Censored by Confucius (16 page)

"Now, I have returned to take my revenge on you, and you can be sure that I won't rest until I do!"

From then on, day and night, the Qiantang magistry was in complete chaos. Xing finally reached the end of his tether and called in another Daoist to exorcise the ghost a second time. The rituals were again successful and the ghost was captured and locked with various charms and seals in the Qiantang prison.

As the ghost was being carried into the prison, she screamed, "You really are completely heartless, aren't you? At least I was locked up in a room last time. Now I am being put in jail. What crime have I committed to deserve such treatment? I'll get my revenge, just see if I don't!"

A month later a very important criminal hanged himself in King's jail. Xing was stripped of his title and officially dismissed from the civil service for this failure of duty. This turn of events left Xing terrified. He vowed to shave his head and become a Buddhist monk, and some of his friends donated money so that he could perform the necessary rituals to join the order and officially become a monk.

Unfortunately, before all this could be arranged, Xing became extremely sick, and soon he was dead.

A Fox Fairy and a Ghost Invade the Stomach

An imperial guard, Li Hongfeng, had a son by the name of Li Yi, who also had the official name Yi Shan, because he had once been a scholar in the Hanlin Academy.

Li Yi was a well-rounded scholar. He was able to expound knowledgeably on neo-Confucian philosophy, and he wrote excellent poetry and prose.

One evening while he was reading under the lamplight, two beautiful women appeared before him. They teased him mercilessly and soon grew quite brazen, and eventually Li found himself subjected to all sorts of lewd advances. With firm resolve Li remained impassive throughout the ordeal.

Later that evening, after Li had finished dinner, he heard a voice coming from his stomach. "I attached myself to some of the eggplants you ate for dinner. Now that I'm actually housed in your stomach, you won't be able to ignore me, will you?"

The voice was clearly that of one of the women who had attempted to seduce him under the lamplight earlier that evening.

From this day on, Li walked around with glazed eyes as if in some sort of trance. His behavior became more and more irregular. Sometimes, for no apparent reason, he would suddenly slap himself in the face. He was once seen out in a rainstorm kneeling on the ground with only a small pebble on his head for protection, making absolutely no effort to seek shelter from the torrent. Other times he would suddenly bow down before someone, placing his head on the floor in a mock form of worship, maintaining the position even while he was dragged away.

As the days passed his face grew sallow and pasty and his body grew thinner. It seemed that he would soon waste away. When the spirit wanted to communicate with others, Li acted as the medium and would variously write or speak the spirit's message.

One day a school friend of Li's, a man by the name of Jiang Shiquan, came and challenged the spirit directly, saying, "What on earth is a ravishingly beautiful thing like you doing with old Li? Why don't you come and try your luck with me?"

Li wrote the spirit's brief reply in two characters, which had the general meaning that they were not fated to be together.

Jiang tried again, asking, "Why would someone of your outstanding beauty want to live in such a disgusting place as Li's stomach?"

Li wrote the spirit's reply. "You really are too revolting. Go away!"

At the time, Li's father was fortunate enough to be on friendly terms with the governor of Jiangxi, a Mr. Wu.

Governor Wu, hearing of the Li family's predicament, invited the young scholar to his residence for a meeting with the Daoist grand master Zhang.

Zhang built an altar at the Tenghua Pavilion and commenced the purification of scholar Li—for three days they ate sacred vegetarian meals and chanted incantations. Grand Master Zhang's magicians then lifted a placard on which was written "We will exorcise the demon on the fifteenth of March."

When the day arrived, spectators had gathered from far and wide to view the exorcism. The grand master took a position at the center with the magicians seated along the sides. Li was asked to kneel before the grand master and open his mouth. Zhang then put two fingers down Li's throat and extracted from his mouth a fox the size of a small cat.

The fox then spoke: "Elder Sister, I came to help you, but unfortunately I've been captured. Please be careful and whatever you do don't come out."

From inside Li's stomach came a reply. "All right, I'll be careful."

It was only then they realized that two demons were living in poor Li's stomach. Grand Master Zhang took the fox fairy, sealed it in ajar, and threw it into the nearby river.

After the expurgation of the fox, Li's condition seemed to improve a little. However, it wasn't long before the voice from his stomach was heard again: "In a previous life you and I were enemies. When I had trouble finding you again, I begged help from my friend the fox fairy.

"I certainly didn't mean her to come to any harm. How can I ever forgive myself for her demise? How can I ever be in peace? I'll never forgive you for causing her death."

After this speech, Li experienced terrible pains in his stomach.

With the situation worsening again, the grand master asked the magicians for their prognosis. One of the magicians took out a magic mirror and shone it into Li's stomach, then stated: "We're not dealing with a demon. This is the ghost of someone who was wronged by Scholar Li in a previous life. I am sorry, but we have no power to cure this type of affliction."

This news was then passed to the governor by Grand Master Zhang. Since there was no other recourse, Li was sent back to his family to rest.

Sadly, it was not long before he died.

The Immortal Fox Fairy Hangs Itself

On Pingshi Street, Jinling, the Zhang family have a residence. On the western side of the house is a three-roomed study. The rooms are kept completely empty and firmly locked, because they are rumored to be haunted by the ghost of a woman who hanged herself there.

One day an elegant and apparently rather affluent young scholar came looking for accommodations. Mr. Zhang told him that they had no spare rooms.

The young scholar was clearly unhappy with this response and said rather aggressively, "Since I have already decided to live here, it would be far better for you if the rooms were willingly offered. I can make your life miserable, you realize."

As soon as Zhang heard this strange response he realized that he must be dealing with some sort of fox fairy. Thinking quickly, he said, "In that case, you are welcome to use the three rooms on the western side of the house."

Zhang secretly hoped he might be able to use the fox to expel the ghost. The young scholar was cheered by this news and before taking his leave he thanked Zhang with a bow.

The next day Zhang could hear laughter coming from the haunted rooms and happily noted that the fox fairy had taken up residence. He made sure there was plenty of food and wine at the fox's disposal.

After about a fortnight, the sounds of merriment suddenly ceased. Assuming that the fox fairy must have left, Zhang went to the study. He opened the door and peered into the silent rooms.

There, hanging from a roof beam, was a yellow fox.

Ghosts Hate Poverty

In Yangzhou, a man by the name of Luo Liangfeng boasted that he could actually see ghosts, and insisted that every evening at dusk they wandered the streets in huge numbers. He said that ghosts particularly liked to live around wealthy families.

The ghosts were generally a few feet shorter than an average adult, and instead of having distinct facial features their heads were simply puffs of a black smoky substance. Whether walking around or leaning up against walls, these creatures kept up an incessant chatter.

The places where these ghosts preferred to gather for their evening strolls were usually crowded with people. The warmth of human activity was a form of comfort and sustenance.

Yang Ziyun explained their habits in more detail: "Ghosts especially like to reside near the houses of the wealthy and powerful. They can pass straight through walls and windows and even straight through a human body. Nothing can stop them. If they encounter someone who can actually see them, then they concentrate their energies on bewitching this intruder in a ghostly revenge.

"Poorer families are very rarely troubled by ghosts, because ghosts don't want to live in such cold and miserable surroundings. In fact, there's an apt local saying to the effect that 'I'm so poor that even ghosts wouldn't want to come and live with me.'"

Xiao Fu

In the north of Yi County there lived a woman by the surname of Wang. One night, while in a deep sleep, she dreamed that a beautiful woman came to her bedside and told her she was in fact not a woman at all. Indeed, according to this ghostly visitor, Mistress Wang was really a young man and moreover one with whom the young ghost was rather keen on getting into a relationship.

"My name is Xiao Fu and when I was alive I worked as a maid for the Chen family from Panyu County," the ghost explained.

"In your previous life, you were also a servant for this Chen family. We two were lovers and had already arranged several secret rendezvous when our romance was discovered. We were forbidden to see each other ever again.

"Soon after this I died from the grief of being parted from you. Our love never came to fruition and our fate was never resolved, so I have come to you tonight to resume our unfulfilled romance."

When Mistress Wang awoke the next morning she had become quite crazed. She told her husband that she no longer wished to live with him and promptly moved to separate quarters. She became prone to laughing and talking to herself in the strangest ways. It was as if Mistress Wang had forgotten that she was a woman, because her speech was filled with the ribald obscenities of a man.

After this strange behavior had been going on for a while, the ghost Xiao Fu revealed herself during the daytime to the rest of the family. Naturally, they tried to evict this ghostly presence from their household, but nothing could persuade Xiao Fu to leave.

One day a neighbor's house caught fire and Xiao Fu alerted the Wangs, preventing certain disaster. From then on, the Wang family adopted a kinder attitude toward Xiao Fu. To show their gratitude they decided to invite her to join their household on a permanent basis.

The next year passed peacefully. Then one day, out of the blue, Xiao
Fu told Mistress Wang that she would be leaving. Xiao Fu explained that their love had been fulfilled and she was now eligible for reincarnation.

She embraced Mistress Wang for the last time and sobbed, "My love, we'll never see each other again!"

After Xiao Fu's departure, Mistress Wang's behavior returned to normal—her insanity was instantly cured.

A Jeweled Pagoda Formed by Ghosts

Old Qiu was a native of the city of Hangzhou who made his living selling cloth in and around the district. One day, after squaring accounts with a client, he called at an inn, hoping to rest before making the long journey home. Unfortunately, the inn was full.

Wang mulled over his options and decided that since the road ahead was rather bleak and desolate he would have a chat with the proprietor and try to work something out.

On hearing Qiu's predicament the innkeeper said, "How tough are you? Do you have the nerve to stay in a haunted room?

"There are some rooms over by the back wall that we once used for gambling—throwing dice and the like—but nobody has stayed in them for a long time. I'm afraid they really are haunted. I personally wouldn't recommend that you stay there."

"I've traveled over twelve thousand miles during my lifetime. I don't see why I should be afraid of ghosts," Old Qiu replied.

And so, carrying a candle, the innkeeper escorted Old Qiu through to the back of the compound. Along the back wall, a couple of hundred yards from the main building, lay a line of huts. From the outside the huts appeared clean and tidy, and when Qiu went inside to complete his inspection he found to his delight that the rooms were each furnished with a table, chair, bed, and curtains.

With his customer happy, the innkeeper excused himself and returned to the main building.

It was a sultry night, so Qiu decided to sit outside to work on his accounts.

The moon cast a faint light upon the courtyard, and in the semidarkness Qiu gazed as if in a trance upon what seemed to be a human figure flitting by just a few yards away. He suspected it was a thief intent on illicit gain, but then, as he concentrated his gaze, another shadow flashed past.

Within a short time he had seen twelve such figures flitting back and forth like butterflies circling flowers. The movement was a constant, fluid dance of light and shadow.

Focusing carefully, Old Qiu discovered to his surprise that each shadowy figure was a beautiful woman.

"Men are usually frightened by the hideous appearances of ghosts, but seeing such visions of loveliness, I can only wonder at your beauty!" he said out loud.

His curiosity aroused, Qiu settled back to pay full attention to the dancing figures. Before long, two ghosts knelt at his feet and another clambered up onto his shoulders. Eventually, a total of nine ghosts climbed up one after another and formed a pyramid. To complete the formation, another of the ghosts floated up and stood at the top. The final effect was like that of the jeweled pagodas seen in theaters around town.

But then in an instant the ghosts were transformed. Each one placed a noosed rope around its neck. Their hair grew matted and their bodies gradually elongated, finally reaching over a foot in length.

When he saw this transformation Qiu laughed and said, "When you were beautiful, you were far too beautiful, and now that you're ugly, you are far too ugly. Your transformations are just as inevitable as the potential for change in life itself. Now I would like to see how you folks bring this show to a close."

At this the ghosts cackled with laughter,
assumed their original forms, and quickly dispersed.