When leaving, be simple. An elderly woman living alone in her nineties in Hunan Province spent 100000 yuan on a "live funeral": "This time, she had a neighbor | told | cried | Chen Guifang | villagers | elderly | funeral | Li Fengying."

In mid June, Li Fengying, a 90 year old woman living alone in Qihe Town, Taoyuan County, Changde, Hunan Province, spent 100000 yuan to hold a grand "funeral" for herself. The related video received attention after it spread online.

Live people hold funerals, which are locally known as "live funerals.". Regarding the many details of this funeral, Li Fengying's relatives and local insiders have different narratives.

But no matter what, Li Fengying was very satisfied with this lively funeral. The tombstone prepared for the "live burial" has already been erected on the mountain beyond my nephew's village, and the used coffins are also placed at home. She even arranged a band for her actual funeral in advance.

"1000 people are exaggerating," the mourners couldn't help but laugh

Li Fengying lives in Jiejieping Village, but her funeral was held in Changshou Temple Village.

Similar to the process of burying the dead in the local area, Li Fengying had already arranged for someone to lead the way for her to be buried alive. On the morning of June 13th, in Changshou Temple Village, Qihe Town, Taoyuan County, Li Fengying sat in a coffin, wearing a red shroud, wrapped in a red bedding, and holding an umbrella. Nearly 20 people carried her coffin.

On the funeral procession, there was a long queue following, including relatives and villagers, as well as people rushing from the nearby Huangjiapu Street to watch the excitement. Many people hold their phones, whispering and chatting.

Li Fengying, who had set up a mourning hall at home and was carried home by a coffin from the mountain, sat in the middle of the hall, close to her "last photo". Subsequently, younger generations such as nephews and grandchildren began to kowtow to Li Fengying. There were several flowing tables in front of the house, and Li Fengying was very popular. The members of the group came to eat the tables with firecrackers. The funeral lasted for a whole day, and there were rumors online that thousands of people attended the funeral. Chen Mei, the niece in law of Li Fengying's family, told Red Star News, "1000 people is an exaggeration, 100 people are still about the same."

On the eve of the funeral, Li Fengying sent a letter stating that those who were willing to come and mourn for her would receive a reward of 200 yuan. From the video released on the day of the funeral, it was seen that four or five mourning "actresses" were kneeling in front of Li Fengying in rows, wearing mourning clothes and filial piety, accompanied by the scene of mourning. The leading middle-aged woman was crying backwards and forwards, and her grief was particularly vivid. Li Fengying held the mourner's hand with her hand, stretched out her head, and looked left and right with a slight smile. Local villagers told reporters that the woman who cried the most fiercely received 500 yuan in the end.

During the mourning, the recorded phone got closer and closer. Under the camera of the phone and the onlookers from the villagers, the mourning actor kneeling in the back row couldn't help but laugh, blending with the laughter of other people on the scene. On the day of the funeral, many scenes from the morning funeral to the subsequent flowing banquet were captured by the villagers and uploaded to social media. The event of "live burial" became a hot topic on the internet that evening. Local residents told the media that this is a local custom.

Li Fengying is 96 years old this year and has no children. Her husband passed away for decades and she has been living alone for many years. My spouse has almost no relatives and is mainly taken care of by the children of her maternal sisters. Li Fengying's nephew Zhang Xing lives in the nearby Changshou Temple Village. All the funeral activities were mainly organized by Zhang Xing's wife Chen Guifang, and the ceremony venue was also chosen on her own side.

Considering that he has an elderly father and two unmarried sons, Zhang Xing is worried about causing trouble to his relatives and friends, and this "live burial" does not accept any gift money. Li Fengying's neighbor said that having successfully arranged such a grand funeral for her aunt, Chen Guifang's face was also very radiant.

The elderly have no children and "want to spend money to experience the funeral in advance"

Whether it is a local custom for elderly people to sit in coffins and attend funerals alive is not clear, but in recent years, news of elderly people sitting in coffins has occasionally appeared on the internet. Also in Changde, Hunan, two years ago, a 79 year old man experienced a funeral by sitting in a coffin on his birthday. According to some residents of Qihe Town in Changde, there have been instances of elderly people being "buried alive" before, but it can only be said that there have been instances, which is not very common

On the day of Li Fengying's "live funeral", a banner hung at the scene read "My nephew and niece's wife wish my aunt Li Fengying a hundred years of great birthday and a long and boundless life" - this is more of a blessing, and the day of the funeral is not Li Fengying's birthday. She told reporters that she will only turn 97 in the second half of the year. Li Fengying's neighbor said, "She feels like she has no children and doesn't necessarily have anyone to care about when she dies, so she wants to spend money to experience the funeral in advance and see it with her own eyes."

A man who carried Li Fengying's coffin told reporters, "It's not about how much money can be given, it's mainly for the sake of excitement."

The video clip of Li Fengying's "Live Burial" frequently appeared on the local people's Tiktok interface during this period. A young man showed Zhang Jinzhu his mobile phone, and she recognized Li Fengying as the main character at a glance. Zhang Jinzhu is the person in charge of the surrounding area of the local Taoist association and had some interactions with Li Fengying in his early years. She shook her head at the reporter and said that Li Fengying's behavior was somewhat "flashy" and did not contribute to society. "If there is surplus money, it should still be used in areas that are beneficial to society."

The grand funeral of Li Fengying has attracted attention online and transmitted real pressure. Some village officials are not willing for Li Fengying's relatives and villagers to discuss the funeral situation too much, let alone be widely spread.

Among the numerous Tiktok videos, Tao Jinmei, the owner of a local furniture store, has the largest video browsing volume, with more than 320000 hits within two hours. Later, many media outlets used her materials for video reporting. But soon, someone called to remind her, "Forwarding too much may not have a good impact." Tao Jinmei then hid the hottest video she had ever posted.

Neighbor: Funeral is something the elderly insist on doing themselves

This is actually Li Fengying's second "live burial". The last time was 5 years ago, and it also cost tens of thousands of yuan, but the scale is not as large as this time.

Li Fengying has 9 sisters, and she is the eldest sister in the family. More than half a month before this "live funeral", one of Li Fengying's younger brothers passed away. The day after the funeral "going up the mountain", she also fell ill, which is usually rarely sick. Chen Mei told reporters that after the elderly person was hospitalized, they have not been doing well. "It's so serious that she can't even get a drop." As a kind of blessing and encouragement, Chen Guifang promised Li Fengying, who is seriously ill, at the hospital, and also told her relatives and friends that when the elderly person recovers, she will have a more lively funeral for her.

Chen Guifang kept her promise and immediately held a funeral for Li Fengying after she was discharged from the hospital.

Due to being in a whirlpool of public opinion, including the specific cost of this funeral, Li Fengying's relatives and local insiders have different narratives. "The cost was not as much as 100000 yuan, only 30000 to 40000 yuan." In Chen Mei's opinion, she said that the elderly person didn't have that much money, and a part of the funeral expenses were still helped by Chen Guifang and her team.

The reporter asked Li Fengying herself about the reason for the "live burial", but Li Fengying, who had almost lost her hearing, did not respond in a timely manner. The neighbor who had the closest contact with Li Fengying sat next to her and translated for her. She told reporters that the funeral was actually something the elderly person insisted on wanting to do, and the expenses were all borne by the elderly person themselves. "She has no children and is worried that she won't use this money after she dies, so let's have a funeral first and have peace of mind."

An elderly person surnamed Zhang who is familiar with Li Fengying said that previously, Li Fengying's nephew helped her build a monument and placed it in the Li family. She plans to settle down in her mother's house after her death. But due to the later strained relationship with her nephew, Li Fengying relied on her younger sister's descendants.

My niece and daughter-in-law Chen Guifang have erected a larger monument for Li Fengying this time. Li Fengying's neighbor described it as even higher than the main entrance of the main house. "There are tombstones of various sizes, ranging from a few hundred to several thousand yuan," the master who laid the tombstone for Li Fengying on Huangjiapu Street told reporters. Her tombstone was ordered about a month before the funeral and cost seven to eight thousand yuan.

Now, as the host of the funeral, Chen Guifang no longer wants to talk to outsiders about "burying her aunt alive", but constantly reiterates that "it's just for the fun". The reporter met Chen Guifang at a local card shop and asked about the origin and specific expenses of this "live funeral". She, who was buried in playing cards, was very resistant to discussing funeral related topics, saying that she "didn't spend much money".

Old man: Next time you leave, make it simpler

Li Fengying's spouse has passed away for over 40 years. She once gave birth to a child, but died young at the age of a few and has not been reborn since then. After the death of her first spouse, Li Fengying sought out three of them, but also passed away one after another, and has been living alone ever since.

Li Fengying's residence is far from other houses in Wanzi. The secluded cabin is surrounded by dense forests, and in front of the door is a pond. After entering Wanzi, you can only walk to her house by following the only small path by the pond.

Li Fengying's Residence

Li Fengying's room has two rooms with a bed. On the right side of the room stands a small shed, serving as a kitchen.

Li Fengying's Kitchen

Li Fengying, who is 96 years old this year, is tall and thin, with a straight waist and agile movements. She is also very stable when sitting on a motorcycle. The only physical feature that matches her age is hearing, and when others communicate with her, shouting is no longer very effective. At the age of nearly a hundred, Li Fengying's black hair is very eye-catching, and local villagers are also enthusiastic about it. The neighbor introduced that her hair had been dyed. "I bought a potion myself, and every time my hair turns white, I dye my black hair at home," she said

Li Fengying is sitting at her doorstep

Li Fengying rarely goes out for a walk on weekdays. During the day, she spends most of her time in the side room. According to local villagers, almost every day people come to Li Fengying's house, including nearby villagers and those from other places who come to admire him.

Li Fengying showed reporters a commemorative booklet issued by the Qilongshan Taoist Temple in Qihe Town, Taoyuan County in the winter of 2014. The quantity is not large, and not everyone is eligible to receive it. She sighed and decided to do more good deeds because "good deeds come in return.".

Li Fengying was very satisfied with the lively funeral. The second tombstone for the funeral has already been erected on the mountain beyond Zhang Xing's village, and the used coffin is also placed at home. She even arranged a band for her next real funeral, but said, "I did it this time, I'll make it simpler the next time I leave."