75. THE MARKSMAN

　　A wide forehead topped by a few strands of hair was set above a pair of popping eyes that never seemed to look straight ahead. His nose was hooked. His mouth turned down, and never seemed to close over his crooked, uneven teeth. He was short and viciously daring. Everybody knew that this was Li Fucai of Baoshan.

　　Li Fucai was sinister and sensuous. He was the cruelest man around. He came from a rich family that lived near the river. For protection from floods and from the dampness of the river, thick bamboo groves were planted all around their house. The bamboo attracted birds, which made their nests in the branches.

　　Guns had already been introduced into China from the West by Li Fucai's time. An expert marksman even as a boy, he loved the bamboo groves around his house, because they provided so many targets for him to shoot.

　　"I got another one!" he shouted gleefully, clapping his hands as another nest tumbled to the ground.

　　When he grew up, shooting was his favorite entertainment. When he was 50,he still enjoyed shooting. There was no counting the number of birds that had died before his barrel.

　　But one morning, his family found him jumping around in front of the window. He seemed to be doing some strange sort of dance, because he kept thrashing the air around his head with his arms. He was whining, "Stop pecking me!"

　　Then he seemed to be protecting his neck, then his shoulders, his arms, his back, his thighs, and finally he was down to his ankles. All this time he kept jumping around like an ant on a hot wok, whining, "Stop pecking me!"

　　But nobody could see anything pecking him. Then he started shouting "Birds! Birds! Birds!" The expression on his face reminded his family of a mouse when it sees a cat. But they certainly couldn't see any birds.

　　"I'm a goner!" Li shouted. His arms and legs were twitching. Even though his sons tried, they couldn't straighten them out. He kept working his neck like a large bird flying through the air.

　　His family could only cry and watch this expert marksman twist and writhe in his death agonies.

75.神枪手
　
　　宽宽的额头，稀稀拉拉的头发，鬼鬼祟祟的眼睛，鹰钩鼻，嘴巴下翻好象永远都包不住那幅参差不齐的牙齿，五短身材，胆大包天，这就是在宝山无人不知的李富财。

　　李富财阴险狡猾，而且希望享受，是远近最残忍的人。他们家很富裕，就住在河边。为了防汛和阻挡河里的潮气，他们在房子周围种了茂密的竹子。竹林引来了很多鸟，它们就在竹子上筑巢。

　　在李富财生活的那个年代，枪已经从西方传入了中国。他还是一个孩子的时候就是个神枪手，他非常喜欢自己家旁边的竹林，因为那里有很多他射击的对象。

　　“又中了!”又一个鸟巢翻滚落地时，他高兴得一边拍手一边喊。

　　他长大后，射击成了他最喜欢的活动。直到50岁的时候，他还是对射击很着迷。死在他枪筒里的鸟儿数不胜数。

　　可是有一天，他家里人发现他正在窗前跳跃。他两手在头边不断挥舞着，看上去好像在跳着奇怪的舞蹈。他哭着说：“不要再啄我了!”

　　　然后他好像在护着自己的脖子、肩膀、手臂、背、腿，最后俯身护着脚踝。在这期间他都像只热锅上的蚂蚁一样跳跃不已，还一边哭叫，“不要啄我了！”

　　然而，大家都没看见有什么东西在啄他。他大叫：“鸟！鸟！鸟！”他脸上的神情看起来就像是老鼠见了猫一样恐惧。但是他的家人还是没看见有鸟。

“我要死了！”李喊叫着。他的手脚都在抽搐。不管他的儿子们怎么用力，还是不能把它们弄直。他扭着脖子，看去就像只在空中飞翔的大鸟。

　　他的家人只能嚎啕大哭，眼睁睁地看着这个出色的神枪手在扭曲翻滚中痛苦地死去。