In this chapter, we learn that Gao's mother has died and that her father, Zhang chen, has gone to live with his sister. Gao has returned to her village in the south of China, where she has met her new friend, Luo Ling, a beautiful young woman from the town of Sesame. The two exchange pleasantries, and Gao Ling tells her that she is now the new owner of a duck farm in her village.