The death of a soulful hair salon girl [graphs]

www.chinadaily.com.cn/english/doc/2005-10/20/content_486438.htm

The death of a soulful hair salon girl
By Fu Jianfeng (southweekend)
Updated: 2005-10-20 08:57


The day is September 3. It is getting late at night, and the road next to the Lanzhou train station is getting deserted.


[CENTER]The diary of a murdered hair salon girl, also a sex worker, reveals her deep and fervent love towards her husband. [southcn.com][/CENTER][/COLOR]


At that moment, a man and a woman got out of the hair salon with the pink light on and walked into the railroad workers' dormitory across the street. The woman is Gou Li (pseudonym), 23 years old, round face, big eyes, always smiling. The man behind her had disheveled hair, old clothes, and the oil-stained legs of his pants were stuffed into his socks.

Gou Li is a working girl at the hair salon. At noon on this day, she had actually packed her baggage. She bade farewell to the owner of the sex equipment store next to the hair salon and said: "I now have the money that I needed urgently to repay my debt. So I won't be working as of tomorrow."

But the sex equipment store owner never imagined that this would be the last 'deal' with Gou Li. Late that night, Gou Li expired.

She was strangled to death while completely nude in her rented room. A bicycle braking wire was buried deep into her neck, and the man "with the legs of his pants stuffed in his socks" had disappeared.

Based upon this unique description, the Lanzhou police keyed on two types of people: one was workers who ride tricycles and the other was workers who moved steel bars. On September 15, after working twelve days and nights on this case, the Lanzhou police finally found a young man named Tang matching all those characteristics at a worksite. When the police found Gou Li's personal handy-phone system underneath his pillow, the young man broke down.

He told the police that he had killed the woman purely to release anger. In another city, he had patronized a prostitute and ended up being beaten up and robbed of 200 RMB. Therefore, he wanted to take revenge on all these girls.

Just when the police thought that they had closed the case, a new development created much sadness among the police officers. From the belongings of Gou Li, they found two diaries. Each page contained deep, longing thoughts for her husband.

"Stunning. It was stunning. Who would imagine that she was such a sentimental girl?" sighed a police officer.[/FONT]

The happy life of Gou Li began at the end of 2003 when she met Chen Xiaolin. She was on the way to work in a city.


[CENTER]A drawing from Gou's diary, depicting an intimate couple. [southcn.com][/CENTER][/COLOR]


"She looked really good when she smiles, so I was attracted." At the time, Chen Xiaolin was sitting across Gou Li, but he did not dare speak to her. Gou Li also felt something and she asked to borrow his telephone. That was how they got acquainted.

Soon their love grew quickly. Chen Xiaolin asked: "My family is very poor. Would you mind?" Gou Li said: "I don't mind." Gou Li told him very honestly that she had a boyfriend before but he was not good to her. She had an abortion once. But if he truly loved her and did not mind that, she was willing to live with him for a lifetime.

Chen Xiaolin was touched. The two got married one month after they got to know each other.

Gou Li's family lives in a remote and impoverished mountain district in Shaanxi province Baoji city Linyou county. Gou's father died young and her two older brothers barely managed to support her to complete secondary school. Afterwards, she had to go to work. There are five people in Chen Xiaolin's family. The sister is married, so there are the parents and a younger brother.

To go from the county center to Chen's family takes 3 to 4 hours with lots of steep slopes and cliffs. When our reporter went there on a local tricycle, the experience was comparable to a roller coaster ride. The Chen family has more than 30 mu of dry land, and their income is like others in the village at about 2,000 RMB per annum, barely enough for expenses.

They did not take any wedding photographs because they had no money. But the Chen family borrowed 10,000 RMB to send to the Gou family as the betrothal present in accordance with the tradition in northwestern China.[/FONT]

Most of them could afford only gifts of 1 or 2 RMB, very few over 5 RMB and only one 20 RMB (from a village cadre to whom they were related). So this banquet was a money loser. Worse yet, part of the loan was high-interest. Chen Xiaolin said: "I'd have to repay it quickly even if I have to sell blood." According to his family income, it would take 15 years to repay the 30,000 RMB if they don't eat or drink.


[CENTER]The hair salon where Gou used to work has since been closed by the police. [southcn.com][/CENTER][/COLOR]


So their hope was put upon labor work. Chen Xiaolin's younger brother went to work as a security guard in Beijing. His father, who is Gou Li's father-in-law, went to carry rocks at a Shaanxi quarry mine for 30 RMB per day. In Chen Xiaolin's memory, his father's face was filled with lines, he looked like he was 60 to 70 years old when he was only 50 or so and he only weighs about 40 kilograms at a height of 1.6 meters.

With a physical built like that, he still had to carry rocks that weight several hundred kilograms. When his father came home, his back was all rough. Gou Li cried several times to Chen Xiaolin: "When can we let dad and mom enjoy life a little bit? Dad is wasting his life away for the money."

Gou Li's father died young, and so she treated her father-in-law like her own father. One time, she found out that he slept in the street under someone's eaves in order to save a couple of dollars, she cried abundantly. "She was a good-hearted person who loved dad dearly . At the time, she kept telling me to go work and make money," said Chen Xiaolin.

But the Chen parents did not want them to go work immediately . They wanted them to stay home and make a baby. Those days were the happiest in Gou Li's life. In the cave that measured less than 10 square meters, she posted a baby picture. When she got pregnant, she stood on the tall yellow earth and tended the sheep, saying, "Husband, do you know what is the happiest moment in a woman's life?" Chen Xiaolin did not know. She smile and said, "When she is pregnant!"

But fate did not favor this family. On a night last July, Gou Li miscarried. Her mother-in-law cried, but Gou Li told her while crying herself: "Mom, I am still young. I will give you another good baby. I will not let you down."[/FONT]

At first, Gou Li found a job for 300 RMB at a clothing distribution market. Chen Xiaolin found a job for 350 RMB at a factory. The couple did the arithmetic: rent at 50 RMB and all other expenses are at least 100 RMB. After one year, they can save around 5,000 RMB. "When will we ever repay the debt?" the worried Gou Li woke Chen Xiaolin up in the middle of the night and asked.


[CENTER]Gou noted down her items of expenses before her death. [southcn.com][/CENTER][/COLOR]


After half a month, Chen Xiaolin quit his job and borrowed money to buy an old motorcycle to work as a taxi driver. Gou Li also quit. She told her husband: "Many people from our home are working at hair salons. The pay is around 1,000 RMB. Don't worry, I won't do anything to betray you." At first, Chen Xiaolin took her to work every day at the hair salon.

In those days, Gou Li used to come home at 9pm at night. Chen Xiaolin was usually very tired from his work. Gou Li would fetch the water water to wash his feet. They had a small tape player and they sit and listen to it together. They like the song "Two butterflies." Gou Li would lean on her husband's shoulder and sing lightly: "Dearest, let us dance. Love's springtime has no sundown ..."

Sometimes, Chen Xiaolin drove the motorcycle at night and did not come home to sleep. Her wife told him that she came back every evening at the same time.

But pretty soon, he found out from the landlord that his wife was lying. From there, Chen Xiaolin found out that his wife was working as a "miss" at the hair salon.

He was enraged: "No matter how poor we are, we cannot do this! You have betrayed me!" He called up Gou Li's brother and said: "I can no longer deal with Gou Li. Let us get divorced." Gou Li cried: "Did you think that I really want to do this kind of work? Do you want to see dad wasting away his life for money? I am doing this only to lighten the burden at home."

In thinking back to this shameful episode, Chen Xiaolin lowered his head, rubbed his hands together hard and cried: "At the time, I could not find anything to say ... I felt that I was too poor, too useless, and not a man. My wife did this for the family. She loved me so much ..."[/FONT]

On April 19, he went to the detention center. When they saw each other, they grabbed each other and cried. Chen Xiaolin held Gou Li's hand and said, "Don't cry. I'll find a way to get you out, no matter how much it costs." Gou Li wrote in her diary: "I thought that there was no way to come up with that much money. I am really sorry. I am really sorry to have taken the job."


[CENTER]The heart-shaped paper folding with which Gou expressed her deep love to her loved husband. [southcn.com][/CENTER][/COLOR]


Gou Li began keeping a diary from that day on until she was released in late August. There are 116 diary entries.

In order to find the money for Gou Li at the detention center, Chen Xiaolin called his family and lied: "Gou Li was accidentally hit by a car and needed money for medical expenses." The family pulled together and sent 1,000 RMB over.

Chen Xiaolin worked even harder with his motorcycle in order to get the money to save his wife. Gou Li wrote how touched she was in her diary: "I am really proud of having a husband like you."

Later, Chen Xiaolin sold his motorcycle for 1,000 plus RMB in order to "retrieve" Gou Li. At the time, Gou Li felt very heavy-hearted in the detention center and wrote that her man was "too stupid, too stupid."

Even during these difficult times, Gou Li had moments of happiness. May 13 was her birthday, so her husband spent 20 RMB to buy a baked chicken and twenty eggs. The chicken was shared with all of the roommates at the detention center. On that day, Gou Li wrote in her diary: "Husband, you bought the chicken for me. I am very touched." But Chen Xiaolin had reached a stage that he could not even afford a 2 RMB bowl of beef noodles. He spent 5 RMB on his own birthday.

Seeing that things were getting unbearable, Chen Xiaolin had to borrow money again to buy a used motorcycle. But this was an illegal motorcycle, so he got fined again and again. One month later, he sold the motorcycle and ended up losing 1,200 RMB. Meanwhile, Gou Li had no idea and wrote in her June 25 diary entry: "Are you still riding the motorcycle? It must be tough. You should take care of yourself and not ruin your body. I really really want to fly to your side."

These endless memories and thoughts constituted the principal spiritual life of Gou Li behind bars. The diary has more than 100 entries that began with, "Husband, are you thinking of me?" She copied the line, "Husband, I am thinking of you. I love you. I want you for my whole life, dearest husband" several hundred times over four full pages of the diary.[/FONT]

Soon June had gone by, but the release date was still faraway. On the day when she was released, her husband Chen Xiaolin was still trying to borrow money in Beijing and thinking about how to get her out.

In July, the night time weather in Lanzhou began to turn cold. Gou Li took pity on a roommate at the detention center. She childishly wrote in the diary: "Husband, this morning, I gave my pair of jeans to the new roommate who came in last night. Do you blame me?"

Late August, she was surprised to be told that she would be released two months early for good behavior. On that day, Chen Xiaolin was still in Beijing trying to borrow money and working on ideas to get her released earlier.

The ecstatic Chen Xiaolin hurried back from Beijing. His wife met him at the train station. When they saw each other, they embraced and cried. The wife had not eaten well in the past few months, so Chen Xiaolin borrowed 500 RMB from his fourth uncle and took everyone who had helped him for a big chicken dinner.

But Gou Li's four months behind bars had already cost Chen Xiaolin 10,000 RMB, which were all borrowed. Four months in the city had brought no money for them, and actually increased the debt. In particular, a 1,300 RMB loan had to be repaid within the next 10 days. So Chen Xiaolin spent one day with his wife, and then he had to go back to Beijing to work and gather money. Their plan was for Chen Xiaolin to find 800 RMB in Beijing and Gou Li to borrow 500 RMB from her own family. When the money arrives, "You must come to Beijing immediately. We will spend a happy mid-Autumn festival in Beijing. Then we will work together in Beijing and start a new life," said Chen Xiaolin.[/FONT]

But this was their final farewell. Four days later, Chen Xiaolin got the terrible news that Gou Li was killed by a patron.


The hair salon has since been closed by the police

Chen Xiaolin could not figure out why his wife would go back to do the same thing after being incarcerated for four months. "My only explanation is that she did not want to borrow money from her very poor family, and she also wanted to see me in Beijing as soon as possible. That was how she thought she could make some money quickly ..." said Chen Xiaolin who then began to cry.

Among Gou Li's possessions is a ledger which lists her expenses in the month after her release. Chen Xiaolin said that he did not leave her much money so she must have made it on her own. According to the ledger, she did not spend more than 4 RMB on food. The only luxury is 150 RMB for a personal handy-phone system. The clothes and shoes were essential after her release, but none of the items cost more than 50 RMB. In Chen Xiaolin's memory, his wife had never spent more than 60 RMB on clothes. "Last year, the cotton jacket that I bought her when she was pregnant was the most expensive clothing -- 60 RMB."


As Chen Xiaolin recounted these past events to our reporter, he broke into crying very often. He was sometimes repetitious, and also disturbed. He admitted that there were many things that he cannot disclose, and will probably never ever tell anyone. He even admitted that he lied to the CCTV reporters who came to the village to interview him. He wanted to conceal the truth about Gou Li's death from his family. But several days ago, a relative in Lanzhou told the truth to the village folks. Suddenly, public opinion in the village went from sympathy to sarcasm and his mother was in tears. Chen Xiaolin feels too ashamed to go home. He does not dare to return to comfort his grieving mother, and went to Beijing to work instead.

Chen Xiaolin did not want to imagine the struggle and pain that his wife went through before deciding to "do it." He said that he will bury all that in his heart. In her diary, Gou Li did not say a single word.

The only thing that will let outsiders peer into the heart of Gou Li is a rumor from the hair salon workers. The girls said that after each transaction with a client, Gou Li would use paper to create many hearts.

These hearts were for her husband. Each heart carried a small wish of hers. On the other side, there is the fact of a cartoon: the nose is heart-shaped, the face is put together with "kiss you" or "love you", the mouth is a crescent moon ... among the belongings of Gou Li, there is one full bag of these hearts, more than 1,000 of them.[/FONT]

Adelyn, Thanks again for being there. I admire you and what you've done for us.