Grotto Cave

Author: Cheng Xianzhang
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-07-01
Features: The language of Xianrendong is also distinctive. For example, the term "half-cooked rice" describes how Xiao Lin, a grassroots cadre, cooked porridge under the lantern on the night of the land reform, eating and praising: "It's so fragrant, it's so fragrant!" If I were to choose now, the world's most delicious food is white rice. The lament of the madman A Jing: "Long live the emperor ten thousand years, not as good as my father getting drunk every day" is chanted in Chinese, yet also repeated in English on the way home. The dialogue is colloquial, which is a key feature of the text. Song Huo says to A Hui: "When it comes to lessons, how many have you, Comrade Hui? You went to mourn for the widow Wei, you can't forget the death of Zhang Shisan, you didn't agree to bring Zhang Yuanxiang back—this would take months. If you had to line up for spring plowing, you'd be like a snake passing through a fence—nearly shedding your skin without dying." Xiao Lin says to A Hui: "You and Chen Dong always argue over who wins. She tells you to crash into the wall, and you tell her to crawl through a hole. Even if you think Li Li has pretty face and figure, relationships have their time—how come you just climb into bed naked?" Similar colloquial dialogues are everywhere.