The Coffin Maker

My name is Lu Jiu. I never knew my parents; my grandfather raised me. He was a carpenter, and everyone in the village went to him whenever they needed woodworking done. As the saying goes, “Among the nine masters and eighteen trades, the carpenter reigns supreme.” The old man looked frail and close to death, but his hands were remarkably quick. He always seemed full of energy, but he passed away when I was twenty. Strangely, he hardly taught me ordinary carpentry, like building houses or making furniture. In all those years, there was only one thing I learned from him: how to make a coffin. A coffin is also known as a casket.