It was already noon when we left the old woman’s house. We organized the information we had gathered and felt like we had gained a lot.
The few of us huddled together and discussed, deciding to invite An Pu and Ah Li to lunch as a thank you for their help.
We chose a restaurant that Ah Li recommended, which had very distinctive Miao ethnic characteristics, and sat down.
“Ah Li, come sit here!” Qiu Lu waved at Ah Li. After half a day of spending time together, their relationship had actually eased up quite a bit. I really don’t understand the logic of how girls interact.
Ah Li gracefully lifted her skirt and sat down, smiling as she introduced us to the special dishes.
I have to say, a lot of times, those so-called online guides really can’t compare to a local who knows their way around.
Halfway through the meal, we gradually opened up, and the conversation started to ramble about all sorts of things.
Ah Li sighed softly and said, “I really envy you all, being able to see so many different sights. You just mentioned the sea; honestly, let alone the sea, I haven’t even walked out of the big mountains many times.”
Qiu Lu patted her shoulder comfortingly, “Actually, many people envy your life too. Quiet and leisurely, unlike us, who are working ourselves to death.”
Wen Lingyu said, “Actually, we used to have a lot of fantasies about the Miao people. I used to often see on TV that Miao women could cast ‘Gu’!”
“‘Cast Gu’!” Ah Li giggled, “Many tourists have asked me that question.”
I couldn’t help but ask curiously, “So, do you guys really cast ‘Gu’?”
Ah Li said, “We do indeed greatly respect insects and animals, because we believe that not treating life kindly will result in retribution.”
Xu Zirong’s mouth formed an “O,” as if he found it hard to believe that stepping on an insect could lead to divine retribution.
“But casting ‘Gu’ is something I’ve only heard from elders; I haven’t seen ‘Gu’ insects with my own eyes! In the elders’ stories, Miao women who practice ‘Gu’ are incredibly powerful. With a flick of a fingernail, a single glance…”
As Ah Li spoke, she mimicked the actions, making Qiu Lu shrink her neck back in fear.
“The ‘Gu’ would already be in the other party’s body.”
Wen Lingyu whispered, “Is it that powerful!”
It sounded more like a supernatural tale.
“Miao women can also cast love ‘Gu’. Once a man she fancies is affected by the love ‘Gu’, he must be with the girl; otherwise, he’ll toss and turn, unable to sleep, suffering the pain of being gnawed by ten thousand insects!”
This time, even Xu Zirong pulled his neck back.
An Pu took a sip of rice wine, waved his hand, and said, “It’s not that miraculous! If it were really that powerful, who would dare to come here to travel?”
That’s also true.
I’ve never believed in such things. How could a tiny insect control a person’s thoughts?
Ah Li seemed to have been slighted. She pounded the table indignantly, speaking very quickly, “We don’t, but the people in Shidi Mountain might!”
Shidi Mountain?
I looked at Ah Li, puzzled.
Ah Li suddenly clapped her hands over her mouth, her clear eyes wide, looking as if she had said something wrong.
An Pu’s face also darkened. He stopped drinking his wine and looked at Ah Li with deep eyes.
Qiu Lu and Wen Lingyu exchanged bewildered glances, only Xu Zirong foolishly asked, “What kind of place is Shidi Mountain?”
Ah Li lowered her head and said nothing. An Pu shed his serious expression and said, “Nothing, it was just a mountain.”
Xu Zirong: “If it was just a mountain, then is it fun? If there are scenic spots, we could also go and visit for a couple of days.”
Ah Li quickly shook her head: “It’s no fun! There are so many snakes, insects, rats, and ants there, it’s very dangerous. You guys can’t go, you guys can’t go!”
I said, “It’s fine. We specifically brought some outdoor camping tools and materials and some first-aid medicine for this trip. It’s more than enough to deal with snakes, insects, rats, and ants.”
An Pu drained his wine and said, “You guys can’t go there. It’s all mountain roads inside; cars can’t drive in. And there’s no signal either, so navigation won’t work.”
Ah Li added, “Exactly! Some guests tried to go before, and many came back injured and unsuccessful. More seriously, they could even lose their lives!”
The two of them, in a synchronized effort, scared Qiu Lu into repeatedly waving her hands, indicating she wouldn’t go.
I, however, felt curious.
Why were they so tight-lipped about this place, Shidi Mountain? And from what Ah Li just said, people clearly live there.
And these are people who might practice ‘Gu’ as well.
But they didn’t want to say anything more, only urging us to eat quickly. The second half of this lunch ended in such a hurry.
It was already afternoon when we returned to the inn. We agreed to rest and then go out for a stroll in the evening.
Back in my room, my mind was still on Ah Li and An Pu’s words; I just couldn’t let it go.
That’s just how I am. Once I get curious about something, I have to understand and research it; otherwise, it’ll always be on my mind, and I won’t even sleep well.
Suddenly, an idea popped into my head.
I quickly opened my phone, went to the navigation interface, and searched for “Shidi Mountain,” which they had just mentioned.
Even though I didn’t know the exact characters, the map still appeared in the navigation, so I could take my time exploring it and eventually locate the mountain.
But to my surprise, I searched for a whole hour, scouring all the mountain peaks with Dongjiang Miao Village as the center, and not a single one was called Shidi Mountain.
Could there be a place not even recorded by navigation and satellite maps?
I then clicked into several online travel guides about Dongjiang Miao Village, but not a single one mentioned this mountain. Everything before felt like I had imagined it.
Ah Li and An Pu’s secretive attitude towards “Shidi Mountain” added another layer of mystery to it in my mind.
If those two couldn’t tell me anything, then asking others might not yield any answers either.
Wait, others!
I suddenly lifted my eyes, a person coming to mind.
The inn had quieted down in the afternoon, but the owner wasn’t idle. Although the guests gathered in the lobby had dispersed, there were still many things to do.
The owner first cleaned the lobby, then tidied up the bookshelves that guests had messed up. After making himself a cup of Junshan Yinzhen tea, he started tending to the plants. Pest control, watering, fertilizing… Even though the owner was a burly man on the outside, he was very adept at these tasks.
“Boss, are you busy?” I went downstairs. The boss was trimming a potted plant, cutting off the dead leaves.
Hearing my voice, the boss looked up and straightened his back, smiling. “Yeah, the flowers in the guesthouse are quite delicate. A few dead leaves appear if I don’t pay attention for a day or two!”
I helped the boss tidy up while chatting with him.
The boss was very witty and always loved to say playful things, but it wasn’t annoying at all.
I changed the water for a pot of pothos and casually asked, “Boss, you’ve been here for five or six years already, you must have heard of a place called Shidi Mountain, right?”
The boss’s hand, mid-watering the flowers, froze. He turned around, startled. “How do you know about that place?”
I said, “I overheard the guide mention it today and got a bit curious. If the scenery there is good, we could go there for a couple of days.”
The boss’s face became very strange. He repeatedly shook his head: “I advise you to drop that idea! It’s very dangerous there!”
“Ah? Very dangerous?!”
The boss looked around; there was no one else in the lobby besides the two of us. Only then did he lower his voice and say, “Brother, it’s because we have some sort of connection that I’m telling you this. That place is very eerie! It’s not suitable for recreation. I heard that a group of people wanted to go there last year, and not long after, I saw the government’s search and rescue team arrive. They searched the mountain for days, but no one was found alive or dead, ai!”
“Could they have gotten lost in the mountains and encountered wild animals?”
The boss stared wide-eyed, as if saying, I’m doing this for your own good. “To be honest, I’ve only managed to piece these things together bit by bit over the years, just from chatting with the Miao people. I heard there seems to be another Miao village inside that Shidi Mountain, and the people there never interact with outsiders! Their language is different; they even find partners within the village for marriage and never intermarry with outsiders. Anyway, the legends are very mysterious!”
Could it be the Unassimilated Miao?
The boss’s description perfectly matched what I had read in literature about Unassimilated Miao.
Before coming here, I had quickly brushed up on a lot of knowledge specifically to better complete this investigation. I had also incidentally come across descriptions of the Unassimilated Miao. The book said they were different from the Miao people we could interact with outside.
With the great development of the times, mutual influence and exchange between various ethnic groups are normal and hard to avoid. That’s why a series of Miao villages, like Dongjiang Miao Village, have been developed into tourist attractions, which not only stimulated local economic development but also helped various ethnic groups communicate and integrate.
But the Unassimilated Miao are different; they are a branch of Miao descendants who have completely resisted external influence and still retain their inherited customs and way of life. They speak ancient Miao, work from sunrise to sunset, do not interact with the outside world, and cannot communicate with it either.
They are almost like the characters in Tao Yuanming’s “The Peach Blossom Spring.”
If they truly existed, that would certainly be a huge boon for our research. After all, preserving their original appearance would allow us to understand the true Miao people better. But when I read the literature, I wondered, could such people still exist? With technology so advanced now, how could a large group of people live together and not be discovered? And in this day and age, without identity information, nothing can be done. How could they not come out and interact with the outside world?
As if sensing the doubt on my face, the boss said, “Brother, it’s all just word-of-mouth. Who knows if there’s really a Miao village there? Those Miao girls even claim they can cast ‘Gu’; have you seen anyone cast ‘Gu’? Maybe it’s just a legend, don’t take it to heart. But Shidi Mountain is really dangerous. Locals wouldn’t go there even if you beat them. Don’t come here and lose your life!”
I let out an “en”, feeling grateful for the boss’s kindness: “Thanks, Boss, don’t worry. We’re young people, and we cherish our lives very much!”
Just then, a few more guests arrived at the guesthouse. The boss waved his hand, indicating he was done chatting, told me to make myself at home, and turned to greet the new guests.
I quickly put the matter out of my mind too. After all, it sounded as mysterious as a legend. Getting too caught up in such unsubstantiated things would only be bothering myself for nothing.
