The custom in the village was to keep vigil through the Seventh Day, then hold the burial early on the eighth day, as long as the date was not inauspicious.
Cremation was the norm now, but some areas still practiced burial.
I did not want the old lady cremated. Maybe I was old-fashioned.
Fortunately, the villagers were kind enough to turn a blind eye. They could not bear to have the old lady cremated either.
Even the Village Chief said nothing, and the old lady was laid to rest without any trouble.
After her burial, Uncle Gui pulled me aside and asked who I really was.
"Xiao Chen, you're an outsider, yet you kept vigil for seven days."
"Tell me, who exactly are you? What exactly is your relationship with my aunt?"
I wanted to tell him the truth too, but I still told a lie.
"The old lady and I really hit it off, and she truly had a hard life. Where I come from, there's a custom: if an elder passes away without a younger family member kowtowing to them, they won't depart in peace."
"All right."
Uncle Gui believed me and sighed. "My aunt had such a pitiful life. Really, her passing was a release too. You're a fine young man. Her spirit in heaven will surely watch over you."
I nodded, ready to leave with An Ning.
Before leaving, I took some food back up the mountain, along with a few sticks of incense, to make offerings to the deity there.
I did not know whether this deity was the Mountain God or the Earth God, but this experience had truly opened my eyes.
This was a world with ghosts and gods. There was nothing wrong with believing in them.
As long as people were not