Chapter 36: Haunted by Fire: The Unjustly Departed’s Fear of Water |
Lu Xun wiped the sweat from his brow, faking his way through the mahjong game (he had no clue how to play), and asked Gu Jing Rong with a shaky voice, “What village legends? Why haven’t I heard you mention it before?”
Gu Jing Rong, who was scared out of his wits but oddly defiant, snapped back, “Are we buddies? Why would I share this with you?”
Lu Xun was speechless for a moment; he had to concede that Gu Jing Rong had a point.
Yu Xiao, who realised that this ghost was mute, turned to Gu Jing Rong and asked, “Did you grow up hearing this legend?”
“No, not really.” For some reason, even though his wives were fearsome, Gu Jing Rong feared his eldest wife the most. He said truthfully, “This happened last year.”
Last year? Yu Xiao’s guess was correct; something had occurred in the village last year.
“Tell me more.” Yu Xiao, sipping a cup of tea, sat close by.
With the formidable wives nearby, Gu Jing Rong gradually lost some of his fear. After some thought, he said, “I was still recovering from an illness then, and I heard it from others. There’s a family that lives on the other side of the river, away from the rest of the villagers, in the northernmost part of our village.”
“Why?” Zhao Lan asked, puzzled. “Isn’t the other side of the river a graveyard?”
Gu Jing Rong’s tongue darted out to moisten his lips as he spoke. “They were a family of incense makers, masters of their craft. Their skill brought them wealth and prosperity, until the day the flames devoured them. It was last year, when my parents left me alone in the house. I was feverish and weak, and they never stayed away for so long. I sensed something was wrong in the village. They returned at nightfall, and my mother told me the dreadful news. The family across the river had sparked a fire by accident while making incense, and the whole family of four perished in the flames.”
“Bang!”
A loud noise startled them all, and they turned to see a dark figure slamming a mahjong tile on the table. It was one of the ghosts, a black silhouette with a gaping mouth as its only feature. Yu Xiao could not read any emotion on its faceless form.
Gu Jing Rong cast a wary glance at the dark figure and went on, “Since then, we stopped burning incense in the village. Everyone says that burning incense lures evil spirits.”
“Poor thing.” Zhou Xiao Zhen gazed at the ghost with a different look, “It’s one of the ones who died in the fire from the family across the river, right?”
“Strange.” Lu Xun sniffed, “The ones who died in the fire should smell charred, why does it smell like a latrine?”
“Tsk.” Yu Xiao was annoyed by his nitpicking, “We’re dealing with serious matters here. Why are you obsessed with the smell? What does it have to do with our situation?”
Lu Xun didn’t get why she was so upset, “I was just wondering.”
Zhou Xiao Zhen shook her head, “Wondering like that hurts their feelings.”
“…Okay, sorry,” Lu Xun muttered apologetically.
Yu Xiao finished her cup of tea and was about to refill it when Luo Jin handed her his empty cup. She looked at him and poured him a full cup of tea.
Luo Jin gulped down the tea and asked, “When did the plague begin? Before or after the fire?”
Gu Jing Rong paused, “After.”
The answer made Luo Jin put down his teacup with a clatter. He announced to the others, “I have to go back to the graveyard.”
Yu Xiao caught his meaning and nodded. “You think… I’ll come with you.”
Lu Xun looked torn. “Me too. But when will this damn mahjong game end? Can you wait for me?”
Yu Xiao tossed some talismans to Zhao Lan. “Misty, you stay here. If anything goes wrong, you deal with it.”
Zhao Lan pocketed the talismans. “Don’t worry. Precious and I can handle anything.”
Yu Xiao gave her a curt nod and followed Luo Jin out of the village chief’s house.
They reached the riverside again, under the cover of night.
A cool breeze caressed their faces as Luo Jin kicked off his shoes. He said, “They say the ghosts who burned in the fire are afraid of water. They won’t come near the river.”
Yu Xiao hesitated as she removed her shoes. “So there’s no bridge across the river, to keep the ghosts from crossing?”
Luo Jin didn’t answer. They waded through the water in silence. In the graveyard, Luo Jin scanned the tombstones. Yu Xiao spotted three small mounds at the edge of the field. She walked over, took a closer look, and waved at Luo Jin. “Over here!”
Luo Jin joined her, and they stood together, facing the three graves.
The stone tablets were crude and worn, but the names were still legible. “Zhang Zhong Shi’s Grave (张忠实),” “Xie Ai Lian’s Grave (谢爱莲),” and “Zhang Cui Cui’s Grave (张翠翠).”
All the villagers had the surname Gu, except for this family across the river. It was easy for Yu Xiao to find them.
Luo Jin said, “Four of them died, but only three graves here.”
Yu Xiao nodded. “Three graves here, but we’ve only caught two ghosts.”
They followed the riverbank and soon came across a charred ruin. This must have been the house of that family, reduced to ashes and exposed to the elements for almost a year, now overrun by weeds.
This old tragedy was full of mysteries. Why were there only three graves, when the whole family burned to death? Why did the villagers destroy the bridge, as if they knew the ghosts would be trapped by the water? Were they afraid of something?
With a shovel in his hands, Luo Jin returned to the graveyard, shovelling dirt off the village head’s grave. He pried open the coffin and found the corpse untouched, the head still whole.
He knelt by the coffin, frowning. “Someone or something hates this village. That’s why they destroy the souls of the dead, leaving the graveyard empty and silent. But look at the village head’s head—it’s still there.”
Yu Xiao joined him, crouching. “The ghosts are scared of water. They can’t cross the river, so they can’t touch the village head’s head.”
Luo Jin glanced at the other bank. “But some ghosts did cross the river. They burned on this side, but they made it to the village.”
Yu Xiao shook her head. “Not all of them. There was one who didn’t die in the fire. One who escaped. Remember? We caught a ghost in the river that night.”
“Oh,” Luo Jin nodded. “You took the river ghost away, so the other two couldn’t cross anymore.”
Yu Xiao rose to her feet, exhaling. She turned her eyes upstream, where a temple housed a mysterious creature.
She must have figured out the truth. A year ago, the village head’s son was dying, and the village head begged the temple for a piece of its flesh. But the flesh had a price; a life for a life.
The village was a clan of old blood, bound by tradition and loyalty. So the village head chose the outsiders, the family across the river.
They stole their young son to the temple. Later, to cover up or to silence, the village head lit their house on fire. The parents died in the inferno, but the daughter, quick or lucky or helped by her parents, escaped with burns all over her body. She plunged into the river and drowned, charred and wet.
The village head feared what he had done, and he broke the bridge over the river. He didn’t think that the Zhang girl, Zhang Cui Cui, could swim in death, carrying her parents’ souls with her.
When they reached the graveyard Luo Jin had already felt no ghostly presence. He guessed that the spirits had all retreated to the village, hiding from them. Yu Xiao had pulled the ghost out of the river, blocking the path of the other ghosts. The village chief’s scheme was foiled.
Yu Xiao let out a sigh, feeling sick of the grim situation. She loved life, and hated seeing it wasted.
“We need to find the last ghost, the one that’s been sneaking around,” she said, sounding tired. “Do you know how to catch it?”
Luo Jin nodded. “We have something to lure it out.”
Yu Xiao slapped her forehead, remembering. The two ghosts they had were related to the last one. They could use them as bait, and the last ghost would come.
They headed back, side by side. Yu Xiao thought that Luo Jin, though quiet, was dependable. He was better than that chatterbox, Lu Xun. She complimented him, “You’re a decent guy, brother.”
Luo Jin showed no emotion. “You’re not too bad yourself.”
Yu Xiao rolled her eyes, thinking, was that necessary? She saw him take out his phone and ask, “Want to exchange numbers?”
Yu Xiao raised an eyebrow. “We’re not from the same hospital. What’s the point?”
Luo Jin insisted. “It’s useful. Lu Xun knows a lot of people from other hospitals.”
Yu Xiao didn’t think twice, swapping numbers with him. They walked back to the village chief’s house, where the mahjong game had been abandoned. Lu Xun, whose hair looked like a firework had gone off in it, greeted them with a pathetic look.
Luo Jin’s gaze was drawn to Lu Xun’s hair as soon as they stepped into the room. He blinked, trying to process what he was seeing.
Yu Xiao caught on right away and faced Zhou Xiao Zhen, “You did this to Lu Xun?”
“Yeah.” Zhou Xiao Zhen folded her arms, her expression hard. “He deserved it.”
Lu Xun sulked, “Fine, fine, I admit it. I deserved it. But enough about me. Did you guys find anything useful on your little trip?”
Yu Xiao scanned the room and finally settled on the ghost they had captured. She said, “Call everyone, Zuo Qing too. We might get out of here soon.”
Zhang Feng had woken up by now. He was pale, but otherwise okay. Losing an arm was not the end of the world in this survival game. It could be fixed, for a price.
Zhang Feng shrugged it off. He was lucky to be alive, and he didn’t complain about his missing arm.
Everyone’s faces lit up when they heard they could leave soon.
Zuo Qing asked, “Who found the clues?”
Lu Xun pointed at Yu Xiao and Luo Jin, “These two did.”
Zuo Qing ignored Luo Jin and gazed at Yu Xiao with awe, “Sister Smiley, you’re incredible. You’re the boss for a reason.”
Yu Xiao replied humbly, “It’s no big deal, really.”
Zuo Qing’s eyes sparkled with admiration as she asked, “How did you do it? Can you tell me, so I can learn from you?”