Dongting Immortal Clan

The nights at Dongting Lake are always very peaceful.

Fishing boats were moored in twos and threes along the shore, their dim fishing lights hanging from the masts swaying gently with the ripples.

In the distance, Junshan Island appeared dark and ominous, like a giant beast lying on the water's surface.

Occasionally, the calls of night birds could be heard, but they quickly disappeared into the night.

tonight.

Chen Chuansheng took his eldest son, Chen Dajiang, and his second son, Chen Changhe, on a boat trip.

The father and his two sons set their nets at the river mouth, which resembled a white fish. Although the area looked desolate, it was actually home to many large fish. With patience, they were sure to catch something.

About an hour has passed.

Chen Chuansheng extinguished the last spark from his pipe and let out a long breath.

"Oe!"

"The Long River!"

"It's time to set up the net."

He is fifty-three years old this year and has spent most of his life making a living on the lake. His face has been tanned by the lake wind, and the three deep lines on his forehead look like they were carved by a knife.

Chen Chuansheng was usually quiet and rarely spoke. Apart from giving orders, he would just smoke his pipe in silence.

The pipe was made from an old bamboo root, which he had rubbed until it was smooth and shiny.

"Understood, Father."

Chen Dajiang got up first and started hauling in the net at the bow of the boat. The net was made of hemp rope and was very heavy in the water, making his palms turn red.

He is twenty-two years old this year. He inherited his father's physique, with broad shoulders and a thick back, as strong as an ox, and muscles bulging on his arms.

In terms of strength, few young men from the surrounding villages of Baiyukou could match him.

Like his father, Chen Dajiang was not very talkative and was somewhat slow to react to things. Chen Chuansheng often said that he was a stone in his past life, and no matter how much you hit him, he would not make a sound.

"Dad, we've got a big shipment!"

Chen Changhe, who was helping to pull the net, exclaimed in surprise. He was much thinner than before, and the net was so heavy that he couldn't pull it immediately.

The two brothers immediately bent over, braced their feet against the gunwale, and pulled the net up little by little.

Suddenly, Chen Dajiang frowned.

He pulled hard a few times, but the net didn't come up; instead, the bow of the boat sank a little.

"It's probably a rotten wooden stake that got stuck at the bottom of the lake."

Chen Chuansheng tapped his pipe against the gunwale and came over to lend a hand.

With the three of them working together, the fishing net finally reacted and was pulled out of the water inch by inch.

Water droplets cascaded down, shimmering in the moonlight, like a silver curtain being drawn.

……

After some effort, the three of them pulled the net out of the water.

Chen Dajiang used a bamboo pole to poke into the net, trying to see what was so heavy.

Looking at it by the moonlight, he was stunned.

"Not a fish?"

"It's a huge lump of iron!"

Chen Changhe also noticed it and quickly reached out to grab it. He touched a ring and tried to lift it, but he couldn't lift it up easily.

"So heavy?" he exclaimed in surprise.

"Brother, lend a hand."

Chen Dajiang quickly lay down on the side of the boat, grabbing one side of the iron block.

"Three, two, one, go!"

With their combined efforts, the two finally managed to pull the thing out of the water.

"What is this?"

Chen Dajiang looked at the iron lump in front of him, puzzled.

"It looks like an incense burner in a temple." Chen Changhe didn't recognize it either, but his eyes lit up.

"This kind of material is so heavy, it must fetch a lot of money."

Chen Chuansheng squinted and leaned closer to examine it for a while.

The iron lump wasn't big, only about the height of two adult fists put together. It had three legs and two ears, and its entire body was bluish-black and covered in rust.

It is also covered with densely engraved patterns, as fine as hair, coiled and intertwined in circles, which can make people feel dizzy after looking at it for a long time.

What surprised him even more was...

A thin layer of mist clung to this thing, and when the moonlight shone on it, it shimmered with an unusual radiance, like some rare treasure.

Chen Dajiang held the heavy iron lump in his palm, so heavy that his wrist slumped down.

"The patterns on it are moving."

He stared at the patterns for a while and felt that they seemed to be alive.

I rubbed my eyes and looked again, but the pattern hadn't changed at all.

The mist remained condensed and did not dissipate. When the night breeze gently blew, it turned into a wisp of extremely thin white vapor, which rose up, hovered above the opening for a moment, and then fell back into the furnace.

"That's very strange."

Chen Dajiang muttered something to himself.

Chen Chuansheng took the items and examined them carefully.

The bottom is smooth and without any texture, but you can vaguely see a depression, as if someone pressed it with their thumb, sinking it in half an inch deep.

He tried pressing his thumb on it, and the size was about the same.

The father and his two sons exchanged glances, all feeling that this thing exuded an indescribable feeling.

"No fishing today."

Chen Chuansheng wrapped the iron lump in a rag and carefully put it into the cabin.

"I'll go see your great-uncle tomorrow. He knows a bit about antiques and should be able to figure it out."

Chen Dajiang and Chen Changhe pulled the net up completely.

There are also a few silver carp and mandarin fish inside, none of them very big. You can exchange them for a few liters of rice at the market during the day.

Chen Chuansheng glanced at the catch, said nothing, and rowed back towards the village.

The oars creaked and groaned, creating ripples on the water's surface, which were then shattered by the moonlight.

Chen Dajiang and Chen Changhe sat at the stern of the boat and looked back. The moonlight on the lake seemed a few degrees brighter than before.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Chen Chuansheng's family lived in Baiyukou. The village had about twenty households, most of whom were surnamed Chen and related by blood.

There is an old camphor tree at the entrance of the village. It is unknown how many hundreds of years it has been there. It takes four or five people to hug its trunk, and its canopy can provide a large area of ​​shade.

The bluestone under the tree has been worn smooth and shiny by people's bottoms. Women wash clothes here, the elderly sunbathe, and children play here.

Chen Chuansheng's house was at the westernmost end of the village, consisting of three mud-walled, thatched-roof houses and a small courtyard where fishing nets and several patched-up clothes were drying.

His family had been fishing for generations, but by Chen Chuansheng's generation, they were struggling to make ends meet. Apart from two dilapidated fishing boats and a few acres of barren land, they had nothing of value.

Chen Chuansheng's wife became ill while giving birth to their youngest son and passed away two years later, leaving him with three sons.

Chen Dajiang is the eldest son and is already capable of taking care of things. However, because his family is poor and cannot afford a betrothal gift, he is still unmarried at this age.

The second son, Chen Changhe, was only seventeen years old and had just come of age. He also made a living on the lake.

The third child is named Chen Xiaohu. He is twelve years old this year. He is pretty and very clever. He has bright black eyes and is always jumping around. He is never still for a moment.

When the father and his two sons arrived home, the moon was already high in the sky.

Chen Xiaohu was still awake, sitting on the doorstep, reading by the moonlight.

Hearing the noise, Chen Xiaohu immediately put down the yellowed book in his hand and hopped towards the door.

"father!"

"Big brother, second brother!"

"What did you catch today? Hey, Dad, what are you holding?"

Chen Xiaohu jumped down in front of Chen Chuansheng and became curious when he saw a tattered bundle in his arms.

"It's a strange object."

Chen Chuansheng spoke softly and went into the house first.

Chen Changhe closed the courtyard gate and then followed him into the inner room.

……

Inside the main room, Chen Chuansheng took the object out of the tattered cloth and placed it on the worn-out square table.

Chen Xiaohu exclaimed in surprise after seeing the item clearly.

"It's a cauldron!"

"Lake, do you recognize this thing?"

Upon hearing this, Chen Changhe raised an eyebrow. Only Xiao Hu in the family had attended school for a few years and could read. He was the one who kept the household accounts and wrote the eulogies for the ancestors during festivals.

"With a perfectly round opening, three legs, and two handles, there's no mistake, this is a ding (a type of ancient Chinese cooking vessel)."

Chen Xiaohu looked at it carefully.

"Mr. Li said."

"In the past, when the Xia dynasty was virtuous, distant lands sent tribute of gold to the nine provinces, casting tripods to represent various objects, thus making all kinds of things available. This enabled the people to know the evil spirits, so when they entered rivers, marshes, mountains, and forests, they did not encounter anything evil, and no demons or monsters could seduce them..."

Chen Xiaohu touched the green rust on the cauldron, "It's still a bronze cauldron."

"Not made of iron?"

Chen Changhe was somewhat disappointed when he heard that it wasn't ironware.

"The rust on ironware should be red," Chen Xiaohu pointed to the small tripod.

The entire cauldron was a dark bluish-black color, its original luster completely obscured, and covered with dark bluish-black rust.

"It's not a bad thing."

Chen Dajiang chimed in, "Copper can be exchanged for money directly."

Ironware needs to be melted down to be sold, while copper blocks can be broken open to exchange for other items. The copper coins they usually use are made of copper.

Chen Xiaohu fiddled with the small bronze tripod on the table, turning it over and over to examine it several times.

Suddenly, he raised the cauldron high, and the moonlight shone through the window onto the cauldron, emitting a hazy white light.

Chen Xiaohu lowered his voice and said:

"Father, eldest brother, second brother, look!"

"The little cauldron has come back to life!"