stood by the door. Their
gazes expressed shock in different degrees, and their
reaction made Ningzhu feel extremely awkward.
‘Our wall clock is broken,’ she explained haltingly.
‘Papa Qi, you have a wristwatch, don’t you?’
Papa Qi laughed silently, and glanced at his wrist.
‘Nine o’clock. I should be leaving,’ he said and stood
up. He seemed a bit flustered, and ended up hitting the
coffee table with his knee, then almost sweeping a cup to
the floor with his arm. After this momentary confusion
he gave the cup to Meng, grimaced in embarrassment at
the couple, and said, ‘I should go. You’ll be wanting to get
to bed soon.’
‘There’s no hurry. Why don’t you stay a while longer?’
An unmistakable look of shame appeared on Ningzhu’s
face and she blocked the door as she spoke. ‘Don’t misunderstand
me. The wall clock really is broken; it has
been for weeks. I told Meng to have it fixed, but he
doesn’t want to go to the repair shop and keeps putting it
off. You know how lazy he is.’
‘I should go. It’s after nine – I really should go,’ Papa Qi
said. ‘I have a lot to do tomorrow anyway. We’ve been so
busy at the office recently.’
‘We just don’t have any way to tell the time at home
now. I left my own watch at my aunt’s,’ Ningzhu felt
compelled to keep explaining, ‘and Meng can never find
his. You’d really have to look hard to find someone as
forgetful as he is. We’ve bought so many watches but he
just keeps losing them, one after the other!’
Papa Qi had reached the door by now. All of a sudden
he turned back and told Meng, ‘Go and get your wall
clock and give it to me.’
‘Sorry?’ Meng hadn’t caught on right away.
‘It’s broken, isn’t it?’ said Papa Qi. ‘My brother knows
how to repair clocks. That way you won’t have to take it to
the shop. Besides overcharging you for the repair, they’ll
probably take out the good parts and put broken ones
back. Let me handle it. That way you won’t have to pay
a penny, and I guarantee it’ll run for two years without
breaking.’
‘You don’t have to do that,’ Meng glanced up to where
the clock hung on the wall. He said, ‘We really shouldn’t
bother you with all our little problems. Maybe it’s not
broken at all. Maybe I just bought a dud battery.’
‘What’s the big deal between friends?’ Papa Qi
answered. ‘Go and take it down and give it to me.’
Meng looked at Ningzhu, but she avoided his eyes and
sighed ambiguously. He took a chair, walked around her
and climbed up to take the clock off the wall.
That was how it came about that Papa Qi left the
Mengs’ that day carrying their wall clock. Outside it was
already completely dark and there were no street lights.
The Mengs stood outside the door to see him off, but all
they could make out was the dim glow of Papa Qi’s white
shirt. Apparently, he had placed the clock in his bicycle’s
wire basket as they could hear it rattling. He straddled his
bike and then they heard him say in the darkness, ‘Till
Saturday then. On Saturday I’ll come again. I’ll bring the
clock.’
On any given day, how many trains are there in the
world speeding along the railway tracks? And on every
train, how many people become companionable simply
because they happen to be sitting next to one another in
a crowded carriage? But then again, how many of these
chance acquaintances end up as actual friends? Travel
acquaintances are quickly made and equally swiftly
forgotten; when the train enters the station there may
not be time for farewells, and once you’ve been off the
train for an hour you might even have forgotten what
your companion looked like. Meng had never imagined
that a trip lasting a mere three hours would yield an
unforgettable friendship. No, you don’t expect some
guy making small talk on a train to turn into a real
friend.
But that was just the kind of friend Papa Qi was. Meng
could no longer remember clearly what topics they had
touched
gazes expressed shock in different degrees, and their
reaction made Ningzhu feel extremely awkward.
‘Our wall clock is broken,’ she explained haltingly.
‘Papa Qi, you have a wristwatch, don’t you?’
Papa Qi laughed silently, and glanced at his wrist.
‘Nine o’clock. I should be leaving,’ he said and stood
up. He seemed a bit flustered, and ended up hitting the
coffee table with his knee, then almost sweeping a cup to
the floor with his arm. After this momentary confusion
he gave the cup to Meng, grimaced in embarrassment at
the couple, and said, ‘I should go. You’ll be wanting to get
to bed soon.’
‘There’s no hurry. Why don’t you stay a while longer?’
An unmistakable look of shame appeared on Ningzhu’s
face and she blocked the door as she spoke. ‘Don’t misunderstand
me. The wall clock really is broken; it has
been for weeks. I told Meng to have it fixed, but he
doesn’t want to go to the repair shop and keeps putting it
off. You know how lazy he is.’
‘I should go. It’s after nine – I really should go,’ Papa Qi
said. ‘I have a lot to do tomorrow anyway. We’ve been so
busy at the office recently.’
‘We just don’t have any way to tell the time at home
now. I left my own watch at my aunt’s,’ Ningzhu felt
compelled to keep explaining, ‘and Meng can never find
his. You’d really have to look hard to find someone as
forgetful as he is. We’ve bought so many watches but he
just keeps losing them, one after the other!’
Papa Qi had reached the door by now. All of a sudden
he turned back and told Meng, ‘Go and get your wall
clock and give it to me.’
‘Sorry?’ Meng hadn’t caught on right away.
‘It’s broken, isn’t it?’ said Papa Qi. ‘My brother knows
how to repair clocks. That way you won’t have to take it to
the shop. Besides overcharging you for the repair, they’ll
probably take out the good parts and put broken ones
back. Let me handle it. That way you won’t have to pay
a penny, and I guarantee it’ll run for two years without
breaking.’
‘You don’t have to do that,’ Meng glanced up to where
the clock hung on the wall. He said, ‘We really shouldn’t
bother you with all our little problems. Maybe it’s not
broken at all. Maybe I just bought a dud battery.’
‘What’s the big deal between friends?’ Papa Qi
answered. ‘Go and take it down and give it to me.’
Meng looked at Ningzhu, but she avoided his eyes and
sighed ambiguously. He took a chair, walked around her
and climbed up to take the clock off the wall.
That was how it came about that Papa Qi left the
Mengs’ that day carrying their wall clock. Outside it was
already completely dark and there were no street lights.
The Mengs stood outside the door to see him off, but all
they could make out was the dim glow of Papa Qi’s white
shirt. Apparently, he had placed the clock in his bicycle’s
wire basket as they could hear it rattling. He straddled his
bike and then they heard him say in the darkness, ‘Till
Saturday then. On Saturday I’ll come again. I’ll bring the
clock.’
On any given day, how many trains are there in the
world speeding along the railway tracks? And on every
train, how many people become companionable simply
because they happen to be sitting next to one another in
a crowded carriage? But then again, how many of these
chance acquaintances end up as actual friends? Travel
acquaintances are quickly made and equally swiftly
forgotten; when the train enters the station there may
not be time for farewells, and once you’ve been off the
train for an hour you might even have forgotten what
your companion looked like. Meng had never imagined
that a trip lasting a mere three hours would yield an
unforgettable friendship. No, you don’t expect some
guy making small talk on a train to turn into a real
friend.
But that was just the kind of friend Papa Qi was. Meng
could no longer remember clearly what topics they had
touched
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