Notes from Rain Village

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[TN Note: Goes sometime before Extras 5 and 6 (The 2016 & 2017 New Years Special) but definitely after “Ten Years Later”]

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Fatty came here to see me and brought thirty-four CDs and some smokes. When I told him I had quit, he said that was good and then we all started smoking. Fatty is returning to the city tomorrow, so I’ll ask him to bring you a letter.

In fact, nothing has happened during this period of time. The only new thing is that I learned a few days ago that there’s a strange fish in the waterfall. The local people have a special way of fishing that’s called “waterfall fishing”. You have to wear a raincoat and stand under the waterfall. The old man said that the fish below don’t have any ears, so they can’t hear the roar of the water.

The old man always speaks to me in Fujian-accented Mandarin. He’s been my chat buddy recently, so my accent is already starting to sound very Fujian. Next time you come, you can hear me pronounce your names.

Life in the village is actually more difficult than I thought. The humidity is a big problem, the climate is changing, and the water level is falling. There isn’t as much water flowing down from the waterfalls as there used to be. The old people in the village are afraid that the rain will stop. They keep saying that if that happens, something will happen in the village. The young people don’t care and think it’s better if it stops. But there aren’t many young people left in the village.

There are several tulou (1) in the village, so tourists occasionally come to this place. I bought several rooms in them and rent them out to these scattered guests. Fatty told me that Fujian is full of many valleys. He’s traveled all over the surrounding mountains and saw tulou hidden in many of the valleys. Walking in the mountains here is like opening a clam shell. You never know when you’ll see a pearl.

I guess he’s implying that I’m living in a pearl right now.

His vocabulary has increased, and his speech seems to make more sense now that he’s getting older.

I made a lot of pork chops, so they’re ready to eat. I asked Fatty to bring some back with him. Remember to ask him for them; otherwise, he’ll definitely eat them all himself. There aren’t many pigs here, so these pork chops taste different every year.

I heard that the fog there is quite heavy. If business isn’t too busy, come by and see me more often.

—Wu Xie

PS: Bring more beer when you come next time.

<A Day in the Life of Xie Yuchen> <Table of Contents><817 Special: Barbell Laughter>

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TN Notes:

(1) Traditional Hakka communal residence in Fujian, typically a large multi-story circular structure built around a central shrine. Little more info here. The Hakka are Han Chinese people whose ancestral homes are chiefly in the Hakka-speaking provincial areas of Guangdong, Fujian, Jiangxi, Guangxi, Sichuan, Hunan, Zhejiang, Hainan and Guizhou. More info here.