Life and Death are Wearing Me Out

himself against the wall, yell, “Daddy, Mommy, our donkey got loose!”
    I pranced around in the compound for a moment to test my legs and hooves; they clattered on the stones and raised sparks. Moonbeams glistened on my nicely rounded rump. Lan Lian ran out of his quarters, and militiamen emerged from the main house. Rays of candlelight pierced the open doorway and lit up part of the compound. I trotted over to the apricot tree, turned and kicked the glazed urn with my rear hooves, destroying it with a loud splintering noise, some of the pieces sailing above the tree and then landing on roof tiles with a clatter. Huang Tong ran out of the main house, Qiuxiang came out of the eastern rooms. The militiamen cocked their rifles, but I wasn’t afraid; I knew they wouldn’t hesitate to shoot a person, but would never shoot a donkey. As barnyard animals, donkeys lack human understanding of things, and anyone who kills one will himself become a barnyard animal. Huang Tong stepped down on my loose reins, but all I had to do was rear up to put him on his backside. Then by swinging my head, the reins whipped through the air and struck Qiuxiang in the face. Hearing her wail was music to my ears. You black-hearted slut, I’d like to mount you right here! I leaped over her; people ran up to restrain me. But nothing was going to stop me from running into the main house. It’s me, Ximen Nao, I’ve come home! I want to sit in my own chair, smoke my own pipe, pick up my little liquor decanter and down four ounces of good strong liquor, and then enjoy a nice braised chicken. All of a sudden, the room seemed awfully small, and my footsteps resounded on the tile floor. Pots and pans were smashed, furniture was on its back or its side. I saw the big, flat, golden-yellow face of Yang Guixiang, who, thanks to me, had been forced up against a wall. Her shrieks hit me like darts. Then my eyes fell on Ximen Bai, my virtuous wife, who was sprawled weakly on the tile floor, and that threw my mind into turmoil. I forgot that I now had a donkey’s body and a donkey’s face. I wanted to reach down and pick her up, only to discover that she was lying unconscious between my legs. I felt like kissing her, but then I saw that her head was bleeding. Love is forbidden between humans and donkeys. Good-bye, virtuous wife. Just as I had lifted my head and turned to exit the room, a dark figure stepped out from behind the door and wrapped his arms around my neck. With hands like steel talons, he grabbed my ears and my reins. My head sagged from the pain. But as soon as I could see what was going on, the village chief, Hong Taiyue, was lying across my head like a vampire bat. My bitter rival. As a human being, I, Ximen Nao, never fought you, but I’ll not suffer at your hands as a donkey I was seeing red. Bearing up under the pain, I threw back my head and broke for the door. The doorframe scraped the parasite from my body — Hong Taiyue remained inside the room.
    With a loud cry, I burst into the compound, but several people clumsily managed to close the gate before I could get to it. My heart had suddenly outgrown the compound; it was too small to hold me, and I ran around madly, sending people scurrying. I heard Yang Guixiang scream,
    “The donkey bit Ximen Bai’s head, it’s bleeding, and he broke the village chief’s arm!”
    “Shoot it, kill it!” someone else shouted. I heard the militiamen cock their rifles, and I saw Lan Lian and Yingchun running toward me. Moving at the fastest speed I could manage and summoning up all the strength I had, I headed for a breach in the wall caused by heavy summer rains. I leaped, reached into the air with all four hooves, stretched to my fullest length, and sailed over the wall.
    The legend of Lan Lian’s flying donkey is still told by old-time residents of Ximen Village. Naturally, it’s told most vividly in stories written by Mo Yan.

6

Tenderness and Deep Affection
Create a Perfect Couple
Wisdom and Courage Are Pitted
against Vicious Wolves
    I headed south at top speed after flying over a toppled wall. I nearly broke a leg when my front hooves landed in mud, and I was seized with terror. I tried to free my legs from the mud, but only succeeded in sinking in deeper. So I stopped, settled down, and planted my rear legs on solid ground. Then I lay down and rolled to the side, managing to pull my front legs free. After that I climbed out of the ditch, giving proof to the words that Mo Yan once