At times the world is so small. The old man who looked as if he came from the city who had consoled Abing used to be part of the same work unit as Luo Shan. Some time ago he had retired and returned to his home village. It goes without saying that Luo Shan came to learn of Abing through him.

It was the old man who told me that Abing was a child of remarkable talents. He was born with learning difficulties, unable to walk until the age of three, and even at the age of five he couldn’t utter a passable ‘Mummy’. But it was also at the age of five that he developed a terrible fever that put him in a coma for three days and three nights. When the fever broke, he was able to speak, but he had gone blind. No matter what cure was tried, nothing worked. The strange thing was, that even though he couldn’t see a thing, he seemed to be much more aware of his surroundings than any of the sighted villagers. When locusts ravaged the farmers’ fields, he knew. When a thief stole into the village in the depths of the night, he knew. When someone’s wife had an affair, he knew. And if someone’s household had a secret underground cache, he knew. All this knowledge came to him by way of his ears. He seemed to now possess an extraordinary pair of lugs: they were able to pick up on anything. If something happened in the village, before anyone had actually seen it, he would know of it because of his ears. Some people said that his ears were carried on the wind, that all they needed was the wind, that even the smallest sound need only be there upon the wind for him to hear it. There were even some who said that every pore on his body was like an ear, that even if Abing’s ears were to be thoroughly plugged, he would still be able to hear more than any ordinary person could. Abing’s ears were extraordinary, and even though he had lost his sight and had only his ears to rely on, he could still discern everything that was going on.