Tear down the roof beam, bartender

21Pinglun is a new, mainland-accessible group blog associated with journalist Xiong Peiyun’s blocked La république d’esprits.

Posts concern a wide range of subjects, with a particular emphasis on rural issues (which Xiong himself writes about for Window of the South magazine).

Last week, CCTV reporter Chai Jing posted an interesting barstool conversation about the movement of rural history to the cities:

A group of people are chatting in bar.

He’s from Hubei. He says that when he went back home this year, the osmanthus tree that stood in the courtyard of his home for thirty years had disappeared.

When he was a boy, his father planted the tree, and he and his brothers used to enjoy climbing on it. He shows with his hands how it was thick enough to fill an adult’s embrace.

And that type of osmanthus, every July or August, would really go into bloom.

This time when he went home, there was only a deep pit left.

He asked his father, and the old man said, quite proud of himself, “Sold it.”

Three thousand kuai, to a Shanghai businessman, who shipped it back to plant in the courtyard of his own home.

He goes on to talk about how his Grandpa died before he was born, leaving behind only a Kangxi Dictionary which had his name and jottings on it.

During the land reforms, it was seized by the production brigade leader.

Fifty years on, both the book and the leader were still around.

He paid a respectful visit to the old man: “How much? I want to buy it.”

With a laugh, he was invited to leave.

She grows angry listening to him.

She speaks of her own old home, about how all that is left of it is an empty room crowned with a sandalwood roof beam where the names of her ancestors who had erected it two hundred years ago were painted in gold.

He asks suddenly, “How long is it?”

“What?”

“The beam.”

“Probably….about twice as long as the length of the roof of your bar here.”

He and his partner exchange a quick glance, and he says, “Can I take it down and ship it here for my bar?”

“What for?”

“Aren’t lots of bars in Beijing older homes that were moved here from other places?”

“But it’s someone’s home. How can you tear it down?”

“It’s preservation.”

She says urgently, “Preserve it, but preserve it at its original location. Don’t bring it to Beijing just so you can make money.”

Everyone laughs.

He says, “Tear it down. If you leave it there, aren’t you just giving it to thieves for free?”