Big Brother

My brother turns 34 today and he keeps a low key about it. I called him several times and always got the polite message: The customer you try to reach is not in service area. So where is he? Mom had to call grandmother and asked her to call my brother and sent our greetings. So it will cost one international call and one domestic long-distance call to forward our message to him. I wish he will grow up a little bit this year and so we don't have to worry about him often. My brother is a real "anti-brother" and he never cares about being a brother. He asks much from life but does not work as hard. He can only survive in Beijing, and he seems having no interest in other cities or places at all. Although he is young, he always reminds me of the passive tense--something slow, lay back, lack of energy and easy to comprimise. He knows the best food in town, he knows how to dress up and catch the fashion, he knows the best clubs and KTVs, and he knows girls. He is charming to strangers, because he is talktive, neat, decent dressed and cute. He knows how to entertain people. It seems to me that he belongs to the old city of Peking, to the lost generation of idle class, to the pre-industrial society which values sophisticated taste for life and useless knowledge of entertaining and be entertained. What worries me most is that he attaches no weight to his life. I don't want to judge his life and I should not do that, but sometimes I wonder where he will drift away with the coming tide of time and social change. Oh, my big brother, where are you going and what are you gonna to do with your life? My brother is in every sense like Na Wu, a fictional figure created by Deng You Mei. 那五 　　 　　“房新画不古，必是内务府。"那五的祖父作过内务府堂官。所以到他爸爸福大爷卖府的时候，那房子卖的钱还足够折腾几年。福大爷刚七岁就受封为"乾清宫五品挎刀侍卫"。 　　他连杀鸡都不敢看，怎敢挎刀？辛亥革命成全了他。没等他到挎刀的年纪，就把大清朝推翻了。 　　福大爷有产业时，门上不缺清客相公。所以他会玩鸽子，能走马。洋玩意能捅台球，还会糊风筝，最上心的是唱京戏，拍昆曲。给涛贝勒配过戏，跟溥侗合作过《珠帘寨》。有名的琴师胡大头是他家常客。他不光给福大爷说戏、吊嗓，还有义务给他喊好。因为吊嗓时座上无人，不喊好时透着冷清。常常是大头拉个过门，福大爷刚唱一句："太保儿推杯换大斗，他就赶紧放下弓子，拍一下巴掌喊：一天睡得不够，嗓子发干，听他喊完好也有起疑的时候："我怎么觉着这一句不怎么样哪？" 　　“嗯，味儿是差点，你先饮饮场！"大头继续往下拉，毫不气馁。 　　福大奶奶去世早，福大爷声明为了不让孩子受委屈，不再续弦。弦是没续，但今天给京剧坤伶买行头，明天为唱大鼓的姑娘赎身。他那后花园子的五间暖阁从没断过堂客。大爷事情这么忙，自然顾不上照顾孩子。 　　那五也用不着当老子的照顾。他有自己的一群伙伴。三贝子、二额驸、索不堂的少爷、袁宫保的嫡孙。年纪相仿，门第相当。你夸我家的厨子好，我称你府上的裁缝强。斗鸡走狗，听戏看花。还有比他们老子胜一筹的，是学会些摩登派的新奇玩意儿。溜冰，跳舞，在王府井大街卖呆看女人，上"来今雨轩"坐茶座泡招待。他们从来不知道钱有什么可珍贵的；手紧了管他铜的瓷的、是书是画，从后楼上拿两锦匣悄悄交给清客相公，就又支应个十天半月，直到福大爷把房产像卖豆腐似的一块块切着卖完，五少爷把古董像猫儿叼食似的叼净。债主请京师地方法院把他从剩下的号房里掏出来，这才知道他这一身本事上当铺当不出一个大子儿，连换个硬面饽饽也换不来。 　　福大爷一口气上不来，西天"接引"了，留下那五成了舍哥儿。