Chapter 5 — One Centimetre

It is a short story by Chinese author Bi Shumin about Tao Ying, a factory cook, who is determined to set a morally perfect example for her young son Xiao Ye. Two incidents — a bus-ticket dispute and a temple-entry dispute — hinge on a height rule of 1.10 metres (one centimetre), testing her honesty and dignity.

Tao Ying is the protagonist of the story. She works as a cook in the canteen of a factory, spending her days next to an open fire baking screw-shaped wheat cakes with sesame butter. She and her husband are described as blue-collar workers.

"One centimetre" refers to the small margin by which Xiao Ye's height falls short of the 1.10 m threshold for a paid bus ticket, and the disputed centimetre at the temple gate where the guard insists the boy is over the free-entry limit. Symbolically, it stands for the tiny but decisive gap between honesty and dishonesty, between a mother's integrity and a convenient compromise.

Tao Ying realises that to Xiao Ye she is 'the centre of the universe' and she must be 'the most perfect, flawless mother possible.' She cannot allow him to see her evade a fare — 'in front of the child, she would never lie.' Her son's perception of her integrity matters more than the twenty-cent saving.

The temple guard insists Xiao Ye is over 110 centimetres and demands a second ticket. A crowd gathers and the confrontation becomes public. Tao Ying firmly believes her son is under the limit and refuses to buy a ticket she considers unjustly demanded, telling Xiao Ye 'Mama has forgotten to buy a ticket' to avoid lying. Once the boy asks 'Mama, did you really not buy a ticket?' she realises she cannot pay — she would never be able to explain herself to her son.

After measuring Xiao Ye at home while he sleeps (finding him 1 metre 9 centimetres), she writes a letter of complaint to the temple administrators. She consults a factory colleague nicknamed 'the Writer' to improve it, and sends it out. Eventually two officials from the temple's administrative office arrive at her home to investigate and measure Xiao Ye.

The officials bring a five-dollar bill in an envelope and also offer two complimentary passes for a future visit. Tao Ying declines both. She asks only one thing: that the officials tell her son 'exactly what happened on that day' and confirm to him that 'his mother has not done anything wrong.'

The story's central theme is parental integrity — the sacrifices a parent makes to be a worthy moral example for a child. Tao Ying says it is 'exhausting to follow rules dictated by parental guide-books all the time', but she is 'determined to be the ideal mother and create a perfect example for her son to look up to.' The story also explores the arbitrariness of official rules and the dignity of ordinary people.

Both she and her husband are blue-collar workers and any saving would have helped. But Xiao Ye is a smart boy who might ask aloud, 'Mama, can we claim back tickets even when we are on a private outing?' The text states plainly: 'In front of the child, she would never lie.' So she surrenders the reimbursement to protect her son's view of her honesty.

Tao Ying always eats watermelon without biting close to the rind — not because she thinks the rind tastes worse, but to model polished table manners. One day she catches Xiao Ye eating exactly as she does and realises 'children are the best imitators in the world.' From that moment she understands that she must 'concentrate and never fail in her own example' at all times.

Bi Shumin (Bi Shu-min in the text) is a Chinese writer born in 1952. She served as a doctor in China for over twenty years and holds a Master's degree in literature from the Beijing Teacher's College. Her works have been translated into many languages and she has won literary awards in both China and Taiwan.

Yes. The NCERT Kaleidoscope Class 12 English PDF, including Chapter 5 "One Centimetre", is free to read and download on CBSE PrepMaster. No sign-up or account is needed.