Liu Xingmei asked Chu Yunzhao to bring half a bag of soybeans and told him to go back to make two tofu, but he didn't even beat the gong'er, in order to thank him, he had to go back to his old business again. In previous years, during the New Year's holidays, there would also be people looking for him to make tofu, of course, it was not for nothing, and there would be a reward. But when he gambled and smoked, his lazy habits made him give up his seemingly inconspicuous income. In China's traditional customs, there has almost always been the idea of "male dominance outside and female dominance", judging from the current situation, some small things do not need to be discussed, Liu Xingmei can completely make her own opinions.

In addition, she sent Tao Zhenzong to invite Qin Liancheng, because Qin Liancheng is a craftsman, and paper people, paper horses, wreaths and other items have to be tied urgently. Because it was inconvenient for Qin Liancheng to walk on this snowy land with a cane, Tao Zhenzong simply carried him back in the snow.

The sun still shines on every corner of the earth as it used to, and it always makes people feel that everything is the same as before, but the story of what happened on the earth is different!

Regarding the issue of eating and drinking, the funeral is naturally not a happy event, especially for poor families, a stew, a coarse grain, so that the people who come to eat are not bad, of course, people who can understand will not be picky.

At night, people who need to guard spirits naturally also need people who have experience in keeping spirits, so in the village, only Hao Qiang and Yan Meng are the best candidates, one of them is a shepherd and the other is a cowherd, and they used to be the partners of the guard. Now that the Chinese New Year is over, especially in these days of heavy snow and enclosure, the cattle and sheep of the old Wu family can't go to the mountains to graze, so the two of them will drink and feed in the pen, and the people of the Wu family will also help.

It is said that "the rich do not moo and bleat", and the cattle and sheep in rainy and snowy weather make people worry, but for the farmers, the herds of cattle and sheep show the big family.

The night masked the hustle and bustle of the day, Hao Qiang and Yan Meng were wearing large leather jackets and felt pimples (a kind of high-costed cotton shoes made of felt, which looked like boots, and were extremely cold in winter), wearing sheepskin hats, and stood guard in front of a bonfire, and there was a table with wine, food, and snacks on it, and in front of them was the large coffin.

Anyone who dares to guard the soul will think that they are very bold enough to take on such a heavy responsibility. The two people, one tall, one short, one fat and one thin, gossiped while drinking and eating.

At that time, the reason why there were people keeping a vigil was said to prevent cats and dogs from approaching the coffin, otherwise the deceased would cheat the corpse. Of course, this is just a superstitious statement, and it lacks credibility, but there are many examples of false rumors, but it cannot be investigated for the authenticity of its existence, but it cannot be exempted from its sensationalism. It was precisely because of this taboo and the fact that people came and went, so the black tiger was led to the back of the house.

In addition, there is a plot is to report to the temple, also called to send slurry water, before the mourning of the spirit, every time before eating, you have to send a slurry water rice, a pot of boiling water, put three spoons of water in it, put a little rice or dry food, a lamp, find an older one, to carry a pot and lantern in front of the way, followed by Dai Xiao's people, according to the size of the generation, the big ones in the front, the small ones in the back, each person holds a stick of incense, one hand holds three pieces of paper, the band follows behind, go to the temple, if there is no temple with three bricks to build a temple (outside the village, Northeast and southwest), come to the temple, turn left three times, turn right three times, pour the rice on the temple, put the lamp on the temple, put the paper in the hands of the individual in front of the temple, throw the incense into the fire and burn it, and take the lamp back after burning the pot so that it can be used again next time.

When reporting to the temple, when the daughter of the deceased goes, she will cry. The band plays, and you don't need it when you come back.

Every night, when everything is done, the closing paper is burned to end the day.

However, this is also something that needs to vary from family to family, and without the article, it is natural to reduce red tape, and the Tao family has become an exception in some things.

Northeast funeral customs, before the funeral and funeral, the bereaved relatives or ask others to take turns to guard the dead day and night, guarding the everlasting lamp, not letting it go out, incense, so that the incense continues, in order to continue the meaning of cigarettes, burn paper in front of the spirit, in order to mourn, at the same time, it is strictly forbidden to close cats and dogs and other animals to avoid the deceased borrowing gas.

After the funeral, the coffin needs to be stopped at home, usually for seven days, and now most of them are the third day of the funeral, (counting from the day after death). From the funeral to the funeral, family members should guard or sleep next to the coffin and on the straw mat to show filial piety. It's called "wake". His relatives and friends can do some activities indoors, called "sitting at night". Under normal circumstances, all those who are at home must build a spiritual tent and place sacrifices at the head of the longevity, such as inverted rice, everlasting lamps, statues, wreaths, offerings (steamed buns, fruits, etc.) incense burner bowls.

The arrangement of the mourning shed is generally to hang the remains of the deceased above the mourning hall, and hang the couplets on the left and right sides of the next book or mourning word, and the mourning shed is linked: the last link is: the golden body runs to the Buddha country and the Buddha is full of light, and the next link is: the soul of the mortal child leaves the mortal dust and returns to the West. Also: the name of virtue has been passed down for thousands of years, and the sad songs are moving. Shouyue is seventy years old and smiles at nine springs, and the spirit is immortal. The good name remains for the eternal loyalty, and the soul goes to the nine heavens, and the sound of virtue is restored at the end of life. Horizontal batches can be according to the age of men and women, such as driving cranes to the west, respecting the spirit of the west.

When faced with the dead, it is often said that "I would rather be better than sorry".

In fact, it means that "should" means that it is time to die when you are old; And "hey" refers to people who are still menstrual or have died young, and they regret and complain about it.

Of course, the Tao family is not as good as others, and some needs are not qualified!

"I really can't imagine that Tao Qisheng just left!" Yan Meng sighed after taking a sip of wine.

"Who's to say it's not, good man! There are unpredictable circumstances in the sky, and people have good and bad luck. God the will, I can't help it!" In less than two sentences, Hao Qiang's mantra slipped out.

"If you had a way, there would probably be no dead people in the world."

Hao Qiang smiled and said: "He is the only one in this village who can do carpenter work, there are no people, and there is no apprentice who has made a hand, Zhenzong has not learned anything about half of the frame, who wants to make a furniture to make a coffin in the future, he has to go outside to find someone!"

"Anyway, your family doesn't need a carpenter in the past two years, the child is still young, and the old man's coffin has been prepared in advance, so there is no need to worry about this matter."

"Yes, there are old people in the family, and you won't be caught off guard when you prepare first!"

"This man died like a lamp going out, and a lifetime passed like this! I don't know what happened to his father who went out to work, after so many years, there is no news, it seems that it is impossible to return to this home in this life!"

"Where the loess doesn't bury people, maybe it's already a guest death, and it's uncertain!"

How would these two people know that Tao Vision didn't actually go out to work, but spent many years in the mountains and forests with birds and beasts, in order to punish and atone for his sins, and finally jumped off the "Hell Valley" in despair!

The only way to be judged after death is whether one's conduct is good or bad.

"What if—I heard the old people often say that people have three souls and seven souls, and the three souls are: soul, awakened soul, and living soul; And the Seven Spirits are: Joy. Anger. Pity. Fear. Love. Evil. Desire. Take the three souls as an example, after a person dies, the head soul goes, the second soul travels, and the three souls guard the bones. ”

"What Elysium, what heaven, what hell, what reincarnation, I think it's all a terrifying trick, it's a superstitious trick, who can prove what happens after death? Dead and dead, dead and dead, there is nothing left, only a tomb and his or her name!"

The two of them were sighing for fate, and suddenly they heard three snapping sounds in the coffin, as if they had been slapped by someone.

Although Hao Qiang and Yan Meng were bolder, they could hear it clearly, and they couldn't help but be creepy in an instant, and even suspected that someone was doing a prank to scare the two of them.

But at this time, a cold wind blew, blowing a pair of wreaths on both sides of the mourning shed and a pair of wreaths tied by Qin Liancheng on both sides of the mourning shed, and the lamp placed on the offering table in front of the coffin flickered on and off, and the same was true of the incense in the incense burner. The half-accumulated scraps of ash in the basin used to store the ashes at the time of the memorial also rose up, and instead of drifting away in the wind, they formed a smoke from the chimney. Look at the thick stacks of burnt paper placed on the side, which will fly up and float in the air one by one, like lotus leaves wearing a string of lanterns hanging in front of the store, fluctuating. At this moment, before the two of them could react, they saw the wind roll up snowflakes and fly in front of them, circling into a whirlwind the size of a dustpan, lingering there, whirling and lingering for a long time, refusing to leave and disappear. Whirlwinds generally occur in spring, which is a phenomenon that defies common sense. Immediately after that, the firewood crackled and crackled, and out of the air was a ball-shaped oval fireball, which was dazzlingly red. It became eerie for a moment, as if the surrounding atmosphere was raging and filled with the uncatchable wandering shadows of ghosts.

The two men were so frightened by this strange thing that they got up from their benches at the same time, and before they could take a step, they heard a clear and discernible sentence from the coffin:

"Lonely in the underworld, I want to return the yang!"