One#
At the edge of the forest on the border between China and Myanmar, there is a place called Qingmu Town. The population is small, but in the past ten years, it has been thriving with the development of border trade and pilgrimage tourism. When I arrived in the town, it was almost dark. The trees on the roadside turned into dark silhouettes against the dim sky, staring at the people coming and going here in search of meaning or suicide.
I didn't want to commit suicide, especially since committing suicide in the deep forest would cause unnecessary trouble. The reason I came here is because there is news spreading on the internet that the Master of Life has appeared again, and there are even some photos that are difficult to distinguish between true and false, claiming to have captured the imprint of the Master of Life deep in the forest. There are spiral-shaped rainbows hanging in front of waterfalls, white fish flying in the air, and colorful and ever-changing polyhedral structures... There is even a person who claims to have been saved by a scarecrow after accidentally falling into a deep pit. Most of these rumors don't seem real, but rather fabricated, but there are still a few that are puzzling, so I took a month-long vacation and planned to come to this forest to see for myself, hoping to witness the miracles of the Master of Life or even meet the Master of Life in person.
I had made a reservation at a family inn called Sunshine Inn. When I arrived, it was empty with no one around. There was a button on the reception window with a sign that read "Press the button if you need assistance." I pressed the button, but didn't hear any sound, so I pressed it again. Then I heard a voice from a door behind the window saying, "I'm coming, I'm coming."
Two minutes later, she came out. She was a woman who looked about forty years old, plump but not fat, with a flushed face. "Sorry for keeping you waiting. Are you here to stay?"
"I made a reservation online." I handed her my ID.
She registered my name and said the room was on the third floor. She led me upstairs. "Are you here for business or tourism?" she asked.
"Tourism," I replied.
"Alone?"
"Yes."
"Do you know what I was doing in the room just now?" she suddenly asked.
"I don't know." I wasn't interested.
"I just bought a massager and I'm trying it out. Do you want to teach me later?" she said happily.
It felt like a scam, so I replied, "I don't know how to use it either."
"You'll understand if you read the instructions."
"You can read the instructions too."
"Don't worry, young man. I'm the boss, so I won't charge you for this."
I didn't know what to say, so I asked, "Where is the boss?"
"He's out fooling around with his mistress." She laughed, seemingly not angry.
We reached the third floor and the landlady opened the door and handed me the key.
"That's settled," the landlady said.
I didn't respond.
Then the landlady went downstairs.
I slept for an hour and then went downstairs to a noodle shop on the same street for fried noodles. After dinner, I took a walk along the street. The map said there was a small square not far ahead.
There weren't many people in the square. Some young people were dancing there. I found a bench on the edge of the square and sat down to smoke, next to a statue of a soldier.
Occasionally, a gust of wind blew, giving a chilly feeling. When I had smoked half a cigarette, an old man sat down next to me and said, "Young man, can I have a cigarette? Give me one."
I glanced at him. He was a chubby old man, probably sixty or seventy years old. I handed him a cigarette.
"Can I borrow a lighter?" he asked.
I used a lighter to light his cigarette.
The old man took a deep breath and exhaled a puff of white smoke. "Are you here for tourism?" he asked me, maybe just making small talk.
"Yes."
"Are you here to find the Master of Life?"
"Yes."
"Where can you find him in the forest!" The old man seemed to be sighing. "Actually, he's right next to you." The old man pointed to the soldier statue next to me. "Why doesn't anyone study this thing properly?"
"You mean this statue?"
"It looks like a statue, but it's actually a person. It may wake up in the future."
"Was it made by the Master of Life?"
He could tell that I didn't believe it. "He didn't make it, but he caused it."
"What do you mean?"
"It used to be a person, but it became like this because of the Master of Life."
I shook my head, indicating disbelief.
"If you don't believe it, go and see what material it's made of. You won't be able to tell."
I stubbed out the cigarette on the ground, picked it up, and threw it into the nearby trash can. Then I started to examine the statue. The statue was black and felt hard when I pinched it. "It's made of iron."
"No."
"I can't tell." I sat back in my original position.
"No one knows what material it is made of. During the Cultural Revolution, some people wanted to smash it, but no matter how hard they tried, not a single hair fell off."
"The Cultural Revolution? How old is this thing?"
"It happened during the military government." The old man exhaled a puff of smoke and fell into reminiscence. "My father told me about it."
Two#
That year, the "revolution" of the South China Military Government failed, and a group of remnants escaped into the large forest on the border between Yunnan and Myanmar. No one knew what they encountered, but a month later, only one person from this unit walked out of the forest and came to Qingmu Town on the edge of the forest. At that time, there were no electricity or spacious roads like now, there was nothing, but it was also good, as the war outside couldn't reach here, and everyone could barely have enough to eat relying on the forest.
What was miraculous was that this soldier who walked out was dressed neatly, as if his clothes were newly bought, and his gun was cleaned spotlessly. The soldier stopped in this square when he arrived. At that time, the square was not as big as it is now. When I was young, I saw it. It was less than one-fifth the size, with a few piles of stones as benches. When it was about to get dark, everyone gathered here to chat. There was no electricity at that time.
The soldier walked to the square and was cleaner than everyone else. At that time, it was still afternoon, but people gathered around to see him, wanting to know who he was, where he came from, and what he wanted to do.
At first, the soldier just sat on a pile of stones and looked at a photo, probably of his wife, but no one could see it clearly, and it would be impolite to get closer to see. Later, more and more people gathered, and the soldier stood on the stone and spoke. No one knows exactly what he said. After all these years, in short, he said he wanted to stay here for a while, maybe half a month, maybe two months.
He took out a silver coin and asked which family could cook for him and deliver it here. At that time, this was not a small amount of money, and everyone wanted it. In the end, he chose my grandfather's house. My grandfather was about ten years old at that time.
When it was almost dark that day, someone asked the soldier how he came here.
The soldier said that after losing the war, he ran into the forest and later encountered the Master of Life, and he was the only one left.
People asked about the others.
He said he didn't know, he was the only one left.
Did the others die?
I don't know, I don't remember.
That's how everyone speculated for a long time, but no conclusion was reached. Then the soldier started talking about the outside world.
He talked about steam engines, airships, electric lights, nightclubs, and free love, all the things that didn't exist here at that time. He also talked about democracy, revolution, and multi-party politics, and then declared himself an anarchist. Then he explained what anarchism was, but my grandfather doesn't remember the specific explanation, just that it seemed profound, and after the explanation, everyone present thought they were anarchists too. However, my grandfather still remembers a sentence. The soldier said, "Anarchists are the least revolutionary and the most revolutionary." Grandfather said this sentence was inspiring, but upon careful thought, he didn't understand what it meant.
At that time, my grandfather ran errands to deliver food to the soldier twice a day, once in the morning and once in the evening. The soldier didn't go anywhere else, and he didn't seem to go to the bathroom or take a bath, but his clothes were still neat and there was no smell.
During those days, when it was almost dark every day, the soldier would give a speech in the small square, introducing the situation outside to my grandfather and the others. He also disassembled the gun to show everyone. My grandfather remembers that he only had one bullet left, shiny and new, maybe it was copper. Then he put the gun back together. People at that time couldn't understand! They even urged the soldier to shoot the last bullet to see the effect. One family even offered a dog, saying it was just right to kill and eat.
The soldier refused, saying that the last bullet was of great value, even if it had no practical value, it had symbolic value. And even if it had no value at all, it shouldn't be used to kill a dog, it was actually meant to kill people.
The way the soldier spoke was quite intimidating, as if he wanted to use a bullet to kill everyone in the town. But everyone still came to continue listening to his speeches, until the twelfth day, when the soldier turned into a statue.
Three#
"How did it happen? What happened?"
"No one knows what happened or how it happened, but it can be said for sure that it is related to the Master of Life," the old man said. "This statue stands upright, with a gun on its shoulder. At that time, people even came to worship it, and some stone slabs were laid around it, so the square looked a little better. Later, the Republic was established, and officials came down to collect taxes and oppose superstition, and this thing gradually faded from people's memory."
"How could that be? It's a miracle."
"This soldier was a soldier of the warlords, and the government didn't mention it. We went through some crazy days. Some people wanted to smash it before."
The old man threw the cigarette butt on the ground. "Give me another one."
I handed him another cigarette, preparing to take out the lighter to light it for him, but he clipped the cigarette between his ears and stood up. "Thanks, young man. Good luck to you." Then he left.
The cigarette butt on the ground looked dirty, but I ignored it and went back to the inn.
After taking a shower, I lay on the bed and watched a comedy movie called "California Highway Patrol" on my tablet. When one male protagonist slipped and fell on the other male protagonist's naked body, there was a knock on the door.
It was the landlady. I didn't know how to refuse, so I had sex with her.
Four#
This morning, I packed my equipment and went into the forest. This notebook is left on the table in the inn. If I don't come back, please help publish it.