue has been spending much time there recently.”
“I like pets too, especially birds,” she said with expectation.
He held his mother’s hand to leave the bedroom and walked through the living room.
Aunt Bai was eating dried melon seeds and looked at them with confusion, “Where are you going at this late hour?”
Guo Dongyue said to her seriously, “You can get off work now.”
