The Castration Chronicle Chapter Ten: Memories, Part Six

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After the meal, everyone rose and prepared to head for the pigpen. Once they had left the village Party secretary’s house, the Scholar could still steal glimpses of Anji’s sweet, natural smile, which put his mind further at ease. His courage slowly returned, and he quietly slipped out of the house to follow them.

Mr. Kojima and his group arrived at the pigpen and immediately identified the cause after surveying the surrounding conditions. Just as he was about to ask Anji to translate, she had vanished. When had she disappeared? Everyone stared at one another in bewilderment. Without a translator, Mr. Kojima could gesture all he wanted, but no one could understand him.

Mr. Kojima was baffled as well. He knew perfectly well that the report on this assignment would be a shining stepping-stone for Anji’s studies and future career. At such a crucial moment, how could she have dropped the ball?

At that moment, Liu Xiucai had no time to worry about any of that. In his mind, apart from that lingering warmth from the previous night, everything else had already been cast aside.

The Scholar immediately ran home, then hurried back to their side. Panting heavily, he declared, “I’ll translate! I’ll do it!”

He knew all too well that this was a perfect opportunity to display his abilities in front of his father. He had secretly watched Anji look up words in the dictionary countless times, and the method was already second nature to him.

Apparently, getting close to a beautiful woman brought more than beauty alone. Liu Xiucai was truly a model for intellectuals everywhere!

With no other choice, Party Secretary Liu and the others had to make do with whatever they had. Thus, through one sentence from Mr. Kojima and one round of dictionary consultation from the Scholar, the problem of the breeding boar’s inability to mate was solved.

First, the breeding boar had to be moved. Its former pen stood close to the mountains, where the howls of wild animals could often be heard. The pen was occasionally harassed by wolves and yellow weasels as well. All of this kept the boar in a constant state of fear and tension. Especially during mating season, such prolonged stress had left it too frightened to breed.

Now that the cause had been found, the simplest solution was to move the boar. Someone would also have to watch over it at night and feed and care for it.

At this, Party Secretary Liu and Director Hao both grew troubled. They had identified the problem, but the workers still had to return to the city. Where could the village find the extra labor?

“I can!”

It was the Scholar again!

Party Secretary Liu was utterly exasperated by his son’s fondness for showing off. He was a grown man already—could he not be a little steadier? How was he ever supposed to take over his father’s position?

Director Hao seemed to understand the secretary’s frustration and teased him. “The Scholar’s quite something—cultured and capable. In the old days, he would have been a model activist!”

“What model activist? In the old days, he’d have been a proper traitor!”

Director Hao burst into uproarious laughter, his usual reserve completely gone.

Perhaps because Mr. Kojima was Japanese, Militia Captain Liu had stayed out of the village’s major breeding-boar affair for the past two days.

“Tell me, where should the new pen be built? And who will take care of the boar?”

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“Widow Li!”

The secretary was puzzled. “Why her? Why would she agree?”

“She’s the only one in her household. She must be bored! Besides eating and sleeping, what else does she have to do?”

Director Hao once again lost all restraint, laughing so hard that he nearly doubled over. Seeing his reaction, Party Secretary Liu suddenly felt fortunate. Thank goodness there were not many people present—and that Liu Pockmark, the militia captain, was absent. Otherwise, he would have lost all face in the entire village.

Party Secretary Liu had originally wanted to ask why, but remembering his son’s habit of chasing after women, he decided it was better not to.

“All right. Let’s go to Widow Li’s house now and ask her first. What do you think, Director Hao? Ah, Director Hao! Stop laughing! The boy has no sense of propriety, but you don’t have to—”

“Why are you so upset? Having such a clever son is your good fortune! Come on, let’s go ask her, Old Liu!”

When they arrived at Widow Li’s house, everyone had barely stepped inside before they suddenly noticed that the Scholar was missing. No one paid much attention.

Party Secretary Liu and Director Hao began chatting amiably with Widow Li, while Mr. Kojima continued organizing the report in his hands. Not a single person noticed that Liu Xiucai had already been carried away by a group of men.

It turned out that Anji, who had mysteriously disappeared earlier, had suddenly appeared in front of the Scholar with a group of people. The moment he saw that they had come with Anji, his heart went cold. The matter he had just put out of his mind had returned to haunt him.

These men were a group of athletes whom Anji had contacted by phone the previous night through her rumored boyfriend. They had rushed here overnight.

The Scholar was so frightened that he wet himself on the spot. “Anji, I didn’t mean to! Anji, I love you! Anji…”

He kept repeating the same few lines, stopping just short of calling out for Anji’s mother.

“Did you enjoy yourself last night?” Anji asked, apparently unconcerned, though she glared viciously at him.

“I don’t know. I forgot!” the Scholar stammered.

“Very clever. That’s exactly right. Forget what happened last night, and don’t tell anyone. From now on, we’ll pretend we’ve never met. Understand?”

“Yes, yes, I understand, Your Majesty! Spare me, Your Majesty!”

“If I ever see you again, these men won’t be so polite.”

“Ah! You’re not going to beat me?”

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The rumored boyfriend and the other student athletes immediately burst out laughing.

It turned out that Anji had felt free to leave the translation work because she had already realized that Mr. Kojima could speak Chinese. That was why she had taken the opportunity to deal with Liu Xiucai, the unpredictable variable.

She had long since seen that the Scholar was a frivolous man who loved boasting about his achievements. Without giving him a warning, the sordid affair between the two women was bound to be spread far and wide. If word reached the school, one unnecessary trouble after another would follow. So she had to seal the Scholar’s lips. Mr. Kojima was Japanese, after all, and there was no need for her to worry about him.

Anji’s scheme finally taught the Scholar that there was always a higher mountain beyond the mountain, and always someone more capable beyond the capable. One truly could not judge a person by appearances.

By the time Anji led everyone back to Mr. Kojima, Party Secretary Liu and Widow Li had already reached an agreement, though the two sides seemed to have gone through several arduous rounds of negotiation. Mr. Kojima personally gave the breeding boar’s prized possession what he called a Japanese-style massage, and Widow Li only managed to learn the technique after watching him several times. Director Hao took Anji’s hand of his own accord and thanked her repeatedly.

The Scholar stood far away, not daring to come near. Only later did he understand that the group had come specifically to build the new pigpen under Mr. Kojima’s guidance.

From a distance, the Scholar gazed at Anji and instantly found that he no longer liked her in the slightest.

Chapter Eleven: Finale of the Modern-Day Arc

“Were you not beaten badly enough last time? Is your skin itching for more? You disgraceful fool—go home!” The moment Party Secretary Liu remembered the incident between Anji and his son, he was once again rendered speechless with rage.

Director Hao, however, consoled Old Liu. “What happened last time is over. Since there’s a solution, and this is for the sake of the entire village, we have no other choice.”

Director Hao’s earnest words persuaded Party Secretary Liu. “All right. Let the Scholar contact Anji. But, Director Hao, please supervise him in your capacity as his superior.”

“Of course, Old Liu!”

“I’m counting on you!”

Director Hao nodded at Party Secretary Liu, then walked over to Liu Xiucai.

Meanwhile, Party Secretary Liu led the militia captain and several other militiamen in lifting the breeding boar and setting off to deal with that ‘Black Devil’s Claw.’