The Road to Becoming an Essay Master - Basic Level

Author: Han Hanzi / Country:
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-05-01
Features: In the town of épeville, the innkeeper Hico stopped his two-wheeled light carriage in front of the farmhouse gate of the elderly Marguerite. He was a tall man in his forties, with a ruddy complexion, a protruding belly, and was known to be cunning and sly among the locals. He tied his horse to the wooden post of the fence gate and entered the courtyard. He had a piece of land adjacent to the elderly woman's property, and for a long time, he had been eyeing her estate. He had tried to buy it from her no less than dozens of times, but the elderly woman had always stubbornly refused. "I was born on this land, and I will die on this land," she said. (Preface: The novel introduces the two main characters right at the beginning: the innkeeper Hico, with a ruddy complexion, a protruding belly, and full of schemes; and the elderly Marguerite. Hico tries every means to buy the elderly woman's land, but she not only firmly refuses but also solemnly declares, "I was born on this land, and I will die on this land." A fierce battle for the land is about to begin. Who will be the winner? The characters, events, suspense—this opening of the novel is very exciting. It tells us that reading further will definitely be very enjoyable, sparking the readers' strong interest in reading.)
When he entered, she was peeling potatoes in front of the house. She was 72 years old, wrinkled, gaunt, and hunched over, but she was as tireless as a young girl. Hico patted her back as if he were a good friend, then sat down on a small stool beside her. "Hey, grandmother, are you always this spry?" "Pretty good, how about you, Hico boss?" "Ah, ah! Just a bit of rheumatism, otherwise I'd be perfectly happy." "That's wonderful, that's wonderful." She said no more. Hico watched her work. Her fingers, like hooks, knuckles, and hard as crab claws, picked up a gray potato from the basket like a pair of pliers, turned it quickly with one hand, while the other held an old knife, peeling the long strips of skin close to the blade. When the potato was entirely yellow, she threw it into a bucket of water. Three bold hens walked one after another, coming all the way under her skirt to pick up the potato peels, then snatched the food and hurried away. Hico seemed troubled, hesitating, restless, with the words already on his lips but unable to bring them out. Later, he made up his mind: "I say, Marguerite grandmother," "What can I do for you?" "You still refuse to sell this farm to me?" "This is not possible. Don't count on it. What has been said, don't keep nagging." "But I have come up with a solution that is suitable for both of us." "What solution?" "It's like this. You sell the land to me, but I will still manage it for you. Don't you understand? Then listen to me explain." The grandmother stopped peeling the potatoes and revealed a pair of sparkling eyes from under her wrinkled eyelids, staring dead at the innkeeper. He continued: "Let me make it clear. I will give you 150 francs a month. Do you understand? Every month, I will drive my small carriage to bring you 30 silver coins of five francs each. Everything will remain the same; nothing will change. You will still live in your house, and on my part, you won't have to worry about anything. You owe me nothing. You just take my money. Is that okay?" He finished, looking at her happily and calmly. The grandmother looked at him with suspicion, trying to figure out if there was a trick in this. She asked, "This is on my part. What about you? You still can't get the farm!" "This, you don't have to worry about. God gives you a day to live, and you will live here for a day. This is your home. But you need to go to the notary and give me a small deed, and when you pass away, the farm will be mine. You don't have any biological children, only a few nephews, and you don't pay them any mind at all. This way, you can keep your property while I give you 30 five-franc silver coins a month. This is entirely to your advantage." The grandmother felt surprised and uneasy but was also tempted. She replied, "This could work. But I need to think about this carefully. You come back next week, and we can talk about it then. I will tell you my thoughts." Hico left happily, as if a king had just conquered an empire. The grandmother, however, was troubled. That night, she couldn't sleep for four straight days. She couldn't make up her mind and was very distressed. She truly felt that there was something in it that was not in her favor, but the thought of 30 silver coins a month, the shiny silver coins clinking and clanking, flowing into her skirt pocket, doing nothing and having money fall from the sky, made her greedy like an insect, gnawing and clawing. She then went to see the notary and told him the story. He advised her to accept Hico's proposal but should ask for 50 five-franc silver coins instead of 30, because her farm was at least worth 60,000 francs. "If you live for another 15 years," the notary said, "with this payment method, he will only need to pay 45,000 francs." The old woman trembled with shock when she heard that she could receive 50 five-franc silver coins a month, but she still felt uneasy, fearing both the unexpected and the hidden schemes, and she refused to leave, staying until dark, asking endless questions. Finally, she instructed the notary to prepare the deed and returned home, her mind muddled as if she had drunk four jars of newly brewed apple cider. When Hico came to hear the news, she first pretended to refuse, but then hesitated, fearing he would not agree to the 50 five-franc silver coins. Later, he kept pressuring her, and she finally brought up her hopes. He jumped in shock and refused outright. To persuade him, she gave many reasons, explaining how she might not live much longer. At most, she had five or six more years left. I am almost 73 now, and I am not in the best health. One night, I thought I was going to die. It was as if someone had emptied everything from my body, and then they had to carry me to bed." But Hico didn't fall for her tricks. "Don't talk, don't talk: You old rogue, you are as sturdy as the church tower. You can live at least to 110. You will definitely die after me." The whole day was spent in this argument. The grandmother never gave in, and eventually, the innkeeper had to agree to the 50 silver coins. The next day, they signed the deed. The grandmother also demanded an extra 10 silver coins for wine money.