Free Web NovelChapter 760: Chapter 575: Celebrating Longevity
As the procession approached, Yang Xiao and his companions could finally see clearly: it was a group of people carrying red lanterns, eerily emerging from the dense fog, ghost-like, with a large square wooden sign held in the middle, half the height of a man, inscribed with a bright red "Longevity."
"Longevity sign." Xiang Fengchen recognized the sign and the origin of the procession, "Someone is celebrating a birthday."
"In the middle of the night?" Nalan Shuo frowned slightly.
"Yes, who celebrates a birthday at this hour?" someone behind chimed in. Indeed, although they could not determine the exact time now, the night was deep, and no ordinary family would celebrate a birthday at such an hour.
Moreover, a birthday procession should be joyous and lively, with music and drumming, the more auspicious, the better, to beckon good luck. However, this procession exuded a chilling aura of death, which did not seem like a celebration but rather a funeral.
"Meet soldiers with generals and water with earth; let’s not panic. First, do not open the door and see what those folks outside want to do," Nalan Shuo took the lead. "Do not respond unless Mr. Xiang or I speak first, beware of being tricked by the Ghost General."
"Are you saying this group is here to claim lives?" Gong Banlan could hardly hold together, "Could there be something wrong with this temple?"
The rest did not bother with the school academic director; discussing the temple’s issues was pointless now, as they had already entered, and there wasn’t another choice. The area was bare, with only vast riverbanks and endless dense fog; they could either freeze lost in the fog or enter the temple to warm up.
It was too late to leave now; the birthday procession had already reached their doors. They could only take things step by step now; if it came down to it, they would sacrifice one person, depending on their luck. Everyone here was an old hand and understood the situation.
Listening to the rustling footsteps outside, everyone inside the temple tightened their faces, silent, uncertain if the bonfire behind them had given away their position.
In an instant, the wet firewood in the fire occasionally burst into crackling sounds, constantly stirring everyone’s minds under the silent night.
The next second, a loud "bang" came from outside, and the procession neatly split in the middle. Four men dressed in black, like those carrying a sedan chair, brought forward a heavy Taishi Chair, placing it about 5 meters from the temple door, directly facing it.
"The Longevity Envoy has arrived—"
A leading man suddenly shouted, his drake-like voice echoing in the night, jarring everyone’s ears.
Everyone saw clearly; there was nothing on the chair, let alone a person. Yang Xiao couldn’t help but suspect that perhaps an invisible ghost was sitting there.
The other party dared not enter; perhaps this was the ghost’s method of killing. Anyone who responded would be dragged out, either bewildered or ultimately, the result was the same – they would be tied to the chair and taken away, disappearing from the world.
Seeing everyone else’s reactions confirmed Yang Xiao’s guess; everyone remained silent, afraid of being taken as a scapegoat.
What he didn’t expect was that this group outside was not so easily dismissed. Seeing no one responded, they directly stepped forward, pushed open the temple door, and in an instant, cold wind mixed with fog surged in. The team outside stood grimly, each with a cold expression, staring dead at them. The next second, a figure stepped through the temple door—it was the leading man.
First, he stepped aside to avoid the direction directly facing the chair, then the leading man shouted again towards Yang Xiao and his group, his voice even sharper.
"The Longevity Envoy has arrived—"
Hearing this, the people present were somewhat at a loss. Suddenly, Xiang Fengchen, leading the group, "thumped" down on his knees, bowing to the empty Taishi Chair and mimicking the leading man’s tone, called out: "Move in threes, walk in threes, borrowing this sacred land, honoring this temple, welcoming the Longevity Envoy—"
Following his lead, everyone knelt down and, imitating Xiang Fengchen’s tone, called out. frёewebηovel.cѳm
Seeing this, the leading man’s expression eased slightly while he stood up straight and continued chanting, "Sun and Moon Bright, Long Years of Pine Age, one bucket of quilt, unbeatable Changyi." ƒreewebɳovel.com
"Long Years of Pine Age, Nine hundred years of peaches and plums, offering Nanshan’s longevity, Qi Year’s Richness." Xiang Fengchen immediately continued the chant.
Unbeknownst to them, the leading man sneered, "Nine hundred years is too late; the long years of pine age span, stretching over three thousand years, year after year like today."
Upon hearing this, Xiang Fengchen quickly replied, "The words of the Longevity Envoy are precious, the threshold of the Shou family is high, the riches and honors of the floating clouds are not what I desire; I only wish the roots of the Shou family remain strong."
"Riches need not be mentioned, a thousand gold taels remain in the treasury, ten thousand silver taels do not catch my eye; the star of longevity sits high on the Jade Platform, pours and drinks himself to sever worries."
"The incense of the Shou family endures; the fortune of the Shou family extends long; year after year, the body remains strong; as the years of age grow, may the spring grass rejuvenate; I wish to be a swallows that remains at the door, carrying incense into the family’s threshold," Xiang Fengchen again bowed deeply to the Taishi Chair, his sense of ceremony profound, unwilling to rise for a long time.
Through these exchanges, Yang Xiao also discerned some of the underlying principles; the two were engaging in a "duet of greetings", a jargon known as antiphonal singing. Despite the leading man continually suppressing Xiang Fengchen, contradicting each statement, he was actually quite pleased with the responses of the old world of martial arts veteran.
This was a ritual during the longevity celebration, where the attendees extended auspicious words, while the stewards dispatched by the host family, also known as Longevity Envoys, continually suppressed the auspicious words spoken by the guests. The implication was to glorify and exhibit wealth, indicating that the auspicious words spoken by the guests were not sufficient in the eyes of the host family, whose status and wealth were even greater.
Unexpectedly, Yang Xiao found himself embroiled in such proceedings, inwardly shocked, grateful that Xiang Fengchen, the veteran of the world of martial arts, was leading; otherwise, the event might not have ended smoothly.
The subtleties and taboo topics within these scripted responses were numerous; answering incorrectly might lead to being expelled at the least, or at worst, facing retaliation after the longevity feast concluded. This was no trivial matter; ruining the celebratory mood of both the longevity star and the Shou family was not something a simple apology could amend.
After a series of responses, the guests finally revealed their purpose; Yang Xiao and his companions had been invited as filial guests. Filial guests were individuals invited to represent others in performing filial duties on special occasions. Generally, only those without descendants or interrupted lineages would invite filial guests. If blessed with many children and grandchildren and yet filial guests were still invited, the younger generations would be criticized as unfilial.
Indeed, after some probing through the industry-jargon by Xiang Fengchen, it was discovered that the elderly person celebrating their longevity had outlived all their children, and their purpose in inviting them today was to have them impersonate the children and celebrate in front of the elderly person.
At that moment, Yang Xiao recalled the silk cloth he carried on him; on the back of the silk was a vibrant red "Longevity" character, which appeared to be an invitation of sorts.
"Longevity Envoy, dare I ask if the longevity star’s situation is ’South Star North Move, West River East Flow’?" After standing up, Xiang Fengchen, with the demeanor of a grandmaster, cupped his hands toward the leading man while lowering his voice.
This question was tactfully phrased; ’South Star North Move, West River East Flow’ were both inauspicious signs suggesting that good times were coming to an end. In other words, it was an indirect inquiry about whether the elderly person was nearing the end of their life, as celebrating longevity at this particular hour was certainly not about affirming stability but about surmounting it.
In ancient times, every notable age was considered a trial or tribulation. The old saying goes that celebrating longevity is like crossing a threshold, with the notable thresholds being the ages of 73 and 84, which were the ages at which Confucius and Mengzi passed away respectively.
For those who revered the teachings of Confucius and Mengzi, these were significant hurdles in the later years of one’s life, hurdles that many elderly could not surpass without external aid to push through.
Particularly for those elderly without children, such individuals were usually considered exhausted of fortune, very ominous. The difficulty of crossing these thresholds was significantly greater.
The method to overcome this involved finding someone to "impersonate" children to celebrate their longevity, thereby deceiving heaven and earth, and showing that they had descendants, thus fortunate roots.
This was called "surmounting" longevity.
Indeed, upon hearing Xiang Fengchen’s words, the Longevity Envoy did not conceal anything and immediately responded, "The longevity star has their own path of fortune and prosperity; within the Fushou Manor, fortune is generated."
Hearing this, everyone understood; this was an indirect acknowledgment that the current health of the old longevity star was indeed poor.
"Dare I ask how old the longevity star is currently?" Xiang Fengchen asked the most crucial question of the night, inquiring about the elderly person’s age.
But the next second, the leading man bowed, pointing towards the horizon, "Reaching sixty plus thirty-seven more years, celebrating double rarity, seizing another spring and autumn once again."
"Dare I ask how old the longevity star is currently?" Xiang Fengchen asked the most crucial question of the night, inquiring about the elderly person’s age.
But the next second, the leading man bowed, pointing towards the horizon, "Reaching sixty plus thirty-seven more years, celebrating double rarity, seizing another spring and autumn once again."
