Free Chinese Cinderella by Adeline Yen Mah

and mischievous that we soon all burst out laughing.
    During English class later that afternoon, we had a special visitor. An impressive‐looking middle‐aged American officer came in uniform to give us a talk on Pearl Harbor. He was a chain‐smoker and our whole class was fascinated as we watched him. While his sentences were being translated by our English teacher, he would take a deep drag on his cigarette and, after an interval, let the smoke slowly escape from his nostrils.
    At the end of his speech, we clapped politely. He then asked if there were any questions. There was a pause.
    ‘Surely,’ he coaxed, ‘one of you young ladies must be curious about something!’ He took another drag on his cigarette. We stared at the tendrils of smoke coming out of his nose.
    Finally, after another embarrassing lull, Wu Chun‐mei raised her hand.
    ‘Now, here is a brave young girl!’ he exclaimed. ‘What is your question, my dear?’
    ‘I hope you don’t mind,’ Wu Chun‐mei asked in her flawless English. ‘But can you make the smoke come out of your ears too?’

Chapter Eleven
    PLT

    N ot long after Father and Niang returned from Tianjin, Mr and Mrs Huang came to visit. They brought gifts for all seven of us children in a large cardboard box with several holes punched in the lid. Before her marriage, Mrs Huang had worked for a few years at Grand Aunt’s bank, sharing a booth with Aunt Baba and our real mama. The Huangs therefore knew of Father’s first marriage and the existence of all seven children.
    This was highly unusual. Most of Niang’s friends were unaware that she had five stepchildren. Being only eleven years older than Big Sister, Niang was reluctant to admit she was a stepmother. When asked, she often gave the impression that Father had only two children – Fourth Brother and Little Sister.
    When we opened the gift box from the Huangs, we were delighted to find seven little baby ducklings. As usual, Fourth Brother picked first, followed by Little Sister, Big Sister, Big Brother, Second Brother and Third Brother. By the time my turn arrived, I was left with the tiniest, scrawniest baby bird. I picked her up, cupped her in my hand and carried her gingerly into my room. The little duckling cocked her head to one side and looked at me with dark dewy round eyes. She waddled unsteadily and pecked the floor, looking for worms and seeds. She seemed so helpless with her soft yellow feathers, slender twiggy legs and small webbed feet. One gust of wind and she would be blown away. I felt very protective.
    From that moment, I took the duckling to my heart. For the first time, I had a pet of my very own. At school, I proudly described my duckling to my classmates. As I spoke, I felt a warm, tender glow spreading all through me. I named my duckling Precious Little Treasure (Xiao Bao‐bei (). Wu Chun‐mei advised me to call it PLT for short. I couldn’t wait to rush home from school, carry PLT to my room, bathe and feed her, and do my homework with PLT wandering between the beds and my desk. It comforted me to know I was needed.
    I told Wu Chun‐mei, ‘When I pick PLT up from her pen on the roof terrace, she cocks her head to one side and chirps as if she recognises me. As soon as she sees me, she hurries over. I speak to her all the time and I think she’s beginning to understand. Can ducklings learn to quack in the Shanghai dialect? Would that sound different from Mandarin quacks or English quacks?’
    Wu Chun‐mei laughed. ‘I believe animals do understand us,’ she replied. ‘Perhaps not exactly your words but a special language not made of words. Maybe it’s the way you stand or how you hold her. She knows she belongs to you and you’ll look after her.’
    As time went on, the friendship between PLT and me deepened. When Aunt Baba came home from the bank one Friday, she overheard me talking. ‘Here are two worms I dug up from the garden! Risked my life and limb for you, my friend! Jackie barked at