Chapter 1: The Eighteen Calamities and the Little White Fox

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Maluyama is located at the junction of Hunan, Guizhou, and Sichuan provinces, close to the Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture in western Hunan. It is already part of the Shiwanda Mountain range, surrounded by deep mountains and old forests. At that time, many areas had not yet been developed, and human presence was rare, with wildlife everywhere, including ferocious beasts, which made it quite dangerous. However, since we were at an age that even dogs would avoid, we had little concern. The three of us, foolishly carrying a gun and two machetes, excitedly wandered around.

In the village, it is said that my mother fell seriously ill while giving birth to me. Later, it is unclear how she recovered, but there are always those who claim that I bring misfortune, that I am a harbinger of debt. The people in the mountains are superstitious, and to this day, I can still remember how the elders in the village would point and whisper about me behind my back during my childhood

I was born different from others. In the village, when other families have children, they cry out loudly, filled with joy, and it sounds festive. However, I remained silent, my pair of pitch-black eyes rolling around, curiously observing this world. Wang Wenpo, who had ample experience in delivering babies, was somewhat startled by my appearance. She pinched my bottom with her fingernail, only to find that I made not a sound. Thus, she remarked, "This child, could it be that he has come to collect a debt?" Wang Wenpo, who had ample experience in delivering babies, was somewhat startled by my appearance. She pinched my bottom with her fingernail, only to find that I made not a sound. Thus, she remarked, "This child, could it be that he has come to collect a debt?"

The midwife surnamed Wang is the goddess of childbirth for the more than ten villages and natural groups in the Mali Mountain area. Having been in the profession for over ten years, apart from those families with better conditions who can go to the township health center or county hospital, most of the children were delivered by her rough hands from the pregnant women. This statement alone established my nickname "Chen Erdan." In the past, due to poor sanitary conditions, infants were prone to mortality, so the villagers emphasized giving their children humble names, as the less they resembled human names, the better, to avoid the attention of malevolent spirits and ghosts. This practice was to prevent jealousy from the deities, ensuring that the heavens would not take them away.

I looked into the little fox's eyes, which were dark and crystal clear. In an instant, I felt that the three of us crouching in the grass, aiming at it, was truly a violation of moral integrity. Thus, I instinctively pushed Luo Diao away and shouted, "Don't shoot, don't shoot"

Speaking of debt collection, this actually refers to a story that has been passed down for a long time in Malishan. It tells of a family in Tianjiaba that was ruined by their own son, which happened during the Republic of China era. Later, when the county executed that young man, he suddenly uttered a statement, claiming that he was once an enemy of that family and had been reincarnated into his own family specifically to collect debts.

I have been a person who could have died at birth since the moment I was born. At that time, I had not yet been given a name. I heard that when this child was just born, the midwife from the neighboring village held the baby high up and, with a voice that could scare anyone, shouted loudly: "Hey, it's a baby! Oh my, look at these two eggs, they are so big! I have never seen such big eggs in my life!"

However, later the villagers said that before my mother gave birth, a sudden gust of fierce wind swept through Longjialing. This wind was dark, and in the middle of the day, it suddenly turned pitch black, as if it were night. The entire world became enveloped in darkness, with dogs barking and cattle lowing, which frightened the villagers into grabbing their noisy pots and bowls from their homes and banging them together, thinking it was a day when the celestial dog was devouring the sun. However, when I was born without making a sound, that dark wind vanished as if it had never existed. Later, when the villagers learned of this incident, combined with the fact that I did not cry upon my birth, rumors began to spread that the child of Dr. Chen was malevolent.

The children in the mountains may appear rustic, yet they possess a certain spirit. At the age of nine, Luo Diao had already accompanied his father and hunted quite a few rabbits. This time, he might even be able to bring back a fox.

Hearing Longgenzi's soft call, we bent down and squinted to look. Sure enough, in the green grass, there was a patch of white fur that moved slightly, suddenly revealing a fox's head the size of a fist, white and fluffy, with dark black eyes that shone like glass beads, extremely beautiful. The hunters in the mountains are very superstitious about foxes, saying they can communicate with spirits, and generally avoid provoking them. However, we young boys knew nothing of this, and Luo Diao was pretending to be a hunter while trying to sneak a look at the little fox.

Luo Diao was loading the gun over there, and I was watching beside him, though I didn't know why. I looked at the little fox's face, small and pointed, delicate and weak, and it always felt somewhat human-like. When Luo Diao finished loading the shotgun, the little fox seemed to sense it, turning its head around, its pair of eyes looking towards us.

Long Gengzi, Luo Diao, Wang Gouzi ... ? ... Listening to this, the general perspective of the villagers is quite limited, and usually, their knowledge is just like this. In comparison, my name, Chen Erdan, can actually be considered somewhat elegant, right

Due to that earlier incident, Luo Diao and I had a fight, but after it was over, we reconciled. Our pants were soaked with urine, and it was impossible to continue hunting. The weather was also hot and humid, so we decided to go down to the creek to take a bath

Of course, these are all things I later heard my parents mention in bits and pieces, and my impression is not very deep. However, fortunately, I was particularly mischievous as a child and did not have much sense of pride. After all, I was just a kid who loved to play and have fun. Although the adults would talk, they did not go too far. After all, my father was a barefoot doctor in this mountainous area, and during the early 1970s when the roads were impassable, families from ten miles around would seek him out for medical treatment.

I was born in the sixties and the era of books, burdened with eighteen tribulations, a man who should have long ceased to exist in this world

Uncertain how much time had passed, we arrived at a bend in the mountain, beside a small stream. Longgenzi pointed to a patch of grass ahead and said, "Hey, big tail, big tail, there seems to be something over there, it looks like a fox's den."

As the saying goes, when a boy reaches the age of seven or eight, even dogs find him unappealing. At that time, it coincided with a trend; although the influence in the mountains was not significant, the school also suspended classes. I was only in the second grade then, and lacking ambition, I spent my time running around the hills with a few friends. I previously mentioned a childhood playmate named Luo Diao. His father was a hunter, and before the gun confiscation, they had a shotgun filled with iron shot, a relic from before the liberation. It was packed with gunpowder and iron shot, and with a single pull of the trigger, it would produce a deafening bang, taking down anything in its path.

When Long Genzi and I heard the gunshot, Luo Diao was startled by the misfired shotgun. By the time we regained our senses, we found that the little fox had long since vanished without a trace

Luo Diao is aiming, and as a result, I gave him a push. Unexpectedly, he pulled the trigger, and with a loud bang, we were all so frightened that we wet our pants

At that time, Luo Diao's father was nicknamed "Chasing Mountain Dog". He wore a headscarf, tied a belt around his waist, and carried a gun on his back, making him the idol of all the children. I was very envious and urged Luo Diao several times. Finally, he found an opportunity to secretly take his father's gun and brought me and Long Genzi into the mountains.

We left Longjialing, passed Tianjiaba, and then went past Luosilin, thus entering the deep mountains. The children were lively and ran around wildly as soon as we entered the mountains. It was summer, and there were many wild fruits in the mountains, such as wild apricots, wild peaches, and snake thorn fruits, all of which were delicious. However, what I cared about more was the gun on Luo Diao's back, my eyes fixated on that iron tube.

Who knows that I nearly drowned during this ordeal

I was born with a calamity, one that only my parents knew about. However, the disaster I encountered at the age of eight is something I remember very clearly

In the mountains, information is scarce; however, the legends of mountain spirits and wild creatures are countless. It can be said that every old man basking in the sun in the village can tell you a basketful of ghost stories. That family has long ceased to cultivate, and it is uncertain whether the tales are true, yet they have been passed down through generations. According to my father, Dr. Chen Zhili, a barefoot doctor from Longjialing, a child in the mother's womb breathes through the umbilical cord. After birth, when the umbilical cord is cut, the child must rely on its own lungs to breathe. If the child does not cry, it indicates a weak constitution. According to my father, Dr. Chen Zhili, a barefoot doctor from Longjialing, a child in the mother's womb breathes through the umbilical cord. After birth, when the umbilical cord is cut, the child must rely on its own lungs to breathe. If the child does not cry, it indicates a weak constitution.

Big Diao, can you give me a hug? I keep pestering Longgen, but Luo Diao just won't budge. His father is a hunter, and he knows how to load and fire a gun, but he is reluctant. He says that one shot should yield a piece of meat; otherwise, it would be a loss, and he definitely won't let us use it for fun.