Maid for the Billionaire(33)

Zhang nodded her head slowly in agreement and looked out the window. Her manicured fingernails tapped lightly on the hard surface of a small, built in table. "Actually, your fear confirms your intelligence and your presence is still an amazement."

Abby clasped and unclasped her hands before she caught herself doing it and forced herself into stillness. "You said you had something to show me. Something that was important."

"How did you get so brave, little school teacher?" Zhang asked looking across at her again.

Abby answered without skipping a beat. ―Teaching in an inner city school is not for the easily intimidated.‖ Putting the day into that perspective, Abby began to relax. Sure, she was in a foreign country being driven off to who knew where with a woman she wasn‘t sure she could trust, but her life had been just as much at risk the last time she‘d broken up a fight between two angry teenagers only to discover that one of them had been carrying a knife. Somehow working with troubled teens had always seemed worth the risk. Some things simply were. Like today.

―Then why do you do it?‖ Zhang asked as if the answer to this held the answer to many other questions.

―Because what I do is important. Because if I don't reach those children, there is a good chance that no one else will.‖

Zhang looked both surprised and pleased with Abby‘s answer. ―Then you will understand what I am going to show you.‖

They left the tourist area behind. Central Beijing was an interesting mixture of tall glass buildings and patches of trees. Its modern structures bustled with people like New York City, but the streets were wider and the crowd‘s attire conformed more than it shocked.

Zhang‘s tour took Abby through the University of Beijing area. Zhang explained each scene they came across. The limo paused near a group of Chinese women sitting outside on the grass of the campus. ―There are over one hundred colleges and universities in Beijing,‖ Zhang said. ―Many of the young in the city, both men and women, are furthering their education and now have futures that are filled with endless possibilities. Education is the key to independence for women especially.‖

Abby admitted her prior misconception. ―I had no idea how modern Beijing was. I‘m so used to the tourist posters.‖

Zhang didn‘t look at all surprised. She waved a dismissive hand at Abby‘s distant homeland. ―Many Americans picture China that way. Yes, we are committed to our culture and traditions, but we also have a new appreciation for modernization. Unfortunately, like your country, we are changing so quickly that not all of our decisions are wise ones. For example, Beijing now struggles with the same sand storms that once afflicted your western states. Outside of the cities, many still rely solely on agriculture for survival. This has caused an erosion of our top soils. Something must change, but for those who rely on farming and raising animals, the old ways are their only means of survival. Real change will only come if we make a commitment to educating and employing more of them.‖

The limo headed out of the city. The wide paved roads narrowed into dirt roads that wound through the mountains. ―How far are we going?‖ Abby asked.

Zhang shrugged. ―A little over an hour outside of the city. There is someone I‘d like you to meet. She owns the only store in Saun Li.‖

They passed a small farmhouse, a simple white rectangular structure with a red tiled roof.

Its only distinctive farm feature was the assortment of small animals scattered across its lawn and the rocky hill beside it. A donkey grazed, loose, in the sparse vegetation on the other side of the road.

Had the drive been for any other reason, Abby would have asked to have the car pull over.

In the distance she could see a man sitting on a rock watching a small flock of sheep. His dark blue shirt and tan pants were not what she imagined a rural shepherd would wear.

Zhang noted her interest and said, ―His name is Xin Yui. He splits his time between his work in the city and his parents‘ farm. Some rural families are allowed more than one child, but he bears the full responsibility of his parents. If he is lucky, his city job will allow him to afford to move his parents into the city with him, although I doubt they will go willingly. Their family has been on that land for many generations.‖

With some disappointment, Abby watched the small farm disappear from view. ―You sound like you know him.‖

―I was born in this area,‖ Zhang said curtly and turned away from the window, away from her memories. ―Wen Chan is one I have brought you to meet. She went to just enough university to learn how to start a small business. The money she makes from her store feeds her entire family and allowed her to leave her abusive husband. In the past, poverty would have kept her with him with no choices.‖

The mountain road widened and smoothed the closer they came to a small town that seemed to appear out of nowhere. No more than twenty buildings made up the cluster of dwellings Zhang had called a town. In the center of it stood a small outdoor food market and an unassuming storefront with a hand-painted sign that Abby guessed was Wen‘s family name. Men and women gathered to talk near the store.

A woman in a plain cotton brown blouse and pants stood in the doorway of the store watching the limo park. Zhang instructed her driver and men to wait with the vehicles. Abby followed her out onto the hard dirt of the road.

The shopkeeper ushered them into her small shop and spoke to Zhang quickly in Mandarin.

Her affection for her famous guest spoke of a familiarity that surprised Abby. The store was neat and clean, but little more than a few rows of shelves of food and basic necessities.