Chapter 4, Constructing Wells

Xiao Lu, feeling a bit embarrassed, scratched his head and said: "Sister Liu, let me tell you something. I was supposed to leave home at 11 o'clock today, and logically, I should have made it to the office even if I had to crawl. But halfway there, I saw a woman who didn't say a word, just blocked my way and wouldn't let me pass." His mother chuckled and replied: "Do you have anything serious to say? You might as well say you overslept, that would be more practical. Just look at yourself! You're a coal-black mess, and you think someone would rob you?"

How is Sister Liu doing? I feel like there are quite a few people behind me

On the night of the second day, at around eleven thirty, Mother, Xiao Wang, and Xiao Lu met up and walked together on their way to work

There is a young man at my mother's workplace who has just started his job. His surname is Wang, and he was born with a slight case of polio, causing him to walk on his toes. After starting work, due to his disability, he is unable to go underground and can only work on the surface.

As soon as my mother heard this, she broke into a cold sweat and said, "Xiao Wang, stop talking nonsense, let's go quickly; we will reach the workplace soon."

As we approached the workplace, which was essentially the entrance to the cemetery, my mother suddenly spotted an old man in the woods of the cemetery. He was dressed in a dark green satin robe and wore a melon-shaped hat. His arms and legs seemed as if they could not bend, walking straight into the depths of the cemetery. (My mother was quite carefree in her youth, a trait I somewhat share with her.) My mother did not think much of it and turned to Xiao Wang, saying, "What is that old man doing here in the middle of the night?"

Mother took a careful look and indeed saw an old man walking deep into the graveyard. She pointed and said, "There’s no need to squint, isn’t he right there?" Xiao Wang looked but still didn’t see anything, and didn’t think much of it, urging my mother, "Sister Liu, don’t look anymore, we’re going to be late." So my mother didn’t think too much about it either, and the two continued on to their workplace

Moreover, at that time, the wellhead had just been established, and there were quite a few workers. However, once they descended into the well, only a few people remained on the surface. Since the wellhead had just been built, there were no roads, and my mother had to walk back and forth among the graves every day for work. Looking back now, after the mountain was pushed aside, there were at least a thousand graves left.

Ah! The piercing soprano resounds in this midnight graveyard. Mother and Xiao Wang are truly frightened. At this moment, Xiao Wang is smugly clacking his upper and lower teeth together.

Xiao Lu lowered his head and said, "Sister Liu, I really didn't mean to be late. I ran into that woman again tonight, and she dragged me to Well No. 8 and then ran off. I don't know what happened; I just wanted to go with her when I saw her. Sister Liu, I know you might not believe this, but if you don't, let's go together tomorrow night, and you can see if I'm lying. My mother thought for a moment; usually, Xiao Lu is a pretty good young man. She wasn't sure if this was true or not, but since they would go together, it would be safer. My mother agreed and arranged to go to work together the next night."

Moreover, there is a young man with the surname Lu at my mother's workplace. He is in his early twenties and is quite handsome. He usually gets along well with my mother, as they work in the same underground team. That night, my mother and a colleague named Wang arrived at the workplace, and after completing the preparatory work, it was already nearly 3 o'clock.

Mother said, "What’s wrong, Xiao Wang? Why are you trembling? Are you cold?" At that moment, Xiao Wang quietly said to his mother, "Sister Liu, something feels off. I feel like someone behind me is tugging at my clothes."

Mother hurriedly opened the door and said: "Why are you only just arriving? What time is it? Everyone has already gone down the well, and the leader thought you weren't coming to work today."

Friends, thinking back now, to be honest, I was afraid to take on this job. At that time, everyone believed that the most important thing in the world was the iron rice bowl in hand, and changing jobs was a distant dream. In order to keep the iron rice bowl, I had no choice but to make do.

Little Lu led the way, my mother was in the middle, and Little Wang followed behind. As they walked, the three of them entered the cemetery.

However, the next day during the night shift, Xiao Lu arrived at the workplace close to 3 o'clock again. My mother was somewhat displeased, saying, "You can't be late every day, can you?" She added that being late isn't a big deal, but if you are three hours late every day, who would dare to keep this from you?

It is well known that the foundation for establishing a mine is the presence of coal in the vicinity, which is why our mines are generally located in valleys.

This night coincides with the full moon, the white moon hanging in the sky resembles a plump white bottom, shining brightly. Due to the ample moonlight, the surroundings appear as clear as they do at dawn.

At this moment, the little Lu in front stopped and did not move. My mother tugged at little Lu and said, "What's wrong, little Lu? Hurry up and walk! We might be late soon"

Two people walked to Xiao Lu in front of them, and through the misty moonlight, they saw that Xiao Lu's face was ashen, resembling that of someone who had been dead for several days. His eyes were wide open, and his body was stiff

In order to make her work easier and no longer work underground, my mother transferred from her original unit to this new well site, where she operates an air compressor for the underground work, commonly referred to as an air compressor.

My mother, feeling somewhat confused, asked, "Xiao Lu, did you miss your stop and come here to fool your sister Liu? It's just being late; I won't mention it, and the leader won't know. You should quickly change your clothes and go down to work. Sister Liu will pretend she doesn't know. How does that sound?"

Let me introduce my mother to everyone again

Upon hearing this, Xiao Lu said nothing and changed into his work clothes before heading down into the mine. (At that time, my mother also worked part-time as a lamp attendant, because the workers would check in by recording their lamp usage. By providing a lamp, my mother confirmed that the worker had come to work)

Mother forced herself to calm down, thought for a moment and said: "Xiao Wang, Xiao Lu also doesn't know what's going on. No matter how we call, there's no response. If it doesn't work, let's go to the office first, find more people, and then come back. What do you think?" At that moment, Xiao Wang was also stunned, "Sister Liu said to do whatever, I will listen to you."

Xiao Lu also smiled shyly, then said earnestly: "Sister Liu, that woman was really beautiful. She wouldn't let me leave, and I couldn't just walk away, so she pulled me towards Well No. 8 (the nearby well). I didn't know what was happening, but I followed her. When we arrived at Well No. 8, this woman was staring at me intently. I asked her a question, but she didn't respond, just stood there. I thought she was mute and was scared walking alone at night, which is why she pulled me along. When I saw she wasn't moving anymore, it seemed we had reached our destination. I just wanted to hurry back to work, but unexpectedly, I got lost. You see, Sister Liu, it's just this hill; I'm not bragging, I could find my way back with my eyes closed, but for some reason, I just couldn't find the way and kept wandering in that forest. It took me about two hours to finally find the way back to work.

At that moment, the sound of footsteps running outside could be heard, followed by a knock on the door. Mother thought, what time is it? Those who come to work have already gone down the well, and those who do not work shouldn't be coming at this hour either

Due to the shortage of ground workers, I often go to my mother's place to chat and pass the time. Moreover, my mother is afraid of walking home alone at night after work, so it provides her with some company

Upon hearing this, Xiao Wang kept looking into the woods, but after a long time, he still did not see any old man. He then said, "Sister Liu (my mother’s surname is Liu), are you seeing things? Where is there an old man?"

A thick fog enveloped the surroundings in a blanket of white, where only the outlines of graves and faintly visible tombstones could be discerned. The three individuals were walking cautiously when the mother felt the hand of Xiao Wang gripping her clothing tremble incessantly.

When this wellhead was established, due to the presence of a chaotic graveyard on that mountain, graves with owners were relocated, while those without owners were simply cleared away with a bulldozer.

Xiao Wang said while walking, "Sister Liu, Brother Lu, I can't see the road clearly in such thick fog." Mother, puzzled, replied, "It's usually not this foggy at our home. Moreover, fog typically forms in the early morning; what kind of fog appears in the middle of the night?" At this point, the three of them were somewhat disoriented, and Xiao Lu suggested, "Let's hold onto each other's clothing and walk forward in a line."

Xiao Wang also said with a sobbing tone: "Sister Liu, do I look like I'm trying to scare you? What should I do?"

Mother said with a sobbing tone: "Xiao Wang, I beg you, don't scare Liu Jie like this."

At that time, my mother worked in a three-shift system. The day shift was from 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM, the evening shift from 4:00 PM to 12:00 AM, and the night shift from 12:00 AM to 8:00 AM. The shifts changed every ten days, which meant that my mother had to pass through that graveyard at midnight for twenty days each month

My mother is a proud miner. At that time, women were still allowed to work underground. After taking over my grandfather's position, my mother continued to work in the mines.

At that moment, Xiao Lu seemed to want to explain something, hesitating. My mother glanced at Xiao Lu and said, "What’s the matter?"

One night, my mother was on the night shift and went to call Xiao Wang around eleven o'clock. The two of them chatted and walked along the way.

As they walked and chatted along the way, they felt no fear; however, as they continued, a thick white mist suddenly enveloped the path ahead. Once the three of them entered the mist, their vision became unclear.

After I pulled out that glass ball, it was also the first year my mother was transferred to work at the well. That year, a new well was opened on the mountain opposite my home, which is still in operation today, called the Construction Well

But this little Lu stood there like a wooden figure, completely motionless. At this point, my mother and Xiao Wang were quite frightened

He shouted loudly, "Who is it?" At that moment, outside the door, Xiao Lu shouted, "Sister Liu, it's me, Xiao Lu."