boyutpedia Chapter 35 Old Sun
Chapter 35 Old Sun
Old Sun's habit of coming to the service station started in the autumn of the year before last.
His wife had just passed away, and the house suddenly became quiet, so quiet that it was unsettling.
He had lived on Moon Island his whole life, and for the first time, he felt that his stone house was too big, so big that a person's voice echoed inside.
He tried going to the dock to watch people unload fish, and to squat in front of the town's supply and marketing cooperative to watch people play chess, but he didn't know most of the people in those places, and those he did know were younger than him, so he couldn't say more than a few words to them.
Then one day, he pushed his sampan to repair the boat. Qiu Changhai squatted by the stone trough, cleaning the trough opening, and he squatted beside him watching for a whole morning.
At noon, Lin's mother brought over some fish ball soup and served him a bowl as well.
He came again the next day, empty-handed, without pushing the boat, and sat at the entrance of the old parts warehouse watching Ah Guang dismantle the filters.
I came on the third day too. It eventually became a habit.
He himself couldn't quite explain why he liked coming to the service station.
He told people he was there to see the ship repair, but the ship itself wasn't that interesting. He couldn't quite understand the gears, bearings, and rudder anymore. He had known Qiu Changhai's chisel for years, but he had never looked so closely before at how the chisel could be twisted into the hemp fibers.
Ah Guang asked him if he was bored at home alone, but he denied it, saying that the service station was lively, there was work to do, food to eat, and people to talk to, which was better than the dock.
The people playing cards on the dock are too noisy.
Actually, he wasn't the only elderly person on Moon Island. Old Zhou and Old Chen were also often at home by the pier, but they would squat in their own yards, unlike the service station, where the door was always open and anyone who came would have a bowl of hot soup.
As soon as the service station opened in the morning, A-Guang was squatting at the entrance of the used parts warehouse registering used parts, Hong Xiaobing was squatting at the entrance of the shed disassembling filters, and Xiao Zhou was sharpening a chisel by the stone trough.
Old Sun slowly walked along the seawall, carrying a small cloth bag filled with dried shrimp from his own home.
He placed the cloth bag on the kitchen table, saying he was saving it for Xiu'e to eat when she returned.
Lin Xiu'e stood up from the stone trough, took the dried shrimp, and said, "Uncle Sun, you haven't finished the ones you gave me last time."
Old Sun said that last time it was dried shrimp, but this time it was dried shrimp, which is different. He then pointed to another paper packet pressed at the bottom of the cloth bag, saying that it was mint leaves for Master Fang, which would be soaked in water to soothe his throat.
Then, as usual, I sat down on the stone stool at the entrance of the old parts warehouse.
The stone bench was covered with an old boat plank that Hong Xiaobing had placed there, so it wasn't cold to sit on.
No one paid any special attention to him.
Old Fang was repairing gearboxes in the workshop, the sound of his wrench tightening bolts ringing out.
Qiu Changhai squatted by the stone trough, chiseling the opening, the chisel striking the hemp fibers with even, consistent sounds.
Ah Hai walked back and forth between the workshop and the dock with the maintenance schedule in hand, while Hong Xiaobing squatted at the entrance of the shed and arranged the disassembled filter parts on the stone slab.
Old Sun didn't say anything, he just sat on the stone stool and watched.
Watch A-Guang register old items, watch Hong Xiaobing dismantle filters, watch Xiao Zhou sew seams.
I spent the whole morning watching it.
At noon, Lin's mother brought over a pot of sweet potato porridge.
Old Sun took out an enamel mug from his cloth bag, filled it with porridge himself, and squatted down to drink it at the entrance of the old parts warehouse.
Hong Xiaobing squatted down next to him with a bowl in his hand and said, "Uncle Sun, you're not getting on the boat today."
Old Sun said the spring fishing season hadn't arrived yet, so the boats were idle at the dock, and he was idle too.
Hong Xiaobing said it's good to be free, because only when you're free can you rest.
Old Sun said, "What's there to rest? Resting will only make your bones hurt."
After saying that, he stood up, put the enamel mug into his cloth bag, and said he was going back to feed the chickens.
He came again in the afternoon, still empty-handed, and still sitting at the entrance of the old parts warehouse.
Ah Guang is registering a batch of newly arrived used parts, which are a dozen or so old water pumps and valves discarded by the county's aquatic products company.
Old Sun watched as A Guang numbered and labeled each item, and asked him where these things came from.
Ah Guang said that Director Wang brought them here because the aquatic products company was replacing its equipment and had given all the old equipment to the service station.
Old Sun said that they would give it to you for free.
Ah Guang said it wasn't a free gift; these old parts could still be used after being repaired, and the service station would deduct the labor hours spent repairing the aquatic products company's boats.
Old Sun nodded and said that this was the same as the old days when the production team exchanged workers, where no money was paid, only labor was contributed.
Ah-Guang numbered the last old water pump and put it on the shelf, then closed the register.
Looking at the neatly arranged old items on the shelf, Old Sun suddenly said that when he first learned to fish, everything on the boat was old.
The old sails, old nets, old rudder, and even the bottom plate were discarded by other companies.
His master taught him to mend and patch boats for several years until he finally saved enough money to buy a new one.
That new ship had been with him for most of his life and was still docked at the pier.
Although it's so old it's in terrible condition, we bring it over every year for Master Qiu to fix it, and it's still usable.
Ah Guang said that some things are better the older they are.
Old Sun said that once you get used to the old things, you don't feel comfortable with the new ones.
Hong Xiaobing walked over from the shed entrance, holding a newly removed old filter in his hand.
He asked Old Sun how often the filters on the fishing boat were changed.
Old Sun thought for a moment and said that in the past, there were no filters. They used a rag to filter the diesel fuel, but the residue in the diesel fuel was not filtered out, and the fuel injectors would get clogged every few days.
Later, when air filters were available, he didn't know how often to change them; whenever one broke, he would just ask Master Fang to fix it.
Hong Xiaobing said the standard is to replace it every six months, but in areas with severe seawater corrosion, it should be replaced every three months.
Old Sun said that young people nowadays know more than him. Hong Xiaobing removed the filter seal and told him that the seal should be checked every time the oil is changed. If it gets old, it should be replaced. Otherwise, it will not only leak oil and burn oil, but the main unit will also be prone to bearing failure.
Old Sun took the sealing ring and examined it for a long time, saying that such a small thing could damage the entire host.
Hong Xiaobing said that what Master Fang said is that the worst thing about repairing a ship is not the big problems, but the small problems that no one cares about.
As evening fell and work was done, Old Sun stood up, patted his pants, and said he was going home to feed the chickens.
He turned back at the gate and told A-Guang that if the service station no longer needed the old items recorded in the register, they should not be thrown away, but kept for future generations to see.
Ah Guang said he wouldn't throw them away. The old parts that were to be scrapped were all numbered and stored separately. In the future, when the service station is expanded, a special display case will be built.
Old Sun went home reassured.
Jiang Haiping walked out of the workshop and watched Old Sun's figure slowly disappear around the bend of the seawall.
Old Fang squatted at the workshop entrance smoking, saying that Old Sun had treated the service station like his second home these past two years.
Jiang Haiping said that after his wife passed away, he was all alone at home, and at least he had someone to talk to when he came to the service station.
Old Fang stubbed out his cigarette on the sole of his shoe and said that there used to be old workers like that in the factory. After retiring, they would come to the factory every day, but the gatekeeper would recognize them and wouldn't let them in. They would just squat at the gate and watch.
Later, the factory removed the benches at the entrance, and the old man brought his own stool the next day.
The courtyard was quiet for a moment.
Jiang Haiping walked to the kitchen door and told Lin Xiu'e that when Old Sun came over at noon, there would be an extra set of chopsticks and a bowl.
Lin Xiu'e said she had added one a long time ago. She even brought his enamel mug from home and kept it in the kitchen cabinet, where no one else used it.
Jiang Haiping agreed.
Lin Xiu'e put away the bowls and chopsticks in the kitchen, picked up a broom and swept the stone steps at the entrance of the kitchen clean, and then wiped the old boat plank on the stone block with a rag.
She said that every time Uncle Sun left, he would mention going back to feed the chickens. In fact, his chickens had stopped laying eggs a long time ago; he just fed them to keep them company.
Jiang Haiping sat down on the reef.
The moon rose from the sea, illuminating the courtyard in a silvery light.
He thought that Old Sun came to the service station every day not because his home was lonely, but because someone was waiting for him there.
Qiu Changhai was waiting for him to push the boat over to repair it, Hong Xiaobing was waiting for him to sit down and watch him disassemble the filter, and Lin Xiue kept his enamel mug in the kitchen.
A person doesn't feel lonely when they are needed. The service station repairs boats, but it retains people.