There was a kind of flower that was like an inferno. When it burst into bloom, it could burn through everything in a person's view, searing their nerves until there was pain.

The forty years old Yang Qing was dumbstruck. He seemed to have lost his ability to speak and was stupefied for quite a while before finally finding his tongue. Then, his words scrambled and his hands gesturing wildly, he said, "I… No… My child is already so tall… I'm already married! My wife… your sister-in-law is back in my old home, she's not with me… Her cooking is very good, when she comes here, I'll get her to treat you to flatbread…"

"Back then, he had his child with him and stayed in the dorms for single people. There wasn't even a female housefly by his side, so I had always thought that he didn't have a wife, that he was either divorced or widowed." Zhang Meizhen gazed out at the city nightscape. She brushed back the permed hair at her temples, a little worn out. "No. 110 was built later on. In the early days, the workplace would provide public housing for their workers. Other than the worker's capability and rank, sometimes it also depended on the size of their family. The married ones definitely took precedence over the single people. His peers, as long as they had a family, nearly all of them were given public housing. But he was not.

"That's why I didn't believe him at all at that time. People back then aren't like people now, they didn't care about school districts and all that. There wasn't much difference whether their children attended school in Yanning or back in their old homes in the rural villages. I thought, if the child really has a biological mother, why would the child live so miserably with the father in the dorms? Furthermore, Yang Qing was brought up by a beggar and didn't have parents or relatives. After liberation, he settled in Yanning and worked here. What hometown would he have? So I firmly believed that he was brushing me off and I clung on to him.

"I tried every trick I could think of and also joined his workplace. I hovered around him every day, pressuring him until he ran away the moment he saw me. When he brought up that wife of his that was like a baseless rumour, I would grin at him and say, 'You say you have a wife—fine, you should have a family photo, right? Show me a photo and I'll believe you.' But he couldn't produce a photo and was in a very sorry state every time." Zhang Meizhen paused, then smiled and let out a soft sigh. "I was so shameless… Thinking of it now, back then, I was young and not sensible, and had such thick skin for a young lady. That Old Yang had already said things so clearly but I still refused to give up and clung to him. If a man did that, he would be the perfect example of a dirty hoodlum and might have already been beaten up."

"If it's a man, it also depends on his face," Gan Qing assessed her statement seriously. "Someone like you refusing to give up and clinging to him is an idol drama, and can't be considered dirty hoodlum behaviour."

Zhang Meizhen snorted a laugh. "Such hypocritical words. You're a sweet-talking and cold-hearted little thing."

Gan Qing good-naturedly accepted her rebuke with a smile.

"Actually, it's no big deal if the man gets beaten up. Even with a bloody nose and a swollen face, if he gets to his feet he's still a man. If he regrets one day, it'll become the story of 'the return of the prodigal son,'" Zhang Meizhen suddenly said in a low voice. "But for women, it's not the same. On the surface, it's not an acceptable thing to hit women. Anyone who valued their reputation even a little wouldn't dare hit a woman in public. That's why the beatings women suffer are done in secret, where no one can see… Later on, someone wrote a letter to report my actions."

"Who wrote it?" Gan Qing asked.

Zhang Meizhen shrugged. "Who knows? I've offended too many people."

Gan Qing looked at her in the rearview mirror. She couldn't help but feel that this old madam had the temperament of someone who had trained herself to be extremely keen and quick-witted. She didn't seem like a sweet, naive girl who wouldn't know if she had offended someone.

"It's true. If everyone made do with what they had and got on with their lives in the pitch darkness, while you're the only one who acted independently and insisted on switching on the lights and blinding other people, aren't you offending them?" Zhang Meizhen said. "It's the same as those who keep the full beam headlights on their cars switched on the whole time when driving at night, isn't that right, Driver?"

"Sigh, big sis, you can't put it that way. They're not the same. Turning on the full beam headlights for no good reason can easily cause an accident. That's a lack of basic decency." The cab driver was a middle-aged man with white in his hair at his temples. His first reaction was to instinctively refute her words. Then, after falling silent for a while, he added a vague line in a low voice. "In any case… What other people are doing, we'll just follow suit and do the same. Can't go wrong that way, right?"

"Can't argue with that," Zhang Meizhen answered with a bright smile. She said, "The letter reported me for destroying someone else's marriage, seducing a key personnel of the workplace and acting like a loose woman, bringing down society… It was basically something like that anyway. During those years, it's always this trick. And then, it would be followed by a disciplinary action, a session, getting 'trampled until there was no getting up again,' all that stuff."

"I came from Travellers' Sect and was confident in my martial arts skills. I feared nothing in Heaven nor Earth. With the Five Bats Token in hand, was there anywhere I could not go? Those people could not catch me at all. As for that lousy workplace, so what if they fired me? At that time, even though the major sects were no longer active, the connections were still there, people were still in contact with one another. My sect uncles would not let me starve to death. I didn't suffer and was even quite smug… It was only later on that I found out that during that period of time, behind my back, Old Yang had kept reaching out to the people he knew for my sake and made the facts clear again and again. He even explained to the leader at the workplace. He kept thinking that it must have been himself who did not pay attention to the details and had accidentally teased a young woman. Hence, everyone believed him and thought that there was a problem with him too. Since they couldn't catch me and they needed someone for the people to vent their anger on, they picked him."

"Due to that, he was removed from his post, his title of 'model worker' was withdrawn and he also faced disciplinary action. In just a short while, from a key personnel, he became someone of the lowest rank. Anyone could trample on him. He couldn't even stay in the dorms for singles anymore, they turned him out and sent him to a storeroom that was modified from a bicycle shed. Every three to five days, they held a struggle session and dragged him out to be scolded. At that time, other than Elder Yu, not many people dared to talk to him. He was also afraid of dragging others down with him. In those few years, even the veteran members of Beggars' Sect took the initiative to draw the dividing line… I hid in another part of the country for a few years and only found out about these matters later on. I went to his bicycle shed and cried outside for a whole night. I felt that I was really a terrible person.

"Those people even found his wife. It was only then that I knew that he really wasn't just brushing me off. He did indeed have a wife. It was an engagement his shifu had made when he was young—a few brothers-at-arms got together and after drinking too much, started matching up their sons and daughters like they were cats and dogs. They hadn't even met more than a few times before getting married… I guess it's a poisonous remnant of feudalistic times. That wife of his was the daughter of a long-time family friend. When she was twelve or thirteen, she encountered the Japanese's bombing attacks. For the sake of rescuing someone, she suffered some injuries. Half her face was disfigured and ever since then, it was like she changed into a different person. Her behaviour was strange and she never left her own room, refusing to meet with anyone."

"Old Yang is a very upstanding person. Sometimes, he's even… too upstanding." Zhang Meizhen sighed. "Even though the older generation were no longer around, he still complied with the agreement made by them and married her."

"At the start, I was so envious of her that I could go mad. I thought, how nice would it be if I was that woman? Even if my face was disfigured, I would be willing. Many years later, I finally understood that what I envied was not necessarily something good for her. At the start, perhaps she was touched and overjoyed for a while. But as time went by, what everyone remembered was that Yang Qing was a man of his word, that he didn't disdain such an ugly woman, and that a good man had to suffer this grievance. How unfortunate for him. As for her, she was a 'duty' and a 'baggage' that had good luck and was climbing up the social ladder. If she was sensible, she would die early so that there would be a few years less of her dragging him down… She had always refused to leave her home and meet other people because of the injuries on her face. I think that she must not have been a heartless woman. Who knows how she endured for so many years. Later on, her mental state was a little unstable.

"I secretly went to see her once. The people there told me that she can't see the light. Once she saw the light, she would become hysterical and act wildly, so she rested in the day and came out at night. Even when she left the house at night, she would cover herself up securely. If anyone saw her on the streets, they had to pretend that they didn't see her. If anyone dared take a second glance at her, there would surely be some trouble. She didn't even let anyone mention her name, so it was even more impossible for her to follow Old Yang to Yanning. She didn't even want to take care of the son she gave birth to.

"Every time Old Yang went back, on the first day, she would happily cook for him and welcome him. On the second day, her feelings would change from strong to mild. After three or four days, if he still didn't want to leave, she would be restless and pick a quarrel and make a fuss. Due to that, Old Yang only rushed home and stayed for a day during festive occasions. He would leave money and ration coupons with her and then leave.

"As for me, when I was young, I only had eyes for a man's good looks and confidence, his courage and loyalty. I had no eyes for a woman's pain. When I knew the whole story, I thought that I would never forget him for the rest of my life. But how could I put him through such difficulty? So I went back and said that he was just a fool who was deceived by me. Nothing had happened and he was bearing the blame for me for no reason. I even destroyed my own reputation… I was a lowlife from Travellers' Sect anyway, so I… was not bothered by all that.

"Old Yang has many brothers in Beggars' Sect. There were people who had long been unable to stand how things were going and before long, they made things right for him. As for me, I knew that I would not be fated to be with him anymore in this life. During that time, I even got married once—it was almost like a joke. At that time, I lived like a street rat. There was a man who had been fond of me for many years who braved the danger to shelter me in secret. Later on, this man had a serious illness. Since I was free and had nothing to do, I said, 'How about I become your wife before you die, so that there will at least be someone to send you off on your final journey?'

"For many years, life was peaceful. Those days of turmoil were finally over. Those who were locked in detention centers were freed, those who were sent to reformation camps had their grievances addressed. Other people were wrongly accused and had their names cleared. I was not wrongly accused but my luck was not bad and I also had veteran members of Travellers' Sect taking care of me. I followed suit and took advantage during the chaos to regain my job and salary, and didn't have to live in hiding anymore."

At this point, Zhang Meizhen fell into a long silence, all the way until the cab brought the two of them to the entrance of No. 110 Courtyard.

It was already past midnight now. The onlookers had long since dispersed and the little courtyard was quiet and tranquil. Old Sect Leader Yang had been taken away by ambulance to receive emergency treatment. The walking stick he had been holding at that time was at the moment leaning against the door of the reception office, adorned with an air of aged elegance yet painting a lonesome sight. Zhang Meizhen walked over and picked it up. She brushed off the dust, and then said, seemingly to herself, "Why did they leave it here? Aren't they afraid someone would just take it?"

The small lamp in front of the reception office door illuminated the wrinkles on Zhang Meizhen's face. The sight of her holding the walking stick and muttering non-stop made Gan Qing pause her steps. For the first time, she felt that she was really an old lady.

"Meizhen-jie…"

Zhang Meizhen didn't turn around. She lifted her head, her gaze piercing through the crown of foliage in the garden towards a certain unit on the sixth floor. The lights in Old Sect Leader Yang's home were on. The grandfather and granddaughter duo had come down in a rush and then went to the hospital directly, and hadn't switched off their lights. At this moment, the brightness of his home stood out prominently amidst the calm, like a pair of murky yet gentle eyes.

"I acted according to our agreement and sent my husband off on his final journey. His wife also finished her prison sentence in the mortal realm and departed. In those few years, he and I did not remarry. Even though we have grown old, as the saying goes, things remain the same while the people have changed…" Zhang Meizhen seemed to be speaking to herself. She raised her hand like she was trying to catch the light falling from the sixth floor, but the dim yellow light slipped through her fingers mercilessly, a phantom that could not be caught. She exhaled another puff of white breath. "But those were the good days."

"We got to know each other again. We became familiar with each other again."

She was no longer a thorny flower that pricked fingers; he had also been through enough ups and downs.

"At the start, society wasn't so open-minded yet. We still lived our lives rather secretively. Sometimes, we would exchange a look, sometimes a few words. We wrote notes, gave each other things... It was all like conducting spywork.

And, emotions were like moss—the darker, the damper, and the more it had its back to the light, the more it would grow without the slightest restraint.

"I thought that I had gone through the hard times and that the good days were here, that I had finally made it through in this life." Zhang Meizhen lowered her head and let out an indistinct laugh.

She never thought that the bright light she caught was just a fleeting spark from a flintstone.

Gan Qing asked, "Was it because… Travellers' Sect and Beggars' Sect have a longstanding enmity?"

Travellers' Sect and Beggars' Sect longstanding enmity had existed since ancient times. This was because both sects cast their nets throughout the land and were made up of the crowds of the common people. There was no place where their reach did not extend to and there was some overlap in their trades. Even though both sects had their moments of glory and their victories and failures, when compared against each other, Beggars' Sect was a little more reputable and righteous while Travellers' Sect had less of a bottom line when it came to swindling and tricking.

Travellers' Sect could not stand Beggars' Sect's sanctimonious attitude, while Beggars' Sect could not stand Travellers' Sect demonic ways. The positions of "righteous" and "demonic" added to their competition and conflict was inevitable.

"Officially, yes," Zhang Meizhen said. "My shifu had a high rank within Travellers' Sect. If Wang Jiusheng and his people saw me, they had to hold their noses and call me 'martial grandaunt'. I also had the Red Bat Token in my hands. Even though I didn't like interfering in those matters myself, when the various major sects gradually started to resume their activities, my friends hoisted me up and nominally gave me the rank of North Branch Master."

Gan Qing was a little startled.

"But I really wasn't made of the right stuff for that." Zhang Meizhen spread her hands. "In this area, I was more or less like Old Yang. If you want me to be like Wang Jiusheng and do something like making use of the sect to curry favour and find ways to survive, I can't do it even if you beat me to death. I don't have that foresight and I also find it troublesome… What's more, I'm the type who typically doesn't think with my head and I don't have the prestige Old Yang has in Beggars' Sect. That's why today's event is something I have already experienced once thirty years ago.

"I wanted to ease the tension between Travellers' Sect and Beggars' Sect. In the first place, we didn't speak of ranks and social status anymore after liberation—the beggars of Beggars' Sect all found jobs while Travellers' Sect no longer dared to use the underhanded jianghu tricks from the past, so why was there a need to differentiate us so clearly? In the future, everyone would travel the four seas and we would all be brothers from the same family, wouldn't that be good?

"My heart was determined to work together with Old Yang to do this but I never thought that I had a Wang Jiusheng in my own backyard who had always been eyeing the position of North Branch Master like a tiger. He was even afraid that once I had Beggars' Sect as backup, he would not be able to overthrow me."

"Coincidentally, on Old Yang's side, he had Yang Ping. After he turned ten, Yang Ping didn't grow physically, even his voice was rather like a young boy's… I caused the father and son duo to live in a bicycle shed so for all those years, he had always felt that his 'illness' was my fault… And also that his mother had died early because she was angered by me."

"I indeed… couldn't be considered completely innocent." Zhang Meizhen paused. "Hence, those two people got on like a house on fire."

T/N:

This story can be assumed to be set during the year it was published, 2018. Zhang Meizhen is in her seventies while Yang Qing is in his nineties, which means that the events described by Zhang Meizhen in this chapter happened in the years after the CCP took power in 1949. Those decades were times of great change and many major events, including the Cultural Revolution. It is impossible for me to summarise everything in a footnote, and I'm also not knowledgeable enough, but I just want to note that this is the background to all the events Zhang Meizhen talked about and that's why their actions and circumstances can't be viewed solely through modern lenses. For example, when Zhang Meizhen talked about the disciplinary actions she and Yang Qing faced, this article on struggle sessions gives an idea of what it meant.