Student Translation Project
HKBU TIIS 2022
‘Kind-hearted’
by Wu Yin Ching
Professor Michael So, from the Department of Sociology, has lived for more than 40 years, but this was the first time someone stole something from him. Like a curious child, he was so excited that it took him a long time to calm down. The muscles on his lips began to contract, squeezing his big cheeks and making his mouth almost disappear. He took a piece of scrap paper to write and draw. He started thinking actively and sketched out a flow chart with arrows. Then, he coloured them with highlighters. This process was enjoyable, but the answer was too simple: no one had a chance to steal his money except for the cleaner, Alana Wo.
Alana looked very much like Prof So's mother. His mother was a slim lady who was already in her sixties. However, she still looked youthful and healthy. She had fine and evenly distributed wrinkles, so it was hard to tell her age. Her face was spotless, with two very light eyebrows. This made her look very young. Prof So's mother liked to wear diamond earrings and paint her nails pink. Every morning, she would blow her short hair around her ears with a hair dryer and drink a pot of good Chinese tea. Then, she would go to the park for a Chinese fan dance. Alana was in her fifties. Her ear piercings have closed because they hadn’t been used for a long time. Her fingernails were black, but it wasn’t dirt. The nails were cut very short because her fingers were rough and dry, and the skin was dense with cracks. Alana was as skinny as Prof So's mother but with higher cheekbones. Prof So's mother's face was not oily, and her complexion was fair from using luxury Japanese skincare products. Alana’s cheeks were hollow, and the shine came from the bones holding the skin too tight.
At Prof So’s home, his mother gave daily instructions to the domestic helper Maria not to touch his desk, so Maria didn’t even enter his study room. His wife has already complained many times about his messiness. Every time, he promised to clean up. However, as soon as he touched the
piles of paper and slightly shifted their position, all his books, papers, and journals were jumbled. He could never find that particular page he needed to use again. At the university, Alana finished cleaning his office by 8:30 every morning. When he arrived, he knew his things had been moved, but they were never in a mess. Prof So once thought of hiring Alana to clean his house one or two days a week since she was reasonably professional. However, could he get his wife’s approval? He has already got his mother, a wife who didn't have to work, and a domestic helper at home. Not to mention he has already promised to clean his study. So, getting someone else to clean the room wasn't reasonable. Besides, his wife had a book where she recorded all the expenses, and he would never be allowed to add this odd expense.
There was something peculiar about that day. If it had been an ordinary day, Prof So would not have lost the twenty dollars.
Prof So was in his office at 07:00 to work on his paper for next week’s seminar. The department was very quiet, and the empty corridor resembled a disused tunnel. The light from the two open doors was not bright
enough to cover the whole office, and there was a big dark area in between. However, Prof So did not intend to turn on the lights, as if this would ruin the fulfillment he earned by waking up early.
The key was so cold; the wooden door was shrunken because of the dry weather, which made the lock hard to turn. When Prof So finally opened the door, the east-facing office was like a transparent cube full of light. Coupled with the happiness his work gave him, it shined through and embraced him, leaving no space for doubt. He always felt good about himself because he was capable of being a professor, a
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scholar, an obedient husband to an intelligent wife, a dutiful son, and an excellent father. On the peaceful windowsill, the Boston Fern was growing up living its simple and monotonous life. As it grew lusher day by day, people felt delighted just by looking at it. This day, just like any other day, he felt free, relaxed, safe, and rich.
Mechanically, he performed his daily routine — took out his keys, coins, staff card, the little bottle of vitamin pills prepared by his wife, and five twenty-dollar notes, and threw all of them on the desk in a pile. Then, after turning on his computer, he worked on his paper for an hour but got stuck on a problematic footnote. Instead of continuing, he stood up and stretched before looking at his watch. ‘Oh, eight already? No wonder I am so hungry. Let’s get breakfast first. But once he opened the door, he found Alana standing there with a large set of keys in her hand — she was about to come in to clean. “Oh! I’m sorry. You came so early today, Professor!”
“You did? The staff canteen food is terrible! I only eat oatmeal and bread every morning, but it still costs me twenty dollars.” Prof So kept complaining loudly like a fusser, like someone who had been trapped by the Professor title for a long time and was finally free.
“I am the one who should apologise for startling you, I mean.” She shook her head slightly with a timid smile, just like a poor rural mother feeling ashamed while visiting her successful and dapper son after a long time. Apparently, she was scared of this short gentleman wearing a pair of smiley eyes all the time. “It’s quite cold this morning. Did you have breakfast?” Prof So asked reassuringly.
“I did, thank you,” Alana nodded slightly as she spoke, still wearing her polite smile.
”You must be joking, Professor. How can I afford a twenty dollars breakfast? Twenty dollars will pay for my whole family’s dinner. Actually, I ate some leftovers for breakfast,” said Alana embarrassedly.
“Really? But there won’t be leftovers every day, right?” The naivety of Prof So, which made him look twenty years younger, was at odds with his baldness and was somehow amusing.
Alana was still a bit nervous and answered solemnly, “Just remember to save some food for dinner, and it’ll be good. I’ll have a wheat bun if that's not enough.”
Prof So didn’t have the energy to go on. After all, he had to work on the research paper, and his stomach was rumbling. His hunger made the breakfast in the notorious canteen appetising.
He left the office for Alana to clean and ran down the stairs to the canteen. After eating a bowl of oatmeal and a slice of bread, he still felt a little hungry and wanted to order scrambled eggs. However, he suddenly remembered his wife's instruction not to eat eggs on Monday,
Wednesday, and Friday. He was allowed to eat egg whites on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. On Sundays, he could finally eat a whole egg and a cup of Pu’er Tea. They both knew this was for his health. But today, he got an intense craving for eggs, as a woman sitting nearby was elegantly
eating scrambled eggs in tiny bites like tasting abalone. After struggling mentally for a while, Prof So finally stood up and left his table.
But when he walked to the cashier, he realised that his money was scattered on the desk, and he didn't bring anything, not even coins or his Octopus card. He felt very embarrassed. After explaining the situation to the cashier, he left a book as a promise that he would come back within five minutes to pay the bill. Then, he left in a rush.
Back at the office, Prof So found the table and the keyboard wet. Obviously, Alana cleaned them with a rag. But he didn’t have time to care. He grabbed the crumpled notes without thinking. After getting into the lift, he calmed down and started unfolding the notes slowly. And then... ‘eh? No way?’ There were only four twenty-dollar notes in his hand.
He was shocked and started to feel confused. Suddenly, the lift stopped, and several students rushed in. The one who recognized him greeted, “Ah sir, morning! Going for breakfast?” Prof So’s thoughts were interrupted. He muttered to himself, ‘Ah Sir? How come university students still call their teacher Missie and Ah Sir? Even Alana calls me professor!’ When thinking of Alana, he felt surprised and excited again. He felt a little guilty for feeling this way. He thought, ‘why would I even want her to steal my stuff? Would I be happy if she really were the thief? How would I feel if she were my mother, wife, or child?’
He came to the canteen again. After hurriedly paying for his breakfast, he started feeling a little poorer. After all, there were only sixty dollars left for the day. This was really ... really shameful to mention: his wife only gave him five twenty-dollar notes every day. The apparent reason was his high cholesterol; another reason was that they had to save a little more money. When the property prices get low, they will buy an extra flat nearby and collect rent after his retirement. But in fact, it was also a way of controlling him. ‘What deviant things could a man do with only a hundred dollars a day?’ He could only read complimentary newspapers or the publications his Department subscribes to. Thinking of this, he shook his head and smiled. His broad chin became wider, and the corners of his mouth were now struggling to pull up, making his mouth twitch a bit— he felt like a fish trying to change its shape.
Back in the lift again, Prof So continued his journey alone with a smile on his face. ‘If I ate a thirty-five-dollar lunch, I would have twenty-five dollars left, wouldn't I? What should I tell my wife? She certainly wouldn’t believe the money had been stolen; who would steal just twenty dollars?’ She would be even madder if he told her he got a bigger meal or had a high tea with a colleague. “Blood pressure, blood fat, the heart, bla bla bla.” she would repeat until going to bed at 22.30, and she would even wake him up in the middle of the night to drink a cup of strong Pu’er tea.
And that was not all. His mum must have praised her wonderful daughter-in-law while he endured all this. She was the one who insisted on living with her mother-in-law; she was the one who made it possible for him to fulfil his duty as a son; she was the one who could call her husband back home for dinner before the News at Six Thirty; she was the one who ordered him to drink strong tea, do sports, eat all kinds of colourful vegetables and keep early hours to maintain his body, energy, and achievements; she was the one who helped him proofread his theses year after year and pushed him to publish an article every two months, so he could keep getting promoted; she was the one who kept their two kids’ grades among top five on every exam, so her mother-in-law could show off everywhere; she was the one who had been able to run the family and increase their savings by four hundred thousand after taxes every year; she was the one who helped her mother-in-law gain the greatest reputation in the park. Under her daughter-in-law's management, her son, Maria, and both grandchildren (one boy and one girl, you see, how perfect) were all doing their best. The entire house was sparkling clean except for the study room. She would even make donations under the name of “Mrs So” during the fundraisers for Tung Wah Group of Hospitals and Po Leung Kuk. Although his mother didn’t know who “Mrs So” referred to, all morning joggers in the park thought it was her, and that was enough.
How did this exceptional daughter-in-law count Prof So’s pocket money? Twenty dollars for breakfast, oatmeal was a must; thirty-five dollars for lunch, dim sum was allowed sometimes, but duck breast and steak were definitely not an option. His wife would top up his Octopus card for transportation every week and pay his phone bill, so usually, he wouldn’t exceed the limit. Newspapers? As mentioned, there wouldn’t be news he didn’t know. If there was no other use for the remaining forty-five dollars, it had to be
returned and saved for the following day. What was “other use”? For example, his wife might call him to buy a bottle of soybean milk on the way home, so the money would be used for this “emergency.” However, twenty dollars were lost today. How would he explain that when he got home?
Prof So was already hungry before lunchtime. He strolled to the “sour can,” as the student called the canteen that sold low-quality food, to buy a pineapple bun and a cup of honey lemon. “Oh, no, sorry, coffee please,” he suddenly
changed his mind and said to the cashier. The coffee was twelve dollars, so he had just saved a few dollars and time for lunch! Thinking of this, he felt as if the crust of the pineapple bun and the coffee turned sweeter suddenly.
The next day, Prof So woke up early as usual and tried to arrive at his office before Alana. He intentionally took out five twenty-dollar notes from his pocket. How come? Why were they all flat and straight? He rubbed them again and again and messily put them on the desk. He just picked up a twenty-dollar banknote and left in a hurry. When he got into the lift, he saw Alana walking toward his office with a bucket and rag.
Back in the office, he counted his banknotes. ‘What? Why didn't she take it today?’ Perhaps it was too obvious to take it for two days in a row. He decided to try it again the next day. The next afternoon, he got a bun again but didn’t have coffee. He could not sleep last night. Maybe, it was because of the coffee.
On the fourth day, his money was missing again. Prof So took out one hundred and forty dollars from his pocket. He saved it by eating buns for two days. He took one, rubbed the remaining six, and then placed them on the desk. Afterwards, he went to the canteen and read a book for an hour.
Days passed, and thefts like this happened every few days. Alana was the only one who could enter his office. He didn’t need more evidence. That woman, who made Prof So feel life is still quite intriguing, was the thief. It could not be a good detective story since it was not suspected anymore. But Prof So still giggled while walking to the MTR station. He intentionally let Alana steal his money without being noticed by Alana and his wife. It seemed to be a rare achievement which made him much happier than receiving huge research funding.
Prof So contemplated why he was doing so. Stealing was not good, but why did he keep encouraging it? Sometimes he felt dull and a bit regretful while chewing on the tasteless bun. But he felt better again thinking of what Alana had said before, he felt better again. "Twenty dollars will pay for my whole family’s dinner." Wasn't that the best reason? But he frowned again. Helping Alana and her family to have a better life was not his purpose. He just wanted to see if he could live like that and have a weird one-sided relationship with a person he didn’t know well to satisfy his “research addiction.”
A year passed, and Prof So became slimmer and secretly saved more pocket money. His game also became larger and more complex. Sometimes, he would leave a pile of coins on his table. Then, he would add the money taken by Alana in his small notebook- an activity that became his daily enjoyment. By now, she had taken more than a thousand dollars in total. Prof So had thought about how he would have used that money if it had still been in his pocket. It’s not enough for a computer, but it should be enough for a nice coat or a decent briefcase. Although he would never own these things in real life, it’s still pleasant to imagine. His life has gradually become more delightful and meaningful. The most exciting moment was when he met Alana. They would still greet each other naturally as if nothing had happened.
To him, it was simply the greatest excitement in his working hours.
One day, before he got off work, Alana unexpectedly came to his office saying that she had resigned. Prof So thought, ‘Alana was caught stealing money from other offices, wasn't she? Wow! Then she must've gained a lot.’ In fact, he had been secretly dreading this day because that would put an end to his game. But he was also looking forward to this moment. She deserved it. In fact, she came to announce good news: her son would graduate from Hong Kong University in a few months and become a trainee lawyer, so she would no longer have to work for five thousand dollars a month.
"Oh, are you going to retire?" Prof So was very upset. He contemplated the reason for his unhappiness. At first, he thought it was because he would never get his money back.
However, why was he so unhappy if he had no intention of getting it back? Was it because he would miss his longtime colleague? Not at all! He had never seen her as a colleague. She was just a guinea pig. But that seemed not to be the reason either because he never cared about her state. He only cared about the subtle changes in his own feelings. Through Alana, he could look down on people and experience success. He could hide and lie to his wife under the guise of good intentions and pretend he didn’t know anything. To put it bluntly, it was all because of fun. Because people like him, who always went by the book, went to school, worked at school, and eventually would retire from school, had never had fun like this. He suddenly felt a wave of sadness. He didn’t intend to start this game and end it like this, but it was even more difficult to deny that he was doing this by his will. He tried hard to suppress his emotions and said to Alana, "Congratulations! Your son is brilliant!"
Alana lowered her head. She picked up a box of chocolates from a large paper handbag. She said shyly, "Prof So, thank you for always taking care of us. I really appreciate your kindness. You seem to be getting thinner these days. Please take care."
Prof So was shocked. He stared at Alana, who looked like an uneducated woman. Now, he found that her wisdom was always above his own! "No, no, I didn’t do anything!"
Alana was in tears suddenly. She tried to hide her emotions and said with a faint smile, "You are a kind-hearted person. You are the most humane person in the whole university. I have to leave." Then, she nodded and stepped backwards as if bowing.
The next day, the Head of the Department held an emergency meeting to inform everyone that Alana was fired. She asked her colleagues if they had lost anything. Everyone was surprised and said no, and they tried to defend Alana. After the meeting, Prof So whispered to the Head, "Who found it out?" She said, "What? Are you still asking? It's you! You didn’t keep your money well. I went to your office looking for you. When I opened the door, I saw she was taking your money. She admitted her guilt right away. Caught red-handed!”
Prof So was about to say, "Why didn't you knock before coming in?" Instead, he just said, "Losing a job these days is such a … " The Head replied, "Don't worry. People like her can get money somewhere else.”
Prof So shook his head. After the Head left, he went back to his office. He took out the five-dollar coin he had saved earlier from his pocket and tossed it into the air. But he missed the coin, which dropped onto the ground with a clang. Suddenly, his wife called and asked him to buy a five-dollar ginger after work. He agreed without hesitation. While holding
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the phone, he bent down to pick up the small coin as if making a deep bow.
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