April 5, 2016, Qingming Festival.

It was only about 5 o'clock in the morning, and Lao Qi, who was still lying on the bed, heard a noise in the kitchen, and remembered that it must be his mother, who came back from his sister's house yesterday, was in the kitchen preparing to go up the mountain to sweep the tomb and sacrifice offerings. Lao Qi didn't dare to snooze anymore, so he quickly got up and washed, and came from the third floor to the kitchen on the first floor.

"Mom, why are you up so early?"

The mother was eating a box of pork, poached eggs, steamed cakes and other offerings, when she heard the voice, she turned to look at her son and said with a smile: "Xiaotao, you are the only one who goes up the mountain this year, and the weeds on the grave have to be cleared and paper has to be hung, which will take a long time." Go early, worship while the weather is cool, and come back early! You eat breakfast first, and then go up the mountain after eating. ”

Lao Qi's nose was sour, so he quickly sat down to eat the tofu rice noodles that his mother cooked for him, and came to the living room early after eating.

"Xiao Tao, everything is put away, go early and return early. There are hoes and sickles on Zhengkun Mountain, so borrow them if you can use them, and remember to give them a few catties of sugar. Mother told the details of going up the mountain, for fear that Lao Qi would forget something.

"Got it, Mom. I go there every year, and the mountains are very ripe. You're home alone, and remember to bring your phone with you. Lao Qi said, try it with a mountaineering bag on your back, it's okay, it feels much lighter than last year's.

When I came to the garden, it was already bright and the sun had not yet risen. Lao Ha ran over to rub Lao Qi, thinking that he was ready to go out for a walk. Lao Qi patted Lao Ha's head, "Stay at home, accompany grandma, remember!"

Lao Ha cleverly ran to his mother and sat down, sticking out his tongue and looking at Lao Qi.

Throwing the mountaineering bag into the back seat of the car, Lao Qi started his two old dragon Fukang out of the gate of the community and drove towards today's destination, Qijia Mountain. There are more than 50 kilometers of road from here to Qijia Mountain, of which one-third are mountain roads, and the last 3 kilometers of mountain roads that cannot be opened to traffic need to be walked.

Walking from the dam in central Yunnan to the dam of the five districts separated by a mountain, the summer has risen to the top of the mountain, showing little enthusiasm, the sky is full of clouds, and it can be seen that today will not be a sunny day. The fields are already full of busy farmers, and the harvest season for broad beans and rape has begun. Strawberry growers also rush to collect the last few strawberries in the early morning that can be marketed. On the side of the highway, there are scattered growers waiting for buyers to come to the door on the roadside, and a blue blue, a frame of strawberries, and cherry water are placed there to be sold.

Of course, like Lao Qi, there are many people who rush to their ancestral tombs to worship their ancestors, or walk, or take various means of transportation to their respective destinations.

The closer he got to Zushan, the more Lao Qi felt lonely when he was driving alone. The only time in this life that he went to the ancestral mountain and went to the grave alone, Lao Qi had a sadness of being abandoned by this world. Today may be the loneliest day in Lao Qi's 45-year life.

In previous years, the Qingming Festival was a gathering of family members who went to the ancestral grave to sweep the grave at the same time to sacrifice their deceased relatives, and it was also a gathering of living relatives. In some years, the families of the three aunts who were married would also return to participate in the rituals. There are many people, everyone gathers together to remember the ancestors, look forward to the future, the atmosphere is serious but not sad!

This year, my son, who is in college, can't go back to his hometown for an internship, and can't come; his wife can't come on a business trip because he goes out for a month's full-time study; his old mother is old, and the location of the ancestral grave is far away, so she can no longer personally go up the mountain to preside over the worship; her sister is married to a woman, and this year's in-laws' family is also celebrating on April 5, and she can't participate in the time conflict; take Lao Ha to the ancestral grave, which is disrespectful and will be criticized by the old people of the same clan and clan, so she can only leave it at home to accompany her mother.

As a result, Lao Qi could only drive up the mountain alone. After more than an hour of driving. Lao Qi came to the mountainside to stop in Miluo Village, carried the sacrifices prepared by the old mother, and climbed the mountain alone to the ancestral tomb to worship his deceased ancestors, and the taste could not be described.

Immersed in his lonely artistic conception, Lao Qi, who was climbing the mountain, was woken up by a cool breeze, looked at the rain that was falling with the wind in accordance with the season, took out an umbrella and held it up, and sighed softly: "During the Qingming Festival, it rains, and people on the road want to break their souls." By asking where the restaurant is? There is a shepherd boy pointing to Xinghua Village. ”

"No, no, grandpa's poem is wrong!" a crisp child's voice corrected loudly from behind.

Lao Qi stopped and looked back, happy, knowing the grandson. The child who helped him correct his mistakes without scruples was still a big family with him, the youngest grandson of one of his distant cousins. A large family of them was still struggling to climb the mountain trail not far behind him, and this little kid climbed the mountain and ran fast, surpassing his family's large army to catch up with Lao Qi.

Lao Qi looked at his nephew and grandson with a smile, "Shout, Dongwazi can recite Tang poems? It's raining, come and hide under Grandpa's umbrella." ”

"It's been a long time ago, I'm already in a big class!" A few steps to Lao Qi's side, Dong Waziran's little face was red, his hair was still sticky with rain, and his small eyes looked up at the smiling Lao Qi.

With such a clever ghost coming, Lao Qi was in a good mood, moved the umbrella to the top of Dong Wazi's head, looked at Dong Wazi and said, "It's all a big class? Then tell grandpa, who wrote this poem that grandpa read just now, and how should I read it?"

Dong Wazi proudly recited aloud: "During the Qingming Festival, it rains a lot, and the pedestrians on the road want to break their souls." By asking where the restaurant is, the shepherd boy pointed to Xinghua Village. This is "Qingming" written by the great poet Du Mu of the Tang Dynasty. ”

"Amazing, I know all of this, I even speak Mandarin so well, well, grandpa really remembers wrong. Thank you for helping grandpa correct, come, this award is for you. ”

Lao Qi said with a smile, stretched out his hand and handed Dongzi a bottle of nutrition express. Hey, the children are terrible now, the kindergarten class is so powerful, it seems that even if he grew up in the countryside, his parents did not lose at the starting line. Back in the day...... I still want to be a fart, I remember when he was seven years old, when his mother led him to the primary school in the village to sign up for primary school, Mr. Liang, who was in charge of enrollment that year, kindly asked him his name and age, and who were in the family, to see that he could answer fluently, and after confirming that he was not a fool, he only asked him to count. Lao Qi can count from 1 to 69 without chopping, and Mr. Liang praised him with satisfaction for being smart, he is a piece of reading material, and he is happy to be seven-year-old Qi Jingtao. Look at these little kids today, people are more popular than people, it's all tears when you think about it!

"Thank you, grandpa!" Dong Wazi was also thirsty, and he didn't need Lao Qi's help, so he unscrewed the bottle cap and drank it with his head up.

Look at the rain, look up at the sky, the rain will not last long, Lao Qi doesn't want to stay on the hillside longer, he took Dong Wazi's little hand and said with a smile: "Go up the mountain with grandpa, don't wait for your grandpa and them." ”

Lao Qi waved an umbrella to say hello to his cousin's family not far from them, and led Dongwazi to continue walking and climbing the mountain.

Today is the statutory Qingming holiday, even if it is the busy season of the farm, there are still a lot of people who go up the mountain to worship, there are other people on the mountain and on the road who come to sweep the tomb, it is not deserted, but it is still very lively. With Dong Wazi by his side to amuse, Lao Qi's footsteps are getting lighter and brisker.