Marie and her mother sat down to a meal Marie had just prepared. Her mother filled Marie in on her trip to America with Ai-Ming, delivering a sponge cake from Ai-Ming. Marie went to bed and thought about her father, then looked at a letter in which Ai-Ming wrote that they would be birds in heaven and trees on earth. Marie missed Ai-Ming, a “link” to her father and mother (11). She told herself some of the story from The Book of Records to help her fall asleep.

Working at his desk one evening, Sparrow heard a rustling out back. There, he found a small, emaciated boy holding a letter in Wen’s handwriting. Sparrow gave the boy all the money he had on him and took the letter home where he read it. Before he could destroy it, Zhuli caught a glimpse of the letter and realized it was from her father. She tried to ask Sparrow about it, but he would not give her any information about its contents.

In the letter, Wen explained that he had escaped from the re-education camp and thus was in great danger.