Thursday, 17 November

At three in the afternoon I went with Kitty and Geng Chengzhi to the solicitor, Yves Aubron (146 Rue de Rivole), and signed the deal that I would sell my house at Sartrouville to Castaire. Though the price is not as good as I expected, I could use the money to settle the debt and hope that after Kitty and I divide the money we could live peacefully without each other. I am already sixty, and the years ahead would not be too many. It was not a good way to be “in the prison of wife” forever. I thought it was worthy to “use money in exchange for penalty”. As Zhongxiong has not moved out completely, I am still unable to hand out the key. Therefore, I appointed with the new owners, who are a couple, that we would clear the procedures together this Saturday.

At five we returned to the restaurant. I immediately notified Miss Huang Yushao (黃玉韶) and told her that I would return 2,000,000 francs that I owed her. I also told her that I am still unable to settle other debts. Therefore, if she needs to buy movie copies I am unable to help. She said she could manage.

Geng Chengzhi told me that, originally, he was more than unwilling to accept the commission. But his import and export business could not operate because of the matter of Dahualou, therefore the living expenditure of his family of four had to be reduced to the minimum. Even for this he still needed 30,000 to 40,000 francs. To manage, he had pawned almost all of his wife’s jewellery, but yet he still had a substantial debt, so he had to accept. I told him that for me the commission was something I had to give out, and I was certainly happy to give it to him. I told him not to feel bad with it and I tried to comfort him in good words.