Five Spice Street

For example, when the female colleague was clamoring to ‘‘break into the adultery scene,’’ our people demonstrated admirable calmness. No one made a move. No one discussed it or argued about it: there was only a quiet, iron-like consistency. An atmosphere like this can’t be achieved in a day or two. We can proudly state that only in this place of ours and with our people could Madam X develop freely and contentedly and give birth to such a heroic and romantic story. Even if she finally became one of us, the story moves people greatly (who wouldn’t be moved by a history about themselves?). Anywhere else, she would certainly have been caught ‘‘with her pants down’’ or she would have been exterminated before the adultery ever had time to sprout. It’s also possible that this adultery would have been endlessly repeated with the approbation of the people, and licentiousness would have swept through society.

Don’t you see that only our Five Spice Street could offer X the ideal home? Her landing here was only superficially an accident. In fact, it was inevitable. Without Five Spice Street, X would not have existed, nor would the story about X. Five Spice Street was X’s hothouse, her cradle, her mother (in the end, she would finally return to this mother’s womb-and dissolve). It was only after X arrived that she became X. We molded her, we helped her fulfill her wishes. In the refraction of her sincere performance, our collective spirit was carried forward. All of this also profited from our drive to refine ourselves and achieve control over the environment. A mother can’t casually abandon her child, even if that child is a rascal or a traitor. As soon as Madam X reached Five Spice Street, our people, although sniffing out her dissidence, behaved as usual and received her with open arms. All the people here are children of the great mother. She kindly takes care of all of her children. Our people had long since blended with this land into one organism. Preeminent individuals like the widow are constantly born here. They sit unmoving in the dark room facing the street, but their bright minds discern every movement in the outside world. There is no way to measure the usefulness of this highly developed ability. Now, never mind one X, even if there were ten Xs, we had well- thought-out plans and could deal with them. It would be no problem to welcome them. Previously, the widow’s profound theory about sex had become a milestone in our history. Not only was she not out of step with the times, she had directed our progress over a long historical period. The creator of this theory was in the midst of a new breakthrough. Her ability wouldn’t dry up, nor could she stay in the same place a long time. ‘‘She was always pushing forward.’’ Her face shone with kindness. She became more like the Earth Mother by the day. She, who had no children, was the heavenly symbol of motherhood on our Five Spice Street. Everyone who ran into her was moved to call her ‘‘mother.’’