Chapter Twenty-One: The Bold Feast on Meat

Later, some clever people began to take action. They slowly hauled the materials from the earthquake shelters back to their homes. Seeing that neither the neighborhood committee nor the street office made any move, they started to build simple sheds next to their houses. They would pause, observe the authorities' reaction, and, finding there was none, would strengthen and enlarge the sheds a bit more, then observe again. Step by step, they tested the government’s attitude—turning a blind eye, pretending not to see.

Thus, the trend of constructing extensions in one's own yard or beside the house began. Everyone followed suit, dismantling the earthquake shelters until not even a single nail remained. All the materials were carried off by nearby residents—turned into little houses or kitchens. Of course, not every family got something; those who acted first received the most, those who were slower got less, and the laggards got nothing at all.

In later years, Hong Tao’s family belonged to the group that got nothing. The main reason was that Hong Tao’s father had no such intentions; even if he did, he wouldn’t haul those materials home. He always believed that these belonged to the state, and taking them for personal use was stealing.

Now, Hong Tao no longer needed to test the government’s reaction step by step. With his bold grandfather taking charge, the two of them quickly reached an understanding and began blatantly taking advantage of public resources—cartloads of red bricks were hauled back to his grandmother’s house and stacked outside the yard. Large wooden beams came too, along with ready-made doors, windows, tarps, rainproof sheets, and even old nails. The neighbors looked on, wide-eyed and speechless.

“Brother Hu, what are you planning to do? Are you rebuilding your house?” Finally, an old neighbor in the yard couldn’t help but ask about grandfather’s intentions.

“My son Shizhong has been living in the military compound, hasn’t he? I’m planning to have him move back and build him a house,” grandfather replied with a hearty smile, dusting off his hands.

“Where did you get all these old bricks and wood, brother? Tell me your secret. I want to build a little kitchen too—could you spare me a bit? I’ll pay for whatever it’s worth, I don’t need much…” Grandpa Zhang from next door sidled up and whispered his request. Among everyone in the yard, grandfather and Grandpa Zhang were the closest, often sharing a drink together.

“No need for my grandfather to spare you anything. Just go to Ditan Park and haul some yourself—there’s plenty there, and we took ours from the earthquake shelters,” Hong Tao blurted out before his grandfather could answer, revealing the secret.

“Earthquake shelters!… The office doesn’t care?!” Grandpa Zhang looked at grandfather in astonishment.

“If you want lamb, you can’t be afraid of the smell! Shunzi’s father, I can’t guarantee anything for you. My two boys have been helping me all day. If the authorities say we can’t use it, then we won’t—it’s just some volunteer labor for the state. What can they do to me? Shizhong, get on the tricycle and bring Shiming back from Ditan. I think we’ve hauled enough—one last trip, and then I’ll take you all for a bath!” Grandfather tossed his towel over his shoulder, speaking with great bravado as he instructed his younger son to pedal off.

There are no secrets in this world. Grandfather’s bustling activity had already caught the attention of watchful eyes. There was no need to ask questions; Ditan Park was not far away—a few steps following the tricycle revealed the source of all those building materials. Many others started plotting as well. The bold couldn’t even wait until morning. Those with sons brought their sons; those without, their daughters or wives. They set out in the night: tricycles, carts, even baby strollers, all pressed into service, moving back and forth like ants relocating their nest between Ditan Park and their homes.

The next morning, stepping outside, everyone was surprised to find the once spacious and neat alley now littered with piles of bricks and wood scattered here and there. The street office might not know about such commotion, but the revolutionary committee certainly did. When the hesitant residents saw the committee’s directors and members ignoring the mysterious building materials, they understood immediately.

So, a second wave of dismantling the earthquake shelters swept through Ditan. Since this was now in broad daylight, the crowds were even larger and soon attracted nearby residents. By the afternoon, the entire park had become a construction site. Every shelter was demolished, and vehicles loaded with materials came and went from all four gates. If you only heard the news by then and rushed over to get materials, you’d find nothing left to take. Don’t even think about undamaged bricks or beams—if you managed to scavenge a cartful of broken bricks, you could count yourself lucky.

“Bingrui, look at what they’ve brought back, then look at what we managed to get—not even a half-broken brick or a bent beam. If a brick wasn’t perfectly flat, I wouldn’t take it; if the wood wasn’t prime, I didn’t even glance at it. You did better than me—you have a good son. Look at my two, one can’t even fart after three kicks, the other eats and drinks but never works. In the future, they’ll have to rely on you as their brother-in-law!”

When Hong Tao’s parents returned from work and saw the alley, now half its original width, they hesitated for a long time. Only when they spotted grandfather standing with his hands behind his back and a teapot in hand did they dare venture in, afraid they’d come to the wrong house. Grandfather hadn’t drunk any wine that day, standing at the gate, teapot in hand, basking in the admiration of all the neighbors.

His piles of red bricks were of the best quality, the wood most orderly. Thanks to grandfather’s initiative, the neighbors benefited from the first wave of this demolition boom. For better or worse, every family got some materials, all thanks to grandfather’s leadership. They had to thank him in person. Grandfather, infamous for fiercely defending his own, was probably enjoying such open praise and adulation from the neighbors for the first time. Every muscle in his body smiled, and he must have gone to bed that night still grinning.

A head start leads to every step ahead. With advance planning, Hong Tao’s family acted faster than the rest. The next day happened to be Sunday. Early in the morning, his uncle arrived with seven or eight colleagues from the housing bureau, not empty-handed but bringing tools and two Dongfeng 581 tricycle trucks loaded with sand, lime, mortar, and other essential building materials. With grandfather’s command, his son-in-law had to give it his all. As for Hong Tao’s family’s house, it was just a side project.

Professionals are professionals. What seemed complex to others, they handled with ease. They picked an open space at the alley’s entrance, mixed sand, mortar, and chopped hemp according to the right proportions, and had two people kneading the mud. The rest split into two groups, digging foundations in front of Hong Tao’s house and beside his grandmother’s. His father, grandfather, elder and younger uncles all served as semi-skilled labor, helping with the heavy work that required no expertise. His mother, grandmother, aunts, and eldest aunt set up a shed outside the yard to prepare lunch.

“Xiao Tao, why must you make two holes in the wall? What are they for?” Hong Tao, holding two floor plans he had drawn, acted as on-site engineer with his uncle. At first, his uncle ignored his nephew, but after a few sharp words from grandfather, he had no choice but to follow Hong Tao’s instructions. In fact, Hong Tao’s only requirement was to leave a small hole about an inch in diameter half a meter above the ground in the wall, and another hole twenty centimeters above the ground.

“I have my reasons. I’ll tell you later!” Hong Tao kept his real purpose to himself.

“Master Jin, looks like he’s planning to install central heating. The upper hole’s for the hot water pipe, the lower for the return pipe. Am I right, young man?” One of his uncle’s plumbing colleagues, a pro, saw through Hong Tao’s secret at a glance.

“Install heating! Then you need a boiler too? That’s nonsense! No way—I’m talking to Dad. Xiao Tao, go play; you’re just a kid, don’t meddle in house building!” His uncle’s eyes bulged at the suggestion. He was a Manchu, with a temper as quick as grandfather’s; if Hong Tao had been his son, he’d have smacked him by now.

“Tell Grandpa what the holes are for, don’t be afraid of your uncle—if he bullies you, I’ll deal with him!” Uncle, holding the blueprints, muttered to grandfather, who was helping dig, and soon brought him over.

“They’re for heating pipes,” Hong Tao confessed.

“Good boy, you really care for Grandpa. But we can’t afford a boiler… Never mind, Feng Rong’s father, just leave the holes; at worst, we’ll block them up later. No big deal,” grandfather said with a grin, not wanting to dampen his grandson’s enthusiasm and smoothing things over.

“Dad, you can’t spoil the child like that. If you leave those holes, we can’t plaster the walls properly. Block them later, and there’ll be two black spots on the white walls—how ugly!” His uncle objected. He didn’t visit often and didn’t realize how much his father-in-law indulged the children, still hoping to offer some honest advice.

“If I want black spots, I’ll have them! Every time I see them, I’ll drink an extra cup. Will you build it or not? If not, I’ll find someone else!” Grandfather showed no mercy, turning on his son-in-law without hesitation.

“Dad… that’s not what I meant… Fine, fine, as you wish, we’ll leave two black spots…” Uncle nearly coughed up blood from frustration, but this was his father-in-law—he couldn’t argue. A hot temper met an even hotter one, and he could only swallow his anger.