One
In 1937, Zhang Ailing studied at St. Mary's Girls' School for several years, and was about to graduate soon, so it was time to consider going to college.
At this point, she clashed with her stepmother, Sun Yongbo.
Zhang Ailing did not greet her stepmother and went to live with her mother Huang Yifan for one night, and Sun Yongfan was furious and slapped Zhang Ailing. Zhang Ailing wanted to fight back, and before she could return it, Sun Yongfan screamed and ran upstairs, shouting, "She beat me, she dared to hit me." ”
Zhang Ailing's father, Zhang Ting, rushed downstairs in anger, grabbed Zhang Ailing, punched and kicked, and then locked Zhang Ailing up, and after half a year, Zhang Ailing was sick and did not let go.
Why is the father so vicious? Later, Zhang Ailing said that her father wrote in the divorce agreement with her mother that he wanted to provide her with school, but her father was afraid that she would spend money on staying in the west, so he took advantage of this family storm to lock her up, so there was no need to raise funds for her to stay in the country.
In the 1930s, the cost of staying in the ocean was staggering. Not to mention staying in the West, Zhang Ailing's St. Mary's Girls' School when she was in middle school, a year of tuition and miscellaneous expenses, living expenses combined, about two or three hundred yuan, worth an ordinary worker's two or three years' wages.
Ordinary people's children, going to college, are not dare to think.
But Zhang Ailing is not a child of ordinary people.
Her grandfather Zhang Peilun was a famous courtier at the end of the Qing Dynasty, her great-grandfather Li Hongzhang was even more famous, and the dowry of her grandmother Li Jujun was enough for her family to eat for two or three lifetimes.
However, the grandmother's dowry was so rich that Zhang Ailing could not stop Zhang Ailing's father who spent money throwing money, smoking a big cigarette, visiting the kiln, marrying his aunt's wife, throwing money every day, the field property was getting smaller and smaller every day, and finally he fell into no room to live in, so he had to borrow a room from the son of the eldest brother who hardly came and went.
When Zhang Ailing was locked up by her father, her father's economic situation was quite OK, the family's pomp and circumstance could still be supported, still living in bungalows, making slaves call concubines, but the inside came up with a deficit day by day, and she barely maintained herself by selling houses and selling land.
For his daughter to go to yangyang to go to college, Zhang Tingzhong's heart is afraid.
If he were to squeeze his daughter's tuition, his big cigarette would not be happy. His empty spiritual world is all supported by big smoke, and smoking big cigarettes is not happy, for him, what is the difference between death and death?
He and his daughter, there must be one person who is not happy, and this selfish father has chosen to make his daughter unhappy.
Two
Zhang Ailing was imprisoned by her father for half a year, and with the help of the maid He Gan, she escaped and fled to her mother, Huang Yifan.
Huang Yifan complained about his daughter's arrival.
Unlike her husband, who lay on the bed all day and smoked a cigarette, Huang Yifan is a modern woman who has traveled to Asia, Africa and Europe all her life, and has traveled through most of the world with a pair of enlarged little feet, with countless sexual encounters and countless lovers.
But like her ex-husband Zhang Tingzhong, she also loves herself more than her children, and sacrificing her freedom to complete her children does not take it for granted, but believes that her children drag her down.
For Huang Yifan, the cost of sending her daughter to stay in the ocean is also a headache.
Huang Yifan is the granddaughter of Huang Yisheng, the admiral of Jiangnan, Huang Yisheng only has one son, Huang Zongyan died early, leaving only a pair of widowed children, this widowed daughter is Huang Yifan. Huang Yifan is a married woman, the Huang family's field house does not have her share, antique calligraphy and painting, she still has a lot of points, maintain personal life and children's education is no problem.
But if she squeezes a share of her possessions to pay for her children's education, her personal life will be affected. At that time, because of all kinds of profligacy, her property had been greatly reduced, and she did not have much money on hand.
She wanted to marry Zhang Ailing and get rid of this burden. Zhang Ailing is a young girl, there is no break, Chinese men have always had a virgin complex, the market should be OK.
In the end, she still chose to support her daughter to study abroad, and at the high price, she asked a teacher to make up for her daughter.
However, let's imagine Zhang Ailing - she escaped from her selfish father's house and defected to her mother, her mother hated her burdens and wanted to get rid of her burdens by marrying her out, and her mother thought that the only capital she could marry out was the virgin complex that she could cater to men.
In this world, even if there is a person who really loves her.
Although she felt that her mother's evaluation was a little offensive to her, she did not dare to protest, if her mother was annoyed, no matter where she went?
In her mother's eyes, Zhang Ailing, who looked plain and clumsy, had surprisingly good English results, won the first place in the Far East Examination of the University of London, and if it were not for the outbreak of war in Europe, she could follow in the footsteps of her mother and aunt to study at the University of London.
Three
The outbreak of war in Europe shattered Zhang Ailing's dream of studying abroad in Europe, and she had to take the test transcript of the University of London to the University of Hong Kong.
Zhang Ailing's life during her studies at the University of Hong Kong can refer to her novel "Little Reunion", which is called a novel, which is actually a reproduction of Zhang Ailing's mental journey.
Jiu Li in "Little Reunion" is based on Zhang Ailing herself.
Hong Kong university students come from the mainland, Hong Kong and Macao, and Nanyang, with the children of the Nanyang rubber king, the niece of Wang Jingwei, the niece of Sir He Dong, and some mixed races.
Jiuli barely managed to survive on scholarships, and in this school where students were either rich or expensive, she could not afford to buy a fountain pen and had to carry an ink bottle to and from class every day.
What is even more embarrassing to JiuLi is that other classmates often try to go home without taking holidays, only she, who does not go back after vacation, still lives in the school dormitory, she has fallen out with her father, her mother is wandering abroad, she has nowhere to go, and another reason is to save travel expenses.
But the school dormitory can't be open for her alone, and the cafeteria can't be for her alone.
The grandmother who managed the dormitory was very unhappy, so she had to take her to the monastery where the grandmothers lived, and let her teach two English classes at the monastery primary school, providing her with free accommodation, which was already a big favor for her because of her good English.
My mother came to see her at the monastery and learned during her speech that she was staying at the most expensive Repulse Bay Hotel in Hong Kong.
Although Mamma is silent, Jiu Li still feels "strangely embarrassed", her mother lives in the most expensive hotel in Hong Kong, and her daughter eats in the convent, Mamma will definitely think that she is "pretending to be poor".
However, when her mother returned to Hong Kong, she gave Jiuli another place to go outside the monastery, and she went to the Repulse Bay Hotel every day to visit her mother and enjoy a little thin maternal love.
Four
On this day, when Jiuli was having breakfast at the monastery, she received a parcel, long in the shape of a dictionary, but longer than a dictionary. She flipped through the parcel and saw from the wear and tear that it was a banknote, and she couldn't help but be shocked, who sent such a large amount of money to her?
Taking advantage of the fact that there was no one in the restaurant, Jiu Li opened the parcel and looked at it, which turned out to be sent to her by Mr. Anju Zhuzhusi, a professor at the University of Hong Kong. Professor Anzhus heard that Jiuli did not apply for a scholarship, afraid that she could not afford to go to school, and gave Jiuli a small scholarship at her own expense. He comforted Jiuli that as long as she maintained such results, she would definitely get a scholarship next year.
Eight hundred yuan is not a small amount of money, Hu Lancheng is an editor in the Hong Kong newspaper, the monthly salary is only seventy yuan, eight hundred yuan is almost his annual income, he wants to use this eight hundred yuan to support the family.
Ordinary workers, earning less.
Mr. Anzhus is a professor with a high income, and it is not easy to come up with this eight hundred yuan. Some of the money he sent to Jiu Li was old five-yuan and one-dollar bills, and it was known that almost all the banknotes under his hand were collected.
Jiu Li's mood was so excited that she could not calm down for a long time.
It's not just a sum of money, it's a person's appreciation, understanding, and thoughtfulness towards her.
Jiu Li was reluctant to deposit the money in the bank, and the deposit in the bank was just a number on the passbook, and then brought up, it was the money that others had touched, not the money that Mr. Anzhus personally wrapped up and gave her.
She couldn't wait to rush to the Repulse Bay Hotel, hoping that her mother would share her joy. The mother read Mr. Anzhus's letter and money, suspected that Jiuli had an affair with Mr. Anzhus, and asked Jiuli to return the money.
JiuLi hastened to argue that she and Mr. Anzhus had no contact except for class.
Her mother asked her to put the money on the table and never mention it again.
After Jiu Li went back, she was anxious to get the money, but she felt that it was inappropriate, and put it there, and her heart was anxious. The next afternoon she went to her mother again, and the money was gone, and she no longer mentioned that she should return it to Mr. Anzhus.
On the bus back to Jiuli, Jiuli remembered her mother's friend Nanxi saying that her mother had lost eight hundred yuan yesterday, and her mother used her eyes to warn her friend not to say it again.
Jiu Li suddenly remembered that the eight hundred yuan that her mother lost yesterday was the money that Mr. Anzhus had sent her!
Five
From this day on, the thin, gossamer emotional line that held Jiu Li and her mother was broken.
When Jiuli was a child, her mother left her to study abroad for four years, and she was eight years old when she returned.
The mother missed her childhood in this way.
After returning, the alma mater did not make up for the lack of maternal love for her children, she did not hold her daughter, did not kiss her daughter, held her daughter's hand, and only once, that time Jiuli followed her across the road, people came and went on the road, the mother gritted her teeth, took Jiuli's hand, crossed the road, immediately let go of her hand, and refused to hold it for a while.
Two years later, her mother went abroad again, leaving Jiuli and her brother to her father. Until seven years later, Jiuli, who could not stand her father's tyranny, fled to her mother and lived with her mother.
The mother suspected that Jiuli made the spring bed shake when she got up, affecting her sleep; Jiuli pushed the chair to damage the small carpet she let people weave carefully, and reprimanded Jiuli in front of the guests as a "pig"; Complaining that Jiu Li is dragging her down, he wants to marry her off while Jiu Li is a virgin, suspects that Jiu Li has an affair with Mr. Anzhus, and exchanges his body for money.
All kinds of things, all kinds of things, Jiu Li swallowed.
However, her mother lost the eight hundred yuan that Mr. Anjuzhus had given her on the gambling table, and Jiuli could not bear it.
After returning to Shanghai, Jiuli talked to her aunt about the matter, and her aunt comforted her, saying that her mother had spent a lot of money for her. Meaning, forgive your mother, as this money is worth the money that your mother used to spend on you.
Jiu Li secretly planned to pay back the money her mother had spent on her.
The money that Monsieur Anjos had given her was unique, that it was a warm fire in her heart that could not be offset by the money her mother had previously spent on her.
Six
In "Little Reunion", JiuLi falls in love with Shao Zhiyong (based on Hu Lancheng), talking about her lack of money and her wanting to pay back her mother's money.
Shao Zhiyong thought that she was looking for an excuse to ask him for money, but still quietly took a suitcase of money to her. This is one of the reasons why Shao Zhiyong can catch many women, if he has money and the other party needs money, he will give generously.
At that time, JiuLi's mother was wandering in India and Nanyang and did not return to China.
War raged, prices soared, paper money depreciated day by day, and Jiuli exchanged for two gold bars to collect, hoping to return her mother when she returned.
The mother finally returned and lived with Zhang Ailing and her aunt. One day, she invited Zhang Ailing to her room for afternoon tea, and Zhang Ailing took the opportunity to return the gold bars wrapped in two handkerchiefs to her.
Just like the "bone removal and return to the father, cutting the flesh to return the mother" in Nezha's story, although it is not so terrible, it is also the same determination. It's a hint to mother —from now on, I don't owe you anything.
My mother cried, "Even if I'm just a nice person, you don't have to do this to me." 'Tiger poison doesn't eat' belch. But she still didn't think of the reason why Jiuli was going to pay off her money, thinking that her reputation over the years had hurt Jiuli's heart.
The mother's crying made Jiu Li feel embarrassed, but there was no remorse, and the mother's sadness at this time could not be compared with her sadness that day.
Jiu Li finally saved Mr. Anzhus's money in her heart, and did not use that money to offset her mother's previous investment in her.
However, Jiu Li owed Shao Zhiyong money for this.
She originally thought that she and Shao Zhiyong were your relationship with me and I had you, and it didn't matter if she used Shao Zhiyong's money. Unexpectedly, in Shao Zhiyong's eyes, she was just a passer-by on his emotional path, and he quickly threw himself into the arms of other women.
Jiu Li made a sum of money as a screenwriter and repaid it to Shao Zhiyong, and since then, she and Shao Zhiyong have no longer owed.
She personally cut the emotional line between the two people she had loved and hurt her in her life. Since then, she has been a drifting person in the world.
At that time, she saw that she was bound to die alone.
Seven
Mr. Anzhus is based on Professor Francis, a history teacher at the University of Hong Kong, and Zhang Ailing has a large section of Professor Francs' description in the "Embers of the Embers" that recalls the fall of Hong Kong, from appearance to cause of death, which is comparable to Mr. Anzhus.
Professor Franss, a Chinese-style Englishman who was conscripted during the fall of Hong Kong, was thinking about a problem when he returned to the barracks one day, did not hear the sentry's questions, and was mistakenly shot and killed by the sentry.
He humorously referred to the exercise as "practicing martial arts", often cheerfully saying to the students: "I can't meet you next Monday, children, I'm going to practice martial arts." ”
Zhang Ailing wrote: "I couldn't imagine that this 'practice of martial arts' actually sent his life - a good gentleman, a good person." Human waste..."
▲Professor Frans in the middle and Professor Chen Yinke on the right
The calm language is full of pain.
In "Little Reunion", Jiuli heard the news of Mr. Anzhus's death while washing her socks, and she froze for a while, silently crying.
Like many passers-by in the world, Frans was gradually forgotten after his death, but he was born in Zhang Ailing's heart, and the eight hundred yuan that did not have time to spend it always warmed Zhang Ailing.
The mother's act of losing the eight hundred yuan on the gambling table also deeply stabbed Zhang Ailing, like a straw, crushing the last bit of mother-daughter love.
Many years later, her mother died alone in London, and it is said that Zhang Ailing was so sad when she received her mother's relics that she could not help herself, but this was not necessarily regret, but pain, and the fate of mother and daughter in the first life came to an end.
She and her mother are both alone and drifting in a foreign land, the mother is dead, can still send a little relic to her, she died, to whom will she send the relic in the future?