Oracle bone fragments

Chapter 16

They took their seats, slowly moving closer to Ouyang Wenlan. Sun Jing placed the cushion diagonally opposite him, and thoughtfully added an extra one, tucking it behind Ouyang Wenlan's back. A fat, tabby cat was already sprawled on the sofa; it glanced up a few times, then lay back down. Ouyang Wenlan gently stroked its neck, and the cat squinted its eyes, looking quite comfortable. As for the other cats they'd seen before, they were nowhere to be seen, probably playing somewhere.

After a few polite pleasantries, before getting to the main topic, Abao brought over a wooden tray. On the tray were three tiny white porcelain dishes; if not for the tray, they could easily fit in Abao's large hand. The dishes contained a brownish paste-like substance; it didn't look very appetizing, but judging by its appearance, it must be quite delicious. This was probably the same thing that had been in the porcelain jar delivered by Linshuixuan earlier.

"Try it," Ouyang Wenlan urged them.

Sun Jing held a small silver spoon. There was only a little over a spoonful of brown paste in front of him. He scooped up a small amount and put it in his mouth.

The brown paste melted on the tongue the moment it touched it, and an exceptionally delicious flavor spread from the tip of the tongue all the way down, causing Sun Jing to subconsciously hold his breath, wanting to savor this wonderful taste he had never experienced before for a little longer.

This flavor seemed to stimulate every taste bud on the tongue, from the tip to the middle to the root, with slightly different tastes in different places, like a perfect harmony composed of different parts of a melody. It made the whole person feel slightly tipsy.

Sun Jing's spoonful was far too small; the flavor didn't last long before dissipating, leaving only a slight lingering aftertaste. At the same time, a huge sense of dissatisfaction welled up within him. He scooped up another half spoonful and put it in his mouth.

In just a moment, the small plate was empty, and Xu Xu was even eating faster than him.

"What is this? It tastes so good!" Xu Xu licked her lips with the tip of her tongue and asked Ouyang Wenlan. Actually, she wanted to lick the whole plate, but that would be too unsightly.

"It's a Yunnan delicacy, made with a wild mushroom that's rare even in the local area as the main ingredient, and the other ingredients are also hard to find. I specially hired someone to search for the ingredients and then found a master chef who knows how to make it to order. That kind of wild mushroom is so rare that I can only make two jars a year. So, don't blame me for giving you too little, I'm being stingy."

Ouyang Wenlan chuckled, dipped the last bit of food in the dish in front of him with his finger, and brought it to the fat cat's mouth.

The cat seemed to have never eaten before, sniffing the food as if hesitating whether to try it. Ouyang Wenlan, however, didn't wait for it to decide, immediately pulling his hand back and sucking on it like a child.

The fat cat suddenly stood up, turned its head to stare at the old man, let out a loud yelp, jumped off the sofa, and ran out.

"This cat has quite a temper," Xu Xu said.

Ouyang Wenlan laughed loudly and energetically, clearly quite pleased with his prank.

Perhaps it was this mindset that allowed him to live such a long and healthy life, Sun Jing thought to himself.

After laughing, Ouyang Wenlan shook the copper bell, called Abao in, and cleared away the dishes and spoons, setting out tea. However, Sun Jing and Xu Xu did not intend to drink the tea for the time being, lest they wash away the last bit of the wonderful taste still lingering on their tongues.

Ouyang Wenlan, however, was not concerned with such gains or losses. He took a sip of tea and said to Sun Jing, "Did you come here today to ask about Huaixiu?"

At this age, as long as one's mind is still clear, one's insight and knowledge are unmatched by that of a young person. Sun Jing didn't hide anything and nodded in agreement.

"Although you are young, you seem to know your place and wouldn't try to reason with an old man like me who's almost in his coffin," Ouyang Wenlan said slowly, looking at Sun Jing. "You came to ask me again today, so you probably know something, right?"

Sun Jing nodded.

Ouyang Wenlan let out a long sigh, sinking into the sofa. He turned to look out the window, lost in thought for a long while. The two people beside him knew that the old man was probably thinking about the old days—those secrets he had originally intended to keep buried in his heart until his death. No one disturbed him until he refocused his attention on Sun Jing.

"Then let me hear what you know. So much time has passed, maybe you can help me remember some things."

Since Sun Jing had come here, he was prepared to reveal everything. Only by treating others with sincerity could one obtain their secrets, especially since Ouyang Wenlan's nearly one hundred years of life experience was not easily fooled. Even in the plan to trick the wizard into giving up the skull, Ouyang Wenlan's part was a calculated scheme, with one side gaining fame and the other profiting, each getting what they wanted.

"This story is quite complicated. Miss Xu, just listen to it and don't spread it around."

"Don't worry." Xu Xu pursed her lips, although she knew that she was basically saying this to Ouyang Wenlan.

Ouyang Wenlan smiled slightly and said nothing.

"Most people probably won't believe what I'm about to say. My great-grandfather died young. I don't know if you know anything about our family after that. Not only my great-grandfather, but my grandfather and my father also died very young..."

In a calm tone, Sun Jing recounted the transmission of oracle bone script knowledge across generations, beginning with Sun Yu, and the unfortunate events that accompanied it.

Xu Xu had heard Han Shang's recording before and was somewhat prepared for the mysterious phenomenon, but the bizarre events that happened to four generations of the Sun family still shocked her. Her gaze towards Sun Jing became somewhat complicated, but in the end, she remained silent and obediently acted as an observer.

Ouyang Wenlan's white eyebrows twitched several times as he sighed, "Such a thing has happened. It turns out Huaixiu..."

He shook his head, not continuing, but asked Sun Jing, "From what you're saying, it seems you're attributing all of this to Huai Xiu. Are you sure nothing similar happened before Huai Xiu? Or... do you know more than I thought?"

"As expected, it's impossible to hide it from them," Sun Jing thought to himself.

"Do you remember Han Shang?" Sun Jing then recounted what Han Shang had said in the recording, but without mentioning that it came from the recording itself. He simply said that Han Shang had told him this himself. Otherwise, it would raise suspicions about Han Shang's cause of death, complicating matters and being irrelevant to today's topic.

Sun Jing tried to keep it simple, but Han Shang's recorded narration lasted for several hours, and even with simplification, the cause and effect of the matter were still complicated. When he finished speaking, he felt parched and picked up the small cup of Pu'er tea, drinking it all in one gulp.

Ouyang Wenlan sighed deeply and said, "So that's how it all happened. After hearing your explanation, some things I didn't quite understand become clear. Since that's the case, I'll tell you something I know. This matter begins with the wizard's skull. Of all the antiquities I donated to the country, this one is the most precious, but in reality..."

At this point, Ouyang Wenlan paused, shook his head slightly, and said, "Actually, this item cannot be considered mine."

As he said this, Sun Jingzheng swallowed his second cup of tea, unable to make a sound, but Xu Xu couldn't help but ask, "Everyone says you bought this from Sven Hedin, so how could it not be yours?"

“I am from Anyang, Henan…” Ouyang Wenlan began to recount those events from more than half a century ago.

Ouyang Wenlan was born into a wealthy family in Anyang, classified as large landowners according to post-liberation class classifications. Furthermore, his family owned a match factory in Shanghai in 1916, making them extremely wealthy.

Since the discovery of oracle bones in Anyang, many farmers in the vicinity have made a small fortune by digging for them, and some have even turned to antique dealing. The Ouyang family, of course, would not engage in such a disreputable business, but Anyang has become the center of oracle bone culture, and under this trend, some members of the family have also become interested in collecting oracle bones, the most enthusiastic of whom is Ouyang Wenlan.

When Ouyang Wenlan was a teenager, he collected oracle bones from farmers everywhere. Whenever a major collector or scholar who studied oracle bones came to Anyang, he would follow them around to see what he could learn.

Beginning in 1928, the Institute of History and Philology organized an official excavation at the Yin Ruins in Anyang. Ouyang Wenlan would visit the excavation site whenever he had free time. However, he was not yet twenty and had not received a Western education in a modern school, so few people paid him any attention. Sun Yu joined the archaeological team in 1929, becoming the youngest member at the time. He was only a few years older than Ouyang Wenlan, and with Ouyang's deliberate approach, the two quickly became close.

The wizard's skulls were unearthed in 1929. The farmer who initially found them knew they were extraordinary and demanded a high price. The archaeological team rushed to maintain the excavation site while officials took over the next phase of excavation. Meanwhile, Sun Yu was sent to find the farmer and buy his artifacts. However, the farmer's asking price was too high. The archaeological team itself had limited funds, and the two sides couldn't reach an agreement. When Sun Yu returned with renewed funding, all fifty skulls had already been bought by a foreigner—Sven Hedin.

Sven Hedin was so fond of this oracle bone that he refused to sell it to the archaeological team under any circumstances. He was not short of money and had a foreign background, so he wouldn't even listen to the official archaeological team. In the end, the archaeological team could only take some photos of the skull and make a model for research purposes.

However, Sun Yu was extremely unwilling to give up. He contacted various influential domestic collectors, hoping to buy back this national treasure from Sven Hedin. Among his strong supporters was Ouyang Wenlan. Sun Yu and Sven Hedin exchanged many letters, with each offer higher than the last. Hedin's replies were always polite, sometimes even seeking advice on oracle bone inscriptions, but he remained unmoved about transferring the skull.

By 1934, Ouyang Wenlan had become a well-known collector of oracle bones due to his extensive collection and was living in Shanghai. One day, he received a letter from Sun Yu, who said that he would be coming to Shanghai in a few days and would like to meet him.

Ouyang Wenlan went to the train station to pick up Sun Yu, only to find that Sun Yu had already bought a nice house—the same one Sun Jing was currently living in. Ouyang Wenlan was somewhat surprised; it seemed Sun Yu's financial situation was much better than he had imagined.

But there was something even more surprising than the Western-style building. In a room within that building, Sun Yu opened his large trunk right in front of him and took out a wizard's skull.

Ouyang Wenlan was so surprised that he couldn't speak, but Sun Yu didn't seem happy at all. Instead, he gave a wry smile and told him how he obtained this national treasure.

Sven Hedin has been in China for seven years and is expected to leave no later than next year, in 1935. The wizard skull he possesses is so famous in the world of oracle bone inscriptions that he cannot take it out of China under the watchful eyes of many, so he has no choice but to give it to Sun Yu.

It's not free, of course; there are conditions. Very complicated, and incredibly complicated conditions.

Sven Hedin asked Sun Yu to participate in a project that would have a profound impact on humanity. In Sun Yu's unclear description, this project seemed to Ouyang Wenlan like a monster that was half mysterious and half absurd. It had nothing to do with rigorous science, but rather resembled a new religion with fanatical beliefs.

Faced with the real world, human imagination and receptiveness always seem so barren. Even Freud, the creator of this mysterious experiment, probably couldn't have imagined what kind of monster would emerge from the door he opened. According to Ouyang Wenlan's impression during his conversation with Sun Yu, Sun Yu also had many doubts about the plan and didn't quite believe Hedin's claims of "profound impact on humanity." However, as a scholar of oracle bones, he deeply understood the value of the wizard's skull, and he was willing to exchange it for the national treasure remaining in China. Moreover, Hedin also provided a certain living allowance for the participants in the project.

Sven Hedin wanted to know if the wizard's skull, a magical artifact from thousands of years ago, would have any effect on his inner experiments, so he gave it to Sun Yu as a prop. However, just as he himself couldn't openly take this coveted national treasure out of the country, Sun Yu, a poor young scholar of oracle bones, couldn't possibly afford to buy the wizard's skull. Therefore, a public patron was needed. This person didn't need to actually provide the money; they could show the skull to friends and family at times, but most of the time, this experimental prop was in the hands of Sun Yu and the other participants.

This was a mutually beneficial arrangement: Sun Yu and the other guards could conduct their experiments in secret, while Ouyang Wenlan would gain a reputation in the art collecting world for buying the national treasure from Sven Hedin.

Ouyang Wenlan desperately wanted to learn more details from Sun Yu, but Sun Yu had already sworn an oath before Hedin in the name of their ancestors to keep the secret. If it weren't for the need for Ouyang Wenlan to act as the nominal holder of the skull, he wouldn't have revealed any of this. Chinese people born in the last fifty years find it difficult to understand the revered position their ancestors held in the hearts of the Chinese of the past. It was once the object of the faith of the vast majority of the Chinese people; in this respect, Hedin understood China quite well.

“More than seventy years have passed,” Ouyang Wenlan exclaimed. “I only just learned what kind of experiment this was. Haha, more than seventy years ago I didn’t even know who Freud was.”

As Ouyang Wenlan recounted the story, the decision Sven Hedin made back then gradually became clearer in the minds of Sun Jing and Xu Xu.

A legendary adventurer like Hedin must possess extraordinary abilities, and Sun Jing found it hard to believe that there was absolutely no way to smuggle the wizard's skull out of China. However, firstly, it was indeed troublesome; secondly, doing so would severely damage his previously excellent reputation. Most importantly, he had a very good alternative.

Hedin valued the wizard's skull primarily because of its potential for experimenting with mystical inner thoughts. Whether this was merely his speculation or a genuine realization remains unknown.

China, this ancient country, has always been shrouded in mystery in the eyes of Westerners. The discovery of oracle bones from the Shang Dynasty, representing a culture of witchcraft, may have led Sven Hedin to believe that the Chinese, with their yellow skin and black hair, possess an innate mystical power in their blood. If the shaman's skull would play a significant role in the experiment, then more Chinese should participate. Since it would be difficult to bring the skull to the West, it would be more scientific to establish a new experimental group in China, using a new ritual that differs slightly from the one used by European experimenters and incorporates elements of oracle bone witchcraft. A comparison between the two groups would then provide a control group.

Sun Jing was never one to shy away from viewing others with a cold, calculating mind, so he suspected there might be ulterior motives behind conducting experiments in China. Based on the limited results he knew of from the few European participants, the experiments had all resulted in significant negative consequences. If people didn't know it was caused by the experiment, they would simply consider it an accidental misfortune; but if it were exposed, it would undoubtedly cause a public outcry. Therefore, Europe, which had begun to emphasize democracy and human rights, was not the most suitable environment to push the experiment forward and expand its scope. While China was hailed as an ancient civilization, in the eyes of Europeans at that time, it was still a dark and barbaric backwater, isolated from mainstream European society. Using Chinese people in experiments in China meant that any mistakes wouldn't matter.

Whatever his intentions, Sven Hedin set out to open a second front for his mysterious inner experiments in China. Before that, he must have exchanged views with Freud, the director in Europe, finalized various details, and then began to look for suitable Chinese subjects.

Most of the Chinese participants in these experiments were probably motivated by money; those like Sun Yu, driven by the so-called "return of national treasures" or some other reason, were likely a very small minority. The exact number—a few dozen or a few hundred—is unknown. The only certainty is that the main experimenters and their meeting place were definitely in Shanghai.

Ouyang Wenlan promised Sun Yu that he would keep this secret, which he himself only partially understood, forever. Then he nominally obtained the wizard's skull and even held a short-term small exhibition of oracle bones. He became famous in the collecting world, while Sun Yu moved his family to Shanghai and lived in that small Western-style house.

Over the next year, Sven Hedin visited Shanghai several times, but his and Sun Yu's whereabouts always seemed somewhat mysterious to Ouyang Wenlan. With this lingering resentment, Ouyang Wenlan's relationship with Sun Yu gradually cooled.

Until J942, one day he learned of Sun Yu's sudden death and rushed to attend the burial ceremony, where he also met Sun Yu's orphaned mother and children. After that, he occasionally provided assistance to the Sun family, but eventually their relationship became increasingly distant, and they lost contact altogether.

The wizard's skull disappeared after Sun Yu's death, so much so that for many years afterward, Ouyang Wenlan could only make excuses whenever relatives or friends wanted to see the oracle bone.

"Where did they go?" Sun Jing knew that there must be more to the story, but when Ouyang Wenlan got to this point, it seemed like he had something left unsaid.

Ouyang Wenlan shook his head. "To be honest, I was a little scared about what Huaixiu was involved in. At that time, I felt that a perfectly healthy person could suddenly die without any apparent cause, and it was most likely related to this matter."

Relationships. Now it seems, wasn't that why he died? The wizard's skull is gone, so be it. I don't want to get involved with those things; Huai Xiu's example is a good one.

"More than twenty years passed, and I saw the wizard's skull again in 1969." Ouyang Wenlan's voice suddenly became low.

“A few people came to me with a wizard’s skull. They weren’t returning the skull to me, but rather wanted to donate it to the government. Officially, I was still in possession of it, so of course I had to donate it. I was already constantly donating things back then. My family background was so bad, and life was very difficult during the Cultural Revolution. The more I donated, the more comfortable things would be. Besides, this stuff wasn’t really mine anyway, so I just donated it.”

Ouyang Wenlan's account of this part was very vague, glossing over the process of obtaining the wizard's skull again in just a few words. He knew Sun Jing would have questions. He smiled apologetically and said, "That wasn't a pleasant meeting, so I won't recall it. In short, that time, I truly realized that there are indeed inexplicable things in this world. At least, from the perspective of Marxist materialism, they cannot be explained."

That was all Ouyang Wenlan knew. Strictly speaking, what he learned was far less than the inside story Han Shang revealed in the recording. But combined, the two gave Sun Jing a general understanding of the causes and consequences of his great-grandfather's involvement in the experiment.

The wizard's skull holds important secrets beyond oracle bone studies, and could Han Shang's death be related to it? But if the wizard's skull can truly draw out the mysterious power within a person, why was it returned to Ouyang Wenlan in 1969 and then donated to the nation? Even if the wizard's skull doesn't possess any mysterious power, or if that power has been exhausted, it is still an extremely valuable antique. Its easy return must have a story behind it.

What exactly Ouyang Wenlan's unpleasant memories were isn't really important. Whether it was being threatened or humiliated, he must have witnessed unimaginable supernatural power from those same people. And those who possess such power inevitably develop a superior, condescending mentality. Psychologically speaking, this is a perfectly natural outcome—oh yes, psychology, Freud…

It seems this Chinese experimental group has achieved some results, perhaps even more than their European counterparts. Ouyang Wenlan's unpleasant experience suggests that at least one person can control the mysterious power that has befallen them. In Freud's experiments, however, those powers were elusive and uncontrollable to the subjects, such as Zweig and Wilton. And of course, Sun Yu is no exception.

“Actually, I should thank you,” Ouyang Wenlan suddenly said.

"Oh. Why?"

"For so many years, I've been wondering where that mysterious power I've witnessed comes from. The older you get, the more you fear death, the nothingness after death. But the more advanced science becomes, the more it seems to extinguish the hope in people's hearts. The mantis you told me about, the things Freud did so many years ago, can make me try to believe that there really is a power beyond the mortal body, perhaps an all-powerful will, perhaps... a divine kingdom. Even after dust returns to dust, it's not over yet."

“Is that so…” Sun Jing replied, though he didn’t really understand what the old man meant.

Am I not close enough to death? He wondered to himself.

"You probably can't really understand this kind of fear," the old man continued, sighing. "For the past twenty years, I've focused my research on oracle bone inscriptions on various witchcraft rituals from the Shang Dynasty, and that's why. For example, during the reign of King Yangjia of Shang, there was a kind of witchcraft for warding off misfortune and attracting good fortune, which required..."

In truth, Sun Jing's mind was still preoccupied with the wizard's skull, the mysterious experiment, and Han Shang's death, and he wasn't paying much attention to the old man's research on Yin-Shang witchcraft. But Ouyang Wenlan seemed unwilling to return to the previous topic, becoming extremely enthusiastic about his own research and continuing to talk. As a guest, it wasn't good to be distracted, so Sun Jing turned his attention back to him, listened for a while, and then became surprised.

The Shang Dynasty was an era where witchcraft flourished. From major events like waging war and ensuring a good harvest, to everyday matters like clothing, food, and shelter, divination and sacrifices were essential. The power of heaven, earth, spirits, and ancestral spirits was deeply ingrained in people's minds, and various witchcraft rituals were performed to invoke their assistance. However, due to China's vigorous efforts to eradicate superstition since 1949, ideology has become increasingly homogenized. Scholars studying oracle bones primarily use witchcraft records to understand the social life of the Shang Dynasty. Research on the witchcraft rituals themselves, even from a religious perspective, is extremely limited.

Ouyang Wenlan has dedicated himself to this field for years, reconstructing Shang Dynasty witchcraft based on numerous bone inscriptions, including reinterpreting certain characters. He has made many groundbreaking insights and even developed his own unique system of thought. Although Sun Jing disagreed with some points, he genuinely admired the old man. Among collectors, very few are truly committed to solid scholarship, so Sun Jing had initially held those collectors in low regard for their academic abilities.

Perhaps the wizard's skull left such a deep impression on Ouyang Wenlan that most of his research on witchcraft revolved around it. This included questions such as: what rituals and divinations throughout history used wizard's skulls, what roles did the skulls play, and so on.

"In recent years, I've focused on the witchcraft used by the Shang king to pray for longevity. As people get older, they become more and more afraid of death. Sometimes I think, if I figure out this process, I can try it myself regardless of whether it works or not. It's really just for psychological comfort. As you get older, this psychological comfort is quite important, haha." Ouyang Wenlan laughed self-deprecatingly.

“Ah, I really want to see what the witchcraft of the Shang Dynasty was like,” Xu Xu said. “Could it really prolong life? Next month is your 95th birthday, let’s hold one then.”

"Oh?" Ouyang Wenlan pondered.

Sun Jing cast an approving glance at Xu Xu. Xu Xu's smile grew even sweeter as she said, "If we're going to do it, we have to try our best to reconstruct it according to the records on the oracle bones. The wizard's skull is absolutely essential; it might really have some mysterious power."

“I see…” Ouyang Wenlan hesitated.

Sun Jing touched the jade ring, a smile appearing on his face.

"We can borrow the wizard's skull while we're holding your personal oracle bone exhibition, and extend your life by another thirty to fifty years." Xu Xu grasped Ouyang Wenlan's arm and shook it gently, her face full of concern.

“If I live another thirty or fifty years, I’ll be an old monster. How is that possible?” Ouyang Wenlan laughed heartily.

“That’s hard to say,” Sun Jing said, pressing on the hot topic. “You know, if we consider that Taiwu reigned for seventy-five years, he must have lived to be at least one hundred and twenty years old①. Shang Tang and Yang Jia should have lived to be one hundred years old as well. Given the medical level at that time, if they could all live to that age, maybe there really is a trick to this longevity prayer.”

"Grandpa?" Xu Xu looked at Ouyang Wenlan, blinking twice in three seconds.

Ouyang Wenlan reached out and pinched Xu Xu's cheek, saying, "Okay, when I need your help, don't complain about being tired."