The Legend of Tokyo Taoist

Chapter 138: Training trip (11)

Although he was curious as to why Qian Xiaoyi wanted to watch the bone-collecting ceremony, Kawasaki simply speculated that as a foreigner, he was interested in the local culture.

So Kawasaki talked to the host, and after obtaining consent, the two followed the crowd to the cemetery and watched the bone-burying ceremony from a distance.

The whole ceremony was very quiet. After they placed the urn into the ground and the monks performed the ritual, everyone prepared to leave.

Kawasaki clasped his hands together and bowed in front of the tombstone, then turned around and said, "Teacher Qian, it's over, let's go."

Qian Xiaoyi looked at the hostess who was leaving and asked, "Is that the daughter of the deceased? I remember the clothes in her hand, which should be the clothes used to wrap the urn? Is that the deceased's thing? Why was she not buried with the deceased but taken away instead? Is this a custom here?"

Kawasaki said: "Ah, that's indeed the tradition of this village. Didn't we see many scarecrows in the fields when we first entered the village? The clothes on them are what the deceased wore when they were alive. After the deceased passed away, they would dress up his clothes as scarecrows and put them in their fields. In this way, even if the person is gone, they can continue to protect their descendants."

"When did this tradition begin?" Qian Xiaoyi asked. The custom sounded quite heartwarming, but Qian Xiaoyi just felt that something was wrong.

Kawasaki was stunned: "This... I don't know, it probably existed before I was born. Teacher Qian, is there anything wrong with this custom?"

"I don't know." Qian Xiaoyi asked, "I have another question. Those old scarecrows in the fields should not be replaced by their descendants, right?"

Kawasaki thought about it and said uncertainly: "It should be... no way? I have never heard of any family that would take the initiative to remove the scarecrow. After all, it is a guardian scarecrow representing the deceased."

Qian Xiaoyi said: "But judging from the density of the scarecrows we saw in the fields on the road, and how worn out their clothes were... maybe this tradition is not too old, at least it is not a custom passed down from our ancestors, otherwise the fields would have been overcrowded long ago."

"Is there anything strange about this?" Kawasaki wondered, "Even if it's not a traditional custom, it's okay, right?"

Qian Xiaoyi said, "It's really nothing, I'm just a little curious... They should be dressing up the scarecrow now, right? Let's go and take a look."

They followed the funeral procession to the field, where someone carried a new scarecrow and helped the host dress and make up the scarecrow. Soon, a scarecrow that looked like a real person from a distance stood in the field, complete with a wig, coat, and pants, except for the traditional scarecrow's funny "のへの" expression on its face.

"Is there any particular reason for placing these scarecrows?" Qian Xiaoyi asked. "It seems to me that their positions were not chosen randomly. It seems that they were marked before the scarecrows were erected?"

Kawasaki had no idea and could only shake his head: "I don't know about this either. Why don't we go ask? I remember that Brother Long Er from the grocery store organized a funeral last year. Maybe he knows."

So the two of them came to the grocery store again, and a young man named Ryuji was watching TV behind the counter with a popsicle in his mouth.

"Welcome... What is it? Dong Zuo." Ryuji said, "What do you want to buy?"

"Is such that……"

When Kawasaki told Qian Xiaoyi about his doubts, Long Er touched his head and replied, "I really don't know. The funeral arrangements were all handled by the previous generation. As for the location of the scarecrow in the field, they also discussed it."

Qian Xiaoyi asked: "Does it have to be that location? Can't we go to other places?"

"It should be... not possible, right?" Long Er said: "Anyway, my grandfather told me to leave it there, so I just did as he told me."

Qian Xiaoyi asked, "Let me ask you again, in your memory, have these scarecrows existed for a long time, or did they suddenly become popular?" Long Er pondered and finally gave an answer, "Let me think... they almost appeared suddenly, right? Although I don't remember it clearly, I remember the empty fields. At that time, there didn't seem to be as many scarecrows as there are now? Oh, it's a bit strange to say that. I always thought it was a custom passed down from ancient times."

"About twenty years..." Qian Xiaoyi glanced at Long Er's age and deduced the approximate time when this tradition appeared.

"You are a guest from outside the village, right?" Long Er said, "If you are interested in this matter, would you like me to ask? If it is an old man, he should know something."

"Forget it, I'm just a little curious." Qian Xiaoyi said, "I won't bother you. By the way, are there any pens and notebooks for sale here?"

"some."

Just as Qian Xiaoyi was paying, Long Er's phone suddenly rang. As soon as he answered the phone, an angry female voice came from inside:

"What's the matter with you saying you want to live in your hometown? Are you crazy? Didn't we agree to buy a house in the city?"

"I'm so fed up." Ryuji said impatiently, "I've had enough of that kind of shitty job! I have to endure the boss's anger every day and he treats me like a slave."

"Then you can't just leave without saying anything. It's just a quarrel. What does our three years of relationship mean to you..."

The voice on the other end was very excited, and even Qian Xiaoyi and the others could vaguely hear it. Long Er covered the receiver awkwardly, turned his back and responded in a low voice. Qian Xiaoyi and Kawasaki also tactfully left the grocery store, leaving Long Er some private space.

"It's really embarrassing..." Kawasaki laughed dryly.

After leaving the grocery store, Qian Xiaoyi said something to Kawasaki and asked him to go back first. He walked around the village and then walked towards the mountain alone.

He finally discovered what was wrong with this village...

——That is, the structure of this village is too normal.

Children, young people, old people, middle-aged people, people of all ages can be seen, many people choose to come back to open shops, retire early, and the population is thriving. Compared with other villages, this village is too vibrant, and there are obviously no special products or special things. Although the scenery is pleasant, the scenery alone cannot retain young people.

The nearest supermarket here is dozens of kilometers away, not to mention cinemas, shopping malls and other entertainment facilities. The signal in the village is also average, and you can only make phone calls. It's okay to stay in the village for a few days to experience country life, but if you are a young person who yearns for the glamorous world, you won't be able to stay here for long, let alone live here permanently.

In the villages with the same conditions, the people in those villages are basically all elderly people. There are few young people and children. They have all flocked to the big cities. Qian Xiaoyi has checked and found that many villages around the mountains have been abandoned, leaving only those unattended houses, like ghost villages. But this place is different. It is located in such a valley but it is still prosperous, so there must be something attracting young people to come back here.

——Just like Ono Haruna.

Qian Xiaoyi came to the mountain, occupied a high point, then observed the positions of the scarecrows in the fields and recorded them in a notebook with a pen.

"This is..." After a while, Qian Xiaoyi looked at the notebook with an incredible look in his eyes.

(End of this chapter)