Chapter 49: Telling Old Tales Under the Tree
Ten years ago, there was a massive flood in the Liujiang River. The stone bridge over the river was broken in the middle, but actually it wasn't the flood that caused it. Someone passing by on the day saw a very long black shadow in the water, likely a walking dragon[1], which broke the bridge. Unfortunately, the creature didn't succeed in its transformation into a dragon and remained in the river, causing havoc and eating many people a few years ago.
There was a family in Luojiawan outside the city that was poor and couldn't afford a coffin or a burial plot when a family member died last year. The body was kept in the main hall and absorbed human qi. It didn’t smell even after a long time. Its nails and hair grew longer and longer. In the end, the frightened villagers pooled money to buy a plot and buried the body hastily.
That very night there was a thunderstorm. The body actually crawled out of the earth, leaving traces all the way from the grave to the village entrance. Luckily, it crawled slowly and dawn broke just when it reached the village entrance.
It was said that the unmarked common graves outside the city often saw ghostly activity…
Of course, the old man's stories weren't all true. Some were fabricated, either by others or himself. Some were things he'd heard in his youth or even as a child, that he had remembered until now, and passed on to the next generation.
Some were things he had actually seen. These stories, not always particularly interesting and often very short, had the advantage of being close to home, many taking place just outside the city, in the city, or even on the next street.
Other adults sometimes joined in, adding details and enhancing the sense of reality. They either claimed to have seen or heard similar things or made a show of earnestly explaining the reasons for these supernatural occurrences based on their imaginations or what they had heard, of course using mystical and strange terms and reasoning.
Many true ghost legends come from such origins, passed down through generations, with even falsehoods becoming truths.
At least, the children believed them without question. They listened with wide eyes, both scared and excited, unable to tear themselves away. Some children, wanting to appear brave, would either make small talk or move around to pretend they weren't bothered. Or they would ask their peers if they were afraid. Any hesitation from the other party would give them comfort, allowing them to laugh and tease in order to diminish their own fear, so that they could embrace this kind of addictive thrill.
However, the old man's stories were running dry. Having catered to the children's tastes so often, he was almost out of tales after telling several.
Unfortunately, the children pestered him relentlessly. If he said he was thirsty, they poured him water. If he said he was tired, someone immediately massaged his back. Eventually, out of options, the old man looked at the woman standing at the side with her saber.
“Stop pestering me. Go pester this great hero.”
The children glanced at the woman but didn't dare approach. Every youngster admires the heroes of the jianghu world. This jianghu hero had already caught their attention when she first arrived previously, attracting many secret glances. However, they were also somewhat afraid in their hearts despite the admiration after hearing many stories of jianghu heroes killing people. Thus they didn’t dare to casually engage this great hero that they didn’t know in conversation.
“Don't be afraid,” the old man said. “This great hero has been listening for a long time, and must be someone who likes stories too. Jianghu people travel all over and must have some intriguing experiences. Maybe he has even personally encountered demons and ghosts. Try speaking nicely, and maybe he'll tell you a story.”
The woman turned her head at this and actually looked at the children.
Finally, a brave child looked at her with pure yet fearful eyes, and asked, “Great hero, have you ever encountered demons and ghosts?”
“I have, and quite a few,” she said calmly, her gaze at the children was very soft with an unconscious hint of a smile. “I've even killed some demons and ghosts myself...”
“Ah?” The crowd was instantly shocked, surprised that this hero with a concealed face was a woman and also astonished by her words. As for the children, their eyes sparkled.
“Really?”
“I’ll tell you a story.”
“Great.”
Children naturally feel close to women, and adults also have an instinct to care for them. Both parties were no longer silent and they immediately became much more familiar. Once the hero’s identity no longer set her apart, only admiration was left.
The woman's somewhat hoarse voice began. “It happened last year. Oh, now it's already the new year, so it was the year before last.
“Once, I was returning to my sect from Yidu. Oh, Yidu is the seat of neighboring Yizhou and my sect is the home sect that teaches me martial arts. On my way back, I took a shortcut but got lost, wasting a lot of time. I ran out of dry rations and was very hungry.
“It was autumn, and the mountains did have wild fruits and birds to hunt and roast. But the wild fruits were extremely sour, and the birds, when dry-roasted, were tough and tasteless.
“By chance, I noticed signs of human habitation in the distance. When I went over for a look, I saw that it was a village and that the wealthiest family in the village was holding a funeral.
“Hey! I thought, why not go and have a meal?
“I didn’t just freeload. I claimed to be a distantly-related niece of the old man who had been learning martial arts on a mountain since I was little. I even offered condolence money[2] and was ready to kowtow if needed. With so many people there eating, who would question me?
“So I went to eat!”
Seeing the children’s focused and tense expressions, she continued with a hint of amusement.
“The meal went very smoothly. The food was also delicious with plenty of fish and meat. I hadn't eaten such good food in a long time. People who practice martial arts have great appetites to begin with and I was very hungry so I really satisfied my cravings. Tsk tsk, if you haven’t tasted our Yizhou banquets before, especially a rich family’s banquet, they’re really tasty.”
Just a few words without other descriptions, and she had successfully whetted the children’s appetites just based on her tone. Some had started salivating and some even asked what dishes were served, and she answered each query one by one.
After a few digressions, she continued.
“After eating and drinking their fill, people dispersed. I didn't want to leave, so I casually found a place to sleep. In the middle of the night, I felt someone pushing me. When I opened my eyes, I saw it was an old man. His clothes were of very fine material, so I thought he was likely the head of this household. Also, he was old, so I wasn’t too wary. Thinking back later, if someone was able to approach me without my noticing it while I was sound asleep and I only woke when he pushed me, I should have drawn my saber immediately.
“He asked me who I was.
“I said I was a distantly-related niece of the man in the coffin, but he said he didn’t recognize me. I said I had been away on a mountain learning martial arts since I was little. He said that the deceased had no niece.
“I was still thinking of making up more stories but in the end I thought that I’ve already eaten and drunk my fill. I could just slip away tomorrow. Also, I had already given condolence money and paid my respects, so why shouldn’t I have eaten the meal? It wasn’t as if they could ask me to spit out the food.”
The woman with the long saber in the crook of her arm slapped her left hand with her right hand with a sharp “clap.”
“I bluntly admitted that I was just a passerby who had lost my way. I had run out of food and was really hungry. Seeing that there was a banquet being held here, I came over, gave some condolence money and had a meal.
“The old man laughed, saying that he also didn’t recognize most of the people who came. Some he had not seen in more than ten years. Some not only came empty-handed every time, they even asked for some money when they left. Some had just come for a good meal and were not even willing to kowtow once. As for their old friends, they were now all old and unable to walk even if they were not dead. None of them could come. The people who came that day were not even as sincere as I who had just come for a meal.
“I laughed too. Later, we chatted some more for a while. I felt sleepy so I went back to sleep.”
Under the ancient tree, there was no other sound. The adults were lost in thought, and the children stared at her with widened, dark eyes. Lady Calico felt that it would be more fun to climb the tree to catch birds but she still sat obediently next to Song You with her tail wrapped around her feet, lowering her head to groom her chest fur neatly.
“When I woke up again, it was the next morning and it was misty. Someone came to look for me, saying I was a guest of honor and invited me to sit at the best table to enjoy the best food.
“Was there any need to think about it? Obviously, the old man and I had hit it off last night and he thought I was a decent person, so that's why he sent the younger ones to invite me.
“On the way, they told me they dreamed last night that their deceased father had told them I was his distantly-related niece whom he had not seen for a long time and to entertain me properly. After they woke up, they were astonished and also felt it was miraculous. After some discussion, they decided to try to find me. To their surprise, they actually did.”
The children gasped in surprise.
“I didn't believe it at first, but when I approached the coffin for a look…oh, I don’t know if you are aware but at our funerals, the coffin lid isn’t closed tightly during the religious ceremony but is left partially open. The lid is only closed after the religious ceremony is finished and the coffin is carried up the mountain for burial. So you can see the person inside if you approach the coffin.
“When I approached and looked inside…
“It was the old man from last night!
“Even the clothes were the same!”
The children's eyes widened. “What happened next?”
“Later, I had my breakfast there. When I left, they even prepared chicken legs, dried meat, and baozi for me, found someone to give me directions, and insisted on giving me five taels of silver.”
“How much is five taels of silver?”
“Probably around six thousand wen.”
“How much is six thousand?”
“In any case, it is a lot.”
“Did you take it?”
“Haha, of course not! How could I have the cheek to accept such a large sum? I had just gone there for a meal and should leave after eating and drinking my fill. But I did take the chicken legs and dried meat back to my sect so that my master and fellow disciples could all have a taste… They were very delicious.”
“Wow...”
The woman's story, compared to the old man's stories earlier, wasn’t as mysteriously fantastical or as scary. It had the advantage of being a true personal experience, with details as well as emotions and expressions during the narration that the old man’s stories couldn’t match.
Moreover, this story was amusing in its own way. The children didn’t know in what way it was amusing but they really liked the story.
“Tell us another.”
“Great heroine, please tell another.”
“Older Sister…”
“Such sweet words! I’ve encountered demons and ghosts many times and also heard many tales, but I don’t feel like telling another today.” The woman glanced at the Daoist priest beside her, who seemed lost in thought, and smiled softly. She said to the children, “There’s a Daoist priest standing right at the side. Why don’t you pester him instead of me?”
The children heard and looked toward Song You.
Perhaps their earlier interaction with the woman had emboldened them and given them experience so they immediately went over to pester him for stories.
Song You was really unable to resist. He had been listening for so long, and couldn’t just leave. He also hadn’t expected he would have to tell stories there after telling so many on the boat the past few days. However, he didn’t want to repeat the same stories.
What should he tell?
Song You looked at the group of young children in front of him. He noticed that they had already heard a lot of scary stories previously, and the one the woman had just told had somewhat calmed them down. However, he feared this was only temporary. Once they returned home and night fell, most of them would probably be too scared to sleep, and they might even be traumatized for some time...
He decided to tell a soothing story.
Thus he looked down at the obedient calico cat at his feet. “I’ll also tell you a true story I experienced. It’s a story about a roadside cat temple and a cat deity.”
The calico cat looked up when she heard. She stared at him, puzzled.
Song You just smiled. “Around the end of summer and beginning of autumn last year, about half a year ago, I descended the mountain to travel the world. I was walking on Jinyang Road and saw a little temple. The little temple was dedicated not to a human or an immortal, but a cat...”
Song You also told his story in detail. He couldn’t help smiling slightly.
The calico cat was initially confused, but later also became lost in thought.
Time often brought a sense of disorientation.
1. Creatures such as snakes which are in the process of transforming into a dragon. They need to get to the sea to finish their transformation and often cause floods in order to do so. ☜
2. It is traditional for funeral guests to give money to the grieving family at Chinese funerals to help cover the cost of the funeral. ☜
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