There were several holes in the window with diamond-shaped paper, and the wind was blowing in. I rubbed my eyes, lit the oil lamp on the table, and listened carefully. I could hear the chaotic footsteps outside.
I got up and sat up, facing the faint firelight, wrapped myself in cloth clothes, put on the hairpin that I usually didn't want to wear, and prepared to go to the market.
The fifth day of the Chinese New Year is a big market, and the villagers have set up their stalls early. I just sat down and put my straw sandals in place, and I saw a strange face across from me, carefully wiping a pair of shoes. Those shoes were probably the most beautiful I have ever seen. The shoes were made of satin, embroidered with bright red peonies and wrapped around lush green ivy.
Obviously, he is just a street trader and doesn't know our village well. Our place is the most remote place in the surrounding area. Because it is the most remote, it is also the poorest place. Because of poverty, the material requirements are very high. Simple. It's not that people don't want a better life, but they can't afford the price of "better". For example, the embroidered shoes of the shoemaker.
The young shoemaker obviously didn't understand that he was in the wrong place. The sun was setting, and the young shoemaker hadn't sold a single pair of shoes. He was planning to close his stall. I couldn't help but go over to him. I squatted at his shoe stall. She stepped forward, stroking the pair of peony shoes in amazement, her saliva almost drooling.
"You have good business today!" the young shoemaker said jealously as he quickly took the shoes from me.
I smiled and said, "Why, are you closing the stall?"
"Why don't you close the stall?" He glared at me depressedly, "The women here are not women. I didn't even sell a pair of embroidered shoes! I'd better go back to my shabby temple and drink."
"What do you mean?" I didn't quite understand. "What do you mean women are not women?" He sighed and said, "I've been walking around the streets for so many years, but I've never been to a new place where there's not even a shop open. Look at the women here, all of them are wearing those tattered straw sandals. I tell you, women should wear embroidered shoes, that's what a real woman is. If a woman has never worn a pair of embroidered shoes in her life, she is simply not a real woman. Not a woman.”
I was so angry that I stood up and pointed at the pair of peony shoes and said, "How much are you selling these shoes for?" The shoemaker continued to pack up his stall nonchalantly and said, "These shoes are my most expensive pair. They are made of cotton. The base is made of silk, and the surface is embroidered." He looked at my face without blinking, as if to say, can you afford it?
I don't know what snapped, but I pulled out all the copper coins I had earned from selling straw sandals from my pocket, threw them in front of him, and said arrogantly, "Is this enough?"
He picked up a finger and flicked the copper coins in disgust. He shook his head and said, "What a pity! It's only enough to buy one."
I turned around and pointed at the remaining straw sandals in the cart and said, "What about those?" Before the shoemaker could say anything, my hand was grabbed by someone. I turned around and saw it was my brother. "Little sister, What the hell are you doing? My brother quickly gathered up the scattered copper coins, pulled me up, pushed me into the cart, and headed home. I didn’t say anything else, but looked at the straw sandals I was wearing unwillingly, and then turned back to When I saw the little shoemaker looking at me and smiling coldly, he seemed to be saying, come back and buy my embroidered shoes in the next life.
The medicine in the bowl had warmed up and was no longer emitting white steam. My brother was beating hemp outside while looking at me, shaking his head and sighing from time to time.
"Hurry up and drink the medicine, it's cold." He said with a frown. I muttered quietly: "I just want a pair of embroidered shoes." My brother just sighed more heavily. In fact, I know that I am a little willful. I have been My parents died, and my brother raised me. Our family was the poorest in the village. When I was born, I was not only weak and often sick, but also had a disability in my right foot. That foot was completely different from a human foot. My feet were crooked and twisted, like chicken feet. Because of my illness, my brother had to go up the mountain to collect herbs frequently, and the little extra money at home was used for my medical treatment.
I'm almost starving, why would I want embroidered shoes! I understood this, so I muttered something and gulped down the medicine in one gulp. The gate to the yard suddenly opened, and it was Sister Tang Ya who came in. Ya and my brother grew up together. She likes my brother and my brother likes her. Everyone in the village knows this. However, her family does not allow her to have any contact with my brother. The reason is simple, because my family is the The poorest. But she still often secretly met with my brother. When Sister Tang Ya came in, she saw that I was unhappy: "Little sister, what's wrong?" She hugged me and asked with concern. Sister Tang Ya She always loves me very much. Many times, I imagine her as the mother who never fed me a sip of milk.
So, as if I had found a savior, I burst into tears and recounted my grievances while crying: "I wanted a pair of embroidered shoes, but my brother wouldn't buy them for me."
Tang Yajie was stunned. It was obvious that she couldn't solve this problem. But she still comforted me and said, "Be good, little sister, go play in the yard first. Your brother and I have something to discuss."
I stared at her with wide eyes and asked, "Are you discussing buying me shoes?" She smiled and nodded slightly. I was not a three-year-old child anymore. When I was cutting hemp in the yard, I already knew that Tang Ya My sister and brother must have something else to discuss. Sure enough, after a while, the two voices could be heard faintly. Sister Tang Ya shouted angrily: "How long are you going to make me wait? Do you know that my family I have already been engaged!" My brother also became anxious and shouted, "What do you want me to do!"
Sister Tang Ya said, "Do whatever you want!" After that, she slammed the door open and ran away quickly.
My brother chased me out, and when he reached the gate of the yard, he stopped, grabbed his hair, squatted on the ground, and then glared at me and cursed: "Embroidered shoes! Embroidered shoes! Look at your feet. Even with the embroidered shoes on, you're still lame. !”
When my brother brought the pair of shoes embroidered with peony flowers to me, I couldn't believe it. I excitedly snatched them away, held them in my arms to warm them for a long time before putting them on my feet. Then, I carefully put them on the kang. He limped around for several circles, saying as he walked, "Brother, where did you get these shoes? Did you buy them?" My brother smiled and said, "I picked some good herbs today and sold them for a high price. I went to the dilapidated temple in the west of the village and found a shoemaker to buy this pair of shoes. How do you like it? "For the first time, I became the focus of attention in the village. The men didn't care about the shoes on my feet, but the women were like crazy. They gathered around me like crazy, asking me questions all at once. I held my head high like a proud hero! Their words of praise kept ringing in my ears.
Some people said: "Look at how lucky the little sister is!" Others said: "That's right, her brother really loves her! My damn man will never buy me these embroidered shoes in his life." I was in the village. I wore it for several days, but later, I didn’t dare to wear it anymore. Everything has a shelf life, and embroidered shoes are too delicate. They will break after wearing for a long time. But I still don’t want to leave it. I tie it to my chest. Wear it on your waist, wear it when you sleep, wear it when you eat, and even wear it when you go to the toilet.
Then one day, I suddenly found that this pair of shoes was a bit strange. That day, I was cutting hemp grass by the river. The hemp grass by the river was very lush, large and dense, crowded into lumps one after another, more than a person tall. In order to repay me My brother bought me some shoes, so I planned to cut more hemp grass and bring it back to make more straw sandals to sell. I worked until the sun went down, and the women who were washing clothes and vegetables by the river had all left. I was the only one who was working hard, panting. .
I bent over and cut the hemp without raising my head. I held a handful in my hand, and with a swipe of the sickle, a bundle of hemp was thrown into the backpack beside me.
Soon, I had mowed all the hemp grass. I changed direction and continued mowing. After mowing the third handful, I sat down on the ground. I saw a pair of bare, white feet flickering in the grass. a moment.
"Who?" I asked, staring at the tall hemp grass. It would be easy for someone to hide in there. But no one answered me. There was only the whistling wind and the swaying grass. I gritted my teeth and reached out to I pulled the grass aside to see which little girl was teasing me, but there was no one. Behind the grass was more grass, swaying in the wind, like a huge head with long, messy green hair.
I shuddered for no apparent reason, picked up my backpack and headed home. The river was quite far from home, and I was already out of the village. The sun was setting very quickly, as if it had been punched into the horizon. I just When I walked out of the bush, it was already dark. I looked up at the sky, it was cloudy. After nightfall, the whole village seemed to have fallen into a pitch-black hole. Only the oil lamps in each household were faintly emitting a lingering breath. I was used to the darkness here, but today was different. I felt that the darkness had a purpose. When I entered the village, a cold wind blew over with dust. I shivered again and instinctively wanted to meet someone. Unfortunately, there was no one on the dirt road. All the adults and children had gone home, because we were close to the mountains and there were often wild dogs.
That thing eats both the living and the dead. I quickened my pace, but I was limping and walking very slowly. After walking a few steps, I suddenly heard a sound, also footsteps, but very light. , as if there is no friction with the ground. It seems that I am walking barefoot.
I stopped suddenly and turned back. My head suddenly felt big. I saw a person, but I couldn't see her face clearly. I could only see that it was a woman with long hair. The moonlight shone on her lower body, and I could barely see that A pair of white, bare feet.
"Who are you?" I asked while trembling. A gust of wind suddenly blew over, with strong horsepower and flying dust, and the figure of the woman was blocked by the wind. When the wind stopped, the dirt road was empty again.
It's really weird!
I heard about Tang Yajie's disappearance from the gossips of the women in the village when I was selling shoes at the market. I heard about the ghost of the merchant . Tang Yajie had been missing for several days. It seemed that her family had arranged for her to be married off. On the day of the wedding, she refused and ran away. My family looked for her for several days but couldn't find her. It's true that our area is densely forested and high in the mountains. It's really not easy to find someone. I wanted to ask Sister Tang Ya I wanted to know the details of my running away from home, but as soon as I got close to the group of women, they quickly avoided me and ran to the side to gossip. I had no choice but to move back unhappily, sit on the bench, stretch my ears, and pretend to I continued to eavesdrop on their conversation without any incident. Someone said: "Have you heard? Tang Ya's father even prepared a dowry for Tang Ya." "Yes, he only has one daughter, but the old man still pays a lot of attention to her. He prepared a red veil, an embroidered wedding dress, and two Old sow, yes, yes! There is another thing, a pair of embroidered shoes." "Yes, yes! I heard that I bought them from a shoemaker in a dilapidated temple. They are made of cotton cloth and silk, and are embroidered with peony flowers and green leaves. Fujieda and my younger sister are wearing the same pair! "Hearing this, I couldn't help but take a deep breath, turned my head slightly, and saw those women looking at me meaningfully.
They looked at me as if they had seen a ghost, feeling extremely awkward. They continued to speak, just a few short sentences, but it made me feel like a thorn in my back. They whispered in my ears: "You said, my little sister's brother is really How could you afford to buy her such expensive embroidered shoes? Her family is so poor that they can barely afford to eat!" "Where did she get that pair of embroidered shoes?" "Who knows?"
I couldn't sit still any longer, so I hurriedly packed up my stall and limped home. The pair of shoes tied around my waist seemed to have turned into ice cubes, and I was shivering from the cold. The twisting of my body rubbed against my belly, like a hairy human head.
When I got home, I threw the shoes on the kang, then sat quietly on a chair, staring at them without blinking.
When my brother came back, I dragged him into the house and shut the windows and doors tightly. I pointed at the pair of
Shoes, and said: "Brother, tell me, how did you get these embroidered shoes?"
My brother was stunned and said, "Buy it."
"Really?" I stared at him, staring at him without any doubt.
"Okay." He sighed, "I picked it up. I said that because I was afraid that the shoes were lost by someone else. It's because you wanted them so much. What's wrong with you today, little sister? , it's weird, you don't care whether it's found or bought, it's okay to wear it."
I didn't give up, so I grabbed him and asked, "Where did you pick it up?" My brother said, "From the back hill." I collapsed to the ground, shaking like a sieve. My brother came over to help me up and asked, What happened to me? I told him everything about Tang Yajie's disappearance. He was obviously shocked and puzzled. He was shocked by Tang Ya's disappearance, but puzzled why I suddenly changed the topic to this.
When my brother was in a daze, the gate was kicked open. It was Tang Ya's parents. They rushed in aggressively, grabbed my brother and beat and scolded him, saying that it was my brother who harmed Tang Ya. If… Without him, Tang Ya would have married in a grand ceremony.
My brother didn't say anything, just lowered his head and let them bully him with a blank look in his eyes. The neighbors were all woken up, and when the head of the village came, he finally pulled Tang Ya's parents away. We are far away from the mountains and rivers. The nearest county government office is also two mountains away, so usually when something happens, it is the chief who handles it in advance. He is very prestigious. After being pulled away, Tang Yanniang was still unwilling to accept it and cried, "It must be Seeing that he couldn't marry Tang Ya, he killed her. He must have hidden her!" My brother yelled, "I didn't! I didn't!" No one paid any attention to him. Everyone just stared at him quietly. He, like a fence, surrounded us brothers and sisters
Inside, his eyes were cold and evil.
I don't know why, but ever since I found out that Tang Yajie was missing, I've been feeling anxious and worried. I've had nightmares for days, and I always dream about Tang Yajie and the pair of embroidered shoes.
In my dreams, whether it was day or night, the shoes always followed me, like a tail that I couldn't shake off. No one wore them, and they seemed to have become a demon, floating lightly and cautiously in the air. Driven by, he followed my shadow step by step.
I tried to shake it off, but it was no use. Wherever I limped away, it would follow me. Sometimes, there was a voice in my dreams, a woman's laughter, saying softly: Give it back to me." Because of this dream, I couldn't eat for a few days. I kept looking back nervously to see if there was anything following me. Finally, I decided to throw away the shoes. For the first time, I dropped it on the dirt road in the village, and hurriedly threw it out of the yard in the dark. But early the next morning, I saw it again, lying peacefully on my pillow. There was a thin layer of dust on the edge.
The second time, I was so hard-hearted that I took it to the river. While I was cutting hemp, I took the opportunity to throw it into the river. But the next morning, it was still lying peacefully beside my pillow, with a The embroidered peonies were still soaked with the moisture of the river water.
The last time, I decided to burn it and threw it into the furnace. It squeaked and called out strangely, and finally turned into ashes. But the next morning, it appeared, brand new, like a bird bathed in fire. The reborn phoenix died and lived again!
I was terrified, I realized that this pair of shoes really became a spirit. It had life, it had a face, nose, mouth, legs and feet, and no matter where I threw it, it could still run back by itself. Maybe, since I got it, it is destined to follow me for the rest of my life, from birth to death, sticking to my blood and flesh, and I can't get rid of it. Or maybe, it's the woman in the dream who is causing trouble. She wants me to What was returned to her was not the shoes, but something else.
A few days later, things got better. Tang Yajie's body was found in a ravine in the back mountain. It was called a body, but in fact only some bones were left. The rest were eaten by wild dogs. If it wasn’t for the red wedding dress she wore the night she escaped, perhaps no one would have recognized her. That night, Tang Ya’s parents watched over those human bones, crying and wailing, and the whole village could hear them. Hearing their cries was like the howling of wolves at night, dissolving in the darkness, and making people feel cold all over. My brother wanted to see Tang Ya for the last time, but I didn't let him go. If he went, he would definitely not be able to see her. What good would it be? But he didn't listen and went anyway. I was worried, so I had to limp behind him. Before we got to Tang Ya's house, we saw a group of people gathered outside the yard. I like to watch the fun. When someone died in the Tang family, men, women, old and young gathered at the Tang family, whispering and talking. When my brother arrived, everyone automatically made way for him as if they had seen a ghost. My brother walked to the front of the mourning hall and knelt down with a thud. Tang Ya's parents rushed over and beat and scolded him again. I hid at the gate of the yard, not daring to go in, and just listened to people talking and whispering. Did I tell you? When Tang Ya's body was found, her red veil and wedding dress were both there, but one thing was missing. " "What is it?"
"Embroidered shoes! They are the same pair my younger sister wears!" "You mean?" I didn't dare to listen to the rest of the words. Through the gaps in the crowd, I saw the white candles burning in the dim mourning hall. The firelight was dim, and a large, eerie coffin was lying in the middle of the room, like a giant shoe, ready to move at any moment. I shuddered, turned around, and headed home.
When I was trotting away from Tang Yajie's house, I heard the same sound of footsteps again. I felt like I was acupunctured and stopped right where I was. I turned around and looked back, but there was no one there. Then I realized what was going on. The footsteps came from the opposite side. When I turned around, Sister Tang Ya was standing not far away, and the turbid moonlight shone on her face, which was icy white.
She took a few steps towards me with her bare, white feet, and spoke in a faint voice: "Little sister! Give my things back to me."
I shuddered and said, "What?"
"That thing!" she said, pointing a finger at me. I screamed, dropped the shoes on the ground, and stumbled back home. As soon as I got home, I The windows and doors were all shut tightly, and then I squatted on the kang, shivering and motionless. I was scared, because I knew that maybe what Sister Tang Ya wanted was not the embroidered shoes, but my life. That dark night is still fresh in my memory. I want to get rid of it, but it becomes clearer and clearer. That night, I hid a secret, a secret I dare not tell. In fact, Sister Tang Ya was the one who killed me. I didn't want to kill her, but she repeatedly encouraged my brother to elope and leave me behind. She said such nasty things, saying that I was a burden and that as long as my brother didn't leave me, , she would not be with my brother for a day. She said she couldn't stand being dragged down to death by others for the rest of her life.
I am a sickly person. Without my brother's care and his going up the mountain to collect herbs for me, I would not have survived. Tang Ya asked my brother to abandon me, which was the same as killing me directly.
I had endured it again and again, and I didn't want to use such an extreme method to deal with Tang Ya, but she kept instigating my brother again and again. That day, when she came to deliver steamed buns, she once again forced my brother to make a decision, and I finally couldn't stand it anymore. .
I know that my brother and Tang Ya often go on dates secretly at night, on the haystack at the entrance of the village. That night, I secretly followed my brother to the haystack. Tang Ya was wearing a bright wedding dress, showing off while Threatened my brother. When the two of them went home, I followed Tang Ya. I didn't want to kill her at the time, I just wanted to teach her a lesson, so I picked up a stone from the side and hit her head. Tang Ya turned her head and looked at me in astonishment. Without even a sound, she fell down, bleeding all over her face. I panicked and was stunned for a long time. Finally, I didn't know where I got the strength to drag the Then Tang Ya went into the back mountain.
The head of the village still sent someone to report to the police. After all, someone had died, which was a big deal.
My brother was taken to the headman's house and locked up because the person sent to report to the authorities would take three days and three nights to come back.
My brother prepared a bunch of herbs for me, enough for me to eat for half a month. But I was still afraid. I was afraid that Tang Ya's ghost would come to take my life in the middle of the night. I was even more afraid that my brother would be arrested by the yamen runners. If he left, I would live. There is no hope.
Three days later, the government officials came again. Two men, riding on tall horses, rushed into our village. Behind them, they pulled an empty ox cart with thick and sturdy wood forming a "small World", waiting for its owner to enter.
The yamen runner stayed in the village headman's house for less than half an hour before leaving, taking my brother with him. I hugged my brother's legs, crying and shouting to stop him from leaving, but the yamen runner pulled me away again and again. My brother said, "Little sister, I'm sorry for you." I saw tears in my brother's eyes. It was the first time he cried in so many years. I stood up and shouted, "Tang Ya is mine. Killed!" Everyone was stunned and stared at me. At the headman's house, I sat on a chair, trembling as I looked at the two yamen runners. Their eyes were so sharp that they seemed to be able to see through a person's internal organs. I didn't hide anything, nor did I dare to hide anything anymore, so I told him everything that happened.
The bailiffs looked at me in surprise. They seemed to not believe that a sickly person like me would kill Tang Ya. Why shouldn't they believe it? Even a desperate dog will jump over the wall, let alone a living person like me.
I was eventually taken away. Before leaving, my brother dramatically hugged my legs again and cried, "Little sister, I'm sorry for you."
I didn't have the courage to look back at my brother. I closed my eyes, listened to the villagers spitting and cursing, and got on the prison van. I was very sad. I felt that without my brother and the bitter medicine I had to drink every day, I would die sooner or later. of.
Unexpectedly, prison was not only hell but also heaven for me. The doctor provided me with free medical treatment and medicine, allowing me to continue living.
But I understand the principle of life for life, and I know that sooner or later I will die. Life for life! I just regret killing Sister Tang Ya and not helping her and my brother. Sooner or later I will be I'm going to die, so why bother dragging them down? What have they done wrong? They just want to live a more comfortable life. I know that without me, my brother might have married and had children.
However, my wish to die was not fulfilled.
A few days later, I was informed that the trial date would be postponed. I didn't understand why, but the guards told me that they brought back Tang Ya's body, and after the coroner analyzed it, they found that the pelvis was wide and it was confirmed that it was not a female skeleton. It was a young man. I was completely stunned.
The bailiffs still arrested my brother and Sister Tang Ya. I heard that Sister Tang Ya was caught in the back mountain of our village, and my brother happened to be with her. At that time, the two of them were preparing to elope.
I was released before I could figure out what was going on. When I left the prison, I strongly requested to see my brother. The guards sympathized with me and finally agreed. When I saw my brother, he had completely changed. Wearing death row uniform, with dirty braids hanging on his head. I said, "Brother, what's going on?" My brother smiled stiffly and said, "Little sister, I'm sorry."
At this time, I finally understood what my brother meant by "I'm sorry". I also knew that Tang Ya was not dead, but the one who died was a shoemaker.
In fact, human life is not that fragile. It is not easy to kill a person with a stone. My brother told me that after I attacked Tang Ya that night, she just fainted. When I woke up, she had already woken up. She continued to pretend to be unconscious for another purpose. After that, she secretly met my brother and told him about my evil deeds, forcing him to leave me.
Sister Tang said, I am a jinx, I am a girl with a bad heart. My brother was also angry when he heard this. I understand this very well. He probably never dreamed that his gentle and delicate little sister, He finally turned to Sister Tang Ya and decided to leave me. However, there are thousands of ways to leave a person, and the most convenient and effective one should be to let this person Go to hell.
Moreover, they had to die, for example, the method of killing someone and paying with one's life. The people in the village were naturally not their targets, because with a little investigation, they could quickly find out who was behind them, so the only The young shoemaker, a foreign visitor, became a victim.
My brother and Tang Ya took advantage of the time when the shoemaker was drunk and asleep and killed him.
They dragged him to the back mountain, where wild dogs often appeared, and changed him into Tang Ya's clothes. After the wild dogs had gnawed the young shoemaker until only bones were left, it was impossible to tell whether he was a man or a woman.
Finally, Sister Tang Ya "died", and then, she framed me. And those shoes that couldn't be thrown away were naturally made by him. When I heard this, I said in confusion: "That's not right, the yamen runners clearly suspected you And, it is you who are going to be taken away." My brother smiled bitterly and said, "That's right. But I know you will come out and explain it clearly." I said, "Why?" My brother said, " I have raised you for eighteen years, so I know your temper too well." I also smiled bitterly: "Yes, eighteen years, eighteen years."
I returned home again and lived a lonely life. Only then did I realize that I could still live a stable life without my brother. People in the village felt sorry for me and someone would send me herbs every now and then.
Every day I would go to the village entrance to sell straw sandals, looking at the endless dirt road. I heard that there was a shortage of labor at the border, and my brother and Tang Ya were sentenced to exile, so they finally eloped.
The sun was setting, and three people slowly came over. They were an old beggar with two grandchildren. He bought me a pair of straw sandals and put them on the feet of the youngest grandchild. The other one, who was a little older, started crying. I suddenly realized that to them, the merchant's ghost was my worthless straw sandal, but it was a pair of beautiful and precious embroidered shoes. I picked up a pair of shoes and gave them to the crying child.
I really don't want them to go through the wrong door because of a pair of shoes.