Chairman Mao Would Not Be Amused – Fiction From Today by Howard Goldblatt (Editor)

disgusting Shu Nong.
     
* * *
     
    I saw Shu Nong out walking one cold early-winter day. He was dragging his schoolbag behind him; with his long, spiky hair, he looked like a porcupine. He was kicking dead leaves on his way home. Whenever there was some kind of commotion, he headed toward it, stood on the perimeter for a moment to see what was going on, then walked off. Once it became clear that there was nothing much to see, he was gone. Hardly anything captured his interest.
    Shu Nong was being chased down the street, cradling an air rifle. His pursuer was the man who shot sparrows. "Grab him!" he shouted. "He stole my rifle!" The weapon was nearly as tall as Shu Nong, who finally got tangled up in it and fell in a heap in front of the stone bridge, where he lay rubbing the wooden stock for a moment while he caught his breath; then he tossed the rifle aside and crossed the bridge.
    "Don't chase him," someone at the bridgehead teahouse said. "That boy's not all there."
    If you knew Shu Nong, you'd realize how wide of the mark this comment was. Shu Nong was all there, all right, and if you have ever been to Fragrant Cedar Street, you know that this is the story of a very clever boy.
    Shu Nong noticed a pair of new white sneakers, just like Shu Gong's, on his bed next to his pillow. He picked them up and examined them from every angle.
    "Try them on." His father was standing behind them.
    This was another major occurrence in Shu Nong's fourteenth year: he had his own white sneakers. "Are these for me?" Shu Nong turned around.
    "They're yours. Like them?" Old Shu sat on Shu Nong's bed and inspected the sheet.
    "I didn't wet it."
    "That's good."
    Shu Nong laced up his shoes almost hesitantly, as a result of lingering doubts. He kept glancing over at his father. Shu Nong never dreamed that his father would actually buy him a pair of shoes like this. Normally he wore Shu Gong's hand-me-downs.
    "Can I wear them now?" Shu Nong asked.
    "You can wear them anytime you like," Old Shu said.
    "New Year's is still a long way off," Shu Nong said.
    "Then hold off till New Year's," Old Shu replied.
    "But that means I have to wait a long time," Shu Nong said.
    "Then wear them now." A note of irritation crept into Old Shu's voice. "So wear them now." He began pacing the floor.
    The shoes made Shu Nong spry and light on his feet. After bounding around the room, he turned to run outside, but his father stopped him with a shout: "Don't be in such a hurry to go outside. You have to do something for me first."
    Shu Nong froze, his mouth snapping open fearfully. "I didn't wet the bed!" he screamed.
    Old Shu said, "This isn't about bed-wetting. Come over here." Shu Nong grabbed the doorframe, lowered his head, and stayed put as he dimly sensed that the new shoes were a sort of bait. Old Shu raised his voice: "Come over here, you little bastard!" Shu Nong walked over to his father, who grabbed his hand and squeezed it. "I'll be sleeping in your room at night," Old Shu said.
    "Why? Did you and Mother have a fight?"
    "No. And what I mean is, sometimes. Like tonight."
    "That's OK with me. In my bed?"
    "No, I'll sleep on the floor."
    "Why do that when there's a bed?"
    "Never mind. I'll strap you to the bed with a blindfold over your eyes and cotton in your ears. We'll see how you do."
    "Are we going to play hide-and-seek?"
    "Right, hide-and-seek."
    Shu Nong took a good look at his father, holding his tongue as he rubbed the tops of his new sneakers. Then he said, "I know what you're going to do. The upstairs window has been sealed."
    "All you have to worry about is getting some sleep. And don't make a sound, understand?"
    "I understand. You can't climb in with the window sealed."
    "If your mother knocks at the door, just say you're in bed. And not another word more. The same goes for anyone else who knocks at the door. Understand?"
    "I understand. But why not do it in the slatted trunk. Isn't it big enough for you two?"
    "Don't tell a soul about any of