I'm a corpse carrier in Guizhou. Every year, plenty of travelers fall from steep cliffs.
Before carrying a corpse, we have to drink the liquor given to us by the priest, put on our safety ropes, and beat drums and gongs before starting work.
Corpse carriers follow three rules: never carry a body in any of these three situations. If you break a rule, you'll suffer a terrible backlash.
Ever since my cousin joined the corpse carriers, she's repeatedly challenged me, claiming I deliberately made up so many rules to exploit grieving families and make more money.
First, a corpse carrier must never retrace their steps, or they'll be haunted by vengeful spirits and suffer misfortune for the rest of their lives.
But halfway through carrying a body, my cousin said she'd dropped her bracelet and insisted on going back to look for it. I desperately tried to persuade her, and finally managed to change her mind. We sang a mountain song facing east ninety-nine times, and only then did we safely carry the body back.
Second, a body with no visible injuries must never be carried back by force, or the backlash will be fatal.
She insisted on carrying a body that had stopped breathing but showed no injuries. I held her back by force, and only left after bowing three times and kowtowing nine times.
Third, a corpse carrier must never call the dead by name. It's a grave taboo! It not only disturbs the departed, but also provokes the things at the bottom of the valley!
A young man fell off a cliff while climbing at night. My cousin actually wanted to call his name to get a response and figure out where he was. I clamped a hand over her mouth and cut my own wrist. Only after blood had spilled all over the ground did I manage to get her back safely.
But my cousin said I was deliberately harming people, waiting until everyone was dead before going to retrieve their bodies.
