Just turned over a new leaf and became a wise and intelligent student

Chapter 184: Honoring the Ancestors, the Past Forty Years (5k)

Throughout the history of Laokeng Village, there have not been many cases where the family tree has a single page.

After all, there are not many people in Laokeng Village, the population base is small, and the probability of producing talents is also small.

The last family tree that had a separate page was about the war god ancestor who killed seventeen Japanese devils in the defense of the county during the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression.

In fact, opening a separate page in the family tree does not mean to make Xu Qingshan independent.

Instead, there is a separate page left blank after Xu Xuejun from Xu Qinghe’s family, the second branch of the Xu family in Laokeng Village.

This page will include Xu Qingshan's name, pseudonym, date of birth, native place, college entrance examination time, official position, major achievements and family praise for him, etc.

This stuff needs someone with some culture to write it.

People with a little culture are basically the elders of the tribe.

Xu Donglin was already preparing to go back and carefully read and study the essays compiled by the top scholars of all dynasties. Before he was buried, he wanted to think more about how to write a vivid story about Xu Qingshan's future deeds and find a good way out for his son Xu Jinbang.

"Dear clan members! Dear family members!"

"Today is a big day for the Yunyang Xu Clan's Laokeng Branch!"

Xu Donglin is responsible for presiding over today's entrance ceremony.

Although Laokeng Village is just a small village, it has everything you need.

Xu Qingshan changed into a very elegant Zhongshan suit, put on a red silk embroidered with "Top Scholar" and stood in the open space in front of the ancestral temple with his back to the screen wall.

There is no such thing as a tall horse with a red dress and a tall hat.

Many clansmen gathered around the ancestral temple, looking at Xu Qingshan who was standing with his head held high in the open space, and the ceremonial guard who had changed their clothes around him.

The ancestral temple had been cleaned three days in advance, the temple door was closed, and a talisman was pasted on the temple door.

"Seal the ancestral house! The purification ceremony is complete!"

"The auspicious time has arrived! Open the door to the ancestral house!"

Xu Donglin took out his ancestral snake staff and knocked hard on the stone bricks beneath him. He wore a tall hat and a red silk scarf. At this time, he was the elder of the "Six Gongquan" and presided over the ceremony.

"Open the middle door!"

"Get up the sedan!"

"Offer incense!"

Laokeng Village does not have a large population, but they still followed custom and invited several young men to form a scaled-down dragon and lion dance team. The gong and drum team also started playing music, with all eight kinds of southern instruments playing.

"Today, the ancestors opened the gate of the ancestral temple."

"I~enter the hall~with~my~parents~ah~"

The stage had been cleared long ago, and several Taiwanese opera actors were singing a play about the top scholar returning home.

In an environment with such strong local traditional characteristics.

Xu Qingshan was very comfortable with it. He raised the incense in his hand and stood at the head of the team. Behind him followed Xu Xuejun and Lin Yuehua, and then Xu Xuewu who was supporting his grandmother and other elders and villagers.

The dragon and lion dance teams, gong and drum teams, eight-tone music bands, and opera troupes that were invited were all temporary outsiders who had to make reservations in advance. From a quick glance, there were nearly thirty or forty people invited.

The central door of the ancestral hall in front of Xu Qingshan was wide open, and there was a large incense burner as he entered the courtyard. The other scattered incense sticks had been cleared out of the incense burner, leaving only three large incense sticks standing in the middle.

"The number one scholar is paying homage!"

Xu Donglin shouted loudly, leaning on his snake staff.

Although he is not young, he is full of energy and spirit.

Xu Qingshan stepped into the ancestral temple and inserted the three red incense sticks in his hand into the incense burner.

"Bow to the God of Land!"

"Two bows to the God of Heaven!"

"Three bows to Emperor Wenchang!"

"Four bows ~ Mr. Lin the Grand Historian!"

"Five bows to the Holy King of Kaizhang!"

"Six bows to our ancestors!"

Xu Qingshan took the lead and bowed and saluted respectfully following Xu Donglin's rhythm.

"The champion and his parents entered the hall, bowed twelve times to the ancestor of the Yunyang Xu family, Zizhong, and the clan members and relatives burned gold and silver to worship the heaven and ancestors!"

Xu Donglin finished speaking.

He asked the others to take the gold, silk, silver and paper to another incense burner to burn the gold and silver, while he led Xu Qingshan and his family through the middle door and into the ancestral temple.

Xu Qingshan had been to the ancestral temple before.

It’s just that the ancestral hall looked dilapidated at that time, but now it seems to have been renovated recently. The wood looks shiny and the color is uniform, which is quite impressive.

Although this ancestral temple is not big, it is still spacious enough.

"Zhonggong, the son of General Zhaode of the Tang Dynasty, followed the Saint King Kaizhang into Longjiang Prefecture, led troops to defeat the bandits, and was granted the land of Yunzhang."

Xu Donglin doesn't need to hold a manual in his hand.

Even today, he is just a former teacher who secretly taught children literacy during special times. He has no social status and no proper job. All his life he has been a self-proclaimed poor scholar.

But when he stood in the ancestral temple, holding a snake staff, he could hold his head high and proudly speak of the glory of his ancestors.

This is a sense of belonging and identity that comes from the bottom of our hearts.

Xu Donglin introduced the ancestors of the Xu family and then looked at Xu Qingshan.

"Today, Xu Qingshan, the 49th generation grandson of Zizhong and the 24th generation grandson of the second branch, has won the first place in the imperial examination. He is the first top scorer in the history of China to have scored a perfect score in the college entrance examination. He has been chosen by the state to be the top scorer. He is invited to meet the ancestors and be admitted into the ancestral hall. His family tree will be published separately to bring honor to his ancestors and to show his unprecedented achievements."

"Mr. Zhuangyuan, twelve bows."

Xu Qingshan listened to this somewhat strange honorific with mixed feelings.

But he still followed the instructions and knelt down twelve times on the small red square pillow.

"It's done!"

After Xu Donglin finished speaking, he breathed a sigh of relief and walked forward to gently support Xu Qingshan.

"Qingshan, that's all. The opera will continue on the stage later in the evening, and there will be a banquet in the evening. If it's too late after dinner, you can stay at my house. There is air conditioning at home."

"Thank you, uncle. We will go out after dinner. We have to go to the Yunyang Ancestral Hall tomorrow."

Xu Qingshan wiped the sweat from his forehead.

Although this wave of ritual sense is very important, whether it is him, Xu Donglin, Xu Xuejun and Lin Yuehua following behind Xu Qingshan, or other villagers.

Everyone was sweating from the heat.

But on a happy day like today, no one would not come to watch just because it’s hot.

"Come on, let's go out and burn this plate of gold and silver, then we can go to the theater."

Xu Donglin picked up a plate of gold and silver on the table in the ancestral hall and handed it to Xu Qingshan.

Go through the process.

Xu Qingshan found it somewhat novel.

He had seen several ceremonies before, but he was still a child at that time and could not participate in them. This time, he was the core of the ceremony, and it was the highest-level ceremony in all these years.

Although this is just the inheritance of a small mountain village, Xu Qingshan felt some emotion in his heart.

"Okay, uncle, thank you for your hard work today."

After Xu Qingshan and his family left the ancestral temple, they visited various households and chatted with each other. Xu Qingshan also roughly understood the current situation of some young people in Laokeng Village who were working outside or idle on the farm at home. He left their contact information and had some plans in mind. After dinner and watching the first show, he went out and went home.

As for the work of those clan members, Xu Qingshan planned to let Hou Cheng arrange it first.

Let them try it first and observe their character. Those who are useful can be picked out for promotion, and those who are not very useful can be arranged to positions that do not require their abilities.

Sometimes it can also be used to fill in the numbers.

The family drove slowly out of Laokeng Village. Xu Xuejun's emotional state was very stable. If it were the same as before, Xu Xuejun would definitely have a gloomy face and lost his temper if something like today happened.

But his expression was normal at this time, and he was driving the car.

"dad."

Xu Qingshan opened his mouth tentatively.

"Huh? What's wrong?"

Xu Xuejun's expression was calm.

"today."

Xu Qingshan was just about to speak. Today's events must have been a big shock to his father, but Xu Qingshan also didn't want some people to keep biting him like a leech.

"fine."

Xu Xuejun shook his head.

He looked through the rearview mirror and saw Lin Yuehua, who was curled up and sleeping in the back seat of the car.

"If I go to work in Longjiang City, how will your mother arrange it?"

Xu Qingshan turned his head and looked at his father.

He seemed to have completed his transformation quickly today, emotionally, and he seemed to be much more stable.

really.

Some people say that besides experience, pressure is what makes people grow the fastest.

If no one has said it, then it was Xu Qingshan who said it.

"The Municipal Bureau is not far from the Municipal Government, but I want you to leave the tax department and go to Longjiang New District. Then Mom can go to No. 2 Experimental Primary School."

"Wouldn't it be possible for you to live in our house?"

"Just buy another one then. That one is a little small for both of you."

Xu Qingshan and Xu Xuejun were chatting in low voices.

"Green Mountain."

Xu Xuejun suddenly called out.

"Ok?"

"Would you like to hear my story?"

Xu Xuejun stared at the front of the car, the headlights illuminating the road ahead, and Xu Xuejun's voice seemed a little melancholy.

Xu Qingshan felt that this seemed to be an opportunity for Xu Xuejun to open his heart to his own son, and nodded.

"it is good."

"In fact, my family was quite poor before. Especially when I was born, there were struggles in the city and famine in the mountains."

Xu Xuejun said slowly and calmly, "At that time, not to mention meat, even food and rice were hard to come by."

"In the beginning, the family couldn't afford to send five people to school, so after two years of school, your eldest aunt started helping your grandparents with farm work. When she was twelve, she helped to sew clothes for others, and later she married your eldest uncle at the age of sixteen."

"Your uncle was a worker in the cigarette factory. After he got married, his conditions became much better, so your aunt followed him to work as a pieceworker in the factory. At that time, the Yunzhang Cigarette Factory was still a state-owned enterprise, and the piecework price was not high. It cost 1 cents to pack a box of cigarettes, and your aunt could pack six or seven boxes a day."

"Later, your aunt also followed, and your second uncle went to find a bricklayer to learn the craft. In the end, only your eldest uncle and I continued to study."

As Xu Xuejun spoke, his eyes were filled with memories.

But his expression was just one of reminiscing, as if he was thinking about the difference between the past and the present. As he spoke, a smile appeared on his face.

Xu Qingshan originally thought that his father would start by telling him how much his elder and second aunts had sacrificed in order to allow him to go to school, in order to influence him.

But Xu Xuejun said nothing about it.

This made Xu Qingshan realize that in his past and present lives, he knew his father, but only understood his character, but did not know his past and the first forty years of his life.

"I was in high school in the 81s, probably in 16, when I was years old."

Xu Xuejun smiled and remembered his youth.

"Then in 82, your second uncle married your second aunt."

Xu Qingshan was a little curious.

"Was it the second uncle who married first?"

"Yes, your uncle was still in college at the time. How could he find a wife at the age of 22?"

Xu Xuejun smiled.

"That's true. I guess if any girl came to our house to see us, they would just shake their heads and leave."

The atmosphere of the conversation between father and son was much more relaxed.

Xu Qingshan also made a joke.

"Haha, how could I get home? There was no road like today. If I wanted to get to Laokeng Village, I had to walk for two hours on the mountain road. I went to No. 1 Middle School at the time, and I would go home to do farm work during the holidays. After I finished the work, I would walk to school with a can of preserved radish and a few cents for food, and go home on Friday."

Xu Xuejun shook his head and said.

It seemed that he also had some emotion about the hardships he had endured at that time.

“It was not easy for you then.”

Xu Qingshan said.

"It wasn't easy, but I was lucky enough to be able to study and do well in the exams."

The straight road was flat, and they had already driven out of the mountain road of Laokeng Village and entered the avenue that would merge into the main road of the county town. Only then did Xu Xuejun dare to turn his head slightly to look at his son and teased.

"But certainly not as good as you are now."

"But when I was in my third year of high school, in 83, your second aunt couldn't stand your grandparents anymore, and she didn't want to support your uncle and me to go to school anymore, so she wanted to split the family."

"Is there still this?"

Xu Qingshan was a little surprised.

In his previous life, Xu Xuejun never mentioned this matter.

After all, although the second uncle's family and his family did not have much contact, their relationship had always been good. Just like in today's drama, the second uncle could be said to be standing on Xu Qingshan's side.

"Yes, I didn't understand it at the time, but now I think about it, it's quite normal."

Xu Xuejun laughed more times tonight than he usually laughs in a month.

Xu Qingshan didn't know whether it was his illusion or something else, he always felt that his father seemed to have a more open-minded and bright temperament.

This was completely different from his previous temper and gloomy mood that sometimes broke out.

"After all, your second aunt was pregnant and was about to have a baby. Your second uncle didn't earn much, and she didn't work. Your grandmother didn't work either. Only your grandfather worked on the land. There were two students in the family. Even if your two aunts worked to subsidize the family, it wouldn't be enough. So they had to split up so that their small family could continue."

Xu Xuejun explained it very clearly.

But Xu Qingshan suddenly realized the point where his father had figured it out.

But he didn't speak now.

"Ah."

"Your second uncle was trying to split up the family, and your eldest uncle was about to graduate and look for a job. Finding a job in the county town also requires money and connections. I actually thought about not finishing my senior year of high school."

"But my family members were against it and asked me to continue studying."

Xu Xuejun said.

Xu Qingshan understood a little.

"So when I married your mother, I always thought about giving back to my family as much as possible and making up for what I owed them over the years."

Xu Qingshan waited for his father's next words.

But Xu Xuejun's words made Xu Qingshan look at him sideways.

"You young people now have more courage than our generation in handling certain relationships, and your minds are more flexible than your father and me."

"When I was your age, I couldn't reach your heights and achievements."

Xu Xuejun said with emotion with a smile.

“I can’t do it even if I work until I retire.”

"I actually thought a lot in the house today, and I figured out a lot."

Xu Xuejun said seriously.

Xu Qingshan had never seen a father with such a serious expression and such a cautious tone, but with such a friendly and harmonious atmosphere.

Not even in two lifetimes combined.

"I was born in the small mountain village of Laokeng. I stood on their shoulders and relied on my own efforts to get to where I am today. I am lucky enough."

"It's my duty to repay them, but over the years, I have lost my bottom line and neglected you and your mother."

Xu Qingshan didn't say anything, just nodded slightly.

"If an outsider were to tell it, it might seem like a bottomless hole or a deep pit."

Xu Xuejun was talking about the old pit and his own original family.

"But after I crawled out of here, I have an unbreakable connection with this place."

"But I also can't use your future and your mother's hard work to fill this hole, because if I do that."

Xu Xuejun stopped the car.

Before they knew it, while the father and son were talking, they had already driven home.

“What was the meaning of me coming out of the mountains in the first place?”

"It will make your life better, free you from worries, and give you a higher platform, instead of having to walk two hours on a mountain road to study like me, and trying my best to get into a junior college."

“This is the meaning of my coming out of the mountains.”

The car lights go out.

The car was dark. The father and son were sitting in the front seat. From the back seat came the sound of even and steady snoring.

“I did a lot right before, but I also did a lot wrong.”

“But I’m thankful.”

Xu Xuejun turned his head.

"You are far more outstanding than I thought."

"I am also proud that I have a son like you."

Xu Qingshan's heart trembled.

But he just reached out to unbuckle his seat belt and turned his head to look out the window.

A stubborn and hard-nosed father.

This was the first time he said such words face to face.

"But my pride is not in your achievements, but in other aspects of you."

Xu Xuejun continued.

"I have been very critical of you in the past. When you didn't want to study and your grades weren't improving, I even thought about just ignoring you. After all, my pension as a civil servant can support you."

"But I will always be proud of what you did."

Xu Xuejun lowered his head and stroked the cigarette box in the dark.

"do not worry."

"As for your uncle and two aunts, if I have the chance, I will sit down and have a serious talk with them. It can also be regarded as a farewell before going to Longjiang."

"I try my best to handle the relationship well. If I do, they will live a good life in the future. If I don't, we won't contact them often and have less contact with them."

"It is right for everyone to be well and live their own lives."

Xu Xuejun said.

"It's only right that you and your mother vent the anger you've endured before."

"As for your grandma, I will do my best to take care of her."

"Before, I always thought that as long as I saved as much money as possible, I could solve many problems, but today I found that some things cannot be solved by money."

"People tend to be selfish when they are afraid of being poor. Because of this, I have caused your mother to suffer too much."

"It is because of my low self-esteem and my arrogance that I failed to handle everything properly, leading to the current situation."

Xu Xuejun's voice was slow and somewhat heavy.

“I’m a first-time father, too.”

“There are many things I don’t understand, and many things I do wrong.”

"Qingshan, I'm sorry"

Xu Xuejun wanted to speak sincerely.

"Dad, eat this."

In the darkness, Xu Qingshan held down Xu Xuejun's hand as he was groping for a cigarette box and stuffed a piece of chewing gum into his hand.

"Quit smoking and take good care of your health. You will be busy in the future."

Xu Qingshan reached out and wiped the sweat from the corners of his eyes.

It's quite hot today.

It makes people want to sweat.

(End of this chapter)