Anecdotes from Zhongzhuang --- Uncle Xiagu
? Uncle Xia is the name given to the children of aunts at the source of the Wei River, while the children of uncles are called uncles. My uncle and I were in the same village. During the three years of hard times, my aunt fled the famine and took her to Shaanxi. Later, my aunt became a new home in Shaanxi. My uncle’s father had no sons. With the help of my father, my uncle was taken away from home. Shaanxi brought back our village.
My uncle who had just returned spoke with a Shaanxi accent, so he was called "Brother Shaanxi" by his friends in the same village. His real name was gradually forgotten by people. When Brother Shaanxi just came back from Shaanxi, he was only six or seven years old. Because the life there was good, the people were white and fat, wearing gabardine tops, blue trousers, especially that white shirt, which made our village My friends have been greedy for a long time. But Brother Shaanxi's good days didn't last long.
Brother Shaanxi’s father married a remarried woman. The woman used to live in a village adjacent to ours, and she had a girl one or two years younger than Brother Shaanxi. Her ex-husband was accused of stealing from the production team. The sheep was caught and beaten half to death by the militiamen in the team. One of his legs was also beaten lame. After the injury, his whereabouts were unknown. Someone later said they had seen him in Xinjiang, but he never came back. Two or three years later, this woman married Shaan Ge's father and became Shaan Ge's stepmother.
Brother Shaanxi’s stepmother didn’t have a good reputation in the neighboring village. After giving birth to a daughter, I stopped raising children. In order to provide for future generations, I adopted the fifth child from the fourth grandmother’s family in our village as my son. Once, the fourth grandma went to see her son and found that her little son was covered in injuries, including pinches and bites, and his buttocks were bruised and bruised by the kang. The fourth grandmother saw that her son was so tortured that he looked useless, so she hugged her son back with tears. From then on, although the man still wanted to adopt a boy, when others heard that her family wanted a child, no one was willing to send the child into the fire pit. This is also the reason why the man left, listen to the adults. Brother Shaan's life can be imagined with such a stepmother.
In the 1960s and 1970s of the last century, our village was very poor, and people could not even guarantee normal food and clothing. In a family like this, Brother Shaan is often hungry, let alone having enough food and clothing. The white shirt that Brother Shaanxi was wearing when he first arrived, and his new clothes have long since disappeared. In winter, I often wear a black cotton-padded jacket and black cotton-padded trousers. A pair of corduroy cloth shoes, with the thumb always sticking out of the shoe. Two strings of snot like onion roots often hang on the upper lip. When I was angry at home, scolded, and unable to eat enough, I went to our house to look for my uncle in tears. At that time, our family had a large population, with five sisters, grandparents, parents, and a family of nine. Fortunately, my father and mother were both strong laborers in the production team at that time. The eldest and second sisters also participated in the labor, and the family could barely maintain food and clothing. Even though I could eat enough, there was no extra food. At that time, I was most afraid of having guests at home. It wasn’t that the family was stingy. The main reason was that when guests came, my father and grandfather would accompany them to eat and they would always be full. Mother and the five of us children would often only eat half full. . I remember one year when we had a visitor at home, my mother made a pot of "rice chess flower" (a kind of rice soup with flour leaves in millet soup). We sisters counted the eldest sister to bring the rice to the living room, and the third sister counted to seventh When I was eating the bowl, I saw that there was only a little soup left in the pot, and I couldn't help shouting: "I'm still eating after seven bowls!". As a result, he was beaten severely by his grandfather after the guests left.
At that time, Brother Shaanxi could not get enough to eat after school at noon, so he often came to my house to get some food. The eldest sister and the second sister both knew this habit and asked the third sister to take a small piece of steamed bun to send Brother Shaanxi outside the door before eating. Brother Shaan has a good idea: use two shiny sleeves stained by nose snot to wipe the left and right eyes, and then the tears will flow down. Brother Shaanxi was crying and calling for his mother. Grandpa would always be the first to hear it, and he would ask in a long voice: Is the magazine back? Come quickly, there's still food! (Jiankan is Brother Shaanxi’s nickname). At this time, my mother would take out a spoonful of rice from everyone's rice bowls and give Brother Shaan a full bowl. After the meal, Brother Shaan would wipe his mouth with his bright sleeve, but still look aggrieved, and quietly leave in the eyes of his sisters who were dissatisfied or even angry.
The days slipped away unknowingly, and Brother Shaanxi grew up day by day. Although he was like a grass growing on the ridge of the ground, there was always the care of the sun and rain, Brother Shaanxi. He is getting stronger day by day. Although he is not tall after graduating from junior high school, he is already dark and strong, and he looks like a farmer. Since he was not admitted to high school, Brother Shaan's books have come to an end. My father and grandfather had nothing to say to Brother Shaanxi's father and stepmother.
After dropping out of school, Brother Shan became more energetic every day. First, he dug a pit in his orchard. He stood in it and jumped out. He dug a little deeper every day to practice Qinggong. He also stretched wires between several fruit trees and hung many rags on them. Brother Shaanxi always hit this and that with the sewn sandbags, running back and forth among the sandbags, and sometimes his nose would be bruised and his eyes would be swollen by the sandbags. Then use a long wooden stick, smear a handful of acid mud on both ends of the stick every day to increase the weight, and lift it like today's weightlifters to practice arm strength. Soon Brother Shaan became a disciple of Luo Tietou of Zhongzhuang and began to practice martial arts formally.
At that time, Brother Shan's influence among his peers in Zhongzhuang was almost like the children today who worship Jackie Chan. Regardless of whether the farming is busy or not, Brother Shaan always practices boxing in his orchard after dinner. Others are not allowed to watch when Brother Shaan is practicing boxing. Only I have benefited from my uncle, so I am an exception. At that time, I was in junior high school and didn’t have to study in the evenings. I had plenty of time. Whenever I had free time, I would go to his orchard and help Brother Shaanxi dig a pit for practicing Qinggong. I would also apply some acid mud on the wooden sticks used to practice arm strength. When I was tired from practicing, I would take the opportunity to do some tricks in the garden. At this time, Brother Shaan would give me instructions very seriously, and often warned me not to show off in front of outsiders, as I might be embarrassed by Brother Shaan. Later, I went to high school in the county town and had no time to go home, so the matter of practicing martial arts with Brother Shaan was dropped. Brother Shaanxi has been practicing for many years, and the stick covered in mud weighs a hundred pounds. Brother Shaanxi is strong and has practiced boxing and kicking, so he has some prestige among the children who are a few years older and younger. Naturally, I became Brother Shaanxi's follower and was often proud of him.
Because of his physical strength, Brother Shaanxi’s father was also a chronically ill man. Most of the farm work in the family was handled by Brother Shaanxi. Brother Shaanxi also gained status in the family. After Brother Shaanxi practiced martial arts, his stepmother I didn’t dare to look down on Brother Shaan anymore. He was the final say in the family. The adults in Zhongzhuang all liked to call Brother Shaan the shopkeeper. When Brother Shaan heard this, he felt very proud and held his head high when he walked. When Brother Shaanxi was eighteen years old, my father and Brother Shaanxi's father decided to marry the girl brought by Brother Shaanxi's stepmother to Brother Shaanxi. Just a few days before Brother Shaanxi and the woman were to consummate their marriage on the eighth day of the first lunar month of that year. , the woman ran away with a man who was pulling a beard from a theater troupe that came to Zhongzhuang to sing. At that time, Brother Shan was like an eggplant soaked in frost, wilting all day long. He always complained to me, saying that his life was not good. Later, my father asked someone to arrange a marriage for Brother Shaanxi in Hounanshan. Sister-in-law Shaanxi was an average-looking woman, and she married Brother Shaanxi the second year after the engagement. Although Mrs. Shaanxi looks ordinary, she is kind and responsible. After getting married, Shan Ge is very satisfied with life and often talks about things like "a wilted cow and an ugly wife are the treasures of the family". Brother Shaanxi's family also experienced great changes at this time. Because his daughter ran away with someone, Brother Shaanxi's stepmother felt ashamed to stay at home anymore, so she ran to a small town not far from Zhongzhuang and supported her by herself. He burned the stove and bought pancakes, and never returned to Brother Shaanxi's home. He died of illness in a foreign land a few years later. After Brother Shaan's stepmother died, Brother Shaan asked the master of the village to carry her back to his home, bought a coffin, and became a filial son wearing sackcloth and filial piety. This incident won Brother Shaanxi a lot of reputation. Later, whenever Brother Shaanxi told me about this matter, he always looked proud.
After the household responsibility system in rural areas, everyone is trying to find ways to make money and improve their family life. It was at this time that Brother Shaan began to learn "Maoshan". (Zhongzhuang people call Feng Shui masters "Yin Yang", those who perform magic tricks are called "Shi Gongzi", and those who catch gods and ghosts are called "Maoshan".) Brother Shaanxi first worshiped the "Er Yang Er" near his father-in-law's house in Nanshan. Master, "Er Yang Er" is the famous Master Yang in our mountain. It is said that Master Yang is very good at catching ghosts. He also has a lot of short skills (a kind of magic for making pranks). He can "close the gun" "Closing the kiln" and "closing the stove" (it is said that closing the gun can prevent the hunter from firing, closing the kiln can prevent the brick kiln from igniting, and closing the stove can prevent the kitchen chimney from emitting smoke). If the house where Master Yang served was not well received, the kitchen chimney of that family would be blocked for several days after he left, making it impossible to cook. As a result, other families who had used Master Yang would have to spend money to entertain him properly. Brother Shaan and Master Yang died of illness in more than a year, and Brother Shaan left the army. Brother Shaan's memory is not good and he can't always remember the spells to catch gods and ghosts. I remember one time Brother Shaan and I were trying to catch ghosts for a family in the village. Brother Shaan was holding a sieve and was yelling when he suddenly stopped. When I got down, I took out a small notebook from my pocket and read it. Afterwards, I asked Brother Shaan what happened. Brother Shaan embarrassedly told me that he had forgotten the spell and had no choice but to read the spell he copied in the notebook. , and also warned me not to tell others.
A few years later, Brother Shaan's reputation in Zhongzhuang was not very good, and not many people asked him to trick gods and ghosts. There was no other way, so Brother Shaanxi became the "Cheng Beiguo" of Nanping again. Be a teacher. It is said that Cheng Beiguo is the best Maoshan in our area. He is a good at catching gods and ghosts. The most amazing thing is that he can carry five ghosts in a sedan chair. Every time he catches ghosts for others and returns home, if it is at night, he will recite a spell. , and recruited five little ghosts to carry him all the way back home. It is said that one time it was too late to return home after performing rituals. When the five ghosts were carrying Cheng Bao, the chickens in the village suddenly crowed. The five ghosts left Cheng Bao and disappeared. As a result, Cheng Bao was thrown. It fell to the ground and became the hunchback it is now. I was the one who took the blame when I saw Cheng Cheng. He was a severely hunched old man, less than 1.23 meters tall, thin and short, like a ten-year-old child. When he walked, his face almost touched his knees. But he has two ghastly eyes, a palm-sized skinny face like a deflated balloon, and a ghostly expression. When he looks at you, he will stare at you for a long time. The children are very afraid of him. When they see him coming, they will Stay far away. I heard from my father that Cheng was born to take the blame, and the idea of ??five ghosts carrying the sedan chair was completely untrue. But Brother Shaan is convinced of this.
After more than two years of Shaan Ge’s apprenticeship with Cheng taking the blame, his reputation gradually grew. At that time, I had become a middle school teacher in another township, and the opportunities to meet Brother Shaanxi were becoming less and less. Every time I went home, Brother Shaanxi always invited me to sit at his house and asked Sister Shaanxi to cook a few dishes. , get a kilogram or two of wine, and make a homely meal.
The most talked about thing is his playing tricks on gods and ghosts. Brother Shaanxi always told me the truth. One time he told me something embarrassing about his ghost hunting. Brother Shaanxi said that on his way home after catching ghosts for a family in a neighboring village, the moon was numb and the west wind was blowing. , while walking, suddenly saw a black shadow shaking in the middle of the road. Brother Shaanxi was startled, so he first chanted a mantra, but after reciting it several times, the black shadow was still swinging on the road. There was nothing he could do, Shaanxi The elder brother had no choice but to take out the demon-subduing pestle that Cheng had passed on to him and hit the shadow, but the shadow was still swaying. Brother Shaan was so frightened that he broke into a cold sweat and had no choice but to flee and run home. The next day, Brother Shaan was wondering why that evil spirit was so powerful. Even though he had used all the techniques taught by Master Cheng and Master Yang, he still couldn't fight it, which made Brother Shaan lose his mind. But he couldn't throw away the Demon-Conquering Pestle that the Engineer had given him, so he went back to find the Demon-Conquering Pestle. As a result, he found the Demon-Conquering Pestle stuck in a pile of grass at the place where he was fighting ghosts at night. Only then did Brother Shaan realize that the "evil ghost" that night was just a pile of dry fluffy grass. Under the numb moonlight, the fluffy grass was blown everywhere by the wind, and it was only then that Brother Shaanxi was half-dead. So from now on, I would often tease Brother Shaanxi by saying that the fake ghost scared away the real Maoshan, and Brother Shaanxi would smile coquettishly and say never tell anyone else.
Every time he drinks more and more, Brother Shaanxi talks more and more. So I asked Brother Shaan if he still forgot the spell when catching ghosts. Brother Shaan said no. Even if he forgot, who would be able to tell that he mispronounced it, let alone take out his notebook and make a fool of himself. I asked Brother Shaan that he often catches ghosts, but whether there are ghosts and whether he has seen ghosts. Brother Shaan laughed and said, "Who has seen it? It's just that people who believe in ghosts and gods have ghosts and gods in their hearts." After listening to Brother Shaan's words, I couldn't help but be speechless.
In the past few years, Brother Shaanxi has become more and more prosperous and famous, and his career as a master has spread further and further. People in Zhongzhuang and nearby people call him Master Chen, who is playing tricks on gods and ghosts. Business is also booming, and most people can't even hire him. He now has a mobile phone and a motorcycle. Every time before going out, I always dress up carefully, comb my long back hair neatly, put on a used second-crop lambskin coat, and finally put on a pair of brown round-framed crystal glasses and carry a suitcase. He took the blame for his Jiangmochu's black leather bag, got on his motorcycle, and drove off towards his destination. Whenever he had the opportunity, he would ask me to come to his house for a drink. The quality of the wine was getting higher and higher, and some were even good wines that I, a teacher in the county, had seen but never drank. Brother Shaanxi's prestige in Zhongzhuang is also getting higher and higher. Brother Shaanxi is always invited to be the "prime minister" for weddings and weddings in the village. At this time, Brother Shaanxi always wears his going out outfit and sits at the door of the owner's living room. Whether it is a wedding Whether it is a ceremony or a funeral ceremony, Brother Shaan always opens his mouth wide and shouts with a long lingering sound the words "spectator", "please", "kowtow", "ceremony is over", and he always shouts it with flavor . After finishing, Brother Shaanxi will sit cross-legged on the kang, receive cigarettes and drinks from his employer, and then punch loudly. Brother Shaanxi’s boxing also has its own characteristics: one heart respects, two families are good, three plum blossoms, four seasons of wealth, five sons lead the six. Six fortunes, seven fortunes and eight immortals, nine years of wealth and ten years, always half singing and half shouting, all in one go. Brother Shaanxi drinks a lot and likes to fight through levels. There are as many people as he wants, and he has to punch each one twelve times. Euphemistically called a perfect year. Brother Shan, who is full of wine and food and has a rosy face, will take out a toothpick from his coat pocket and pick his teeth while squinting at others punching each other. From time to time, he will tell a few jokes to smooth things over, and everyone present will also laugh. Always laughing in agreement and obeying Brother Shaanxi's adjustment.
When I returned to the countryside and talked about Brother Shaanxi with my mother, my mother said that Brother Shaanxi was very good now. From time to time, cars would come to the village to pick up Brother Shaanxi for his performances. Brother Shaanxi is also very satisfied with his life. His daughter is married and his son dropped out of junior high school before graduating. I asked Brother Shaanxi why he didn’t let his children finish reading. Brother Shaanxi said that his son didn’t want to study. Besides, even after he went to college, he didn’t give him any education. People can't make much money even if they work part-time. Through his connections, Brother Shaan allowed his son to work as a material manager in a private construction team, earning him tens of thousands of yuan every year. Brother Shaanxi told me that he will arrange a marriage for his son in two years, and once he gets married, he will become an old man. A look of satisfaction and a look of pride.
In Zhongzhuang, a land that is closely related to me, there are always so many things that concern me and make it difficult for me to let go. My grandfather and father have both passed away, and Master Cheng and Master Yang who are the same age as them have also passed away. He has been dead for many years, and Brother Shaan is now over fifty. I have been dealing with Brother Shaanxi for half my life. The image of him with a runny nose and a tendency to cry when he was a child is still so fresh in my memory, but now he is neatly dressed and has a happy face, but he is inexplicably a bit more strange.
Two days ago, Brother Shaan called me and told me that he had saved a bottle of good wine for my uncle. I happily agreed to him because I still wanted to hear what he said about always saying no. After finishing the story, I want to integrate myself into the twilight of Zhongzhuang again, have a long dream, and return to my childhood with Brother Shaanxi.