Chapter 2:
Events in Dongpi Village (Part 2):
Fatty Hu and the Two Huang Boys…
Crippled Hu hobbled to their house. Seeing Grandpa Chen emerge, he glared angrily.
Grandpa Chen glanced at him, hands behind his back, and casually asked, “Have you eaten? Why are you all here?”
Crippled Hu scoffed, not bothering with pleasantries. “Where’s your little brat? The Huang boys said your little brat pushed my son into the pond. Look at what’s become of my son!”
His wife was holding Fatty Hu, occasionally shrugging and wiping her tears. She seemed genuinely distressed. Fatty Hu’s face was alarmingly pale, as if swollen from being in the water, but his forehead was bruised and dark. His parents guessed it was from bumps and bruises. At first glance, he looked pitiful.
“If anything happens to my son, what are you going to do? This can’t be left unsettled, old man. You have to give me an explanation!” Crippled Hu’s loud voice sprayed saliva as he brought his wife and son to demand justice.
Chen Henian, having overheard, slipped behind his grandfather, tugging at his clothes to speak to him.
Grandpa Chen didn’t turn, pushing him further behind.
“Chen—Henian.” Fatty Hu suddenly spoke, his voice sharp and thin. He twisted his neck, his dilated pupils fixed, a green fire flickering within.
“Chen Henian… Chen Henian…”
Fatty Hu chanted Chen Henian’s name as if calling his soul.
Chen Henian quickly ducked his head, clinging to his grandfather’s back.
Fatty Hu didn’t charge at him. He grinned eerily, standing on tiptoe, craning his neck to look behind Grandpa Chen.
Chen Henian knew Fatty Hu had spotted him. The cold gaze was piercing. Fatty Hu was dead, and he was being stared at by a dead person. He had seen dead people before, but never one that could speak.
“Don’t hide, I see you, little brat.” Crippled Hu was impatient. “Just tell us how you’re going to compensate! I know you don’t have much money, so use the things in your house as collateral. Don’t blame me for being impolite this time!”
Without waiting for Grandpa Chen to speak, he called out, “Stupid woman, what are you standing there for?!”
Crippled Hu and his wife barged into Chen Henian’s house, glaring at him as they entered. The Chen family’s courtyard was large, but their valuables were long gone. The piglets had been sold for medicine when Chen Henian was sick. They rummaged through the house like bandits, not even sparing the pots, pans, and the eggs in the basket.
Chen Henian loved egg crepes. Seeing the eggs being taken, he pouted unhappily.
Mrs. Hu yelled, “Son, are you stupid? Hurry up and grab things!”
They only had four hands between them, so Mrs. Hu urged him, but Fatty Hu didn’t move. His shoulders twitched with the sound of bones cracking. He stared at Chen Henian with a strange smile.
Chen Henian glared back fiercely.
Grandpa Chen frowned at Fatty Hu. The dark bruise on his face indicated a corpse, but a recently deceased person couldn’t become a reanimated corpse unless something had entered his body.
Unsure of the other party’s power, Grandpa Chen didn’t act rashly.
Then, Chen Henian spoke, “Grandpa, there’s fur on his face. He doesn’t look human anymore.”
Grandpa Chen gasped, his grandson’s words giving him a clue.
“Don’t be afraid, he can’t do anything evil yet.” Grandpa Chen said, glancing at the sky. The sun hadn’t set yet. He quickly went into the house.
Ignoring Crippled Hu for the moment, Grandpa Chen scolded, “You want the things of the dead? Be careful, the underworld officials will drag you to hell tonight as dead people!”
Crippled Hu and his wife froze, stopping their looting. Grandpa Chen continued, “Everything in this house is tainted with the aura of death. Aren’t you afraid of shortening your lives?”
“Old man, don’t try to scare me!” Crippled Hu’s voice became anxious. He clutched the items in his hands, reluctant to put them down, yet afraid of the taboo.
“I’m not lying. Is my Chen family the same as yours?” Grandpa Chen exhaled, his lowered eyebrows and deep voice conveying an aged wisdom.
No family understood these taboos better than the Chens. Crippled Hu was intimidated. “What are you trying to do! Don’t think you can get rid of us so easily. My son suffered, and that can’t be for nothing!”
Grandpa Chen nodded. “Stay here, don’t touch anything. I’ll get you some meat, alright?”
Crippled Hu waited impatiently. Then, Grandpa Chen came out holding a chicken, clucking in his arms. It was a large rooster!
Chicken meat was something Chen Henian only ate during festivals. Seeing the meat, Crippled Hu’s face lit up. “That’s good stuff.” He reached out his hand.
“Wait!” Grandpa Chen blocked Crippled Hu’s hand with his arm. “Let your son come. If he can take it, I’ll give it to you.”
Crippled Hu was taken aback. “What are you doing? What difference does it make who takes it? My son is sick!”
Grandpa Chen didn’t budge. “Let your son come.”
“You, your family is so strange, fine.” Seeing Grandpa Chen’s insistence, Crippled Hu turned to call Fatty Hu.
Fatty Hu remained where he was. Crippled Hu urged, “Go! Grab the chicken, it’s not like you don’t know how!”
Fatty Hu bared his teeth, a muffled sound coming from beneath his cheek fat. He took a step back for every step Grandpa Chen took forward.
Grandpa Chen shook his head. “Is your son afraid of chickens? I gave him a chance. If he doesn’t take it, then there’s nothing I can do.”
“You coward!” The chicken was almost in hand; Crippled Hu was annoyed. He yelled at Fatty Hu, “What are you afraid of, just a chicken?”
“He’s not fully conscious yet.” Mrs. Hu quickly explained, anxiously patting Fatty Hu’s head. “What’s wrong with you? You’re not responding when I talk to you!”
Fatty Hu didn’t look at his mother. He had been staring at Chen Henian, and now his eyes were wide, fixed on the rooster, his mouth twitching incessantly.
“Your son is already dead.” Grandpa Chen frowned and sighed. “This is a weasel in human skin.”
Crippled Hu couldn’t bear to hear such ominous words. “Old man, who are you cursing?!”
“Only weasels are afraid of roosters.” Grandpa Chen explained. “Your son went up the ominous mountain, his soul has been captured by a ghost, and a weasel has taken over his body! This is no small matter. If the things on the mountain are drawn down here, the whole village will suffer!”
“Nonsense!” Mrs. Hu didn’t believe him.
At that moment, Grandpa Chen tossed the rooster towards Fatty Hu—
The rooster crowed and pecked at Fatty Hu with its claws. He was clearly frightened, crouching on the ground, supporting himself with his limbs, baring his teeth menacingly, looking nothing like a human.
Weasels fear roosters. Mrs. Hu, refusing to believe it, ran over to pull Fatty Hu up, but her son’s weight was like that of an ox, and her hand was bitten hard.
Having tasted human blood, Fatty Hu’s face became excited. He consumed Mrs. Hu’s blood, his mouth drooling, his eyes predatory, as he lunged towards Chen Henian.
“Beast!” Grandpa Chen yelled, untying the pouch from his waist and scattering its contents over Fatty Hu. The incense ash stuck to his skin, causing him to scream.
Fatty Hu rolled on the ground, the incense ash burning his skin like hot coals. His screams turned into bestial howls, his eyes wide with hatred. His flesh and skin melted into a puddle of bone and water, leaving behind only a pelt.
The weasel pelt lay mixed with the incense ash. The Hu family was horrified.
Mrs. Hu burst into tears. “My son, where’s my son?”
Grandpa Chen just shook his head.
Mrs. Hu almost fainted. Crippled Hu supported her. It took a while for her to regain her strength.
“It’s all your family’s fault!” Mrs. Hu, somewhat recovered, pointed at Chen Henian. “It’s you! You jinx! You killed my son!”
Chen Henian shouted back, “I didn’t harm him, I did nothing wrong!”
“Good, good boy, good beast!” Mrs. Hu grabbed a piece of wood and tried to hit Chen Henian.
Grandpa Chen immediately shielded him. “What are you doing!”
Mrs. Hu didn’t relent. Just as the wood was about to hit them, a stone from the eaves suddenly fell, striking Mrs. Hu’s foot. She dropped the wood and fell to the ground in pain.
A gust of wind swept over them, raising goosebumps. The wood was blown up and hit Mrs. Hu on the forehead. She clutched her head in pain.
“Is there something else here?” Grandpa Chen looked around suspiciously.
The inexplicable event terrified Mrs. Hu, who scrambled up and hid behind Crippled Hu.
“Go back! It’s not yet the time of night when yin energy is strongest, or that weasel will be the first to take your lives!” Grandpa Chen warned them. “It’s not dark yet. Tell the Huang family to quickly pick some black-bellied grass and spread it on their beds. If you want to live, do as I say!”
Crippled Hu, no longer concerned with seeking compensation, hurriedly left with his wife.
Grandpa Chen frowned, pulling Chen Henian close. Chen Henian wasn’t afraid, pointing to the eaves. “Grandpa, she’s here, the one I saw before.”
Chen Henian saw the female ghost he had encountered on the mountain again. He could see her, but his grandfather couldn’t. Chen Henian, born with heavy yin energy, commonly known as yin-yang eyes, could see unclean things at his young age, which wasn’t unusual.
The female ghost stood on the eaves, her feet on the yellow mud, her long black hair draped over her, her clothes tattered, no shadow, a strong scent of death emanating from her.
Chen Henian smiled, but Grandpa Chen panicked, covering his eyes. “Don’t look at her!”
Chen Henian lowered his head. Grandpa Chen hurried into the house and retrieved two items: a bowl of leftover cooked rice, an iron basin, and joss paper for the dead.
Grandpa Chen stuck three incense sticks into the rice, lit the joss paper in the basin, and knelt, bowing.
“May the good ghost go on its way, and enjoy blessings in the next life! Please go reincarnate.”
“She’s not old,” Chen Henian said.
“Don’t interrupt!” Grandpa Chen scolded him and continued chanting.
Before the joss paper finished burning, a gust of wind blew over, overturning the basin.
This meant she refused to leave. Grandpa Chen was anxious. If she didn’t accept the money, she wanted their lives. She wasn’t a vengeful ghost, so why was she so difficult to deal with?
Grandpa Chen thought carefully and asked Chen Henian, “Tell Grandpa, what does she look like?”
Chen Henian dared to look at the ghost again. “She’s taller than you, Grandpa, with long hair. She’s standing far away, I can’t see her face.”
The ghost did nothing, wasn’t particularly scary. It was strange. Chen Henian felt the ghost was constantly watching him, similar to how Fatty Hu stared at him, but he wasn’t afraid.
Grandpa Chen pressed, “What is she wearing? What does she have?”
“There are white flowers on her clothes.”
“On her top, right? Blue, with white flowers?” Grandpa Chen asked.
“Yes.” Chen Henian nodded. “Grandpa, how did you know?”
Grandpa Chen slapped his thigh and hurried into the house.
“Grandpa.” Chen Henian followed. “What’s wrong?”
“Go back to your room, don’t come out tonight unless Grandpa calls you, understand?” Grandpa Chen simply said.
Chen Henian stayed in his room. It was completely dark outside. His grandfather hadn’t returned. He climbed into bed at his usual time.
He didn’t sleep well. When he woke up, his head ached. He was awakened by his grandfather. Bright light shone through the window. He didn’t hear the rooster crowing, so it must have been earlier than usual.
“Little Nian, come quickly, help Grandpa.”
Chen Henian rubbed his eyes. His grandfather’s tone sounded urgent. He jumped out of bed barefoot.
Grandpa Chen was waiting for him in the main room. The lamp wasn’t lit. Chen Henian’s vision was blurry. “Grandpa, what do you want me to do?”
Grandpa Chen said, “Bring the jar over there, I’ll steam an egg for you.”
“Just that?”
“Hurry up and bring it over, do you want to eat or not?”
Chen Henian nodded. “Yes.”
He hadn’t eaten enough for dinner and was hungry. He went to the corner, wrapping his arms around the jar, trying to drag it out, but it felt like someone was pulling it from the other side. He couldn’t move it.
He blinked, and a pair of hands suddenly appeared, gripping the jar tightly – pale skin, black fingernails.
Chen Henian immediately let go, shouting, “Grandpa, it’s the ghost from daytime!”
He turned around, only to be startled again.
Was that his grandfather?
Chen Henian’s eyes widened. His grandfather stood motionless in the dark shadows. His smiling face suddenly transformed into Fatty Hu’s furry face, staring sinisterly at him!
“Good grandson, hurry up and get it, get it out!”
The voice had completely changed. Chen Henian suddenly realized he was standing by the front door, his hand on the latch.
The door was slightly ajar, something desperately trying to squeeze in. Chen Henian heard the scratching of claws, a powerful banging. A furry face pushed through the crack.
It was Fatty Hu’s face, one eye visible, darting around.
It was nighttime, very dark.
Chen Henian was so frightened he fell to the ground. If the ghost hadn’t stopped him, he would have opened the door, and the weasels outside would have surely gutted him and taken his life.
“Little Nian?”
Chen Henian turned and saw his grandfather entering the main room with a candle. Chen Henian, still shaken, was wary at first. His grandfather’s expression changed. He pointed to his mouth and lowered his voice.
He lifted Chen Henian from the ground. “You’re not even wearing shoes. Go put on your shoes first.”
Chen Henian confirmed that this was his real grandfather.
“Are you scared?” Grandpa Chen said. “I sprinkled chicken blood and glutinous rice at the door, so the weasels can’t come in. They were trying to trick you into going outside. It’s alright now, Grandpa is here.”
Chen Henian breathed a sigh of relief and nodded.
“Grandpa will stay with you.”
Grandpa Chen led him back to his room to put on his shoes and then took him to the ancestral hall.
“After the third watch, the yin energy will weaken, and they won’t be able to cause trouble anymore.”
Grandpa Chen opened the door. Chen Henian saw a row of white candles lit on the floor.
Chen Henian walked in. His grandfather led him to a memorial tablet with burning incense and told him to kneel.
“What for?”
“Kowtow.”
Chen Henian knelt but didn’t kowtow, asking first, “Why should I kowtow?”
Grandpa Chen patted his head gently. “A son kowtows to his mother, it’s only natural.”
Chen Henian didn’t understand.
Grandpa Chen said, “You didn’t see the ghost’s face, you can look in the mirror.”
“You look like your mother.”
“She was the most beautiful girl in the village.”
“Your mother would be the person who loves you most in this world.”
Grandpa Chen looked at a specific memorial tablet. “So even after she’s gone, she still loves you, can’t bear to see you hurt, can’t let you go, that’s why she lingers around you.”
Chen Henian finally understood. Grandpa Chen embraced him. “That’s not a ghost, it’s your mother, understand?”
“Mother…” Chen Henian murmured, not quite grasping the meaning. His face was expressionless, feeling a sense of unfamiliarity, a coldness in his heart. He tried to recall the feeling when he saw the ghost, the female ghost who helped him, his birth mother, the mother he had never seen.
Grandpa Chen lit fresh incense for the memorial tablet and said hoarsely, “Xiuxiu, please go in peace. I will take good care of our child. If you stay by his side, you’ll take away his lifespan! You wouldn’t want to do that.”
Grandpa Chen returned to Chen Henian’s side. “Cry, cry out loud! A mother’s heart aches when her child cries. After tonight, everything will be alright.”
But Chen Henian couldn’t cry. He remained silent for a long time. Grandpa Chen pinched his thigh hard, twisting it. “Quickly tell your mother to leave in peace.”
The pain brought tears to Chen Henian’s eyes. He kowtowed while saying, “Mother, Mother, please go!”
“Mother, please go…”
Grandpa Chen urged him, “Keep crying, keep chanting!”
“Mother… please go!”
The child’s wails echoed in the room. The window suddenly swung open, creaking loudly. A gust of wind extinguished the candles, plunging the room into darkness.
“Don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid.” Grandpa Chen held Chen Henian tightly. “Mother won’t harm you.”
Chen Henian sniffled, his forehead red from kowtowing, his vision blurred by tears. Another gust of wind blew over, stopping above his head. The hair on his cheeks was blown aside, but the hair on the crown of his head remained undisturbed, gently pressed down. The wind wasn’t cold, brushing softly against his cheeks before dissipating.
As the wind died down, the candles rekindled, and the joss paper in the basin burned to ashes.
Chen Henian’s eyes were swollen from crying. Grandpa Chen held him, letting him rest his head in his arms.
“Alright, alright, it’s all over now.”
Grandpa Chen wiped away Chen Henian’s tears and snot, patting his back. Chen Henian drifted off to sleep. Grandpa Chen carefully carried him to the bed in his room.
When Chen Henian woke up the next day, he didn’t see the female ghost again. He only saw several weasel carcasses under the eaves, their bellies ripped open, dead.
His grandfather said his mother had protected him, and she had left.
But there were still deaths in the village.
The bodies of Fatty Hu and the two Huang boys were found hanging from the old locust tree in the village.
