Awakening Day Collection

Chapter 20 Tai Sui (1)
一
In the pitch-black conference room, only the huge screen was flashing, and a video with terrible effects was played on it. At first glance, it was a video shot with a home-level DV.Appearing in the shaking picture is a group of young men and women who seem to be in their prime, each with a certain kind of happy expectation on their faces, gathering at the gate of a university.A female voice-over said: "The first field practice is about to start!"

The following shots were chaotic and scattered, roughly recording the itinerary of the group of senior students in the archeology department, following their mentors for field practice, extending from the inland cities to a certain deep mountain in Southwest China.This is a group of typical new and new human beings who love to play and make trouble. Apart from the seriousness of the two teachers who led the team along the way, the students looked more like they were playing a backpack tour and developing an ambiguous relationship along the way.When the babbling voice-over began to introduce how delicious the local roast yellow sheep was, an audience member in front of the screen finally couldn't help it.

"Aren't we going to watch the footage of these dogs and men hiding in the tent together?" A clear and crisp female voice said impatiently, "Let's just fast-forward to what we really want to watch."

"Don't say that, sister," said a soft and slender male voice, "these people's lives are so interesting. Many times I envy this kind of life. A group of people get together, happy and carefree He who knows nothing is the happiest.”

"But now that you know it, you should also be clear that things like happiness have nothing to do with us forever," the woman said.

"That's not necessarily true. Happiness is something you always strive for." The man's voice was lazy, "Sister, you just think too much and worry too much, and you will grow old quickly. I I still prefer that sentence: After I die, don’t care about the flood? It’s enough for us to fulfill our responsibilities. What will happen in the future depends on God’s will. The right way is to live a little happier.”

"If there is such a thing as God's will in this world, I don't have to worry about getting wrinkles." Although the woman is not patient enough, she seems to be tolerant to her brother, "Huh? Seems to be the point?"

A dark ravine appeared on the camera at this moment.The students finally completed the internship process of following the regular archaeological team, and entered the most exciting part of the internship—under the leadership of the teacher, they left the archaeological team and conducted independent field practice investigations.They were watching the teacher who led the team explore the ancient tomb with a Luoyang shovel, and the DV also captured the whispered conversation between two students.

"It's a pity that I couldn't apply for an ultrasonic detector this time. It's so troublesome!"

"I really like Luoyang Shovel, it's a bit like a novel about tomb robbers."

Of course, this kind of field practice is impossible to find out the real valuable treasure like the novel of tomb robbery.What Luoyang Shovel found was an ordinary tomb of little value, and it had already been patronized by tomb robbers. Even the bones of the tomb owner were messed up and scattered in the soil layer outside the coffin.But after opening the coffin, everyone was stunned.

"My God! What did we see?" The voice-over also seemed very surprised.

The camera zoomed in, and the scene inside the coffin could barely be seen.A flower, a black flower, grew out of the incomplete bones of the owner of the tomb.The shape of this flower is very strange, composed of dozens of thick petals, the whole is similar to a disc.When the camera zoomed in, it was not really black, but a dark red hue.

"It's strange, there is no smell in the coffin, but there is a kind of aroma," the voice-over murmured, "it's not floral, but another weird aroma, a bit like... the smell of meat."

"Look! That flower seems to be moving!" Several students have already screamed in unison.

Sure enough, the black flowers in the camera wriggled slowly like bugs, and the petals opened little by little.The teacher who led the team shouted: "Don't even touch it! Leave quickly! Wang Shu, Chen Weiliang, put the lid on the coffin again."

The students hurriedly built the coffin, filled it with soil, and left in a hurry.At this point the DV seems to be running out of power and was turned off by the owner.By the time the next video came out, it was night and college students were already sitting in tents at the campsite.The internship is coming to an end, and everyone is inevitably a little sad. Everyone sits in a circle around the campfire, drinking beer and singing. Some girls drink so much that they are tearful, and they don't know whether they are drunk or really drunk, so they lean directly into the arms of the boys.

"Mr. Li, why are you so nervous when you saw that black flower today?" A student suddenly asked, "Could it be the smell of meat, the smell of meat, that is poisonous?"

Following this question, the camera turned to Mr. Li.This is a skinny old man in his 50s. If it weren't for the black-framed glasses on the bridge of his nose and his bookish look, he would look like an old farmer in the country.That night, all the students and the other teacher leading the team were in high spirits, and he was the only one sitting quietly, drinking plain water with an old-fashioned military kettle in his hand.

"Actually, I don't know what that black flower can do," Teacher Li said, "It's just that the last time I saw it, it brought me a very unpleasant memory, or a disaster. So, I hope everyone stays away from it."

"What kind of disaster? Can you tell me, Teacher Li?" The students were very curious.

Teacher Li didn't speak for a long time.After a while, he suddenly put down the kettle, grabbed a beer bottle that was half drunk by the students, drank it all in one gulp, and then took a long breath.

"Turn that off," Teacher Li turned to the DV camera, "I'll just tell you these words, don't record them."

The owner of the DV gave an "oh", clicked on the DV, and put it into the case.The screen suddenly went dark, but the sound didn't stop.It looks like she just pretended to press a button and didn't actually turn it off.

"Smart girl." The man in front of the big screen said appreciatively.

"When the 'Cultural Revolution' began, I was only a child in his early 10s. I met an old intellectual who was sent there in the village. His name was Yuan Chuanjiang, who studied ancient Chinese mythology at the Provincial Academy of Social Sciences. In the pile of books, he has nothing to do with the world, but he still can't escape the catastrophe. But he doesn't care, as long as he is allowed to bring the materials he is researching, it doesn't seem to matter where he lives, what he eats or what bed he sleeps on.

"He lived in the village and belonged to the stinky old nine who was under surveillance. He was not only called and shouted by commune cadres, but also often bullied by children. But my father, the only rural teacher in the village at that time, told me to respect him. He told me that the current situation is just that the times have gone crazy, but we can’t follow. I listened to my father’s words, gave him food, and helped him drive away the children who chased him and threw mud. Slowly, I became friends with him. At that time, there were no classes in school. Apart from helping the family with some work, I just stayed in his thatched hut and read his books. The colorful ancient myths displayed The world has attracted me deeply, and the reason why I chose archeology as a major has a lot to do with that experience.

"At that time, I once asked him, if we believe in atheism now, does that mean that all the myths and legends he studied were all made up? This question was actually quite unreasonable, but he was not angry at all. Patiently explained to me that atheism is just a kind of world view, not an indestructible truth. These remarks were considered extremely reactionary at the time, and I was shocked when I heard them, but what he said next was even more amazing.

"He said that the so-called 'god' is just a synonym, and there is no need to make this concept absolute. If a person with a flamethrower goes back to ancient times, he may be Zhu Rong; The person in the fire engine went back to ancient times, he might be Gonggong, there is no need to make a fuss over a few words.

"I couldn't help but ask him, in your mind, do gods exist or not? He didn't give a clear answer, and touched my head to change the topic. But I noticed that apart from reading books, he usually In addition, the favorite thing to do is to hold a wooden box in a daze. The wooden box is old and faded, and the lacquer and painting on it are already indistinguishable, but there are a few lines of strange symbols carved out. He told me that this wooden box was his occasional It may contain amazing secrets that can decipher ancient Chinese myths. His greatest wish in this life is to decipher the symbols on the box and then open the wooden box. He said that those symbols are not a universal character formed naturally, but It was the code word of an ancient organization, but he tried all the deciphering methods, but he couldn't piece together a fluent sentence.

"Actually, there is only a rusty lock on the box, which can be unscrewed without a key at all. But he insisted not to let me open it, saying that the contents of the box are unknown, and the outside world must be deciphered." It can only be decided by the code words. Sometimes I really want to open the wooden box while he is not paying attention, but I think the old man will be very angry, so I give up the idea.

"The days passed peacefully like this, but a year later, a great change happened. Suddenly, a group of Red Guards from the city came to the village, saying that they wanted to 'destroy the four olds'. They destroyed a nearby small temple, They also destroyed the ancestral hall in the village, and the villagers did not dare to stop them. After doing all this, they were still unsatisfied. I don’t know who told them that there was a stinky old nine in the village named Yuan Chuanjiang, who had been playing tricks on some 'ruling class bullshit'. They made up feudal superstitions to deceive and fool the people, and they immediately rushed to the thatched hut where Yuan Chuanjiang lived.

"I hurriedly informed Yuan Chuanjiang before them, and asked him to hide the important things quickly. In my prediction, a book addict like him would definitely grab this book and put down the other one. Ben was reluctant. But unexpectedly, without the slightest hesitation, he grabbed a stack of papers from the desk and stuffed them into my arms, asking me to put them away, then picked up the wooden box and ran out.

"The Red Guards piled all his books on the open space and burned them, but they were still not satisfied. They began to search for him in the whole village. After all, he was just a nerd. He had no experience in hiding, so he was quickly discovered. The Red Guards I chased him to the mountain behind the village, and finally drove him to the edge of a cliff. I followed the Red Guards, pretending to be an ignorant child watching the fun, full of fear, not knowing what would happen next.

"The leader of the Red Guards read a few quotations and said a series of impassioned sentences, and then the Red Guards began to shout slogans together. Yuan Chuanjiang didn't seem to hear anything, but just hugged the wooden box in his hand tightly. Undoubtedly attracted the attention of the Red Guards. They winked, and suddenly swarmed up to subdue the thin old man, and abruptly snatched the wooden box from his arms. The leader of the Red Guards insisted that the box contained Yuan Chuanjiang and foreign "counter-revolutionaries" In disregard of Yuan Chuanjiang's hoarse dissuasion, he broke the rusty iron lock and opened the box. Although I hate the barbarism of those people, I also have some expectations in my heart. Check out what's inside the wooden box.

"After the box was opened, everyone was stunned. There was no so-called communication tool in it, and it didn't contain valuable treasures as I guessed. What was contained in the box...was a black flower. Yes, you guys The black flower I saw in that coffin during the day is exactly the same as the one I saw 40 years ago.

"I suddenly remembered the question I asked Yuan Chuanjiang before: How old is that wooden box? At that time, he told me that he didn't know the exact age of this wooden box, but it is certain that this wooden box has passed through a certain period of time. This kind of special anti-corrosion treatment can keep it like metal utensils for thousands of years. After his research, the earliest wooden box that can be confirmed can be traced back to the 3rd century AD. If his statement is accurate, this The wooden box is at least 1800 years old, how is it possible that the flowers inside are still alive?

"I took a few steps closer and took a look. It wasn't just the black flower in the wooden box, there was a thick layer of jelly underneath. I guessed that the jelly was probably equivalent to soil, and it had been there for a long time. There are black flowers for offerings. But before he can look at it carefully, the leader of the Red Guards has already drawn a conclusion loudly.

"'This is a biochemical weapon of the imperialists!' He announced, 'Yuan Chuanjiang, a crazed reactionary, is helping the enemy to cultivate biochemical weapons to counterattack the people!' Immediately afterwards, he threw the wooden box on the ground and poured water on it. Put on the kerosene that has been prepared, and light the match.

"Seeing the flames rising, Yuan Chuanjiang suddenly uttered a heart-piercing scream. The scream did not seem to be uttered by a human voice. The two Red Guards who grabbed him let go of their hands in fright. He broke free. He, whose face was covered with blood from the beating before, showed an extremely ferocious face at this moment. The other Red Guards couldn't help but backed away in fright, not daring to stop him. He rushed to the fire, ignoring the burning of the flames. Burning, he grabbed the burning wooden box. Immediately afterwards, the anger on his face disappeared, and what appeared in his eyes was extreme astonishment.

"I followed his gaze and found some slight flashes on the burning wooden box. I suddenly realized that that might be the key to deciphering the code. The carved wood grain is only part of the code, and the rest is hidden In the wood, only when it is burned with fire can it shine and reveal itself. The combination of those flashes and wood grains is the complete code word that can be deciphered.

"The flame on the wooden box quickly burned the skin on Yuan Chuanjiang's hands, but he was like a completely unconscious person who didn't know the pain at all. A code word that will soon disappear in the flames. The words in his mouth seem to be deciphered. That is because after decades of research, he has memorized all the codes by heart, and there is no need to compare them. Thinking of this, I Suddenly I understood what he stuffed into my arms.

"'So that's what's going on,' Yuan Chuanjiang's voice sounded extremely fierce,'I finally understand, it's what's going on!' After he finished speaking, he held the wooden box and suddenly turned around and rushed To the cliff behind him, he jumped down.

"The Red Guards didn't expect to kill someone. Although at that time, killing a person by force was not a big deal, but Yuan Chuanjiang's demeanor before jumping off the cliff may have made them feel horrified, so they left angrily. I and other villagers struggled to climb to the bottom of the cliff around the mountain road, and found that he was still alive, but there were some broken branches scattered around him. The villagers speculated that he probably bumped into the branches on the way down, which slowed down his fall He was lucky enough not to fall to his death on the spot. Even so, he was already dying, only breathing out but not in. And the black flower had already been reduced to ashes, not even a single petal remained.

"The villagers gathered around and chattered. Their emotions were basically only surprise and a little fear, but I was the only one kneeling in front of him, crying for the loss of a friend. At this moment, Yuan Chuanjiang noticed my Existence, he tried his best to read a series of numbers in my ear: '3405, 36194122, 3330...'"

"I don't have the photographic memory of those geniuses, but I carry a ballpoint pen with me, which is a gift from Yuan Chuanjiang. I carry it with me not because I value it so much, but because I can use it at any time. To show off in front of my friends. At that time, I had an idea, took out a ballpoint pen, and wrote all the numbers he said on my arm. After saying those numbers, Yuan Chuanjiang died. His body was later buried by my father , was buried in a wasteland outside the village, without even a tombstone."

(End of this chapter)