Hey, hey, we have such a thing in Nagada, the northeast. In our small mountain village in southern China, there is a carpenter named Wang Ergou, whose craftsmanship is very good, and everyone in ten miles and eight towns praises him for his beautiful work, and he is not good at being honest. On this day, before the sun set, Wang Ergou packed up his tools and prepared to go home. Just under the old locust tree at the entrance of the village, Wang Ergou suddenly felt that someone was pulling the corner of his clothes behind him. His heart tightened, and he turned around to look, oh my God, this is not a person, it is clearly his shadow! The shadow seemed to be alive, not only grabbed him, but also opened his mouth to speak: "Wang Ergou, don't be in a hurry to leave." Wang Ergou was so frightened that he had encountered such an evil thing for the first time in his life. He made up his mind and boldly asked, "Who are you?" Why is it exactly the same as my shadow? The shadow smiled slightly, but his voice was so cold that it made people tremble: "I am you, I am the obsession in your heart that you can't let go." Wang Ergou was stunned for a moment, wondering what this obsession was? Could it be that the previous jobs were not done well, and people were unhappy? He hurriedly smiled: "Big brother, let's say something well, we are carpenters, pay attention to craftsmanship and conscience, if there is anything wrong, you can point it out, I can't change it?" The shadow sighed and said, "That's not the case. Do you remember ten years ago, when you almost drowned yourself trying to save a child who had fallen into the water? When Wang Ergou heard this, how could he forget this? He happened to be passing by the river that day, and when he heard someone shouting for help, he jumped in to save people without thinking about anything. As a result, the child was rescued, but he himself almost didn't come up. "Remember, that kid is in middle school now, and every time he sees me, he is very affectionate." Wang Ergou scratched his head, a little puzzled. The shadow said, "You saved the child, but you annoyed the water spirit." The water ghost was originally at ease in the river, but your disturbance made him have no place to live. He's been looking for you for ten years, and today he's finally coming to the door. When Wang Ergou heard this, he chuckled in his heart, this water ghost is not a joke, and if he can't get his own little life, he will be gone. He quickly asked, "Then what should I do?" The shadow said, "The water ghost wants your life, but you are a good man, and I cannot watch you die." Go home, take your most precious belongings, put them by the river, and then sincerely apologize to the water ghost and beg him to spare you. When Wang Ergou heard this, why is this method so unreliable? His most precious object, that is the Lu Ban ruler handed down from his ancestors, is the carpenter's treasure, how can he give it to people casually? But when I think about it, if I don't die, all the treasures will be in vain. He gritted his teeth and decided to do what the shadow said. He ran home in three steps and two steps, took the Luban ruler, and ran to the river again. He knelt on the ground, put Lu Banqi respectfully on the ground, and then kowtowed like pounding garlic, and kept muttering: "Brother Water Ghost, I was wrong, I shouldn't have disturbed your purity." "Oh, our Luban ruler, that's a baby pimple handed down from our ancestors, let's take it to pay for it, please have a lot of it, raise your noble hand, let our old bones live for a few more years." As soon as the words fell, he slapped his ass and walked home without looking back. After walking a few steps, I heard a "plop" behind me, as if something had fallen into the river. When he turned around, he saw a circle of ripples on the surface of the river, and in the blink of an eye, he couldn't see anything. Wang Ergou's heart was relieved, and this time he escaped a catastrophe. He touched his chest and muttered in his heart: "This shadow is really a bit capable." Since then, Wang Ergou has never seen that shadow again, he still does his carpenter work, and his life is peaceful. But every time I passed by the old locust tree, I felt a little more awe in my heart, and I always thought about the events of that day. After that, Wang Ergou's life was still so dull, but he always thought about the shadow and the water ghost that day. From time to time, he went to the river to take a look to see if Lu Banqi was still there, but every time he went, he found that Lu Banqi was lying quietly by the river, as if nothing had happened.
On this day, Wang Ergou was repairing a wooden door for the old Zhang family in the neighboring village, when he suddenly heard a commotion outside. He put down what he was doing, ran out to take a look, and saw a group of people gathered under the old locust tree, pointing, not knowing what they were talking about. Wang Ergou squeezed in to take a look, oh my mother, I saw a ragged man, holding the Luban ruler in his hand, crying and shouting: "Who is so lacking in virtue and throwing my father's relics into the river!" When Wang Ergou heard this, he was shocked, wasn't this the Luban ruler he put by the river that day? Why did it become a relic of this man's father? He hurried over to ask for clarification. As soon as the man saw Wang Ergou, he immediately pounced and grabbed him by the collar: "Is it you?" Did you steal my father's Luban ruler? Wang Ergou was troubled by him, his head was big, and he quickly explained: "Brother, you misunderstood, this Luban ruler was put by the river by me, not stolen." "Fart!" The man glared angrily, "Why is my father's Lu Ban ruler in your hands?" If you steal, you steal, and you quibble! The two were arguing when the old patriarch of the village rushed to hear the noise. As soon as he saw this formation, he quickly pulled the two apart and asked the ins and outs. When the old patriarch heard this, he frowned: "This matter is indeed a bit strange, but Wang Ergou has been in our village for so many years, and everyone knows what his character is." There's no way he's going to steal. When the man heard this, he was even more reluctant: "Then why did he put my father's Luban ruler by the river?" Isn't this overt bullying? The old patriarch sighed, looked at Wang Ergou, then at the man, and said, "In this way, let's go to the river first, maybe there is something strange." When the group came to the river, they saw that Nalu Banchi was still lying there quietly. The old patriarch was holding the Luban ruler in his hand, his eyes were as wide as copper bells, he looked carefully and looked, and suddenly his eyes lit up, and he shouted in surprise: "Ouch, hey, why is there still a word engraved on this Luban ruler?" When everyone heard this, they all came up with a hula. I saw that on the side of the ruler, there was a line of small characters as thin as hair: "Give it to those who are destined, and hope to make good use of it." The man glanced at it, and his eyes straightened: "This... Isn't that my father's words? The old patriarch nodded and said meaningfully, "It seems that there is a story behind this matter." Wang Ergou, tell me, how did you get this Luban ruler? Wang Ergou told everyone about the events of that day 1510. After hearing this, everyone was stunned, and the man was even more ashamed to blush and thicken his neck, and apologized to Wang Ergou vigorously: "Brother Wang, I'm really sorry, I blame you." Wang Ergou waved his hand and said generously: "It's okay, if the misunderstanding is solved, we have nothing to do." Since this Luban ruler is your father's relic, you can take it. The man took the ruler and burst into tears: "Brother Wang, you are really a good person." My father always praised you for being a blessed man. This is an eye-opener for me. Wang Ergou grinned and said, "What is not blessed, we are all shaved in the soil, and we pay attention to the truth." You can put away this Luban ruler, don't lose it again. The man nodded again and again, and carefully put the ruler away. The crowd watching the excitement saw that there was no play, and they slowly dispersed. As soon as this incident passed, Wang Ergou's reputation became even louder, and everyone said that he was a blessed man, with good craftsmanship and character. The shadow also spread slowly, some said that Wang Ergou's ancestor appeared, and some said that it was the result of his usual good deeds and accumulation of virtues. But Wang Ergou knew in his heart that the shadow thing was a coincidence. He felt that he could escape the catastrophe by relying on his own conscience and principles of being a man and doing things. As the days passed, Wang Ergou still did his carpenter work. With his craftsmanship and kindness, he won the respect and love of the villagers. The shadow has also become a good story in the village. In this way, Wang Ergou lived a peaceful life in the village. On the day he died, the whole village came to see him off for the last time. Everyone said that Wang Ergou lived a worthwhile life, and he used his craftsmanship and kindness to leave a valuable wealth to the village. And the shadow has become an eternal legend in the village. Since the misunderstanding of Nalu Banqi was solved, Wang Ergou's days have become more and more moisturized. He got up early every day and worked greedily at night, and his skills became more and more sophisticated, and there was an endless stream of people looking for him to do work. But just when he thought that his life could go on so plainly, a strange thing happened in the village. On this day, Wang Ergou was busy giving the Li family's daughter a dowry, when suddenly, there was a hurried knock on the door outside. Putting down the little work in his hand, as soon as he pushed the door, he saw Aunt Zhang from our village, standing outside the door in a panic, with a basket in her hand. "Ergou, go and take a look, the old well in the east of our village has been making a lot of noise at night these days, and no one in the village dares to approach." Aunt Zhang gasped and said. When Wang Ergou heard this, he beat a drum in his heart: Isn't this well good, why is it making a fuss? He didn't think much about it, so he followed Aunt Zhang to the east of the village.
When I got to the well, the surroundings were so barren that there was not even a shadow of a ghost. Wang Ergou circled around the well and didn't see anything. He was about to retreat, when suddenly a cold wind blew, and a low cry came from the well. "Oh my god, what a ghost!" Aunt Zhang was so frightened that she grabbed Wang Ergou's arm. Wang Ergou was also furious in his heart, but he knew that he couldn't be cowardly. He took a deep breath and summoned up the courage to shout into the well, "Which immortal are you?" If there's anything going on, come out and say, don't pretend to be a ghost here! As soon as he finished speaking, the crying in the well stopped abruptly. Immediately after, a vague figure slowly rose from the well, becoming clearer and clearer. Wang Ergou saw that this was a ghost, it was clearly a haggard old woman. As soon as the old woman saw Wang Ergou, she knelt down: "Benefactor, I have finally waited for you!" Wang Ergou was confused: "Auntie, what's wrong with you?" How did I become your benefactor? The old woman wiped her tears and said, "I am the guardian saint of this well, and a hundred years ago I was killed by a water ghost and trapped in the well in order to save the children in the village. I've been waiting for someone who can help me get out of this predicament. Today, I've finally waited for you. When Wang Ergou heard this, his heart tightened: This can't be some evil thing, right? He quickly asked, "Then how can I help you?" The old woman said, "All you have to do is put three animals on the side of the well and burn some paper money, and I will be free." When Wang Ergou heard it, this matter was easy to do. He hurried back to the village, bought three animals, and burned paper money. In a few moments, the old woman in the well was gone. Since then, Gujing has never been haunted. As for Wang Ergou, because of this, he became popular in the village again. Everyone said that he was a blessed man, not only with good craftsmanship, but also with demons and demons. However, Wang Ergou knew in his heart that the reason why he was able to help the old woman was purely by chance. He felt that he could live so smoothly because of his conscience and principles of being a man and doing things. In this way, Wang Ergou continued to live his ordinary and fulfilling life in the village. He won the respect and love of the villagers with his craftsmanship and kindness. And the shadow and the matter of the ancient well have also become a beautiful talk in the village. Oh, this time is really unforgiving, in the blink of an eye, Wang Ergou, the old man, has hair as white as snow. He still wakes up earlier than the chickens and sleeps later than the dogs, and is busy with his carpenter's craft, which is still so good. But as soon as he gets older, his body is not as tough as before. One day, Wang Ergou was making a small wooden cart for his grandson, and suddenly he felt that the world was spinning and his head was buzzing. He knew in his heart that his old bones might be coming to an end.
As soon as he put down the work in his hand, he sat in the courtyard, enjoying the warm sun, and began to recall his life. He remembered the shadow, the ancient well, and the old woman. He felt that although his life was quite ordinary, it was also tasteful and meaningful. He used his good craftsmanship and kind heart to help many people, and won everyone's respect and love.
In this way, Wang Ergou slowly closed his eyes under the sun. He walked peacefully, and he had no regrets in his heart. After Wang Ergou died, the villagers spontaneously built a small ancestral hall for him, and put all the tools he used in his life in it, which was regarded as a commemoration. As for the story of the shadow and the ancient well, it has also become a good story sung by the people in the village, and it has become an eternal legend.