Explore Chapter 12 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.
The sun was nearly set, and the people on the street gradually dispersed. Only then did I see clearly that the houses on either side were also square, devoid of doors and windows.
Several cat heads appeared atop the wall. Scorpion shouted a few times, and the cat heads vanished. After a while, the heads reappeared, lowering thick ropes to haul up the packages of intoxicating leaves one by one. Darkness fell. Not a soul remained on the street. Only a little more than half of the intoxicating leaves packages had been pulled up. The soldiers seemed impatient, all showing signs of unease. I observed that the felinoids disliked working at night, even though their vision was not incapable of functioning in the dark.
I thought to myself: if I had a flashlight, this would be a fine opportunity to see Felicity alone at night. Unfortunately, both flashlights were on the plane and had likely been shattered. I agreed to Scorpion's request. Although I very much wished to see the interior of his residence, judging from my experience of living in the groves of intoxicating leaves, it might not be more comfortable inside the house than in the open air. Scorpion was pleased and ordered the soldiers to disperse. Then he himself grasped the thick rope and climbed up the wall.
Left alone, a light breeze still blowing, the stars brighter than usual, with a touch of autumn in the air, I felt quite refreshed. Unfortunately, a foul ditch outside the house prevented me from peacefully enjoying this quiet night. Tearing open a package of intoxicating leaves, I ate a few leaves, partly to stave off hunger, partly to resist the surrounding stench, and then walked back and forth alone.
I couldn't help but ponder many questions. Why did the felinoids make such a racket during the day, yet hide away completely at night? Was this a sign of social unrest? So many people crammed into these rows of houses, with no ventilation, no light, only flies, stench, and filth. Was this life? The houses had no doors? No windows? Oh, for fear of robbery! In seeking safety, they completely forgot hygiene. Disease would rob them of their lives from within! Seeing again that giant finger of destruction, I suddenly felt a shiver. If there were infectious diseases like cholera or scarlet fever, this city, this city, could be emptied of people in a week! The more I looked at the city, the uglier it appeared. A huge, ugly shadow stood under the starlight, without a sound, emitting only a stench.
I moved several packages of intoxicating leaves, spread them out far from the foul ditch, and lay on my back gazing at the stars. This was not an uncomfortable bed. But I felt a bit desolate. I seemed to envy those felinoids a little. Dirty, stinky, airless... after all, they lived together as a family, young and old. And I? Alone on Mars, keeping company with the starlight! And still having to guard Scorpion's intoxicating leaves! I couldn't help but laugh, though two tears welled up in my eyes.
I was slowly drifting off to sleep, with two contradictory thoughts seemingly preventing peaceful slumber: I should loyally guard Scorpion's intoxicating leaves; and why bother? Just as I was in this half-asleep state, someone patted my shoulder. I sat up immediately, yet still thought I was dreaming. Meaninglessly rubbing my eyes, I saw two felinoids standing before me. Encountering people in a place where I was sure there was no one couldn't help but make me think of ghosts. The superstitions of primitive humans seemed to always startle us "civilized" people unexpectedly like this.
Although I hadn't examined them closely, I was sure they were not ordinary felinoids, because they dared to pat my shoulder. I didn't even think to grab my pistol. I seemed to have forgotten that I was on Mars. "Please sit down!" I don't know how I thought of these words, or perhaps because it's a common polite phrase, I unconsciously uttered it.
"You are also a foreigner from other Martian states," said the thinner one-they didn't seem to have pre-scripted their words, but showed mutual respect, unlike Scorpion who monopolized the conversation, not allowing others to speak.
They sat down again and asked me many things about Earth. I loved these two people. Their speech was simple and clear, with few polite phrases, yet always maintaining the respect between friends. "Appropriate" was the best word to describe it. If appropriate words must come from clear thinking, then these two men's intelligence was many times greater than Scorpion's-not to mention the other felinoids. Their country-Luminia-they told me, was a seven-day journey from here. Their profession was the same as mine: protecting the groves of intoxicating leaves for the landlords of the cat country.
"Mr. Earth," the thin one said with a smile, "I'm afraid we've startled you? Please rest assured, we will not use force. We have come to discuss with you. Scorpion's intoxicating leaves are entrusted to you. You are loyally guarding them for him, yet Scorpion doesn't particularly appreciate it. If you confiscate them, Scorpion won't hate you either. You must know that the people of this cat country have a different way of dealing with the world."
"Yes, we are all animals capable of devising bad ideas, because our ancestors were not wise." He looked at me, probably admitting that I did resemble a monkey, then said, "Let's continue with Scorpion's matter. You loyally guard his intoxicating leaves for him, yet he doesn't appreciate it. On the contrary, if you confiscate this half, he can proclaim everywhere that he was robbed, thus raising the price of his goods. The rich get robbed, the poor get punished, Scorpion never loses out."
"Yes, Mr. Earth. In our country, we view things the same as you do. However, in this cat country, we are loyal, they are cunning. It doesn't seem very fair. Frankly speaking, the existence of such a country on Mars is a shame for the humans of Mars. We simply don't treat the people of the cat country as human."
"There's some of that. But on Mars, lack of military strength is never the reason for losing international status. When citizens lose their character, the country gradually loses its national dignity. No one wants to cooperate with a country that has no dignity. We admit that other countries have many unreasonable actions towards the cat country, but who would risk offending equal countries by speaking up for a country without dignity? There are many poor and weak countries on Mars, and they do not lose international status because of their poverty and weakness. National weakness has many causes-natural disasters, geography can all make a country poor and weak. But lack of character is self-inflicted by the people. Weakness from this earns no sympathy from others. Take Scorpion for example. You are a guest from Earth, not his slave. Has he ever invited you to rest in his home for a moment? Has he ever asked if you've eaten? He only tells you to guard the intoxicating leaves! I'm not inciting you to rob him. I'm explaining why we foreigners from other Martian states look down on them. Now, to the first issue." The fat one caught his breath and handed the conversation to the thin one.
"Suppose tomorrow, Mr. Earth, you request to stay at Scorpion's home, he will definitely not accept you. Why? You'll find out later. We only state our purpose. The foreigners from other Martian states here live separately in one place, west of the city. All foreigners from other Martian states live there, regardless of nationality, like a big family. Now, we two are in charge of hospitality. Those who know the place are hosted by us two. Those who don't are notified by us. We have people watching around Felicity every day to report to us. Why do we organize this group? Because the filthy habits of the locals cannot be corrected. Their food is almost like poison. Their doctors are-oh, they have no doctors! There are other reasons, but no need to go into details now. Our intention is entirely out of care for you. Can you believe that, Mr. Earth?"
I believed their sincerity. I also guessed some reasons they hadn't explicitly stated. But since I had come to Felicity, I wanted to see Felicity first. Perhaps seeing other countries first would be more beneficial. From these two men, I could tell that Luminia must be much more civilized than the cat country. Yet, witnessing the demise of civilization is a rare opportunity. I am not viewing history with a tragic attitude. I genuinely hope that I can be of some use to the people of Felicity. I dare not say I sympathize with Scorpion, but Scorpion does not represent all people. I do not doubt the words of these two foreigners from other Martian states, but I must see for myself.
They guessed my thoughts. The fat one said, "We don't need to decide now. Whenever you wish to come find us, we always welcome you. Go straight west from here-best to go at night, less crowded-reach the western end, then go a little further, and soon you'll see our residence. Goodbye, Mr. Earth!"
"Thank you!" I said. "I will definitely come to your place, but first I want to see the people here."
No! I cannot go live in the foreigners' city! The felinoids are not beyond redemption. See how honest they are. They are beaten like drums by the soldiers, yet still smile. As soon as it gets dark, they go to sleep without making a sound. Aren't such people easy to manage? With good leadership, they would surely be the most peaceful, law-abiding citizens.
I couldn't sleep. Vivid images arose in my mind. Felicity rebuilt, becoming a garden-like city. Music, sculpture, the sound of reading, flowers, birds, order, cleanliness, beauty...