Text | Li Ji

one

The last cloud in the morning light slowly dissipated between Ciyugou and Tuanshanzi.

On the undulating ridge, the Ming Great Wall drifted with the tide, injecting a vigorous poetic style into the rough north. Looking around, this valley surrounded by lush pine forests is as deep and quiet as the years it has experienced.

Heaven and earth are one integrated mass, and all is silent. The winter in the mountains is swearing the territory with the last stubbornness, and the rhythm of spring has already passed through the cold cracks, turned into countless hidden rivers, dripped through branches, dripped through buds, and even infiltrated from the hard stones at the foot, just waiting to accumulate with the call of the spring, breaking through the shackles of winter, and generate produced a symphony of bright valleys.

Go to Huangwo, then climb the slope, and you will come to the old house of the shepherd Wang Zhiguo. The first thing that caught our eye was two happy dogs, and then several tits flew over my head, and there was joy in the flapping sound. At the moment, Wang Zhiguo is standing there firmly, just like the walnut tree rooted in the soil at the door. He is not tall, but he is strong; Only 44 years old, wheat-colored face is full of vicissitudes.

The yellow nest at the foot of Tuanshanzi, Dongfeng Village, Liu Jiaying Township, lulong county, Qinhuangdao City, is hidden in the depths of the long and narrow thorn ditch.

Wang Zhiguo is really a tree in the yellow nest. The day when the Wangs moved to Huangwo can be traced back to the last century. They have been cultivating land here since his great grandfather's life. More than twenty years ago, Wang Zhiguo's father contracted this mountain forest at the foot of the mountain, planted trees and began to raise cashmere goats.

In 20 16, his father, who was ill in bed, gave him the key to the old house. Wang Zhiguo became a new generation of shepherds and the only shepherd in this mountain.

two

The sunshine in early spring is still warm and cold. A group of cashmere goats are walking leisurely in front of the fence. The back of the sheep is undulating, the rolled wool is like waves, and the long face and sharp ears are looming.

"These sheep are only a small part, and the rest are on the mountain," Wang Zhiguo said to me with a smile. "Now there are more than one hundred cashmere goats at home. Get up early and spread it out. At four or five o'clock in the afternoon, they climbed to the top of the mountain and shouted, then strolled back by themselves. "

Wang Zhiguo lives in Dongfeng Village outside the mountain, and it takes 20 minutes to get to the old house by motorcycle. At six o'clock every morning, he released the sheep from the sheepfold on time, watched them walk to Nanshan one by one in the morning glow, turned his head and began to tidy up the sheepfold.

The topic of herding sheep started from the edge of the sheepfold.

"I have been herding sheep since I was a child," Wang Zhiguo told me. "The first time I herded sheep was in the fourth grade of primary school. It took a long time to catch up with the summer vacation. In the past two months, the children in the mountains have nothing to do except dig birds in the trees, touch shrimps in the river and catch grasshoppers in the grass every day. I like sheep and love to play with lambs. When I am really free, I take the initiative to take on the work of herding sheep. "

"Early in the morning, I put on a stick and whip, hung a sickle on my waist, carried a kettle and dry food on my shoulder, and drove the sheep to the mountain." Wang Zhiguo's eyes can't help flying over the mountains, as if to find that childlike innocence. "Just turn on Taohualing, I saw the sunrise for the first time, don't mention how excited I am ..."

Wang Zhiguo recalled emotionally, and suddenly a picture flashed in his mind: a boy of 12 years old was standing on the top of the mountain with a whip. A red sun just appeared from the ridge, and the morning glow filled the sky instantly. Teenagers pay attention to it silently, and always feel that there is a powerful voice calling in their ears, which seems to be far away and far away, echoing in the valley. The teenager raised his whip high, shouted at the sheep and rushed to a slope. Accompanied by the crisp birdsong, smelling the fragrance of wild flowers, the sheep with an empty stomach after a night's sleep plunged into the grass stained with cool dew and ate it. ...

three

While the sheep were eating grass, Wang Zhiguo chose a big stone to sit on and watch the scenery. In the mountains in midsummer, it is quiet and restless. Grasshoppers, grasshoppers and longicorn beetles are jumping around on the grass, while mountain sparrows, rolling fields and black widows are flying up and down on the catalpa tree. Sometimes, the flock will suddenly start up a few pheasants, or rabbits will swish away and then disappear.

It was too hot at noon, so the sheep found a shady place to come down, and Wang Zhiguo fell asleep under the tree. When I woke up, the sheep had jumped over the slope beam and changed places to eat grass until it was dark. At that time, he was young and simple-minded, but he felt very happy when he was herding sheep.

"Sheep love home, and they are closer than people. Stay with the sheep every day, I can recognize every sheep, and the sheep know me. " Wang Zhiguo's unhurried voice reveals sincere feelings and inexplicable warmth.

There is a lamb in the pen that has just been born for more than ten days. He delivered the baby. The lamb is very docile and likes to follow him every day. But at four o'clock in the afternoon, the lamb stopped playing and began to "baa" when jumping on the slope. It knows that the ewe will go down the mountain with the sheep soon. The later it gets, the more the lamb cries.

When the sheep get home, the ewe will jump out of the team, and almost at the same time, the lamb will run to the ewe. "I am very touched. Every time the lamb eats milk, it is kneeling." Wang Zhiguo knows sheep's feelings best, as if he and sheep were friends in this world.

four

Sheep have been looking for clean grass all their lives. As the saying goes, "don't be busy herding cattle, and the sheep will be sad." Pasturing sheep seems simple and comfortable, but it's hard.

There is only one family in Huangwo, Wang Zhiguo, and it is a natural sheep farm outside the courtyard. But here the mountains are high and the forests are dense, and the scattered sheep are like grains of sand in the vast Yuan Ye. Wandering outside for a day, there are always naughty sheep lost "alone", and the number of counts is often one or two less. Wang Zhiguo and his father are not worried about finding sheep.

"When you go to the south slope, it runs to the north slope. When you get to the top of the mountain, it runs down the hill and its legs are almost broken. " Sometimes pregnant ewes will give birth in the mountains, and after giving birth, they will simply camp with the lambs on the spot and will not go home until they find them. Wang Zhiguo often went up the mountain in the dark in the middle of the night to "find a needle in a haystack" and went through hardships. Spring and autumn are also easy to search and patrol. Trees grow tall and grass flourish in summer, and it takes a long time to find them in winter, often after midnight.

When you are sleepy, you want to change. If you change, you will understand. In the spring of 202 1, Wang Zhiguo, who loves to ponder things, bought several "collars" from the Internet and put them around the neck of a sheep. From then on, he was no longer worried about finding sheep, and he could even sit at home and graze them leisurely.

A seemingly ordinary collar contains Gan Kun and shows his magical power. The secret is that the collar is equipped with a high-precision positioning chip, which can track the position and trajectory of the sheep in real time. Wang Zhiguo opened the mobile phone application, pointed to the flashing light on the screen and told me that these "little white dots" were the location of the sheep. "You can not only locate, but also set electronic coordinates in the system to circle their activities. Once they cross the border, they will issue an alarm. "

I looked at the screen with my mobile phone, lost in thought: in the deep and shallow green topographic map, sheep floated on the grassland like clouds. After a while, the cloud changed its position again. When the sun moves to the west, scattered clouds begin to connect into ribbons, one end yearns for the fertile grassland, and the other end yearns for the humble home with only fences and sheep manure. Against the background of dark clouds, the sheep lowered their heads and went down the mountain one by one.

five

The old people in the village have never seen the shepherd Rainbow Zhiguo. They all feel strange and boast that he can even play new tricks when herding sheep.

Wang Zhiguo said with deep feeling: "Before, when there were no lots, sheep ate crops in other people's fields and had to pay for them. Now I put collars on the first sheep and the sheep who love to run around. The flock of sheep followed the first sheep, and there was no more trouble. The pregnant ewe also wore a collar before she died. With positioning, even sheep and lambs can be easily found. "

At the beginning of this year, Wang Zhiguo, who tasted the sweetness of science and technology, bought a "grazing artifact" and spent 2,000 yuan on a small drone, which was intended to be used for air patrol and herding sheep. "Now I am not very skilled in operating drones. After I am proficient, it will be more worry-free and labor-saving. " Looking at his bright smile, I can't help but pay tribute to this introverted and somewhat depressed shepherd.

When asked about the chance to herd sheep by mobile phone, Wang Zhiguo quipped, "Lazy! People who go up the mountain to find sheep in the ditch every day are tired and sweaty. I'm in good health now, but I'm too old to climb the mountain and put down the sheep. Besides, I am very interesting and like fishing. I have never had time before. This time, I can not delay fishing and herding sheep. This is called intelligent grazing. "

It is understood that intelligent grazing is a comprehensive application based on information technology such as Internet of Things, big data, wireless communication technology and artificial intelligence. By wearing a satellite navigation collar on the animal, the position of the herd is transmitted to the mobile phone client in real time through the sensor, and the herdsmen can monitor the dynamics of the herd by opening the exclusive app, thus truly realizing "palm grazing".

Wang Zhiguo introduced that this grazing method is particularly popular in some large pastoral areas in China. He didn't move until he saw the news report, but he didn't think the effect would be immediate. Then he put a monitor on the sheepfold, and what happened at home was clear at a glance. "In the past, when ewes gave birth to lambs, they had to go to see three or four trips all night, and sometimes they had to stay in the circle. Now they can master the situation of sheep with their mobile phones. "

At this point, his eyes narrowed into a crack. "Experts say that from the nature of sheep, it is suitable for free-range, which not only saves a lot of feed money, but also reduces the risk of illness! Moreover, driving the sheep up the mountain can exercise the leg strength of the sheep, make the sheep gain weight and produce more cashmere. "

Wang Zhiguo's expert is actually his smartphone. Nowadays, technological innovation promotes the development of digital empowerment agriculture and animal husbandry, and builds an ecological, green and rich golden bridge for shepherds in the new era.

Talking about the future, Wang Zhiguo said without hesitation that he would keep sheep all his life. "I graduated from junior high school and went to work. Burned bricks, got on a boat, went down a well, worked as a welder, young. Originally, I just wanted to go out of the mountains and look outside, but I didn't understand until I turned around. Let's stay at home and live in peace. "

six

In May of 20021year, after Wang Zhiguo's father died, his mother moved to the village, and the vacant old house became his only "root".

Walking into the old house, the interior furnishings are very messy, and breeding equipment and animal immune drugs can be seen everywhere. "It's lonely to live alone with sheep in the mountains. If you catch up with sheep production or get sick, you have to stay for one or two nights. I spent the Spring Festival alone in the mountains this year. Sheep, like people, have diarrhea and a cold, so they have to take medicine and take injections to serve them. " In recent years, the sheep at home became ill, and Wang Zhiguo delivered the baby and treated it himself.

"Old houses don't collapse easily unless they are popular. I was born here and I am used to living there. I still have feelings. " The inheritance left by our ancestors was in the mountains, and Wang Zhiguo didn't want to leave. "I feel comfortable when I see the sheep on the mountain, and it is difficult to breathe. Sheep and I both know our own lives. "

Wang Zhiguo has a son and a daughter, and his son 19 years old. He is a junior college student in Tangshan. My daughter is in the third grade at the age of 9, and her academic performance is good. I teased him: "These sheep will be given to your son sooner or later." "I didn't think so long, my son has his own ideas, and I don't insist. Besides, raising sheep depends on fate. " Wang Zhiguo looked relaxed and said openly, "Now the price of sheep is OK. A sheep sells for more than RMB 1 1,000. On average, you can earn180,000 a year, and your family life is enough. "

Wang Zhiguo revealed that he didn't have many friends. Occasionally, a classmate went up the mountain to ask him for a drink. He hasn't said so much to others for many years. When he got home, he just smiled at his wife and didn't intend to say anything more. Wang Zhiguo's silence is like the character of a sheep. I shook his hand, and his hand was strong and powerful. These are the hands of a real farmer. He used them to herd sheep on the mountain and also used them to comfort the simple life.

At four o'clock in the afternoon, the sheep came back from the mountains. Like children, they were thirsty, so they went home to find water to drink. I watched the sheep bow their heads and drink water, and my reddish lips stirred gently in the clear water, and I suddenly felt pity. This season is short of green, and sheep can't eat enough outside, so Wang Zhiguo has to prepare concentrated feed to feed in the trough.

While eating forage, a sheep looked up and barked at me, as if to show off and tell. I don't understand, Wang Zhiguo smiled. He should understand.

seven

"Book of Changes, Preface and Guazhuan Biography" says: Animals can be raised later, so they should be treated with dignity. Generous people, support also. The wisdom of our ancestors combined raising livestock with nourishing the heart. "Sheep" and "Yang" are homonyms. Han Liuxi's Interpretation of Names and Postures explains that looking at sheep says: "Sheep are also Yang. Yang is on it, holding his head high, as if looking forward to it. " The ancients gave sheep many beautiful meanings. Allusions such as herding sheep in Su Wu, holding grain with five sheep, hanging horns with antelope and hanging fish with sheep are still sung by people and worth revisiting.

In ancient poetry, there are many lamentations about shepherding, but they are all sad styles. "Shepherd avoid too early, too early sheep need to be hurt. A sheep is ill, but there is not a whole sheep in the flock. The sun is high, the grass is coming out recently, and the sheep are scattered like clouds. Children must learn poetry and know how to test grazing. " ("Song of Shepherd" Lu You in Southern Song Dynasty); "Rocky wasteland, smoke deep shadow * * * neighbors. Going up the mountain is not a matter of life, but also depends on people. Some stems turn white when the sun is shining. Wearing five shackles all the year round, not a poor shepherd. " (The Shepherd, Yizhuang, Liang Ming); "Lambs are not affected, yo yo Mu Chen. Children are afraid to go out and touch tigers and wolves. I often cry until the wind and rain hit me before I dare to hang a whip. " (Shepard Don William Wang) ... can be said to be everywhere.

The once-suffering "pastoral" has been recorded in history books and sealed in memory. Nowadays, the significance and symbol of herding sheep, under the strong wind of rural revitalization, is playing a hymn of the era of starting a business and getting rich, which seems to be a supplement, a inheritance and an extension of mutual care between people.

Li Songshan, a poet who herded sheep in Henan, wrote a very good poem:

I drove the sheep to the hillside/the sun drove away the dew on the wheat seedlings/I used nonstandard slogans/taught them to distinguish weeds from crops/Just like the kindness and ugliness you wrote on the blackboard/From this point, we reached a * * * understanding/It rained, and you said that the glass was an upside-down stream/poem was the glass itself/you wiped off the dust on the glass/I drove the sheep and the sunset down the hillside.

At five o'clock in the afternoon, the interview ended, and many feelings were rich and colorful, but it seems that nothing can be summed up better than this poem: I chased the sheep to Gangpo and left the poem to life.

At the moment, in the silence of the sunset, the wind is blowing from Shan Ye, and a few tall pine trees next to it rustle rapidly, and the breath of everything competing to grow in spring suddenly becomes rich and lively.

This mountain is the home of sheep.

Sheep are the shepherd's home.

The shepherd entrusted his whole life to the sheep.

Li Ji, director of Qinhuangdao Institute of Literary Creation, chairman of Qinhuangdao Writers Association and director of Hebei Writers Association. A second-rate writer. He is the author of a collection of essays, One Man's Running.