The Complete Works of Lu Xun's Novels

Chapter 21

As soon as Mr. Gao ran to Xianliang Girls' School, he handed over the newly printed business card to a hunchbacked old concierge.After a while, he heard a "please", so he followed the hunchback, turned two corners, and arrived at the teacher's preparation room, which can also be regarded as the living room.Principal He is not at school; he is greeted by the dean with a gray beard, the well-known Wanyao Garden, aliased as "Jade Emperor Fragrance Case Official", and he is presenting the poem "The Collection of Rewards from the Immortal Altar" written by himself and the female fairy. Published in the "Dazhong Daily" one after another.

"Ah! Chu Weng! I have been waiting for a long time!..." Wan Yaopu cupped his hands repeatedly, and bent his knee joints and leg joints five or six times, as if he wanted to squat down.

"Ah! Yao Weng! I have been admiring you for a long time!..." Chu Weng continued to do the same with his leather bag in his hands, and said.

They sat down, and a school boy, who seemed more than dead, brought two glasses of plain water.Old Master Gao looked at the wall clock on the opposite side, it was only [-]:[-], and it was a little short of his watch.

"Ah! Chu Weng's masterpiece, yes, that.... yes, that - 'On the Deontology of the Essence of China', really, you can never tire of reading it! It is really the motto of young people, motto motto! Brother also likes literature quite a bit, but it’s just for fun, how can it compare to Chu Weng.” He cupped his hands again, and said in a low voice, “Our Shengde Qitan ② invites immortals every day, and brothers often go to sing. Or she can just come down. That fairy is Ruizhu Fairy③. From her tone, she seems to be a flower god who has been relegated to the world of mortals. She loves to sing with celebrities and is also very supportive of the new party, like She must have favored a scholar like Chu Weng. Hahahaha!"

But Old Master Gao was not very able to make any great comments, because his preparations - the rise and fall of the Eastern Jin Dynasty - were not very sufficient at first, and some of the not-so-sufficient parts are somewhat forgotten at this moment.He was restless and distressed; out of his chaotic thoughts, many fragmented thoughts sprang up: the posture in class should be majestic; the scar on the forehead should always be covered; textbooks should be read slowly; students should be generous.But at the same time, I still heard Yaopu talking in a daze:
"...I gave a water chestnut...'Drunk and Leaning on the Green Luan to the Blue Sky', how detached...Then Deng Xiaoweng begged five times, and then he bestowed the song Wujue...'Red Sleeves Flicking the Tianhe, Mo Dao... Fairy Ruizhu said... It's the first time for Chu Weng... This is the botanical garden of our school!"

"Oh, oh!" Erchu suddenly saw him pointing his hand up, and then he was startled from his confused thoughts. Looking with his finger, there was a small open space outside the window. There were four or five trees on the ground, and three small bungalows were directly opposite. .

"This is the lecture hall." Yaopu said without moving his fingers.

"oh oh!"

"Students are very docile. Apart from listening to lectures, they concentrate on sewing..."

"Oh!" Erchu was really embarrassed, he hoped that he would stop talking, so that he could concentrate on himself and quickly think about the rise and fall of the Eastern Jin Dynasty.

"It's a pity that there are a few of them who want to learn how to write poetry, but that's not allowed. Restoration is certainly possible, but poetry is not suitable for everyone. Fairy Ruizhu also doesn't approve of women's studies, thinking that it's not natural to confuse Liangyi So happy. My brother has discussed it with her a few times..."

Er Chu jumped up suddenly, he heard the bell.

"No, no. Sit down! That's the dismissal bell."

"Yao Weng is very busy with business, so you don't have to be polite..."

"No, no! Don't be busy, don't be busy! Brothers think that the revitalization of women's schools is in line with the trend of the world, but if it is not done properly, it will easily become biased, so Tiancao doesn't like it. , unbiased, in line with the mean, and as long as one takes the quintessence of the country as one's home, there is absolutely nothing wrong with it. Chu Weng, you think, right? This is what Fairy Ruizhu also thought was 'not useless'. Hahahaha!"

The janitor brought two more glasses of plain water; but the bell rang again.

Yaopu asked Erchu to drink two sips of boiled water, then stood up slowly, and guided him through the botanical garden and into the lecture hall.

His heart was beating, and he stood upright beside the podium, only seeing half the room full of fluffy hair.Yao Pu took out a piece of letter paper from her lapel pocket, unfolded it, looked at it, and said to the students:
"This is Mr. Gao, Mr. Gao Erchu. He is a famous scholar. Everyone knows the famous article "On the Obligation of All Chinese People to Organize National History". "Dazhong Daily" also said that Gao The teacher is: Sudden admiration for the Russian literary giant Gao Jun Erji, because he changed the word Erchu to show his admiration. It is a blessing for me to come out of the Chinese literary world! Now, after repeated invitations from President He, he is willing to come , came here to teach history..."

Teacher Gao suddenly felt very lonely. It turned out that Yao Weng had disappeared, and only he was standing by the podium.He had no choice but to step up to the podium, saluted, calmed down, and remembered that his attitude should be dignified, so he slowly opened the book and began to talk about "The Rise and Fall of the Eastern Jin Dynasty".

"Hee hee!" Someone seemed to snicker there.

Old Master Gao's face suddenly became hot, and he was busy reading the book. He had a good conversation with him, and it was indeed printed on it: "Pian'an in the Eastern Jin Dynasty".On the opposite side of Shunao, there is still half of the room full of fluffy hair, and there is no other movement.He guessed it was his own suspicion, but in fact no one laughed; so he gathered himself together, stared at the book, and continued slowly.At the beginning, it was my ears that heard what my mouth was saying, but gradually I became confused until I no longer knew what to say, and when it came time to play "Shile's Ambition", I could only listen to it and gossip. The sound of laughter was gone.

He couldn't help but look down the podium, the situation was very different from before: half the room was full of eyes, and there were many small equilateral triangles with two nostrils growing in each triangle. The sea, shining brightly, was facing his eyes.But when he caught a glimpse, it suddenly flashed again, changing half of the fluffy hair in the room.

He quickly retracted his gaze, and didn't dare to leave the textbook any longer. When he had to, he raised his eyes to look at the roof.The roof was white cement that turned yellow, and there was a perfect circular ridge line in the center; but this circle became vivid again, expanding suddenly and shrinking suddenly, which made his eyes a little dizzy.He predicted that if he lowered his eyes, he would inevitably encounter the terrifying sea of ​​eyes and nostrils again, so he had to go back to the book again. It was already the "Battle of Feishui" and Fu Jian was about to be terrified that "the grass and trees were all soldiers". .

He always suspected that many people were secretly laughing, but he continued to talk, since he had been talking for a long time, and the bell hadn't rang yet, so it was forbidden to look at his watch, lest the students might underestimate him; but after talking for a while, he came to "" The prosperity of the Tuoba Clan ③, followed by the "Table of the Rise and Fall of the Six Kingdoms", he thought that it might not be mentioned today, and there was no preparation.

He himself felt that the lecture had come to an abrupt end.

"Today is the first day, so that's it..." After being confused for a while, he said intermittently, nodding his head, stepped off the podium, and left the classroom door.

"Hee hee hee!"

He seemed to hear many people laughing behind him, and seemed to see the laughter coming out of the sea of ​​deep nostrils.In a daze, he stepped into the botanical garden and strode towards the teacher's preparation room opposite.

He was so taken aback that even the "Chinese History Textbook" fell to the ground because of a sudden blow to the head.He took two steps back, and when he looked intently, he saw a slanted branch lying in front of him, and the leaves trembled slightly after being hit by his head.He hurriedly bent down to pick up the book. There was a wooden sign beside the book, which read:

mulberry

Sankoh
He seemed to hear many people laughing behind him, and seemed to see the laughter coming out of the sea of ​​deep nostrils.So I was embarrassed to touch the already painful skin on my head, so I just ran into the teacher's preparation room wholeheartedly.

Inside, the two cups filled with boiled water were still there, but the school guard, who seemed to be dead but not dead, was gone, and Yao Weng was also gone.Everything was dim except for his new bag and hat that shone through the gloom.Looking at the wall clock on the wall, it was only three forty.

After Mrs. Gao returned to his room for a long time, sometimes his whole body suddenly felt hot; and he became angry for no reason; finally he felt that the school was indeed going to be a mess, it would be better to close it, especially the girls' school, what's the point? , I just like vanity!
"Whee!"

He also heard faint laughter.This made him even more angry and made him more determined to resign.In the evening, I wrote to President He, just saying that I had foot disease.But what if you come to stay? — nor go.The women's school really didn't know what kind of trouble was going to happen, so why did I bother to join them?Can't do it.he thinks.

So he resolutely removed "Liao Fan Gang Jian", pushed the mirror aside, and closed the letter of appointment.Just as I was about to sit down, I felt that the letter of appointment was really popular, so I grabbed it and stuffed it in the drawer together with the "Chinese History Textbook".

Everything has probably been folded, and there is only one mirror left on the table, and the vision is much clearer.However, he was not comfortable, as if half of his soul was missing, but he realized it immediately, put on his red knotted autumn hat, and went to Huang San's house.

"Here we come, old master Erzugao!" Lao Bo said loudly.

"Shit!" He frowned, slapped Lao Bo on the top of the head, and said.

"Have you taught it? How about it? How many outstanding ones are there?" Huang San asked enthusiastically.

"I have no intention of continuing to teach. I really don't know what the girls' school is going to be like. I'm a decent person, and I really can't afford to be together..."

The eldest son of the Mao family came in, fat as a glutinous rice ball.

"Ah! I have been waiting for a long time!..." All the hands in the room were arched, and the knee joints and leg joints were bent one after another, as if they were about to squat down.

"This one is the Brother Gao Ganting mentioned earlier." Lao Bo pointed to Old Master Gao and said to the eldest son of the Mao family.

"Oh! I have admired him for a long time!..." The eldest son of the Mao family especially bowed his hands to him and nodded.

A slanted square table had been placed on the left side of the room. Huang San greeted the guests while arranging seats and chips with a little crow's head.Not long after, a thin foreign candle was lit on the corner of each table, and the four of them took their seats.

All was silent.Only the sound of the knocked dominoes hitting the red sandalwood tabletop resounded clearly in the silence of the early night.

Old Master Gao's playing style is not bad, but he still has some grievances.He used to be easy to forget everything, but this time, he always felt that the world was a little bit worrying; although the chips in front of him gradually increased, it still didn't quite make him comfortable and optimistic.But time has changed, and Shifeng finally felt better; but it was very late, and he was already finishing the second lap, and it was almost time for him to be "all in one color".

May [-], [-].

This article was originally published in Issue No. 20 of the Beijing "Yusi" Weekly on May [-], [-].

Loner

一
Wei Lianshu and I got acquainted once, but in retrospect, it's strange, it actually started with the funeral and ended with the funeral.

I was in City S at that time, and I heard people mention his name from time to time, and they all said that he was a little weird: he studied zoology, but went to a middle school to work as a history teacher; he was always indifferent to people, But he often likes to meddle in other people's business; he often says that the family should be destroyed, but once he gets his salary, he must send it to his grandmother immediately without delay.In addition, there are many fragmentary stories; in short, in S City, he can be regarded as a person who is used as a conversation aid.One autumn, I stayed at a relative's house in Hanshishan; their surname was Wei, and they belonged to Lian Shu's family.But they didn't understand him even more, as if they treated him as a foreigner, saying that he was "different from us".

This is not surprising. Although China has established schools for 20 years, Hanshishan does not even have a primary school.In Quanshan Village, only Lian Shu is a student studying abroad, so from the perspective of the villagers, he is indeed an outlier; but they are also very envious, saying that he earns a lot of money.

At the end of autumn, dysentery was prevalent in the mountain villages; I was in danger and wanted to go back to the city.At that time, I heard that Lian Shu's grandmother had contracted the disease, and she was very heavy because of her old age. There was no doctor in the mountains.The so-called family members actually have only one grandmother, who employs a female worker to live a simple life; he lost his parents when he was young, so he was raised by this grandmother.I heard that she had suffered a lot before, but now she is at ease.But because he doesn't have a small family, the family is very lonely after all, and this is probably one of the so-called abnormalities.

Hanshi Mountain is [-] miles away from the city by dry road and [-] miles by waterway. It takes at least four days for people to go there by Lian Shu.The mountain village is remote, and these things are considered big news that everyone wants to inquire about. The next day, it was reported that she was seriously ill, and the special mission also set off; but at the fourth watch, she died, and the last words were: " Why don't you give me a chance to die?..."

The head of the patriarch, neighbors, relatives of his grandmother's mother's family, and idlers gathered in a room, anticipating the arrival of Lian Shi, and it should be time for encoffining.The shroud for the birthday material has already been made, so there is no need to plan; their first big problem is how to deal with this "grandson" ①, because it is expected that he will have to change all funeral ceremonies in new ways.After the discussion, three major conditions were probably agreed upon, and he must do it.One is to wear white, the other is to bow down, and the third is to invite monks and priests to do things.All in all: it's business as usual.

After they had reached an agreement, they agreed that on the day Lian Shu arrived home, they would gather together in front of the hall, line up in formation, support each other, and try their best to have a very serious negotiation.The villagers all swallowed their saliva and listened to the news with novelty; they knew that Lian Shu was a "new party" that "eat foreign religions" and had never been reasonable. An unexpected spectacle.

Legend has it that Lian Shu arrived home in the afternoon, and as soon as he entered the door, he just bent over to his grandmother's grave.The patriarchs immediately proceeded according to the predetermined plan, called him to the hall, first said a long story, and then introduced the main topic, and everyone sang and talked, so that he had no chance to argue. .But finally he finished speaking, silence filled the hall, and everyone stared at his mouth in horror.Seeing that Lian Shu didn't move, he simply replied:
"It is all acceptable."

This was very unexpected for them. The burden on everyone's hearts was relieved, but it seemed to be aggravated, and they felt that it was too "weird", which seemed to be something to worry about.Villagers who inquired about the news were also very disappointed, and they spread word of mouth, "It's strange! He said 'it's all right'! Let's see!" After dusk, Xinxinran gathered in front of the hall.

I was also the one who went to see it, and I gave a set of incense candles first; when I got to his house, I saw Lian Shu dressing the dead.It turned out that he was a short and thin man with a square face, with fluffy hair and thick black eyebrows occupying a small half of his face, only his eyes glowed in the black air.The clothes are really well dressed, well-organized, as if he is an expert in embalming, which makes the onlookers feel admiration.According to Hanshishan's usual practice, at these times, no matter what, the parents of the mother's family are always picky; but he just silently changed his face when he encountered any pickiness, without changing his expression.An old lady with gray hair standing in front of me let out a voice of envy and exclamation.

Followed by worship; followed by crying, all the women are chanting words.Next is to put into the coffin; next is worship; and weeping until the coffin lid is nailed.After a moment of silence, everyone was disturbed suddenly, full of surprise and dissatisfaction.I couldn't help but suddenly felt: Lian Shu never shed a single tear, he just sat on the grass pedestal, his eyes sparkling in the black air.

The funeral ended in this atmosphere of surprise and dissatisfaction.Everyone was disconsolate, as if they wanted to leave, but Lian Shu was still sitting on the straw meditating.Suddenly, he shed tears, then lost his voice, and immediately turned into a long howl, like a wounded wolf howling in the wilderness in the middle of the night, the pain was mixed with anger and sorrow.This appearance was not in the usual practice, and it was not prevented before. Everyone was at a loss. After hesitating for a while, a few people stepped forward to dissuade him. More and more people crowded him into a big pile.But he just sat and wailed, motionless like an iron tower.

Everyone had to disperse bored again; he cried and cried for about half an hour, then suddenly stopped, did not greet the hangers-on, and went straight to the house.Then there were reports from snoopers: he went into his grandmother's room, lay down on the bed, and seemed to be fast asleep.

Two days later, the day before I was going to return to the city, I heard that the villagers were talking like a demon, saying that Lian Shu would burn most of all the utensils to his grandmother, and the rest would be donated to serve in life. , the female worker who died when she died, and even the house was lent to her indefinitely.Relatives and family members all talked about the burning tongue and burning lips, but finally they couldn't stop it.

I'm afraid most of it was out of curiosity. I passed by his door on the way home, so I stopped by to comfort him.He appeared in a white coat with fringe, and his expression was still the same, cold.I was very comforted, but he only answered one sentence other than promises, which was:

"Thank you for your kindness."

two

The third time we met was at the beginning of winter this year, in a bookstore in City S, everyone nodded at the same time, finally we got to know each other.But what brought us closer was after I lost my job at the end of the year.Since then, I have often visited Lian Shu.One, naturally because of boredom; two, because I heard people say that he is very close to frustrated people, even though his nature is so cold.But the world is full of ups and downs, and a frustrated person will not always be a frustrated person, so he has few long-term friends.This legend is indeed true, as soon as I cast my business card, he received him.There are no furnishings in the two connected living rooms, just some bookshelves besides the tables and chairs. Although everyone says he is a terrible "new party", there are not many new books on the shelves.He already knew that I lost my job; but as soon as the routine was finished, the host and guest had to face each other in silence, which gradually became dull.I saw him smoking a cigarette very quickly, and the cigarette butt was about to burn his fingers before throwing it on the ground.

"Smoking." He said suddenly as he reached for the second cigarette.

I also took one, sucked it, and talked about teaching and books, but it still felt dull.When I was about to leave, there was noise and footsteps outside the door, and four boys and girls broke in.The older one is eight or nine years old, and the younger one is four or five years old. Their hands, face and clothes are dirty and ugly.But Lian Shu's eyes immediately shone with joy, he stood up quickly, walked to the room next to the living room, and said:
"Da Liang, Er Liang, come here! I've already bought the harmonica you asked for yesterday."

The children rushed in together, and immediately rushed out, each playing a harmonica. As soon as they left the living room door, they started playing for no reason.One was crying.

"One for each person, they are all the same. Don't fight!" He also followed behind.

"Who is this group of children?" I asked.

(End of this chapter)