Half an hour later the boys reembarked. For the rest of the day they traveled in smooth water. By dark, they reached Sundhiango, last stop of their river voyage.
From Sundhiango they headed northwest, toward the foothills of Mt. Minya Konka, west of Chungking and Chengtu. Once clear of the river city, the boys moved along a dirt road until weariness overtook them. Off the road, they built a small fire, ate a mixture of flour and rice Chuba dreamed up, and then slept.
In the morning, Chuba inspected Biff carefully.
“What’s the matter?” Biff demanded.
“You almost America boy again. More like fish called carp, though. All streaky.”
“What do you mean?”
“Your swims in river. Make betel juice fade. You look at self. We got to make you Chinese beggar boy again.”
Chuba took out his bottle of juice, and smeared Biff’s body and face. “Now, all good again. We move out.”
“And up,” Biff said, looking toward the mountains.
By late afternoon, Biff and Chuba reached a town in the foothills. They had been climbing steadily all day. Several times Biff had to swallow to clear the pressure in his ears, brought on by the higher altitude.