Introduction: Salt and Blood
My brother said that the sea is salty because of too many tears shed.
But Ah He had tasted sea water, and it didn't look like tears. The tears are hot and disappear in a flash; the sea water is cold and salty all the time. Brother said Ah He was stupid and couldn't tell the difference. But Ahe knew that there was salt in the sea water, and salt could pickle fish and people. The man who floated on the beach last year was soaked in white, like a big fish.
Brother's hands were shaking when he looked at that person with Ah He behind his back. Ah He asked: "Has he marinated it too?" Brother suddenly put me down and ran to the side to vomit. The vomited stuff smelled worse than sea water.
It was the spring of the sixth year of Xianfeng's reign, and the kapok blossomed like blood spots. It's just our third year in Chixi.
