Zhaonü's school was on holiday. She returned home to help Father with the chopping and weeding， her face tanning in the sun. She kept herself busy like a silent bird. She understood Madam's worries， as Yingnü spent all day in town at Juzi's house. And Zhaonü's wedding was not settled at all. She could not tell Madam about the Chief. Ever since the moment when they kissed， both of them were scared， escaping from each other in shyness， like two deer. When they met， Zhaonü would blush， and she hoped that the Chief would say or do something. But the Chief had always been busy， like an actor on the stage， someone she could see but not touch. She was determined not to be the one to go and see him. But the worries on her mind pressured her. She began to lose weight.
Madam sat in a chair， her hands like dried radish， lips wordlessly wriggling as she talked to herself. Her eyes passed through the wall， clearly seeing the small tomb on the Penholder Mountain opposite. On it grew two maidenhair trees， as lush as clouds， reliant on each other. The maidenhair trees were called the "Tree of husband and wife" ， one male and one female tree living together， producing fruit. To find two maidenhair trees as vigorous as these two was extremely rare in the Dragon Boat River village area. It was all because of the fengshui (good geomantic potency) of the tomb.
The tomb of Madam's husband was empty， just a raincoat of leaves wrapped in fishing spears and cloth shoes. That year Brother Rong and Madam had built a cottage in the mountain and got married. Brother Rong worked for landlord Master Huang， and Madam was an orphan. When they got married， they couldn't even afford string for new clothes. All they had under their bodies in bed was the palm-bark raincape Brother Rong used in the field. But their life was happy in the shabby cottage. All the silent night they could do whatever they liked upon that raincape. It was thick and sometimes caught their skin， making their exploits more interesting.
Yet there was one night Brother Rong had returned with a fishing spear， looking aggressive. And suddenly he didn't have time to spend with Madam on the raincape anymore. He said something briefly to Madam and then， hearing the sound of someone blowing a bull's horn， ran off into the dark night.
And then something happened which Dragon Boat Village had not forgotten for several decades. Brother Rong， along with the Red Army of He Long， broke into Master Huang's home. They roped him up like a pig and took him to the square， beheading him. The blood of Master Huang left three round marks on Madam's hand. Madam washed it in the river more than ten times， using soapnut.
After a glorious period of landlord killing， Brother Rong followed the army and left， leaving Madam with his spear for protection. The night he left， they couldn't stop touching each other， until the morning came， piercing holes in the roof. Madam pushed away Brother Rong.
"Once you fire the arrow， it's not coming back—what are you waiting for， your death？" Crouching on one knee and listening to the sound of their baby in the womb， Brother Rong said， "Give birth to my son and wait for me."
Several days after the army left， Madam struggled to give birth to Zhaonü's father. With the crying of the baby， a cacophony of barking dogs arose throughout Dragon Boat Village. Madam was dragged to the square by the local troops， enemies of the Red Army. There， the troops had beheaded a 70 year old shepherd， using his head as a lamp. They nailed more than ten red army soldiers， who used to hide in the mountain caves， onto the door boards.
Madam was stripped as if she was a white rabbit. Seven or eight local troop solders gang-raped her， as hard as they could. Blood dripped unceasingly from her vagina. The villagers could only kneel on the ground， calling for protection from the ancestral White Tiger God. The thickly layered clouds of the Penholder Mountain covered the whole sky， the noise of tigers and leopards in pain lasting late into the night.
Madam crawled out from the scene， leaving a long bloody trail on the mountain path. She lay in the cottage for 100 days， her private parts swelling and festering as she moved in and out of consciousness.
On the hundredth day， a salt dealer from afar brought back the message that Brother Rong had died at Dadu River. It was a river she had never heard of.
She had attempted to jump off the cliff. Only her cousin had managed to hold her back.
Clouds and mist curled throughout the year over the Penholder Mountain. Over the moist ground ice-cold snakes slithered. A stilted shack served to shelter Madam for many years. She gathered many stones and beside the stilted shack she set up a tomb containing his personal effects for Brother Rong. Her pink cheeks turned yellow and then dark green， her jet-black hair turning ashen and ceasing to grow before becoming matted， like withered grass without water. She became bow-legged， walking like a duck.
Afterward， as the widow of a martyr， she went to Master Huang's family and said that， from now on， this place was the land of Tian's family. Gradually her distress softened， and unexpectedly her hair became youthful again， until the day when a military vehicle arrived.
It was the day before the Ghost's Day， when the maize was harvested from the fields， leaving only the bare maize-straws standing under the sun to dry out. Madam carefully prepared candles and fruit wine， including a hen steamed with tender maidenhair fruits. She was going to take the food to worship Brother Rong before his tomb. At that time， there was only one path—terribly built—extending out from the mountains. Unless the drivers were experienced and brave， they would never risk driving on such a bumpy and narrow mountain path. Therefore， when the horn rung out from the green jeep， all of the neighbours were instantly alarmed. In an unbelievably short period of time， the land of Tian's family was crowded with people.
