Chapter 8: A Sorrowful Farewell

  Grandfather, through his conversation with Wenli for a day, felt that Wenli was a rare good girl who would take good care of his precious grandson. He perked up his ears to listen to the conversation between Longbiao and Wenli, thinking that before he died, he would play matchmaker and bring them together, which would be the most meaningful thing he could do for Longbiao. He was convinced that Wenli would become his granddaughter-in-law, and with her by Longbiao's side, their family lineage would continue smoothly. He felt that he had no more regrets in life and could now rest in peace!

  These days, under the pretext of treating illness, he has been deceiving Long Bao into bringing him these herbs. He has already used these medicines to concoct a poisonous potion, which is chronic and will slowly accumulate toxicity in the body after multiple small doses are consumed over time. As long as he adds a bit more of the stinky bug and a few centipedes at the right moment, he himself will immediately die from heart paralysis without any pain or suffering, leaving no trace or injury behind. Little Dragon won't know that it was suicide, and as long as Little Dragon can't be certain that it was suicide, he won't follow him to death. Moreover, now that Little Dragon has found a girl he likes, he is even less likely to follow him.

  Although, although, Xiaolong will be so grief-stricken by his own death that he won't want to live!

  Thinking of the death trap he had set for himself, Grandpa Qi's tears fell like rain: Child, it's not that I'm heartless and want to leave you, but I can no longer live in this world. Little Dragon has suffered so much for me, a paralyzed old man! Such a small child never says a word about being tired or suffering! What right do I have to continue being a burden to the child? Child, do you know that living is more painful than death for me? Because I'm afraid you'll think I'm trying to kill myself, I pretend to smile every day; because I'm afraid you'll think my death is suicide, I can only resort to this slow-motion suicide. Child, I arranged for you and Wenli to be together so that after I'm gone, you'll have someone to care for you, don't torture yourself when you're lonely, there's a kind girl who will comfort you; child, before I go, I want to return your ancestors' heirlooms to you, I want your teacher to help you apply to the school in your mother's hometown, I don't want to see you give up on good schools because of me, your life is so short! How can I be an obstacle to your life? How can I ruin you just because I'm attached to this world?! Child, my precious child, death is no longer death for Grandpa, it's the liberation I've been longing for! Poor Little Dragon! Little Dragon! My Little Dragon!

  Heavens! Heavens! Take a look at this child! Can you still bear to be so heartless?!

  The sky brightened, and the rays of light shone on Xiongshan Mountain. The misty fog dispersed, revealing a strange and beautiful scene. After breakfast, Grandpa Qi repeatedly reminded Yunli to come back home with Longbiao later to play, and Yunli blushed and agreed.

  Long Bao and Wen Li bid farewell to Grandpa Qi and followed Leopard down the mountain.

  Grandfather gazed at the two children's departing figures with an exceptionally complex expression, he wanted to carve their appearance into his mind so that he could describe them in detail to the ancestors of the Long family under the nine springs. He held his breath and tried to listen to the sound of their laughter as they walked away, a smile full of pride and sorrow appeared on his face. His weathered hands repeatedly stroked the small photo of Longbiao, his withered heart dripping with unseen blood drop by drop.

  More than an hour later, he estimated that Long Bao and the others should have arrived at Tianlei Township and boarded a bus to Jiangping Town. With trembling hands, he took out the medicine from under the bed, and then took out the prepared medicine from under the pillow. Finally, with infinite nostalgia, he looked around this room, this world, placed Long Bao's photo on his chest, gritted his teeth, tilted his head back, and swallowed the medicine with the medicinal wine! Then he put the wine bottle under the bed, a smile on his face, quietly waiting for that moment to arrive.

  In the sky, the sun is slowly rising...

  At this time, Long Bao was sitting intimately with Wen Li in the car.

  The beautiful scenery of last night seemed to have torn open that thin veil, and the two of them were talking excitedly, suddenly forgetting that there was still trouble, misfortune, and hardship in the world.

  As they approached the school gate, Wen Li suddenly remembered that Grandfather Qi had specifically instructed her not to tell Long Bao about the admission notice yesterday afternoon, wanting to give him a surprise. Wen Li couldn't have known the deeper meaning behind Grandfather Qi's words.

  Long Bao was surprised to receive the admission notice of Changhan University from Principal Wang, as well as a letter written by Grandpa Qi, "Authorization Letter for Long Bao's College Application". He wasn't quite sure why his grandfather had taken it upon himself to fill out the application for Changhan University. He remembered that his mother was an alumnus of Changhan, so did Grandpa want him to go find his grandparents?

  When he thought that Wenli was from the same school as him and they could accompany each other from now on, he felt relieved. After all, kids can't think so complicatedly.

  After saying goodbye to their teacher and classmates, Longbiao and Wenli went to Wenli's home together.

  Don't even mention how enthusiastic Wenli's parents were about Longbiao, to know that Wenli's previous academic performance was not very good, her parents had never dared to imagine that their daughter could be admitted to university, let alone a national renowned university like Changhan University. Unexpectedly, under Longbiao's help and influence, their daughter actually became one of the four people in the county who were admitted to Changhan University!

  At the dinner table, Wenli's mother told Longbiao a secret: it turned out that Wenli only decided to fill in Changhan University after she found out that Longbiao had finally filled in Changhan University as his volunteer.

  Long Bao couldn't help but laugh foolishly as he looked at Yun Li who was blushing with embarrassment, and his heart felt delighted.

  Wen Li asked her parents for a two-day leave and went back to the mountain with Long Bao after buying some vegetables at the market.

  What words can be used to describe Longwang's sorrow?

  The sky is falling and the earth is cracking?

  Heartbroken

  Heartbroken?

  Cry out in surprise and jump up in shock?

  Heart-wrenching

  No words in this world can describe the orphan's dependence on his grandfather, for fate has already tied them together as inseparable companions in life and death, relying on each other spiritually, coexisting mentally, breathing in unison, their bond is already as strong as blood ties, indivisible.

  The world has collapsed, life has sunk, time has stopped, all the joys of birth and the sorrows of death, all the pleasures of love and the pains of parting, are weighing down like a mountain. Choked breathing, extinguished eyes, painful wailing, in this dilapidated house, everything is presenting a sorrowful and dismal atmosphere, the air is filled with the breath of death.

  Not moving an inch.

  Grandfather didn't move at all.

  Grandpa didn't move anymore.

  There is no familiar voice of grandpa, no caring eyes of grandpa, no thin and frail waving hands of grandpa, there are no more traces of grandpa's activities, everything is gone here, grandpa has left, and when grandpa left, he took his own life with him.

  What is life? What is living? What is death? What is joy? What is sorrow?

  Since we are going to die, what's the point of living? Since life will come to an end, what is the significance of prolonging it?

  Why does life always bring you joy while also giving you endless pain?

  Is the world bright or dark? Is life walking in such a world bright or dark? Who can distinguish? Who can also distinguish?

  Isn't happiness just a relay station, while suffering is truly an eternal journey?

  Is life really just God's mistake? If not, is everything in life one's own fault?

  It starts with one's own crying and ends with others' tears, looking back on the marks of life, it turns out that they are thoroughly filled with confusion, disappointment, regret, and resentment.

  At this final moment, there is no more confusion, no more disappointment, no regrets, and no grievances. There is only infinite sorrow left after life disappears...

  Fourteen years old, only fourteen years old, from then on became a real orphan in this world, without joy, without the thought of living.

  The unimaginable encounters converged into a massive sorrow, mercilessly descending upon the sacred land of Long Bao's heart, and no one knew how to comfort the wounds deep within his soul.

  Wen Li stared blankly at Long Bao, who was kneeling in front of Grandfather Qi's body and didn't say a word. Her mind was a complete blank. She couldn't believe this reality. Last night, she was still joking with her Grandfather Qi, but now he was lying coldly in front of her, was this real?

  She kept asking herself: Is life really that fragile? Is his life really filled with tragedy? What should I do?

  Long Bao's despairing expression was chilling, his eyes were dull, his demeanor was indifferent, his pale lips were trembling, and his body was shaking violently as he desperately tried to suppress it. For some reason, this made her feel a sense of worry and fear that Long Bao's soul had already left his body.

  Longbiao fainted suddenly without any warning signs.

  Wen Li could only tightly hug him in her arms.

  Wen Li vaguely felt that there was something profound behind her grandfather's repeated requests for her to come and play early in the morning. Seeing Long Bao like this, she seemed to understand something, but also didn't quite get it.

  Longbiao has not eaten for three days, no matter who asks him to eat something, he just remains silent. The villagers and several teachers who came to help with the funeral were at a loss as to what to do.

  The coffin was temporarily bought from an old man in the village, and Grandpa Qi did not prepare a coffin for himself.

  In rural areas, the elderly generally prepare their own coffins very early on, which is called "preparing an old house". Coffins are rarely willing to be occupied by others, and sometimes even if a higher price is offered, the elderly will not easily agree. This is the home of the elderly after death. When alive, there is a tile and a half to shelter from the wind and rain, and when dead, there is an old house to protect the bones from snakes, insects, rats, and ants. This has always been the most important requirement for rural elderly people. For the elderly, having a house while alive and having a coffin after death are two homes that cannot be missing.

  Who would want to sell their home after they die to someone else?

  The village of Tianlei has no coffin shops, and all the elderly people are accustomed to selecting high-quality wood materials such as fir in advance, preparing wine and dishes for the carpenters, and supervising their craftsmanship at all times to prevent them from being lazy. The selection of materials for coffins is very particular, with several pieces of wood used for the coffin lid and several pieces used for the body, and the quality and quantity of the wood in the eyes of the elderly are directly related to their identity after death and their dignity in the hearts of everyone, which cannot be taken lightly.

  The old people poured out all their emotions of impending death on the coffin, the coffin was their comfort after death, without a coffin by their side, the old people would not be able to sleep soundly even when they were alive, who knows if they could wake up again tomorrow after falling asleep?

  Long Bao knew that the best coffin in the entire Dafeng Village was the one made by Old Man Wu, which was crafted from thick cedar wood and a few pieces of nanmu wood, with a deep red lacquer base coated with seven layers of the finest cinnabar lacquer, making the whole coffin look elegant, precious, and majestic.

  This is the old man's lifeblood, and the seven-year-old great-grandson are equally important in the eyes of the elderly.

  For the funeral, Longbiao has taken out all his money, more than 8,000.

  He knelt upright in front of Old Man Wu's gate, his head bowed and wrapped in a white cloth, wearing borrowed mourning attire, tied with a hemp rope, holding up 4,000 blood-red 100-yuan bills in both hands, under the stunned gaze of the crowd.

  Mr. Wu has shut himself indoors and refuses to come out.

  The dragon is motionless.

  As long as someone from the Wu family comes out, Long Bing will kowtow. His head had been kowtowed for a long time, and blood stains mixed with mud and dust covered his face.

  Mr. Wu understood Longbiao's intention, and everyone knew that this child wanted to use the best coffin in the whole village to bury his beloved Grandpa Qi.

  The coffin was Wu's old grandfather's treasure that he would look at and touch every day. He never thought that now there is a ignorant little brat who doesn't understand the situation, coveting his treasure and trying to take away his beloved object.

  Everyone had advised him, with all sorts of reasons and ideas, but to no avail. Long Bao was determined to buy, while Old Man Wu was equally determined not to sell.

  In rural areas, a coffin usually costs around 2,000 yuan. In fact, if Wu Lao Ye's coffin were to be sold, it would cost at most 4,000 to 5,000 yuan.

  The villagers and the teacher went to work on Old Man Wu and his family, afraid of Longbiao's stubbornness, afraid that he would continue kneeling like this. At that time, Longbiao had not eaten for two days.

  Grandfather's body was still laid out on the bed, several village Taoist priests were performing a ritual, chanting in an unintelligible tone "Hui Sheng Zhou", "Mo Huan Xiang" and "Quan Li Hun". The atmosphere was gloomy, another kind of heart-wrenching.

  Mr. Wu was too weak to argue with so many people at the same time, and his simple and direct reason that couldn't be refuted made him a bit powerless in front of so many people.

  The morning is gone.

  Another afternoon has passed.

  In the middle of the night, Longbiao was still kneeling there.

  Several village aunties and grannies couldn't bear it anymore, knelt down in front of Wu's old house, wailing and begging Old Man Wu to fulfill the poor child's filial piety.

  Several teachers were pulling Wu's family members and doing ideological work with great effort.

  The Wu family's descendants were finally moved by Longbiao's filial piety and began to plead with the old man in front of his tightly closed door.

  The sky brightened, and the roosters, unaware of the story that had unfolded in Xiao Xiao's village, continued to crow loudly as usual.

  Old Master Wu finally came out at dawn, leaning on his cane and sighing deeply. He waved his hand at everyone and said, "Descendants of the Wu family, if you have half the filial piety of that young man, I would be willing to die wrapped in a straw mat!"

  Seeing his two-day and one-night hard work finally achieved its purpose, Long Bao heavily knocked three loud heads against Wu Laoye, saying: "Grandfather Wu, I will definitely repay you."

  Grandfather Qi was buried on the fourth day after his death in the afternoon, at the mountain slope where the ancestors of the Long family had been buried for dozens of generations. He was laid to rest next to my father, Long Xing, and mother, Wen Yan's graves. The mound of yellow earth was covered with paper money and fragments of firecrackers, as well as a few small bamboo poles swaying gently, holding up several strings of paper money.

  Grandpa's death has become a mystery to Longbiao now. There were no wounds on Grandpa's body, and he didn't seem to be in pain when he died. According to the village barefoot doctor, it looked like Grandpa had died suddenly, absolutely not from drinking pesticide or eating rat poison, nor was it the suicide that Longbiao worried about.

  Everyone said that Grandpa Long's passing was the best relief for him. The only puzzle that Long Bao couldn't figure out was why Grandpa had passed away just before he went to school, and why Grandpa had given him the family heirloom just before his death.

  Years later, Longbiao realized that this was actually a premeditated plan by Grandfather Qi, and in this premeditated death, everywhere was filled with Grandfather's sincere and loving intentions for himself.

  After finishing the funeral, Longbiao was left with less than 300 yuan, and his home was empty. Even the vegetables in the field were all eaten up.

  After completing the household registration transfer, Longbiao will bid farewell to this land. Longbiao returned the contracted management right of the rice field to the village, and he and Wenli carefully buried the Long family's heirlooms deep in the vegetable field before entrusting the vegetable field to Liu Jinfu for cultivation. He brought his clothes and bedding, locked the door, came to the cemetery, offered incense to each ancestor again, and kowtowed once more.

  With Xiaogou Baozi and Wenli walking down the mountain road, Longbiao looked back at his hometown for the last time, tears falling again.

  Wen Li accompanied Long Bao throughout the journey. Her parents had already booked train tickets for both of them and also prepared university tuition fees for Long Bao.

  Wen Li's father brought a small car to send Long Bao and Wen Li to the mountain city train station. The leopard seemed to sense that its master was about to leave, and at the moment when Long Bao got on the car, it let out a mournful cry towards him.

  The train rumbled to a start, leaving the mountain city station far behind. There were also several classmates on the same train, and everyone was immersed in their beautiful expectations of university life, chatting and imagining what they would be like in college.

  The train was moving forward with a rhythmic clatter, and Wen Li was still immersed in the sorrow of being away from her parents for the first time, wiping away tears with a small handkerchief. Long Bao lowered his head to look at the book. This book was very thick, it was given by Principal Wang, it was Lin Yutang's "The End of Life".