“That bamboo grove is really strange, you know. People who go in there—sure, they won’t run into poisonous insects or ferocious beasts, but it still takes quite a bit of effort to get out.”
The Old Man with a few missing teeth grinned as he spoke. Maybe he felt that talking was too much trouble, or perhaps his mouth was too dry from just waking up. The white-haired Old Man’s voice sounded a bit slurred.
He picked up the iron jug filled with cold water from the table and took several big gulps, coughed a few times, and only then did his tone sound a bit more normal.
I glanced from a distance at Da Huang, who was still sprawled beside the stone. Just like the elderly Old Man before me, Da Huang only half-opened his eyes to look at me. Its body lay there like a piece of chewing gum carelessly spat onto the road—covered in dust, stubbornly stuck, not moving at all.
After making sure Da Huang hadn’t run off, and seeing that there were no villagers taking a stroll nearby—not even chickens or ducks were outside; they’d all run home to eat—there were only me and the Old Man here. Not having to worry about gossipy people overhearing, I carefully considered my words before asking.
“Old sir… could you tell me how you came to know the Granny living in the bamboo grove? Just before dinner, I asked some of the elderly in my family, and none of them even knew there was such a person living in the bamboo grove.”
The white-haired Old Man waved his hand. “Just call me Old Uncle, no need to be so formal. I haven’t had much schooling—being called ‘sir’ is too much.”
Having said that, Old Uncle from the general store let out a sigh, pressing both hands on the arms of his recliner to straighten his back, his voice growing more forceful.
“That old Granny is as elusive as a ghost. I have no idea how she solves her problems with food, drink, clothing, or shelter. All the years I spent selling things at the market, I only saw her once.”
Old Uncle held up a finger, his gaze drifting into the distance as he fell into his memories.
“The first time I saw her must’ve been fifteen or sixteen years ago. Back then, I thought she was just a traveler from outside the village, picking up some supplies or local specialties before heading off. But after she finished shopping, she didn’t leave. Instead, she took out a stack of money and placed it on the table, saying she wanted to ask me to buy some medicine and deliver it to the bamboo grove. My impression of the bamboo grove at the time was just that it was a place for scaring little kids—a patch of woods with complicated terrain that kids liked to wander into. Never expected…”
As he went on, Old Uncle’s expression grew more solemn. His already-wrinkled brows knit tightly together, forming a maze of flesh and wrinkles.
Old Uncle drifted off for a while before he came back to himself and continued, “I took the medicine she needed to the entrance of the bamboo grove, waited half a day without seeing a soul, and suddenly a filthy stray cat jumped out, snatched the bag from my hand, and ran off into the grove.”
“I was afraid of losing the stuff and being blamed, so I hurried after it, trying to get it back. After wandering around for ages, I finally saw a small wooden hut. When I got close, I realized it was where the old Granny lived. She was out front with a medicine stove, brewing something that smelled pretty strong.”
“You’re sure she was brewing medicine?” I asked quietly from the side.
Old Uncle picked up the hand-rolled cigarette on the table, lit it with an oil lighter, took a long drag, and shook his head.
“I was only guessing—I don’t really know about that stuff. I didn’t catch the cat, but the old Granny was pretty nice. She said the cat was one she let roam around, a bit mischievous, but she’d get the stuff back herself later and even offered to compensate me. But that compensation was pretty mysterious…”
“What do you mean, mysterious?” I pressed.
Old Uncle flicked ash off his finger, lifting his heavy eyelids to look at me. “Do you believe in gods or buddhas?”
“I’m a student, and it’s the modern age… I only believe a little when I need to, just for some spiritual support.”
Old Uncle snorted. “I’m much older than even your grandfather, so don’t talk nonsense with me. Save the empty talk for fooling young girls. Let’s be real. Don’t try to pull the wool over my eyes.”
I shrugged helplessly. With tricky questions like this, I usually brushed them off so the other person would move on. After all, I’m just an ordinary person; I have no business discussing gods and buddhas.
But with Old Uncle pressing me like this, I had no choice but to answer honestly.
“I’m not sure if they really exist, but if all those gods and buddhas enshrined in temples and Taoist shrines are real, then people like me—poor folks—probably couldn’t even step over the threshold. The rich would have bought all their blessings already.”
Even as I said this, I couldn’t help but feel that my experiences in the mountains and bamboo grove might really be influenced by some power beyond the ordinary.
So far, I had only made a single, sincere wish in that mysterious Taoist shrine on the back mountain. As for what that wish was, no matter how hard I tried, I just couldn’t remember the specifics—so of course, I couldn’t tell if it had come true.
“Interesting, kid. You make more sense than your grandfather ever did—smarter, too,” Old Uncle chuckled. But since he was so old, laughing that hard sent him into a fit of coughing.
“Cough, cough… When you get old, you’re no good anymore. I can understand why your grandfather kept running to the temple before he got sick—really wanted a blessing from the immortals, wanted to be young again, or have a healthy body. That’s how people are. If praying really worked, most of us would be immortal by now, hah!”
Old Uncle shook his head in self-mockery, took a final drag of his nearly spent cigarette, then pinched out the butt with two fingers and tossed it onto the stone floor.
“Kid, want one? I roll these myself—not as bad for you as the ones in the shops, and the flavor’s just as good.”
As he spoke, Old Uncle lit himself a new one. Not waiting for my reply, he tossed one over to me.
I was planning to use my youth and the fact that I didn’t smoke yet as an excuse to refuse, but seeing Old Uncle so enthusiastic, I couldn’t reject him. I just kept the cigarette in my palm and quickly changed the subject to block his attempt to hand me the lighter.
“Old Uncle, you still haven’t told me how the Granny compensated you. I want to know what you mean by mysterious.”
“Oh, that…”
Old Uncle glanced at me, then raised his hand to point at the river beside us.
Following his gaze, I happened to see the tall ‘Deep Water Danger’ warning sign by the riverbank.
“Three years ago, that sign wasn’t there, and my general store didn’t even exist.”