Miserable but have to keep working, mustn't let Ah Pa know ...Scene 3: At The Market Place
‘I’m sorry, Ah Pa …’
Chi Kam Kwai looks up to see his son, lugging in a box of fish. Immediately, he drops what he is doing and goes over to him. ‘Son, where have you been? I’ve been so worried about you. Did you find Jing Ko?’
Chi Yat-Po does not like lying to his father. He has never lied to his father, not once in his entire life. Instead of answering, he drops his head and looks at the ground. Not a word escapes from his lips.
Chi Kam Kwai is a patient man. He removes his bloodied apron and motions for his shop assistant to take over the task of seeing to a customer who is turning over a live pomfret in her hands. Aunty, don’t manhandle the fish - Ah Piu here will help you to get a nice, lively one!
He pulls his son into the back of the shop.
‘Son, do you know how frantic Jing Ko has been? She’s been searching for you. She called the house early this morning. I haven’t even brushed my teeth and the phone was ringing off the hook. She says she’s been calling your mobile but there’s no pick-up. What happened? Where did you go? I thought you knew where to find Jing Ko last night when you dashed off all of a sudden – well, answer me, will you?’
He lifts his head but his eyes do not meet his father’s gaze. ‘Ah Pa, don’t ask me so many questions all at once. I don’t know how to answer you – ’
‘Just tell me one thing – did you find Jing Ko last night or didn’t you? What’s happened between the two of you? Why was she calling so early this morning?’
‘No, Ah Pa, I can honestly tell you. Jing Ko and I did not meet last night. I did not manage to talk to her or see her face-to-face at all.’
‘But I thought you knew where she was?’
‘Ah Pa, people can make mistakes. I cannot read Jing Ko’s mind. I may think she’s at a certain place but in actuality she is somewhere else – ’
‘Then did she manage to get through to you this morning? Where have you been the whole morning anyway?’
‘I’m sorry I overslept out at the fishing float. Yes, I did finally manage to see Jing Ko. In fact, she came over to the fishing float this morning and that’s why I am so late to work –’
‘I see, I see – ’ a smile breaks over Chi Kam Kwai’s face. He puts a hand on his son’s shoulder, gives him an affectionate squeeze.
‘Son, my son, why are you looking so miserable? You are a silly boy indeed – ’
‘Ah Pa, don’t tease me, I’m not in the mood – ’
‘Ah Pa teasing you is a small matter. You’re a silly boy, looking so embarrassed and shy. My son, it’s a natural thing for a man to fall in love with a woman and vice-versa. There’s nothing for you to be ashamed of. So you and Jing Ko have finally reached an understanding, I trust?’
‘Yes, we have reached an understanding – ’
‘That’s good, son, good. One cannot live in a state of uncertainty for prolonged periods over matters of the heart. It’s good that both of you understand each other and are clear about where you both stand. All this uncertainty will take a toll on your health otherwise – ’
‘Yes, everything is certain and fixed now. There’s no going back, no – ’
‘That’s the way, my son. No going back. We must focus on what’s ahead. Keep going forward and don’t look back. Let the past be the past. If we have such an attitude, our life will be a happy and smooth-sailing one – ’
‘I won’t look back, Ah Pa. I’ll do my best not to turn back, trust me – ’
Chi Kam Kwai is beaming from ear to ear. His shop assistant, Ah Piu, is also beaming from ear-to-ear, that naughty eavesdropper.
He comes over and puts a hand on Chi Yat-Po’s shoulders, cheerful and friendly. ‘Are we going to hear wedding bells soon? Hey, Chi Kam Kwai, looks like you’re going to be digging into your nest egg again – this time for a happier and more useful occasion … ’
Chi Kam Kwai rubs his hands. ‘Son, son, when do you think is a good time for me and Kou Kou to go over to Kan Sui Zhong to have a talk? As soon as possible, don’t you think?’
Chi Yat-Po groans.
‘Ah Pa, will you stop calling him that? He’s not a glutinous rice dumpling, he’s Jing Ko’s father! Show him some respect, won’t you?’
‘You’re right, my son, as always, you’re right. After all, he’s going to be our in-law soon and it’s no good for me to keep calling him by that teasing nickname. I’m sorry, my son. Forgive your old dad – it’s a force of habit. I promise I’ll be more careful when I speak about Brother Zhong in the future – ’
‘Ah Pa, let me handle my own marriage matters. Please don’t do anything, please! I know when is the right time for things to be done – ’
Chi Kam Kwai feels his heart would burst with joy. His son is no longer a boy but a man. He empathizes completely. The day he fell in love with Yat-Po’s mother, he had been a transformed man. Transformed in the twinkling of an eye. One day, he was a happy-go-lucky fellow, satisfied to wake up in the morning, go to work, meet up with his friends afterwards and have a beer or two, before knocking off for home.
In those days, he had little money. A labourer in a soy sauce brewery owned by his Third Uncle, he depended entirely on the charity of this uncle’s family just to get his three square meals a day. Fortunately, Third Uncle was a kind man and treated him like a son, the one he never had.
Chi Kam Kwai was a playful young man and often took his work lightly, skipping off in the middle of the day to hang out with his best mates at the dock. In those days, they were a gang of five – Lightning Yip, Old Dog Head, Ah Thong, Kan Sui Zhong and himself. They spent most of their days lounging around, playing cards, smoking, going fishing, dreaming of fame and fortune but it was all mere talk.
One afternoon, a girl came to the brewery in search of work. She was an orphan and even more penniless than Chi Kam Kwai was. A slim young thing, barely 17, with eyes that glowed bright and alert, a quick smile that reveal the tiniest row of pearlescent teeth. She sang songs in a lilting voice and loved reciting classical poetry.
Chi Kam Kwai was hooked in an instance. Like a fish with no hope of disentangling himself from the bait.
All of a sudden, he wasn’t a good-for-nothing. All of a sudden, he found renewed vigour for life, a passion and a positive attitude towards work which stunned even his most sceptical of aunts and uncles.
By the time his uncle wanted to sell the brewery, Chi Kam Kwai had risen to floor manager.
The sweet orphan girl, whose name was Mei Yan, agreed to marry him.
He guessed that was when the enmity started, the trouble between him and Kan Sui Zhong. Both of them had chased after the same girl but Mei Yan chose him. Why? He never knew, probably because he straightened out but Kan Sui Zhong remained a loose talker, a loafer and a braggart up until the day he met Twinkle’s mother, a rich shopkeeper's daughter, and succeeded in sweet-talking her into a hasty but profitable marriage.
'My son, now that you’re going to be the head of your own household, you must think about your future seriously – don’t be so playful anymore – I will give you my support in any endeavour you desire to undertake – ’
Chi Yat-Po pushes his father’s hands away. ‘Ah Pa, I’m so terribly tired right now. Can you please leave me alone? – ’
‘I’m just giving you sound advice – ’
‘Ah Pa. I just want to be left alone. I’m tired – can’t you understand something this simple?’
Chi Kam Kwai is surprised and a little hurt. ‘All right, all right, I’ll leave you alone for now. You may be my flesh and blood but I swear, sometimes I don’t understand what goes on between those two ears of yours …’
Chi Yat-Po picks up fish from the box and chucks them into the display containers at the front of their shop. One by one, he throws them into the water, carelessly.
‘Hey, watch it, watch it – don’t throw the fish so hard, you’ll kill them – ’ Chi Kam Kwai eyes his son suspiciously.
The minute he turns away, Chi Yat-Po mutters under his breath, ‘Good, at least someone here knows what it feels like to be dropped on the head …’
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