Chapters 23 & 24

Summary

Winnie shows her daughter the various snaps that Jimmy had taken. It also includes the pictures of Danru. Weili and Danru stay for a few days at PeanutÂ’s place. A few days later Jimmy asks her to move in with him and Weili, who is bored of living with the communists, is too to comply with his request. The days when Weili, Jimmy and Danru live together are the best moments of her life. Weili now is a carefree woman and enjoys each day of her life. Danru too has changed. From a shy kid he has now become an outgoing child. He too loves the company of Jimmy Louie.

Meanwhile, Wen Fu continues to squander WeiliÂ’s fatherÂ’s money and property. Though not purposely, Peanut is indirectly responsible for Wen Fu finding out, that Weili is staying with Jimmy. Weili now feels that it is important for her to get divorce from him. She has to spend her gold ingots to pay the bills of the lawyers. But this is all in vain, as Wen Fu terrorizes the lawyers and therefore in spite of several attempts, she cannot obtain divorce from him. Concerned about DanruÂ’s safety from Wen Fu, Weili him to Harbin to stay with Hulan. The boy is unwilling but Weili coaxes him to go. In a short period of time, Auntie Du comes to WeiliÂ’s house with some terrible news. The child Danru, who Weili loves more than life it self has died in an epidemic that has also claimed the life of HulanÂ’s husband Jiaguo. This shocking news completely unnerves her. It is the most depressing phase of her life.

Wen Fu has various designs to torture Weili, though she no longer stays in his house. One day Weili is arrested without any kind of forewarning. The judge finds her guilty of leaving her husband, of letting her son die because of her carelessness and stealing valuables from her husband and sentences her to two years of imprisonment. It doesnÂ’t take one long to find out that, Wen Fu is the one behind all these developments. In the court, Wen Fu says that he will pardon her if she comes back to stay with him. Weili decides to go to jail than become Wen FuÂ’s wife again.

Weili receives many love letter of Jimmy Louie in the Jail and the letter reading is the only way for Weili to feel some relief from the mundane prison life.

Hulan has been extremely depressed after the death of her husband Jiaguo in the epidemic. After many months Hulan comes to the prison to meet Weili. Hulan is now remarried to Kuang An and is pregnant. Hulan asks her husband to help Weili as he has some connections. Two months later Weili is released from prison. She is very grateful to Hulan and Kuang Ann. Later she understands that she has to feel grateful to Auntie Du for her release from prison, as she is the one responsible for her freedom from jail.

Weili sends various telegrams to Jimmy and he answers them by asking her to come to US as his wife. With great difficulty Weili manages to get her visa and tickets. But she knows that before going to the US, she has to make Wen Fu sign the divorce papers. Weili cleverly manipulates the situation and tricks him to sign the divorce papers.

Wen Fu is enraged and just the day before Weili was to leave for US, Wen Fu enters her house. He abuses her, tears the divorce papers, and rapes her at gunpoint. Hulan arrives on the scene. Weili takes this opportunity to humiliate Wen Fu and procure the tickets from his pockets. Before going, Wen Fu warns her that he will never allow her to be at peace.

In about a weekÂ’s time, Weili is united with Jimmy Louie and nine months later a little girl, Pearl, is born. Meanwhile, the communists have taken over China and therefore it is not possible for anybody to leave China.

Table of Contents | Printable Version