Song Gang giggled. "I'm not eating. I'm just sniffing."
Baldy Li asked, "Why aren't you're eating?"
Song Gang swallowed his drool, saying, "I'm not going to eat it. They're all for you. I'll just take a few sniffs."
Right then Li Lan came home. From inside Baldy Li first heard his mother's shout of surprise and delight, then her rapid footsteps; then he heard Song Gang cry out, "Mama!" Li Lan ran up to the house and scooped Song Gang up in her arms, all the while chattering nonstop like a machine gun. Baldy Li, meanwhile, was still locked inside. He banged at the door with all his might, shouting and crying, but it took a while before Li Lan registered his cries and opened the door.
Baldy Li and Song Gang finally saw each other again in person. The two boys grabbed each other's hands and bounced up and down, hooting and hollering, until they both worked up a headful of sweat and the snivel from their noses dribbled into their mouths. They jumped about for more than ten minutes before Song Gang remembered the White Rabbits in his pocket. Wiping the sweat from his forehead, he rooted around for the candies, counting out "one, two, three, four," and "five," as he placed them one by one into Baldy Li's hands. Baldy Li put four of them in his pocket but unwrapped the last one and popped it into his mouth.
Li Lan had suffered through a whole day of struggle sessions at the silk factory and was worn down and weary as she approached home. But the moment she saw Song Gang, her face lit up with excitement. This was the first time since Song Fanping's death that she had been this happy. She exclaimed that she was going to give the two boys a good meal to celebrate Song Gang's visit, and, taking them both by the hand, she set off for the People's Restaurant to get noodles. As they walked along the streets at dusk Baldy Li felt as if he had not been outside for years. He was so joyful that he no longer walked but skipped, and Song Gang did likewise. Li Lan led them with a broad smile, and her happiness infected the boys as they skipped along even more cheerfully.
As they reached the bridge they saw Mama Su from the snack shop standing there with a wooden placard around her neck. Her daughter, Missy Su, stood by her side, clutching her shirttail. Song Gang walked up to Mama Su and asked, "Why would someone as kind as you have to wear a wooden placard?"
Mama Su, her head bowed, did not respond, but Missy Su wiped her tears upon hearing Song Gangs words. Li Lan also stood there with her head bowed, whispering to Baldy Li and giving him a gentle nudge to share a candy with Missy Su. Baldy Li gulped, fished out a White Rabbit from his pocket, and painfully surrendered it to Missy Su, who reached out a tear-dampened palm and accepted it. Mama Su then looked up and smiled at Li Lan, and Li Lan smiled back. Li Lan stood for a while, then tugged at Song Gangs hand. Song Gang knew it was time to go. He said to Mama Su, "Don't worry. You will be rewarded in the next life."
Mama Su responded in a low voice, "You're a good boy. You will also be rewarded."
Mama Su then looked at Baldy Li and Li Lan and added, "You will all be rewarded."
Li Lan led Baldy Li and Song Gang to the People's Restaurant. The boys had not been there for a long time, the last time having been with Song Fanping, right after his flag-waving atop the bridge, when all of them were in heightened spirits. That time, everyone in the restaurant had gathered around as they ate their noodles, and the cook had even served them a special meat broth. Now the restaurant was nearly deserted. Li Lan ordered two bowls of plain noodles for the boys but didn't get anything for herself, explaining that she still had leftovers at home. As Baldy Li and Song Gang slurped down their bowls of steaming hot noodles, their noses were almost dripping into their soup. The noodle soup seemed to be as delicious as before. When the cook who had served them the last time saw that no one was paying attention, he came over and whispered, "I gave you the meat broth."
Li Lan led the two boys by the hand and walked along the street for a very long time. They passed by the basketball court that had once been all lit up. The three of them sat on stones next to the court and gazed out at the vast, empty ball court under the moonlight. Li Lan remembered how this space had once been brilliantly illuminated and how Song Fanping had outshone everyone in that fierce game. She particularly remembered that awesome dunk of his, how the crowds momentarily fell silent, then exploded in gasps and cheers. Li Lan smiled to herself and told the boys, "Now that your father has passed away, there's no one in the world who can dunk a basketball like he could."
Song Gang stayed for two days at Baldy Li's place, but on the third morning his grandfather came, carrying a pumpkin on his back. He declined to come inside, preferring to stand outside, head bowed. Li Lan greeted him warmly, calling him Father and leading him inside by the sleeve. The old landlord blushed and shook his head. There was nothing Li Lan could do to persuade him, so she brought a stool outside and invited him to sit down. The old landlord declined and instead continued to wait patiently for Song Gang to finish his breakfast, moving only to place the pumpkin beside the door. When Song Gang emerged, his grandfather took him by the hand and, bowing slightly to Li Lan, led him away.
Baldy Li ran to the door and sadly watched Song Gang depart. As he walked Song Gang kept looking back sadly at Baldy Li, then he raised his arm above his his head and waved, and Baldy Li waved back.
After this, Song Gang came to town about once a month. He no longer came alone but, rather, accompanied his grandfather when he came to peddle vegetables. The two of them would set out for town before it was light, while Baldy Li was still sound asleep. As they entered through the southern gate Song Gang would run along the dark streets to Baldy Li's house, carrying with him two heads of fresh greens. Quietly leaving the greens at the door, he would run back to the market and sit by his grandfather's side, calling out, "Fresh vegetables!"
Song Gang and his grandfather would often finish with their peddling just as the sun was coming up. His grandfather, with empty baskets, would lead Song Gang by the hand and circle back to Baldy Li's house, where the two of them would stand quietly outside the door, listening for any stirring inside and wondering if mother and son had woken up yet. Li Lan and Baldy Li would invariably still be asleep, the two heads of greens still waiting by the door. So Song Gang and his grandfather would silently take their leave.
During that first year, every time Song Gang came to town he would bring Baldy Li a few White Rabbits, wrapping them in wutong leaves and leaving them under the stone stoop in front of the door. Baldy Li had no idea how many White Rabbits Li Lan had given Song Gang, but during that first year Baldy Li almost always had White Rabbits to look forward to.
After rising and opening the door, Li Lan would spot the dew-misted vegetables waiting outside and call out to Baldy Li, "Song Gangs been here!"
Baldy Li's first action would always be to flip over the stone and retrieve the candy, and then he would dash out into the street. Li Lan knew that Baldy Li wanted to see Song Gang, and therefore she wouldn't try to stop him. After finding no trace of Song Gang at the market, Baldy Li would immediately turn around and run toward the southern gate. A few times the brothers actually caught sight of each other there. Baldy Li would spy Song Gang in the distance, walking behind his grandfather and his baskets, and Baldy Li would shout at the top of his lungs, "Song Gang! Song Gang!"
Hearing him, Song Gang would turn around and shout, "Baldy Li! Baldy Li!"
Baldy Li would stand there, continuing to call out Song Gang's name. As he walked Song Gang would repeatedly look back at Baldy Li, waving and calling out his name. Baldy Li called out until he lost sight of Song Gang, and even then he continued calling out, "Song Gang! Song Gang!"