03 第1章 木兰赶鸡（3）

03 第1章 木兰赶鸡（3）

“Mulan! Take control of yourself!” 

At the sound of her mother’s voice, Mulan’s footsteps slowed. Ahead, she saw her mother, Li, standing by the door to their home, arms crossed and a frown on her otherwise beautiful face. Beside her was Xiu. Unlike their mother, the expression on Xiu’s face was one of delight as she watched Mulan—and the chicken—running toward them along the thin balcony outside their apartment. 

Up ahead, the chicken had reached the end of the balcony and once again flew into the air. The creature’s short wings and heavy body kept it from going far, but it was able to make it to the rooftop, where it once again took off. Mulan regained her original fast pace and didn’t slow, even as the end of the balcony grew closer and closer. At the very last moment, Mulan reached out and grabbed a hanging clothesline. Quickly, she shinnied up it until she, too, made it to the top of the slanted roof. 

Mulan came to a sudden stop, her feet balanced on the peak of the roof. In front of her, the lush green countryside spread out to the horizon. Grass on the rolling hills waved in the gentle wind, like waves on the water. Mulan’s breath, coming in gasps, hitched. The world was so big, so vibrant. She wished, not for the first time, to go and explore what was beyond the horizon. But there was no way she could ever leave. Her life, her fate, were tied to the very building upon which she stood. And as her mother liked to say, there was no escaping fate. 

BWACK!

The chicken’s taunting cluck dragged Mulan’s thoughts from the impossible back to the present. Narrowing her eyes, she began to move along the roof. Below her, the group of villagers that had been attracted to the courtyard by the sound of the phoenix statue’s wing crashing down stared up at Mulan. Horror and disapproval lined their faces. A few of the older women whispered among themselves, not bothering to keep their disappointed tones quiet. 

As if it had decided the game was over, the chicken stopped, walked over to the edge of the roof, and with a quick f lap of its wings, glided to the ground below. Letting out one last BWACK for good measure, it sauntered into the coop. 

Watching the chicken, Mulan gave a nod of satisfaction. On the ground below, her father rushed over and slammed the gate shut behind the troublesome bird. She felt a small surge of pride. At least one crisis had been averted. 

But as her father’s gaze lifted and met hers, Mulan saw there was still one more problem to be solved. She had made it up to the roof, but how was she going to get down?