Offering a Bouquet of Bellflowers to the Ghost of a Drowned Man 献一株桔梗予溺水的鬼 By Jiang Liu 江流 (fan translation by Chai) Summary An exploration of depression and mortality. The unfolding of the story revolves around a writer’s sudden suicide. Wang Ze, the young man who came in search of the truth, and the forest ranger who let the writer take his own life meet due to the mystery surrounding the writer. A journey of soul exploration taking place in the forest in summer. Story Notes and Content Warnings This story can be read for free on Changpei: RAWS !!️ Major content warnings: Suicide, depression. This story revolves heavily around these two themes and I advise you to tread with caution if you’re sensitive to them. ❗ Other content warnings: Incest (not between the main couple), child sexual abuse, torture, drugging.
❗ Please note that while this story is danmei, there is almost no romance of any flavour in it. A note on the wording used in this translation: Suicide reporting guidelines advise avoiding the phrase "commit suicide" as it implies the act of suicide is a crime or a sin. While that might be the case in some places (or historically/religiously), this phrasing increases the stigma around suicide and the mental health illnesses that lead to it. The term "die by suicide" is recommended instead, wording it in a way similar to how you would describe someone dying from other illnesses, e.g. "died of a heart attack." I have adopted this wording and also use the phrase "take his own life" rather than "kill himself" throughout the translation with very few exceptions. "Take his own life" is not in the recommended guidelines I read (which is aimed mainly at news reporting) but I think it is more tactful than the phrase I'm replacing it with. While the phrase "die by suicide" may read a little oddly, especially when used in casual conversations, I agree with the view I've seen expressed that says that the more we use it, the more we normalise it and it wouldn't seem so odd then. I made the choice to use this phrasing in consideration of the story's message. If you need to contact me: Twitter: chaikat Email:
[email protected] Carrd for project list and other FAQs: Chai Translations Chapters Word count: approx. 73k words Chapters 1 - 13 Chapters 14 - 24
Chapters 25 - 34 Extra Chapter 1 01 On the first day, the forest ranger found a cake beside the lake. It was the type of cake that was exquisitely made and high in quality. A tempting display of strawberries, just the right level of sweetness in the mousse and the cream, as well as a texture that melted in the mouth. It was so delicious it made a person want to swallow their tongue along with it. That’s right. The forest ranger picked up the cake box right away and used the provided fork to stuff the cake into his stomach. On the second day, the thing that appeared beside the lake was a mango and peach pie. The flesh of the peaches in season and the tartly sweet mango paired with the flaky and sweet crust was truly a taste that lingered dearly in his mouth. The forest ranger brought the box back to the ranger’s lodge with a reverential feeling: A baker who can make this kind of dessert should receive the most sublime praise. Then, he put the box on the dining table. He was thinking that this way, every time he ate unripe fruits to allay his hunger, he could look at the box and remember the mango and peach pie to add flavour. On the third day, the forest ranger went to the lakeside excitedly.
But this time, he only obtained an inedible primate. The primate said angrily, “How could you eat the offerings for the deceased?” The forest ranger replied craftily, “The deceased can’t taste the offerings anyway when you put them here. They’ll only be absorbed by nature, so they might as well skip the long, long food chain and be eaten by me.” 02 The person who’d brought the sweet treats said he was there to commemorate the deceased. The commemorator said, “No matter what, I made those sweet treats for the deceased. You shouldn’t eat them.” The forest ranger said, “I’m the forest ranger. One of my responsibilities is to stop people from dumping trash everywhere. I’m just putting the trash where it ought to be.” The commemorator said, “I’ll make an extra portion in the future. One for you, one for the deceased.” A perfect solution. The forest ranger was satisfied. For the sake of the sweet treats, the forest ranger decided to do his best to stop himself from hurting the commemorator ‘s sensitive and fragile heart further. He asked insincerely, “Are you here to grieve for the most important person in your life?”
English