The Rise and Fall of the Ding Family in the Song Dynasty

“Ding-ding-ding,”Yang Decheng climbed up to the seventh floor,panting heavily as he knocked on the door. From inside came a“crash,”as if something had fallen to the ground,followed by complete silence.Yang Decheng pressed his ear to the door and listened carefully before knocking again. After a while,a timid girl’s voice came from inside:“There’s no one at home.” Yang Decheng carefully checked the address on the list in his hand,then raised his voice and said,“Comrade Jin DouDou,don’t be afraid.Come out.I’m not a bad person.I’m from the community,here to handle some necessary procedures for your family’s low-income assistance.” There was no movement inside.Yang Decheng had no choice but to knock harder and harder,almost pounding on the door. It was really frustrating.The low-income assistance funds allocated by the finance department had already arrived this year.However,to receive the assistance,the recipients needed to submit their low-income certificates,ID cards,and bankbooks with only a few cents left in them,so that the community could handle the approval procedures and disbursement of funds.Most families that met the low-income criteria had already received their funds.The remaining few who were uncooperative all had their own issues.For example,the girl living here was a severe autistic patient. He didn’t know how long he had been knocking when a voice finally came from inside again:“Who are you?” Yang Decheng swallowed his saliva and raised his voice again:“I’m from the community.Please hand over your ID card,low-income certificate,and bankbook so that I can handle the procedures for you.Otherwise,the money won’t be able to reach you.” “Why isn’t the money given to me directly?” “You see,without your documents,how can we tell the finance department who is eligible for the low-income assistance?Who would believe us just by talking?So,there must be some procedures.Don’t worry.I’ll leave as soon as I get the documents and bring the money to you next time.If you’re not comfortable,you can slip the documents out through the door c***k,okay?” “I...I’ve never seen you before.I don’t know who you are.I can’t give you anything.” Yang Decheng,suppressing his anger,said helplessly,“That’s true.Then just open the door and take a look at me.If you won’t open the door,how can you trust me?How could I deceive you when I’m here to give you money?I’m really from the community...” Yang Decheng talked incessantly for a while.After a brief silence inside,Jin DouDou timidly asked again,“Are you really from the community?” “I am really from the community.” “What do you want with me?” “I...”Yang Decheng was momentarily distracted before remembering his purpose:“Oh,I’m here to get your ID card,low-income certificate,and bankbook so that I can handle the disbursement of the low-income assistance.Please cooperate.Most people have already received their funds.There are only a few households left whose documents we can’t collect.Without the documents,we can’t complete the procedures,and the money can’t be distributed.” “Most people have already received it?Then why not me?” “Because...”Yang Decheng vaguely remembered that he seemed to have mentioned it before,but he was now dizzy and couldn’t recall it.So he repeated himself again. After a long while,the girl inside firmly said,“I...I’ve never seen you before.I don’t know who you are.I can’t give you anything.” “...” After all the trouble,Yang Decheng returned empty-handed and continued to climb to the next building. This household had the surname Wu,with two bachelors living there.The elder brother was named Wu You,and the younger brother was named Wu Lu.The elder brother pedaled a rickshaw for a living,and the younger brother,who needed the low-income assistance,was said to have some mental issues... Yang Decheng finally managed to knock the door open.The elder brother,Wu You,opened the door with a cigarette dangling from his mouth and his upper body bare.Upon hearing about the low-income assistance,he hastily rummaged through his things and took out the low-income certificate and bankbook.Then,with a ingratiating smile,he said,“Comrade,my brother’s ID card has been cut up by him.We really don’t have it.Can we just use these two items?” “How can that be possible?The ID card is the only valid legal document required for the transfer of funds.If you don’t have it,just go and get a new one,or at least get a temporary one.” “But...you see,my brother won’t go.There’s no way.” “Where is he?Let me talk to him.” “There he is,in this room.” The door that had been tightly closed was opened by Wu You.Wu You rubbed his hands and said,“Oh,it’s a good thing that you’re here today,Comrade Yang.The last time,it was a young lady from the community.When I said I wouldn’t open the door,she insisted.She ended up screaming and running away,even spraining her ankle...” The door opened,and there sat a man on the windowsill.With the breeze blowing,his long hair fluttered along with the curtains,looking very elegant.He had a long beard,and his deep eyes,under his thick eyebrows,were gazing out of the window,never turning back.His legs were bent,his elbows resting on his knees,and his hand supporting his chin,resembling the statue of“The Thinker”by Rodin. He was completely n***d. “Wu Lu,the community comrade wants you to take a photo to get a temporary ID card.” The“Thinker”slowly turned his head,glanced at Yang Decheng indifferently,and said,“No way!” Yang Decheng began another round of persuasion,but the“statue,”now lost in thought,gazed at a poplar tree outside the window,sometimes frowning,sometimes smiling,as serene as Buddha,and never looked back at him again. “Comrade Yang,what do you think...”the elder brother asked worriedly. “Here’s what we can do...”At a loss,Yang Decheng took out a simple camera from his black bag:“Try to get him down.Otherwise,with the backlight now,I’m afraid the photo won’t be clear.Get him down,and I’ll take a photo for him.Then the community can issue a certificate to get him a temporary ID card.” “Click!”The flash went off,capturing the image of the“Thinker”in his n***d,sprawling posture.Then Yang Decheng ran away as fast as he could.A slipper flew out from inside just as the door slammed shut,whizzing past his head. Yang Decheng wiped his sweat and breathed a sigh of relief,saying to himself,“My goodness,I finally got the documents from this household.Oh?Where are the low-income certificate and bankbook?Damn it,I forgot to take them...” “Thump-thump-thump,”Yang Decheng,in a panic,knocked on the door again... He was also very helpless about this job,but what else could he do?After graduating from a third-rate university,this was the only job he could find.At night,when it was quiet,he liked to sleep naked.He would often sit on the bed,staring at his own little man,contemplating the spirit it embodied:It could grow and shrink,become thick or thin,stretch or bend,and be soft or hard.Learn from it;the setbacks in front of me are nothing!Thus,he felt at ease.Besides,he grew up in an orphanage.Now,doing this job was like giving back to society. With such self-consolation,Yang Decheng,with a bruised eye,appeared at the door of Old Xu’s house.Old Xu,named Xu Haisheng,was said to have been quite a figure in his time,once a prominent figure on the antique street.Later,he was cheated out of a large sum of money by a counterfeit and became a mentally ill patient with intermittent attacks. As soon as he knocked on the door,it easily opened.A thin old man appeared at the door,looking at Yang Decheng with a very paranoid and alert gaze.Outside the door stood a young man of medium height,fair-skinned,carrying a black bag and wearing black-rimmed glasses. Old Xu coldly said,“I just paid the electricity bill.I don’t owe anything!” “Wait,wait,”Yang Decheng pushed the door with a smile and said with a dry laugh,“Hehe,I’m not here to collect the electricity bill.I’m...a community worker,here to handle the low-income assistance fund distribution for you.” “Distribute relief funds?”Old Xu’s eyes lit up:“Come in.” Old Xu’s home was almost impossible to walk in,with all kinds of antiques and cultural relics from ancient times to the Republic of China era scattered everywhere.But judging by Old Xu’s shabby appearance,the remaining items were probably all fakes.He was very happy to receive relief funds,but as soon as Yang Decheng asked for his ID card,low-income certificate,and the bankbook with only one cent left in it,Old Xu immediately became furious,as if he had seen a swindler who had cheated him out of his money before.He was very angry and wanted to drive Yang Decheng out. “I tell you,Old Xu,if you don’t give me the documents,how can I handle the procedures for you?”Yang Decheng said sternly.“Hey,don’t push me!I’m from the community.Don’t you recognize me?” Old Xu sneered,“Just because you’re from the community,do you think you’re something special?The person who cheated me out of my money before also claimed to be from some official department.” “You...”Yang Decheng shouted,“I’m telling you,Old Xu,whether you like it or not,you have to give me the documents today.If you give them to me,I’ll give you the low-income assistance.If you don’t give me the documents,you won’t get a single cent.Do you understand?Not a single cent for you!” “What?”Old Xu’s eyes turned red instantly.“You’re trying to swindle my money.You’re a deceitful person.I deserve the money.Why shouldn’t I get it?” “Not good,Old Xu is about to go crazy,”Yang Decheng realized and turned to run.But as soon as he heard that he wouldn’t get the money,Old Xu grabbed a vase of some unknown dynasty and lunged at Yang Decheng like a mad tiger,smashing it down on the back of his head... “Crash!”The vase shattered,and Yang Decheng fell to the ground. When the community director,Director Niu,arrived with some people and managed to control Old Xu,they lifted up the bloodied and unconscious Yang Decheng.As Yang Decheng lay there with his last breath,Director Niu leaned in to listen carefully to what he was saying.Yang Decheng shivered,gathered his strength,and managed to say clearly,“Director...Director Niu...” “Yes,yes,Comrade Decheng,I’m listening,”Director Niu said. “Director...Director Niu...He hit me like this.You have to hold him accountable...” “Well...”Director Niu said with a troubled look on his face,“Comrade Decheng,he...he is mentally ill.Even if he killed someone,he wouldn’t be held responsible.This matter is quite difficult to handle...” “I...I still have nowhere to seek justice.It’s so frustrating...” Yang Decheng sighed softly,and then his spirit seemed to drift away. At the grand memorial service that was held,Director Niu,with tears in his eyes,addressed the office staff,community residents,and city reporters,saying in a choked voice,“Comrade Yang Decheng was an orphan.He was raised by the Party and the people.After he started working,Comrade Decheng was amiable,diligent,and always ready to endure hardships.He worked hard without any complaints and was recognized as an outstanding employee in our office.He...In his last moments,he still urged me to continue the low-income assistance distribution work in an orderly manner,ensuring satisfaction from the masses,the government,and the whole society.He was a self-disciplined and tolerant person,and his noble character is worth learning from by all of us.Comrade Yang Decheng’s life was a brilliant and striving one...”