The chapter opens with a flashback to the beginning of the novel, when the narrator explains that he is a student at a boarding school in Shanghai, and that his parents have refused to allow him to live at home because of his family's religious beliefs. The narrator tells us that he came to the school to beg his parents to let him live with them because he has no other option. He tells his parents that he wants to go to school, but his parents will not let him do so because of the religious beliefs of the family. He asks his parents for help finding a place to live so that he can attend school. His parents are angry with him because he does not attend their school, and they even threaten to kick him out if he fails to attend. The school is too far away for him to attend, and his parents do not want him living at home. He begs them to help him find a place where he can live, but they refuse, saying he is too old and too dangerous for them.