Later, the village chief had a wife and child. He brought them beneath the tree and told them about the thoughts he had once had.
By then, the shade beneath the banyan tree was enough to shelter all three of them.
Later still, the village chief grew old, and the village's original burial ground became haunted.
The village chief was educated and did not believe in ghosts or gods, but the villagers did. As their chief, he had to resolve the matter. So, late one night, he went to the burial ground with a few brave villagers, intending to see just what was causing the disturbances.
They encountered an actual ghost in the burial ground.
Just then, an expert traveling through the area appeared. He called himself Qiao Banxian, had a youthful face and white hair, and carried himself like an immortal out of legend. He suggested to the village chief that they move the graves to the waterlogged ground.
The village chief agreed.
On the day of the collective relocation, every household turned out in full. Some carried coffins, while others held black umbrellas to block the sunlight, preventing it from shining directly on the coffins and offending their ancestors. Coffin after coffin, black umbrella after black umbrella, drifted past the village chief's eyes.
He thought he would never live to see the day when the banyan's canopy spread like clouds and shaded the whole village. After all, no one would go to a burial ground to cool off, just as no one would use a kitchen as a toilet.
That day, he stroked the banyan's branches and trunk as the wind rustled past. He even felt that the banyan was grieving just as he was, quietly sobbing in the wind.
After the graves were moved to the waterlogged