Shan Yu

Not long after everything stopped, silence filled the atmosphere in an instant, but suddenly there was a loud baby crying, a sound that made Huang Xie aunt weaken her embrace to Shan Yu, Shan Yu turned her aunt once and saw her aunt smiling widely and happily, but her aunt's smile slowly disappeared because of the astonishment of this silence.

Another aunt came out and whispered something to Huang Xie's aunt, and that something made Huang Xie's aunt shudder like a small electric shock, Huang Xie's aunt turned to little Shan Yu who was curious about what happened, Huang Xie's aunt's panicked and worried face, she tried to stay calm, but suddenly.

"AARRRGHHHH, WHY? WHY ARE YOU LEAVING, WHY NOT ME? WHY? WHYYY?"

Shan Yu was frightened and panicked to hear her father shouting, she felt something strange, something like, something like this was not the father she used to know, the father who usually spoke softly and warmly, without ever shouting harshly at all.

Aunt Huang Xie held the panicked and frightened Shan Yu tightly, while covering her ears, hoping that Shan Yu would feel calm, but instead, little Shan Yu was constantly haunted by curiosity, until she finally realized the fact that her father also died by suicide, a few days after her mother died.

Shan Yu is devastated by the loss of the two people who played an important role and meant everything to her, the two people who raised her, the two people who taught her to eat, the two people who taught her to walk and the manners of life, the two people who were with her and then they finally witnessed their own death.

Grandpa Ming Qi couldn't do much for Shan Yu's reaction, the other aunts also agreed to take care of the two of them together, Shan Yu who used to be cheerful is now often pensive when eating at her house, Wu Ming Qi also often returns to his son's house to take care of Shan Yu, while the infant Wu Liang is left to Ao Mei's aunt.

Wu Liang, Wu Shan Yu's names were deliberately not inserted by Ming and were given because their relationship to Ming's grandfather had been severed, but in terms of blood relatives they were still the grandchildren of Wu Ming Qi, their names given by Ming Qi himself when he had his epiphany while scattering his son's ashes on the edge of the ravine at the end of the village side.

Just some distance from where Shan Yu was walking slowly now, there was a simple wooden house with a few plants hanging from the ropes that tied these clay pots between the wooden bones of the roof of the terrace, from the right side of the terrace there was a small flower arrangement that decorated the empty courtyard under the window of the house's room.

The owner of this house is Wu Shang Wei, she is the younger sister of Shang Ci, Shang Wei is an old woman who takes care of the clothing department assisted by several other women in this village, they always work hard at the end of each month, especially when the snowy cold period approaches, thick clothes made from sheep that they use during the snowy cold period cannot be used during the next snowy cold period, so making thick and warm clothes is an annual bill for her for the Wu tribe.

"Excuse me, aunt Shang Wei, it's me Huang Xie"

Wu Huang Xie, a middle-aged woman dressed like Wu Shan Yu, only darker in color and accessorized with a necklace with a small crescent-shaped wooden carved hanger, wrapped around her neck, displaying a slightly wrinkled look on her face due to age and hair that was still tied up from this morning, a slightly fatty body that were still nice and healthy.

A few moments later, there were soft footsteps on the wood leading to the outer door, out came an older woman with many wrinkles on her face and half-whitened hair tied in a bun and a smaller body and a little stooped from sitting most of the time, she was wearing a dark blue outfit combined with a white shawl hanging around her waist and a black rope tied around her head typical of the Wu tribe for the elderly.

"How did my clothes turn out aunt?"

"It's done, just wait a moment for me to get it"

While waiting for the results of her outfit, Aunt Huang took a small walk and looked at the flower bouquet to her left, before finally returning to her original spot as she heard Grandma Shang's footsteps heading out.

"Here you go, no need to change for this, my family is grateful to be able to eat your delicious bread every day"

"Ah, you're too kind aunt, I'll give you more bonus tomorrow"

"No need, we are family and we should help each other"

A neatly folded pure white dress with light blue scratch embroidery was handed over to Aunt Huang as well as a special white headband for the ancestor-honoring ceremony, all of them prepared in their respective outfits for Wu Jin Fei's arrival as well as preparing for their holy and sacred event, which is held once a full moon.

Honoring one's ancestors means being grateful for the sacrifices made and the merits passed down, of course, and wearing clean clothes symbolizes a clean soul and has a deep symbolic meaning to the Wu family.

White symbolizes the purity of actions based on the heart and thoughts, and a good soul will make other souls good too, the consequences of the moral results and actions carried out by the descendants now are believed to have an impact on the soul of the ancestors, so the elders require to always do good to others and maintain cleanliness and purity.

Blue symbolizes the sky which is the first view that the Wu Tribe sees every day every morning while living on the Mountain, the light blue sky symbolizes freedom and breadth in actions and deeds to be done, the darker the blue the better and higher the value for the Wu tribe, darker blue means a person who has gone through a lot of experience until the experience fills and sticks to his soul, darker blue can also mean a dark sky due to evil thoughts that come out of the head.

The headband means to restrain evil thoughts from escaping the soul and contaminating the surroundings, all actions and deeds performed are indeed liberated but this is inseparable from the concept that every action is the implementation of the mind, the head is believed to be the main place for thinking, so obviously the circular headband is chosen for this, the additional rectangular shape manifests that thoughts are free in all directions.

"You look so happy, auntie? Shouldn't you look tired?"

"Should i?, but actually Wu Jin Fei brought me new spinning and sewing tools, our work will be lighter and faster hehehe"

Auntie laughed slightly by covering her mouth with her right hand, while her left hand was crossed behind her body.

"Ah that kid, it's like he forgot who he owes, the bread he always stole as a child has now made him grow up"

Aunt Huang sighed then shook her head lightly.

"Uh yes!, what about Wu Liang's condition?"

"My son and Shan Yu said, Wu Liang should be awake by now, the opening in his scalp is enough to make my son work extra, fortunately his head is not badly damaged let alone cracked"

"Hufhh, thank goodness that child survived until now, that child is similar to Wu Jin Fei, the only thing different thats he didn't steal hehehe"

"Hehehe you're words funny, I'm afraid if he really stole my bread, as a result he must help his sister for a whole week without any wages"

The two laughed quietly, before Huang Xie's aunt finally excused herself to continue her personal activities at home.

Grandma Shang Wei paused for a moment and thought about whoever had taken her clothes today.

"Uhh, did the old man forget his clothes, ah that's she, Shan Yu... come here"

"yeah yes, duh.., I forgot about the clothes"

Shan Yu who happened to pass by to go home was immediately noticed by Shang's grandmother who was on the terrace.

"Grandma, I'm sorry I almost forgot the clothes"

"It's okay, tomorrow's a busy day so you bakers must be even busier, it's only natural to forget"

"Grandma, you're the busiest one in the village, making bread is easier than making clothes for us"

"You little bastard, why don't you just accept my compliments, I'm a little upset, wait a minute let me get the clothes first"

"Hehehe, sorry grandma"

Shan Yu looked at the field on her right which was being filled with decorative natural figures arranged by his uncles, on her left she saw the house next to Shang Wei's grandmother's house, namely Wu Lin Yiu's aunt's house, and further away was the path climbing up the slope of the Wu tribe village.

"Shan Yu, here are the clothes, you and your brother don't need to change, just tell to that old man to remember his debt to grandma."

An annoyed expression was knitted on the wrinkled face at the mention of Wu Ming Qi's figure, making her face even more wrinkled and sour.

"Ah yes, Shan Yu will definitely remind grandpa, have grandma visited Lin Yiu's aunt?"

"Already, this morning her condition has improved, you go visit her, she must be happy and her happiness will make her better"

"Ng, thank you very much grandma, I'll take my leave"

Shan Yu cupped her hands and bowed, then turned to say goodbye to Lin Yiu's aunt's house beside her.