Roland's Autobiography. The Trilogies of Time and Dust (All Three Volumes): Roland's Autobiography

Author: Luo Lan
Publisher:
Publish Date: 1998-09-01
Features: "Jutai Hao." "Jutai Hao" was a grain store opened in the era of his great-grandfather. Legend has it that the two older brothers of his great-grandfather moved from Shaoxing, Zhejiang, to the northern region with their ancestors. Arriving in Lutai with empty hands, they sought livelihoods. Initially, they set up a small stall selling grain under the eaves of a relative's home. Though the earnings were meager, the brothers were very popular and conducted their business honestly. In their free time, they studied books, earning the trust of their customers. The second great-grandfather had a particular fondness for literature and calligraphy, honing a skilled penmanship. He often wrote couplets for the local townspeople, gradually gaining fame and befriending local gentry. Through recommendations, he joined the county government as an assistant, drafting documents and receiving the county officials' favor. The first great-grandfather remained loyal to his profession, accumulating some capital to open a formal grain store—Jutai Hao. "Jutai Hao" brought wealth to these two brothers, and they later expanded into other businesses, opening a carpentry workshop, a jewelry store, an apothecary, and a huangjiu (Chinese rice wine) factory, all named with the character "Ju." They also acquired numerous properties, including several walled houses, estates and farmlands in and outside the county, as well as reed marshes, gradually becoming the wealthiest in the area. The grand estate where the family resided was located on North Street, backing onto the Jiyun River. It featured a central four-story quadrangle courtyard flanked by two side courtyards on the east and west. The fifth floor was a large garden spanning three courtyards. In the generation of his grandfather, they were the ones to inherit their ancestors' legacy. That was around the late Qing Dynasty during the Tongzhi and Guangxu reigns, when external threats persisted and opium addiction had long plagued the nation. The people could not resist the opium menace but instead adopted it as a fashionable trend. Many wealthy individuals followed suit, and some in his grandfather's generation became addicted, viewing it as a symbol of wealth and status. This accelerated the decline of the family's fortune. By his father's time, he understood what needed to be done and even when he could finally break free. Yet, he didn’t immediately recall me. Girls change a lot, and since I was in a lower grade, I must have been a very plain little girl back then, unlikely to attract his attention. When I told him, he looked exactly the same as when he was a child, with no changes at all. With a look of disbelief, he walked over and sat in the empty seat beside me, starting a cheerful conversation. Twenty years had passed, of course, and the story was long. Then he asked about my recent life, and I told him I was growing darker, giving up everything, and planning to move to Taiwan. "Did you buy a ticket?" he asked. I hadn’t even planned how to go to Taiwan, let alone buy a ticket. Moreover, I didn’t even know how to buy one. It was a requirement. War and national grievances forced them to face the dilemma of leaving their homeland and taking up arms. The moment they bid farewell to their parents, their hearts were filled with a sense of noble duty, not with familial sentiment. Their years grew older amidst the flames of war and separation. Their lives were filled with abandonment and sacrifice. Their diaries were filled with self-criticism: "Do you love your parents, brothers, and sisters and thus refuse to leave them? No, you must part from them! Whether by force or choice!" "Do you love your love? No, you must separate from him! Whether by force or choice!" "Do you want marriage? No, what you love may not belong to you; even if you possess them, you may not be able to give them happiness! Whether by force or choice. Your small furnace"