女人和土匪（英譯本）：地主婆怎能算人？

 

 

《女人與土匪》內容簡介：

 

這是一部敘說一位真正的正直的革命家遭遇太多的不幸和屈辱的作品；

一部敘說解放初期國民黨起義將領及其家庭的作品；

-部描寫解放初期土匪、地主、地主婆及其子女、妓女、革命隊伍中的卑劣小人、窮苦人……為生存、為權利、為命運而奮爭的作品；

一部用兒童的目光，注視新中國、新政權、幸福與光明，暴力與血腥的作品；

一部用耶穌基督的獻身精神，宣揚信仰、仁愛、無私奉獻的作品；

一部張揚人性、呼喚權利、期望法製、宣揚真愛、鞭撻暴力、揭露醜惡……奉獻給新世紀人類的作品！

 

 

W0men and Bandits

女人和土匪  （英譯本）

Zongming Zhang

張宗銘 著

Translated by Tangjin Xiao

肖唐金 譯

 

 

Chapter 16

 

Two young public security workers sat at a table in the grand sitting-room. One was checking the residence registration book, the other was staring at the figure of Jesus on the cross while sipping a top-quality tea, asking Tang Weiqi, “Who is this man?”

“Jesus.”

“Where is he from?”

“He is our father in the Kingdom of Heaven. To save human beings, he sacrificed himself.”

At this time, Dai Min entered the sitting-room with her sons. The man checking the residence registration book took a glance at the figure, and met the question-asking man’s gaze. They both showed a sign of contempt.

“Nonsense!” The man with the residence registration book uttered. He turned around and found Dai Min trembling there. He did not ask questions at once but chewed the tea leaves in his mouth. He seemed to know what Dai had in her mind.

Dai was scared at their gaze, wondering if they knew her secret of having contacts with the bandit head. She was aware that such contacts could bring fatal punishment to her. With this thought she trembled all over.

Tang Weiqi was annoyed with Dai’s indecent acts, wondering why she could not calm herself down before the others asked her questions.

Tang was sympathetic with Dai, for her husband died in a miserable way, and her possessions were confiscated and occupied by the poor farmers in her village. Dai had to live in a hut with her sons later, which was a thatched mud house unsuitable for living. They lived on wild plants and had to beg. It was because of their poverty and misery that they had to stay in the Zhang’s house.

Tang looked at Dai in a sympathetic way, saying, “Dear sister-in-law, be seated! Please talk with the public security workers.”

Dai would like to sit down, but she dared not. She had been regarding herself as a low-status woman ever since her birth. Such a sense got stronger when she was condemned as a landlady. Dai was uncertain about what would happen to her and her sons, asking, “Dear comrades, I…”

Unexpectedly the man with the residence registration book pounded the table with his fists, yelling, “Who are your comrades? Don’t play games before us. Is ‘comrade’ a term that you’re entitled to? How could you address us in such an intimate way? Shit!”

Dai trembled more at this. Zhang Yong dragged his mom, and kept calling her. Zhang Zhong also helped his mom stand up. Thus, Dai did not fall down.

The man with the residence registration book said, “Don’t play tricks with us! Stand there and answer our questions!” Finding Dai calm, he went on, “Have you paid all the compensations of land exploitations to the farmers? If not, you’ll have to be sent back to the village, regardless of where you are staying now. Don’t think you can escape from that. Shit!”

“I…” Dai dared not call the two men “comrades”, “There is nothing in my house. All the things have been taken away by the Farmers’ Association. We came here by begging.”

“Is it true?”

“Yes. I am penniless, I swear.”

“Then we’ll send you back to the village, where you have to face the farmers by yourself.”

Dai was scared at this, falling down and kneeling with her sons before the two men. Her sons’ heads had not yet touched the ground in making a kowtow. Then, one of the men pounded the table fiercely, yelling, “Stand up! Who asks you to kneel down? Do you think we are Kuomintang officers or landlords?”

Dai had to stand up with her sons quickly.

The man glared at Dai, declaring, “Let me tell you that we as Communists must forbid you as landlords, landladies and reactionaries to act in a bad way. Otherwise, we’ll teach you a lesson. Tell me why your land title deed has the name of ‘Zhang Jitao’ on it. Who is Zhang Jitao? Your husband is a bad landlord, and you should know your own role.”

Dai knew that the man was hinting her to say something bad against Zhang Jitao. She could not do that to her benefactor.

The man went on impolitely, “What do you have to do with Zhang Jitao?”

Dai had to murmur, “My cousin’s father.”

“Which cousin? Tell us!”

“Zhang Yunxuan.”

The man glanced at Tang Weiqi, and turned to Dai, saying, “Then why are you frightened? The real landlord should be Zhang Yunxuan, right?”

Tang was worried at this. Landlords were punished during these days. They had to pay compensations endlessly to the pestering farmers, and even had to be dragged all the way from street to street or from village to village as punishment. Capitalists were a little better-off than landlords. They stayed in cities and would not be punished if they claimed to support the new government and paid taxes according to law.

Zhang Yunxuan made great contributions to the Communists by leading his army against the Kuomintang leadership and joined the PLA. He was now Director of the Provincial Commerce Chamber. Tang thought it bad for her husband to become a landlord. Why should he be identified as a landlord? He even did not know where the land was, and had not met any tenant. Tang thought.

Tang gave a gentle pat on her son’s back. She knew her son was frightened at being known as a landlord’s son. She remarked:

“I think you must have made a mistake. It’s not fun to do things this way.” She turned to Dai, remarking, “I have little knowledge of what has happened here before, but I remember my father-in-law granted the land title deed to your family in public before he passed away. Many people witnessed that.”

Dai was about to murmur something when that man said to Tang, “It’s the Zhang’s matter. Maybe you’re not familiar with it. I saw Director Zhang in the courtyard just now. I’ll check that with him. Besides, there is a man named Yang Yongchun in your residence registration book. We’ll check the matter with him as well. Ask him to come over.”

Madame Wang left for the back sitting-room of the house. Tang’s son was still holding her arms tightly with his little hands. For the first time she felt her heart beat quickly as if it had been cut by a sharp knife. She covered her chest, and stared at Jesus on the cross. She got calm again in a moment.

Zhang Yan was worried about the addressing of landlord. He was aware that his mom got so frightened as well. At school he learned that landlords were bad men and should be severely punished. They should even be killed. If his daddy were a landlord, then his mom would be a landlady, and he would be the son of a landlord and a landlady. If so, he would be insulted and punished at school.

Zhang Yan glanced at his cousins, who seemed to be begging him for mercy: Please don’t make us go back to the village, dear cousin!

Zhang Yan recalled last year’s Christmas Eve. He seemed to see his cousins and aunt trembling in the cold wind again. They were his close relatives. How could he help them? He wondered.