Chapter 51 Half-Burial
As I left Qianzi's house, I thought about the full coffin. Could it be that the full coffin in the columbarium was the one my father had hidden there? What did my father want with it? He and Qianzi's grandfather were good friends; he shouldn't have done such a thing. This is something I can't understand. I know my father well; he would never have done such a vile thing. There must be some reason behind it.
I went to find Master Zhou. I still believe in him. But I still have some distrust towards other people, including Yinyan. I don't know why I feel this way about Yinyan. I can't explain it myself.
Master Zhou was at home alone, and Zhang Xiaoxue went to work.
"Master Zhou, I came here today, but there's just one thing I don't understand."
I told her about the Qian family and my father, and then about Master Zhou. She didn't say anything for a long time. It was obvious that she knew something.
"I'm not entirely clear on this matter, but your father did place the full coffin on the first floor of the columbarium. That room is no longer used. Some of the elders know this. That day, your father pulled the full coffin into the courtyard and placed it directly in that room. The full coffin was so beautiful that it stunned many people, because few people see coffins anymore. After cremation, coffins are basically no longer seen."
"What else? Why did my father want that full coffin?"
"I really don't know about this, but there was someone who had an absolutely good relationship with your father. But after you know this, I hope you don't blame your father. Your father is not wrong in this regard, because he didn't receive that kind of warmth at home, and he couldn't even be a man."
I was stunned by Master Zhou's words. Can't be a man? That means my father and mother are a couple in name only. Is that how it was after I was born? I don't know.
"White Bamboo."
I was stunned. I had never heard of this name. Who is Bai Zhu?
"She's a makeup artist. You can go find her at 13 Zhanqian Road."
I left Master Zhou's house at No. 13 Zhanqian Road, which was originally a place where the Manchus lived. The old Manchu-style houses were not demolished, forming a Manchu-style residential area with an ancient style, and it became a tourist attraction.
I found No. 13, which is an old house. Looking at the gatehouse and brick carvings, I realized that there must have been someone in the family who was in the court in the past, otherwise ordinary people would not be able to use brick carvings.
I knocked on the copper ring outside the door, and an old lady in her sixties opened the door. She was stunned when she saw me.
"Master Bai, I am Ke Zuo's son, Ke Mingzhe."
Bai Zhu looked at me for a long time before speaking.
"Come in quickly."
The yard is very clean, just sit in the yard.
"Is your mother okay?"
"Fortunately, she went back to her parents' home and never came back."
"Oh, that's right."
It seems that Master Zhou was right. My father and Bai Zhu have a special relationship.
"Master Bai, I have something I want to ask you today."
I told him about the full coffin and the Qian family.
"This is quite strange. Xiao Zuo brought back a full coffin and placed it on the first floor of the crematorium's columbarium. It stayed there for so many years, and was never taken out until his death. But I do know one thing. That full coffin originally belonged to your Ke family. It was a gift from the emperor. Back then, your ancestors, three generations back from your father, were tomb keepers. You may not know this, so there is that full coffin. Your father's good relationship with the Qian family may be because of this full coffin."
I was stunned. Our ancestors were actually tomb keepers for three generations, and my father never mentioned or spoke about it. So, is our family related to the Manchus?
"Come into the house with me."
Bai Zhu and I entered the house. There were several photos hanging on the wall. One of them was of my father, standing next to Bai Zhu. I didn't recognize the others.
"This photo is of our family . When this photo was taken, your father and I were already engaged. However, your grandfather suddenly disagreed. Later we found out the reason. It was because of the full coffin. The full coffin belonged to your family, but my father later bought it. However, his methods seemed not very good. This caused a quarrel between our two families. My father gave the full coffin to the Qian family in anger. We were very close to the Qian family at that time. I don't know how your father got the full coffin back, but he said that the full coffin contained our love. He called it the Coffin of Love."
I feel a little confused, my head is a little confused.
My father finally married my mother. That's how it happened. What was in that full coffin? I want to know.
"The coffin belongs to our Ke family, so I have the right to deal with it?"
"Yes, you can handle it anytime."
If that's the case, then there's no problem. I can take the coffin back. I want to see what's inside. Maybe there's nothing, only love, the love between my father and Bai Zhu, but can I see that love?
When I left, Bai Zhu told me to come and visit when I was free. Now she was the only one left at home. Master Zhou told me that Bai Zhu never got married because of my father.
I simply can’t imagine what kind of love it was back then.
The next time I went to the crematorium was after dark. Yinyan and I went there. She got the key from Master Li Li.
When I opened the door, the evil energy rushed out. I went in and closed the door. Under the dim light, the full coffin was placed there like a work of art. I walked around the coffin and said.
"I want to get rid of it."
“Is there a place to put it?”
This is a problem. If you can't keep this thing at home, what if the neighbors find out and don't call the police? It's a bit scary.
"Well, I have a classmate who lives in Wan Village. There's a vacant bungalow there, and it's halfway up the mountain, with its own yard and house. No one will notice it."
I think this is fine. This full coffin cannot always be kept here. Maybe one day the leader will be unhappy and take it down.
The next day, I hired people at the labor market. When they heard that carrying coffins was not an option, I raised the price to five hundred per person and required four people, and only then did four people reluctantly agree.
That day, the full coffin was brought into the bungalow in Wan Village. It was a very nice bungalow. The full coffin was placed under a shed in the yard. I looked at the full coffin and could never imagine the meaning of my father bringing this full coffin back.
"Open."
After I said that, I looked at Yinyan, wanting to hear what she meant.
"Then open it."
I looked at the full coffin, which was not fastened with any nails or buckles. I pushed hard and the lid opened a gap. I pushed it a little wider and looked inside. I jumped up and screamed. Yinyan shuddered and ran to the door.
Li Li had said that it was okay to be curious, but she shouldn't open the full coffin. But why didn't Li Li tell me that the coffin belonged to my father, Ke Zuo? Perhaps she didn't know either. After all, after so many years, no one at the crematorium wanted to find out more.
The crematorium has been renovated several times and several new buildings have been built, but this columbarium has never been demolished and is still in use. This is also a very strange thing. Maybe it is because of the full coffins, or there are other reasons.
The small building behind the crematorium has not been demolished. I heard that when they were about to demolish it, there would always be sounds of crying ghosts, so it has never been moved. I have never heard about the situation of this columbarium.
I jumped up, tears streaming down my face. I hadn't expected a person to lie in that coffin, or rather, a corpse. But the corpse was wearing my father's clothes. I recognized those clothes; they were familiar to me. And my father's hat; he loved wearing hats. I was completely stunned. This was beyond my expectations. Yinyan looked at me, motionless.
"What?"
I didn't say anything. Tears started flowing as I thought of my father. I thought that must be my father's body. My father's body was not cremated, so the ashes in my father's urn were not my father's. That must be the case.
Seeing that I didn't say anything, Yinyan slowly approached the full coffin. She screamed and sat down on the ground. She was also very scared. In the exhibition room of the crematorium, there were photos of every staff member, starting from the first batch of crematorium workers. My father's photo was ranked third, and he was wearing this clothes in the photo.
Yinyan climbed up, her legs trembling.
I pushed the lid of the coffin shut, found a black cloth to cover it, and left Wan Village. I couldn't figure this out.
"Let's go to my master's house."
Li Li was sitting on the sofa drinking beer. The house was still a mess. This was probably something that would never change in her lifetime. It was like this every time I came here. It was never clean.
"Swallow, is something wrong?"
Li Li also noticed that Yinyan's expression was not right.
Yinyan told Li Li about the full coffin. Li Li jumped up and then sat down again.
"Who told you to move that full coffin?"
The tone was very angry.
"That's my father's coffin. I don't want him to stay there all the time. He spent his whole life in the crematorium, and even after he died, he's still there. I feel it's unfilial."
"You little brat, you don't understand anything. Even if you move, tell me."
“Why wasn’t my father cremated?”
I looked at Li Li and wondered what she should be.
"I don't know. The coffin has been moved. Something will happen to you. Go find Bai Zhu about this."
Li Li mentioned Bai Zhu, so it seemed we had no choice but to go find her. Yinyan and I went to Bai Zhu's house. She was sitting in the yard drinking tea. There was a book on the stone table. It seemed to be handwritten. When she saw us coming, she covered the book with newspaper, obviously not wanting us to see it.
"Xiaozhe, come and sit down, this is your partner, right?"
I nodded.
"Master Bai, I moved my father's coffin out of the crematorium and into Wan Village. It's just, it's just..."
I told Bai Zhu what I saw.
"Xiao Zuo, oh, that's half of your father's body. The lower half was cremated and is in the urn."
I shuddered and started sweating.
"Why do you do that?"
"You don't need to know this now, you will slowly learn it later."
Bai Zhu didn't tell me.
"Don't worry. I think you can't keep a full coffin like that forever. Choose a place to bury it. Dig out your father's urn, put it in the coffin, and bury them together. Your father's favorite piece of land is Yuanbao Mountain in Huiyuan Township. There is a river in front and another Yuanbao Mountain. Bury him there and go find this person."
Bai Zhu wrote a name and handed it to me.
Yinyan and I went to Huiyuan Township and found this person. He was the township chief. He looked at the words on the note and said.
"Then you can choose any place on the mountain."
The next day, Yinyan and I dug out my father's urn and put it in the coffin. Then we asked someone to dig a grave, chose a place, and buried my father. I wanted to tell my mother, but when I thought about how coldly she treated my father throughout her life, I gave up. I really didn't want to see my father, and he probably didn't want to see her either.
After finishing all this, it was already dark. Yinyan and I went home. I didn't say a word that day. Why did my father leave half of his body? There must be something behind. Baizhu didn't tell me. I think maybe he didn't want me to know. In that case, there is no need to say too much, and there is no need to ask too much. I will know it naturally when I know it.
