Chapter Sixty-Four: Ancestors and Forebears

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Not only I, but even the villagers could sense that something was off today. First the rope snapped, then the sudden change of weather, and now a swarm of snakes appeared in the grave pit. Everyone started discussing it, but it was just idle chatter; nobody could make sense of it.

Master Nine shouted at the young men digging the grave pit, “What’s wrong with you all? Didn’t you see the snakes? Why didn’t you say something earlier?”

“Uncle Nine, we’re innocent! When we finished digging, there were no snakes in the pit. Maybe the rain washed them in, or perhaps there’s a snake hole underneath and the water forced them out?” one of them replied.

Master Nine was at a loss. He looked at Chen Dongfang and asked, “Dongfang, what do you think we should do? If it doesn’t work, we’ll dig another pit. If we delay any longer, we’ll miss the auspicious time.”

Chen Dongfang stood there without any expression on his face, not even in his eyes. Li Qing stood beside him, eager to act. Despite the swarm of snakes, Li Qing’s skills meant dealing with them wouldn’t be an issue. However, snakes appearing in the grave pit related to the Chen family’s feng shui, and since Chen Dongfang remained silent, Li Qing didn’t act.

“Dongfang?” Master Nine called again when Chen Dongfang didn’t respond.

“Give me a moment to think, Uncle Nine,” Chen Dongfang replied with a faint smile before falling into deep thought. I had just managed to convince myself not to meddle, especially in matters like this where outsiders shouldn’t interfere. But my nature is kind, and these past few days I’d developed a good impression of Chen Dongfang. Unable to resist, I walked over and said, “Uncle Dongfang, do you think someone’s behind this? If it doesn’t work, maybe you could ask my elder brother to take a look?”

Chen Dongfang patted my shoulder. “It’s not appropriate for outsiders to intervene.”

With that, I was left speechless, feeling a bit embarrassed. Even though I knew Chen Dongfang didn’t mean I was meddling, being told this in front of so many people made me uneasy. I stood aside, deciding not to say another word.

Chen Dongfang stood there for about five or six minutes. Master Nine checked the time and urged him again. At last, Chen Dongfang nodded, saying, “Master Nine, I know what to do.”

He then turned and knelt before the snakes in the grave pit, especially before the largest one, and performed three bows and nine kowtows. After finishing, he reached out to Li Qing and said, “Knife.”

Li Qing hesitated.

Chen Dongfang raised his head and stared at Li Qing. “Knife!”

Only then did Li Qing pull up his pant leg and hand over a dagger from his calf. I hadn’t expected Li Qing to carry a weapon, but Chen Dongfang took the dagger and sliced his own hand. When he withdrew the blade, his left palm was covered in blood.

“Today, I have no intention of offending, but my father’s remains have arrived. For the sake of the Chen family’s ancestors, I beg you, venerable spirits, to move aside and allow us to proceed. This kindness will be remembered forever,” Chen Dongfang declared, letting his blood drip into the water at the bottom of the grave pit.

Everyone fell silent. In the quiet, a few whispered, “Talking nicely to snakes, calling them venerable spirits? Can snakes understand human speech? Will it work?”

I was curious too. In these few days with Chen Dongfang, I’d only thought of him as a martial artist, not as a geomancer. As Fatty said, every craft has its specialists. Chen Dongfang’s actions resembled those of a geomancer, and I wondered if it would work.

The largest snake in the pit seemed almost sentient. Since Chen Dongfang knelt, its dark green eyes never left him. When he dripped blood into the water, it stared at the blood.

Just as everyone thought Chen Dongfang’s method had failed, the big snake slithered, then leapt onto the ground. As it did, everyone stepped aside to let it pass. The smaller snakes followed, slowly moving toward the Chen family’s ancestral tomb. The tomb was overgrown, and soon the snakes disappeared into the weeds.

Chen Dongfang rose and said to Master Nine, “Remove the water, and let’s proceed with the burial.”

Master Nine was shocked, but he knew time was short. He hurriedly ordered the men to bail out the water. The coffin was lowered, soil was filled in, and many details were skipped due to time constraints. The mound was shaped, everyone bowed to Grandfather Three, set off a string of firecrackers, and the crowd dispersed. As they left, I listened to them discuss the events of the day.

Once everyone was gone, I prepared to head home. I still felt awkward, since this was the Chen family’s affair. Unexpectedly, Chen Dongfang called out to me, “Yezi, I’ll be leaving soon. Come with me to Luoyang to see Chen Zhuzi.”

“Aren’t you waiting for Grandfather Three’s seven-day memorial?” According to custom, the seventh day is a grand ritual with a banquet.

“No, I don’t have much time,” Chen Dongfang replied.

“All right, I’ll go home and change,” I said, nodding to him. As I walked away, I wondered if I was too submissive—couldn’t I learn to refuse?

When I got home, Grandpa was sitting in the yard, smoking his long pipe. Seeing me, he asked, “Chen Third’s buried?”

I nodded. “Yes, just buried.”

“These old men, all gone now,” Grandpa laughed, slapped his backside, and went into the house.

I changed into clean clothes, tossed the dirty ones into the basin, and headed out to Grandfather Three’s house. Chen Dongfang was already saying goodbye to the villagers. Some surely disagreed with him leaving so soon; no matter how important business is, shouldn’t he stay for his father’s seven-day memorial? But truth be told, even fellow Chens can’t interfere with another family’s private matters. I resolved to only speak when necessary.

After instructing Master Nine, Chen Dongfang waved me over to the rented car. I got in, he waved to the others, and Li Qing started the engine, driving slowly away.

Once we left the village and hit the highway, the lighthearted Chen Dongfang slumped in his seat, looking exhausted.

“Yezi, what I said earlier wasn’t meant the way you think. Don’t overthink it. Whether you believe it or not, I’ve always treated Tianhua as my own brother, and you and Zhongmou as nephews,” Chen Dongfang said with his eyes closed.

“I know,” I replied, smiling. I could sense Chen Dongfang held special feelings for my father, but saying he treated me as a nephew was a bit much. For years, my family lived in poverty. Without Uncle Zhuzi, I wouldn’t have had money for college. Where was this uncle from Shanghai all that time? If not for Grandfather Three’s funeral, I wouldn’t even know what he looked like.

“Today, I didn’t ask Zhongmou to come. Like last night, if he came, he could have killed the big snakes, just like Li Qing. But today was different. This group of big snakes were the ancestors of the Chen family,” Chen Dongfang said, eyes still closed.

Even though I’d resolved to treat myself as an outsider in these matters, his words shocked me. Even Li Qing nearly slammed on the brakes, almost sending us into the ditch.

“Easy, keep driving,” Chen Dongfang told Li Qing.

Li Qing nodded, bewildered, and continued driving.

“The Dragon Head Stele was dug up and replaced. That ruined everything. Even if your Grandfather Three died because of it, I didn’t expect the ancestors to still bear a grudge, refusing to let him be buried in the ancestral tomb. The dead are stricter than the living. I knelt before them to promise I’d deal with the matter, or else they wouldn’t have left. Yezi, what did I tell you last night? Anyone who steps into these muddy waters can’t escape unscathed. For years, I’ve avoided this as much as possible, but now there’s no more avoiding it,” Chen Dongfang had sat up. I couldn’t see his expression, but his voice betrayed his exhaustion.

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