Chapter 54: Master and Disciple
"Zhao Xiaowei?" Hang Liumei repeated his name in disbelief. She couldn't believe that the lucky-looking man in front of her was the little boy from that year.
When the new grottoes were first discovered, Hang Liumei often accompanied Teacher Gong on their expeditions. Several times, while they were exploring the murals inside, they could hear a figure moving outside. Those outside thought the figure was unnoticeable, but even the slightest movement affected the light inside. After several such interruptions, Hang Liumei and Teacher Gong caught him red-handed.
He was a dark and thin boy, about fifteen or sixteen years old. When he saw the two of them, he knelt down and said, "Teachers, I want to learn painting. Please accept me as your student!"
Hang Liumei and Teacher Gong quickly pulled him up from the ground. Seeing that his coarse clothes were covered in patches and that he was hanging around outside at an age when he should be in school, they asked him, "What's your name? Why aren't you in school? What are you always doing by the door?"
The child raised his head stubbornly and answered loudly, "My name is Zhao Xiaowei. I help my family grow grapes nearby. I want to learn painting from you!"
"Learning painting? First tell me where your parents are and where your school is?" Teacher Gong held his arm and said patiently.
When he heard that Teacher Gong wanted to look for his parents, he immediately broke free from her hand: "My parents are busy with farm work, I still have things to do, Teacher, I will come to see you again tomorrow!" After that, he turned around and jumped off the platform, running into the woods like a monkey.
But the next second, they heard a "bang" and shouted, "Zhao Xiaowei? Zhao Xiaowei?" But no one answered. Fearing something had happened, they followed him, only to find Zhao Xiaowei facedown on the ground. Teacher Gong and Hang Liumei picked him up and pinched his philtrum. Zhao Xiaowei quickly opened his eyes. Teacher Gong brushed the dirt off his face, and his first words were, "I'm hungry."
Hang Liumei ran back to get their lunch boxes. Zhao Xiaowei was trying to refuse at first, but when he smelled the aroma of the food, he couldn't help it and gobbled up four big buns. His cheeks were stuffed full, and before he could even swallow it, he had to kneel down in front of the two of them again.
Hang Liumei quickly grabbed him and said, "What's wrong with your legs? Can't you stand properly for a while? You kneel down when you're not paying attention. You're so scary. If you keep kneeling like this, we won't dare to accept you as a student."
He immediately asked back, "Teacher, do you mean you want to accept me now?"
Teacher Gong smiled and said, "You're quite smart. Tell us first. Why did you run away mid-sentence?"
"Time is almost up, and I still have to go back to look after the grapes."
"Why don't you study?"
Zhao Xiaowei lowered his head and said nothing. He looked at the two people's empty lunch boxes and said, "Teachers, I have eaten all your food today. Otherwise, I will compensate you. Please come to my house. I have food at home."
Hang Liumei had just said, "No, that's not necessary," when Teacher Gong pulled her aside. She whispered to Hang Liumei, "I think this kid isn't bad. He wants to learn painting for no reason. I wonder if he has any difficulties. It's not okay for him to not go to school like this. Otherwise, we should go with him and see what's going on."
So the two followed Zhao Xiaowei to his home. While it was nominally a home, it was actually just a makeshift shed outside the vineyard. Inside, there were only chipped pots and pans, and a person lay on a crooked bed, unresponsive to the noise. Zhao Xiaowei found two small stools and placed them outside, where Hang Liumei and Teacher Gong sat. He then rushed back in, fetched two sweet potatoes, and squatted over the small stove outside to start a fire.
Hang Liumei and Teacher Gong understood most of what was going on. Zhao Xiaowei, without waiting for them to ask, continued to recount his family story. He was seventeen years old, a freshman in high school, when a sudden tragedy struck his family. His father suddenly became seriously ill and underwent major surgery at the county hospital, leaving him unable to work. He was bedridden, as they had seen him, and he had been forced to drop out of school to care for him. A local recommended them to help grow grapes, promising a slightly higher income than at home, so they decided to move to the fields.
He was depressed because he couldn't study, so he went running around in the mountains. One day, he accidentally discovered the cave and was very fond of the murals inside. When he went there again later, Hang Liumei and Teacher Gong were already there.
"Teacher, I have always liked painting. My family didn't have the conditions to let me learn it before. Now I can't go to school anyway. If I can learn painting, I will have an extra skill in the future. I don't want to grow grapes all my life." He lowered his head and added firewood to the stove. When the branch broke in his hand, Hang Liumei saw tear marks on the back of his hand.
Hang Liumei and Teacher Gong looked at each other, both frowning. Teacher Gong spoke first: "Then—where's your mother?"
"She has another piece of land, and the more she grows, the more money she earns. My dad still needs someone to take care of him, so I didn't dare to stay any longer and was anxious to come back."
Teacher Gong stood up and told him to stop worrying about the sweet potatoes. She took a few dollars from her pocket, and Hang Liumei followed suit, handing over everything she had. Teacher Gong folded the money together and sorted it out. She took Zhao Xiaowei's hand and gave it to him, saying, "We're not art teachers. If we were to teach you this way, we'd be misleading. But you have a good heart for learning. Thank you for hosting us today. I hope you can return to school soon."
After saying this, Teacher Gong said goodbye to Hang Liumei and left. Not long after they left, Zhao Xiaowei ran over to them and stuffed a bag of grapes into their hands. "Teachers, I'll go back tomorrow to become your apprentices. See you tomorrow." Before he could finish his words, he ran back. He opened the bag and saw that besides the grapes, there were also two cooked sweet potatoes and the money they had just given him.
The next day, he waited at the entrance to the cave, just as he had promised. Seeing Hang Liumei and Teacher Gong arrive, he didn't disturb them, but quietly followed them while they worked, and they left him alone. Xiaowei didn't stay long, and after a while, he quietly left. When Hang Liumei and Teacher Gong left the cave, there was another bunch of grapes at the entrance.
After a few days of this, both Hang Liumei and Teacher Gong decided they couldn't go on like this. Their family made a living growing grapes, and giving them bunches of grapes for free wasn't just cutting into their family's food supply. So that day, they took over waiting for Zhao Xiaowei at the entrance to the cave. When Zhao Xiaowei arrived, he was stunned: "Teachers, are you trying to kick me out?"
Hang Liumei took out the money they had agreed on in advance and said, "This is the money we paid for the grapes these days. You keep it all. This is the first rule." Seeing that Xiaowei was about to argue, she quickly added, "If you don't take the money, we won't take the grapes left at the door in the future, and we won't come here anymore."
Xiaowei quickly shut up and put the money in his pocket. Teacher Gong pulled a notebook and pen from her bag and gave them to him. "You always come here with only your ears and eyes. How much can you remember if you listen like that? We two really can't teach you anything, but if you want to stay here, then stay."
"And these, take them back and read them slowly." Hang Liumei also brought her son's used textbooks and exercises to him.
Zhao Xiaowei took it without saying a word, sniffed suddenly, and then began to cry. He held something in one hand and wiped his tears with his sleeve with the other. Hang Liumei patted his shoulder and said, "Okay, we can't stand your Chengmen Lixue and three visits to thatched cottage. These are all earned by your desire to learn."
Later, they really did behave like they were in class. When they were working, they would go about their own business. Whenever they had a moment, they would explain historical allusions and creative techniques to Zhao Xiaowei, taking in as much as he could. He stared at their backs as they stood before the mural, his gaze as reverent as if he were looking at a podium. Sometimes he would write down the professional knowledge they shared, sometimes he would imitate their paintings, and more often he would sit outside, quietly memorizing and doing exercises.
Hang Liumei watched him from the cave, head bowed in thought, and often lamented inwardly that her own children could study but didn't want to, while this one, unable to go to school, was still trying to learn. Heaven's distribution of things was truly unfair.
That morning, the three of them sat outside to rest. Hang Liumei picked up Zhao Xiaowei's open notebook, which was filled with his drawings from the past few days. She said in amazement, "You draw very well, Xiaowei. You've made rapid progress. If you can study hard for a few years, we can be colleagues at the research institute in the future."
Zhao Xiaowei shook his head and said, "Teacher Hang, I know in my heart that I am still far from perfect. I don't have any basic skills at all, and I still want to be a great painter. It's really a fantasy."
"Don't let this discourage you. Teacher Gong will teach you step by step, just like he taught me. Many of us have laid a solid foundation, and the first thing we need to do is forget everything we learned before and enter Dunhuang with a blank slate. You are actually in the best position now. Don't let up. I'm going to be away for a while. When I come back, I will not only look at your paintings, but also check your homework."
The next day, their family boarded a train for Xi'an. Their sister and brother-in-law had received a government-sponsored study abroad scholarship and were about to fly across the ocean. So, they first picked up their parents, then went to Beijing to see their sister and her family off. Their son, Jiang Yunyi, initially didn't want to go, but upon questioning, he realized he was worried Hang Liumei would force him into a cram school in Beijing. Hang Liumei tapped his forehead and told him he was dreaming, saying it would be cheaper to send Zhao Xiaowei if the opportunity arose.
The first thing they did upon returning home was to pay their respects to their grandmother. Her mother casually mentioned that Sister Xiuchun had brought the children to burn incense for her. Hang Liumei was stunned for a moment. She could still vividly remember their first time together returning home from Dunhuang for the New Year. Later, both sisters married in the same year, and now they had both left home in the same place.
With her elder sister Liu Zhu gone, the family was truly separated. Later, their parents passed away one after another, and the sisters grew old. She couldn't understand what her grandmother said after Hang Liumei's wedding: "Every time we see each other, we see each other less and less." At a certain age, time would remind her that there were fewer and fewer people around her.
When Hang Liumei returned to the New Grottoes, Zhao Xiaowei handed her a notebook and said, "Teacher, you've been gone for nearly half a month, and I haven't dared to relax for a single day. Please check it."
Hang Liumei took it with a smile, and when the page was turned downwards, a lot of poplar leaves fell out. She caught one and asked Zhao Xiaowei, "What is this?"
Zhao Xiaowei looked up and pointed at the poplar tree beside them: "Every day when I come here, I pick a leaf and put it in the painting I drew that day to remind myself of the date. The drier the leaf, the longer I've persisted."
After a few months of being both a teacher and a friend, Hang Liumei was transferred back to Mogao Grottoes. She could only ask Teacher Gong to bring Jiang Yunyi's textbooks to Zhao Xiaowei from time to time. There were times when she was in such a hurry that she even gave away books that her son had not yet finished learning.
Another day after work, Teacher Gong went to Hang Liumei's room to talk to her: "If you're not busy recently, come with me to the Yulin Grottoes. Xiaowei is leaving. He said that the money from selling grapes this year is enough for his father to go home for medical treatment, and he can also save some tuition. He wants to go back to study and prepare for university. The child has been thinking about you all the time, and you haven't been there for a long time. Let's see him off together."
"So sudden?" Hang Liumei stood up from her chair. "But it's a good thing. The most important thing is to get into university. Teacher Gong, I'll go with you in a couple of days."
Just as Teacher Gong left, Lao Jiang pushed the door open and came in. Hang Liumei was counting money. She looked up and saw Lao Jiang: "You've come at the right time. This month's salary has just been paid, so please support me with whatever you have left."
Old Jiang honestly gave all the money he'd just received to his wife. Hang Liumei counted out the money for living expenses and folded the rest into her pocket. She planned to take it to Xiaowei. After all, he had been her teacher for so long, and if he still had to worry about money while attending school, he wouldn't be able to learn well even if he returned. So she decided to help as much as she could.
Lao Jiang didn't object to her approach, but only reminded her: "A child of this age already has self-esteem, so don't give it to him directly in front of him. There are notebooks and books, right? Just give them inside." Hang Liumei thought of the scene when she and Teacher Gong gave Xiaowei money for the first time and it was returned, and sighed that Lao Jiang was still thoughtful.
The last time they met was in front of Xiaowei's shed. He cooked a proper meal for them. He was usually outspoken, but he didn't say a word while eating. Instead, he ate himself to tears.
"Xiaowei, this is a good thing. Leave the mountains and the vineyards, and you will have a bright future." Although Teacher Gong comforted him in this way, her tears also welled up when she saw him crying.
Hang Liumei on the other side had already started crying.
When they parted, Hang Liumei and Teacher Gong simultaneously pulled out two novels—"How the Steel Was Tempered" and "My University." Zhao Xiaowei took the books and slowly read the titles. This time, he finally didn't kneel, but bowed to them. "Teacher Gong, Teacher Hang, thank you both. I will always remember you."
This time, Hang Liumei was driving. When they were about to return to the institute, Xiaowei stayed behind for a long time. As Hang Liumei watched his thin figure gradually disappear in the rearview mirror, she suddenly stepped on the brakes, turned around and said to him, "Xiaowei, do you want to come and see how we usually work?"
Zhao Xiaowei never imagined he'd make it to the Dunhuang Academy. Everything here was even better than he'd imagined. It was incredible that so many caves could be carved from a single mountain. It turned out that murals weren't always in ruins; there were such exquisite hidden gems. If he studied hard, he could be like the people here, wearing work clothes, carrying a drawing board and books, painting, writing, and doing research.
Zhao Xiaowei left the institute with a clear dream. After he left, Hang Liumei leaned over to Teacher Gong and whispered, "Did you put money in the book you gave him?"
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