156: Chapter 156 Lin Feng Watches Ants

The wind had been heard, the steps counted, and the letter replied to. Lin Feng returned to the shade of the Old Locust Tree, squatting with a straw in his mouth, watching the street opposite. The cat rolled over on the blue cloth in the tree pit, exposing its belly and pointing its four paws toward the sky. Lin Feng glanced at the cat, then lowered his head to look at the ground by his feet. There was a colony of ants, marching in a line from the tree roots toward the Restaurant. They were in a great hurry, each carrying something—some carried bread crumbs, some carried seeds, and some carried small pieces of withered leaves. Lin Feng squatted lower, bringing his face close to the ground. The ants ignored him and continued on. He watched for a while and realized that not all the ants were moving in the same direction. Most went from the roots to the Restaurant, while a few went from the Restaurant to the roots. Those going toward the Restaurant were carrying things; those coming back were empty-handed. He counted them: twenty-three going, seven returning. He waited five minutes and counted again. The number going had increased to thirty-one, and those returning to eleven. He watched for a long time, observing their constant bustle, feeling that they were even busier than he was.

Margaret came over carrying a plate of mushrooms and squatted beside him. "What are you looking at?" Lin Feng said, "Ants." Margaret also lowered her head to look at the ants on the ground. "Are they moving house?" Lin Feng thought about it. "Not moving house. Transporting food. There's food over by the roots, and they're bringing it to the Restaurant side. Their nest is on the Restaurant side." He pointed to a small hole in the corner of the Restaurant wall. "The nest is there." Margaret looked at the small hole; the entrance was tiny, just big enough for one ant to enter or exit at a time. She counted the ants going in and out; once they entered, they vanished. "You even know where their nest is." Lin Feng said, "I saw it while squatting here with nothing to do." Margaret placed the plate of mushrooms on the ground and squatted down as well to watch the ants. The two of them squatted there, watching for fifteen minutes. The cat climbed out of the tree pit, stretched, walked to their feet, and also lowered its head to look at the ants. It stretched out a paw and nudged the ant at the very front; the ant did a somersault, climbed back up, and kept walking. The cat nudged it again; the ant did another somersault, climbed back up, and kept walking. On the third nudge, the ant stopped moving, curling up to play dead. The cat tilted its head and watched for a while, sniffed it with its nose, and then walked away. It seemed to find the ant uninteresting. Lin Feng looked at the cat. "Aren't you going to help them?" The cat didn't answer; it jumped onto the steps and sat by the door, closing its eyes to bask in the sun.

Lin Feng took a pen and paper from his pocket and wrote while leaning on his knees. He wrote very slowly, thinking for a long time about every word. "The ant nest is in the corner of the Restaurant. The hole is small, only enough for one ant to pass. Ants carry food from the roots to the nest, walking back and forth without stopping. I counted; within five minutes, thirty-one went there, and eleven came back. More go than return. Those returning are empty-handed; they are going to fetch the next load." He finished writing, folded the paper, and put it in his pocket. Margaret watched him. "Why are you recording this?" Lin Feng said, "If I record it, I'll know how much they move every day." Margaret smiled. "You even want to know how much the ants move?" Lin Feng said, "Once I know, I won't have to count anymore."

In the afternoon, Lin Feng squatted by the tree pit again, watching the ants. This time he didn't count, he just watched. He noticed that some ants walked fast while others walked slowly. The fast ones carried small things; the slow ones carried large things. One ant was carrying a bread crumb three times the size of its body, stopping to rest every few steps. When it rested, the ants behind it would bypass it; not a single one helped. Lin Feng watched that ant and felt it was working very hard. He reached out his hand, wanting to move the bread crumb forward a bit, but remembering how someone had seen him helping ants before and even wrote a letter about it, he hesitated and pulled his hand back. He felt the ant could move it on its own, just a bit slower. Being slow didn't matter. The ant wasn't in a hurry, and neither was he.

The cat jumped down from the steps, walked to his feet, squatted down, and also watched that ant. It watched for a while, then stretched out a paw and nudged the bread crumb forward an inch. The ant paused for a moment, then continued carrying, moving faster. The cat nudged it again, and the bread crumb moved forward another inch. The ant moved even faster. The cat nudged it three times, and the bread crumb was only half the distance from the hole. Carrying the bread crumb, the ant walked at lightning speed and soon ducked into the hole. The cat squatted at the entrance, watching the ant disappear, the tip of its tail twitching slightly. Lin Feng looked at the cat. "You helped it." The cat didn't answer; it stood up, walked back to the tree pit, curled up on the blue cloth, and closed its eyes. Lin Feng squatted at the entrance, watching the ants still on their way. They didn't know someone had helped them, but they were moving faster.

In the evening, Old Zhou returned from delivering mail and parked his bike in front of the Restaurant. He saw Lin Feng squatted in the corner, walked over, and squatted beside him. "What are you looking at?" Lin Feng said, "The ant hole." Old Zhou also looked at the small hole. "You've been squatting here all day?" Lin Feng said, "All day." Old Zhou smiled. "Aren't you bored?" Lin Feng said, "No. The ants have been moving all day and haven't finished. They aren't bored, so I'm not bored." Old Zhou watched the ants on the ground, coming and going without pause. "They've been moving their whole lives and haven't finished." Lin Feng said, "Mhm. If they can't finish, they move every day. Moving every day, they don't get bored." Old Zhou stood up and brushed off his pants. "I'm heading back." He hopped on his bike, the chain clinking as he rode away. Lin Feng squatted in the corner, watching the ants. The sky grew dark, and the ants finished their shift; no more ants entered or exited the hole. After the last ant crawled inside, the entrance became quiet. Lin Feng stood up, brushed off his pants, and walked back to the tree pit. The cat was curled up on the blue cloth, already asleep and snoring loudly. He squatted by the pit, watching the cat. The cat's belly rose and fell; its breathing was slow and steady. He watched for a while, then stood up and walked into the Restaurant.

At night, Lin Feng sat on the steps in front of the Restaurant. He wasn't squatting, but sitting. Margaret came out with a plate of mushrooms and sat beside him. The two of them sat there, looking at the sky. The stars lit up one by one, just like yesterday. The cat climbed out of the tree pit, walked to their feet, squatted down, and tilted its head to look at the stars. It watched for a long time, then closed its eyes, curled into a ball, and started snoring. Margaret looked at the cat. "It helped the ants today," Lin Feng said. "Mhm," Margaret asked, "You saw it?" Lin Feng said, "I saw it. It used its paw to nudge the bread crumb forward, nudging it three times. The ant moved faster." Margaret smiled. "It's learning from you." Lin Feng said, "It didn't learn from me. It wanted to help on its own." Margaret looked at him. "What about you? Did you want to help?" Lin Feng thought about it. "I did. But I didn't. It could carry it on its own. A bit slower, but it would get there." Margaret looked at him. "You aren't in a hurry?" Lin Feng said, "Not in a hurry. The ants aren't in a hurry either."

The wind blew over, carrying the aroma from the Coffee Shop, the rustle of letter paper from the church, and the fresh sweetness of mushrooms from the farm. Lin Feng closed his eyes and inhaled. He opened his eyes, stood up, and brushed off his pants. "I'm going to sleep." Margaret also stood up. "Will you watch the ants again tomorrow?" Lin Feng nodded. "Yes." Margaret asked, "For how long?" Lin Feng said, "All day." Margaret smiled. "What's so good about looking at ants?" Lin Feng said, "They have legs, antennae, and mouths. The legs are for walking, the antennae are for scouting the path, and the mouths are for carrying things. They don't talk, but they are all busy. Even watching for a day, you can't see it all." Margaret looked at him. "Then keep watching tomorrow." Lin Feng nodded. "Mhm." He turned and walked into the Restaurant, with Margaret following behind him. The door closed, and the lights went out. The cat jumped down from the steps, walked back to the tree pit, curled up on the blue cloth, and closed its eyes. The moon emerged from behind the clouds, casting the cat's shadow on the ground—small and round, like a ball of yarn. The wind blew, and the shadow wavered, but it did not break. Lin Feng stood inside the Restaurant, looking out the window. He saw the cat's shadow, the tree's shadow, and the moon's shadow. He watched for a long time, then drew the curtains and went to sleep.

[Chapter 156 End]