Life of Bāo - Chapter 16
June 20, 2023
In the previous two chapters, the Red Dragons settled their debt with the Amur Leopards, and Cao Juān, a seventeen-year-old abused teen, was introduced. In Chapter 16, after five weeks of searching, Yao plans to follow up on a lead from a photograph Li gave him (What took him so long?). Yan is preparing to take the national Gaokao exam, and Bāo continues to be a student of Master Zhao Sun Feng. Enjoy.
Chapter 16
June 20, 2023
Sheng Yao's search for Bāo began on May 14. He recently demanded the assistance of two Red Dragon soldiers. The Dragon Head, Ong Jin, grew impatient, waiting for the boy to be found.
Yao concluded a meeting with government officials at Wu’s Tea House. Elections in the People's Republic of China occur under one-party authoritarian rule. The Red Dragons contribute to appointed officials who govern by ‘looking away’ from graft and corruption. With their business concluded, Yao drank tea and contemplated his next steps. He reached into his coat pocket and pulled out the photo he had obtained from Li just before he killed him. The photo revealed a boy next to the people’s police. He is not a boy but a young man and a clever one. He estimated his height to be five foot eight inches. His long black hair was gathered in a top knot on his head. Next to him stood a girl around the same age. From the angle of the picture, her facial features were obscured. Her long black hair was streaked with red. He knows that girl. I need to return to the orphanage.
***
Deng Yan studied at the Children's Welfare Institute library when time permitted. The national undergraduate admission exam, the GaoKao, was scheduled for that week: ten hours over three days. She was worried about the exam and how the results could impact her future. She was also worried about Bāo. Try as she might, her mind returned to him repeatedly. She resolved to move forward, but her happiest moments occurred when she was with Bāo. She planned to wake up early tomorrow morning and catch the first bus to the examination center. After that, she would work a shift at Wu’s Tea House.
***
For the past five weeks, Bāo practiced brushstrokes each morning. In the afternoon, he meditated while seated on the training hall floor. I am frustrated with brushing circles. Now, he instructs me in calligraphy. I must ask him why. I should be learning Kung Fu. Bāo gathered his courage, placed his brush on the holder, and cautiously asked, “Master Zhao, can I begin to learn Kung Fu?”
Master Zhao remembered being young and impatient and answered, “You are learning Kung Fu. From the moment you stepped through the door with Ping Lu on that rainy night, you chose to begin. You could have run, but you didn’t. You stayed. Calligraphy calms the mind and requires perseverance, control, and focus. All of these elements are required in Kung Fu. Everything is Kung Fu. Do you understand student Bāo?”
Bāo picked up his brush and said, “Yes, Master Zhao.”
Master Zhao, despite his eloquent rebuttal, changed the routine. They practiced calligraphy for half the morning and meditated for the second half. The afternoon was spent doing rigorous physical exercise. Bāo could barely walk. Every step I take is painful. His legs ached with each step. After practice, Bāo lay on the floor in exhaustion. Master Zhao was unaffected by the exercise and practiced with what resembled a long wooden stick, which Bāo learned was a Gún, The Gún was one of the four major weapons. The others were the spear, saber, and sword.
After dinner, Bāo flipped through the pages of an archaeology book. A photograph fell to the floor. Bāo picked up the black-and-white photo of an elderly man with a white beard dressed in a monk's robe. From the kitchen table, Master Zhao watched Bāo and inquired, “Student Bāo, what are you looking at so intently?”
Bāo replied, “A photo of an elderly man.”
“Was it in the book you were holding?”
“Yes, Master Zhao.”
“Let me share with you the importance of that man. Bring the book also.” Bāo sat at the kitchen table, placed the book on the table, and handed the photo to Master Zhao. “My dear teacher, gone now, taught me the Tao. Lou Song Jian’ Gou was a Taoist Monk, a daoshi, and a scholar of Tao. He taught the three pillars of Tao: simplicity, patience, and compassion. With his guidance, I began to study I Ching, the foundation for Taoist and Confucian thought.”
Master Zhao set the picture down, picked up the book, and flipped through the pages. He stopped, turned the book toward Bāo, and said, “I keep his photo to remind me of my time as an archaeologist.”
Bāo question, “You're an archaeologist too?”
“Yes, I received my master's in archaeology from Sichuan University in 2019.
Bāo looked at the photo in the book of Master Zhao holding something in both hands while standing on the banks of a river. The caption read, ‘Sichuan University graduate student, Zhao Sun Feng, discovers incised tortoise shell fragments with images of natural phenomena. (2019, Luoyang).’ The accompanying paragraph below the photo detailed the discovery near the Yellow River adjacent to Longman Caves. There was also a description of the tortoiseshell fragments. “These cracked shell fragments from the late Shang period are excellent examples of pyromancy, early divination. The carved markings were questions about future events and are called Oracle Bone Script, the earliest form of Chinese characters. A metal rod was heated and then applied to the carved shell. The intense heat resulted in thermal expansion, causing the shell to crack. A diviner would then interpret the cracked fragments. This is the earliest form of divination in China.”
Bāo didn't understand. How could he be so successful and live here? He could be making large sums of money. He questioned Master Zhao, “You are a famous archaeologist, yet you live here in the factory district with homeless men as your neighbors. I don't understand.”
“Things are not always as they seem, student Bāo. Remember simplicity, patience, and compassion”.
Bāo quickly answered, “The book of Tao’s three pillars.”
“Correct, student Bāo. They are more than words on paper.” Master Zhao replaced the photo in the book and handed it to Bāo. “It's getting late. Please return the book to the shelf and go to bed.”