I woke up from sleep, not even cleaning the eye boogers at the corners of my eyes, when the sound of Li Ermao's roaring cry came from the Li Ermao's house next door.

I forgot that today is Li Ermao's 18th birthday, and it's also the day when Ermao's father, Uncle Gen, was thrown into the sea to feed the giant turtle.

I hastily put on some clothes and rushed next door. Ermao was knocked unconscious on the kang, and Uncle Gen was nowhere to be found.

I chased after them for over half a mile until I saw the procession carrying Uncle Gen, marching out of the village.

When one's lips are gone, the teeth will be cold. It will be my turn next year, so Dad leaves home before dawn every day and only comes back when it's dark.

He doesn't trust me and Grandpa Liu, wanting to finish the work of these two or three years within one year.

I hurried along, but before reaching the seaside, I saw the procession carrying Uncle Gen. The village chief and others lifted Uncle Gen onto the turtle-feeding platform, and with a wave of the snowy white whisk, the Taoist disciple dressed in a gray-white Taoist robe made the turtle-feeding gesture. They threw struggling Uncle Gen into the sea. Before he fell into the water, a huge figure like a mountain leaped out of the sea, its large red tongue rolled up Uncle Gen and carried him into its blood-red mouth, then plunged into the sea, causing towering waves. The crowd was in an uproar, and excited cries filled the air.

It must be the giant turtle from Tuo Island. I was frightened by the sudden and horrifying scene and sat on the ground, unable to move for a long time.

No wonder every time during the turtle-feeding ceremony, it is attended by those who are childless and will not be fed to the sea turtle. Those who have the potential to be fed are not allowed to watch. Perhaps after seeing it, no one in this village would dare to marry and have children anymore. Then, what's the point of feeding those laboring sea turtles?

Soon, the crowd of people feeding the turtle started to return to the village, but my legs were so weak that I couldn't stand up at all. I could only crawl and roll into the roadside weeds.

In the village, it is stipulated that anyone who violates the rule of watching the turtle-feeding ceremony will have their tongues cut and eyes dug out, and they will be tied to the village's sacrificial platform for three days as a demonstration. I don't want to become mute and blind, tied to the wooden platform and exposed to the scorching sun.