quail

The so-called "Jade Man Valley" actually has two meanings. One is a Miao town built along the river, and the other is a valley with the same name in the mountains on the edge of the town.From the boatman’s chat, it can be heard that he has automatically defaulted his destination to the former, and even started introducing delicious local stir-fry restaurants and rice noodle shops, but he avoids the valley everywhere. Yang Jian listened patiently and didn’t to correct something.So, this trip is really going to a mountain town?Go "see an old friend".The words along the road have always been hanging in Li Bai's mind. It's not that he is so uneasy, he is just curious about what kind of people live there, who can make Yang Jian remember many years away from thousands of mountains and rivers. Go see for yourself.

Does it have to be a "person"?

A specific, ordinary person living there?If you find it, just say hello, catch up on the old days?

not necessarily.

Yes of course not.

The matter of the red mask is not over yet, Li Bai himself thinks so, and he thinks Yang Jian thinks the same way.A certain kind of tacit understanding remained between them, and when he really wanted to describe it, he couldn't extract it clearly.Li Bai just thinks that the present moment can be at ease. Now this second is the present moment, and the next second will also be the present moment. He can always feel at ease like this.

When passing under a trestle bridge, there was a gap in the dense clouds in the sky, and the sun's light broke through a little bit, which was more or less cleared for a while.Yang Jian told Li Bai that the last time he took the land route, in the winter of [-], on the mountain road along the river, there was no tide, but it was raining intermittently. He rented a car that was not in good condition. Filled up at the gas station in the morning.

"Finally went to Jade Man Valley?" Li Bai asked.

"That's right," Yang Jian said thoughtfully, "From dawn to dark."

Li Bai felt strange, is it so much slower on land than on water?Or, for some reason, Yang Jian walked around those mountain roads for a long time.The mobile phone has no signal at all, and he can't find out the direction of the nearby mountain peaks. He only thinks that they are connected one by one, connected by some narrow roads that can't figure out the direction, and are arranged seamlessly.

However, this time the waterway was not as convenient and fast as he thought. The original one-hour voyage was estimated to be completed around meal time, but it was delayed until two o'clock in the afternoon.The main reason is that he ran into a large group of discharges on the way. In recent years, Li Bai has done a lot of headless research on the Yunnan, Guizhou and Sichuan regions. The main method is to read magazines, documentaries, Douban topics, and official account articles.He does know something about this ancient mode of transportation. Cars cannot transport large pieces of wood in the deep mountains. Logging teams often tie the freshly cut logs into rafts with steel cables, and the front end is about the same width as an ordinary raft. However, the "tail" at the back can be wide and long, and it goes down the river in a mighty way, commonly known as "discharging".The platoon workers, young and old, young and old, are responsible for standing on several corners of the raft and cooperating with each other to control the direction.

Standing on the surface of the roaring river, the figure appears very small. The wooden rafts under the feet cover the water surface in large areas, and the length accumulates so that it has to turn with the current. It looks like some kind of ferocious algae that grows so fast that it can make big waves, and it also looks like a flowing island. .

It is very dangerous to be chased by this kind of wooden raft from behind. If there are several rafts in a row, or in the river section with large changes in width, it is tantamount to driving a car on a high speed and being surrounded by a group of heavy trucks. The asphalt road under the wheels was also squeezed and wrinkled, as soft as if it had been melted away.As soon as the boatman noticed something was wrong, he landed on the shore. It happened to be close to a small lake under Provincial Highway [-]. He quickly rowed over, propped the pole of the boat on the shore of the lake, and the bow of the boat was slanted towards the center of the lake. The three of them returned together. Look, wait for the long wooden dragons to swim by.

There was a yelling sound, and the boatman also yelled in response. The waves on the surface of the wooden raft could be seen clearly from more than ten meters away, and they could easily jump up to knee height. His skin was black and shiny from the river water, and the head of the group had gray hair, but he was more dexterous than a monkey. He could jump over the waves in one jump, and he continued to hold on to the wooden pole for turning. Jump.

"They seem to be creatures living in the water, that is... to them, going ashore is equivalent to us going into the water," Li Bai frowned at the spectacle, and said sincerely, "Like a water ghost."

"Don't dare to say that!" the boatman interrupted.

"I know one, Bo Jinsu." Yang Jian looked down at his watch, "It's really flexible."

"You know a lot of people..." Li Bai also leaned over to look at the pointer, "How old is he?"

"In his early thirties?" Yang Jian wasn't too sure. "It's common to stay on the water for several weeks or months in this line of work. Those with gray hair are usually in their 40s, and the mortality rate is very high."

"Is that Bo Jinsu still alive?" Li Bai asked again.

"I don't know." Yang Jian turned the strap, raised his eyes again, and looked at him with a smile, "His family lives in Yuren Valley, maybe he can meet you."

Li Bai doesn't want to meet, doesn't want to see anyone, basically at any time, even if he is doing a job he is good at, with familiar partners, he can't completely put aside his desire to be isolated from the world, and often fantasizes that he is locked in He didn't go anywhere in the house, but only saw Yang Jian's beautiful life alone.But if it's Yang Jian's friend - a good friend who can make Yang Jian laugh, just imagine that Yang Jian unlocks the door and takes a friendly stranger home for dinner, and says to the friend "this is from my family" , and leave after eating, then he won't be too resistant.

The ferry in the town was washed away, and after disembarking at the temporary pier, Li Bai had been in this state of "actively preparing to meet guests", as if that Bo Jinsu would show up on the street at any time, greet Yang Jian and ask him to introduce himself.It's the younger brother, it's the family, it's... We came from afar to find the answer together.He can say so.

Feeling happy, Li Bai smiled at the large mirror at the door of the Miao embroidery shop, and tidied his own hair, as well as Yang's.Taking this boat on the rapids during the flood season, the shoes and trouser legs of the two of them were all flooded with water, which made their upper bodies cold. Only the injured foot, which Yang Jian had covered with two layers of plastic bags in advance, was spared. The town looked like it had just rained, and when stepping on the water-logged stone road, only one foot of Li Bai's whole body was warm.

The signal recovered a bit, at least enough to load the electronic map slowly. To Li Bai's disappointment, only the river beach near the water has more detailed information. Once you pass the outer edge of the town and look at the inner circle, it is basically a large blank area. As well as the green that shows the woodlands, there are occasionally a few icons that show the names of the peaks as well.You can see it directly with your eyes. The road gradually narrows and becomes rugged in the center of the town. It is too intricate. If you walk a little deeper, you can see the villages built against the mountains in the distance.There are layers of stilted floors, dripping water from the eaves, and the wooden and bamboo structures are soaked in rainwater into a more saturated color. The black is darker, and the brown is thicker. It is old and quiet, as if few people live there.

Only the side of the river beach is relatively lively, probably because tourism in the ancient town has just developed in recent years. There are brand-new concrete roads and concrete buildings. The drainage system is well done. Magnolia and plantains are planted along the street, and the shop fronts are basically not flooded. On the outside, it is the common appearance in small counties, some of which are slightly mixed with ethnic characteristics, but they are not unique.Yang Jian didn’t rely on the map, so he walked without hesitation. He and Li Bai ate pickled pepper tendons and millet bream recommended by the boatman, packed two cups of honey and rice milk to warm up, and then he led the people to the east of the town. He took a shortcut and took a small road. In his impression, there was a motorcycle rental shop there, and he needed to rent one.

"Are we going to ride a motorcycle up the mountain later?" Li Bai asked.

"Otherwise, we will have to walk for a long time." Yang Jian said, but the sound of crutches hitting the stone slab suddenly stopped. Looking back, Li Bai stopped in front of a well-decorated tourist shop. Fancy embroidery, jars of wine, and several masks hung up.They all seem to be made of thick wood with bright colors and fine workmanship. One of them has a red face with fangs, round eyes, and short and thick beards that grow all over his chin like tentacles.

"It looks similar no matter what." Li Bai raised his finger to the mask, looking a little at a loss.

"This is the most common type." Yang Jian took two steps back and stood beside him.

"Is it 'Nuo God'?" Li Bai's voice was still quiet, as if he was afraid of alarming something.

"It's a tourist souvenir." Yang Jian said.

Li Bai was stunned, he didn't expect to get such an answer, he thought that Yang Jian would tell him about those ancient worships and shamanism culture, since Yang Jian knew so much about this place.But after thinking about it again, there is really no need for this. It is a waste of time to stop in front of this window, just like the masked child on the lonely peak, he can also buy a piece of the same wood, and he can also go to cheat—— In Yang Jian's eyes, these foggy mountains and rivers are probably commonplace. He has always been uninterested in metaphysical things, and there are many boring tricks and few real mysteries.One autumn, Li Bai took him to Dajue Temple to see the ginkgo trees. Even when he got to the Daxiong Hall, he just stood indifferently under the corridor pillar, which made Li Bai embarrassed to step over the threshold and kowtow.

As for Li Bai himself, I am afraid it will take some time before he can really understand the strangeness.It’s like having a poisoned apple. You think it’s killing you, so you chased it for several marathons, and ran back to its old den after a lot of hard work, only to find that there are apple trees all over the place. Bearing such a red fruit, and what you are looking for has disappeared - you will not feel that it is innocent, you will only feel that you have been tricked, and now every one is poisonous.Then how did Yang Jian overcome it? Looking at it now, Yang Jian was also the one who chased after the poisonous apple. What did he go through, and what did he think then and now?Li Bai lowered his head and silently followed behind Yang Jian, stepping on the puddle with one foot. He still didn't want to risk touching his old wound by asking reckless questions.

Just follow along.

Follow along to see what Yang Jian wants to see.

As a result, before he could keep up with two steps, it began to drizzle, and before he could walk uphill, the drizzle suddenly poured down again.Yang Jian narrowed his eyes to look at the road ahead, went into a small street shop and bought cigarettes and an umbrella. The cigarettes were stuffed into the backpack, which was hung on Li Bai's shoulders, and the umbrella was also stuffed into his hand. "Try to hold it steady," he said, Then he put Li Bai on his back and started to run in big strides. Li Bai had to hold his cane and hold up his umbrella. His whole body was swaying, and the umbrella seemed to be blown over by the wind at any moment. Sliding off Yang Jian's back, he also wanted to cover Yang Jian a little more.

In the end they were still soaked, both of them, Yang Jian ran too fast and the wind was too tricky, still only the plaster under the plastic bag survived.Running was not without reason, and looking back, the street downhill was soaked in water, and the wooden basins and barrels were still rolling down.Fortunately, the motorcycle rental shop is still open, and there is very little room for choice. Yang Jian put his ID card there and paid a deposit of 800 yuan. Finally, the dwarf pulled out the general and drove away a relatively new motorcycle. The seat is also relatively wide Suzuki.

With half support and half hug, Li Bai was pushed up to sit, and there was a fixed cross bar next to the tire to rest his injured leg.

"Would you like to take a break?" Li Bai looked back at the LED signboard of the shop.

Yang Jian wiped the water from his eyelids, shook off his glasses, put them back on, and got on his motorcycle. Li Bai's umbrella just kept chasing after his head, "We'll be there soon," his breathing calmed down a bit. , "Hold up, don't block my eyes."

It is difficult to cooperate, and it is even more difficult to maintain a moderate height on the uneven road. Li Bai's arms are sore, and the water drops are crackling on the umbrella surface, and his wrists are also numb. endless.Li Bai only knew that the commercial town was far away, and they were going uphill and entered the village where the local people really lived.Yang Jian didn't drive fast. Even though the mountain road was intact and the black asphalt was almost brand new, he was cautious.But Li Bai could clearly feel his impatience, eager to get somewhere.

Going to meet "old friends"?

What kind of person will it be.

Could it be the Red Mask himself?

He couldn't figure out what else was worth Yang Jian not waiting for me at this time.

However, in the end, when the motorcycle slowed down slowly, they just drove into an ordinary village and stopped in front of an ordinary family.Li Bai saw the warm lights turned on in the foggy drizzle, Yang Jian got out of the car and asked him to wait, as if he had climbed up the stairs and knocked on the door... the voice of conversation came back.

Then Yang Jian came back, like a shadow, silently helped Li Bai to the ground, helped him step by step, and walked up the steps downstairs.The person guarding the door raised an oil lamp that shouldn't appear in this era, welcomed the two into the room, and then gently closed the door.

It wasn't that she didn't want to work hard, maybe it was because she didn't have the strength—one eye of Li Bai was dripping with rain, but with the other eye, she saw that she was a thin old lady. It was blurry, cloudy, and the hand that carried the lamp was shaking.It seems that there is no light, and that is the only light source in this room.Yang Jian helped her close the automatically sliding door, put the latch on, and said a few words to her loudly. Li Bai understood "Grandma" and "Thank you", and she led the two of them to another place. one room.

This room is narrower and the ceiling is not too high. Li Bai always felt that Yang Jian would be hit on the top of his head by the beam if he took two steps.There was still no light in the room, but the smell of damp rain faded in an instant, and instead there was a pleasant herbal smell mixed with dry smoke.There were a few bamboo mats and futons on the ground, and the fire was surrounded by them. There was also a copper pot on it, gurgling hot water.

The old lady asked them to sit down, picked up the copper pot and poured two cups. Li Bai put his legs down with great effort, said "thank you" and picked up the bamboo cup to taste.

"Pepper tea, to repel the cold," Yang Jian took a sip, and handed him the backpack again, "Take the medicine."

Li Bai dug out a few of his medicine boxes, the backpack was amazingly waterproof, the paper shell was only slightly damp, and the capsules and pills sealed in the medicine board kept dry.Li Bai held his breath, took a small glass of water, and poured down all the medicines. After thinking about it, he realized that the smell of prickly ash was not so unbearable, and his hands and feet gradually warmed up, making them feel comfortable under the fire. .

Wring the cuffs and trouser legs, it seems that they are almost dry.

The old lady was very enthusiastic, and when she saw that the water was gone, she filled them up again, and then sat quietly next to the two of them, as if they were such rare guests.Li Bai vaguely recognized a smile on her wrinkled face, so he smiled and turned back politely.Yang Jian roasted his hands for a while, and he probably recovered his normal body temperature. At this time, he sat a little closer and checked his forehead.

"I don't think I'm getting worse, my head doesn't hurt, and I'm not very cold," Li Bai said, "Listen, I'm not hoarse."

"En." Yang Jian didn't say much.

Li Bai looked at his pitch-black hair, eyebrows, and eyes, as if he could see the mist seeping out of it, but he already understood in his heart—why Yang Jian insisted on driving to this place in one go, even if he was out of breath, he would not stay in the motorcycle shop to rest.That place is as cramped and dark as a public toilet, without such a fire, and without such acrid tea.It turns out that his cold is such an important thing. Li Bai wanted to laugh a little. If no one is watching him now, he must kiss Yang Jian or bite his face to show his vitality.

It's a pity someone was watching.Li Bai held the teacup in both hands, only his eyes were exposed, and while blinking at the old woman, he told Yang Jian what he was thinking at the moment.He felt that Putonghua was not safe, and he used English. Yang Jian was surprised at first, then stiffened. In short, he looked unnatural, and said a few words loudly, and the old woman got up and walked out of the room slowly.

Really send people away?

Li Bai couldn't wait to fulfill his kiss, hooking his hands on Yang Jian's shoulders, he was reluctant to let go, so Yang Jian bit his cheek and explained helplessly: "He is going to get us something to eat."

"Then thank her." Li Bai was absent-minded.

"You can wait here for the rain to stop," Yang Jian scratched the itchy flesh on his stomach, and finally freed his face, "She took me in last time I came."

"Thank her, thank her," Li Bai was so tickled that he laughed. After hearing the last sentence, it took a few seconds to realize, "Did you also encounter heavy rain last time? When was December?"

"No," Yang Jian rummaged through the backpack again, "but it's still almost in a mess."

He found out the cigarette, and found out the mobile phone with more than half of the battery left, as if he was thinking about where to start with Li Bai.But in the end, she didn't say anything. The old lady brought back two bowls of oil tea and a plate of glutinous rice cakes with an oil lamp. After tossing and tossing for a long time, with so much time to talk, Yang Jian didn't continue the topic just now until he put down the bowl and chopsticks.

He took the few tools he picked out earlier and went to help the old woman repair the house. There were door latches, cracked bed boards, and chairs with two legs broken. He told Li Bai about these things, and he looked very familiar, as if it was not the first time. It was fixed once.And Li Bai sat quietly in front of the fire, dragged down by himself and unable to fight, and finally understood Yang Jian's intention to memorize so many miscellaneous things in front of the trunk.

Yang Jian can really see far enough.

Destined to come, doomed to pass by, to fix things for this old lady who lives alone, because of the grace of a drop of water... The road is really planned.

But is that all?This shouldn't be the end.Then is there something waiting at the end? Three years ago, it could make Yang Jian into a mess.

After a while there, the old woman came back alone, and she sat back beside Li Bai, leaving Yang Jian to work next door.He was really not polite at all, and he was also not on guard. Li Bai was almost overwhelmed by curiosity, "Grandma, can you...understand what I say?" At the beginning of this sentence, he opened up the conversation.

During the rainstorm, the sky is already dark. When the rain stops, the sky will still be dark, because night has come.But the light was on in the room. Yang Jian replaced the fuse and repaired the circuit. Only then did Li Bai know that the hanging building had electricity.The friendly communication between him and the old lady was also half-understood after deafness, language blockage, and a series of messy gestures.

This hanging building is built on a high place in the village, and the surrounding area is very quiet, and any lively noise can float up.The old woman was obviously attracted, Li Bai stood up, and looking through the window behind her, a group of people gathered in the open space below the slope, surrounded by something like dry wood.

bonfire?

It's a bonfire.

When the flames came up, Yang Jian stood under the hanging building and called Li Bai's name.

For the first time, Yang Jian is going to join in the fun and invite Li Bai to join him.Counting this day, Li Bai has only seen bonfires twice in his life. The first time was in Daliang Mountain, during the Torch Festival of the Yi people. He told Yang Jian that he wanted to see it with the mentality that a terminally ill patient would die without regret.The two passed clusters of fires on the river beach, as well as students, colleagues, dogs chasing each other, and villagers looking sideways. Yang Jian was always holding him, his palms were soft and hot, and his fingers were calloused from chalk. , From dusk to dusk, the fire reflected the river red.

At that time, the river was still the Jinsha River.

However, Li Bai could not help but jump down the last step with one leg, and when he raised his eyes and saw Yang Jian's left hand stretched out to him, he had the illusion that these many years were only for a moment.

It was too fast, too short, like very light and fine quicksand, these few years were only enough for him to stand on the ground in front of Yang Jian.

With him as the wounded dragging the speed, the two of them were overtaken by the old woman within a few steps of the mountain road. When they reached the bonfire, the ceremony had already begun.Another mask, a person dancing in front of the bonfire, wearing one face, two arms tied with three faces, chest and back...even the waist and legs!Crying, laughing, compassionate and mocking, this person is covered in a mask all over his body, his movements are like a puppet, with strange pauses, but with more strength that a puppet cannot have, one high and one low, one song and one song, all following the beating of firelight .

The people in the village surrounded him, the old people sang, and the kind old lady was among them. The singing was rough and sharp, forming a strange resonance, while the young people were chatting, laughing, and holding up their mobile phones to record.

Yang Jian stopped at the outermost edge, grabbed Li Bai's arm, and prevented him from jumping forward.

"This is Nuo," he said.

"I checked it when I was warming up the fire," Li Bai said softly, "Personating the Nuo God to exorcise ghosts and eliminate disasters is a very ancient sacrificial ceremony, and the orthodox one is almost lost."

"En." Yang Jian looked at the fire.

"Is it because it rained too much recently, causing a natural disaster? They want to pray for blessings." Li Bai tentatively asked.

"You guys chatted for a long time just now." Yang Jian changed the subject.

"Hmm... that old woman seems to have a close relationship with you, of course I'm curious," Li Bai leaned his weight on the crutch, "So she is Bo Jinsu's mother."

"She brought up Bo Jinsu by herself," Yang Jian smiled thinly, "At that time I was sitting there to warm up the fire, and Bo Jinsu put the row home for several months, and when she saw me, she called , He felt that I had bad intentions and couldn't stay alone with his mother. Later, he talked about it, and called me brothers again, and wanted to keep me drinking. "

"..." Li Bai got a little angry.

"Where is Bo Jinsu now?" He stared at the shadowy crowd in front of him, "Show me."

Yang Jian glanced sideways at him, but said: "Dead."

Li Bai turned his head and met that gaze a little dullly: "Dead?"

"Caught in the river."

"...She didn't mention it to me, or I didn't understand it."

"There is a posthumous photo in another room," Yang Jian said, showing no emotion, "It happened in July last year."

Both of them were silent for a while, and the singing sounded one after another in front of them, as if floating to a higher place.

"That old woman folded a lot of gold paper and gold tassels...and let me learn to fold a little bit," Li Bai spoke first this time, then paused, and then said, "She said there is a cliff in the Valley of the Jade Man. There is a particularly dangerous bend in the middle of the road, and the fog is always very thick, and cars often roll off the edge of the cliff."

"Indeed." Yang Jian nodded.

"What she did was to spread it down the cliff, for those who died on this road, so that they would not come out again to harm others."

Yang Jian still showed no surprises, looked down at the phone, and put it back in his trouser pocket.

The bonfire added more firewood and poured oil, and it burned more and more vigorously.The Nuo God is also surrounded by more characters, acting out a more complicated story.

"Brother, do you believe in ghosts?" Li Bai suddenly grabbed Yang Jian's hand.

"I don't quite believe it."

"Then do you believe in reincarnation?"

Yang Jian answered cautiously: "I believe that after death, people will still exist in some form and enter the cycle."

"If there is an afterlife," Li Bai said to himself, "if there is an afterlife, I still want to know you. Another way, it should be simpler and smoother, we will not be so unlucky, we will be so bumpy every life. For example, we are colleagues It’s better to be at the same table, get acquainted early, then become colleagues and live together...or stop being human, you become a bird, I’m the glass beads you picked up from the nest, you make the house, I’m just you growing a wall The creeper... Whatever, do whatever! If I die first, I will wait."

He said that he couldn't stop the car: "God Nuo heard it? I will never regret it."

Yang Jian smiled, he didn't say he was stupid, and he didn't resist this kind of huge promise beyond time and space. His knuckles were beating in his palm, but he smiled very stretchedly.A few young people looked like outsiders, and they were holding up their cameras to record everywhere. The camera passed in front of them and then turned back.

Seems like a close-up.

"I'll go get a message," Yang Jian let them take pictures for a while, then suddenly said, "Dean."

Oh, right.Has the three-day holiday passed?seems like it.But Yang Jian seldom backed his word, he didn't seem to intend to leave, he bypassed the bonfire, and went to a relatively clear high place to find a signal.Li Bai's eyes followed him all the way, until he raised his mobile phone to talk, and then quickly disappeared into the darkness, then Li Bai noticed the sneak shot, looked straight over, maybe it was gloomy, those girls and boys were pretending to be ordinary turn away.

At the same time, Li Bai also wanted to understand one thing. After thinking about the afterlife, all he could think about was the valley, the cliff in the valley, the steep turns, and the curse of the evil spirit.He strongly realized that only by going up and entering the misty mountains can he get the truth.But the truth is not that important anymore, what he cares most about now is what Yang Jian wants to tell himself.

Buried deep in my heart, but ready to come out.

What questions need to go through such thousands of rivers and mountains to answer.

Is it complicated?

Is it very helpless?

Can Yang Jian be entangled?

Is the phone call over?

Li Bai rubbed his eyes, trying to see the shadow clearly, but he saw the flame jumping, and it suddenly reached the height where you need to look up. It was level with the small trees outside the open space. Wet was washed out riddled with holes.The circle got bigger, as if there were countless masks and countless songs, the dances and prayers of the ancestors, the starlight after the rain, all melted together to become a vast galaxy...the interlacing of life and death, reincarnation.

In the long night, the ritual that began a thousand years ago has not yet ended.

But Yang Jian was alone like a lonely shadow, passing through all these and walking back to him.