In the riverside village of my many fathers, almost no one through reading to change the fate of the people, have the brains to do some business to find a village cadre, senseless, most of the cattle, and all day with vegetables.
Third uncle Ben is that generation, the most likely by the college entrance examination and change the fate of the people. He always believed in what he believed, but he had to compromise reality. He loved the river bank where he was born, but he was so poor that he wanted to jump out of this land.
When the temple and people no longer believe in anything, it is not surprising what happened to the third uncle.
1
It is said that the South canal boughs in the flood in 1963 and flows into a water-reducing river (a water-spillway dug by hand) about five feet wide. The village where my grandfather’s family lived, known as the “riverside” in the local people, is right at the water-reducing river.
River flow back and forth, irrigation pieces of red soil sub-fields, unique soil and water advantages, called the qi vegetables grow particularly robust, dozens of miles around, riverside village is famous for rich vegetables. “Five nine’s seedling summer solstice garlic, winter cabbages to go home”, vegetables farmers all the year round are not free, women in the piece of field work, men are riding bicycles to carry vegetables to go to the town.
Three uncle was grandfather as a child to turn the family hope, hope he can concentrate on the burden of vegetables. But the third uncle does not like to grow vegetables, prefers to read, high school read the whole “Dream of red Mansions”, but also extensively dabbled in other Chinese and foreign works.
However, in his first year of high school, the old cow with green back who was pulling the plough in our family gradually could not eat any forage. So, my grandpa dragged my third uncle home from school and let him drop out of school.
Three uncle refused to work in the fields, squatting on the kang all day holding a book to turn over. My grandpa couldn’t get used to his uncle talking about his studies, but now he spends all day in “waste paper”. Then one day, while cooking, my grandpa threw all his uncle’s books into the hearth and burned them up.
After burning the books, three uncle like only frightened donkey colt, before and after several times out of the house, but eventually because of hunger and ran back. In the words of the mother, many children in the home, three uncle is not old and young, who cares about him to make trouble? After months of unsuccessful protests, from grain rain to frost’s descent, the third uncle relented and became depressed.
In 1996, three uncle when full 20 years old, the village generally big boys have been married, but the preservation media pull fiber son’s wife ran over the family on the west, but three uncle seemed to be forgotten, keeping the mud built three brick house no one asked. Three uncle can not marry a daughter-in-law, a village are Shouting three uncle god talk, Afraid is ill; For another thing, the three brick houses had been bought on credit, and the bare yard was still fenced, so that in those days it was difficult even to buy a banquet.
People in the village gossiped in private about a woman’s marriage, even if she was “lying on a wooden mound and looking at a hedge under the kang”.
Grandpa decided to entrust his uncle to his relatives in Hebei, which means he should go to work at the signboard factory in Huanghua Port. His uncle approved, and left the house with a package. Before leaving, my grandfather also told me, “Books are the business of educated people. When we finish reading junior high school, it is a disaster. Making money is the right way.”
Early that morning, uncle carrying the luggage, watching his brother boarded the train. Can be a day two days, until the past week, there has been no news of the safe arrival of three uncle, grandfather repeatedly called to inquire, relatives only said that did not see anyone. The whole family went out to look for it. Two months passed quickly, and they didn’t even find a soul.
The possibility of 20 years old man was abducted is very small, Huanghua there did not spread the news of death, the family feel that the third uncle is fled. After several unsuccessful attempts, grandpa waved his hand and sighed, saying that he had never given birth to this son.
2
Later three uncle told me, in those days, he got off the car halfway in Cangzhou station, latent for a period of time with only money into a ticket, turned around and headed for Beijing.
He went to several night schools in Beijing and wanted to go to an adult high school, but he was neither a fresh graduate nor had a real job, so he felt like a stranger in the city and ended up shaking his hands and doing nothing.
Before long, because of a novel named “charming Sea”, let the third uncle in the beginning of autumn set foot on the train to go to Dalian, want to meet the “let him resonate” writer. Dalian station sea breeze, three uncle holding a book of the author of the introduction to ask the way around, a “kind” black driver appeared. Two hours later, he was hauled from downtown Dalian to Dandong’s Dagushan Mountain, where he was swindled out of what little cash he had in his pocket.
Dagushan about flying, but three uncle want to find a live to do it, can ask to ask to hotel and necessities shop guys have been filled, caishikou the land he couldn’t do, he had to hang out on the street, walk to the coffin shop, carpenter master busy work, just short of a helper, three uncle, take the bear in the old dishes of the arm strength to win the recognition of the master. Master and his wife questioned some time, then took the third uncle as a buddy.
At the beginning, three uncle or resist into the coffin shop to do live. Not because of small courage, but a young man in those days all day in the coffin shop, say out not to listen to, others said that coffin shop more or less sinister, that thing hurt. More importantly, so unwittingly into the profession, the heart is still not reconciled.
But in the face of the reality of hunger, three uncle can only think, stay in the shop, can make some money, if mix some time, at least can learn a few skills to eat, coffin this thing, after all, then people always need to use.
The son of the master went to take a bath in the square pit in his early years. He dived into the pit and never came up again. If alive, he should be about the same age as his third uncle. Because of this, the master couple is very good to the third uncle, never eat table, energetic work is also more shared, and even occasionally enlighten the third uncle to understand the difficulties of parents. three uncle more than once wanted to go to Dalian to make a living, but always give up his master, he thought it was unkind and unjust, and in Dalian can not be guaranteed to find a suitable job.
Soon, the third uncle in carpentry work will show extraordinary spirit, bending wood straight this kind of work is not under the word. In 1997, although the master always worried about grandpa to find three uncle, but “weak hand easy to see a thousand times, clever hand is difficult to find one side”, he did not want to miss such a clever child, said to formally accept three uncle as a disciple, set the “three years of apprenticeship, two years of service” rules, eat and live all package.
The night he made his decision, uncle Sam tossed and turned. He knew that if he agreed, it would mean that he would not be able to study in the next few years, even the rest of his life. But he agreed anyway. He decided to put his dream on hold.
Since then, the life of the third uncle in addition to reading and writing, but also more “a material two line three eye” and other woodworking common sense. In order to let three uncle steadfast stay in his side, the master offered “Feng Shui” this outstanding skill, successfully led three uncle to study the Chinese classical philosophy of the road, when finishing the work of leisure time, the two carpenters will hold a book “Zhouyi”, holding a metaphysical words to talk about.
Three years of learning art, fill art in March, although the speed of the three uncle division than ordinary people has been a lot faster, but this learning or through five spring and Autumn, during a letter did not send home.
3
In 2002, on the southeast side of the town where Heyan village is located, a coffin shop quietly opened: two low-slung shops with Liu’s title “Open the city” stuck beside the door, and firecrackers were not set off, so quietly.
This is third Uncle’s shop. The original coffin shop in the town is the ancestral carpentry skills, in the territory of the family is not easy to earn a living, so the third uncle in addition to trade, also play tables and chairs stool, some furniture business. Because three uncle mouth quick, skilled, soon reputation gradually, the town has spread: three uncle worship in pass outside the master’s door, can carve dragon and phoenix, not good.
Three uncle returned home has become a family, aunt called Ma LAN, because when I was a child always sing “Ma LAN blossom” ballad, so I call its name. The town and her good wife said, Ma LAN’s home in Suihua, Heilongjiang province, before the age of 19, her life is to pedal highland barley short grass, grazing sheep in the wild, and then came out to work married third uncle. Soon after marriage, the birth of a child, also means that three uncle’s dream of reading so far completely ended, he was responsible for the family.
Riverside village neighbors to the town market, the news brought back to the village three Uncle. The whole family is a leng, grandpa did not speak, low head long, finally put a hand said, do not want to see three uncle, grandma cried to persuade: “he ye, is it possible that I kneel to you?” But grandpa’s heart is like a block of ice, holding a voice to scold shout: “did not take charge of the family, Lao Tze also asked him to come back!”
Bones connected with the tendon, family hope three uncle take the initiative to go home to admit a mistake, but three uncle with grandpa’s temper, as stubborn as a donkey, always cross but the obstacle.
At the time, this refusal was interpreted by many as heartless, and the townspeople secretly said uncle Sam was too ruthless. Ruthless people are good at doing business, but not easy to work with. Once labelled “unfilial”, business becomes difficult.
According to the mother, the competitor seized on the “unfilial” excuse of the third uncle, mixed with other slanderous, hyped up. The third uncle often went along the canal from south to north in his spare time, collecting broken wood that no one wanted, or digging some tree roots in the river bend. The wood was of different sizes and could not be used to carry weight even if it was large, so machines were used to cut it up and take the dry part in the middle to make parts such as handles to save wood. But it is this habit, but these people as a handle, said three uncle everywhere to collect scrap, and then embedded thumb thick steel wire series, do into the board, shoddy earn high prices. Local customs taboo coffin metal, will destroy feng shui, not only the deceased uneasy, for future generations is not lucky. Hearing that uncle Sam would do this, even the family who had bought the woodwork from his shop became alarmed.
Some people even claim that there is a burnt yellow rotten “peoples book” in the shop, the book with black pen drawn in a horizontal line with piles of symbols, records the whole town up and down the village each household a few, a few generations, medical history, health conditions, relatives and neighbors. The rumor that bitch extreme fear, they “lenovo” to three uncle read books in Chinese philosophy, and xi feng shui, rumors said, three uncle can not only judged by observing tomb group of population, family fortunes, can also count on fingers buried time and grave one can even by planting a tree, digging a shovel soil even under a nail to intervene in luck.
His “unfilial”, let these mysterious and mysterious rumors in the town swirl, more unsolved.
Three uncle alone, if you want to seek the shelter of the family, you need grandpa nod, grandpa there stalemate, the uncle is not open, three uncle can only allow everyone to talk.
The setback on the business, aroused three uncle “go home” wish. Before the 15th day of the 8th lunar month, three uncle and home through the gas, family advised three uncle: “Take advantage of the festival to admit their mistake, after all, is a family.”
Five boxes of moon cakes, five bottles of Jiannanchun, is the gift of the third uncle, he said he ran away for five years, to put the five years of the Mid-Autumn birthday gift to fill at home, to make amends.
But such a cost, and did not change for understanding, for three uncle’s sudden visit, grandpa did not hate at first, but after seeing the gift, seems to be stabbed in the pain point, asked grandma: “to him to take things away.” Then he plunged into the house and stayed there until it was dark.
4
the town’s work is less and less, three uncle gradually connected to the Dongxiang two bridge temple business.
Erqiao Temple is a village named after the temple and named for its prolific timber production. Lao Mu lived in the village and was the source of the timber for his third uncle.
Fiddling with the wood was the easiest way to cut the cost of the coffin, and it was a dirty rule of the trade. The coffin shop “material” also divides 369 and so on, usually produces with the local willow wood, the toon wood is in the majority, sells to the ordinary people the profit margin is also relatively small; In the south, because the wood is of high quality and free from moths, the top quality of the “wood” is mostly sold by the rich, and the remaining wood can be used as children’s coffins after processing, so money is often made in this business.
His only trick was to churn out fake nanmu trees, which doubled his profits. He had more than once cuanzao three uncle, can be three uncle refused, three uncle often quote sage words to warn themselves, “the generous do not destroy people to benefit themselves, the benevolent do not endanger people to name”.
A half-life adventure of the craftsman’s third uncle
Although he refused to accept fake wood, He found another way for his uncle.
In the Republic of China, fleeing the dead, two bridge temple of the old monk dream of his bodhisattva to help the past, so from that, the temple began to “pick up waste” : the vast alkaline beach, meet still have breath of the refugees will relief back, meet the dead will be collected into the temple, excavation to the gangzi a buried, the temple to set up a shrine.
In life, they are poor ghosts, but in death, they are given a peaceful life. This has been the rule of Dongxiang for many years. Until later, the village every year will also allocate funds to settle the dead tramp: after the death of the people, will park a few days in the temple, a first to the public security bureau for the record, two to the land god reported, reported, reported, take half a bad coffin carelessly buried in the post; There are also some homeless people no home no property reduced to freezing to death and starvation here, also was two bridge temple of the rag-picker buried, more of the money returned to the rag-picker.
Over time, the underground industry of dealing with the dead in Dongxiang has become the existence of tacit approval. There is the population management on the surface in the township and the underground “scavenging” industry in Erqiao Temple. The two are intertwined but parallel.
Cremation has been promoted nationwide since the late 1990s, and families who refuse to burn the bodies of their loved ones have to hand in a fine or forge a cremation certificate before sending them to Erqiao Temple to be buried. As compensation, families bought coffins and shrouds from the temple, and sent offerings of incense money. Over time, this method of disposing of the dead became business, and was still banned several years after entering the new century.
At that time, a large number of coffins for Erqiao Temple were provided by uncle Sam. Coffin industry profits, he gave the temple two bridge “material” quality is inferior, because it is a big customer, the delivery is also much cheaper than the average retail, even so, the volume does not go quality, income is still very considerable.
At that time, the third uncle suddenly busy, often driving a truck with double seats, from the hands of the old mu to make wood coffin, after processing to the temple of the bridge.
In addition to business contacts, Erqiao Temple has another kind of magic to Uncle: as the largest temple in the local area, Erqiao Temple “Jing Ge” has been preserved, although most of the ancient books in the room have been burned, but Uncle Still found some on carpentry, residence, Zen books. Abbot keen to do “business”, no interest in books, so every time after the delivery of goods, three uncle can borrow any.
At that time, I was in primary school, two bridge temple business let three uncle money gradually drum, before long, he bought a green back calf sent to the home, said: “at the beginning of their own drop out of school is to replace the labor of green cattle, now green cattle like themselves, hope to make a force for the family.
Grandpa did not say much, but to reopen the barn for this purpose, bran husk forage, never interrupted.
5
2008 has not “jinjiu”, the snow is like a ghost, a game of serious, the river thick ice, the northwest wind particularly stab people, shibancun can not bear the cold, more people walk. Three uncle said, every year jijiu cold weather is the peak season for selling coffins, many frail old people in villages and towns can carry through the late autumn of spring and summer, but will fall in the winter, the shop’s business then busy up.
Maybe because of the trade, three uncle did not often go to the door, to my junior high school, through adolescence, often steal to three uncle’s shop run.
Coffin craft, as a kind of “isolated life”, is mostly passed from father to son. The specific size of coffin making is handed down from generation to generation, and the method of making materials is also taught by mouth. Technology in the hands of a few people, leading to the arbitrary standards of evaluation, often ordinary people can only observe the surface size of the “material” pros and disadvantages, so in the production, the consideration is more wood conscience.
Three uncle in the room to write “have its words, not its actions, a gentleman of shame,” never fool people. “Material”, for example, commonly known as the “ten pages”, generally made of ten or twelve pages of wood, which cover, bottom, help, file and different specifications such as the 334, 334, three uncle seldom appears in making the lack of wood the short, most of its material is full seven feet three inches, can sleep heroes all over the world, and to send material time nodes, on very accurate, also won’t delay time pay attention to.
Every good a bite, three uncle will be in the “wood” put a roll of shavings, said this is to tell the ghost soul wild ghost, this “wood” has had a master. The painting is to follow. If the coffin is not painted in time, it will soon become borers. Other coffin shop is still in general black paint, brush a strong overlay, paint wood is not good or bad, so easy to shoddy. But three uncle regardless of peer opposition, the use of transparent paint, good or bad at a glance, so win everyone’s trust.
After “material” is done, want “picture material”. After the old “painting material” in the town died, people gradually lost the patience of carving. The general coffin, the head and tail of the material are nothing but the two characters of Fu Shou and lotus, and the two sides are Zuo Feng and right dragon. Pavilionsonghe, etc. have disappeared, have been replaced by large moire, work fast and efficient, widely used.
But three uncle was in the dragon pattern again under the use of “dark eight immortals” and other patterns, in addition to harp, peach pomegranate fruit, and so on. He showed respect by sticking to this counter-trend. “Painting materials” in addition to inherit the old man’s brushwork, gouache and reference, the handing down GouBi flow of ink, the meaning of extremely rich in calligraphy, first colour overlap is used to set the tone, with a small pen “even after texture details will use word” book “brushwork, the brushwork of its own, is the source of his drawing techniques.
During that time, I often go to the shop to play, three uncle is afraid to delay my study, then stare at call me to come a few times less, or mother found will blame him. After listening to uncle Three’s words, I seldom went there after the winter Solstice.
After some time, near the end of the year, in addition to flying to the people who died a violent death, have the sick of the family will drag the funeral to the New Year, it is best to wait until the first month, otherwise the “New Year’s funeral omen” auspicious. Two bridge temple of the rag-pickers also go home for the New Year, coffin shop business also temporarily down.
A heavy snow before the end of the year has five fingers thick, three uncle decided to catch before the New Year go home again. Only, have not waited until the arrival of the New Year, with the eve of frost and snow, but three uncle was caught.
6
It is said that the first few days of work, three uncle accident, an ax down, wood split, everyone shouted this is a bad omen.
“Little year” before, city beishan area produces homicide case, because the details of a case is complex, hand over gave city bureau processing. The city department has located a missing suspect, and a clue from the road condition monitoring system shows that shortly after the crime, the suspect took a long-distance bus south to the town at the border of our county. However, in the following investigation, the suspect vanished from the world and disappeared without a trace.
Frustrated, the public security bureau has resorted to the most traditional and clumsy method of investigating the deaths of people and missing persons in and around the county, all the way to The Erqiao Temple in Dongxiang.
in the understanding of the two bridge temple underground industry, police interrogation, that recently buried two dead, autopsy is not to find the target. Later, police visited the surrounding villages, only from the children’s mouth that there is a mass grave in the corn field behind the temple, that night, police raids, dug out many bodies from the temple, rummage around, really found the missing suspect.
The trial, the old monk is to admit that the murderer accomplice role, but then dug up a black industry chain: just because of the particularity of bridge, temple, there are many counties around the dead would pretend to be a tramp, privately dispose of them, not issued a death certificate, 5000 pieces of dealing with a person, only to buy some coffin, shroud with all sorts of burial utensils in the temple, the corn is buried place behind the earth temple. two bridge temple to deal with the fact that the source of unknown bodies irrefutable, and the two bridge temple business also put three uncle involved in the whirlpool.
The burial business in Dongxiang is well known to the townspeople. Stealing cremation, scavenging money to exploit loopholes things often, evolved into a blood business is not more than expected, but now out of this thing, the town or a sigh.
Three uncle in contact with the second bridge temple business half a year later, they found the problem. At first, he thought that Erqiao temple depended on burial to make money, and that people should respect local customs and preserve their bodies after death, which was human nature. But later he found that the matter is far from so simple, disease, natural disasters, cold hunger, these are the excuses to cover up the truth, the old monk often to the earth temple at night, burn paper money chanting, clues told uncle three, Erqiao temple may really be involved in the disposal of some unknown source of the body. This discovery made him uneasy all day long, but when he tried the gleaner further in the conversation, he was always denied.
The third uncle, having read the scriptures well, thought that the three views were correct and would never do anything against morality, but hesitated on this issue.
If they do, their business will sink again. It would be against the conscience, and against the philosophy of the books he had read.
And in the entanglements, Lao Mu sensitively found the third uncle’s mind, he succinctly explained the truth: “Since the brothers have jumped into this circle, you should expose, when the time comes monks bite back, you will not get good fruit to eat. If something happens, where will the wife and children go? Who in the world has a problem with money? Besides, above also can’t call two bridge temple to have an accident, even if really have an accident at that time pack don’t know, also not guilty. The elder brother I so many years is not the same steady life is quite good.”
Lao Mu’s threat and inducement is very effective, he successfully used the blind area of three uncle’s knowledge, and at the same time poke the key, so many years, three uncle has not poked the secret.
At the opening of the court, the court found that the third uncle involved in the disposal of the unidentified body, guilty of the crime of protection, but in view of the interrogation during the circumstances of surrender, and did not directly participate in the destruction of evidence, sentenced to two years in prison.
Penalty that is next, Ma Lanhua cry immediately appeal, grandpa also ask a person everywhere to help the body, chuai “envelope” to look for the town police station director, director can say, to do things for you have to exploit the loophole, risk, everything should pay attention to the equivalent exchange, you this palm big envelope is worth my risk? My mother said that when my grandfather came home that night, he shed a dirty tear.
The lawyer for the second trial was found by Mr Malan himself, but it took a long time for the verdict to be upheld after a few months. On the night of the second sentence, Malan stopped crying, but the house was lit all night.
Three uncle was shut up, the town gossip, some people say that it is a pity three uncle’s craft; Some say because three uncle refused to do false coffin, the old mu deliberately pull him into the water.
After three uncle is gone, the business of the shop is also more and more depressed, before long town north opened a coffin shop, boast ancestral qianlong palace built office carpenters.
In the early autumn of the next year, sorghum is ripe, yams seedlings. After selling half the coffins in his shop, covering them with unpainted raindrops, He and his children boarded the bus and went to work in the neighboring county.
Before leaving, Ma LAN went to the prison to see three uncle once. After returning home, she followed the instructions of her third uncle, put all the books at home into the yard, lit a fire, only the full yard burnt ash. Then Malan laid a ring of white ashes in front of the coffin door and left the house. Three uncle once told me, coffin shop every time sold out of young people “material” will do so: scatter white ashes is to prevent the soul, because the death of young people than the end of life, after death more unwilling to give up, white ashes for the world, afraid of the soul do not want to live, go back in the middle of the night the wrong house.
And Malan orchid in his shop at the door of the purpose of the white ash, I still do not understand.
The end of the
In the autumn of 2010, three uncle released from prison that day, grandpa early set good bullock cart, the day has not yet light on the road. He told her, “I forced the three boys away at the beginning. Now I will take him back.”
Cattle hoof rhythm to step forward, is a year autumn day, sunflower mostly close, in twos and twos, only bald pole standing in the field, a cow a cart two people bumping, the road did not speak.
Later, three uncle’s shop reopened. There were several new temples built on the other side of dongxiang, among which the declining Erqiao temple disappeared, and almost no one went there any more.
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