The old man walked back
11
into the house, shook the rain off of his umbrella,
and set it in the corner. He brought his letters to his tea table, the place he liked to
enjoy a good morning newspaper or deal with bills and other such nuisances.
Just as he had thought, the first letter was a credit card bill. No doubt his wife
was racking up more unnecessary expenses. The second was some kind of personal
letter written to his wife. There was no return address, and something about the
handwriting seemed familiar. The old ball and chain wasn‟t home. She still worked.
Normally Jia-long wouldn‟t have opened his wife‟s personal mail, but his suspicions
were aroused. Was she having an affair or something? He tore the letter open
expecting a surprise, but the shock that awaited him nearly cause him to faint.
that he pulled out was lighter than usual. Only two.