Explore Chapter 16 of 'Cat Country' with the original Chinese text, English translation, detailed Chinese vocabulary explanations, and audio of the Chinese original. Listen and improve your reading skills.
Not residing in the foreign quarter was a mistake. I have become a homeless ghost again. Where to go? Those helpful felinoids are still watching me, probably waiting to demand money from me. They took Madam Envoy's belongings, true, but that likely won't make them abandon the hope of getting national spirits. My head aches terribly. Two of my teeth have been loosened by the fall. Gradually, I can no longer think. I am falling ill. A warning comes to my mind. I throw the pocketful of national spirits-some ten-dollar ones, some five-dollar ones-onto the ground. Let them divide or snatch it among themselves. I have no energy to care. Those eight women are beyond hope. Madam Envoy is done for too. A pool of blood flows from beneath her. Her eyes are still open, as if concerned about the eight little imps even after death. I cannot bury them. Others certainly won't bother. Disgust and disappointment make me want to smash my head with a fist.
I sat on the ground for a while. Though extremely reluctant to move, I had to stand up eventually. I couldn't watch these women rot and stink before my eyes. I limped along, probably disgracing foreigners quite a bit. The streets were crowded again. Some youths, each holding a piece of chalk, were writing on house walls one by one. The walls were still damp. After writing, when blown by a slight breeze, the words became particularly white. "Cleanliness Campaign," "The Whole City Washed"... every house wall was inscribed with such phrases. Though my head ached so, I couldn't help but laugh heartily. Advocating washing the whole city after the rain, without requiring any effort from people-felinoids really know how to get things done. Yes, the stinking ditches were indeed cleansed by the rainwater. Cleanliness Campaign, haha! Am I going a bit mad too? I wish I could pull out a pistol and shoot a few of those white-chalk-writing scoundrels!
I seem to recall Young Scorpion's words: the cultural institutions are on the other side of the street. I detoured, not to see the cultural institutions, but hoping to find a quiet place to endure for a while. I always thought street houses should face each other. Here, the houses on the street happen to be back-to-back. This new arrangement makes me forget my headache for a moment. Yet, only felinoids, who dislike fresh air and sunlight, could come up with such a clever idea. House backs leaning against house backs, with not a gap in between-this is less a street than a disease-brewing factory. My headache returns. Falling ill in a foreign land makes one particularly pessimistic. I seem to feel no hope of returning to China alive.
How long did I sleep? I don't know. Opening my eyes, I found myself in an extremely clean room. I thought this was a dream or a hallucination from rising fever. I touched my head. It wasn't very hot! I was baffled. Still feeling lazy, I closed my eyes again. There were very light footsteps. I slightly opened my eyes: more intoxicating than intoxicating leaves! She came over, touched my head, and nodded slightly. "All right!" she said to herself.
"This is one of the cultural institutions. We borrow it. Influential people can occupy institutional housing at will. We two can keep this place clean, which is enough to be worthy of the institution. Whether private individuals should occupy public space, others don't ask, and we see no need to delve deeper. Accommodation, still using these two most interesting words! Give him some more intoxicating leaves to eat."
"If we hadn't fed you some intoxicating leaves juice earlier, would you have planned to wake up again? Intoxicating leaves is truly good medicine! Here, intoxicating leaves is the king of all medicines. If it can cure an illness, there's hope for recovery. If it cannot, one can only wait for death. It indeed cures many ailments. Only one thing: it can revive the 'individual,' but it can kill the 'nation.' Intoxicating leaves has just this little flaw!" Young Scorpion took on a philosopher's tone again.
I ate some more intoxicating leaves. My spirits improved greatly, though I felt very lazy. I saw the wisdom of Luminia and other foreigners. They lived separately for good reason. The civilization of Cat Country is not to be trifled with. Once you get close to it, it sticks to you like paint. You must follow its ways without deviation. Cat Country is a vortex in the sea. Those who approach it are wholly engulfed. To enter Cat Country, you must become a felinoid through and through. Otherwise, simply avoid it. I resisted eating intoxicating leaves with all my might. But the result? I still had to eat! Here, you must eat it. If you don't, don't be here. That is absolute. If this civilization conquers all Mars-probably many Cat Country people dream of this-all humans on Mars will soon perish together. Filth, disease, chaos, confusion, darkness-these are the hallmarks of this civilization. Even if some elements within it emit light, that light cannot withstand this dark force. This force, I realize, must one day be eradicated by some true light or some poison, as if sterilized. However, felinoids themselves never think so. Young Scorpion probably sees this step. But since he recognizes the game is lost, he moves pieces casually and laughs at his own defeat. As for Scorpion and the rest, they are merely dreaming.