Grounding under the Bayberry Tree (novella)
This story is about a 23-year-old male student cynically re-examining society, parenthood, and Confucianism during the lockdown of 2020 in China. It is written in the form of a diary-style monologue. At first, I wanted to adopt the form of Josephine Johnson’s Now in November, but one year later, I gave up that idea. The history of the pandemic was by no means over in 2020, and a more mature reflection would probably take years to complete. Therefore, I can only write about the spontaneous feelings and observations of a “cynic” who would easily change his mind later. I believe that people are changing over time; therefore, never do I want to indicate what he was thinking represents an authentic picture of Chinese reality that is changing all the time as well.