Dead Man's Gold and Other Stories Read Online Free Page B

a tonic.
    The Chinatown museum owns a jade pendant, centuries old, the shape and size of a large coin. Cloudy green in color, its surface is as clear and smooth as water, but one side has a hairline crack running from its edge to center. For collectors, however, this feature only increases the value.
    Many stories accompany this stone, but the best known comes from the turn of the century and starts in South
    China’s Pearl River region.

    * * *
    Willow, a young widow, lived in a busy town where three rivers became one on their way to the ocean. Many boats passed by, so Willow and her mother-in-law opened a guesthouse that provided clean beds and hearty meals. Many men requested Willow s hand in remarriage, but she remained devoted to the memory of her husband, a kind and gentle man.
    Early one morning, a beggar pounded on the back door.
    â€œShow some heart,” he shouted. “I’m going to Gold Mountain to get rich. You’ll soon be rewarded!”
    Willow opened the door and her mouth dropped open. She saw a face almost identical to her husband’s. Her late spouse s piercing eyes and toothy smile had stayed fresh in her memory for a long time, and she never imagined seeing them again. Her hand almost reached out to touch the strangers face.
    â€œWork for me,” she said, “and I will pay you the going wage. You’ll sleep in the stable and eat rice twice a day.”
    He called himself Ox, from the hill country. A blacksmith who planned to work with horses, he loved all animals. He fed exhausted packhorses slowly, to prevent stomach pains. He changed the straw in the stables every day and scrubbed the mules clean. When he whistled, wild dogs came running; when he clucked his tongue, chickens flocked at his feet. When he filled the feeding trough in the pigpen, one little piglet always nibbled at his trouser. In the fall, when the fattened hog was dispatched to the butcher, Willow saw Ox’s lips tremble, and at that moment, she lost her heart to him.
    At his departure, he said, “Wait for me, Willow, and I will return to wed you.”
    â€œMany men want me and my guesthouse,” she said. “Why should I wait?”
    â€œBecause my feelings for you are the truest and the strongest.” From behind his back he brought out a small bamboo cage. “This little canary will sing to our love every day.”
    Willow was startled. She had never owned a songbird, but the yellow-green creature had a clean sweet voice that instantly soothed her.
    She fumbled for a return gift. Her apron pockets were empty, so from her neck she unfastened a jade pendant.
    â€œTake this,” she said, “and I will wait for you. This stone has been handed down by men and women in my family over many generations. My father claims it guards my well-being, so if you change your mind about me, you must return it.”
    Ox bent close and whispered, “You can trust me.”
    Willow kept the birdcage by her bed and listened to the trilling early in the morning and late at night. Every day, she fed the bird grains and greens.
    After many months, she released the bird from its cage to see what would happen. It fluttered to the ceiling and to the four corners of the room. It danced atop the cabinet and flew by the open window and the door. But it remained inside and always landed on Willow’s shoulder and hands. She stroked the tiny head and wings, and delighted at its soft feathers and gentle warmth.
    She sent letters to Ox, but he replied infrequently, complaining about how hard it was to find work.
    Then she awoke one day and found the cage empty and the bird gone. For days she searched the nearby forest and streets and waited fretfully, but the canary did not return. Her heart clenched like a fighters fist, and she could neither eat nor talk. For weeks she waited in vain for Ox’s
letters, but they had stopped coming.
    Her mother-in-law said, “Didn’t I warn you about Gold