To Live

After Youqing’s death, Fugui thinks that Jiazhen will certainly die, for she “didn’t have any meat left on her bones. Picking her up was like lifting a piece of firewood” (163). The team leader summons a town doctor, who gives her less than a month to live. That night Fugui goes outside and cries, saying:

Time really flies—it seemed like ever since Jiazhen and I were married we’d been through nothing but hard times. And now, in the blink of an eye, it was time for her to leave me. I decided that just crying and feeling upset was no use. When it came to times like these, a man had to be practical. I decided to make sure Jiazhen would have a decent burial (165).

Fugui borrows what little money he can from his fellow villagers and has a wooden casket built for Jiazhen. Surprisingly, after twenty days of being near death, Jiazhen sits up in bed and has an appetite again.

Almost immediately after Jiazhen gets better, Fugui falls ill and becomes bedridden beside his wife. This makes things especially hard for Fengxia, who now has to take care of both parents on top of working in the fields all day to earn work points.