My name is Xie Jingxing, I am twenty this year.
In our Xie family, turning twenty is a hurdle. After this age, your spiritual roots are what they are, and there is no need to change them. Tonight is the "awakening" ceremony. Hundreds of people from the entire clan gather around the entrance of the ancestral hall. The lights are brightly lit and it is more lively than the Chinese New Year.
I stood at the back of the crowd, watching the brothers and sisters in front of me who were five or six years younger than me go up to test one by one, and I couldn't tell how I felt. Some were found to be low-grade spiritual roots and cried as if their parents had died; some were found to be mid-grade and laughed so hard that they couldn't close their mouths; and there was a little girl from the side branch who actually tested high-grade spiritual roots. Her father was so excited that he knelt down on the spot and kowtowed to the ancestral tablet until his forehead started to bleed.
"Next—Xie Jingxing!"
When the steward shouted my name loudly, the crowd became visibly quiet for a moment. I could feel the glances of the people around me. Some were watching the excitement, some were gloating, and there were also one or two who showed some sympathy.
