Chapter 16: Lacking Tact

"Mr. Dabao."

Shu Guan also called out to the old man, walking over to him.

Of course, the one crouching in front of the grave wasn't the lame man rising from his grave. It was a thin, old man with sparse, white hair. His teeth bulged prominently, and his eyes squinted faintly. When he looked at you, he would make you feel inexplicably creepy.

The old man's name was Wang Dabao, who, like the lame man, was among the oldest in the village of Taoyuan. He was also a village craftsman.

Upon hearing this title – "craftsman" – you might imagine a man who stitched fur, but that's not it. In the Huaxia from where Shu Guan had come, there used to exist such craftsmen in the rural areas. Translating the term to modern language, these craftsmen were undertakers, or those who tidy up the body and attire of the deceased before burial.

Sometimes, when someone dies due to an accident, like amputations, these craftsmen also help the dead mend their broken bodies. That is where the term "craftsman" came from.

Not just anyone could do this.

Without an exceptionally strong psychological quality, let alone stitching a dead body, even a simple body cleaning could terrify most people.

However, Wang Dabao had been doing this in the village for decades. Almost all of the dead villagers passed through his hands into the coffin, including the lame man who had died a few days earlier.

Such a man was undoubtedly brave. Young people in the village seldom called him Wang Dabao. Instead, they referred to him as "Wang Bravery."

However, as Shu Guan looked at the lame man's grave, he discovered a hint of fear in Wang Dabao's eyes.

"What's the matter, Mr. Dabao? Is something wrong?"

Shu Guan walked over to Wang Dabao and squatted next to him, right in front of the lame man's grave.

Wang Dabao turned to look at Shu Guan, then quickly shifted his gaze away, seemingly having something to say but holding back.

Shu Guan felt a pang in his heart, recalling that Wang Dabao had been trying to talk to him yesterday. However, Shu Guan dismissed it since he was still absorbed in his deep sorrow and hadn't paid attention to what Wang Dabao told him.

So, Shu Guan chuckled and said,

"Thank you, Mr. Dabao, for assisting with my grandfather's funeral. After we are done observing the traditional rites on the 10th day after his death, I'll catch a wild boar from the mountain for you."

The lame man was greatly respected and loved in Taoyuan Village. Many people spontaneously offered their assistance upon hearing of his death.

Nonetheless, Shu Guan believed he owed them for their help, so he kept their assistance in mind, preparing to return the favor one day.

Like Wang Dabao, an undertaker's labor isn't free in the village. They often receive something in return for their service.

Just because they didn't mention the payment didn't mean it wasn't owed.

However, after listening to Shu Guan's offer, Wang Dabao shook his head repeatedly.

"No, Shu Guan, that's not why I wanted to see you... It's about something else..."

Then, gritting his teeth as if to gather courage, he continued,

"There is something I should tell you. I pondered over it all night and decided that I have to let you know."

"What is it?"

"... You know... When the lame man died... I was the one who washed his body..."

At this point, Wang Dabao paused again. His breathing grew ragged, and his eyes revealed a mix of confusion and fear.

Shu Guan didn't push him, instead quietly waiting. He perceived Wang Dabao's peculiar and fearful demeanor, knowing it wouldn't be wise to press him.

However, a question floated up in Shu Guan's mind. What did Wang Dabao want to tell him?

But then he found out.

"...The lame man...The lame man... he seemed to lack a heart."

Shu Guan was taken aback.

He hadn't anticipated hearing such a thing from Wang Dabao.

'Lacks a heart' is typically used to criticize someone for being foolish.

Although the lame man was simple and naive during his lifetime, no one in Taoyuan Village would call him 'heartless.' In fact, the lame man was universally recognized as the smartest person in the village.

The expression on Wang Dabao's face didn't suggest he had come to disparage the lame man now that he had passed.

Staring at Wang Dabao, Shu Guan couldn't comprehend the meaning behind his words.

After voicing his earlier thoughts, Wang Dabao seemed to heave a relieved sigh as if he had finally divulged a deep secret. Appearing more relaxed and less uneasy, he pointed towards his left chest and spoke again.

"When I washed his body that day, I noticed that the lame man seemed to lack a heart. This spot here... it was hollow. There was nothing."

"Shu Guan, you must believe me. I've examined countless people in my life. Just by touching them, I can roughly know the positions and sizes of their internal organs. I swear, I wouldn't get it wrong!"

At that moment, Shu Guan finally understood what Wang Dabao was saying.

The first thing that flashed in his mind was the deep depression in the lame man's left chest. Shu Guan had seen the lame man's body when he bathed in the yard as a child. It was a grotesque and ugly form, especially the left chest that caved in. The deepest part of the depression was just a finger's width away from his back.

Such a chest, indeed, does not seem like it could house a normal heart.

Yet Shu Guan had never considered this before, as it's impossible for someone to live without a heart.

At this moment, he forced a laugh and said to Wang Dabao:

"Maybe grandpa's heart was on the other side."

He pointed to his right chest.

"Mr. Dabao, you might not know, some people's hearts are on the right side..."

"No, I do know, I've seen people like that."

Wang Dabao directly interrupted Shu Guan's words.

"So I've checked Lame's whole body. His liver, spleen, stomach, kidneys, none have a problem, except for... his heart."

When he got to the end, Wang Dabao's voice trembled again, but his tone was exceptionally firm.

Shu Guan's body stiffened.

For a moment, it was so quiet in front of Old Lame's tomb that you could hear a pin drop.

Wang Dabao did not speak again, and Shu Guan also remained silent.

Shu Guan didn't think Wang Dabao was lying to him, there was no need for it, and he didn't think Wang Dabao could be wrong. After all, on this matter, Wang Dabao was a professional, a craftsman who had worked for decades. It was very simple and easy for him to identify the internal organs of a dead person.

So, it's probably true that Old Lame really didn't have a heart in his body.

After a long time, it was finally Wang Dabao who spoke again.

"Mole, do you think a person can live without a heart?"

Shu Guan did not answer Wang Dabao, because he could not.

Yes, can a person live without a heart?

He was recalling some things from his previous life. In the era of the earth he traveled from, indeed, there were many people who had their entire heart removed due to heart disease and could still live. But that was because they used artificial hearts to replace them.

In the earth of 2045, this wasn't a complicated surgery.

But when it comes to people who were born without a heart, after thinking for a long time, Shu Guan couldn't recall any record or report of such a case, even on the odd news websites he often browsed.

A person without a heart naturally cannot live.

But if a person cannot live, can he die?

Shu Guan silently stared at Old Lame's tomb.

Seeing this, Wang Dabao stood up and spoke the final words somberly.

"Lame's older than me by over a decade. When I was a child, I would often follow him up the mountains… Back then, I always felt that Lame was different from the rest of us."

After saying this, Wang Dabao left.

Perhaps he just needed someone to share the secret he had discovered, and in Taoyuan Village, no one was more suited to hearing this secret than Shu Guan.

Shu Guan did not accompany Wang Dabao. He remained crouched, in a daze.

He was still reminiscing.

But instead of recalling his previous life, he was recalling the days of this life when he shared a bed with Old Lame as a child.

Until he was three years old, Shu Guan had always shared a bed with Old Lame, especially during the times when Shu Guan's sores had not healed. Old Lame would hold him in his arms to sleep.

A normal child would naturally have no memories of the days shortly after birth.

But Shu Guan was no normal child, his memories of those days were very clear.

Every night he would lie in Old Lame's warm embrace, falling asleep to the sound of his snores.

But in that warm embrace, he had never heard the sound of a heartbeat.

Before, Shu Guan didn't realize this was unusual, as in those months, he was constantly in tremendous pain.

Now that he thought about it, he realized.

Shu Guan suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.

At the same time, an urge surged from the depths of his heart.

The urge to dig up Old Lame's grave!