Before he entered the ward, he heard a burst of sobbing that echoed through the entire corridor.
Li He's aunt and cousins were crying as they helped the old man put on the shroud that they had prepared beforehand.
Li He said, "Grandpa, lie down for a while."
The old man did not cry but the wrinkles on his forehead and his pursed lips showed that he was not very comfortable.
"Is the car here?" The old man asked Wang Yushan. "It's hot outside. We have to hurry back."
Wang Yushan said, "It'll be here soon. It's an ice coffin. It'll be fine."
He had just lit a cigarette when he was scolded by a passing nurse. He hurriedly put it down but when he saw that the nurse had walked far away, he lit it up again with a bitter face.
The car carrying the coffin arrived. He did not use a stretcher and just carried the old man up. He even said, "So light. There's no weight at all."
Wang Yushan said, "He hasn't eaten for a whole week. He's been relying on glucose."
Wang Yushan left the ward first. Li He jogged to the elevator and opened the door.
After going downstairs, with the help of the chauffeur, the old man was placed into the ice coffin.
The chauffeur promised solemnly, "It's like a refrigerator. It's frozen. If it stinks, I won't charge you a single cent!"
"Let's go." Li He urged the chauffeur. After seeing the chauffeur get into the driver's seat, he said to Xi Zi, "You know the way. Follow the car. We'll follow behind."
At the same time, he stopped his grandpa who was about to get into the hearse and pulled him into Liu Four's car.
"Are you still drunk? Let's get someone else to drive, "Li He asked Liu Four.
Liu Four said, "It's only a small amount of alcohol. It's fine. I can handle it if we meet the traffic police."
"Then drive slowly." Li He saw that he was sober and did not make a big deal out of it. He got a few of his cousins and their husbands to follow him into the car. After making the arrangements, he turned around and said to Li Long, "Then wait here until noon. We'll go back after picking up Mom and Dad."
Li Long nodded. "Don't worry, there won't be any delays."
After giving instructions to Li Long, Li He got into the front passenger seat of Li Hui's truck, leaving Wang Yushan, Wang Jun, and the others to sit in the second row.
The father and son were not from Li Village, so they were not familiar with Li Hui. Seeing that Li Hui was willing to help them, they were naturally very polite and kept offering him cigarettes.
The car started up and followed closely behind the hearse in front.
"Have you informed my family? Firecrackers, cigarettes, alcohol, vegetables, whatever you need, "Wang Yushan asked his eldest son, Wang Jun.
Just like a wedding, a funeral also required a banquet. Not only did it have to be held, but it had to be grand. The more lively it was, the more filial the children would be.
Wang Jun said, "I just called home with a pay phone. They'll be out on the streets at dawn."
Wang Yushan nodded. He leaned his head against the seat in front of him and said to Li He, "Erhe, you have a phone. Once we reach town, I'll have to trouble you to call them and have them prepare the firecrackers. Once the car enters Ying Zi, you'll have to ask them to set off the firecrackers."
Li He said, "Okay."
The night was beautiful. The moon and the stars filled the sky, and they were uneven.
When the group of people and three cars arrived in town, it was already past five in the morning. The sky was just beginning to brighten.
Li He took out his phone and handed it to Wang Yushan, saying, "Uncle, you call them yourself."
"I don't know how to use this. I'll give you the number. Once you dial it, I'll tell you." Wang Yushan gave him the landline number. After Li He dialed, he took the phone and carefully explained the situation.
As they spoke, the car had already entered the river bend. The sound of firecrackers suddenly exploded in their ears.
Before the car even came to a complete stop, a group of women chased after the hearse and started crying.
"Oh my god … Why did you leave …"
"Oh my god, what am I going to do …"
"My life is so hard …"
“....”
When the men carried the ice coffin out, the women immediately threw themselves on top of it and wailed.
"Don't press it down …"
"Carry it in and cry slowly …"
The four men carrying the coffin could not withstand the torment of more than ten women.
"Move aside." Wang Yushan was the first to pull his wife, daughter, and daughter-in-law away. Then, the other men also came over to pull the women who were crying their hearts out.
"There's dust on the ground. Wipe it." Li He also went up to pull his eldest sister, Li Mei, away.
"Where's Third Brother?" Li Mei wiped the corner of her eyes and asked nonchalantly.
Li He took a puff of his cigarette and exhaled. "He went to pick up Mom and the others."
Li He asked, "His dad isn't back yet?"
He had not seen Yang Xuewen.
"He went to the county to sell fish. He'll probably be back soon. They're cooking. Go get something to eat. "Seeing that the ice coffin had already entered the central room, Li Mei did not say anything else. She followed them in and continued to cry.
There was a big pot for cooking outside the door, and the stove was temporarily built with mud and red bricks. The person in charge of cooking was one of Li He's uncle's cheap cousins.
"Is there anything to eat?" Li He looked at the bowls on the big table. They were all empty except for a bowl of mung bean balls.
Uncle Wang Yucheng waved the big ladle and pointed at the pressurized water well. "Go get a bowl yourself."
After saying that, he kept wiping the sweat that kept falling from his forehead.
Li He walked to the pressurized water well and moved the bowls under the water outlet away. He put his head under the well and used one hand to press the water. He flushed it directly, making it wet.
But this was good for cooling down the heat.
Since he got out of the car, he had not stopped sweating.
He took a big bowl and used chopsticks to eat the mung bean balls without looking for a spatula.
After eating casually, he touched his pocket and found that there were no cigarettes. His luggage was all in Li Long's car.
Seeing that Xi was smoking, he asked for a pack of cigarettes. Although the quality was bad, it was better than nothing.
Before he could finish his cigarette, Wang Yucheng shouted at him at the top of his voice, "Erhe, help me chop the wood."
"Okay." Li He did not refuse. He picked up the axe and went to the firewood pile.
Zhang Bing wanted to help, but he refused. Otherwise, it would seem like he was too pampered to let someone else chop the wood for him.
Zhang Bing said softly, "It's so hot. Let me do it."
Li He waved his hand. "Go find a place to rest in town. You don't have to stay here."
"This …" Zhang Bing was a little hesitant.
Li He said softly, "You're in front of my house. What can you do if you're afraid of me? Go, don't worry about me. "
Zhang Bing thought about it and felt that it was true. He paid $10 at the gift counter and turned to leave.
Wang Yushan came over and said to Li He, "Your friend left without eating?"
Li He said, "Don't worry about him. He has his own place to go."
He raised the axe in his hand and chopped the thick wood in half. He was quite good at chopping wood.
However, after a while, Liu Four came over to help, but Li He refused. Li Hui came over, and he continued to refuse.
The people from Li Village came to attend the funeral one after another for the sake of Li He's family. They did not have any etiquette with the Wangs from Hewan.
Liu Chuanqi said, "When did you come back?"
Li He wiped his sweat with his clothes and said, "I arrived at night. I didn't have time to go home."
He saw He Laoxi coming over, holding his son He Yao's hand, but he did not see the person he wanted to see.
"Hey, since when do you smoke crossing the river?" Fatty Chen took Li He's cigarette and teased.
"Where's yours?" Li He glanced at Fatty Chen's jacket pocket. After taking it out, he saw that it was a good cigarette, so he put it in his own pocket.
"There's a sales agent next door. I'll go buy it." Li Dong stood at the side. He came with Li Fucheng and the others.
"Help me do some work. I need to lose some weight." Li He gave the axe to Li Dong, ordering his brother to do work. This bystander could not say anything.
"Okay." Li Dong did not refuse. He swung his arms and worked hard.
At lunchtime, the Wangs' sons and grandsons were guarding by the ice coffin in the central room. They kowtowed, moved the table, set the bowls and chopsticks, and served the dishes. These tasks were naturally left to Li He, Yang Xuewen, and the others.
After sixteen dishes were served, he was sweating profusely. Only then did he have the time to squeeze into Liu Chuanqi and the others' table to drink a bottle of beer and eat a mouthful of rice.
Wang Yulan came at three o 'clock the next day. She cried as soon as she entered the door. Her whole body seemed to be paralyzed.
Li Zhaokun went to the coffin, kowtowed to his mother-in-law twice, burned two pieces of paper in front of the brazier, and went to the side to chat with the others.
At night, Wang Yulan had to keep watch here, so Li He and the others went home.
Duan Mei and Li Mei's great-aunt came back early to clean the place and brush the mats.
Li He told Li Fucheng about seeing Chen Mingjing. Li Fucheng smacked the mats and said, "She's still a relative. Help her if you can. Don't treat her like an outsider."
"Definitely." Li He knew that his grandfather would definitely say that.
This old man had always placed great importance on his relatives and kinship.
"Sigh, I don't know how long you can live. You're already in your nineties." Li Fucheng had his own worries. Obviously, his in-law's passing had affected him.
Li He thought about it and said, "Why don't I accompany you to Kaifeng again?"
This was his grandfather's wish. He still had to fulfill it.
Moreover, his grandfather was not young anymore. Thinking that he did not have many years left to live, Li He felt a little sad. He did not want to leave any regrets for the old man.
"You're quite busy, aren't you?" Li Fucheng did not agree or disagree.
Li He said, "I'm not busy. I'll accompany you. Otherwise, I don't even know when I'll be back next time. "
It was natural for a person to miss his or her mother no matter what age he or she was.
And in a mother's eyes, no matter how old the child was, he was still her child. She would love him no less.
"Then we'll talk about it in two days." Li Fucheng did not know why he was hesitating.
Li He nodded. "Okay."
After bathing, Li He lay down. He had not had enough sleep.
However, he felt that he was woken up the moment he laid down.
"Hurry up and get up." Li Zhaokun was standing at his bedside.
"What are you doing so early?" Li He realized that it was still dark outside. The sky was not even bright.
"We're going to the crematorium today." When it came to matters like weddings and funerals, Li Zhaokun was much better than Li He.
"Oh." Hearing Li Zhaokun say that, Li He had to get up even if he did not want to.
Li Long's car was already parked at the door. Li Fucheng said to Duan Mei, "See if your grandmother is here yet. Let her see the child."
Duan Mei said, "She's already there. She's cooking porridge for me. The child can eat it when he wakes up."
"Let's go." Li He looked at the time. Afraid that he would not be able to make it in time, he only grabbed a handful of water to wash his face. He did not even have time to brush his teeth.
Five or six hearses were already parked at the door of Wang Yushan's house.
Just as the ice coffin left the central room, the firecrackers were set off. Then, there was the sound of a woman crying.
Once they entered the crematorium, the first thing they saw was the tall wall with the words, "Change of customs, practice cremation."
The crematorium was a square courtyard house facing south. The largest building was the incineration room.
After getting out of the car, Li He looked at the gray smoke coming out of the tall chimney of the incinerator. Then, he looked at the dust on the ground. He did not know if it was coal ash or bone ash. He felt that the air was a little heavy.
Wang Yushan went to pay for his number. Then, he waited for a break in the queue and went to the special place for worship. He set off the firecrackers and burned the joss paper.
Li He did not cry. In fact, most men did not cry.
However, the moment they saw the old man enter the incinerator, everyone, regardless of gender, cried.
Li He thought that he would not cry. However, when the old man's thin and small body was shoved into the incinerator by the rough workers, he could not stop his tears. Finally, he let out a long sigh and wiped the corners of his eyes. He did not let himself cry out loud.
Li Zhaokun also wiped the red and swollen corners of his eyes. He sighed and said, "People die just like that. How can there be a distinction between the old and the young on the road to hell?"
He saw his father-in-law squatting at the door and staring at the incinerator without even blinking. He went up and waved his hand in front of his eyes. He pulled him up and said, "Are you alright? I'll drink with you at noon."
"Go and ask when we can get the ashes." His grandpa tried his best to get up.
"I did. Half an hour." This was the first time Li Zhaokun was so polite to his father-in-law.
He had been married to Wang Yulan for nearly 40 years. From his father-in-law to his two brothers-in-law, they did not like him. He was just a loafer. What was there to say?
He was already being nice by not beating him up!
What else was there to say?
He was not stupid. You guys don't like me, but I don't like you guys either!
Therefore, for decades, they did not invade each other. They lived their own lives and lived in harmony.
After the ashes were taken out, Li He asked Wang Yushan to carry the urn to Li Long's car first. He found a wheelchair and climbed in.
The grave was chosen on a high ground in the Wang family's house. There was a river next to it. This was specially chosen by someone.
"This place has good wind and good water." The person with good Fengshui had taken a fancy to this place yesterday afternoon.
The villagers were very particular about the Fengshui of graves. Whoever's grave had good Fengshui would have a prosperous family, fortune, and people.
The grave was full of men. Women were not allowed to come. The men dug the soil and carried the soil. None of them were idle.
After the grave was dug, in order to prevent water from leaking, the four walls were lined with red bricks and cement. When the cement was almost dry, the ashes were poured into the soil. The men began to bury the soil. After a while, a small mound of soil appeared.
They took a shovel and patted the soil. After three strings of firecrackers, the men smoked a cigarette and lit paper money. According to seniority, the sons, grandsons, and grandsons knelt down silently and kowtowed three times.
After the sound of the firecrackers, everything became quiet.
"Family members return the gifts!" Li Zhaokun shouted!
Wang Yushan and Wang Yuguo bowed to everyone with their sons and grandsons.
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
