Explore Chapter 19 of '老张的哲学' with the original Chinese text, English translation, detailed Chinese vocabulary explanations, and audio of the Chinese original. Listen and improve your reading skills.
In the middle of the hall stood a long table covered with a snow-white tablecloth. In the center was a vase of flowers, with snacks and tea sets arranged around it. Long Officer sat at one end of the table. To his left sat three Foreigners with yellow hair, green eyes, pointed noses, and high foreheads. To his right sat two Chinese, chattering in a foreign language. Apart from during the Boxer Rebellion when he had dealings with the Japanese, Lao Zhang had always kept a distance of ten zhang from foreigners, watching from afar. Now, separated by only five chi, his legs couldn't help but feel weak.
Lao Zhang mustered his courage, lifted his legs, and shuffled inward. Long Shugu pointed to an empty chair on his right. Lao Zhang swallowed a lump of saliva and sat down, sitting only a little over two chi away from the Foreigners!
Father and daughter poured the tea. Long Officer said to the elderly foreigner sitting in the middle on the left:
That Officer began to pray haltingly in Chinese. The others all bowed their heads, closed their eyes, and held their breath. Lao Zhang took the opportunity to see what the Foreigners looked like with their eyes closed, since it was rare to see foreigners sleeping. At the sound of "Amen," everyone raised their heads and opened their eyes. Lao Zhang started to close his eyes.
Long Feng passed the snacks to everyone. Lao Zhang saw the Foreigners taking snacks and putting them in their mouths, so he boldly took one piece.
Long Shugu chatted and laughed. What the Foreigners couldn't understand was translated by the two men sitting on the right, so the Foreigners laughed too. Long Feng and the Foreigners spoke in a mix of Chinese and Western languages. Lao Zhang didn't understand a thing, so he took advantage of everyone's inattention to grab another snack and gulped down the milk tea in one breath.
"This Mr. Zhang is a philanthropist, donating money every year." Long Shugu said to the Foreigners with a smile.
"With Old Long making the Foreigners chant spells, and the Foreigners immediately bowing their heads to chant, I can't afford to cross him now!" Lao Zhang thought as he took the donation book. He looked through it from beginning to end. Zhang, Wang, Li, Zhao-none donated less than five or three yuan; there wasn't half a copper coin or ten cents. He looked again and finally found someone who had donated fifty cents. So, Lao Zhang gritted his teeth and wrote down a donation of fifty cents in small currency.
"Tidy up the things. Don't wait for me for dinner; I won't be back early!" Then Long Officer turned back to Lao Zhang and said, "Thank you for helping with our funds! Shall we go out together?"
Lao Zhang followed everyone out the street gate. Long Shugu said "Goodbye" to Lao Zhang and strode away with the Foreigners. Lao Zhang squatted at the base of the wall, dazed.
The Debt wasn't collected, the marriage proposal wasn't settled, and instead, he was cheated out of fifty cents by the Foreigners. Lao Zhang had never suffered such bitterness in his life! With no way out, he took out his little account book and wrote a line: