Chapter 4

"Useless, useless," my mother's emotions became a bit agitated, her voice involuntarily rising. She said that a few days ago, I heard Luo Diao's father say that he had recently seen the old Taoist priest at Wuguniang Mountain beyond Luosilin. Perhaps he never left and even set up a Taoist temple there. We should go look for him; we might be able to find him.

My mother spoke with hope, but in response, my father remained silent. The stiff atmosphere lingered for a long time. I was restless in bed, half-opening my eyes, and saw my father, who had never smoked before, somehow found a smoking pipe, stuffed it with some dry tobacco leaves, and was smoking it, one puff at a time. Clearly, he was not used to smoking, and the homemade tobacco was so strong that it made his eyes water and tears roll down his cheeks.

Since I could remember, I had never seen my parents argue. But this time, my mother was clearly anxious. She grabbed my father's sleeve and said excitedly, "You saw it yourself, several children died in that stream before the liberation. This is clearly because Er Dan has been entangled by those water ghosts. Medicine won't work. If we don't find that old Taoist, our Er Dan might not have many days left. How can you be so heartless? I tell you, if our Er Dan doesn't survive, I won't live either..."

Hearing this, I finally understood. Yesterday at noon, my mother's unusual behavior was because she thought I might not live much longer. But, am I really going to die?

I had never thought about such a question. The thought of lying in a thin coffin, being buried in the ground, unable to eat or drink, without my parents, sister, or playmates, seemed unbearably boring. As I was lost in thought, I heard my mother's ultimatum, and my father finally spoke, saying, "I don't want my son to die, but you don't understand those monks. They have no parents, no ancestors, no elders. If I raise a son like that, I'd rather be a white-haired man burying a black-haired one. At least I would know where he sleeps at night."

As soon as my father's thoughts were revealed, my mother immediately scolded him. After scolding him, she tried to reason with him, saying, "They might not be like you think. Even if they are, it's better than being dead, right?"

That night, my father and mother discussed the matter for the entire night. Sometimes they cried, sometimes they quarreled. But at that time, I just felt very sleepy, my head heavy as if someone was sitting on it. I dozed off and fell asleep again.

The next morning, when I woke up, my mother was already busy. She took a basket of eggs from the clay pot in the kitchen, two strings of cured meat from the beam, two dead rabbits with fur, and a large bag of rice. After preparing all these gifts, she and my father discussed for a long time downstairs. Then they came upstairs, woke me up, and helped me get dressed. My mother carried all the items in a bamboo basket, while my father took two sharp machetes. After making all the preparations, my sister was left to watch the house, and we set off toward Wuguniang Mountain as the sky was just beginning to lighten.

Wuguniang Mountain is the main peak of Malishan, with five peaks as its name suggests. Beyond there, it's the old forest, where many wild animals live, and there are also the wild Miao people who don't pay taxes or grain.

Although I only had a disease on my neck, after a few days of折腾 (torture), I had no strength left, and my body was very weak. I was far from the ease I felt when I played in the mountains before. However, I have a strong competitive spirit and am stubborn. I didn't want my parents to carry me, so I gritted my teeth and kept going.

I had already heard my parents' conversation last night and knew that my illness might be caused by the spirits in the stream. Ordinary medicine wouldn't work, and only the old Taoist on the mountain might be able to cure it. However, that old Taoist wasn't a good person; he wanted to take my son from my father. I am my mother's flesh and blood, raised by my father with every mouthful of food. How could I become someone else's son?

Unconsciously, I developed a strong dislike for the old Taoist I had yet to meet, not knowing if I could even find him.

The small stream where I was attacked while bathing is to the south, and Wuguniang Mountain is to the east. However, to get there, we had to pass through Luosilin. This village is the closest to the deep mountains. Beyond here, we would enter the vast forest. Although my father had been here to gather herbs, he wasn't familiar with the area. My mother, however, grew up on Malishan and could still navigate the direction without getting lost.

The mountains were dense with forests, and there were few human traces. The path was barely a path, mostly trodden by hunters and herb gatherers, and some even by wild animals. We started early in the morning and walked until the sun was high, just barely seeing the highest peak of Wuguniang Mountain, towering in the clouds. To be honest, the altitude of the mountains in our area isn't high, but they are dense. Looking around, mountains stretch endlessly, giving a sense of despair.

We walked for a long time, and everyone was exhausted. If not for my father's support, I would have collapsed on the mountain path. "Sharpening the axe doesn't delay the chopping of wood." When tired, one must rest. My father found a clearing in the forest, helped my mother unload the items, and took out some steamed sweet potatoes and a bamboo water container, distributing them to us.

The sweet potatoes were fragrant and sweet but didn't fill the stomach. However, given the conditions, there was nothing to complain about. I, a half-grown boy, ate three in a few bites, feeling choked. As I was drinking water from the bamboo container, I suddenly heard a strange sound in the distance. At first, I didn't pay much attention, but when I heard the squeaking and the rooster's cackling, I knew something was wrong and quickly told my parents.

My father didn't want to get involved at first, but I begged him, and my mother was also worried that something might be wrong. So, they agreed to check it out. However, in the deep forest, one must be cautious. We didn't follow the path but slowly approached from the side of the forest. When we got closer, we saw four burly men huddled in the forest, and in front of them was a thin old man. We didn't know what they were doing, but there was a circle of wild monkeys surrounding them.

The monkeys on Malishan are different from those in other places. The elders say these monkeys share a common ancestor with humans, have a spirit, and have a bad temper. They usually don't appear in front of people and are very wild, but somehow they were all gathered here.

My father, who had fled to this area before the liberation and had seen some of the world, noticed the bamboo cages and iron chains they carried and whispered to my mother, "These people are monkey catchers. They are the bravest of the traveling merchants and always carry weapons. Be careful and don't make a sound." My mother didn't say anything, but I asked softly, "If we don't make a sound, will they just take the monkeys away?"

My father smiled bitterly and said, "These monkeys aren't yours. Why do you care so much? If you anger them, they might stab you with a knife in this deep forest."

I didn't say anything, but I felt it was wrong. The forest began to get noisy. I saw the thin old man holding a rooster, kill it with one stroke, and sprinkle its blood in front of the monkeys. The monkeys, usually fierce, were now terrified by the blood and didn't dare to move, just bowing their heads. One by one, they were tied up and taken away. Soon, these people finished their business and left.

My father, seeing them go far away, cautiously led us over to check. We found that these people were very stingy, not only taking the dozen monkeys but also the dead rooster.

Seeing only a pool of blood on the ground, my father cursed his bad luck and reluctantly dug around. Suddenly, a head appeared from the nearby grass.

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