The Ladder of Love (Novella) Zhang Baotong

It turns out that this place will have such a big change because of a person's presence or absence, it is simply cloudy and sunny!

I came to the cave, the door of the cave was tightly locked, but I wonder if the axes and steel drills that carved the ladder were still there, and the fishing nets and rabbit traps were still there? Uncle Liu's departure ended one of the most admired and respected stories in the history of Chinese love, which is the heartache and sorrow of many of us. However, we should also be grateful to Uncle Liu and Aunt Xu for staging an earth-shattering love drama for the people of the Chinese nation and even the whole world. Let us understand true love and true love.

With this in mind, I took out a pen and notebook from my small backpack and began to write with great enthusiasm. I kept writing, kept writing, forgetting everything. Until some tourists came up from the bottom of the mountain and came to the houses to visit and take pictures. When I looked at my watch, it was already one o'clock. I stopped, put my pen and notebook in my small backpack, took out a loaf of bread and a bottle of honey tea, and walked down the hill while eating.

After that, I came to Liu Mingsheng's house twice, once in the first half of 2003, when I brought the boss of our unit, and once after the Spring Festival in 2005, I drove with my former classmates, but they all came in a hurry, left in a hurry, and then went to climb the ladder of love.

At 11 o'clock on the night of October 30, 2012, Liu San called me out of the blue, saying that his mother had died one hour earlier at the age of 87. He told me that he would follow his mother's wishes and bury her next to his father. Listening to Liu San's words, I asked when the funeral would be held. Liu San said that the funeral was scheduled to be held at 8 a.m. on Nov. 4. I told Liu San that I rushed to Changle Village on the afternoon of the 3rd.

Early the next morning, I saw a report on "The Death of the Old Man Xu Chaoqing, the Mistress of the Ladder of Love", in the "Chongqing Evening News", which reads: At about 10 o'clock in the evening of October 30, 2012, Xu Chaoqing, the hostess of the "Ladder of Love", passed away at the age of 87. Her departure made the "Ladder of Love" disappear into the smoke of history together. But the legendary love she left behind with her wife Liu Guojiang will be remembered by future generations for a long time.

In the 50s of the last century, 26-year-old Xu Chaoqing became a widow due to the death of her husband's illness, raising 4 children alone, and life was very difficult. Liu Guojiang, a 16-year-old young man from the same village, is very sympathetic to this, and often takes the initiative to help her carry water and chop firewood, regardless of other people's gossip. Over time, the two began to fall in love with each other, but this kind of love was not accepted by people in the countryside at that time. To escape rumors and contempt, the two left the village with their children one night in August 1955. Since then, the villagers have discovered that Liu Guojiang and Xu Chaoqing, as well as her four children, have suddenly disappeared. Forty years later, in 2001, when an outdoor expedition team went to Banpotou Mountain near Changle Village to explore, they discovered the primitive life of these two old people and the "love ladder" with more than 6,000 stone steps built on the cliff. They have been living in the deep mountains and old forests at the top of this 1,500-meter-high Banpotou Mountain, where life is very primitive and difficult, but their love can grow freely. At first, life was very hard, Xu Chaoqing felt that Liu Guojiang had been tied to the mountain, and repeatedly asked him, "Do you regret it?" But Liu Guojiang always replied, "As long as we are diligent, life will improve." In order to make Xu Chaoqing's travel safe, Liu Guojiang used axes and steel drills to dig more than 6,000 "love ladders" leading to the outside world on the cliffs in 50 years. Their simple and romantic love story was widely disseminated by the media, and in 2006, it was rated as one of the "Top Ten Love Classic Stories in China". Since then, a large number of tourists have come to climb this "ladder of love" every year.

November 3rd and 4th happened to be Saturday and Sunday, and my unit was not working, so my friend Yang Xinglin and I drove to Zhongshan Ancient Town as soon as we finished eating at noon on Saturday. When I arrived at the ancient town of Zhongshan, I found that the ancient town was full of tourists, some of them were backpackers who came in groups, and some were couples who were holding hands, all of whom were contacting vehicles to enter the village to attend the funeral of the old man Xu Chaoqing. We got out of the car and contacted the accommodation, but we went to four or five hotels in a row, and there were notices in front of the door that they were full. Eventually, we found a room in a very small hotel.

Then, we bought a large wreath from the wreath shop in the ancient town, asked people to tie it to the top of the cart, and drove to Changle Village. There is still 18 kilometers from Zhongshan Town to Changle Village. Due to the widening and reconstruction of the road leading to the Love Ladder Scenic Area, and the rain last night, the road is muddy and difficult to walk. It took almost an hour to drive to Liu San's house in Changle Village. At this time, a large wreath was placed in front of Liu San's house, and the people who helped and came to mourn crowded the relatively large house inside and outside. The mournful music played incessantly, and the sound of firecrackers rang out one after another.

When someone saw us coming with a wreath, they set off firecrackers, and Liu San took the family out to thank us with a linen and filial piety. We gave the wreath to the person in charge and stuffed an envelope containing 500 yuan into Liu San's hand. Liu San said a few polite words and took us into the mourning hall. On the platform of the mourning hall is a portrait of Aunt Xu, and in front of the statue is a jar of burning incense, which is full of burning incense. We each took three sticks of incense, lit them, put them in jars, and bowed three times to the spiritual seat.

After worshipping the spiritual seat, Liu San opened the coffin lid and let me look at Aunt Xu's remains. Aunt Xu was wearing brand new clothes, with a scarf around her head, lying flat in the coffin, her face looking very calm and peaceful. I heard Liu San say that since Uncle Liu passed away in 2007, she often sat at the foot of the mountain and looked at the ladder, blaming herself for the "young man" for leaving her and leaving. Now she can finally be by his "young man's" side as she wishes.

Early the next morning, it was raining again, and we drove from Zhongshan Town to Liu Sanjia at 9 o'clock. At this time, the rain had stopped, and the front of Liu Mingsheng's house was crowded with people who came to pay for the funeral. These people are all from the local village or relatives, and each wears a white turban around their heads. In front of the door, there were even more tourists waiting for the funeral, at least more than 200 people. They watched with solemn and sad eyes as the locals were preparing for the funeral. We also stood in the crowd of tourists because we couldn't help, because we were afraid to disturb them.

At about 10 o'clock, the sound of firecrackers and suona suddenly sounded. The cries of relatives also became more and more grief, and the sad cry seemed to hold people's hearts and make people breathless for a long time. At this time, Liu San walked in front with the portrait of Aunt Xu, and the people who fired the cannon and played the suona followed behind. The coffin was lifted out of the house. Some members of the media gathered around and began filming. Locals with white scarves followed the coffin with wreaths, and behind them were hundreds of tourists forming a funeral procession. Most of them are young people who have heard the story of "The Ladder of Love" and are moved by their love, and want to attend the funeral of this old man in person to show their respect for this great love.

The team walked all the way from Liu Sanjia, crossed the Tongxin Bridge, and began to go up the mountain. At 11 o'clock, Aunt Xu's coffin came to a hill in front of the starting point of the love ladder under the escort of people. This is the cemetery of Aunt Xu's wife, Liu Guojiang, and a rectangular grave has been dug only two meters away from the cemetery. According to the old man's wishes, the children will bury her next to the cemetery of his wife Liu Guojiang. After a 5-year hiatus between the two, the "young man" and the "old mother" reunited in another world.

After burying Aunt Xu, Liu San knelt in front of Aunt Xu's grave and said, "My mother always said that my father died, everything was gone from her, and she couldn't face life after his death, and now they can finally meet again in heaven." I hope they will never be separated from now on. ”

Amid the sound of firecrackers, the mourners begin to leave, but the "Ladder of Love" and their love story remain here forever. The eternal love of the two deceased old men carved on the stone steps is like a commemorative monument, telling a classic and great legend in the history of our nation's love. People say that there is no pure love in the universe, but the deep love between Liu Guojiang and Xu Chaoqing has brought a true and pure story to the real world. This story is the "Ladder of Love".

First draft

Second draft