The old man with his white papers

The Chinese have a special worship mentality for characters and consider them to be sacred. Paper with characters on it should not be thrown around. If you desecrate the paper, you will be condemned by heaven. Therefore, every family has a word paper basket. This is a small, broad-shouldered basket, bamboo gabions for the tire, the outside paste white paper, the front vertically paste a two-inch-wide red paper, written in four regular black letters: "respect the word paper." The paper basket is hung in an honored place, usually on the side of the gods and goddesses of the family in the hall. Every ten days and a half months, the word paper basket is almost full, the collection of the word paper to collect. This collection of paper surnamed Bai, adults and children call him Old Bai. He is old, but very good health. Full of white beard stubble, set off his face is unusually rosy. Eyes not blind, not deaf, walking, legs and feet are still very fast. He carried a large bamboo basket, pushing the door into the familiar family, to the hall to the word paper dumped in the bamboo basket, turn around and go, and did not alarm the master. Sometimes the owner is in the hall, but also talk, ask the old lady's illness is better, the young master should soon go to school it ......

He carried these words and papers to the Wenchang Pavilion and burned them.

The location of Wenchangge is very remote, in the eastern suburbs, next to a small river, a relatively large gray and black quadrangle. The front three north-facing cottage, brick walls and tile roof, the north wall hung a large vertical scroll, written "Wenchang Emperor of the gods". This Wenchang Emperor is not sure what kind of god, only that he was originally a human being, a scholar, who had been a scholar for 17 consecutive lives, and I do not know how to become "Emperor". He is the master of literary luck. More specifically, he is in charge of the merit of the scholars. He decided who should have what title. Therefore, he was revered by the scholars. In the past, every first and fifteenth day, there are always some Xiucai or alternate Xiucai to the pavilion to kowtow. If you get a higher merit, won the examination, won the scholar, it is more to Wenchang Pavilion to incense to offer, thank the emperor's grace. The period of the imperial examinations, Wenchang Pavilion in a county in the minds of scholars is occupying a very important place, and later, it fell out of favor.

On both sides of the main room, there are two compartments. The west room is the old white living. He was looking at the Wenchang Pavilion, which can also be said to be a temple priest. The east room holds a bookplate of "Wenchang Emperor's Good Fortune". In the middle is a rather large yard, planted with two persimmon trees. Before the persimmon trees, there is a one-person-high brick square pavilion, and each of the four walls of the pavilion has a round hole as big as a washbasin. This is the burning of the word paper melting furnace. Paper furnace in the Wenchang Pavilion, logical. Old Bai received the word paper, it will be thrown in the furnace, ignite the fire and burn. Paper furnace ventilation on all sides, not much time, it burned out.

Old Bai is alone, life is good. Earlier, when someone made incense offerings, he could get a reward. Sometimes some people took a few knives of paper and asked Old Bai to print the "Yin Stallion" (printed and sent to others, a kind of good deed), and also sent Old Bai a little money for his work. Old Bai had printed the "Yin Stallion" many times and could almost memorize it (he was literate). Later, no one came to print the "Yin Stallion", and the plates were left unused and dusty. But Old Bai was still not hungry. He went from house to house to collect the word paper, and on New Year's Day, everyone would send him a little money. Dragon Boat Festival, some people gave him a few zongzi; August Festival, a few moon cakes; under the year, give him two liters of rice, a side of salted meat. Old Bai is happy with his simple food. After turning the paper, he closed the door and sat alone. Outside the door long flowing water, the day is as long as a small year. He would sometimes think of the county's several candidates, the scholar to the pavilion to thank the gods of the occasion. The past is vivid, as in the present.

Old Bai received the word paper, sometimes to wipe out to see (he was afraid that in case someone threw the deed to the house as a word paper, this happened once). In recent years, he received some word paper, but a word is not recognized. The words were crossed like earthworms, and there were some triangles, circles, and four-square blocks. They were exercises in English and geometry for middle school students. He shook his head and burned these exercise books along with other papers in a paper oven. Confucius and Euclid and Nasfir then died together.

Old Bai lived to the age of ninety-seven and died without any illness.