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This work is Dedicated to: My mother's father, My father's mother, So that history may never forget. This document was created for a directed reading class under Professor Nathaniel Davis of Harvey Mudd College. It is intended to be a compendium of knowledge relating to the history of China (Part I), my family's experiences in China (Part II), and finally my experiences first hand during my Durfee American/Chinese Adventure Scholarship to China (Part III). Part I is included to give the reader some background on China, and the way the Chinese have behaved in history. Part II is an impression of my family history, based entirely on fact. Part III is a copy, verbatim, of the journal I wrote while in China. I hope that the reader will take away from this document some of the understanding of China that I have gained in writing it. I would like to thank the following people for making this work possible: My grandmother Chu-tze for putting me in touch with my past, my mother Wei-Ying for teaching me Chinese, my brother Chris for proof-reading this document, my father for his support, Vivien Zapf for just being there, Chien Marn Muow, Chien Marn Lian, Chien Marn Lee, Siaw Ling, Yee Pau, Jio Goong, Jiew Jiew, Yee Pau, Dah Jiew Goong, Sio Her, Siow Zhu, Zhu Yee Luwan, Sam Tanenbaum, Rebecca Coleman, and of course, Professor Davis and the Durfee Foundation. Note: I will alternate between romanization systems, depending on the preferred spellings that I have become accustomed to. Additionally, all the names of the people not immediately related to me have been altered to protect them. Figure 1 Map of China with Pronunciation Part I: HISTORY Introduction: Western history has always regarded China as an enigma. Contradictory assessments of her accomplishments, constantly conflicting views of her politics, and occasionally outright lack of understanding of her culture has inadvertently allowed a plethora of inconclusive images of China to appear. It is, however, this very confusion which grants China her intrigue, and brings explorers from around the world to her shores, to solve the mystery that is China. China's 4000-year history is the longest continuous written record of any human civilization. Contained within the pages of her history are countless accomplishments that earn China her name, Zhonggua or 'Middle Kingdom'. From gunpowder to the compass, from terraced farming to paper, China is regarded as one of the most advanced scientific and productive agricultural civilizations of ancient times. The technological achievements of Ancient China are rivaled only by her achievements in politics. The Chinese developed a stable government system that allowed the single entity of China to persevere for millennia, far surpassing the 500 years of the Roman Empire. In philosophy and arts too, the Ancient Chinese
were prodigious. The Chinese philosophy of Confucianism contributed
to the social stability that the empire enjoyed. The artisans
produced wares in porcelain and bronze as yet unsurpassed to this
day. We see and hear the exact same performances The Dynasties "Chinese tradition provided an explanation for the dynastic cycle. The failure of the old dynasty was proof that it had lost the support of the gods, what was called the "Mandate of Heaven." The loss of this mandate gave the people what was called the "right to rebel." The new dynasty's ability to establish itself was proof that it had inherited the prized and vital Mandate."2 The Shang Dynasty (1765-1122BC)3, the first to be described in Chinese records, built itself upon the rich soil of the Yellow River in central Shantung. Legend has it that it was a time when the ruler, the Yellow Emperor had a wife who taught the people how to spin silk; that Fu Hsi developed the Chinese written language; and that Yu, drained the floods and opened the waterways. The mythical nature of the era was only recently dispelled with the discovery of the oracle bones of Anyang. The oracle bones of Anyang were created from the shoulder bones of dead oxen. Two prophecies opposite in nature were engraved (the first evidence of script, identifiable as the origin of Chinese writing), one on each half of the bone, and then a heat source was applied to it. The heat cracked the bones, and the cracks were interpreted by their positions relative to the inscriptions to define which of the prophecies would come true. The discovery of thousands of such bones allowed archaeologists to piece together quite an accurate picture of the time. The Shang were adept warriors, and the state was large enough to field armies of three to five thousand men. Highly developed for its time, the Shang were skilled workers of bronze, jade, and weavers of silk, and the remains of Cheng-chou and An-yang are impressive. It is believed, from archaeological evidence, that the separation between ruling class and working class was very great. The peasants would live in Neolithic style pit dwellings, whereas the ruling class would live in fine buildings not all that different from those that existed in modern China. It is probable that this stratification initiated the demise of the first Chinese Dynasty, and its subsequent defeat by the Zhou. The Zhou were able to expand to become much larger than their predecessors in both land and power. In fact, the expansion was so large that direct control over all the Zhou subjects was impossible, leading to the appointment of nobles to operate semi-independent fiefdoms. These fiefdoms operated under strict primogeniture and division of lands among progeny. From this growth emerged the 'Warring States" period, famous for its intrigue and continual battles. The turmoil of the Zhou period also saw the flourishing of science and philosophy. Science allowed for the extensive use of iron and glass. Confucianism was supported by Mencius (c. 372-289 BCE) and Hsun Tzu (c. 298-238 BCE) who elaborated the ideas of Confucius. But it was not philosophy that ended the era of feudal warlords rather the rise in 221 BCE of the first Emperor of All China. Shang Than, a brilliant organizer, was able to break control of the feudal lords and establish the Qin (Ch'in) Dynasty (from which we derive the name China). The Emperor Shih Huang-ti ordered the abolition of feudal rights, created a uniform legal code, a uniform written language, uniform weights and measures, and even uniform wagon axles. He extended the Great Wall of China, connecting the previously built portions until it stretched 1400 miles from the sea to the western mountains. But, he was ruthless with his use of human labor, and burned the books of the scholars; it was these two hates that allowed Liu Pang, a simple soldier to start an uprising that overthrew the dictator. The Han Dynasty was arguably the greatest empire then known in the world. One of the key changes that Liu Pang instituted was the promotion based on merit rather than on feudal rank. It was from here than the class of scholar-officials (mandarins), which made up the top echelons of the bureaucracy, was born. Assigned to the task of governing the merchants, artisans, and laborers, these elite were allowed great freedom in the way their power was exercised. Confucianism fit in perfectly with this new hierarchical state, with its promotion of respect, humility, docility, obedience, submission, and subordination. Mencius expresses the general understanding of the time about the role of 'those who think' versus 'those who toil': "Great men have their proper... Some labor with their minds, and some labor with their strength. Those who labor with their minds govern others; those who labor with their strength are governed by others. Those who are governed by others support them; those who govern others are supported by them..." After the tragic wheel of the dynastic cycle turned, followed almost four hundred years of ferment, where China was divided into Three Kingdoms, during which time six dynasties came and went. It was not until the Sui Dynasty, and more importantly the Tang Dynasty, that order was restored, and China entered another great age of prosperity. The Tang Dynasty was an age of experimentation, freedom and enlightenment. It was a second imperial age, richer and more cosmopolitan than the Han. It saw the successful defense against and conquests of Korea, Vietnam, and Tibet. China expanded in almost every direction and with the expansion came trade. Wood-block printing and foot binding were adopted into regular use, along with Chinese tea. The Tang also saw a flourishing of Buddhism. Chinese pilgrims, notably the famous wanderer Xuan Zang, made their way to India, bringing back with them Buddhist scriptures that in their turn brought about a Buddhist renewal. Massive translation projects were embarked upon, which caused a schism between different translations of the Sanskrit texts. The apex of the Tang Dynasty was the reign of Xuanzong (685-761). The capital of Chang'an supported a population of one million, and allowed artists and poets (such as Li Bai, and Du Fu) to practice their art. The military defenses and organization assembled by the Tang provided such a strong foundation that no external force for the next six hundred years could destroy them. Power changed hands often among the Chinese - more dynasties came and went - but it was not until the Mongol invasion, led by Ghengis Kahn, that China's borders were compromised, ushering in the Yuan Dynasty. The Mongols, the "barbarian horde" of nomadic people which roamed the deserts of central Asia, initiated a merciless battle in which some 30% of the then Chinese population was lost. The Mongols established a short rule over China hoping to tax the produce of the nation. They restructured the social order such that now Chinese were third or fourth class citizens in their own country; Mongols first, their central Asian allies next, northern Chinese third and southern Chinese last. The Mongols were harsh administrators, but developed China's canal and road systems. Additionally they allowed trade that the once Chinese Mandarin had scorned. However, taxes were heavy and social discontent rife, and China's sheer vastness proved difficult to manage; the Mongols were forced to flee North. The retaken China was then under the control of the Ming Dynasty. One of the most notable achievements of the Ming Dynasty was a series of maritime expeditions which took the Chinese through the East Indies, into the Indian Ocean and to the Persian Gulf, and down the east coast of Africa. Thus the Chinese has 'discovered' India and Arabia long before the Portugese rounded the Cape of Good Hope. A series of natural disasters deeply wounded the Ming Empire, which had been sliding into the well-known tragedy of the dynastic cycle over the last one hundred of its three hundred years. The weakened empire fell to a Manchu conquest. The last dynasty of China, the Qing Dynasty, was founded when the Manchurians from the north breached the Great Wall and took the Ming capital, Beijing. The reign of the first three Qing emperors proved to be one of great prosperity for the Chinese. The Qing expanded China to its greatest limits since the Han era, occupying Tibet and Mongolia. They reduced taxes and instituted massive flood control and irrigation projects. The exceptional competence of the three emperors left a void of leadership in their wake. Eventually, as had happened to the Mongols, the Manchurians were 'absorbed' into Chinese culture. China thus continued to be an inward looking nation, looking on past glories instead of concerning themselves 'barbarian' innovation. After the Portuguese landed in 1516, there was great interest in establishing trade with China. But the Chinese frustrated most trade attempts with their remarkable self-reliance. In fact most of the imports were regarded as trinkets and luxury items, such that trade was very heavily one-sided until 1773. The British sought to correct the balance of trade by selling opium to the Chinese. After large-scale addiction became a problem, Lin Zexiu was dispatched to Guangzhou to put an end to the opium trade. In destroying 20,000 chests of opium, Lin triggered the pretext under which the British launched a full-scale attack and forced the Chinese into submission. The treaty that was signed between the Qing court and the British Empire included the ceding of Hong Kong and the port of Macau, and massive indemnity payments. Matters were not aided by the Empress Dowager We Cixi, a former concubine who saw all attempts to reform, the ancient institutions of the empire as a threat to the conservative power base of her government. China was thus singularly unprepared for the West. A war with France from 1883 to 1885 ended Chinese suzerainty in Indo-China and allowed the French to maintain control of Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. The British occupied Myanmar (Burma), and in 1895 the Japanese forced the Chinese out of Korea and made them cede Taiwan. Faced with weak antiquated leadership in the face of foreign incursions, numerous rebellion movements were enacted. The first major rebellion was the Taiping rebellion, led by Hong Xiuquan, a native of Guangdong and a failed scholar whose encounters with Western missionaries had led him to believe he was the younger brother of Jesus. The Taipings, a force of some 600,000 men, and 500,000 women, owed much of their ideology to Christianity. They forbade gambling, opium, tobacco and alcohol; advocated agricultural reform; outlawed foot binding, prostitution and slavery. They were defeated by a coalition of Qing and Western forces. The Boxer Rebellion of 1900 was another failed uprising against foreign incursions. This time it was supported by the Qing, resulting in the fleeing of the Empress Dowager to Xian. The Empress realized that China was too weak to survive without reform. A semblance of reform was attempted, to be cut short by the death of the Empress and the ascension to the throne of the two-year old Puyi. Factions formed among those loyal to the Qing, reducing their effectiveness versus revolutionaries. As it happened, revolutionaries in Wuhan coordinated by Sun Yatsen, leader of the Tokyo based Alliance Society, were able to quickly capture the hearts of the discontent Chinese and soon occupy all of China. Two months later, on the 10 of October, 1911, representatives from 17 provinces throughout China gathered in Nanjing to establish the Provincial Republican Government of China. It was at this time that my grandmother was born... Part II: HERITAGE
Tsao Ke-Tao was a freshly appointed government official with the new Republic. He smiled with pride at his wife Zong-De, who held in her arms a child, newly brought into the world. Chu-Tze, they would call her, my grandmother, their first child. Amid smiles, however, lines of concern worked their way onto Zong-De's care-worn face. This child was born into uncertain times - a revolution and a fledgling government, unlike any before it. The future was unpredictable, and the path it would take, bright or grim, was anybody's guess. She silently wished good fortune upon this child. "Is it male or female?" Came a sharp voice from behind the drawn matting. "Come in and see for yourself." Ke-Tao replied, stroking Zong-De's hair. A thin face emerged from behind the screen. Tsao Yeo-Tsen, Ke-Tao's father, did his best to suppress disappointment at recognition of the child - she was girl. According to Chinese culture, traditionally patrilocal, it is the male child who remains with his parents and supports them through their old age; females, when wedded, join their husband's families and help to support them. Tsao Yeo-Tsen forced a smile nevertheless - if everything continued as it were, they would not need to depend on children to support them in their age. Tsao Yeo-Tsen was a minister of the Emperor's, and a teacher. His humble father had had nothing to give him, so he steadily relied on only his own wits. In that respect, though, Tsao Yeo-Tsen was lucky, for keen wits were one thing he had been blessed with. Indeed, fortune itself smiled upon him, and he now owned a large house and, more importantly, a large piece of land. His children had children, and he now listened to their voices emanating from deep within the house, filtering through the drumming of a rain that promised a prosperous harvest season. As he looked around, Tsao Yeo-Tsen felt content that he had provided his descendents with a secure future for generations to come. The 1911 revolution had not succeeded in producing a bona fide republic, nor had it unified China. The "phantom republic" which emerged from the settling dust lacked the political organization and military strength necessary to unify the fractured empire. This discord was further exacerbated when, in an ironic move, President Yuan Shi-Kai declared himself Emperor of China. The elite that had supported the revolution, however, balked at the very uttering of further social change. The more radical, Western-influenced supporters, led by Sun Yat-Sen, advocated widespread social and political reform. From such gathering clouds, change would ensue. By 1917, the year of my grandmother's birth, Yuan had narrowly prevented a Japanese occupation of China, but was nevertheless dislodged by the inevitable political coup. The so-called years of the warlords followed, and it was under these fluctuating conditions that my grandmother grew up. Ke-Tao would return home each day, frustrated and frightened by the political instability. He was not so far up the political ladder to be heavily impacted by the winds of change, but, like so many in China, the political climate affected prosperity at an individual level. It was indeed fortunate, therefore, that Tsao Yeo-Tsen had built his fortunes earlier. The land and house would ensure their livelihood until stability returned. World War I struck China in the August of 1917. Duan Qirui, the warlord holding the title Leader of the Republic, declared war upon the Central Powers. For months Duan had been subversively aligning himself with Japan, exchanging concessions of opposing warlord territory for financial support. In disgust, a recently deposed Sun Yat-Sen, formed his own capital in the southern city of Guangzhou (Canton) with rival warlords. Thus internal strife promised to resume at the conclusion of World War I, and almost certainly would have, if it was not for the May Fourth Movement. Chu-Tze talked excitedly to one of the children of the workers. "Did you see them? What did they look like?" "It was incredible, they had flags, and
there was music, and the horses!" came the breathless reply.
Ching lived in a small mud hut on the far side of the rice field. The land, prime agricultural property some two days walk from end to end, belonged to Chu-Tze's parents, which made them the principal landowners in an area essentially still feudal in nature. Ching had heard rumors that Chu-Tze's house had a hundred rooms, and that even the servants had their own rooms! Ching noticed, though, that her parents always said good things about Chu-Tze's parents, so they were friends despite class differences. "Chu-Tze! Come and help with the baby!" came an urgent voice from within the house. Chu-Tze turned with a resigned step and plodded back to the house. It had all been fine, she thought, until the second child was born. Ke-Ping was now the special child, and Chu-Tze seemed to be doing nothing but chores. On May 4, 1919, three thousand college students marched through the streets of Beijing, a reaction to the Treaty of Versailles and, more directly, against foreign influence and the government which had made surreptitious deals with their erstwhile invaders. This outrage arose from, and fueled, the fires of Chinese Nationalism, and it was through this line that, in 1921, the Chinese Communist Party was formed. Marxist principles had appeal to such nationalistic and emotive reasoning, and rapidly gained credence with the working minority in a time of vast corruption, inequality and rejection of traditional Confucian beliefs. "Do you hear what they are talking about in the city?", Ke-Tao asked, without so much as an upward glance from his magazine, a radical political journal called New Youth. Zong-De did not answer but continued nursing Liang-Gao, their third child, a boy. Ke-Tao cleared his throat and read: "In today's civilized society, social intercourse between men and women is a common practice. Some even say that because women have a tender nature and can temper the crudeness of man, they are necessary in public or private gatherings. It is not considered improper even for strangers to sit or dance together once they have been introduced by the host. In the way of Confucian teaching, however, "men and women do not sit on the same mat," "Brothers- and sisters-in-law do not exchange inquiries about each other," "Married sisters do not sit on the same mat with brothers or eat from the same dish," "Men and women do not know each other's name except through a matchmaker and should have no social relations or show affection until after marriage presents have been exchanged", "Women must cover their faces when they go out," "Boys and girls seven years or older do not sit or eat together," "Men and women have no social relations except through a matchmaker and do not meet until after marriage presents have been exchanged," and "Except in religious sacrifices, men and women do not exchange wine cups." Such rules of decorum are not only inconsistent with the mode of life in Western society; they cannot even be observed in today's China." The words Ke-Tao read were seeds of discontent, sown by a young revolutionary, Chen Duxiu, into the minds of the Chinese youth. Chen urged the youth of China to rebel against corrupt government officials, the old nobility, and even their own personal lives as they knew them. He believed the path to China's salvation was through a new generation of intellectuals who would reject old ideals and implement Marxism and scientific knowledge and, in doing so, strengthen China. Tsao Yeo-Tsen held his new grandson in his arms. He made a silent commitment to train this child to love, and properly manage, the land that would continue to assure their family's survival. He motioned to Shao-Tang to approach. He must review the results of this season's harvest with him and budget next years. Chu-Tze watched on with silent fascination, eyes darting across glistening black numbers and calculations steadily amassing on the page in front of her. Tsao Yeo-Tsen did not mind her presence. "Where are you going Ching?", Chu-Tze asked her friend. "Haven't you heard? Mao Zedong has told us that we must help the army wipe out the evil lords!" Ching shook her head at Chu-Tze's ignorance. "Who is he?" In August 1926, Chiang Kai-Shek, military commander of the late Sun Yat-Sen's Nationalist Army, successfully took the provincial capital with substantial peasant aid, rallied by Mao Zedong. He selected the city of Nanjing on the Yangzi River to be the capital of the new Goumindang (GMD) government. But Nationalist and Communist party coexistence would be short-lived, Chiang abruptly severing relations with the Communist Party by attempting to eliminate them in a Shanghai massacre. Tears streamed down Chu-Tze's face, making her mascara bleed in rivulets onto her pristine clothing. The crashing of gongs and wails of priests did nothing to comfort her. Her father had died. The stroke had taken him quietly in his sleep. "Chu-Tze, make more noise, so that the evil spirits will stay away from father." Ke-Ping gently said. Chu-Tze would have to continue this loud mourning for several days, but she didn't care. Right now, all that mattered was that the person she most respected in her life was gone. The startling resilience of the Communist Party is evidenced by the fact that it survived no less that five attempts by the superior GMD army to obliterate them. The wave of self-righteousness that was created by the Great Depression overseas, and the general dissatisfaction of the workers, buoyed Communist loyals; and the atrocities committed by the GMD and warlord armies, made the Communists Red Army look like saviors to the people. The Communists thus evaded the Nationalists, and in 1934 commenced the epic Long March - 6,000 miles on foot. They emerged at Yannan, the heroes of China, under the leadership of Mao Zedong. 1938. It was five years after Chu-Tze's father had died. Life at the farm was very quiet now that Ke-Tao was gone. Liang-Gao apprenticed under Da-Hong, who was running the day to day tasks of the plantation. "GM, I need to talk to you", it was her mother's grave tone. "GM, we have decided to leave, it is not safe to stay here anymore. There is talk in the city of a Japanese attack. I am taking your sister to Chongqing, you will go to the city and find work." Neither the Japanese nor the Chinese anticipated the eight years of horrific warfare - and the 20 million deaths - that the Japanese invasion precipitated. Though modern by their own standards, the Nationalists found themselves inadequate and feeble against new Japanese warfare technology, while the Communists, still reeling from the earlier civil wars, were in no position to defend China. It was indeed the sheer vastness of China and its density of population that prolonged the invasion. The Japanese had expected a quick, decisive victory over China, but instead found itself like an animal whose prey, once captured and in the mouth, was too large to either chew or swallow. GM hid under her stall as the next wave of bombers soared overhead. The air was thick with dust as hundreds of people, frenzied and terrified, swarmed in all directions like ants whose nest had been disturbed. Screams of alarm rose above orders shouted by the frantic military, both in turn drowned out by the next squadron overhead. Her Dou-fu-fa bowl fell from the table, scalding her arm - there would be no money today. Suddenly, the squeal of falling bombs and the clash of explosions subsumed all other senses, both ending and augmenting the terrible din. The war was not going well at all for the Chinese. The Goumindang failed the Chinese people in every way. Their military was mismanaged, their financials an inflationary nightmare, and their popularity with the people appallingly low. It is said that it was during World War II that the GMD lost the civil war. Following the loss of Shanghai and the Rape of Nanjing, the government fled to Chongqing, an inland city nestled in mountains; they were trading land for time. "Chu-Tze!!! I am so glad you made it safely!" It was a happy reunion for Chu-Tze and her mother and sister. "I have heard about terrible things in Nanjing... and they say that Changsha has been burnt to the ground. Have you heard anything about Liang-Gao?" The small apartment seemed very full with the three women excitedly talking. It was a two-room shack on the second floor of a building whose defiance against gravity was astounding. It had been Ke-Ping and Zong-De's home in Chongqing for the last two years. "You know I need a 6-pound rice bag just to bring home my salary! And I can barely buy some rice with it!" Ke-Ping uttered in disgust. "Yes, it is the same everywhere. I hear that Chiang Kai-Shek has been printing money to fund the military." Chu-Tze replied. "Ke-Ping, I don't think you should stay here and starve, so I have put you into a children's drama school in Chongqing." The shortcomings of the GMD, however, were a boon for the CCP. Not only was the loyalty of the Nationalist-brutalized peasants captured, but also the hopes of the elite who saw the Communists as their last chance against the devastating Japanese war machine. Mao instituted literacy campaigns and production competitions; elements vital to the self-sufficiency that was required following the Japanese blockade. It was thus in August 1945, with the detonation of two nuclear devices and the surrender of Japan, that the Communists found themselves poised in a fine position to control China. "So you say you're an engineer with the government?" Chu-Tze asked. "Yes that's right, in fact, I built this
training tower for the paratroopers to practice on!" Came
the confident reply. The Civil War consisted of sixty-five days of fighting during the January of 1949. During this time, the Nationalists lost some 500,000 soldiers, including 375,000 who had been taken prisoner. This decisive victory, secured with nationalism and popular support, began what would be the victory of the CCP, and the establishment on October 1, 1949 of the People's Republic of China. As the president of the Chongqing University student union, my grandmother was asked by the Communists to become an activist. She declined and, coming from a rich background, thought it wise to leave. Chu-Tze and Shao-Tseng moved to Nanjing where the government had set up a new base of operations. Here their third child, Wei-Lian, was born. Nanjing soon fell to the Communists, and my grandparents fled to Shanghai. "NOW!! COME NOW!!" Chu-Tze called out, her voice echoing through the empty hallway. Her only reply was the sound of shelling outside the deserted hospital. Lights flickered and blinked out above deserted trolleys and stretchers. Chu-Tze clenched her teeth in agony, grim determination on her face. She would have this child if she had to deliver it herself. Suddenly there was a sound from the hall, approaching footsteps. A relief beyond hope as the familiar face of X5, a friend and chief obstetrician of the hospital, appeared. "I thought everyone had left!!" X5 exclaimed when he saw Chu-Tze. "Here, hold this light. Everything's going to be alright..." And that was how my mother was born. The Agrarian Law Reform of 1950 was aimed at peacefully redistributing wealth from the wealthy landlords to the poor peasants. What was not taken into account was the recalcitrance of the landlords, and to some extent of the peasantry, to take part in any revolutionary behavior. The landlords, particularly, seemed reluctant to surrender their wealth. As a result, consciousness-raising cadres were dispatched to the countryside to "purify" the peasants. "The masses would be unhappy", said Mao, "if we did not kill some tyrants in a revolution of six hundred million people." "Should they be put to death?" The stern young guard squinted against the morning sun from beneath a green cap. On their knees, surrounded by fourteen Red Guards were Liang-Gao and Da-Hong. "We must punish such tyrants who have mistreated you and your families for so long", he continued. "No sir!", came a voice from the crowd, "these people have been honorable landlords. They have never beaten any of us, nor taken more than their share of the harvest. The have never talked badly to us, and always provided for us in times of need." An earnest sea of dirty faces nodded in consent. "You realize we can kill him, and his entire family, in fact anyone of the bourgeois who have mistreated you!" The guard insisted. "Sir, these people have done us no harm, and it has been a privilege working for them. They are not like the other landlords." The guard paused and contemplated this unprecedented turn of events. "So be it", he finally said, "their land is now your land. Their house is now your house. All their possessions are now your possessions. They may live, but the eldest male will come with us for reeducation and will serve his country from now on." My grand-relatives were among the lucky few... Land reform was taken very seriously indeed, and many, many landowners were executed during that time. Government figures cite some 800,000 counterrevolutionary trials and 135,000 official executions during the first six months of 1951 alone. Unofficial estimates range from 1 to 3 million executions. The reforms struck fear into the hearts of the upper classes, and eliminated the last trace of resistance to the economic reforms that the government intended to implement. "We must bring the children to Hong Kong", Shao-Tseng said. Shao-Tseng's employment with a German company, Bohler Steel, facilitated what would be one of the most fortuitous moves the family would make, the move to leave China. Shao-Tseng and Chu-Tze were allowed a rare provisional leave, the children, however, were forced to remain, as 'insurance'. Chu-Tze agreed. It was to be two months before she would have that chance. She knew that the doors to Hong Kong were closing, she did not know that they were closing for good. "Don't cry Wei-Ying, just hold onto the ropes, this way we won't get separated." Chu-Tze shushed the crying children as she finished stringing them together. "Hurry, the train leaves in an hour." Ching-pau uttered. The train was uncharacteristically early, and
Chu-Tze said her hurried good-byes to Ching-pau and her children
on the platform. She grimly concealed her nerves, knowing that
this was the decisive moment when all would be lost or won. She
moved to a seat near the rear of the train. At the final call
of the train master, Chu-Tze signaled to Ching-pau. In a blur
of motion, the four children were piled through the window of
the train, nobody saw, and a moment later, it rocketed off to
freedom. Five hearts, pounding with tension, infinitely relieved,
never again to know China from within. My grandmother returned to China three times between 1950 and1956, primarily to visit her sister who had become the director of an opera house. The Communists had blacklisted her, and Ke-Ping was barred from her house. Her girls were taken to labor in the farms, tilling barren land with their bare hands. She was forced to write endless self-criticisms, a method the Communists had developed to control aberrant thoughts. Chu-Tze's brother, Liang-Gao, was forced to perform hard labor in the mines. He was released some years later on account of intelligence, after which he performed service for the Communist government as a medical practitioner. My uncles Wei-tsu and Wei-Tsen left Hong Kong, studying in Germany before immigrating to the USA. My mother and her sister Wei-Lian are both currently in Australia. Many years later, the Chinese government issued an apology to my family. I ponder this act with mixed sentiments. I acknowledge that I am a product of my heritage, my family, and their past, and wonder to what extent each of the events I have related to you has played in shaping this past, and as such, me as an individual. What would have happened, or not happened, to me - where would I stand now - if even one of these events had not transpired? Would I be the son of a landlord, watching over my rice fields and vassals while servants heated my tea? Or perhaps in a labor camp, or a mine, grinding my life away, never to see the sun? Or perhaps nothing at all. It is these questions which plague my thoughts, and are why I must journey to China, to the fabric of my being, and see what this entity - this China - is, for myself. Part III: JOURNEY Technically, there is a rule that you drive on the right, and stop at lights. However, if the cars in your lane are too slow, and especially if you happen to be a bus or a taxi you may elect to use the other side of the road, the side-walk, whatever comes in handy. Chinese never give way under any circumstance. BEEP BEEP it's all push and shove as cars squirm around each other in a dizzying confusion. Throw in bicycles and pedestrians, children, and the occasional chicken, all of which require extra honking. On average, cars seem to have their horns 'on' a fourth of the time they are in motion. Needless to say, the concept of 'lane' does not exist in China, not many traffic signs of any sort except for lights at major intersections...maybe three or four lights in a major city like Chongqing. So all in all I am very happy that I don't have to drive in China... although I still have to cross the road. Yikes! Oh yes, and no one wears seat belts. In one particularly aggressive taxi driver's car the seat belts were taped against the wall so they wouldn't bang around as the driver wove in and out of busses and trucks at breakneck speed. Strangely, I haven't seen any accidents. This could be because the traffic (chaos) moves very slowly, or perhaps because driving engenders a constant adrenaline rush in the drives thus keeping them alert. Chinese drivers are thus either the worst or best drivers in the world, depending on your point of view. >>The apartment in Beijing I had a small room to myself, it looked as if it had once belonged to a child. They also had a bathroom, which included a shower (which could produce only scalding or freezing water), a western style toilet, a trash can for used toilet paper, a roll of toilet paper for use, and an extra-coarse roll for the house-keeper. Mildew had begun its slow march across every surface of the bathroom/laundry. The kitchen was stacked to the ceiling with cooking utensils the purposes of which was beyond Western comprehension, and where there was a surface, there was a thick coat of oil. But from this kitchen, remarkable foods were produces. Beijing, Saturday 23/May/1998 Dinner made up for lunch. Goo-pau and Ah-yee took me out to a lovely restaurant to eat Beijing Kow-Yah (Roast Duck), a very famous dish which originated from this very city. We all ate as much as we could of the dish, which was very rich. Duck skin in a light pancake like bread with a spring onion, and a dab of plum sauce...mmm, delicious... We also saw the tremendous Tien Tan (Temple of Heaven). We also went to an arcade of wonderful stuff! Tons of merchants selling all sorts of cool things. Ah-yee took care of most of the hard core bargaining. But I managed to make some progress. I bought a red Mao book, a little metal turtle. >>Modern Rickshaws These tricycle carts are used as taxis, to transport fruit to market, or building materials to construction sites. In the early morning in Beijing I would often see young men straining uphill with their carts piled five feet high with watermelons. Since the roads are congested, and fuel is expensive, these tricycle carts seem to be an ideal alternative to trucks and taxis for the Chinese. In Chongqing, which is located on a series of steep hills there are no bicycles or tricycles at all. Instead, there are powered taxis, motorcycles, hand-drawn carts, and carriers. The carriers are the most interesting. These men seem to constitute the lowest class in Chongqing - laborers for hire. They wear coarse blue shirts and wide-cut rolled up pants, and either dirty sneakers or thongs. They carry thick bamboo sticks with rope at either end. The bamboo stick can either be used as a pole to carry a small bag, or boxes and baskets can be tied to both ends, and the pole is then balanced over the back of the shoulders. It is quite funny to see these carriers, who could just as well be from the sixteenth century, lugging computer or video boxes through the streets. The 'bamboo pole'-'woven basket' combination seems to be a Sichuan tradition for carrying loads uphill. For some reason, there are few donkeys or horses - people are cheaper I guess. >>The Beijing Hosts Goo-Paus II and III, I did not get to know
quite so well, but they were always ready with a smile. Ah-yee reminded me a lot of my Aunt Wei-Lian, she was very nice, very dramatic and loud in her gestures. She had youthful permed hair. She bargains like a demon! I'm sure all the shopkeepers dread her arrival. Ah-yee is Goo-Pau I's daughter. Ah-yee's daughter (14) is Yuan-Yuan, who was a very energetic and happy child. She was explaining many things to me at 100 MPH in an incomprehensible stream of Chinese. She was learning English in school, but still took no mercy on me. Beijing, Sunday 24/May/1998 Snaking out to infinity, nothing can quite capture the sheer size of the thing. How the mass laborers had managed to drag those huge stone blocks to the tops of mountains... We walked up the wall, it was a lot steeper than it looked, and kept walking until the tourists has thinned out. We walked until the very end of the upkept section of the wall, where there was a bricked off tower. Someone had bashed out some of the bricks so we climbed through to see the real wall. It was crumbling and overgrown, but still a sight to behold. We walked back down to the lower exit, which went through a weird deserted bear zoo. We saw a traditional noodle maker as well! After lunch at KFC (as Jiew-Jiew thought the noodle guy was suspect), we drove to a newer section of the wall, followed by the Ming Tombs. We saw some tombs, some incredible statue gardens, and an underground palace, which were all very impressive. Many nice walks in the blistering heat. Beijing to Xian via Train, Monday 25/May/1998*
There are four classes on a train - soft sleeper, soft seat, hard sleeper, and hard seat. 'Hard' and 'soft' don't mean that there is no padding on the bunks in the hard sleeper, it just refers to the class: first vs. second class. In a soft sleeper there are four bunks per room, and the rooms have doors and curtains and carpets. In a hard sleeper there are six bunks (three on each wall) arranged crosswise across the train, and there are no doors or curtains separating the 'rooms' from the aisle ways. There is a little bit of padding on the bunks, and you are provided with clean blankets (more like towels, actually), and pillow covers. There's a little table, two pullout seats for the people on top bunks, and a thermos of boiled water. The floor is filthy - candy wrappers, spittle and cigarette butts swim around in the filth. There's no non-smoking section...everyone in China smokes! It's kind of nice that you can lie down and sleep buy the dirtiness, the smoke, and the lack of personal hygiene on the part of the other passengers makes the whole experience miserable. I had the bottom bunk, so all sorts of people would sit on it during the day. One particularly nasty guy kept blowing his nose on his hands, then wiping them on my bed, when he wasn't blowing cigarette smoke in my face or spitting on the floor. The rush of the train and the wind made enough noise that it drowned out loud conversations so you could sleep, except that the train driver really loved to blow his horn. Every 10-15 minutes he would honk the stupid thing. BLAAAAA, it was really loud. Stewardesses came through the aisles from tome to tome selling snacks, drinks, fruit, and dinners. The food was OK...very cheap. There was also a dining cart in the soft-sleeper section that I could have used, but I went for the complete second class experience. At train stations, vendors sold stuff through the windows, so I was always supplied with soft drinks. I won't describe the bathrooms - they were too nasty. Basically there's a hole in the floor that went under the train, so you fertilize the train tracks. Unbearable stench, everything is filthy black, and no toilet paper of course. There was a sign on the door "No occupying while stabling", so you wouldn't leave a mess in the train station. All right - I did describe the bathrooms. >>Bargaining In Beijing I bought two scrolls at a little tourist stall, and our hosts helped us bargain. I didn't catch much of it - the store owner and our host gesticulated wildly, shouting back and forth - several times we marched angrily out of the store, and were followed by the sales lady. It was all part of the game. Finally we bought the first scroll for 300 yuan - down from 800! The second scroll we got for Y250, down from Y600. It is harder to get a good deal as a foreigner - the Chinese have to rip you off at two or three times the normal price, and some consider it their patriotic duty. Train and sightseeing tickets used to cost extra for foreigners by lay - they would at first confiscate your ticket if you bought a Chinese-priced one. Thankfully, they have abolished that practice now, but street vendors, taxis, etc. love to rip off foreigners. The main reason why is that the exchange rate is so bad for the Chinese, so even the rip off prices seem cheap to tourists so they can't tell they are being ripped off. At Chinese rates, you can eat an elaborate dinner at a restaurant for $2-$3US (Y16-Y24) or take a two-day boat trip second class for $60US (Y500). Xian to Chongqing, Wednesday 27/May/1998 I shuttled to the airport for Y15... Airport
tax was Y50 each too! But at least the plane was on time, and
quite pleasant, despite the very terse service, and unreserved
seats. >> Staring In Chongqing I was to visit Tiao Shan Ta, or 'Parachute' Tower which was built and designed by my grandfather, for the transport department. It was during this time that he met my grandmother who had fled from Changsha during the Japanese invasion of WWII. The tower was simple and elegant in design, very much like a lighthouse. Although I was not allowed to go up initially, asking a few more people got us access. I climbed up to spiral staircase and encountered workmen adding a neon sign to the top. After my descent, I met with the owner of the park who seemed very pleased to meet us. He requested that I send him a photo of my grandfather to commemorate this first parachute tower in Asia. That evening was to be the first of many sumptuous Sichuan feasts. Such sublime food was enough to make me realize how bad western food was in comparison. These humble meals I would have any day over the stuff we get at school. I set up mosquito netting and unpacked. There was a constant din outside. Workmen hammering, loud conversations, cats in heat, karaoke, loud televisions, and of course the ever present honking of car horns... It was here that I was able to meet up with a distant relative of mine called Ee-pau, she was to be my translator and guide in Chongqing. Chongqing, Sichuan, Thursday 28/May/1998 The state of the dorms really let me appreciate the ones we have. Up to four people are crammed in tiny rooms. They looked quite dirty from the outside. I saw some students playing Ping-Pong on a wooden table with a 'net' made from bricks! A wandering student made himself our tour-guide, which was nice, because I could interview him. He said that he could study what he liked and he enjoyed university. We saw Pau-Pau's department, where she studied accounting. The university was quite small, about the size of the five colleges. It was situated by the river and was quite pleasant to walk around. E-pau then took me to eat at a fancy Sichuan
restaurant. We ate fabulous ethnic foods endemic to the area.
The waitress could not use the camera! She pointed it at herself!
Heehee... We caught the taxi home, and ate at a close-by place that sold this wonderful crock-pot soup dish. It had the best chicken soup I've ever had. Chongqing, Sichuan, Friday 29/May/1998 Chongqing, Sichuan, 30-31/May/1998 That evening we went to the highest point in Chongqing to see the city by night. It was nice except for the multitude of flying bugs! The next day we stayed home to pack, I had the opportunity to interview E-pau. We all went down to the river to catch my boat down the Yangtze River. Yangtze River, Sichuan, 1-2/June/1998
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