"Can these things still be burned as sacrifices?" Zhang Yongsheng asked curiously.
The burning offering is the last part of ancestor worship, which means burning the sacrifices brought by each household. The burning sacrifices of the Zhang family are carried out collectively. There is no such professional ancestral hall in the city, so each family can only do it separately. Zhang Yongsheng misses the most when the shelf where the sacrifices are placed is lit, like a giant torch, which is very spectacular.
Zhang Guiquan nodded and said: "Uncle Ke disagreed at first, but later he saw that there were too many people bringing such sacrifices, so he had no choice but to compromise. In fact, it was all the wishes of the family relatives. I really wanted to give up on this." It’s my intention, everyone must have complaints, and people’s hearts will be dispersed.”
At noon, we made some noodles at Zhang Guiquan's house, and then everyone went to visit relatives. Zhang Yongsheng is not familiar with Zhangwan Village and has few relatives who visit frequently. Zhang Xuewen has many acquaintances, and many children in the village study in primary schools in the town, so he is very popular.
Zhang Yongsheng brought some sacrifices and walked towards the hill behind the village. The Zhang family's cemetery is on a platform halfway up the mountain, and Zhang Yongsheng planned to visit his grandfather's grave this time. Grandpa left him a lot of ancient books. These books were too important to him, so he wanted to express his gratitude to his ancestors.
Walk slowly up the mountain, follow the path made by the villagers up the mountain, turn a corner and reach the platform halfway up the mountain. The platform is not very flat, it has a certain slope, and there are rows of tombstones along this slope. These are the ancestors of the Zhang family, which can be traced back hundreds of years.
Many relatives came back to pay homage to their ancestors this time. Some relatives who were unable to come back during the Qingming Festival also came up the mountain to visit the graves. At this time, the sun was at its peak, and the mountains were much cooler than those at the bottom. They sat next to the tomb and chatted about their lives today.
Zhang Yongsheng wandered among the many tombstones for a while and found a red sandstone tombstone with an inscription carved in official script. This was the joint tomb of his grandfather and grandmother. There is a tribute platform in front of the tombstone, with red sandstone stone piers on both sides. Everything looks quite primitive.
He squatted down in front of the tombstone, took out a small broom and cleaned up the tribute platform, sweeping away the loose soil on it and pulling out the remaining fragrant wax. Then lay the ground with old newspapers and place the arriving tributes one by one. Finally, they lit incense sticks, burned paper money, and bowed respectfully.
Respect for ancestors has been a tradition of the Zhang family since ancient times. Although Zhang Yongsheng has been a man for two generations, this tradition is still engraved in his blood. His life in this life came from the Zhang family, and the feeling of home brought to him by this kind of sacrifice made him feel that he had roots.
In his previous life, he was a martial arts master who traveled around the world. He never knew who his parents were. If you say it out loud, it will shock the world, but in your heart you only know the pain of not having roots. He finally had roots in this life, and he cherished this feeling very much, so he was very active every time he worshiped his ancestors.
After sweeping the memorial according to the procedure, Zhang Yongsheng did not rush down the mountain, but wandered around the cemetery. There are many tombstones in the cemetery, and the ones at the foot of the mountain are relatively new. The older the tombs are, the higher they go up the mountain. The higher the tombs are, the higher the specifications of the tombstones and the more various carvings and inscriptions.
When we reached the top, we saw that these tombstones were carved nearly a hundred years ago. Zhang Yongsheng looked carefully at the inscriptions and epitaphs, as well as the complicated decorative carvings and Weng Zhong, and sighed secretly in his heart. The Zhang family has been rooted in this ravine for hundreds of years, and has produced some local celebrities.
The ancestors of the Zhang family migrated here with their wives, children, and children to escape the war. Over the course of hundreds of years, the family spread and became a famous family around Zizhu Town. Although he cannot be said to be powerful, he has strength in numbers and has many connections in all walks of life.
While walking, Zhang Yongsheng suddenly stopped and stared at the ancient tomb in front of him for a moment. This ancient tomb is very simple, the tombstone carvings are very complicated, and the font is in the vigorous Wei stele style. From the inscription, it can be seen that this ancestor was a Jinshi. This kind of status was not common in ancient times. In every family, it was the ancestor of the ancestors.
What attracted Zhang Yongsheng was not this ancient tomb, but a clay bowl placed on the tribute platform of the ancient tomb. Such clay bowls are found in front of many tombs, and are usually used for pouring wine during sacrifices. The clay bowl looks quite different, but a small piece has peeled off around the edge of the bowl, leaving a white base.
Zhang Yongsheng's heart moved, and he knelt down and carefully picked up the clay bowl. He rubbed his fingers on the clay bowl. The black soil on the clay bowl peeled off piece by piece, and the white areas became larger and larger. This place is very smooth, feels good to the touch, and gives people a warm feeling.
After a while, Zhang Yongsheng peeled off all the black soil on the outside of the clay bowl, revealing the true face of the clay bowl. This is not a clay bowl, it is obviously a porcelain bowl. The porcelain bowl should be a soup bowl, slightly larger than an ordinary rice bowl, and very delicate in shape. It has a white porcelain base and blue and white paintings on it, which looks quite simple.
Blue and white porcelain? Zhang Yongsheng was stunned for a moment, feeling a little shocked in his heart. Blue and white porcelain is a treasure among porcelains. Real ancient blue and white porcelain is a national treasure-level antique, and each piece is valuable. He had seen on TV and newspapers that this kind of blue and white bowl was not cheap, with the auction price exceeding one million.
Zhang Yongsheng didn't understand these things, but Liang Aiping knew a lot. Tang Fusheng collected a lot of antiques, which Liang Aiping helped him dispose of. She was familiar with the owners of several auction houses, and helped Tang Fusheng make a lot of money by going in and out.
He carefully inspected the blue and white bowl, nodding slightly from time to time. This bowl is very delicate, with an open mouth design, a deep arc belly and ring feet. Its shape is relatively regular, giving people a dignified and stable feeling. The outside of the bowl is painted with floral patterns, the brushstrokes are delicate and neat, and the blue and white glaze is elegant and beautiful.
Zhang Yongsheng turned the bowl over, looked at the signature on the bottom of the bowl, and was shocked. This bowl is very old, at least six hundred years ago. Judging from this signature, it should be official kiln porcelain, with the year number on it. If true, the value is extraordinary.
After carefully inspecting the blue and white bowl, I found that it was in very good condition. It was previously covered by mountain soil and turned into a black clay bowl. This ancient tomb has not been cleaned for many years, so no one has ever discovered it. Zhang Yong had a good chance of finding a treasure, and he was suddenly pleasantly surprised.
Zhang Yongsheng wiped the blue and white bowl clean with paper, then wrapped it in old newspapers and prepared to take it back for Liang Aiping to see. If this bowl is real, it would be worth a lot of money. The money he asked from Liang Aiping could not be made public, but this could be used as a reason to become rich.
With this porcelain bowl, Zhang Yongsheng began to pay more attention to the things in front of the ancient tomb. I have to inspect all kinds of pottery pots and plates used for sacrificial rituals, hoping to pick up a few more treasures while the iron is hot. But contrary to expectations, the others were very ordinary pottery, and there was only one blue and white porcelain.
When the sun was about to set, Zhang Yongsheng went down the mountain happily, not to mention how happy he was. This is an unexpected harvest, picking up the great leakage of our ancestors. I don’t know who the descendants of this ancestor are, but I should try my best to repay him if I have the opportunity. I can’t eat alone.
