145: Chapter 145 Lin Feng's View

After giving away the money, Lin Feng became even more idle. Before, the system used to assign him tasks, but now, even those were gone.

Every morning, he would squat under the Old Locust Tree, watching Margaret open the door, watching the sun rise in the east, and watching the cat crawl out of the tree pit to stretch.

After watching all this, he would go to the restaurant to eat mushrooms. Once finished, he would return to squat. In the afternoon, he would take a look at the wall, a look at the door, and a look at the tree. In the evening, he would return to squat again, waiting for the sun to set.

Margaret said he was lazier than the cat. The cat would still fetch bottle caps, dig holes, and deliver letters, but Lin Feng did nothing at all.

Lin Feng said, "I am watching." Margaret asked, "Watching what?" Lin Feng replied, "Watching you all work."

Eric used the money Lin Feng gave him to buy new mushroom spawn. Not the ordinary white mushrooms, but brown, tan, gray ones, and a kind with spots on the caps, like stars.

He planted them on the top shelf, watering, fertilizing, and talking to them every day. Sarah asked him, "What are you saying to them?"

Eric said, "I'm telling them they were bought with the money Lin Feng gave. They need to grow well."

The mushrooms, of course, didn't answer, but after a few days, they really grew out. Brown, tan, gray, spotted—patch after patch, even denser than the white ones.

Eric picked a spotted one, put it in his mouth, and chewed. It was sweet, but not the sweetness of sugar; it was a crisp, refreshing sweetness, like the kind of sweetness bought with the money Lin Feng gave. He smiled.

He cut a small slice and gave it to Uncle Zhou, asking him to take it to Lin Feng. When Lin Feng received the slice of mushroom, he was squatting under the Old Locust Tree.

He put the mushroom slice into his mouth, chewed, and smiled. Margaret asked him, "What are you smiling about?" Lin Feng said, "It's sweet." Margaret tasted a slice too. "Hmm, it is sweet."

The two of them squatted there, eating one slice of mushroom, then another. The cat jumped out of the tree pit, looking up at them.

Lin Feng broke off a small piece and placed it in his palm; the cat licked it, swallowed, squinted its eyes, and made a purring sound in its throat.

Martha used the money Lin Feng gave her to buy a new guitar. Not an ordinary acoustic guitar, but an acoustic-electric one; once plugged into an amplifier, the sound could travel very far.

She held the new guitar, sat at the church entrance, and played an old tune. The sound poured out from the speaker, filling the entire alley, reaching the Coffee Shop, the farm, and the Old Locust Tree.

Lin Feng heard it and looked up in the direction of the church. Margaret heard it too; she walked out of the restaurant and stood at the door to listen. The cat crawled out of the tree pit, pricked up its Ears, and its tail tip swayed gently.

Martha finished playing, and the alley became quiet. Then someone applauded—it was Lin Feng. He was squatting under the Old Locust Tree, clapped twice, and stopped. Margaret also clapped twice. The cat didn't clap, but it meowed. Martha hugged her new guitar and smiled.

She asked Uncle Zhou to pass a message to Lin Feng: "The new guitar is great. Thank you." Lin Feng listened, nodded, and said nothing.

Sam used the money Lin Feng gave him to rent a recording studio, not in Xinfeng Town, but in the city. He went for three days and recorded ten songs.

There was "Dandelion Song," "Heard It," "Mushroom Song," "Breathing of the Wall," and "Cat's Gift."

He brought the finished master tape back and played it in the Coffee Shop. Molly turned off the coffee machine, Chen Xiaoyuan stopped wiping the cups, and the cat jumped off the counter to squat beside the speaker.

The music flowed out of the speaker, filling the entire Coffee Shop, spilling out from the doorway, spreading to the tree, to the alley, and to the Old Locust Tree.

Lin Feng heard it, stood up, walked to the entrance of the Coffee Shop, and squatted down to listen. Margaret followed behind him and also squatted down. The two of them squatted at the entrance, listening to all ten songs.

The last one was called "The Squatting Person." Written by Sam, it had no lyrics, only guitar and whistling. The whistling was done by Sam himself; the tune was very slow and long, like a person squatting and looking at the sky.

Lin Feng finished listening, stood up, dusted off his bottom, and walked away. Sam chased after him. "Lin Feng, that song was written for you." Lin Feng didn't turn back. "I heard it."

Sam asked, "Is it good?" Lin Feng took two steps, then stopped. "It's good." He continued walking, walked back under the Old Locust Tree, and squatted down. Margaret followed and squatted beside him. "He wrote about you squatting," Lin Feng said. "Hmm."

Margaret asked, "Are you happy?" Lin Feng thought about it. "Happy."

Molly used the money Lin Feng gave her to buy fish for the cat. Not just one, but a whole box. All kinds of fish: salmon, cod, tuna, sardines.

She kept the fish in the refrigerator, cutting a small piece every day to mix into the cat food. The cat ate very slowly, chewing each bite for a long time.

After eating, it would lick its lips, rub against Molly's feet, then jump onto the counter and squat beside the glass jar, closing its eyes.

Molly looked at it and smiled. "You're fatter than before." The cat didn't answer, but it rolled over, exposing its belly.

Molly stroked its belly; the cat stretched out its limbs, its tail tip swaying gently. Chen Xiaoyuan said, "It's happier than before." Molly asked, "How do you know?"

Chen Xiaoyuan pointed at the cat's tail. "It used to sway fast, but now it sways slowly. Swaying slowly means it's happy." Molly looked at the cat's tail; it was indeed swaying very slowly, beat by beat, as if keeping time. She smiled. "You understand cats even better than I do."

Uncle Zhou used the money Lin Feng gave him to buy a new bicycle. Not an old one, not a second-hand one, but a brand-new one. The chain was shiny, the tires were black, and the bell rang the moment it was pressed.

He parked his old bike at the Post Office and rode the new one to deliver letters. The chain was silent; there was no ding-ding-ding sound, nor any creaking sound.

As he rode on the road, there was only the rustling sound of tires rolling over the surface. He rode to Millfield and handed the letter to Eric. Eric heard the sound of the bicycle and was stunned. "Uncle Zhou, did you get a new bike?"

Uncle Zhou nodded. "I did." Eric squatted down and looked at the shiny chain. "It has no sound." Uncle Zhou said, "It has no sound." Eric stood up and looked at him. "Are you used to it?"

Uncle Zhou thought about it. "Not used to it. But the new bike is easy to ride." He got on the bike and continued forward. The chain was silent, but he felt something was missing.

He rode to Greenfield and handed the letter to Martha. Martha heard the sound of the bicycle and was also stunned. "Uncle Zhou, did you get a new bike?" Uncle Zhou nodded. "I did."

Martha squatted down and plucked the chain; the chain turned, emitting a very, very faint "ding," just like the sound of her new guitar. She smiled. "It can still sing. It's just quieter."

Uncle Zhou also plucked the chain. "Ding"—the sound was very faint, but he heard it. He smiled. "It's still there." He got on the bike and continued forward. The chain chimed softly, as if humming a song.

He rode to Xinfeng Town and posted the letter on the wall. After posting it, he stood under the tree, looking at the new bike. The bike was new, the chain was shiny, the tires were black, and the bell rang when pressed. But he remembered the old bike. He had ridden the old bike for forty years; the paint had peeled, rust had formed, and the rubber grips had worn away. But it was still there. He smiled, got on the bike, and continued riding forward.

Lin Feng was squatting under the Old Locust Tree, watching Uncle Zhou's back disappear at the end of the alley. Margaret came over with a plate of mushrooms and squatted beside him.

"Uncle Zhou got a new bike," Lin Feng said. "I saw." Margaret placed the plate on the ground. "Aren't you going to take a look?" Lin Feng shook his head. "No need to look. I know just by the sound."

Margaret looked at him. "What sound?" Lin Feng chewed the mushroom. "No sound. The new bike has no sound. The old one did. Creak-creak, ding-ding-ding-ding. Now they are all gone." He swallowed. "But it is still there. The bike is there, the person is there, the road is there."

Margaret said nothing and also squatted down. The two of them squatted, looking at the big tree in the distance. The cat jumped out of the tree pit, walked to Lin Feng's feet, rubbed against them, then jumped onto his knees, curled into a ball, and closed its eyes.

Lin Feng didn't move, just squatted there, letting the cat lie on his legs. The cat made a purring sound in its throat, very slow, beat by beat. Margaret looked at the cat. "It's swaying slowly," Lin Feng said. "Hmm."

Margaret asked, "Is it happy?" Lin Feng thought about it. "Happy." Margaret asked, "How do you know?" Lin Feng pointed at the cat's tail. "It used to sway fast, but now it sways slowly. Swaying slowly means it's happy." Margaret smiled. "When did you learn to read a cat's tail?" Lin Feng said, "When I was squatting."

The sun was about to set; the canopy was dyed gold, and the leaves looked like pieces of gold foil. The wind blew, and the leaves rustled. Lin Feng stood up; the cat jumped off his legs, stretched, walked back to the tree pit, and curled up on the red cloth.

Lin Feng patted his pants and walked toward the restaurant. Margaret followed behind him. The two walked into the restaurant; Margaret went to the kitchen to bring out the mushrooms, and Lin Feng sat on the steps at the entrance, holding a straw in his mouth, looking at the sky.

The sky changed from gold to pink, from pink to purple, and from purple to deep blue. The stars lit up one by one, like someone had scattered a handful of crushed diamonds. Margaret came out with a plate of mushrooms and squatted beside him. The two of them squatted there, eating mushrooms and watching the stars.

Margaret asked, "Lin Feng, what are you now?" Lin Feng thought about it. "A person who squats." Margaret smiled. "Then I'll squat too." Lin Feng looked at her. "What are you squatting for?"

Margaret chewed the mushroom. "Watching you." Lin Feng didn't speak, the corners of his mouth curling up slightly.

The stars were shining overhead, and the wind blew, cool and refreshing. The cat crawled out of the tree pit, walked to the restaurant entrance, squatted beside them, and looked up at the stars. It watched for a long time, then closed its eyes, curled into a ball, and started purring.

Margaret looked at the cat. "It's watching the stars too." Lin Feng said, "It's watching the light." Margaret asked, "How do you know?" Lin Feng chewed the straw. "I guessed." Margaret smiled. "You guessed right."

The cat's purring carried far into the night, mixing with the sound of the wind like a lullaby. Lin Feng closed his eyes and listened for a while. He felt sleepy too, but didn't sleep. He opened his eyes and looked at the stars. The stars were looking at him too. He smiled.

[Chapter 145 End]