No Moon Falls Beyond His Mountain

The eighties.

I'd been on the waiting list at the factory for more than two years before the company-assigned housing policy finally reached my turn.

I hurried excitedly over to the employee housing office to hand in my paperwork.

But after looking it over, the clerk said, You don't qualify for company-assigned housing.

I was stunned. "Why? When I started at the factory, they said once you were married you could get in line for housing."

"I'm seven months pregnant. The baby's coming any day now. I've been counting on this apartment. I can't have my child living in the workers' dormitory after it's born, can I?"

The clerk got annoyed too and just threw the marriage certificate back at me.

"What are you making all this noise for? You bring in a fake marriage certificate and you think you're in the right?"

"Besides, I checked. The spouse on your certificate already received an apartment. A married couple only gets one unit, so no matter how you line up, there's no way you'll ever get one assigned to you."

"Now hurry along. Don't waste the time of the people behind you."

Clutching my marriage certificate, I went to find the apartment the clerk said had been assigned to Roy Henson.

In the little courtyard, a lovely, delicate woman was teaching a one-year-old to walk.

After the child tottered out a few steps on his own, she called happily toward the inner room.

"Roy! Roy! Come out and look, the baby's walking by himself!"

Roy Henson came out quickly in an apron, spatula in hand, his smile both surprised and tender.

This math teacher from an elite high school, who never so much as cracked a smile in front of me and fancied himself above it allso it turned out he could roll up his sleeves and cook, too.

So it turned out he'd already made a home with someone else.

Section 1

I held back, and held back again, and in the end I didn't rush in.

But as I turned to leave, my steps had already gone weak.

The moment I stepped out of the mouth of the alley, the surge of emotion set off a heavy, dragging pain low in my belly. A moment later, everything went black, and I passed out.

When I came to, I was already at the county hospital.

Luckily a kind passerby had brought me in.

Roy Henson was sitting on the edge of the bed.

"Your belly is this big, so why are you still running all over the place?"

His voice was pitched low, with his usual reproach. "The doctor said you've disturbed the pregnancy and you're at risk of premature labor. You absolutely cannot go running around anymore."

"You're being completely irresponsibleto yourself and to the baby."

I lay there, looking at him, and pointedly changed the subject. "The baby's coming soon, and we still don't have an apartment. What are we going to do?"

He visibly paused, his eyes sliding away from my face. "I... I'll go push the factory too, see if they can move us up in line. Don't worry, there's always a way."

I sneered inwardly and was about to say something more when a burst of hurried footsteps came from the doorway.

Then a woman's voice called out, "Roy! Roy! Where are you?"

Roy Henson whipped around.

I followed his gaze and saw Bonnie Simmons rushing in with the child in her arms.

The child was crying himself hoarse in her arms, one little arm hanging limp.

The instant Bonnie saw him, her tears came even harder. "Roy, the baby knocked into the stovethere was boiling water on it... it all poured over his arm... What do I do, Roy? I'm so scared..."

Roy Henson's face went white in an instant. He stood up at once, took the child from her, and rushed out. "Doctor! Where's the doctor?!"

I pushed myself up against the edge of the bed and shuffled over to the doorway.

At the far end of the corridor, the child was carried into the emergency room.

Bonnie leaned against Roy Henson's chest, trembling all over. "It's all my fault... I only turned around to grab a towel... he's so little, how can he stand it... Roy, if anything happens to the baby, I won't go on living..."

Roy Henson held her and soothed her softly. "It's all right. The doctor's in there, he'll be fine."

"Don't be scared, I'm here. I'm right here."

His chin rested against the top of her head, his arms wrapped tight around herhe was everything she leaned on.

I stood a few steps away, watching in silence.

Roy Henson seemed to sense something all at once. He lifted his head sharply, and his gaze met mine head-on.

A flash of panic crossed Roy's face.

He quickly composed himself, let go of Bonnie, and walked toward me, calm and unruffled.

"Marilyn, don't get the wrong idea. She's a colleague of mine. It's not easy for her, raising a child alone, so I help her out when I can."

I didn't answer him. I only asked, "Does helping out involve holding and hugging?"

His expression changed in an instant, as if I'd struck a nerve, and his voice dropped low. "Why do you have to be so nasty?"

"Do you even realize what you look like right now?"

"Sticking out that big belly, mouth full of spitewhat kind of talk is that?"

"Where's the way a woman about to become a mother is supposed to act?"

Once he'd said it, he must have felt his own tone was too harsh, because he reached out and took hold of my arm, his words softening a little. "Marilyn..."

But before the words were even out, Bonnie called to him loudly from behind. "Roy, the doctor's come out!"

Bonnie ran over quickly, grabbed Roy's arm, and pulled him back. "Roy, the doctor's come out! Let's go and ask if the baby's all right!"

Seeing that Roy was still holding onto me, she frowned and gave me a hard shove.

My belly was big and I could barely keep my footing to begin with. My balance gave way and I fell hard to the ground.

Right after, my lower abdomen suddenly cramped violently.

The next second, a great rush of heat gushed from between my legs, instantly soaking through the fabric of my pants.

The pain turned everything white before my eyes. I opened my mouth and called out Roy's name.

But Bonnie was dragging him along, and he hurried off down the corridor without looking back.

The sound of his footsteps grew fainter and fainter, and slowly I began to lose consciousness.

A passing nurse saw me, screamed for a doctor, and I was lifted onto a stretcher and wheeled into the operating room.

Not long after, I lost consciousness entirely.

When I woke again, the ward was very quiet.

My belly was empty.

I startled and quickly asked the doctor what had happened.

The doctor looked troubled, choosing his words carefully. "Comrade... the baby was premature. Not long after she was born... she stopped breathing." "We couldn't find your husband either, and we didn't know what to do..."

"Later on your mother-in-law came. She took one look, said it was a girl, and didn't take her hometold us the hospital could just deal with it directly."

"But you're the child's mother, so we thought you'd want to see her at least once..."

My voice was already shaking so badly I could barely speak. "Can I? I... can I see her?"

The doctor nodded and had a nurse take me to the morgue.

In that cold little room, she lay there, so tiny, so quiet, on the table, wrapped under a white sheet.

She looked as if she were sleeping, but she would never wake again.

I stood there, and the tears came pouring out all at once.

I was just about to touch her little face when I heard footsteps behind me.

Roy seized my wrist and yanked me hard to one side.

His face was livid, and the first thing out of his mouth was a rebuke. "You didn't cherish your own child, you didn't keep her safe, and you still have the nerve to cry?"

"Running around all day with that big belly, upsetting the babynow the baby's gone, so who do you have to blame?"

"Marilyn, you should learn from Bonnie! She takes care of Aiden and does every single thing herself. Aiden gets the smallest little burn and she's beside herself over itthat's what a mother is supposed to be like!"

My wrist throbbed from his grip, and the tears ran down my whole face.

He let go, turned his face away, and sighed. "Forget it. It's just her own bad luck."

"And it works outyou still haven't come up on the housing list, so now you don't have to worry about there being no place once the baby's born..."

His words left me shaking with rage from head to toe.

I burst out, demanding of him, "Roy, what right do you have to say that?!"

He turned back, brows knit, impatience mixed with confusion.

I fixed my eyes on him. "You commit lewd conduct, you live with the other woman, and that makes you right?!"

"You tricked me into marrying you, tricked me into waiting in line for company housing, then turned around and had a child with another woman. Now my child is gone, and you come here to lecture me?!"

"Roy, put your hand on your heart and ask yourselfwho's really unfit to be a mother, unfit to even be a decent person?!"

"What right do you have to stand here and blame me?!"

Roy's face went pale in an instant.

He stepped forward at once and clamped his hand hard over my mouth.

"What nonsense are you spouting?!"

"What charge of lewd conduct? What other woman? Bonnie and I are just colleagues. If you keep talking crazy like this, even I won't be able to save you!"

With his hand over my mouth, I was so furious that tears streamed down through his fingers.

He was strong, and he grabbed my arm and dragged me back to the ward.

I had just given birth, so unsteady on my feet that I could barely walk, the pain so bad I nearly fainted.

Back in the ward, he pressed me down onto the bed to sit, pulled out a towel and handed it to me, his tone finally softening a little. "Marilyn, calm down."

"Your body hasn't recovered yet. Don't dwell on things that don't matter."

"As for the baby... we'll have another one in the future."

After he said this, he was silent for a moment, then stood up. "I have to go with Bonnie to handle the baby's discharge paperwork."

"It isn't easy for her, raising the child on her own. Try to be more understanding."

With that, he turned and left.

I sat alone on the hospital bed, touching my belly, dazed for a long, long time.

A moment later, the door was pushed open again.

Bonnie came in of her own accord, her face rosy, her hair neat, glowing with energy.

"Marilyn, I came to see you. Roy told me you weren't feeling well, so I bought some fruit."

I didn't move. I just looked at her.

She sat down on the chair beside my bed, picked up an apple, and slowly peeled it. "Honestly, Marilyn, losing a child... it's hard for anyone."

"But try to let it go. Maybe you're just not blessed enough to be a mother. Not like meI've got the luck to bear a son. You have no idea how happy Roy and his mother were the day our Aiden was born."

"Roy always tells me your long, droopy face gets on his nerves, and I agree. The more I look at it, the sicker it makes me feel."

When she was done peeling the apple, she stood up and took a bite of it herself. "All right, Marilyn, you rest now. Roy and I still have to go pick up Aiden and take him home, so I won't keep you company."

I was so angry my breathing turned heavy. "Get out of here!"

She let out a scornful laugh, turned, and swung her hips as she walked away.

It took me a long time to calm down.

Then I asked the nurse for a pen and paper and wrote a report letter.

When I finished the letter, I folded it, tucked it into an envelope, and mailed it straight to the school where Roy worked.

On the third day, after handling my own discharge, I went straight to the factory and knocked on the door of Section Chief Barrett's office.

Section Chief Barrett looked up and saw me, clearly startled. "Marilyn? You... didn't you just give birth at the hospital? Why are you back so soon?"

I sat down across from him. "Section Chief, I heard the factory has set up an out-of-state branch plant and is looking for a skilled technician to go lead it. I'd like to volunteer."

Section Chief Barrett took off his reading glasses and frowned. "Marilyn, are you sure you've thought this through? Conditions at that out-of-state branch plant are roughit's up in the mountains, newly built, nothing there yet."

"You just gave birth. Can your body handle it?"

I had thought about it for a long time. I nodded. "Yes, I've made up my mind."

"Anyway, I've got nothing left to hold on to here."

Before my transfer to the out-of-state branch plant, I took a few days off, planning to rest up in the dormitory.

After the signed complaint was filed under my real name, investigators from Roy's workplace came to see me.

They confirmed the facts, and not long after they left, Roy's mother stormed into the dormitory in a fury.

Without a word, she grabbed my arm and dragged me off the bed.

My body hadn't recovered yet, and my incision still hurt. I had no strength to resist, and she yanked me so hard that I crashed to the floor, hitting it painfully.

She pointed at me and cursed, "You heartless thing! Who committed any lewd conduct? You deserve it! You gave birth to a girl, and she died the moment she was bornthat's your fate! And you still have the nerve to report my son?!"

I curled up on the floor while she lunged at me, pinching and hitting. My head was buzzing, and my vision kept going black.

Thank goodness the other women workers from the dormitory finally came back from their shift, and together they pulled and shoved the old woman out.

Before I could catch my breath, the door was pushed open again.

Roy rushed in, his forehead drenched in sweat, his clothes disheveled.

He grabbed my wrist and pulled me up off the bed. "Marilyn, you're coming with me right now!"

"Because of your report, my workplace is going to publicly discipline me and Bonnie. You have to come help set the record straight!"

He pulled so hard I stumbled a step, and the pain in my wound flared worse.

I tried to shake off his hand, but I couldn't.

His voice was edged with panic. "Marilyn, you can't keep making trouble like this, don't you understand?"

"You're going to get Bonnie and me killed doing this!"

I looked up at him and suddenly felt how absurd it all was.

I stared at him and said slowly, "If it really was just colleagues looking out for each other, then how did you two get the company-assigned housing? You need a marriage certificate to get an apartment."

He was speechless for a moment, guilt flickering in his eyes.

But he quickly changed the subject, his face going stern. "Marilyn, you don't understand at all. You're just a worker with an elementary school education. If you can't follow what I'm saying, then stop spreading rumors everywhere and come with me now!"

And with that he dragged and hauled me out of the dormitory.

We went across the factory grounds and down two streets until we reached their school.

The school gates stood wide open, and even from a distance I could see a huge crowd packed in front of the speaking platform on the far side of the field, a dark mass of people.

The crowd jostled me forward, and I could hear the buzz of talk all around.

They were calling Bonnie a whore, saying the leaders should march Bonnie and Roy through the streets.

Bonnie was standing up on the platform.

Her hair was loose, her face deathly pale, and she stood there with her head down, her shoulders shaking, insisting over and over that she'd been wronged.

Several people from the school security office stood blocking the front of the platform, but the crowd below was so worked up that she was trembling all over with fear.

Roy pulled me through the crowd, and when we got to the side of the platform, I finally managed to break free of his grip.

"Roy, let go of me!"

"You two brought this on yourselves! What is there left to explain?! Let go of me!"

He was full of anger and urgency. He held back, and held back again, then suddenly cupped my face in both hands and made me look at him.

His eyes were bloodshot, and he said through gritted teeth, one word at a time, "Marilyn, listen to me."

"There's really nothing between Bonnie and me. If your misunderstanding gets Bonnie killed, how will your conscience live with that?"

"If something happens to her, what happens to the child? Have you even thought about that?"

"If I'm lying to you, may heaven strike me dead, may the school expel me on the spot!"

He paused, and looked at me almost pleading. "Marilyn, all you have to do is go up there and set the record straight now, and there's still a chance to turn this aroundyou can save her life and mine."

"If both she and I die because of your misunderstanding, you'll never have any peace for the rest of your life."

I looked at him.

His eyes were sincere, desperate, and looking into them my heart began to waver.

In that one instant of distraction, he had already pulled me up onto the platform.

The voices below were a chaotic, buzzing jumble, and I couldn't make out a thing.

My mind was still a mess when Roy started speaking loudly.

He lifted my arm and thrust it toward the dark mass of people below, his voice rising over all the clamor:

"Comrades! Everyone, listen to me!"

"My marriage certificate with Bonnie is real. We're the ones who are a lawful married couple!"

For a moment the crowd went silent.

"This woman, Marilyn!"

He clamped down on my wrist and shoved me forward half a step. "Because she's always been infatuated with me, and because she wanted to cheat her way into the company-assigned housing, she deliberately forged a fake marriage certificate!"

"She's the one who's been profiteering and committing lewd conduct!"

I turned my head and stared at him in disbelief...