讀書筆記 Going Home ( The Good Deed)

I read the article “ going home”, in the book “The Good Deed”. This article told a story about a Chinese who lived in America, going home to visit his family, be killed by robber.

1) Wu Lien was a Chinese painter, lived in New York six years. His family,father mother and elder brothers, was in Wu Chin Hsiang, South of Peking City. He was fond of his life in America, freedom, people kindness, and his exhibition of water colors, sold enough of his paintings .He convinced that Communism was a foreign ideology he did not care to live under whose shadow. He had a cousin who was a bully and opposing him.

One day, A man from immigration offices went to his home to find him and asked him some questions. That made him feel uneasy, he was not an American. He was homesick. And his pictures didn’t sell as briskly as usual, the man in the gallery told him: “ people like something new, you are getting to be too well-known”. Wu thought it was dangerous to be too well-known. He decided go abroad. He went to Stockholm,Swedish. Stockholm was beautiful, but he felt empty and disconsolate, he couldn’t paint.

Wu met a Chinese merchant in Stockholm, he came to Sweden to arrange a business contract and will leave for home. The man said: the railway between Moscow and Peking is new and extraordinary. Wu missed Peking where he first mingle the world outside and missed his family village, the tree and blossom. He thought he was an artist, no political importance. After he reached home, he would marry and have children and become a settled citizen. He bought a ticket to Peking, and secured necessary papers to allow his travel. He brought with him his entire store of possessions: gold watch, fine radio, good clothes, his savings.

2）A) Wu reached Peking. Peking Looked as it always had, however,  no beggars. The streets were calm and clean. Wu was arranged to a hostel, which was for those Chinese who returned from abroad. Wu offered the servant of hostel a tip and was refused. The door of the his room was always ajar, no latch. And there were certain lectures all guests were required to attend. In a few weeks, Wu was permission to return to his family. He had written letters to his family. His family was very glad.

B) Wu bought a car, for the roads to the south, Wu Chia Hsiang, were improved. In less than ten hours Wu recognized the familiar landscape. It was still not dark. He stopped his car to enjoy the sights.  It was the hours of evening meal, no one was on the road. while he sat in the car, he saw three men coming toward him. They held curved sickle in their hands. Two men spoke with him, the third man kept his face turned, Wu could not see his face. The two men stared into the car, noticed the radio. Wu was uncomfortable. When he intended to leave, suddenly the third man turned face, Wu recognized him, it was his cousin. The cousin lifted his sickle and killed Wu. They snatched the gold watch, coat and radio.And dragged the dead body  into a pond , the car into a bomb hole.

C) Wu did not return home, the government thought he was escaped. Months later, Wu family began to suspect he was killed. For the cousin had a radio, there were rumors of gold watch and foreign coat, but they didn’t dare speak out, they just swallowed one's breath and cried in secret.

3）I think:

A) why Wu be killed? Because he richer than his cousin, because he was from America. Wu know that famous is dangerous, why dangerous? Because some people envy. In China, this is a very bad social mentality. Marxism believes that the reason why the poor are poor is due to the exploitation of the rich, so revolution is necessary. I think it is normal for the wealth gap to exist. Down with the rich, the poor are still poor. We should develop production and improve the living standards of the poor.

B) It cannot be verified that this is a true story. According to the plot analysis, Wu was born in 1930 and went to the United States in 1948 because it was impossible to go to the United States after 1949. In 1955, he returned to China because the railway between Moscow and Beijing was only rebuilt in 1954. In 1955, there were still very few private cars in China. I'm afraid even can't even find a gas station in the countryside. After Wu being killed, the case should be able to solve soon.