Yellow River Craftsman

Chapter 4 Hezi Village

Near noon, we finally returned to Hezi Village.

Hezi Village is an unremarkable small fishing village on the bank of the Yellow River. Most of the villagers here rely on fishing for their livelihood.The ancient Yellow River flows through the village, playing the 5000-year-old Chinese civilization.

Walking on the ridge of the field, the river wind blows head-on, and the air is filled with the fragrance of moist soil.There is no hustle and bustle of big cities here, only a touch of tranquility and serenity.Staying in the stone forest for too long, occasionally going to this countryside far away from the world, the impetuous heart will be at peace, and the whole soul will be baptized in a pure way.

Gu Meidi stretched his arms and said cheerfully: "It's been a long time since I've breathed such fresh air, Tuoba Gu, when you have nothing to do in the future, you can take me to the countryside for a walk!"

"Okay! Okay!" I agreed vaguely, not knowing if there was any deep meaning in Gu Meidi's words.

In recent years, the country has stepped up efforts to develop urban and rural construction, and even our remote Hezi Village has built many new buildings.These buildings are all designed and built by the government, and they look like garden villas, beautiful and generous.

In the past two years, our family also built a building, but Grandpa was reluctant to leave the old house, so that building has remained idle until today.In order to welcome me back, grandpa specially opened the new house today, and set up a table of good wine and food in the garden of the new house.

"Little Gu, you're back!" Grandpa put down the tobacco and greeted him happily.

Before I could introduce him, Gu Meidi introduced himself graciously: "Grandpa, my name is Gu Meidi, and I'm Tuobagu's colleague!"

"Hello! Hello!" Grandpa squinted his eyes and looked at Gu Meidi from head to toe, and suddenly said: "Are you Xiaogu's girlfriend?"

"Ah?!" I was slightly stunned, and was about to explain, but Gu Meidi said first: "Grandpa, you are so powerful, you can tell it at a glance!" When he said this, Gu Meidi was very embarrassed Holding my arm tightly, I trembled all over and almost fell to the ground.

Grandpa's face was like a smile: "Little Gu, you are so lucky! Come on, my future granddaughter-in-law, hurry up and sit in the room, Grandpa has made a big table for you. food!"

Grandpa entered the room cheerfully, I felt my cheeks were a little hot, I asked Gu Meidi: "You...why do you say that you...are...my...my...girlfriend?"

Gu Meidi's answer was very simple: "I don't want to disappoint the old man! Besides, with your calf appearance, if you ask me, a flowery beauty, to pretend to be your girlfriend, you will make a lot of money!"

"You..." I touched my face, his uncle, I don't look like a calf, it's almost like Andy Lau.

But then again, Gu Meidi is really pretty. She was named one of the top ten beauties in the university back then, she is the department flower of the Department of Archeology, and she is also the goddess in the hearts of thousands of boys.Although Gu Meidi is a northern girl, she has the charming face of a southern girl, coupled with her fluffy snow-white skin, she is definitely worthy of the label "beauty".

The lunch was very sumptuous. We have been living and sleeping in the open all year round, and it has been a long time since we had such a sumptuous meal.Grandpa's culinary skills are also superb. Gu Meidi ate so much that he almost swallowed his own tongue.

Grandpa opened a jar of old-fashioned Huadiao wine: "Future granddaughter-in-law, can I have a whole sip with grandpa?"

"Wow!" Gu Meidi has the boldness of a northern girl in his bones.

Grandpa took out a blue and white porcelain bowl and put it in front of Gu Meidi, and poured the bowl full.

Gu Meidi picked up the blue and white porcelain bowl and looked at it: "Grandpa, this bowl is quite precious! If I read correctly, this bowl should be a court imperial bowl from the Kangxi period of the Qing Dynasty!"

Grandpa clapped his hands and said with a smile: "My future granddaughter-in-law is really knowledgeable!"

Gu Meidi said: "Grandpa is laughing, this is just my professional habit! Come, Grandpa, I respect you!"

Gu Meidi was really pleasing to grandpa, and the two quickly got back together, and they drank up the altar of Huadiao wine.And I sat beside me stupidly, like a newcomer.

After drinking and eating, Gu Meidi scrambled to clean up the dishes, and my grandfather and I sat under the grape arbor in the garden and drank tea.

Grandpa took a sip of his tea and was full of praise for this fake granddaughter-in-law: "This little girl is awesome. She is beautiful, polite, highly educated, and hardworking. What is the name of that poem?" It should only exist in the sky, but it is rare to hear 'Ah!"

Although my grandfather has not read many books, he especially likes poetry and songs, and writes poems and lyrics by himself when he is free.He also likes calligraphy very much. His calligraphy is full of charm. If there are any important or trivial matters in the village, grandpa should be asked to leave some pen and ink.Grandpa often said: "People always think that those who do our kind of work are uneducated people. I just want to learn more, improve my own quality, and change people's narrow view of us!"

After chatting for a while with my grandpa, I finally brought the topic down to business. I asked my grandpa, "I remember that you haven't been on a boat for the past two years. Why did you think about going on a boat a few days ago?"

Grandpa lit half a cigarette, smacked and said, "I was invited to go!"

I said, "Oh? The price must be high, right?"

Grandpa is quite well-known in the Yellow River Basin. Generally speaking, it will be more expensive to take the initiative to invite corpse hunters out of the boat.However, in recent years, my grandfather has grown old, and he no longer goes on the boat in many cases. It must be very expensive to ask him to go on the boat again.

Unexpectedly, Grandpa actually replied: "You are wrong! I will not charge a penny for this trip!"

"Ah?" I looked at Grandpa in surprise: "No penny was confiscated? Why?"

Grandpa exhaled a puff of smoke and said slowly: "Do you remember what I often taught you? There are actually many things in life that are more meaningful than money. Half a month ago, a couple in Yuncheng, Shanxi found me , I hope I can help them salvage their son's body. Their family is very difficult. The husband used to be a miner, and his wife was farming in the countryside. Unfortunately, the husband lost a leg in the mine disaster, and the family lost their main labor force. For To make ends meet, their ten-year-old son voluntarily dropped out of school and dug sand by the Yellow River. Due to overwork, he stumbled and fell into the Yellow River, and has never been heard from since. Some time ago, there was heavy rain on the upper reaches of the Yellow River, and the current was very fast. They speculated The son's body has been washed downstream, so I want to ask me to help find it. After hearing what happened to them, I promised to find the son who fell into the water for them, and I will not charge a penny!"

I looked at my grandfather with admiration. This is the real Yellow River corpse hunter, revealing a great humanity in the ordinary.However, this precious human nature is exactly what is missing in modern society.

I asked Grandpa, "Did you find that kid?"

Grandpa asked back: "What do you think? I am a man who scoops up corpses in the Yellow River. As long as I take over the work, I will definitely be able to finish it! Alas, that child is very poor. When I found him, the corpse was already swollen." , like a white chrysalis floating on the water. I picked him up and soaked him in the corpse pool, and his parents will come and take him home in two days!"

I nodded: "What about that turtle coffin?"

Grandpa said: "I went out of the boat three times. The child's body was found on the third trip, and the tortoise coffin was found on the second trip. It was already sunset, and I was going to take the boat home. , I saw the tortoise coffin on the way. At that time, only a black and swarthy tortoise was exposed on the water. I thought it was a thousand-year-old bastard. After I salvaged it, I realized that it was not a bastard. , There is actually a coffin hidden in the turtle shell!"

I put down the teacup: "Where is that tortoise coffin?"

Grandpa said: "It's in the backyard of the old house, I'll take you to see it later!"

After the Gu Mei Di was packed, we went to the old house with Grandpa.

The old house is just across from the new building, just across a field ridge.

In the past, I was relatively poor, and most of the building materials for the houses were local materials. They were built with rammed earth from the Yellow River, and the roofs were covered with tiles or straw. ".

Pushing open the courtyard door, a gust of wind hit the ground, rolling up two fallen leaves.

Grandpa said to Gu Meidi: "Future granddaughter-in-law, my room is a bit cloudy, why don't you wait outside the door?"

Gu Meidi said: "Grandpa, I'm not afraid! Don't forget, I'm a professional archaeologist, and I've been to ancient tombs that are darker. Besides, I also want to see the Tibetan turtle with my own eyes." What does the coffin look like!"

Passing through the main hall, we came to the backyard, where the mysterious tortoise coffin was quietly placed in the center of the yard.

Gu Meidi and I put on sterile gloves, and each walked forward with a cleaning brush for archaeology.

The length of the tortoise coffin was nearly two meters, and the height was about one meter. The lid and the bottom of the coffin were covered with two pieces of tortoise shells the size of the Table of Eight Immortals.A black coffin was hidden in it, looking lifeless.The shape of the whole tortoise coffin is like a huge clam, which looks very weird.It is incredible that this coffin has not rotted at all after being soaked in water for so many years.

I asked my grandpa to fetch a basin of clear water, and then poured some chemical liquid into the clear water, and the basin of clear water soon turned into ice blue.We use a brush dipped in the ice-blue mixture, and carefully brush off the water plants and silt on the surface of the tortoise shell.

The yard is quiet, and the occasional chirping of insects from the grass outside adds to the sense of silence.

The sun scorched our backs, and sweat dripped down our cheeks one by one.

With the joint efforts of Gu Meidi and I, the tortoise shell covering the surface of the coffin lid finally revealed its original appearance.

(End of this chapter)