The chapter starts off with Luling enjoying 'forbidden joy' for the first time. She and Kaijing fell in love and were making love in the abandoned dark storage room. Luling was the 'daughter of Precious Auntie.a woman who also could not control her desires, who then gave birth to me[her].' Then they were attacked by bugs so they abruptly ended and got out of the room.
After that night, Luling was worried yet happy about what she had done. the next day Kaijing told her that the japanese had invaded Peking and it seemed like war for sure. Then Sister Yu and Miss grutoff joined in the discussion of the war. Then they stopped when they saw a woman standing at the door. It was Gaoling, Luling excitedly hugged her and they began talking about the family and their lives.
Then Gaoling wanted to stay over at the orphanage because she didn't want to go back to Fu nan but Sister Yu wouldn't allow it. The suddenly, after Luling had returned from a walk, she heard Sister Yu and Gaoling having a conversation and then Gaoling stayed over at the orphanage. and suddenly, Gaoling and sistger yu seemed to be spending more time chatting with each other, like good friends. They even worked together to write a moch letter to scare Fu nan, saying that Gaoling had been arrested by the Japanese so she wouldn't have to go back to him.
Then Luling and Kaijing got married, she had both a chinese and american wedding. She also invited Father and Mother and they never spoke about the embarrassement they all knew about. After everyone left, Luling was glad she and Kaijing were finally husband and wife. She was glad she finally had a family to call her own too.
The Japanese continued to attack and everyday Kaijing and Miss grutoff stayed by the radio, waiting for news. The war also led to a black market opening where people snuck food supplies in and sold them. They were like delicacies.
Kaijing still went to the quarry which drove Luling crazy with worry and when he wasn;t at the quarry he would be teaching the girls geology.
One day, Teacher Pan informed them all that Kaijing and all his friends had been captured when they were at the quarry, captured to go and be soldiers, to fight the Japanese.
Luling grew thin over the next 2 months. Then one day, Kaijing and his friends returned. He was thin and worn out, his eyes lost it's sparkle. The Japanese soldiers came after Kaijing and they questioned him. After that, they lined them up and shot them.Luling kept reminding herself of what Kaijing had told her, 'we are divine, unchanged by time'
Character analysis:
Luling:
loving: she loved Kaijing so much that her days seemed meaningless without him around during the months when he was seized to fight the war, he was her only cure.
brave: from that little girl without a home, she grew into a teacher, a sister and a wife to Kaijing. And she finally had a family to call her own, all thanks to her bravery and never giving up on life
forgiving: although Mother had thrown her out of the house when she was little, she hated hearing about their unhappiness from Gaoling and despite the awkwardness, she still invited them to her wedding.
Gaoling:
cunning: she and sister yu faked a letter, saying that she had been arrested and that officials were coming after Fu nan soon because she hated Fu nan and she wanted to get away from him.
out going- the moment she arrived at the orphanage, not long after, she began talking to sister yu and they even became good friends.
themes:
war- how it begun and how it changed their lives forever. it took away the lives of many, including Kaijing.
change- in Luling. she had grown into an adult and now she was Kaijing's wife.
favourite quotes:
1)my heart hurt, i didnt not want to hear his apology, his regrets.
2)the next morning i felt like a different person, happy but also worried
3)all day long, i fely confused-happy in love, angry with my family, yet strangely glad that they were there.
4) i loved to sit in his rooms, knowing this was my family home too.
5) thought precious auntie had been gone for all these years, i still heard her words, in happy and sad times, when it was important.
6) the only way i could push it out of my mind was to go into my memory. and there in that safe place, i was with him, he was kissing me when he told me, 'we are divine, unchanged by time'
most memorable moment:
the most memorable moment in this chapter was when Kaijing died. Not because i was happy he did but because i wanted to find out how Luling dealt with it. She had found love at last and she lost all those she truly loved, except for Gaoling and now she lost another. i was wondering how strong her character would become.
questions:
