Not long after the Yangtze River floods in 1998 dissipated, a figure was walking on the mountain road in the distance.
The man was wearing a sheepskin jacket on a hot day and carrying a basket on his back as he climbed up the mountain.
People nearby would call him out when they saw him, "Have you eaten Xiang Jun's meal?" As for him, when he met someone he knew, he would shout "Okay, okay." When he met someone he didn't know, he would look up to the sky. look. Several times when I raised my head, the dust in my hair fell into my eyes.
Xiang Jun is none other than the most famous and only beggar in Junshan Town.
Celebrities in Junshan Town
There were no beggars in Junshan Town. Junshan is not a poor place. There are all kinds of birds in the woods on the mountain, which can be hunted and eaten. Even during the "Three Years of Natural Disasters", no one starved to death in the town.
When there was famine in the past, people would go to the mountains to dig wild vegetables to control the number of wild animals. Rabbits and wild boars in the mountains once came out of the mountains and caused harm to crops. The town organized several waves of hunting teams and was able to barely control the danger of the wild beasts. In this small town, everyone's daily routine is to go to work in the fields at dawn and go home to eat and sleep at dusk.
Xiang Jun is different from everyone else. He wandered on the streets while everyone was working, and went to the mountains to sing while everyone was sleeping.
actually had a family a long time ago. During the flood of 1998, my family's earthen house collapsed. We had no money to repair it, so it stayed in place to dry out. As time went by, the wind and sun exposed the house, and the old courtyard left by Xiang Jun's parents became completely uninhabitable. Xiang Jun became a savage without a fixed residence, and naturally lost his due social status in the village.
A tiger is bullied by a dog, let alone a homeless homeless man. In towns and villages, it is not individuals but villages that are powerful. That village has a large population, and the words spoken by the people in the village carry weight. Whichever family has more children, the parents will have the confidence to go out.
Xiang Jun has no parents or brothers. He has enough to eat and the whole family is not hungry. In Junshan Town, a small society where status is determined by population, Xiang Jun is at the lowest level.
Soon even primary school students came to play with Xiang Jun.
"Xiang Jun is crazy, Xiang Jun is smiling, Xiang Jun is here and the baby is running away." A group of children saw a beggar coming and sang a jingle in unison. "The eldest girl runs away, the second girl chases after her, and the thief frowns when he sees it."
has long been used to being teased by children, so Xiang Jun was neither anxious nor blushing. It's true that the thief didn't steal from him. There are only a few thieves in small places. Even if they pick shit, they won't look for Xiang Jun's idea. The most valuable thing on his body is the basket on his back.
This is not a beggar, Xiang Jun is a well-known figure in Junshan Town. If you ask who the county magistrate is, no one will know. If you ask who Xiang Jun is. All children who have gone to elementary school know this.
Parents of students often use Xiang Jun to scare their children.
"If you don't study hard, follow Xiang Jun to pick up manure!" The little boy shook his head and went to do his homework obediently.
"If you are naughty and mischievous, I will marry you to Xiang Jun when you grow up and beg for food from him every day!" The girl will definitely be honest for a while after hearing this. In the eyes of a child, this person is both fun and scary.
There was even a time when the dogs in the town liked to play with Xiang Jun. Xiangjun was not very popular with the people in the town because he had nothing to do, but Gouzi recognized him as the boss. He also happily walked around with three or two dogs.
In spring and summer, cats and dogs bark one after another in the town. Xiang Jun took his canine brother to seduce the town residents' domestic dogs. The dog on the leash was spinning in circles. The free-range dog in the courtyard was inadvertently lured away by Xiang Jun. He often takes pleasure in this, but he does not kill and eat meat. From the current point of view, this dog-headed boss has not yet killed dogs.
Xiang Jun once did something that shocked the whole town.
One year, the town was preparing to repair the mountain temple, and the host and his apprentice went door to door to collect donations. But villages in remote places are not wealthy. For things like building temples and accumulating merit, everyone supports them based on their own circumstances.
You have a pound of rice and I have two spoons of oil. If you really don’t have anything, you can help out for a few days, and if the situation is better, you can pay a few yuan.It took two or three months of this to collect enough money for repairs.
On the day of the groundbreaking ceremony, Xiang Jun came to the site wearing his torn sheepskin coat. He wears a big red flower on his chest. Some people saw the beggar coming and wanted to drive him away. Xiang Junjun was a bit stupid but not weak in strength. He pushed away the young man who blocked him.
Xiang Jun took out a brown ticket from his dirty arms - the old version of five yuan. After kowtowing to the mountain god several times, he very carefully put the money into the merit box.
then walked to the square and stood with everyone. Seeing Xiang Jun squeezing over, some people stepped back. Seeing that there was still room to squeeze in, Xiang Jun leaned closer to the crowd.
The dense crowd crowded together, and the long stool in the middle was pulled down. Almost crushed someone. Everyone's emotions came out of the surprise just now.
People praise Xiang Jun for being so domineering and pious to the gods. But in my heart I thought he was stupid. After such a squeeze, everyone's remaining goodwill towards him was completely gone.
What was the local concept of five yuan in the 1990s? At that time, a pile of matches cost 2 cents, a pound of kerosene cost 50 cents, and a pound of grain cost 30 cents. No one knows where Xiang Jun got so much money.
There have been droughts every year in recent years, and every family has run out of food. It just so happens that every family has four or five children waiting to be fed. There is really not much money left to build the temple. However, Xiang Jun's "oil and water" was so rich, everyone was amazed.
Xiang Jun is really poor.
Xiang Jun does not stay in Junshan Town all year round. Every winter he would go south to Sichuan and go to the city to beg for food. Before leaving, he wore a torn sheepskin coat, climbed a mountain road that was rarely used by people, took two broken bowls, and sat in meditation in front of his parents' graves for an afternoon.
After a long time, some second-rate people followed him and watched his jokes. Sometimes he was coaxed to kowtow to his parents underground. Xiang Jun would occasionally get angry and yell at them, saying words that no one could understand.
The second-rate kids on the street spread the rumor that Xiang Jun had been to Chengdu and slept in a big guest house. Only no one has verified the authenticity of this matter. .
Only idle people would ask about such things. Even if I knew this was true, I wouldn't even bother to do it. For this remote rural area in Sichuan Arctic. Relying on God for food is the most important and traditional way of living.
Everyone said that Xiang Jun's decline into what he is today has nothing to do with him being lazy and lazy.
Look at him, he has never planted any crops in the fields over the years. Are farmers who don’t know how to grow crops still farmers? Can a farmer who doesn't know how to grow crops still get a wife?
In rural China in the 1990s, the status of bachelors was much lower than that of widows. The new society has gone through nearly fifty years, and new people have grown up one after another. The concept of "There are three types of unfilial piety, the greatest is not having children" has not changed.
During the crackdown ten years ago, I heard from the older generation that Xiang Jun’s parents were taken away by the county and never came back. Xiang Jun, who became an orphan, had no one to take care of him and spent all day playing outside. It’s so pitiful to have a homeless baby.
came to persuade me that I don’t know how to cook.
Later, the food stored at home was exhausted, and there was no food left in the stomach. I had to go from house to house begging for food. At first, the neighbors and villagers helped him a little, but then they no longer wanted to give him food or drink.
When Xiang Jun was hungry, he asked his neighbors for food. The neighbor got annoyed and closed the door when he came and said nothing. After doing this three or five times, Xiang Jun rarely found neighbors who had rejected him. In order to fill his stomach, he had to go to villages further away. Xiang Jun often carries a broken bowl with one side missing and a pair of chopsticks made of wicker. Over the next three to five years, he knocked on every door in the town.
Xiangjun knocks on the door and is different from others. Others knock twice first and then shout. Xiang Jun knocked on the door three times, each time longer and harder. Thump-thump-thump. A heavy knock on the door sometimes wakes a sleeping baby. Gradually, the name of the beggar Xiangjun became an unlucky symbol in Junshan Town.
Of course, Xiang Jun also has his fill of food and drink.After the household responsibility system was implemented, banquets began to be held for weddings and weddings in the town. At this time, the host family who comes to beg for food is not allowed to chase away people. Even if there is no contribution money, guests can still burn incense, kowtow, and express congratulations or condolences. In the years of the 1980s, the children in the town gradually reached the age of marriage. There are weddings almost every month. When Xiang Jun saw the bride, he imitated the person carrying the sedan chair, and when he saw the groom, he imitated the bride's kiss. At this time, Junshan Town was full of joy.
Speaking of mourning, Xiang Jun is also good at it. In which family an old man passed away? In addition to close relatives wearing sackcloth and filial piety, crying uncontrollably, Xiang Jun would also join in the fun. The sound of crying is not loud, but he will twitch when he cries, which makes people look very sad. Because of this kind of work, occasionally people would ask Xiang Jun to mourn after their deceased mother died. He is responsive to requests. In addition to taking care of the food, the master also gave Xiang Jun a lot of good things.
When he was young, Xiang Jun had nothing to do but eat and drink. I can’t go to school or farm. After eating and drinking, I went to the vegetable garden to pick sprouts. In summer, I went to the melon field to steal watermelons. In less than two years, Xiang Jun became a well-known little thief in Junshan Town.
Xiang Jun likes to eat beets. He never picked other vegetables, only beets. Beet leaves are not sweet. Xiang Jun picked up the beet leaves and put them directly into his mouth without washing them. After eating, he lay down on the ground to rest. The belly is bulging, like a half-sized balloon.
Xiang Jun is particularly particular about stealing melons. He never picks small melons. Instead, he digs a hole in a ripe melon, then sticks a long spoon in to get out the heart. After eating, close the melon rind again. Seeing the big ripe watermelon suffering like this, the melon farmer wanted to catch him and beat him up.
One year, the town was assigned the task of cracking down on organized crime. The melon farmers united to report Xiang Jun. The police station knew that Xiang Jun was just a little thief, not yet a gangster.
There had been no major or special cases in the town for many years, and there was no good candidate, so we had to "invite" Xiang Jun to make up the number. The police car roared and pulled Xiang Jun into the county seat. The people in the town were happy.
We are all simple working people. We should not see anyone doing nothing and wandering on the street while others are working hard. As a model of public security, Xiang Jun particularly meets the county's conditions.
was taken away by people from the county this time, which not only solved the problem of lunatics being left unattended, but also helped the town reduce an offending target.
The owl cooed in the tree at night. Without Xiangjun's "singing" at night, the nightlife in the town is a bit boring. The night is much quieter without the madman. A year later, Xiangjun returned. Everyone thought that locking him down for a while would kill his arrogance. However, Xiang Jun, who came back from the county, did become richer.
The leather jacket he had worn for many years was gone. Wearing a plain, old-style military coat, he looked somewhat heroic.
Xiang Jun was not yet eighteen years old this year. After returning from the line, Xiang Jun seemed to have seen something in the market and gained status among the idlers in the town.
"Xiangjun, Xiangjun, let me tell everyone about the things in the city." There were people in the town square, and another group of old people were playing chess next to them. Hearing that these idlers came to make fun of Xiang Jun again, the chess pieces in his hands stopped, waiting to see Xiang Jun's joke.
"In the city, that's good. A girl in the city, that's good."
Xiang Jun's experience is new to the folks in the closed Junshan Town. There are more than 30,000 people in the town. Except for the mayor and a few brigade directors, no one goes to the county seat. The cost of one round trip is enough to feed and drink a family of seven for two days.
As time goes by, the little new things about Xiang Jun are no longer new. Everyone dispersed.
Generally speaking, the biggest change in Xiang Jun after entering the city is that he no longer does petty theft. He changed his way of life and began to support himself on the right path.
Xiang Jun got a house by accident
At first he dismissed the dung pickers, but now Xiang Jun carries a basket on his back and joins the army of dung pickers. There are only so many people in Junshan Town, and every house has a latrine.
Even if I have something in my stomach, I have to wait until I get home before I can take it out. As for the horse dung, cow dung and sheep dung on the road, of course there are shepherds who clean it up.When you are herding cattle or sheep, bring a basket or something like that and you can pick up a lot of excrement throughout the day.
This is Xiang Jun’s first time working to support himself. Everyone in Junshan Town was shocked. The people in the county have many methods, and this disease of laziness can also be cured.
Isn't that right? Picking up excrement is just a bit dirty, but at least you can have something to eat. The people in the town looked at Xiang Jun with interest. He was carrying a basket and a broken shovel. I walk up and down the main road in the town every day, hoping to find something good.
After working for Xiang Jun for a while, he didn't pick up anything valuable. Xiang Jun also lost motivation. Picking up excrement is worse than going out to beg for food.
During the great flood of 1998, Xiang Jun was almost thirty years old. This is an extremely old bachelor in the town. The babies of his peers who were born with him all ran around. Xiang Jun still wore a tattered cotton-padded jacket and walked around with a canvas bag on his back.
The elderly people shook their heads and sighed when they saw Xiang Jun. This child's life is too hard. The old people had some sympathy for him.
When the women in the town saw Xiang Jun passing by their house, they quickly told their children to go home and closed the door tightly. When the children saw Xiang Jun after school, they would make up some children's songs to entertain him.
Xiang Jun likes children very much. When he has money, he will buy some gadgets to lure children to play with him. After a few times, those children were spanked by their parents. A single man without a home or a serious job is a risk factor. Boys and girls are incapable of distinguishing. He simply warned his children not to play with that beggar.
Just like that, the children who used to play with Xiang Jun also stayed away from him.
Xiang Jun likes to sing. His singing is as beguiling as that of a witch. At the beginning, Xiangjun sang the moon and the sun. The heavy rain in the summer of 1998 destroyed the old house left by Xiang Jun's parents. The mud-tile house built with loess before the founding of the People's Republic of China could no longer withstand the impact of heavy rains.
From then on, if Xiang Jun had to get food in the town, the land at home would have become a wasteland, and the mugwort in the land could be used to raise goats.
This year Xiang Jun left Junshan Town carrying his dung basket.
For several years, the residents of the town could no longer hear the ghostly crying songs in the middle of the night. Children in primary school have lost the joy of having fun.
Xiang Jun’s courtyard has long been classified as a dangerous building by the government. In 2007, the county comprehensively implemented poverty alleviation policies. Xiang Jun became the star demonstration project in the town.
When the new young mayor heard Xiang Jun's experience, he felt very sad and immediately offered to include him as a five-guarantee household.
In this way, middle-aged Xiang Jun enjoys the same treatment as an 80-year-old man. Xiang Jun moved into a new house surrounded by the enthusiasm of the town. In exchange, his homestead was taken back by the town and sold to residents of the same village.
early summer 2010. New houses have been built along the river banks in Junshan Town. The gray tiles and white walls are really beautiful. Xiang Jun is the first resident to move in. If he hadn't encountered the good policy of " Poverty Alleviation ", he might still be wandering around.
