Chapter 39: Suicide

  Bowls and plates were scattered, chopsticks flew wildly, all the staff, twenty-four pallbearers, and helping villagers, seven aunts and eight aunts, opened more than thirty tables, the scene was bustling, as for the drummers and scripture reciters, they could only eat mixed dishes, this is the rule, and those who came to watch the excitement can also stay to eat mixed dishes, anyway, there are plenty of food, everyone is in high spirits, just like it's not a funeral but a wedding, at least except for Li Hongjun himself, no one else is sad, but what can Li Hongjun do? All the noise has nothing to do with him, he can only lie silently in the coffin waiting for his impending death, trying his best to recall the people he cares about.

  Finally got drunk and full, with me shouting: "Seal the coffin——"

  Then someone came over to cover the coffin, originally it should have been nailed with a few nails, but because Li Hongjun was still alive, he just covered it up and used ropes to secure it, then added the carrying poles. The pallbearers were ready, at this time they had to start the funeral rites. Although Li Hongjun didn't have any nephews or sons-in-law to perform the rites, it didn't matter because I could hire people to do it as long as I was willing to spend the money.

  Originally, the mourning period was three days, but Li Hongjun was different. Since he had to be cremated today, it couldn't be done in the village and it wasn't possible to send him to the county's crematorium, so they could only carry him to the burial ground to burn him. So I started counting from the opening of the grave, which is also acceptable. The so-called "opening of the grave" means digging a grave. Originally, the second day's funeral ceremony was combined with the funeral procession, and some rules had to be changed. Fortunately, Li Hongjun didn't have any opinions about it.

  Before the funeral procession, it is necessary to burn offerings, that is, to burn paper money and other paper objects. In our local custom, three sets of paper money are burned, and according to the rules, there should only be one set of horse and carriage, and four boxes of paper objects. However, those who are willing to spend more money can add more paper objects and a horse head. A simple cart with wheels and a donkey with a yellow flower pattern on its back would suffice. In the past, not many people burned a lot of paper money during the funeral procession, but in recent years, it has become more extravagant. If the deceased was a woman who died from childbirth or illness, an additional yellow sheep is often added, and some people also add a paper bowl in front of the cow to symbolize the cow drinking the polluted water that the woman had consumed.

  When the burning of incense is finished, it's time to start the ritual ceremony. The sons-in-law and grandsons who were hired will come forward one by one to perform the three kneels and nine kowtows, then the filial sons and grandsons will thank them and cry together. This ritual ceremony has its own rules, the three kneels and nine kowtows are not just a matter of kowtowing nine times, there are also specific steps to follow, with one step forward and one step back, depending on the local customs. The nine kowtows refer to nine heads bowed, but actually, one kneel is equal to three bows, and in some places, there are even 24 bows, but that's not important.

  Here is the translation:

  "On our side, the ritual of the son-in-law's procession is a very important thing. Everyone in the village will come to watch. If someone makes a mistake at this time, they will be laughed at by others. Of course, some people have bad ideas and will pull the mat quickly backwards, forcing the person performing the ritual to retreat rapidly without turning around. This retreating run often ends with a fall, which is what makes it lively."

  After the ceremony, it's time for the farewell ceremony. As I sang my vows, our arranged friends and family began to send us off, which also means letting them see us off on our last journey together.

  Actually, according to the old rules, there are many projects for this funeral, including tomb sacrifice, lifting the spirit, walking the spirit, pure bed, pointing the master, covering the coffin, guarding the return, settling the master, and thanking the filial piety. However, now no one prepares so much, they just finish the sacrificial ceremony, and then follow me with a voice: "Lift the spirit——"

  Before the funeral, the spirit must be opened. Originally, there was an incense table and a canopy in front of the spirit, and opening the spirit means removing all these things to facilitate the pallbearers lifting the coffin. The troublesome guests are in charge of this, and everything is directed by Mr. Li Ji, who is in charge of the ceremony. With the sound of blowing and beating, it's very solemn.

  When the spirit is opened, each of the filial sons and daughters holds two lotus flowers in their bosom. The filial son first washes his hands, burns incense, and performs a triple bow; then he offers wine, divided into three offerings: initial offering, secondary offering, and third offering, performing three bows simultaneously. At the same time, he lays out dishes, reads the sacrificial text, and offers wine. After that, all the filial sons and daughters kneel on the steps below to listen to the ritual host read the sacrificial text. When the sacrifice is finished, they offer wine again, close the door of the mourning hall, which is called "closing the door". Then they offer incense again, burn incense, remove the dishes, and simultaneously remove the incense table and canopy. Only a paper tray with incense remains in front of the coffin. Next, they open the door of the mourning hall again, and the filial son pours out a jar of wine, makes one bow and four calls, picks up the paper tray, and at this time, someone cuts into pieces a bowl containing only water on the left side of the mourning hall door with one knife cut, which is called "cutting off the funeral", cutting off the worldly connection between the deceased and the living. The ritual host shouts: "Today is an auspicious day, cutting off the funeral is very auspicious! Filial son mourns!" The deceased's relatives let out a loud wail, and then the pallbearers enter the mourning hall to lift the coffin with their hands, which marks the beginning of the funeral procession.

  Twenty porters were divided into three groups to take turns carrying the coffin, with the filial son leading the way in front, carrying a soul-calling banner and crying as he walked towards the tomb. Along the way, someone scattered paper money, which was called "buying road money", asking the wandering ghosts and wild devils to make way. The sound of wailing accompanied by the sound of blowing and beating, they headed towards the tomb on the mountain. Except for the filial son, some relatives and friends followed, but Li Hongjun was only there to watch the excitement, however, he was stopped by Dazhu Li Hongqi and others as soon as they left the village. After all, some things couldn't be seen by them. Fortunately, the village chief also helped to stop them, so only Xiaoyu's grandson, the blowers and drummers, and a group of police officers followed.

  Finally arrived at the tomb, this time also came to the crucial moment, what cry grave grave sacrifice and other things are exempted, I just gave some money to the filial son, virtuous grandson, drummers and coffin bearers again, and sent them away. The remaining things were left to me alone, even Fat Dogzi and others were sent away, but Zhao Yan and others did not let them go, otherwise Li Hongjun would have died and I would not be able to get rid of the relationship.

  Li Hongjun climbed out of the coffin again, looked at me with a somewhat strange expression and said: "Kid, I should go too. Let that yellow weasel return my dagger to me, there's no need for him to threaten them anymore."

  I nodded, looking at Wang Liang. In fact, until now, it was still Huang Daxian who was possessing him. I made a gesture with my eyes, and Huang Daxian understood immediately, retreating from Wang Liang's body. Suddenly, Wang Liang's body went limp and he fell to the ground. After all, he had been exhausted for two days. Previously, it was Huang Daxian who was supporting him, but now that Huang Daxian was gone, Wang Liang couldn't hold on anymore. The whole person fell to the ground and couldn't get up again. I reckon that after returning, he would be bedridden with a serious illness. As for the dagger, it had already been returned to Li Hongjun's hands.

  Li Hongjun looked at the dagger, his face changing unpredictably. He really couldn't bring himself to do it now that the time had come. Just as he was hesitating, Zhao Yan jumped out and said: "Don't think about it, with medical advancements these days, no matter what illness you have, it can be treated. Why don't you give it a try?"

  "You know what, I'm a poison user myself. If there was any hope, I wouldn't be seeking death. Originally, this thing would have mutated on the spot, but I've been suppressing it with extreme toxicity. Now the extreme toxicity is about to take effect, and soon I won't be able to suppress it anymore. Even if the great Luojin Immortal descended upon the world, he couldn't save me." Li Hongjun didn't know why he wanted to respond to Zhao Yan's words, but there was no moment when he felt more like speaking than now, even though he himself knew it was pointless.

  With a sigh, Li Hongjun looked at me again, hesitated for a moment, and simply sighed: "Young man, thank you for arranging my funeral, it's really thanks to your efforts. I don't have anything good to thank you with, but this dagger, although not a valuable item, has over a hundred years of history. It was originally in the hands of a general who killed countless people, and at least dozens of lives are on its blade. Most importantly, it has never been buried underground. Perhaps for others, it's not a good thing, but I believe it will be useful to you. After I die, I'll give it to you, so it won't go to waste. Now, with my life added to it, the evil energy is even heavier. Ordinary evil spirits and ghosts wouldn't dare approach you. Ask that yellow weasel what it feels like to have this thing on him. If it wasn't for the fact that he was possessed first, as long as this thing is here, they can't possess you."

  I knew that Li Hongjun wasn't cheating me, and after Huang Daxian came back, he was indeed much weaker. This was still a living being as a seal, and besides, Huang Daxian was still a living spirit. If it were a ghost, I wouldn't have dared to get close. It was indeed a rare good thing, so I didn't refuse, just nodded my head. However, when Li Hongjun really died, my mood was also quite heavy, and I didn't want to say much.

  "Don't move!" Li Hongjun suddenly shouted, and I turned my head to see that the team leader was quietly about to make a move, probably trying to stop Li Hongjun, but was discovered by him.

  It's just that now wanting to stop Li Hongjun is impossible, because Li Hongjun is determined to die, at least using a gun has no use, and wanting to get close still has many worries. However, even so, I don't want them to cause trouble. Looking around, I saw Sanmei under a tree, and behind Yang Xiufeng were Dajie and Erjie. Although I didn't say anything, everyone understood my intention. Dajie just nodded, and then the three sisters transformed into three gusts of dark wind, swirling around the surroundings. Even in broad daylight, it was chilling. The fallen leaves on the ground were blown flying, surrounding Zhao Yan and the others, making a strange and eerie scene. Even an idiot would know something is wrong. For a moment, the police officers were pale-faced and trembling with fear, not daring to move.

  Li Hongjun finally made up his mind, walked to one side, and took a last greedy look at everything around him. Then, with a sudden stab, he plunged the knife into his own chest, making a horizontal cut, but without making any sound. He fell straight to the ground, gasping painfully, but still managed to pull out the dagger and handed it to me. His lips trembled several times, but he couldn't say a word. I knew he wanted to give me the dagger. Although this bloody scene made me feel a bit dizzy, I still stepped forward towards Li Hongjun.

  "Ahh!" A sharp cry, but Yang Xiufeng was frightened by this bloody scene, covering her eyes and not daring to look, her body trembling slightly. If it weren't for Yang Xiufeng insisting that I follow her, I really didn't want him to see such a scene. As for Zhao Yan and the others, they were not afraid of this scene at all.