Our village is also in the mountains, and theres a big temple in the village, still made of grey bricks. My dad said that no one knows which dynasty it was from, but according to legend, when our great-grandfather fled here from elsewhere, the temple was already there, although at that time it was already abandoned and nobody knew which dynasty it belonged to. After 100 years have passed, it looks even more dilapidated.

  During the Cultural Revolution, a large part of the temple was set on fire by the Red Guards, burning the entire wall bricks to a deep red color. Only the main hall remained intact. Later, when people built houses and other structures, they would go there to pick up bricks, but for some reason, the houses built with these temple bricks were prone to collapse, even killing one family. Gradually, people began using those bricks to build pigpens instead.

  My family also has a brick from that place, which was broken off when I was young. The brick is very heavy and has a carving of a qilin on one side, while the other side is blank. According to current thinking, it should be a relief brick, which was picked up by my father when he was young and ended up being destroyed in my hands.

  The old generation called the temple General Temple, but as for what kind of general came out of our poor mountain village, I really didnt know. There were also about a hundred households in the village, but basically they were all immigrants from other places. The original residents here were said to have been killed during the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom period, so no one knew the origin of the General Temple. Fortunately, it stood there without being in the way or blocking the road, and everyone was used to its existence.

  Rural children, when we were young, besides climbing trees to dig bird nests, it was either going into the water to catch fish and shrimp, or playing hide-and-seek. Im a person whos naturally brave, and I dont know what fear is. I have a best friend named Li Yi, whos one day older than me, and because he was skinny when we were young, his nickname is Monkey.

  I once went to Jiangjun Temple with a monkey, and that temple always had a smell that I couldnt quite describe. It was similar to the smell of mold. If someone has an old ancestral hall at home, especially in a place like Yizhuang, where its very empty but the doors are tightly closed, you can also smell a similar smell. But at that time, I felt very curious about that smell and always wanted to find its source.

  That day, I was with the monkey and took little Hongxia who was one year younger than me to play there. Actually, we were both little rascals. The three of us played a game, which was playing doctor and giving injections. How did we play?

  It was usually me and the monkey taking turns being the doctor, while Xiaohong played the patient, and we would examine her body. At that time, we didnt understand the differences between boys and girls, but we knew that girls urinated differently from us boys, so this game of playing doctor and examining Xiaohongs body appeared, both as a game and to figure out why their urination posture was different.

  We were still very young, but we knew it was something that couldnt be seen by others. We coaxed and deceived Little Red Cloud into going to the back of the Generals Temple, then made a deal with her using a glass marble: she would be the patient, I would be the doctor, and Monkey would watch from the side. Just as I was about to take off Little Red Clouds pants, we heard Little Red Clouds mother yelling from outside: "You little rascals, what are you hiding there for?! You little devils, just wait till I come and deal with you!"

  Before I could cover Xiaohongxias mouth, she responded loudly: "Mom, they took off my pants and played a game of pinching."

  This loud shout, Monkey and I were so scared that we lost two and a half souls. We turned around to find a place to hide, but all around us were walls and bare stone cliffs. Where could we hide? If its destined that we should meet with disaster, theres no escape. Just as the sound of Xiaohongxias mothers footsteps was getting closer and closer, Monkey shouted to me: Quick, theres a hole here, get in!

  Turning around, we saw that the wall of the temple behind us had a hole dug out at the bottom, just big enough for a six-year-old child to crawl through. The monkey and I crawled in separately.

  When we were about to sneak in, Xiaohongxias mother also rushed over with a fierce look on her face, scolding us two as little hooligans while dragging Xiaohongxia away. Monkey and I sat on the ground, not even daring to breathe.

  At this time, the two of us didnt dare to go out. In order for us to return home, we must pass by Hongxias house entrance. Where can we escape? The monkey suggested that I wait until nightfall before returning, which should be around 4 pm. Little Hongxias mother actually came to find her for dinner, and rural dinners are usually early.

  After Hongxias mother left, we suddenly found ourselves inside the ancient temple. At first, we only noticed the outside, but now looking up, the walls of the temple had many smoke and fire marks, but most of its appearance was still vaguely recognizable. This main hall should have been the main hall at that time. The ceiling part used hollowed-out wooden carvings, carved with Tai Chi Bagua, gourds, cranes, etc. The door of the main hall was tightly closed, because a large copper lock was installed on the outside of the door. I dont know who or which era put the lock on it. In short, I had never seen this temple door open before, so I didnt know what the situation was inside the temple.

  The walls around were painted with murals, two of which had faded so much that it was hard to tell who they were, only the person on the right mural could still be vaguely made out, an old man holding a duster, should be the Taishang Laojun!

  After a long time, it turned out that this so-called General Temple has Taoist murals inside, which means that this temple was originally a Taoist temple!

  What made us two feel even more terrified was that the entire hall was empty, except for a dark brown coffin in the middle, with a thick layer of dust on it. The musty smell in the room was very heavy. Fortunately, there was a patch of bright tiles on the top of our heads, and the light from outside could shine through the tiles, so we could still see many things. But in this environment, even if we two children were brave, we would be scared to death. Especially the monkey, it turned around and ran out from that small hole again. When I left, I took a look at the wall that was smoked black, and on it, the pattern of the wall seemed to be composed of some kind of text or symbols, which looked very strange. I couldnt help but take a few more glances. At that time, I hadnt started school yet and didnt know how to read, but I was attracted by those things that looked like texts, and my mind went blank.

  The monkeys urging voice outside brought me back to reality, and when I looked at the big coffin again, I couldnt help but crawl out. The monkey asked me why I had been inside for so long without coming out, thinking that I was caught by a ghost?

  Did I say that for a long time? The monkey said, look at the sun has set, it was only then that I realized, the monkey had been out for nearly half an hour, and I had been alone inside for half an hour... But there is not even a bit of impression...

  When we two passed by Xiaohongxias home, her mother inevitably scolded us as little hooligans who had no shame, but I didnt mind at all. My mind was full of the things I saw in the temple, those character-like things, that mural, and that big coffin. When we were very young, adults told us not to go to Jiangjun Temple, and when we asked why, they just said dont ask, as long as you dont go there, its fine.

  The weirdest thing is that its obviously a Taoist temple, so why do they call it the General Temple? I told Monkey to keep quiet on our way back and not mention that we went to the General Temple, or else wed get beaten up. Monkey stuck out his tongue and said he wouldnt say anything, and then we made a pact before heading home separately.

  After going home, nothing unusual happened. My mom thought I had run away again and didnt care about it until dinner time when Xiaohongs mother came to my house.

  I knew I was doomed, and sure enough her mother started talking about how I and the monkey treated her daughter, telling my mom to discipline me properly. In fact, that day I really didnt see Little Red Clouds butt, her pants werent even off yet, when her mother arrived. However, no matter how fierce her mother was, she couldnt have predicted that after many years, the monkey would still manage to take Little Red Clouds pants off...

  My mom was apologizing to others while pinching my ear, Im really afraid of my mom, she has three moves to deal with me: pinching my ears, using a bamboo stick to whip my butt, and making me kneel. Today, it seems like I wont be able to escape any of these. Sure enough, after Xiaohongs mom left, I was already being lifted off the ground by my ear, then I had to kneel. I obediently knelt down because if I resisted now, it would be equivalent to inviting the bamboo stick to whip me. My mom didnt even bother with me, just warned me not to go there again in the future. In the end, it was my grandfather who pleaded for mercy and helped me get up.

  My grandfather was very fond of me, his grandson. In those impoverished years, he would secretly buy some snacks for me to eat, or when stewing meat, he would set aside a little for me to taste first. Grandfather held me and rubbed my numb knees, I asked him why that place wasnt allowed to go?

  Grandpa said that the temple on the other side was haunted. When the Red Guards set fire to it back then, only the main hall wasnt burned down. The person who led the arson didnt live for long and was found hanged from a beam in the main hall. From then on, the village locked up the temples gate.

  I asked Grandpa, whose coffin was that, but when I mentioned the coffin, Grandpa looked very uneasy and refused to say anything.

  In just a few days, I started breaking out in red rashes all over my body, then came the high fever, vomiting and diarrhea. My mom took me to the hospital, where the doctor said it was viral pneumonia. They gave me shots and medicine, but I only got worse by the day. I was already quite thin to begin with, and at that point I was just skin and bones, my whole body itching so badly that scratching would make my skin crack open.

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