III

The shop was crowded, and Old Chuan was busy, carrying a big copper kettle to make tea for one customer after another. There were dark circles under his eyes.

"Aren't you well, Old Chuan? . . . What's wrong with you?" asked one greybeard.
　　
"Nothing."
　　
"Nothing? . . . No, I suppose from your smile, there couldn't be . . ." the old man corrected himself.
　　
"It's just that Old Chuan's busy," said the hunchback. "If his son. . . ." But before he could finish, a heavy-jowled man burst in. Over his shoulders he had a dark brown shirt, unbuttoned and fastened carelessly by a broad dark brown girdle at his waist. As soon as he entered, he shouted to Old Chuan:
　　
"Has he eaten it? Any better? Luck's with you, Old Chuan. What luck! If not for my hearing of things so quickly. . . ."
　　
Holding the kettle in one hand, the other straight by his side in an attitude of respect, Old Chuan listened with a smile. In fact, all present were listening respectfully. The old woman, dark circles under her eyes too, came out smiling with a bowl containing tea-leaves and an added olive, over which Old Chuan poured boiling water for the newcomer.
　　
"This is a guaranteed cure! Not like other things!" declared the heavy-jowled man. "Just think, brought back warm, and eaten warm!"
　　
"Yes indeed, we couldn't have managed it without Uncle Kang's help." The old woman thanked him very warmly.
　　
"A guaranteed cure! Eaten warm like this. A roll dipped in human blood like this can cure any consumption!"
　　
The old woman seemed a little disconcerted by the word "consumption," and turned a shade paler; however, she forced a smile again at once and found some pretext to leave. Meanwhile the man in brown was indiscreet enough to go on talking at the top of his voice until the child in the inner room was woken and started coughing.
　　
"So you've had a great stroke of luck for your Little Chuan! Of course his sickness will be cured completely. No wonder Old Chuan keeps smiling." As he spoke, the greybeard walked up to the man in brown, and lowered his voice to ask:
　　
"Mr. Kang, I heard the criminal executed today came from the Hsia family. Who was it? And why was he executed? 　　"
　　
"Who? Son of Widow Hsia, of course! Young rascal!"
　　
Seeing how they all hung on his words, Mr. Kang's spirits rose even higher. His jowls quivered, and he made his voice as loud as he could.
　　
"The rogue didn't want to live, simply didn't want to! There was nothing in it for me this time. Even the clothes stripped from him were taken by Red-eye, the jailer. Our Old Chuan was luckiest, and after him Third Uncle Hsia. He pocketed the whole reward--twenty-five taels of bright silver--and didn't have to spend a cent!"

Little Chuan walked slowly out of the inner room, his hands to his chest, coughing repeatedly. He went to the kitchen, filled a bowl with cold rice, added hot water to it, and sitting down started to eat. His mother, hovering over him, asked softly:
　　
"Do you feel better, son? Still as hungry as ever?"
　　
"A guaranteed cure!" Kang glanced at the child, then turned back to address the company. "Third Uncle Hsia is really smart. If he hadn't informed, even his family would have been executed, and their property confiscated. But instead? Silver! That young rogue was a real scoundrel! He even tried to incite the jailer to revolt!"
　　
"No! The idea of it!" A man in his twenties, sitting in the back row, expressed indignation.
　　
"You know, Red-eye went to sound him out, but he started chatting with him. He said the great Ching empire belongs to us. Just think: is that kind of talk rational? Red-eye knew he had only an old mother at home, but had never imagined he was so poor. He couldn't squeeze anything out of him; he was already good and angry, and then the young fool would 'scratch the tiger's head,' so he gave him a couple of slaps."
　　
"Red-eye is a good boxer. Those slaps must have hurt!" The hunchback in the corner by the wall exulted.
　　
"The rotter was not afraid of being beaten. He even said how sorry he was."
　　
"Nothing to be sorry about in beating a wretch like that," said Greybeard.
　　
Kang looked at him superciliously and said disdainfully: "You misunderstood. The way he said it, he was sorry for Red-eye."
　　
His listeners' eyes took on a glazed look, and no one spoke. Little Chuan had finished his rice and was perspiring profusely, his head steaming.
　　
"Sorry for Red-eye--crazy! He must have been crazy!" said Greybeard, as if suddenly he saw light.
　　
"He must have been crazy!" echoed the man in his twenties.
　　
Once more the customers began to show animation, and conversation was resumed. Under cover of the noise, the child was seized by a paroxysm of coughing. Kang went up to him, clapped him on the shoulder, and said:
　　
"A guaranteed cure! Don't cough like that, Little Chuan! A guaranteed cure!"
　　
"Crazy!" agreed the hunchback, nodding his head.

三

店里坐着许多人，老栓也忙了，提着大铜壶，一趟一趟的给客人冲茶；两个眼眶，都围着一圈黑线。
　　
“老栓，你有些不舒服么？——你生病么？”一个花白胡子的人说。
　　
“没有。”
　　
“没有？——我想笑嘻嘻的，原也不像……”花白胡子便取消了自己的话。
　　
“老栓只是忙。要是他的儿子……”驼背五少爷话还未完，突然闯进了一个满脸横肉的人，披一件玄色布衫，散着纽扣，用很宽的玄色腰带，胡乱捆在腰间。刚进门，便对老栓嚷道：
　　
“吃了么？好了么？老栓，就是运气了你！你运气，要不是我信息灵……”
　　
老栓一手提了茶壶，一手恭恭敬敬的垂着；笑嘻嘻的听。满座的人，也都恭恭敬敬的听。华大妈也黑着眼眶，笑嘻嘻的送出茶碗茶叶来，加上一个橄榄，老栓便去冲了水。
　　
“这是包好！这是与众不同的。你想，趁热的拿来，趁热的吃下。”横肉的人只是嚷。
　　
“真的呢，要没有康大叔照顾，怎么会这样……”华大妈也很感激的谢他。
　　
“包好，包好！这样的趁热吃下。这样的人血馒头，什么痨病都包好！”
　　
华大妈听到“痨病”这两个字，变了一点脸色，似乎有些不高兴；但又立刻堆上笑，搭讪着走开了。这康大叔却没有觉察，仍然提高了喉咙只是嚷，嚷得里面睡着的小栓也合伙咳嗽起来。
　　
“原来你家小栓碰到了这样的好运气了。这病自然一定全好；怪不得老栓整天的笑着呢。”花白胡子一面说，一面走到康大叔面前，低声下气的问道，“康大叔——听说今天结果的一个犯人，便是夏家的孩子，那是谁的孩子？究竟是什么事？”
　　
“谁的？不就是夏四奶奶的儿子么？那个小家伙！”康大叔见众人都耸起耳朵听他，便格外高兴，横肉块块饱绽，越发大声说，“这小东西不要命，不要就是了。我可是这一回一点没有得到好处；连剥下来的衣服，都给管牢的红眼睛阿义拿去了。——第一要算我们栓叔运气；第二是夏三爷赏了二十五两雪白的银子，独自落腰包，一文不花。”
　　
小栓慢慢的从小屋子里走出，两手按了胸口，不住的咳嗽；走到灶下，盛出一碗冷饭，泡上热水，坐下便吃。华大妈跟着他走，轻轻的问道，“小栓，你好些么？——你仍旧只是肚饿？……”
　　
“包好，包好！”康大叔瞥了小栓一眼，仍然回过脸，对众人说，“夏三爷真是乖角儿，要是他不先告官，连他满门抄斩。现在怎样？银子！——这小东西也真不成东西！关在劳里，还要劝劳头造反。”
　　
“阿呀，那还了得。”坐在后排的一个二十多岁的人，很现出气愤模样。
　　
“你要晓得红眼睛阿义是去盘盘底细的，他却和他攀谈了。他说：这大清的天下是我们大家的。你想：这是人话么？红眼睛原知道他家里只有一个老娘，可是没有料到他竟会这么穷，榨不出一点油水，已经气破肚皮了。他还要老虎头上搔痒，便给他两个嘴巴！”
　　
“义哥是一手好拳棒，这两下，一定够他受用了。”壁角的驼背忽然高兴起来。
　　
“他这贱骨头打不怕，还要说可怜可怜哩。”
　　
花白胡子的人说，“打了这种东西，有什么可怜呢？”
　　
康大叔显出看他不上的样子，冷笑着说，“你没有听清我的话；看他神气，是说阿义可怜哩！”
　　
听着的人的眼光，忽然有些板滞；话也停顿了。小栓已经吃完饭，吃得满头流汗，头上都冒出蒸气来。
　　
“阿义可怜——疯话，简直是发了疯了。”花白胡子恍然大悟似的说。
　　
“发了疯了。”二十多岁的人也恍然大悟的说。
　　
店里的坐客，便又现出活气，谈笑起来。小栓也趁着热闹，拚命咳嗽；康大叔走上前，拍他肩膀说：
　　
“包好！小栓——你不要这么咳。包好！”
　　
“疯了。”驼背五少爷点着头说。