In the evening, I helped Shi Yitong change clothes and encoffin the dead old man. Mr. Wen stayed with the grieving Grandma Shi and planned the funeral together.
Shi Yitong remained silent the entire time, neither crying nor speaking. The exquisite nanmu coffin unexpectedly suits grandpa very well.
"One, two, three!" The mature men chanted slogans and lifted the coffin. In fact, the coffin shouldn't be too heavy for eight people, but even so, it still needs to be loud.
On the day of the funeral, all of us were dressed in pure black, but Mr. Wen was still wearing a black Taoist robe with fluttering sleeves. Many people from the village came. It seemed that just like what Shi Yitong said, his grandfather was quite well-known in the village.
"It's a crime." I heard a villager shaking his head, "Old man Shi has sent away so many people in his life, I didn't expect it to be our turn to send him off now."
Shi Yitong stood on the side of the coffin. I don't know if this is some kind of funeral custom, but I saw him standing there, motionless, just staring at the coffin in a daze.
Then, Mr. Wen walked up in that black suit, facing the mourning hall, holding a match in his hand, and lit it with a "swish". In the flickering light of the fire, I saw him igniting a paper sedan chair, and the burning flames soared high. Then, Grandma Shi tremblingly walked to the coffin, lit the oil lamps at the feet of the corpse, and lit the oil lamps at the head. In front of the lamp, offer a bowl of rice and light a stick of incense.
Mr. Wen clasped his hands together and muttered something.
"Nan Ke Meng, Meng Nan Ke, Yimeng Nan Ke, what can I do, everything in the world can't be tied, a pair of empty hands, see Yan Luo. Go from now on, don't waste time, just think of Amitabha to cross the river of love.
Saha is extremely miserable, no one knows, when is the reincarnation, duckweed floats on the water, restrains the bird in the cage, talks about the dead, why don't you turn around and go back. "
Mr. Wen's voice was soft and powerful, neither fast nor slow, and every word hit my heart. No one spoke in front of the mourning hall, and only the scriptures recited by Mr. Wen echoed in the whole room.
Grandpa Shi's funeral lasted all day. Then, headed by the Eight Immortals who carried the coffin, the long funeral procession lined up to the entrance of the village. Shi Yitong and I did not go to the funeral, but Grandma Shi refused to let us go, saying that it was bad luck for children to follow the funeral procession. Although I really want to explain that Shi Yitong and I have both turned eighteen years old, I can't refuse the special care of the elderly.
"Are you okay?" I asked.
Shi Yitong rubbed his nose, "This... is something that can't be helped. I'm sorry, I was too excited yesterday and said something that was too much."
I shook my head, indicating that I didn't care. For me who has such a family, I am afraid it is difficult to understand Shi Yitong's feelings for his grandfather. But even I know how important grandpa occupies in Shi Yitong's life.
It must be a heart-piercing pain to be separated from the one you love.
"I always thought that there was something unclean that would harm Grandpa." Shi Yitong said slowly, "I doubted this, and then doubted that. But I didn't expect to tell me that this is destiny and cannot be changed."
I can only comfort him, "People are born, old, sick and die, each of us will experience this day. Moreover, I believe your grandpa will have a good life over there."
Shi Yitong sniffed and forced a smile to me, "Well, that's right."
That evening, the funeral was over. Shi Yitong's grandfather was buried in the cemetery in the village, not far from Shi Yitong's home, and Shi Yitong could still visit his grandfather at any time. Everyone was tired all day, and soon fell asleep, especially Shi Yitong, who seemed to have finally let go of a big stone in his heart, snoring beside me, which made me unable to sleep.
Through the moonlight outside the window, I saw a figure standing under the willow tree in the yard.
I put on a coat and went out, and it was indeed Mr. Wen.
Mr. Wen did not know when he changed the Taoist robe at the funeral, and he was not wearing the dark gown when I first met him, but a sweater and jeans that were too ordinary. He folded his arms and leaned against the tree, with one foot kicking back against the tree trunk, just like a child.
"You...why haven't you left yet." I rubbed my sleepy eyes and asked, "Isn't the funeral already over?"
"Who do you think I am? Throw it away when you're done using it?" Mr. Wen raised his eyebrows. "Of course I'm here to look for you."
"I see." I scratched my head in embarrassment, "Well, thank you so much this time. I'm sorry that I thought you were a liar..."
Mr. Wen stood there, noncommittal.
"Speaking of which, you actually know Shi Yitong's grandma." I asked curiously, "How did you know each other?"
Mr. Wen shrugged and said lightly, "It's nothing. It's just that I once saved a little girl by the water."
What's the meaning? I didn't understand, but before I could ask, Mr. Wen spoke again.
"It's not important." Mr. Wen suddenly extended a hand to me, "Remuneration."
ha? I was taken aback, "Remuneration?"
"You kid, don't you think I'm working for free?" Mr. Wen looked at me proudly.
"No, that..." I responded weakly, and subconsciously took half a step back, "How much do you want to pay?"
Mr. Wen gave me a thumbs up.
I had no choice but to bite the bullet and guess, "... one hundred?"
He shook his head.
"One thousand?" I had to guess again.
Unexpectedly, he still shook his head and looked at me funny.
"That, that..." No way
"Ten thousand." Mr. Wen ruthlessly broke my fantasy.
I was taken aback, "Ten thousand? Are you going to eat people! Shi Yitong is right, you are really just a swindler!"
"I'm very wronged when you say that about me." There was no sign of wrongedness in Mr. Wen's eyes, but a smile on his face. They even helped plan the funeral and drink with them."
"Even so, you should ask Shi Yitong for money." I made the last struggle.
"Isn't it? You are the one who entrusted me. How can you ask for money from someone other than the entrustor?" Mr. Wen said righteously.
"But, but, I'm just a student." I became anxious, "How can I afford so much money!"
"Well—that's right." Mr. Wen touched his chin and looked at me with a smile in his eyes. "You can't let your parents bear such an inexplicable sum of money?"
I nodded like a chicken pecking at rice.
"Then how about this." Mr. Wen clapped his hands and said, "My store is deserted now, and I'm the only one who needs a part-time assistant. You can pay with your work. How about it? I'm interested." ?"
Wait, why do I feel like I've fallen into this man's trap? But looking at Mr. Wen's squinted eyes, he had no choice but to agree.
I bit the bullet and asked, "Then, how much do you pay for a day's work?"
"Hmm..." Mr. Wen touched his chin and thought for a while, "Ten yuan."
"Oh, ten dollars... wait! It's only ten dollars?" I widened my eyes. "Doesn't that mean that I have to work for you for a thousand days to pay off the money?"
"That's right, two years and seven months." Mr. Wen said with a smile.
"You are Zhou Papi!" I shouted angrily.
"However, if you don't want to, I have no choice but to ask your parents for the money—" Mr. Wen dragged his voice maliciously.
"Don't!" I blurted out, frustrated, "I, I just do it..."
Mr. Wen laughed, "Don't be so sad. I promise, it won't be boring. You are also very interested in this kind of thing? Otherwise, you wouldn't hesitate to ask for leave from school and stay at your friend's house. "
I was silent for a while, but decided to tell the truth, "I'm very curious. After coming here, I saw a world that was different from before, and I saw a lot of incredible things. I want to see more, understand More, I also want to know what is going on with my physique."
Mr. Wen seemed satisfied with my answer, nodded, and said suddenly, "Jiubai."
I was taken aback, "What?"
"Wen Jiubai. This is my name." Mr. Wen said softly, smiling, "Gu Yu, I'm looking forward to your arrival."
On the last day of staying at Shi Yitong's house, I had another dream.
In the dream, there was still that strange void. I was floating in the void, not knowing where I was.
At this time, the bell rang, from far to near, very crisp. Then, a man appeared in my field of vision. The man had dark skin but a very handsome face. He was wearing a green military coat and a pair of cotton shoes on his feet.
Those cotton shoes seemed to be hand-sewn by someone, even the corners were meticulously made.
"Thank you." The man smiled at me, "I have done too many sins in my life, and today is finally the time to pay for it."
I wanted to open my mouth and say you don't need to thank me, but for some reason, I opened my mouth but couldn't make a sound, so I could only listen silently.
"That boy Tong'er is very naughty, it's really hard work for you to be friends with him. If he has any stinking problems, don't worry about it, just whip him." The man raised his eyebrows and said with a serious face. I can't help but smile.
"Thank you. The Shi family will remember your kindness." After finishing speaking, the man smiled and waved to me. His voice gradually faded away and merged into the melodious ringtone. Ah... I don't regret it at all."
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[Chell's words: Thank you for reading this far, Gu Yu's first story is over. This story is adapted from real events that happened to my friend. My friend is from the Northeast, and her grandfather passed away when she was very young. Her grandfather worked as Mr. Yin Yang, and was in charge of the funeral process in the village. Whenever there was a coffin in their house that was knocked in the middle of the night, someone would definitely come to pick the coffin the next day, and the one that was knocked last night must be picked. It is said that on the night of her grandfather's death, the last coffin in the family was knocked. And my friend woke up from the dream in a daze, and saw a pair of cotton shoes her grandma sewed for his grandpa in front of the bed. I am grateful to the friend who provided me with this story, and I also deeply mourn her grandfather who passed away many years ago.]