yak
Tibet
Xia Zhitang followed Lin Jingming, walking through the low-lying temple buildings with red and white as the main colors.
The aroma of ghee, the strange yet tranquil sound of scripture recitation, the glittering prayer wheels, Xia Zhitang felt as if he had fallen into a foreign time and space.
Lin Jingming operated the stabilizer and took pictures of rows of yak skulls on the stone wall in the afterglow of the sunset, with streamlined Tibetan characters engraved on them.
"Do you know why we have to conduct research in various temples these days?" Lin Jingming stroked the unfamiliar words on the dark yak bones that were weathered with frost.
"Faith is an important cultural foundation," Xia Zhitang said, looking at the colorful prayer flags fluttering in the temple square. "Temple is an indispensable part of Tibetan culture."
"Whether we're filming herders, their food, or their yaks, culture is the most unique root of this land." Lin Jingming turned to look at Xia Zhitang. "The deeper your understanding of a piece of land, the better you'll be able to capture its unique qualities. Documentary films require us to understand first, and then the story will flow through your lens. It's a voice conveyed through the lens, not a deliberate design."
He took Xia Zhitang and lifted the black door curtain to approach the mural room. Under the swaying butter lamp, the mottled murals on the wall seemed to be telling the mysterious stories passed down from ancient times on this land.
"What I want to shoot is hidden here." He raised his camera and scanned the towering mountains on the faded murals, the horse racing and yak hunting depicted on them, and the celebration scenes of the Tibetan New Year.
After walking around, he turned and looked at Xia Zhitang: "Let's find it together, okay?"
The orange-red oil lamp illuminated Lin Jingming's face in a soft warm color, and his eyes became clear and bright.
Xia Zhitang inexplicably felt the urge to cry. She felt Lin Jingming's deep pursuit and love for film and television art.
"Okay, Director." Xia Zhitang smiled with tears in his eyes and looked at Lin Jingming.
At this moment, she felt that the grudges that had existed between them for years were no longer important.
A few days later, Lin Jingming took Xia Zhitang to participate in the Shoton Festival.
Lin Jingming held up a camera and filmed a huge golden woven painting of a Buddha unfolding from high in the sky. Tibetan opera actors wearing black masks and colorful striped clothes sang and danced ancient operas. At the yogurt banquet, people sitting on the lawn were enjoying yogurt with laughter.
Xia Zhitang looked at Lin Jingming, who looked serious, and inexplicably felt that he seemed a bit handsome.
After filming the Shoton Festival, they sat in a small shop and drank yogurt.
Lin Jingming took out his phone and replied to the message. Suddenly, he stood up excitedly and said, "The guide said the herders are going to sell yaks tomorrow. Let's go and check out the place now."
When they drove to the herdsman's house, it was already dark.
The herdsmen's houses surrounded by iron fences are dotted like a lonely boat on the vast grassland, with snow-capped mountains like huge waves behind them, shining blue in the night.
Amid the barking of the Tibetan Mastiff, the owner came on a motorcycle and led them home.
The herdsmen were simple and hospitable. When they heard that they had not eaten dinner, they poured them butter tea and brought them glutinous rice cakes.
In order to improve the relationship, Lin Jingming paid some money, which made the herders feel a little embarrassed.
He emphasized to the herders that this was the labor fee for the filming, and wrote a contract on the spot for the herders to sign.
As the head of the family, Sangge Qujie looked at his baby daughter in his wife's arms and finally accepted her.
"The cattle selling process might be a bit bloody." The herder looked at Xia Zhitang who was following Lin Jingming and kindly reminded him, "Women should stay in a safe area."
"She is not an ordinary woman." Lin Jingming looked at Xia Zhitang with a smile, "But thank you for your kindness, brother. We will pay attention to safety."
Selling cattle is a very important matter for every herder family.
The blue cattle-collecting cart stopped at the door of Sangge's house. Sangge and the relatives who came to help drove the yaks towards the cart.
The cattle buyer looked at each other and bargained with Sangge. Then Sangge shook the blue and white lasso, aimed at the ignorant calf and swung the rope.
The first calf was put on a noose by the neck and began to struggle instinctively, causing the yak herd to become chaotic.
Lin Jingming pointed the camera lens at the struggling calf. Its eyes changed from shock to ferocity, and its struggling movements became more intense.
The herdsmen rushed forward and together they tightened the ropes step by step while collecting the cattle carts.
The atmosphere at the scene grew tense, the shouts of the herders and the cries of the yaks blending into a race. The timid yak calf shivered against its mother, while Xia Zhitang, with a telephoto lens, stood not far away, recording the scene.
As the first yak calf was tied to the cart unwillingly, the old yaks surrounded the cart with sad eyes. The young yak shook its head and struggled in vain for several times before finally giving in.
After that, the process of harnessing the cattle went much more smoothly. One yak after another was tied to the vehicle, their brown eyes filled with fear.
The cattle collector suddenly discovered a yak calf with shiny hair walking on the outskirts of the yak herd. Its horns were thicker than those of other yaks and its body was particularly strong. At first glance, it could be mistaken for a big yak that was about to reach adulthood.
Sangge felt a little embarrassed when he saw that the cattle buyer liked this yak calf.
But after the cattle buyer doubled the price, Sanger bit his lip, picked up the rope and started to lasso the cattle.
This strong yak was extremely smart. Before Sangge got close, it had already noticed his intention and started running.
Sangge and his male relatives and friends were not to be outdone. They threw one lasso rope after another at the yak calf that was spreading its hooves to dodge.
The wind raised a slight cloud of dust, and Lin Jingming was forced to retreat to a safer place on the outskirts of the chaotic scene.
This tug-of-war was much more intense than the previous one. The herders had ropes tied around its horns, front legs, and neck. The yak calf was dragged closer and closer to the ox cart, its eyes full of defiance.
Xia Zhitang focused on the yak's eyes, which seemed to carry an indomitable soul.
The yak calf that was pulled onto the car was still struggling. Sangge tried to comfort it, but the yak calf still shook its head stubbornly and struggled.
Lin Jingming's camera was aimed at the yak calf's face. Its eyes were bright and as it struggled, a drop of blood spurted out of its nose, and then drops of blood dripped from its mouth.
Lin Jingming's head buzzed, and a certain emotional call touched his heart, but his hands were still holding the stabilizer steadily.
Sangge turned his face away with some reluctance. He had watched this yak calf grow up little by little.
The herd of yaks that were originally shivering together suddenly became agitated, the yak calves suddenly began to whine, and tears filled their bright eyes.
Xia Zhitang, who was standing on a high ground in the distance, was the first to notice the abnormality. She moved the camera to the far side of the hillside.
On the yellow-green ridge, a dark brown hill slowly rises, and a wild yak, which is much larger than a domestic yak, slowly walks towards the pasture with firm steps.
Every step its hooves took raised a layer of yellow dust, as if stepping on the heart of a person.
Sanger's face turned pale and he shouted to everyone to hide.
Lin Jingming turned around alertly to look for Xia Zhitang, who was still filming with the camera, and ran over: "Hide back in the house!"
Xia Zhitang suppressed his inner fear, bit his lip, and aimed the camera at the wild yak that was sharpening its hooves to gather strength. Only when it finally spread its hooves and sprinted away did he pick up the tripod and rush into the house.
"Are you trying to kill yourself?" Lin Jingming grabbed her hand and dragged her towards the house with a protective net.
When the two men rushed into the protective net covered in dust, the wild yaks were rushing into the yak herd, forming a standoff with the herders.
Xia Zhitang looked around and saw the narrow staircase in the house. He rushed over with the equipment and said, "Old Lin, help me."
She stuffed the device into the arms of Lin Jingming, who was following behind her, and climbed up the high and steep stairs with her hands and feet. She lay on the second floor and stretched out her hand: "Give me the device."
After getting the equipment, Xia Zhitang immediately adjusted the parameters on the rooftop to record and shoot the competition.
Lin Jingming opened his equipment bag and took out the drone. Amid the sounds of cattle hooves hitting each other and the villagers screaming, he operated the lever to launch the drone into the sky and secure it there.
He picked up the camera, turned around to look at Xia Zhitang who was standing on the roof stabilizing the equipment, and pushed open the iron fence and walked out amid the women's exclamations.
Xia Zhitang looked at Lin Jingming's back on the noisy grassland, and his hand holding the camera shook, causing the picture to be out of focus.
The wild yaks were getting closer and closer to the car. Sangge and his men slowly retreated. The yak calf tied to the car struggled more and more violently. The rope was deeply embedded in its fur, staining it with blood.
Sanger took a few steps back and accidentally tripped over the uneven soil.
His young son watched through the window as the yak rushed towards his fallen father and burst into tears with fear.
Sangge turned to look at his crying son, his young wife and the baby daughter in his wife's arms. He stood up with a roar, picked up a fist-sized stone on the ground and threw it at the wild yak.
The retreating herdsmen seemed to be encouraged. They picked up stones and threw them at the wild yaks, making hissing sounds to drive them away.
Lin Jingming focused the camera on the herders who were trying to resist, while Xia Zhitang closely followed the wild yaks that were being chased by the herd.
The wild yaks were hit by stones one after another, and the women and children in the room were encouraged to start banging empty bottles in the house and shouting loudly to help drive away the wild yaks.
As the morale of the herders grew, the wild yaks gradually withdrew from the circle of domestic yaks, and finally stopped on the uphill slope where humans could not attack.
In Xia Zhitang's telephoto lens, the wild yak stopped and looked back at the truck selling the cattle, its eyes seemed to be full of attachment and pity.
Finally, it sighed, lowered its head, and slowly disappeared down the hillside.
The herdsmen burst into cheers, but Lin Jingming subconsciously turned the camera to the yak calves in the carriage.
It collapsed on the train, its last breath in the procession, its blood staining the blue iron carriage red. But it refused to retreat, still swaying slightly in an attempt to break free from the ropes. Sunlight shone in its pale yellow eyes, and it gradually died under the warm summer sun.
Xia Zhitang walked over to Lin Jingming, who was lying on the grass, gasping for breath, holding a camera, and lay down like him.
"Sangge's wife said that this wild yak gave birth to this exceptionally strong calf with their cow last year." Xia Zhitang looked at the clear blue sky, his tone somewhat sad. "They are both right, but this is survival."
Lin Jingming turned to look at Xia Zhitang and said, "I've found the story I want to film!"
"Their eyes tell stories." Xia Zhitang turned and looked at Lin Jingming. "The stories here are more real than those in the studio."
"Come?"
"good."
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