As the demolition of Sanzhao Village in Xi'an came to an end, Yang Xiaoxu, a shaving smith who temporarily lived in the village, was anxious: "I have to move my nest again." He couldn't remember the first time he changed his residence, the villages in the city were demolished less and less, Yang Xiaoxu's range of activities was getting smaller and smaller, and the ancestral shaving skills were facing difficulties, and he had to find a way to deal with them.
Yang Xiaoxu is 55 years old this year, a native of Yangzhuang Township, Chang'an District, whose ancestors shaved their heads for three generations. At the age of 15, he followed his uncle to Xi'an, and his footprints spread throughout the southern suburbs of Beichitou, Miaopotou, Xinkaimen, Iron Furnace Temple, Chunlin Village, Qujiangchi and other villages, with the Yang family's exquisite ancient shaving skills and generous personality, he won a group of repeat customers and gained a foothold in the south of the city. Relying on a pair of shaved heads, Yang Xiaoxu not only supported himself, but also married a daughter-in-law and provided for a pair of children.
As the saying goes, "Shave your head and pick a hot head". The traditional shaved head picker is made of a stove and a bench by a flat shoulder, which is made of brass, with hot water on the top and charcoal on the bottom, and a charcoal fire that can burn all day. The bench is a rosewood drawer stool, under the stool there are three layers of drawers, respectively, for change, faders, grinding stones. The shaved head pick used by Yang Xiaoxu was made in the 30th year of the Republic of China and has a history of 80 years, and is an heirloom of the Yang family.
Shave your head by hand and squeeze the fader in one hand to complete the whole way. Pay attention to "light, fast, clean": start lightly, the pusher can not rub to the customer's scalp; the action should be fast, the pusher is over, the hair stubble is the whole end; the work should be clean, do not leave stray stubble. Hand-shaved head only shave "flat head", "split head", "old electricity" (bald head), "pot lid", Yang Xiaoxu's customers, shave "old electricity" the most, especially in the summer, "light gourd" has become the "standard" of rural elderly people. Master Yang shaved the "old electricity" is exquisite, first push the hair, use a hot towel to smother the head, wait for the scalp to be hot and then put on the razor, "eight vertical nine horizontal and three turns", five minutes to scrape out an "old electricity". He divides the customer's head shape into five types: "round ball", "square", "date core", "poured pear", and "gourd", and when he looks at the head shape, he knows how to start and is familiar with the road.
In addition to shaving the head, pulling out the ears is also the service content, Master Yang set the ears without ear digging spoon, but with a homemade ear knife, when pulling out, carefully insert the tip of the knife into the ear hole, and then quickly rotate and stir, the blade will clean the earwax at the same time, will also scratch the ear wall to produce a burst of pleasure, so that customers feel comfortable. "Old Yang, you get the drip, the brother is very comfortable with the drop!" Hearing the praise of customers, Yang Xiaoxu was happy, the small business was maintained by word of mouth, and people felt that they would come back next time. In the urban village, customers come to his stall to shave their heads, more to enjoy the process, chatting, shampooing, shaving their heads, shaving their faces, beating their backs, plucking their ears... The picture is a comfort.
Yang Xiaoxu believes that the manual shaving technology is not complicated, mainly in experience, each family has its own characteristics and unique skills, he insists on going out of the stall every day, maintaining "hand skill", the shaving head is most afraid of stopping work, a stop work hand is born, how much money is not important, the key is to have business, there are people on the stall.
The shaver wants to survive, but he can't rely on his craft alone, but he also has to be a man. Yang Xiaoxu is a person with a heart, he will remember the name, personality, hobbies, etc. of each regular customer, shave the head of the customer at the same time, gossip, talk about the things that people are interested in, say what people like to hear, and try to make customers happy. Some people have shaved their heads here in Yang Xiaoxu for 30 years, and they have become friends with each other, and wherever his shaved head picker goes, customers follow him. Yang Xiaoxu cherishes these old relationships, they are their own food and clothing parents, each of them dare not slack off, serious service.
The shaving head walks the rivers and lakes, there is no fixed place to live, there is no fixed point for food, and Yang Xiaoxu still maintains the habit of eating two meals a day. Shaved head picker is a typical mobile vendor, often driven by the city management and extortion, as well as picky customers to find stubble, wronged is the norm, but the craftsman's livelihood can not be stalled without income, in order to make a living, Yang Xiaoxu silently endured many troubles. Not to outsiders.
2 years ago, Yang Xiaoxu wanted to recruit an apprentice to play a hand, but no one responded. Can't recruit apprentices, the son doesn't want to learn, the three generations of family shaving skills can't be passed on, Lao Yang is very lost, "This craft has a lot of roads and exquisiteness, are summed up by the predecessors, lost is really sorry for the ancestors." ”
Shaving heads, as a traditional folk craft, bears witness to the way of life and folk culture of a time when people are today, in the suburbs and rural areas, there are still some nostalgic customers who are willing to patronize mobile shaving stalls. Yang Xiaoxu did not think of changing his career, he planned to move to the south of Dazhao Township, where there are still a large number of urban villages, with their own living space, he said: As long as you can still move, you will not drop the pick on your shoulders, and use your own craftsmanship to earn a solid money.