Chapter 001: The Female Corpse Enters

I went to see that coffin, and it was quite grand. The coffin was made very solidly, and judging by the grain, it should be made of pomelo wood, which must have been quite expensive. The lid of the coffin was covered with yellow sutra cloth, densely inscribed with prayers for the deceased and some admonitions encouraging people to abandon evil and embrace good. A plumb line pressed against the sutra cloth, vertically binding the coffin.

In addition to this, I have also seen a one-year-old child bitten to death by a wolfdog raised in their own home, someone scared to death while walking alone at night, and another who cut their own throat with scissors

A few years later, I turned twelve in the blink of an eye. One evening, while returning home from school alone, I noticed a truck had arrived in the village, parked right in front of my house. Many children were gathered around, pointing and whispering, but when they saw me approaching, they all scattered with a whoosh.

In the coffin lies the body of a young girl, seemingly about the same age as me. Due to the presence of ice, the body appears almost lifelike. There are no dark spots, nor is there any foul odor; instead, a faint, sweet fragrance permeates the air. The young girl is dressed in a bright red dress, made of a very smooth fabric that resembles satin

I cannot comprehend this. Preparing the deceased, consulting feng shui, and performing rituals are indeed our responsibilities, but when it comes to the burial, no matter how one puts it, the family of the deceased is the main focus

My third uncle asked me to step aside, and without knowing where he pulled a thread from, he quickly untangled the chalk line in a few moves, and together we pushed the coffin lid open a crack

This coffin is both tall and large. I moved a chair over and curiously peered inside the coffin. It was filled with a chilling air, no wonder it was encased; it turns out this compartment is used for storing ice. A considerable amount of ice has melted by now, leaving behind some floating ice.

Although I am young, I have noticed something unusual. In the past, when I accompanied my third uncle to a wake, the body would stay for at most a few days before being sent to the funeral home for cremation. However, these people are not properly keeping vigil at home; instead, they have brought the body to my house, which surely indicates something is amiss

Still, Uncle San's sharp eyes pointed to the neck of the corpse and asked, "What is that?"

"Are you just thinking about those girls in your class? This is called the Seven Star Spiral Lock, haven't I told you about it before?" Uncle San scolded.

I have heard people say that this matter has a certain sinister quality. The deceased is a man from our village named Wang Daming, who was quite clever and belonged to the first group of people from our village to venture out. At that time, there was a train station near where he conducted his business, and an elderly gentleman with graying hair often used small birds for fortune-telling there

On that evening, Wang Daming, feeling bored, decided to join in the commotion. Unexpectedly, he drew a bad fortune, which foretold that he would encounter a calamity involving blood within three days. Wang Daming, who was used to being domineering, became furious on the spot. Not only did he smash the old man's stall, but he also threw the little bird that had delivered the fortune to the ground, crushing it to death.

In the past, when decapitation was still practiced, executed criminals would have their heads sewn back onto their necks with needle and thread before burial. Later, after the Republic of China adopted execution by shooting, this practice became largely unseen. However, it cannot be said that it has completely disappeared. A couple of years ago, we took on a case where the deceased had died in a car accident, and that person's head was sewn back on by my uncle, stitch by stitch.

I returned to the house and happened to see several people walking out. The leader was a young man with a sallow complexion, frowning and looking troubled. He was quite handsome, but his complexion was very poor. Behind him followed a few tall and strong men, who, after returning to the truck, took down a coffin and placed it in my living room

I touched it with my hand, and immediately withdrew it. This coffin is extremely cold, it seems that there are ice blocks or similar items inside.

Uncle San went to close the door, frowning as he said, "Damn it, these people insist on a burial!"

The business my family is engaged in is currently referred to as the funeral industry in more refined terms. However, in the past, it was not described so elegantly; it was commonly known as the business of receiving the deceased. Our main tasks included preparing the bodies for viewing, conducting funeral rites, and occasionally checking the feng shui.

As soon as he mentioned it, I recalled. This is a knotting method for the chalk line, which only those in our industry would understand. I found it somewhat strange; this indicates that there have already been peers involved, so why would those people still seek us out

My uncle asked me to part the hair of the corpse to take a look

Uncle San asked me to remove the clothes from the corpse. I looked at him with difficulty, as such an act is considered desecration of a body and is absolutely forbidden in our line of work

After they left, I asked my third uncle if there was anything special about the corpse that came this time. For instance, during the last time with Wang Daming, the corpse was sent directly to my home after being transported back, so that we could sew a cloth head for it

I took a glance, and this young girl had long, jet-black hair, divided into two sections, neatly arranged and resting on her chest, just covering her neck. There is nothing wrong with that; several girls in our class manage their hair in the same way.

This request cannot be considered excessive; it is still quite reasonable

The traditional Chinese belief is that the deceased hold the utmost importance, regardless of their wealth. In matters concerning the deceased, people are always willing to spend generously, which is why our family's overall income is relatively stable. However, those engaged in this line of work often face taboos.

However, this corpse has intact skin all over its body, making it impossible for it to have been the result of a car accident

She is quite good-looking, but her complexion is pale and her lips are dark. However, this is the appearance one would expect of a corpse, so there is nothing particularly special about it

When I was a child, the kids in the village were all warned by their parents not to come near me; as soon as they saw me, they would run away from a distance. It was quite miserable at that time, as every time I saw them playing marbles or jumping rope, I could only watch from afar. Later, when I started school, no one was willing to sit with me either

I did not see any issues

"Normal, what a load of nonsense!" Third Uncle said with a dark expression: "The embalming, the rituals, and the burial, all of it will be handled by us, and they will not participate at all!"

The most tragic one I have ever seen was someone who was killed by a train. At that time, the entire head was crushed, and when he was buried, it was my third uncle who sewed a fake head out of cloth to replace it

Due to this matter, Uncle San once considered changing his profession, such as opening a small shop in the village, but ultimately, for various reasons, he was unable to realize it

The livelihood of our family is rather peculiar, as it involves earning money from the deceased

My uncle asked me to go in and check.

I followed the instructions. Upon taking a glance, I gasped in shock. The young girl's snow-white neck bore a ring of purplish-red marks, which had been obscured by her hair moments ago. This was not a mark caused by something constricting, but rather a circle of fine stitches.

In ancient times, the penal laws were extremely harsh, with various forms of punishment such as boiling, decapitation, dismemberment by chariots, and being torn apart by five horses, among many others. The resulting corpses, needless to say, would be horrifying. Those of us in this profession inevitably have to deal with such corpses

Burial? I am somewhat surprised. In recent years, cremation has also been promoted in rural areas, and most people choose to go to the funeral home. However, since we are in a remote rural area, the regulations are not too strict, and there are still occasional instances of people secretly conducting burials.

Fortunately, in my generation, these chaotic and bizarre tortures have long since disappeared, otherwise it would indeed be quite distressing

The more one is exposed to something, the less surprising many things become

For instance, in the case of a person executed by the method of "pao luo" (a form of torture), one must first clean the body thoroughly with clear water, then apply a mixture of animal fat and rouge onto the body, followed by painting the facial features. The process for a person who has been "waist-chopped" is more complicated, as sometimes the individual can still struggle for a brief moment after the initial cut. This moment is sufficient for the internal organs to become disordered. During the cleanup, the body must be hollowed out, then filled with materials such as cotton, and finally sewn up with shark line.

After the age of eight, I began assisting my third uncle, which is why I have encountered the most diverse types of corpses... There were those who hanged themselves, those who drowned, those who died in car accidents, those who were poisoned by pesticides, those who choked while eating, and those who died from engaging in that activity...

The little girl's head is actually sewn on top!

I did not say much either; after putting on a pair of gloves, I swiftly climbed the coffin wall and entered the coffin. I had often done makeup for corpses before, and I had seen many corpses. Moreover, this coffin not only lacked the unpleasant stench of decay, but instead had a rather pleasant fragrance, although it was a bit cold inside, with a chilling atmosphere.

"Take a look at this," said Third Uncle, pointing to the chalk line tied around the coffin. I couldn't discern anything significant; I just felt that this knot seemed to be tied in a particularly special way.

"I am counting on you." The young man with a sickly face cupped his hands in front of my uncle, then got into the car with others and hurriedly left

You have said so many things; if I were to remember them all, wouldn't that be reaching for the heavens

The old gentleman was unwilling to comply, so he went up to demand compensation from him. Wang Daming pushed him away and ran off, but somehow he slipped and fell off the platform. At that moment, the train whizzed by.

My name is Lu Jing. I grew up in a small mountain village, and there are only two people in my family: my third uncle and me. My third uncle's surname is Feng, and he is called Feng San, but everyone in the village refers to him as Feng Laogou. I do not know the reason for this. My third uncle is not my biological uncle; I was given to him to raise by someone else. As for my biological parents, he is unwilling to tell me, and I have not thought to ask.

"Damn, this is a coffin!" I noticed that this coffin is significantly larger than the ordinary ones. Apart from industry professionals, most people cannot distinguish between a coffin and a sarcophagus, and they generally refer to both as coffins. In fact, a coffin is used to hold the deceased, while a sarcophagus is placed over the coffin, typically used to hold burial goods.