Chapter 59: Past Events

Old Fourth Sun knew very well in his heart that his family was poor, his mother had died young, and his father was sickly.

When Old Fourth Sun was eight years old, he began herding cattle for the landlord. After two years of herding, the nation was founded, and the landlords were gone.

Old Fourth Sun's father was in poor health—what people in the countryside called a walking medicine jar. He couldn't do any heavy work, and the production team awarded him very few work points. Without work points, there was no grain to be distributed.

Living from hand to mouth, relying on the relief of his neighbors, they managed to raise Old Fourth Sun to adulthood.

In Old Fourth Sun's own words, his family was so poor that not even a stray dog would bother to scavenge there.

Old Fourth Sun also wanted to take a wife, but the family conditions did not permit it, so Old Fourth Sun could only suppress his desires.

Now let us talk about Xianglan's family. Xianglan's father was the leader of the production team, and the family was considered middle peasants with a little surplus grain.

There was another thing: Xianglan's father had a terrible temper, yet no one dared to touch a single hair on his head. Firstly, because Xianglan's father was quite overbearing, and secondly, because he was bald and had no hair.

The more Old Fourth Sun suppressed his feelings, the more painful it became in his heart. Xianglan was a courageous girl, and she always took the initiative to create opportunities to meet.

Once, when the village was showing a movie, Old Fourth Sun went to watch it, but was intercepted halfway by Xianglan.

Xianglan invited Old Fourth Sun to take a walk up the mountain.

Old Fourth Sun was more than willing. What movie could possibly compare to the beauty of his beloved?

I, the author, shall sing a verse for you all: "In the third watch, the two of them entered the little room. Both climbed onto the bed, untied the sachet of fragrant powder, and revealed the fragrance of the chrysanthemum."

Unawares, winter arrived, and Xianglan's belly grew larger day by day.

The matter could no longer be concealed. Old Fourth Sun confided in his father, a sensible man who took Old Fourth Sun to Xianglan's house, where they kowtowed and apologized. Since things had come to this, they began discussing marriage.

For reasons unknown, Xianglan's father stubbornly insisted on having a Shanghai-made wristwatch.

In the 1960s, it was still an era of ration coupons. Leaving aside the price itself, even just to buy a wristwatch, one needed a coupon.

The common folk in the mountains had never laid eyes on such a thing.

As for the money, a wristwatch cost over a hundred yuan. In the village, a strong young man bent his back working for a whole day would earn ten work points, which amounted to less than thirty cents. Even working every single day of the month would only bring in seven or eight yuan.

And that was during the busy farming season; the Northeast also had the winter idle period.

Even if Old Fourth Sun squeezed every drop of urine out of himself, he still couldn't scrape together a hundred yuan.

Xianglan's father refused to let anyone go without the watch, and no matter how Xianglan cried, it was useless.

Old Fourth Sun pushed himself to the limit, doing early morning labor, late-night labor, and working the regular shifts during the day. By putting in extra hours morning and night, he could earn two extra work points a day.

Right up until the child was born, Old Fourth Sun still hadn't saved enough money.

Xianglan's father wouldn't even let Old Fourth Sun see the child. One day, after drinking some liquor, Xianglan's father cursed Xianglan relentlessly, spewing all kinds of hurtful words like ruining the family reputation and being a promiscuous prostitute.

Feeling utterly aggrieved, Xianglan secretly brought the child to Old Fourth Sun's home, then returned, put on her bright red bridal gown, and hanged herself from the roof beam.

By the time her family discovered her, Xianglan's body was already stiff.

Old Fourth Sun wept in agonizing grief, but the child had to be fed. Lacking mother's milk, he swallowed his pride and begged nursing mothers in the village for a mouthful.

As the child grew a little older, he started on rice soup.

As the child gradually grew up and life slowly improved, the struggle sessions arrived.

Old Fourth Sun was accused of illicit relations with women and bore the brunt of the struggle sessions. Gradually, Old Fourth Sun's mental state deteriorated; he became unhinged and muddle-headed. Truthfully, it was the villagers who raised Old Fourth Sun's child.

Xianglan's father didn't fare much better. His past as a bandit was dug up, and after being struggled against for over a year, the old man, stubborn as he was, consumed opium paste and passed away.

Eventually, the child grew up and turned out to be fond of studying. Old Fourth Sun had ruined his own health and could no longer do heavy physical labor, so he became the village shepherd, tending sheep for others. As life improved, the villagers were not stingy, and Old Fourth Sun's family lived free from worry about food and clothing.

When Old Fourth Sun finished his intermittent tale, his murky, aged eyes were brimming with tears.

Even I felt my heart ache upon hearing it.

Master Ma took a sip of liquor and said, "Old brother, you told a fine tale, but I just calculated it, and this matter has not the slightest thing to do with Xianglan."

Old Fourth Sun froze, while in my heart I cursed Master Ma for having a truly vicious mouth.

"What? Not the child's mother?"

"No, Xianglan was reincarnated long ago. I just calculated it—this affair of yours is someone deliberately trying to harm you."

Old Fourth Sun didn't absorb a single word of Master Ma's latter sentence. He hurriedly asked, "Reincarnated? Where did she reincarnate?"

Then, Old Fourth Sun denied it: "No, no, when Xianglan died, I went there, but her father beat me out with a carrying pole. I heard that Xianglan was buried wearing her bright red bridal gown, and the figure I saw looked exactly the same. It was the child's mother."

Master Ma shook his head expressionlessly.

I felt a surge of anger and thought to myself, "At his age, wouldn't it hurt to lie and comfort Old Fourth Sun?"

Old Fourth Sun let out a heavy sigh, and Master Ma said, "Alright, lie down quickly. I'll set up an array for you; I guarantee you'll be fine."

"What?"

As Old Fourth Sun lay on the heated brick bed, Master Ma used a red string to tie copper coins and enclosed Old Fourth Sun in a circle.

A full eighteen copper coins. Master Ma explained that the red string and copper coins could suppress Old Fourth Sun's seven souls, three vital spirits, seven bodily orifices, and the center of his eyebrows, ensuring that his vital breath would not leak out.

As long as his human breath did not leak, even the impermanence ghosts of black and white could do nothing.

Old Fourth Sun seemed truly bewitched; the second before he was still talking to us, and the next second he was snoring.

I was somewhat bewildered.

Master Ma asked, "Did you understand how the Soul-Locking Array is laid out?"

I was completely lost. Just now, I had been too busy watching the spectacle and hadn't memorized it.

"Which position did the first copper coin press down on? What was the order of the three souls and seven orifices? Did you remember?"

I boasted, "I pretty much remember. Or perhaps, Master, you could explain it once more so I can commit it to memory."

"Memorize my foot! You don't need any order for this nonsense. Just take eighteen copper coins, thread them together however the hell you like, and form a circle."

At this moment, I didn't know what to say.

Master Ma continued, "Kid, go over to the sundry store room, find some yellow paper, and burn it at the doorway."

"Why burn paper?"

"Damn it, the underworld enforcers who come to summon souls are here—can we just let them make a wasted trip? It's about worldly etiquette and human relations."

I uttered an "oh" and asked, "What's wrong with Fourth Sun?"

Master Ma mused, "Someone wants to harm him. I haven't figured out who yet; this matter needs to be investigated slowly. When you burn the paper, mutter under your breath to borrow seven days of mortal lifespan."

I was shocked and asked, "What about after seven days? If you can't break the curse, what happens to Old Fourth Sun?"

"We'll have the village chief prepare for a funeral, of course. What are you worrying for?"

As he spoke, the copper coins surrounding Old Fourth Sun began to leap and vibrate. Master Ma hurriedly urged, "The underworld enforcers are here. Hurry up and go burn the paper."

I figured Master Ma must have felt certain; otherwise, given his personality, whenever he encountered a tricky problem, his responses would be limited to one or two words.

Master Ma had six or seven cigarettes clenched in his mouth. After lighting them, he placed them on the edge of the brick bed, where the glowing embers waxed and waned as if someone were truly smoking them.

"Kid, go quickly."

Upon entering the sundry store room, I felt a deep sense of envy. On the glass counter lay a sausage thicker than a rolling pin.

That was something I had dreamed of since childhood.

Yet this was no time to drool. I grabbed two stacks of yellow paper and rushed straight to the doorway.