Zhao Shan was immediately overwhelmed with gratitude. He stood up from the ground, grabbed Zhang Enpu’s hand tightly, and tearfully asked, “Master, what should I do to get rid of this terrible curse?”
Zhang Enpu smiled slightly and bowed, “On the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, when the moon is full and there are no evil spirits or ghosts around, you simply need to fetch a ladle of clean water from the outlet of the dam at Xiushan Village at midnight, and pour it onto your father-in-law’s grave. This will break the curse. When you pour that ladle of water onto the grave, a meteor will appear in the east, and the grave will sparkle with golden light, just like the sun radiating its brilliance onto the earth.”
Zhao Shan was astonished, “Is it really that simple? Just a ladle of water from the river in Xiushan Village? Is that water sacred?”
Zhang Enpu replied, “The river in Xiushan Village flows from the ‘Big Dipper Constellation Formation,’ a place where the spiritual energy of the seven stars gathers. It possesses the power to expel evil and demons. Naturally, a ladle of water from there will suffice.”
Zhao Shan smiled, “Right, I forgot that the river flows from the back mountain. Hehe… truly amazing.”
Zhang Enpu continued, “This month is May, and there are still three months until the midnight of the Mid-Autumn Festival in August. During these three months, two major events will occur. First, next month, June, your village will experience a major flood. Second, in the downstream Zhao family of Xiushan Village, a son will be born on the Shen-Wu day. This child will have one head and three arms, and will tragically fall into a well and die within three days. Remember these two events—they are the prelude to your revival and a test of my abilities.”
Zhao Shan nodded, “Yes, I understand. I will remember.”
Zhang Enpu asked, “Do you know why these two events will occur?”
Zhao Shan shook his head, “I don’t know. Is there some hidden meaning again?”
Zhao Shan was deeply moved and overwhelmed with gratitude. He got up from the ground, grabbed Zhang Enpu’s hand, and with tears streaming down his face, he asked, “Old sir, what must I do to rid myself of this dreadful curse?”
Zhang Enpu smiled slightly and made a gesture of respect. “On the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, when the moon is full and there are no demons or ghosts, you must go to the outlet of the dam in Xiushan Village at midnight and fetch a ladle of clear water. Pour this water over your father-in-law’s grave, and the curse will be broken. When you pour the water, a meteor will appear in the east, and the grave will emit golden light, as if the sun is shining upon the earth.”
Zhao Shan was astonished. “Is it really that simple? Just a ladle of water from the river in Xiushan Village? Is that water magical?”
Zhang Enpu replied, “The outlet of the river in Xiushan Village is located within the ‘Big Dipper Formation,’ transformed by the spiritual energy of the Big Dipper. It has the power to dispel evil and exorcise demons. A ladle of that water is indeed sufficient.”
Zhao Shan smiled. “Ah, I forgot that the river flows from the back mountain. How fascinating.”
Zhang Enpu continued, “This month is May, and there are three months until the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival. During these three months, two significant events will occur. First, next month, in June, your village will experience a major flood. Second, downstream in Xiushan Village, the Zhao family will give birth to a son on the day of Shenwu. This child, with one head and three arms, will fall into a well and die three days later. Remember these two events; they are omens of your family’s revival and a test of my abilities.”
Zhao Shan nodded. “Yes, I will remember.”
Zhang Enpu added, “Do you know why these two events will happen?”
Zhao Shan shook his head. “No. Is there some hidden mystery?”
Zhang Enpu explained, “These two events are two of the three curse reactions that occurred after your father-in-law’s coffin lid was broken.”
“What about the third one?”
“The third one was prophesied the day the coffin was broken. It was struck by five thunderbolts, and your father-in-law died that day. The remaining two curses will manifest forty years later, which is this year.”
“You are truly a divine man. I think the person who chose the burial site for my father-in-law back then must not have known all these details. He must have miscalculated many mysteries, probably thinking this was a true feng shui treasure.”
Zhang Enpu sighed. “What happened back then is probably lost to history. Let the past be the past. What’s important is to focus on the future. Well, I must go now. Take care. After this is done, marry a wife, and you will surely have a noble son.” With that, he turned and walked away without looking back.
Zhao Shan hurried after him. “Let’s go down together. You’ve done me a great favor; I must reward you heavily.”
“No need. This encounter was purely by fate and not for payment. Don’t be polite. Let’s part here; we will meet again.”
June is the rainy season, and it’s also the time when weeds in the fields grow vigorously. The villagers of Xiushan Village didn’t want rain at all. They only wished for the sun to stay a little longer. Otherwise, their crops would fail, and they would have to survive on pumpkin soup. Zhao Shan was the exception.
Zhao Shan wasn’t a farmer, so he didn’t worry about whether his crops were thriving or not. At this moment, he was only concerned about the “flood” that Zhang Enpu had prophesied and the “drowning accident” in July.
He hoped these events would come soon, as they were related to his future. But at the same time, he felt a bit guilty and remorseful. These prophecies weren’t good; they were disasters that people hated. He didn’t know if his desire for these disasters was morally wrong. He was caught in a dilemma.
But life’s trajectory is such that what is meant to come will come, and what isn’t meant to come can’t be stopped, even with steel wires. Just as Zhang Enpu had predicted, one night in mid-June, it rained heavily. The rain was unprecedented, as if a well had opened above Xiushan Village, pouring water down continuously for three days and nights. Instantly, Xiushan Village was flooded, and vast fields were submerged, almost turning the village into Xiushui Village.
Fortunately, the flood stopped there and didn’t reach the villagers’ homes. But even so, the disaster was significant. All the crops were lost. Zhao Shan was both sorrowful and joyful, feeling helpless. To alleviate his guilt, he used all his savings to help the villagers rebuild after the disaster. The first prophecy had come true, and it was so intense that the second prophecy, about a child with three arms drowning downstream, was bound to happen.
Downstream in Xiushan Village, there was a family. The husband, Mu Dahua, and his wife, Xiaoyue, had been married for three years without any sign of wanting children, despite not using any contraception. They were desperate for a child, and their parents were even more desperate for a grandchild. They tried everything, consulting doctors from various counties and cities, trying countless secret remedies, but to no avail. They were baffled. What was the problem?
In feng shui, their problem had an explanation. The place they lived was called “Juehu,” which means “no descendants” or “destined to be childless.”
There are three types of Juehu feng shui. The first is being born without the ability to have children. The second is having children who are useless, such as those who die young or from illness. The third is having deformed children who are useless. The geographical layout of Juehu feng shui generally includes the following: first, a sharp mountain or rock facing the house’s front door; second, a “crying” pond in front of the house; third, a deep cliff in front of the house; fourth, ancestral graves buried on a dead vein. Mu Dahua belonged to the second type, with two large ponds in front of his house. Ponds are like eyes; one is a “bright hall,” gathering energy, but two form a “crying” character, bringing the disaster of no descendants. Mu Dahua lived there unknowingly, suffering the consequences.
Despite the Juehu feng shui, one day, through their efforts, Mu Dahua’s wife, Xiaoyue, finally became pregnant. As time passed, her belly grew larger, and it seemed she was truly pregnant. They were overjoyed, taking great care of her, thinking the Mu family would finally have an heir. But when Xiaoyue gave birth after ten months of pregnancy, the Mu family’s hopes turned to disappointment. The Juehu feng shui ensured the child would be useless. Xiaoyue gave birth to a monster with three arms. The news spread quickly through the nearby villages.
“The Mu family has given birth to a monster! What sin did they commit in a past life?” The whole family was heartbroken beyond compare. Heaven seems to enjoy teasing ordinary people. We can only comfort these unfortunate souls. What else can we do? Jump off a building or hang ourselves? No, we must face life positively.
Though poor, Mu Dahua had the courage to face this. A tiger doesn’t eat its cubs, and a mother doesn’t dislike her ugly child. The couple decided to raise their hard-earned child well, regardless of others’ opinions. But sometimes, heaven is so cruel it doesn’t even give people the chance to comfort themselves. There was a well in front of the Mu family’s house. On the third day after the child’s birth, at midnight, the time of the rat, when cats are active, a cat mistook the Mu family’s baby for a rat, picked it up, and dragged it to the well, preparing to eat it. But after biting it twice, the cat realized something was wrong and angrily pushed the child into the well…
Thus ended the child’s short journey in the human world, exactly as Zhang Enpu had prophesied to Zhao Shan at Coffin Ridge.
When Zhao Shan learned that a child with three arms had indeed drowned downstream in Xiushan Village, he was shocked, despite being mentally prepared. But beyond his heavy heart, he began to believe more in feng shui. He no longer had any doubts about Zhang Enpu’s words.
Early on the morning of August 15th, he began to implement the plan Zhang Enpu had taught him to break the curse. Alone, he went to the outlet of the village river, located within the Big Dipper Formation. He was to fetch a ladle of clear water from the outlet to save his ancestral grave and break the curse. The outlet was essentially a large cave on a cliff, located on the mountain representing the last star of the Big Dipper, the end of the spoon. The spring inside the cave flowed year-round, never ending, symbolizing endless life and the source of life for the villagers of Xiushan Village downstream. After an hour’s journey, he arrived, still early. Zhao Shan stood at the foot of the mountain, looking up at the cave. Besides the continuous flow of water, a large amount of mist also emerged, soon enveloping the entire area.
He was curious. “Indeed, this is a mountain transformed by divine energy, shrouded in mist. Let me see how deep the cave is.”
Zhao Shan picked up a small stone and threw it towards the cave. With a splash, the stone fell into the rushing water and was washed back. His throw was too weak. Zhao Shan stopped testing, took out a plastic bottle he had brought, and filled it with the falling water. He then turned to leave, needing to pour the water over his father-in-law’s grave at midnight.
But as he turned, he heard a roar from the cave, as if a large amount of water was being forced out. A massive torrent of water shot out of the cave, rushing towards Zhao Shan’s back.
Hearing the noise, Zhao Shan turned around and was horrified to see a wave over five meters high crashing towards him. Terrified, he hung the water bottle around his neck and ran towards higher ground. Unfortunately, he was too slow and was immediately engulfed by the flood. Zhao Shan was swept away by the sudden torrent, thrown over ten meters, and fell into a large pool below. Luckily, he fell into the water and not onto the rocks, or he would have died. He quickly swam to the shore and ran forward, fearing a second wave from the cave. Fortunately, nothing else happened, and the cave returned to its usual calm.
As he hurried back, his heart pounding, he muttered, “Did my small stone disturb the spiritual energy gathered inside? How terrifying. I must leave here quickly.”
Zhao Shan, shaken but with his hard-earned “holy water,” ran to his father-in-law’s grave at Coffin Ridge. It was already past 10 PM, but there was still an hour until midnight. There was a small pine tree next to the Zhao family grave. He sat under the tree, leaning against the trunk, nervously waiting for the miraculous moment. The moonlight was bright. Looking at his father-in-law’s grave, he suddenly felt it had grown larger, and there seemed to be a damp mist emanating in the night.
“Could it be? I haven’t poured the water yet, but there’s already spiritual energy gathering. Or is it the anger of the evil curse?” He rubbed his eyes and looked again. The mist was still there, but within it, he saw the figure of an old man. He didn’t recognize the old man, but he seemed very familiar, especially the nose, which looked exactly like his own. “A ghost!” Zhao Shan was about to scream, but the old man suddenly appeared and covered his mouth.
The old man didn’t mean to harm him but spoke kindly. “Shan’er, don’t be afraid. I am your father-in-law.”
Zhao Shan broke free from the old man’s hand and stopped screaming, asking in confusion, “Father-in-law?” The old man nodded. “Yes, I am one of your father-in-law’s three souls and seven spirits, the ‘grave-guarding spirit.’ Don’t be afraid. I’m here to tell you some things you don’t know about what happened back then. I know you’ve consulted a feng shui master to break the curse on this feng shui treasure.”
“Really? Are you truly my father-in-law’s spirit?”
The old man nodded. “Yes, if I wanted to harm you, do you think you could escape, child?”
“Oh, father-in-law!” Zhao Shan believed him and awkwardly addressed this ancestor from half a century ago. The old man, Zhao Laotai, said, “Now I’ll tell you how this land was cursed.”
Zhao Shan nodded. “Yes, please tell me!”
The old man coughed and sighed. “Actually, it’s all my fault for being too greedy. Back then, I hired a famous feng shui master from out of town to choose a burial site for me. The feng shui master found this once-in-a-millennium feng shui treasure on Coffin Ridge. At first, I didn’t believe it and insisted on digging it up to see, but the feng shui master disagreed, saying that digging it up would bring three curses: the first curse would be the land being struck by five thunderbolts; the second curse would be a major flood in Xiushan Village three months later; the third curse would be a child drowning downstream. After saying this, the feng shui master left angrily, not even taking his fee. Seeing that he didn’t take the money, I was terrified, thinking this must be a true feng shui treasure, or he wouldn’t have refused the money. So I didn’t dig further, protected the site, and excitedly told your grandfather. I thought I had gotten a great deal. But your grandfather couldn’t keep his mouth shut and told your grandmother. Your grandmother also couldn’t keep it to herself and told her family. Eventually, the news spread, and a rogue named Youzi found out. He secretly went to Coffin Ridge, found the site, and blackmailed me, demanding fifty silver dollars to keep the secret.”
Zhao Shan asked, “What about the third one?”
Zhao Shan was deeply moved and immediately stood up, grasping Zhang Enpu’s hand with tears streaming down his face, he asked, “Old sir, what must I do to break free from this terrifying curse?”
Zhang Enpu smiled slightly and made a gesture, “On the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival when the moon is full, there will be no demons or ghosts. You simply need to fetch a ladle of clear water from the outlet of the dam in Xiushan Village at midnight and pour it over your father-in-law’s grave. This will break the curse. When you pour the water over the grave, a meteor will appear in the east, and golden lights will sparkle on the grave, as if the sun is shining its light upon the earth.”
Zhao Shan was astonished, “Is it really that simple? Just a ladle of water from the river in Xiushan Village? Is that water magical?”
Zhang Enpu replied, “The outlet of the river in Xiushan Village is located within the ‘Big Dipper Formation,’ transformed by the spiritual energy of the Big Dipper. It has the power to dispel evil and exorcise demons. Of course, a ladle of that water will suffice.”
Zhao Shan smiled, “Ah, I forgot that the river flows from the back mountain. How fascinating.”
Zhang Enpu continued, “This month is May, and there are still three months until the midnight of the Mid-Autumn Festival on August 15th. During these three months, two major events will occur. First, next month, in June, your village will experience a major flood. Second, downstream in Xiushan Village, the Zhao family will give birth to a son on the day of Shenwu. This child, with one head and three arms, will fall into a well and die three days later. Remember these two events; they are omens for your family’s revival and a test of my abilities.”
Zhao Shan nodded, “Yes, I will remember.”
Zhang Enpu added, “Do you know why these two events will happen?”
Zhao Shan shook his head, “No. Is there some mystery behind it?”
Zhang Enpu explained, “It’s because these two events are two of the three curse reactions after your father-in-law’s coffin lid was broken.”
“What about the third one?”
“The third one was prophesied the day the earth was broken. Thunder will strike five times, and your father-in-law will die that day. The remaining two will manifest forty years later, which is this year.”
“You truly are a divine man. I think the person who chose the burial site for my father-in-law back then must not have known all these details. He must have miscalculated many mysteries, probably thinking this was a true feng shui treasure.”
Zhang Enpu sighed, “What happened back then is probably unknown to anyone now. Let the past be the past. What’s important is to focus on the future. Alright, I’m going down the mountain. Take care. After this is done, marry a wife, and you will surely have a noble son.” With that, he turned and walked away without looking back.
Zhao Shan hurried after him, “Let’s go down together. You’ve helped me greatly; I must reward you heavily.”
“No need. This encounter was purely by fate and not something to be charged for. Don’t be polite. Let’s part here; we will meet again.”
June is the rainy season, and it’s also the time when weeds in the fields grow most vigorously. So, the villagers of Xiushan Village didn’t wish for rain at all. They only hoped that the sun would stay a little longer in the sky. Otherwise, the crops would fail, and they would have to drink pumpkin soup. Only Zhao Shan was an exception.
Zhao Shan wasn’t a farmer, so he didn’t worry about whether his crops were thriving or not. At this moment, he was only concerned about the “flood” that Zhang Enpu had prophesied and the “drowning accident” in July.
He hoped these events would come sooner, as they were related to his future. But at the same time, he felt a bit guilty and remorseful. These prophesied events were not good things but disasters that people hated. He didn’t know if his desire for these disasters would harm his karma. He was caught in a dilemma.
But life’s trajectory is such that what is meant to come will come, and what isn’t meant to come cannot be stopped even with steel wires. Just as Zhang Enpu had predicted, one night in mid-June, it rained heavily. The rain was so heavy that it was unprecedented, as if a well had opened above Xiushan Village and poured down water. It rained continuously for three days and three nights. As a result, Xiushan Village was instantly flooded, and large areas of farmland were submerged, almost turning the village into Xiushui Village.
Fortunately, the flood stopped there and didn’t reach the villagers’ homes. But even so, the disaster was significant. All the crops in the fields were completely destroyed. Zhao Shan was both sad and happy, feeling like crying but having no tears. To alleviate his guilt, he took out all his savings to help the villagers with post-disaster reconstruction. The first prophecy had truly come to pass, and so fiercely. It seemed that the second prophecy, about a child with three arms drowning downstream, was also inevitable.
Downstream from Xiushan Village lived a family. The husband, Mu Dahua, and his wife, Xiaoyue, had been married for three years without any signs of wanting children, despite not using any contraception. They were desperate for a child. Their parents were even more desperate for a grandchild. They tried everything, consulting doctors from various counties and cities, taking countless secret remedies, but to no avail. They were at a loss, wondering where the problem lay.
In feng shui, their problem had an explanation. The place they lived was called “Juehu,” which means “no descendants” or “lonely old age.”
There are three types of Juehu feng shui. The first is naturally childless. The second is having children who are useless, such as those who die young or from illness. The third is having deformed children who are useless. The geographical layout of Juehu feng shui generally includes the following situations: first, a sharp mountain or rock facing the front door; second, a “crying” pond in front of the house; third, a vast cliff in front of the house; fourth, ancestral graves buried on a dead vein. Mu Dahua belonged to the second type, with two large ponds in front of his house. Ponds are like eyes; one is for “bright hall,” gathering energy, but two form a “crying” character, bringing the disaster of no descendants. Mu Dahua lived there unknowingly, suffering the consequences.
Despite the Juehu feng shui, one day, after their efforts, Mu Dahua’s wife Xiaoyue finally showed signs of pregnancy. As time went on, her belly grew larger, and it seemed she was truly pregnant. They were overjoyed, taking great care of her, thinking the Mu family would finally have an heir. But when Xiaoyue gave birth after ten months of pregnancy, the Mu family’s hopes turned to disappointment. The Juehu feng shui ensured the child would be useless. Xiaoyue gave birth to a monster with three arms. The news spread quickly through the nearby villages.
“The Mu family has given birth to a monster! What sin did they commit in a past life?” The whole family was heartbroken beyond compare. Heaven seems to enjoy teasing ordinary people. We can only comfort these unfortunate souls. What else can we do? Jump off a building or hang ourselves? No, we must face life positively.
Though poor, Mu Dahua had the courage to face this. A tiger doesn’t eat its cubs, and a mother doesn’t find her child ugly. The couple decided to raise their hard-earned child well, regardless of others’ opinions. But sometimes, heaven is heartless, not even giving people the chance to comfort themselves. There was a well in front of the Mu family’s house. On the third day after the child’s birth, at midnight, the time of the rat, when cats are active, a cat mistook the Mu family’s baby for a rat, picked it up, and dragged it to the well, intending to eat it. But after biting it twice, the cat realized something was wrong and angrily pushed the child into the well…
Thus ended the child’s short journey in the human world, exactly as Zhang Enpu had prophesied to Zhao Shan at Coffin Ridge.
When Zhao Shan learned that a child with three arms had indeed drowned downstream in Xiushan Village, he was shocked, despite being mentally prepared. But beyond his heavy heart, he began to believe more in feng shui. He no longer had any doubts about Zhang Enpu’s words.
Early on the morning of August 15th, he began to implement the plan Zhang Enpu had taught him to break the curse. Alone, he went to the outlet of the village river at the Big Dipper Formation. He was to fetch a ladle of clear water from the outlet to save his ancestral grave and break the curse. The outlet was essentially a large cave on a cliff, located on the mountain representing the last star of the Big Dipper, at the end of the spoon. The spring inside the cave flowed year-round, never-ending, symbolizing eternal life and the source of life for the villagers of Xiushan Village downstream. After an hour’s journey, he arrived, still early. Zhao Shan stood at the foot of the mountain, looking up at the cave. Besides the continuous flow of water, a large mist also emerged, soon enveloping the entire area around him.
He was curious, thinking, “This mountain is indeed transformed by divine energy, shrouded in mist. Let me see how deep the cave is.”
Zhao Shan picked up a small stone and threw it at the cave entrance. With a splash, the stone fell into the rushing water and was washed back. His throw was too weak. Zhao Shan stopped testing, took out a plastic bottle he had brought, filled it with the falling spring water, and turned to leave. He had to pour this bottle of water over his father-in-law’s grave at midnight.
But just as he turned, he heard a roar from the cave, as if a lot of water was being squeezed out. A massive surge of water shot out from the cave, rushing rapidly towards Zhao Shan’s back.
Hearing the noise, Zhao Shan turned around and was horrified to see a huge wave, over five meters high, crashing towards him. Terrified, he hung the water bottle around his neck and ran towards higher ground. Unfortunately, he was a step too slow and was immediately engulfed by the flood. Zhao Shan was swept away by the sudden surge of water, thrown over ten meters, and landed with a splash in a large pool below. Luckily, he fell into the pool and not onto the rocks outside, or he would have been killed. He quickly swam to the shore and ran forward, fearing a second wave from the cave. Fortunately, nothing else happened after the first wave, and the cave returned to its usual calm.
As he hurried back, his heart pounding, he muttered, “Did my little stone disturb the spiritual energy gathered inside? How terrifying. I must leave this place quickly.”
Zhao Shan, shaken but with his hard-earned “holy water,” ran to his father-in-law’s grave at Coffin Ridge. It was already past 10 PM, but there was still an hour before midnight. Next to the Zhao family grave was a small pine tree. He sat under it, leaning against the trunk, nervously waiting for the miraculous moment. The moonlight was bright. Looking at his father-in-law’s grave, he suddenly felt it had grown larger, and there seemed to be a damp mist emanating in the night.
“Could it be? I haven’t poured the water yet, but spiritual energy is already gathering. Or is it the anger of the evil curse?” He rubbed his eyes and looked again; the mist was still there. But within the mist, there seemed to be the figure of an old man. He didn’t recognize the old man, but he felt very familiar, especially the old man’s nose, which was exactly like his. “A ghost!” Zhao Shan was about to shout, but the old man suddenly appeared and covered his mouth.
The old man didn’t mean to harm him but kindly said, “Shan’er, don’t be afraid. I am your father-in-law.”
Zhao Shan broke free from the old man’s hand and stopped shouting, asking in confusion, “Father-in-law?” The old man nodded, “Yes, I am one of your father-in-law’s three souls and seven spirits, the ‘grave-guarding spirit.’ Don’t be afraid. I’m here to tell you some things you don’t know about what happened back then. I know you’ve consulted a feng shui master to break the curse on this feng shui treasure.”
“Really? Are you truly my father-in-law’s spirit?”
The old man nodded, “Yes. If I wanted to harm you, do you think you could escape, child?”
“Oh, father-in-law!” Zhao Shan believed him and awkwardly addressed this ancestor from half a century ago. The old man, Zhao Laotai, said, “Now I’ll tell you how this land was broken.”
Zhao Shan nodded, “Please, go ahead.”
The old man coughed and sighed, “Actually, it’s all my fault for being too greedy. Back then, I hired a famous feng shui master from out of town to choose a burial site for me. The feng shui master found this once-in-a-millennium feng shui treasure on Coffin Ridge. At first, I didn’t believe it and insisted on digging it up to see, but the feng shui master disagreed, saying that digging it up would bring three curses: the first curse would be ‘thunder striking five times’ after the feng shui treasure was broken; the second curse would be ‘a major flood in Xiushan Village three months later’; the third curse would be ‘a child drowning downstream.’ After saying these three curses, the feng shui master left angrily, not even taking payment. Seeing that he didn’t even want money, I was terrified, thinking this must be a true feng shui treasure. So, I didn’t dig further, protected the site, and excitedly told your grandfather. I thought I had gotten a great deal. But your grandfather couldn’t keep his mouth shut and told your grandmother. Your grandmother also couldn’t keep it to herself and told her family. Eventually, the news spread to a rogue named Youzi. He secretly went to Coffin Ridge, found the site, and blackmailed me, demanding fifty silver dollars to keep the secret.”
Zhao Shan was deeply moved and got up from the ground, grabbing Zhang Enpu’s hand with tears streaming down his face, he asked, “Old sir, what should I do to break free from this terrifying curse?”
Zhang Enpu smiled slightly and made a gesture, “On the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, when the moon is full and there are no demons or ghosts, you just need to fetch a ladle of clear water from the outlet of the dam in Xiushan Village at midnight and pour it on your father-in-law’s grave to break the curse. When you pour that ladle of water on the grave, a meteor will appear in the east, and golden lights will sparkle on the grave, as if the sun is shining its light on the earth.”
Zhao Shan was astonished, “Is it really that simple? Just a ladle of water from the river in Xiushan Village? Is that water magical?”
Zhang Enpu replied, “The outlet of the river in Xiushan Village is located within the ‘Big Dipper Formation,’ transformed by the spiritual energy of the Big Dipper, possessing the power to dispel evil and exorcise demons. Of course, a ladle of water from there is sufficient.”
Zhao Shan smiled, “Oh, I forgot that the river flows from the back mountain. Heh… truly miraculous.”
Zhang Enpu continued, “This month is May, and there are still three months until the midnight of the Mid-Autumn Festival on August 15th. During these three months, two major events will occur. The first event: next month, in June, your village will experience a major flood. The second event: downstream in Xiushan Village, the Zhao family will give birth to a son on the day of Shenwu. This child, with one head and three arms, will fall into a well and die three days later. Remember these two events, as they are omens for your family’s revival and a test of my abilities.”
Zhao Shan nodded, “Yes, I will remember.”
Zhang Enpu added, “Do you know why these two events will happen?”
Zhao Shan shook his head, “No. Is there some mystery behind it?”
Zhang Enpu explained, “It’s because these two events are two of the three curse reactions after your father-in-law’s coffin lid was broken.”
“What about the third one?”
“The third one was prophesied the day the earth was broken: struck by five thunderbolts, your father-in-law died that day. The remaining two have a cycle of forty years, and this year is the year they will manifest.”
“Sir, you are truly a divine being. I think the person who chose the burial site for my father-in-law back then must not have known all these details. He must have miscalculated many mysteries, probably even thought this was a true feng shui treasure.”
Zhang Enpu sighed, “What happened back then is probably unknown to anyone now. Let the past be the past. What’s important is to focus on the future. Alright, I’m heading down the mountain. Take care. After this is done, marry a wife, and you’re guaranteed to have a particularly noble son.” With that, he turned and walked away without looking back.
Zhao Shan hurried after him, “Let’s go down together. You’ve done me a great favor; I must reward you heavily.”
“No need, this encounter was purely by fate, not something to be charged for. Don’t be polite. Let’s part here; we’ll meet again.”
June is the rainy season, and it’s also the time when weeds in the fields grow most vigorously. So, the villagers of Xiushan Village didn’t want it to rain at all. They only hoped that the sun would stay in the sky a little longer. Otherwise, the crops would fail, and they’d have to drink pumpkin soup. Except for Zhao Shan.
Zhao Shan wasn’t a farmer; he didn’t worry about whether his crops were fat or thin. At this moment, he only cared about the “flood” that Zhang Enpu had prophesied and the “drowning accident” in July.
He hoped this moment would come sooner because it was related to his future. But at the same time, he felt a bit guilty and remorseful. Because these prophesied events weren’t good things; they were disasters that people hated. He didn’t know if his desire for such disasters was detrimental to his karma. He was caught between a rock and a hard place.
But life’s trajectory is like this: what is meant to come will come, and what isn’t meant to come, you can’t hold onto even with steel wire. Just as Zhang Enpu had predicted, one night in mid-June, it rained heavily. The rain was unprecedented, as if the heavens had opened a well above Xiushan Village and poured water down. And it rained for three days and three nights straight. Thus, Xiushan Village was instantly flooded, and large swathes of farmland were submerged, almost turning it into Xiushui Village.
Fortunately, the flood stopped there and didn’t reach the villagers’ homes. But even so, the disaster was quite significant. All the crops in the fields were completely lost. Zhao Shan was both sad and happy, wanting to cry but having no tears. To alleviate his guilt, he took out all his savings to help the villagers with post-disaster reconstruction. The first prophecy had truly come true, and so fiercely. It seemed the second prophecy, that a child with three arms downstream would drown, was also inevitable.
Downstream of Xiushan Village, there was a family, the master Mu Dahua, and his wife, Xiao Yue. In the three years since Mu Dahua and Xiao Yue got married, without any contraceptive measures, there was no sign of them wanting to have a child. They were desperate for a child, going crazy with anxiety. Their parents were even more desperate for a grandchild. So, they tried everything. But after consulting doctors from various counties and cities dozens of times and taking dozens of secret remedies, there was still no response. At this point, they were at a loss. Where was the problem?
Actually, their problem had an explanation in feng shui. The place they lived in was called “Juehu” in feng shui.
“Juehu” means no descendants, i.e., destined to be alone in old age.
There are three types of “Juehu” feng shui. One is naturally childless. One is having children who are useless, like dying young or from illness. One is having deformed children who are useless. The basic geographical layout of “Juehu” feng shui is roughly as follows: one, having sharp mountains or rocks directly in front of the house. Two, having a “crying” pond in front of the house. Three, having a vast cliff in front of the house. Four, having ancestral graves buried on a “dead vein.” Mu Dahua belonged to the second type, with two large ponds in front of his house. Ponds are like eyes; one is the “bright hall,” used to gather energy. But two is the “crying” character, bringing the disaster of no descendants. Mu Dahua lived there without knowing it, so of course, he suffered.
Despite the “Juehu” feng shui, one day, through their efforts, Mu Dahua’s wife Xiao Yue’s belly finally showed progress. And as time went on, her belly grew more and more prominent; it seemed she was truly pregnant. They were so happy. They took care of her with great enthusiasm, thinking the Mu family would finally have a successor. But after ten months of pregnancy, when Xiao Yue was about to give birth, the Mu family’s hopes turned to disappointment. “Juehu” feng shui destined the child to be useless. Xiao Yue gave birth to a monster with three arms. This was outrageous, and the news quickly spread throughout the nearby villages.
“The Mu family gave birth to a monster! What sin did they commit in a past life?” The whole family was heartbroken beyond compare. Heaven loves to tease ordinary people. We can only comfort these unfortunate people like this. What else can we do? Jump off a building or hang ourselves? Otherwise, we can only face life positively.
Although Mu Dahua was poor, he had the courage to face all this. A tiger doesn’t eat its cubs, and a mother doesn’t find her child ugly. The couple decided to raise their hard-earned child well, no matter what others said. But sometimes, heaven is so heartless and cold-blooded that it doesn’t even give people such a comforting opportunity. There was a well at the Mu family’s doorstep. On the third day after the child’s birth, at midnight, the time of the rat, when cats are active, the cat, whether due to poor eyesight or smell, mistook the Mu couple’s baby for a rat, picked it up in its mouth, and dragged it to the well’s edge to eat. But after biting it twice, it realized something was wrong and angrily pushed the child down with its paw…
Thus ended his short journey in the human world, exactly fulfilling Zhang Enpu’s prophecy to Zhao Shan at Coffin Ridge.
When Zhao Shan learned that a child with three arms had indeed drowned downstream of Xiushan Village, although he was mentally prepared, he was still very shocked. Besides feeling heavy-hearted, he began to believe more in feng shui. He now had no doubt about Zhang Enpu’s words.
Early on the morning of August 15th, he began to implement the plan Zhang Enpu had taught him to break the curse. Alone, he went to the upstream of the village river, the outlet of the Big Dipper Formation. He was going to fetch a ladle of clear water from the flowing outlet to save his ancestral grave and dispel the curse. Speaking of the outlet, it was actually a large cave on a cliff. The cliff was on the mountain representing the last star of the Big Dipper, the position of the last star on the spoon’s tail. The spring inside the cave flowed all year round, never ending, symbolizing endless life, becoming the source of life for the villagers downstream of Xiushan Village. After an hour’s journey, he arrived, and it was still early. Zhao Shan stood at the foot of the mountain looking up at the outlet. Besides the endless flow of water, a large amount of mist also came out, soon enveloping the entire area around him.
He was curious, thinking, “Indeed, it’s a mountain transformed by divine energy, shrouded in mist. Let me test how deep the cave is.”
Zhao Shan picked up a small stone and threw it towards the cave entrance. With a splash, the stone fell into the rushing spring water and was washed back. His strength was insufficient. Zhao Shan stopped testing, took out the plastic bottle he had brought, and filled it with the falling spring water, then turned to hurry back. He had to pour this bottle of water on his father-in-law’s grave at the exact time at night.
But just as he turned around, he heard a roar from the cave, as if a lot of water was being squeezed out, and a huge torrent gushed out of the cave, rapidly rushing towards Zhao Shan’s back.
Hearing the sound, Zhao Shan looked back and was shocked. A giant wave, over five meters high, was crashing towards him like a mountain. Terrified, he hung the water bottle around his neck and ran towards higher ground. Unfortunately, he was a step too slow and was immediately engulfed by the flood in his own courage. Zhao Shan was helpless, swept along by the sudden gush of spring water, and was thrown over ten meters away, landing with a splash in a large pool below. Fortunately, he fell into the pool and not onto the rocks outside, or he would have been killed. He hurriedly swam to the shore from the center of the pool and ran forward as fast as he could. He was afraid the cave might unleash a second wave. Luckily, it wasn’t as severe as he thought. After the first big wave, the outlet returned to its usual calm.
As he walked back quickly, his heart pounding, he muttered, “Did that small stone I threw disturb the spiritual energy gathered inside? It’s too scary; I’d better leave here quickly.”
Zhao Shan, startled and nervous, ran with the “divine water” he had risked his life to get to his father-in-law’s grave at Coffin Ridge. Although it was already past 10 PM, there was still an hour before midnight (11 PM to 1 AM). There was a small pine tree next to the Zhao family ancestral grave. He sat under the pine tree, leaning against the trunk, nervously waiting for the magical moment to arrive. The moonlight was bright. Looking at his father-in-law’s grave, he suddenly felt it had grown larger, and there seemed to be a misty dampness emanating in the night.
“Could it be? I haven’t poured the water yet, but spiritual energy is already gathering? Or is it the anger caused by the evil curse?” He rubbed his eyes hard and looked again; the dampness was still there. But within the dampness, there seemed to be the figure of an old man. He didn’t recognize this old man, but he felt very familiar. Especially the old man’s nose, which was exactly like his. “A ghost!” Zhao Shan was about to shout, but the old man suddenly appeared and covered his mouth.
The old man didn’t mean to harm him but kindly said, “Shan’er, don’t be afraid. I am your father-in-law.”
Zhao Shan broke free from the old man’s hand and stopped shouting, asking in confusion, “Father-in-law?” The old man nodded, “Yes, I am one of your father-in-law’s three souls and seven spirits, the ‘grave-guarding spirit.’ Don’t be afraid; I’m here to tell you some things you didn’t know about what happened back then. I know you’ve invited a feng shui master to break the curse on the feng shui treasure.”
“Really? Are you truly my father-in-law’s spirit?”
The old man nodded, “Yes, if I wanted to harm you, do you think you could escape? Child!”
“Oh, father-in-law!” Zhao Shan believed him and awkwardly addressed this ancestor who had been separated from him by half a century. Old man Zhao Taigong said, “Now I’ll tell you how this land was broken.”
Zhao Shan nodded, “Yes, please tell me!”
The old man coughed and sighed, “Actually, it’s all my fault for being too greedy. Back then, I invited a famous feng shui master from out of town to choose a burial site for me. That feng shui master found this once-in-a-millennium feng shui treasure on Coffin Ridge. At first, I didn’t believe it and insisted on digging it up to see, but the feng shui master disagreed, saying that digging it up would bring three curses: the first curse is the feng shui treasure being broken; struck by five thunderbolts; the second curse is ‘three months later, Xiushan Village will flood.’ The third curse is ‘a child downstream will drown.’ After saying these three curses, the feng shui master left in anger, not even taking the money. At that time, seeing that he didn’t even take the money, I was terrified, thinking this must truly be a feng shui treasure, or else he wouldn’t have refused the money. So, I didn’t dig further, protected the site, and excitedly told your grandfather. Didn’t I get a great bargain? But your grandfather couldn’t keep his mouth shut and told your grandmother. Your grandmother also couldn’t keep her mouth shut and told her family. Her family then spread it outside. Finally, a rogue named Youzi found out. He secretly went to Coffin Ridge, found this place, and then blackmailed me, demanding fifty silver dollars to keep the secret.”
Sighing, Zhang Enpu said, “No one probably knows about this matter anymore. Let the past remain in the past. What matters is to focus on the future. Well, I’m going down the mountain now. Take care. After this is done, you should marry a wife and she will definitely give birth to a most auspicious son.” With that, he turned and walked away without looking back.
Zhao Shan hurried after him, saying, “Let me accompany you down the mountain. You’ve done me a great favor, and I must reward you properly.”
“There’s no need. This was purely a chance encounter, not a service to be charged for. Don’t be so formal. We’ll part here, and we shall meet again.”
June was a rainy season, and it was also the time when weeds in the fields grew vigorously. Therefore, the villagers of Xiushan Village certainly did not wish for rain. They only hoped the sun would stay in the sky a little longer. Otherwise, the grain harvest would decrease, and they would have to survive on pumpkin soup. Only Zhao Shan was an exception.
Zhao Shan was not a farmer, so he did not have to worry about whether his crops were thriving or not. At this moment, he was only concerned about the “flood” and the “drowning incident” in July, which Zhang Enpu had prophesied.
He hoped these moments would come soon because they were related to his future. However, at the same time, he felt a sense of guilt and remorse inside. Because these prophesied events were not good things but disasters that people hated. He did not know whether his desire for these disasters to happen would harm his spiritual virtue. He was stuck in a difficult situation.
But the trajectory of life was like this: what was destined to come would inevitably arrive, and what was not meant to happen could not be held back even with steel wires. Just as Zhang Enpu had predicted, on a night in mid-June, heavy rain fell. It rained like never before in a century, as if heaven had opened a well above Xiushan Village and poured water down. And it rained continuously for three full days and nights. Thus, Xiushan Village was instantly flooded, with large areas of farmland submerged. It almost had to change its name to Xiushui Village.
Fortunately, the flood stopped there and did not develop to the point of rushing into the farmers’ homes. Even so, the disaster was quite severe. All the grain in the fields was completely lost. Zhao Shan felt both sorrow and joy, wanting to cry but unable to shed tears. To alleviate his sense of guilt, he took out all his savings to help the villagers rebuild after the disaster. The first prophecy had indeed come true, and in such a fierce manner. It seemed that the second prophecy, about a child with three arms downstream drowning to death, would inevitably happen as well.
Downstream of Xiushan Village lived a family named Mu. The husband was Mu Dahua, and the wife was Xiaoyue. For three years after their marriage, without taking any contraceptive measures, there had been no sign of pregnancy. They longed for a child desperately. Their parents were equally anxious for a grandchild. Therefore, they tried every possible method. They invited doctors from various counties and cities to examine them dozens of times and consumed countless secret recipes, but nothing worked. At this point, they were at a loss—where was the problem?
In fact, there was an explanation in the study of Feng Shui. The place where they lived was called “Juehu” in Feng Shui.
“Juehu” meant having no descendants, implying a life of solitude and old age.
Zhao Shan was deeply moved and immediately got up from the ground, grabbing Zhang Enpu’s hand with tears streaming down his face, and asked, “Old sir, what must I do to break free from this terrifying curse?”
Zhang Enpu smiled slightly and made a gesture, saying, “On the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival when the moon is full, with no demons or ghosts around, you simply need to fetch a ladle of clear water from the outlet of the dam in Xiushan Village at midnight and pour it over your father-in-law’s grave. This will break the curse. When you pour the water over the grave, a meteor will appear in the east, and the grave will emit golden lights, as if the sun is shining its brilliance upon the earth.”
Zhao Shan was astonished, “Is it really that simple? Just a ladle of water from the river in Xiushan Village? Is that water magical?”
Zhang Enpu replied, “The outlet of the river in Xiushan Village is located within the ‘Big Dipper Formation,’ transformed by the spiritual energy of the Big Dipper. It possesses the power to ward off evil and exorcise demons. Of course, a ladle of that water will suffice.”
Zhao Shan smiled, “Ah, I forgot that the river flows from the back mountain. How fascinating.”
Zhang Enpu continued, “This month is May, and there are still three months until the midnight of the Mid-Autumn Festival on August 15th. During these three months, two major events will occur. First, next month, in June, your village will experience a major flood. Second, the Zhao family downstream from Xiushan Village will give birth to a son on the day of Shenwu. This child, with one head and three arms, will fall into a well and die three days later. Remember these two events, as they are omens of your family’s revival and a test of my abilities.”
Zhao Shan nodded, “Yes, I will remember.”
Zhang Enpu added, “Do you know why these two events will occur?”
Zhao Shan shook his head, “No, is there some mystery behind it?”
Zhang Enpu explained, “It’s because these two events are two of the three curse reactions after the lid of your father-in-law’s coffin was broken.”
“What about the third one?”
“The third one was prophesied the day the earth was broken: ‘Struck by five thunderbolts from the sky,’ your father-in-law died that day. The remaining two have a cycle of forty years, and this year is the year they will manifest.”
“You truly are a divine man, sir. I think the person who chose the burial site for my father-in-law back then must not have known all these details. He must have miscalculated many mysteries, probably thinking this was a true feng shui treasure.”
Zhang Enpu sighed, “What happened back then is probably lost to history. Let the past be the past. What’s important is to focus on the future. Well, I’m heading down the mountain now. Take care. After this is done, marry a wife, and you’ll surely have a noble son.” With that, he turned and walked away without looking back.
Zhao Shan hurried after him, “Let’s go down together. You’ve done me a great favor; I must reward you heavily.”
“No need, this encounter was purely by fate, not something to be charged for. Don’t be polite. Let’s part here; we’ll meet again.”
June is the rainy season, and it’s also the time when weeds in the fields grow most vigorously. So, the villagers of Xiushan Village didn’t want any rain at all. They only hoped that the sun would stay in the sky a little longer. Otherwise, the crops would fail, and they’d have to drink pumpkin soup. Except for Zhao Shan.
Zhao Shan wasn’t a farmer, so he didn’t worry about whether his crops were thriving or not. At this moment, he was only concerned about the “flood” that Zhang Enpu had prophesied and the “drowning accident” in July.
He hoped these events would come sooner, as they were related to his future. But at the same time, he felt a bit guilty and remorseful. Because these prophesied events weren’t good things; they were disasters that people hated. He didn’t know if his desire for these disasters was damaging his karma. He was caught between a rock and a hard place.
But life’s trajectory is like this: what is meant to come will come, and what isn’t meant to come can’t be pulled in even with steel wires. Just as Zhang Enpu had predicted, one night in mid-June, it rained heavily. The rain was so heavy it was unprecedented, as if the heavens had opened a well above Xiushan Village and poured water down. And it rained for three days and three nights straight. Instantly, Xiushan Village was flooded, and large swathes of farmland were submerged, almost turning it into Xiushui Village.
Fortunately, the flood stopped there and didn’t advance into the farmers’ homes. But even so, the disaster was significant. All the crops in the fields were completely lost. Zhao Shan was both sad and happy, wanting to cry but having no tears. To alleviate his guilt, he took out all his savings to help the villagers with post-disaster reconstruction. The first prophecy had come true, and it was so intense that it seemed the second prophecy, about a child with three arms drowning downstream, was also bound to happen.
Downstream from Xiushan Village lived a family, the husband Mu Dahua and his wife Xiao Yue. In the three years since they married, without any contraceptive measures, they had shown no signs of wanting children. They were desperate for a child, and their parents were even more desperate for a grandchild. So, they tried everything. But after consulting dozens of doctors from various counties and cities and trying hundreds of secret remedies, there was still no response. They were baffled; what was the problem?
In feng shui, their problem had an explanation. The place they lived was called “Juehu” in feng shui terms.
“Juehu” means having no descendants, implying loneliness in old age.
There are three types of Juehu feng shui. One is naturally childless. Another is having children who don’t succeed, like dying young or from illness. The third is having deformed children who don’t succeed. The basic geographical layout of Juehu feng shui includes: first, having sharp mountains or rocks directly in front of the house. Second, having a “crying” pond in front of the house. Third, having a vast cliff in front of the house. Fourth, having ancestral graves buried on a lifeless vein. Mu Dahua fell into the second category, with two large ponds in front of his house. Ponds are like eyes; one is a “bright hall,” gathering energy, but two form a “crying” character, bringing the disaster of no descendants. Mu Dahua lived there unknowingly, suffering the consequences.
Despite the Juehu feng shui, one day, through their efforts, Mu Dahua’s wife Xiao Yue finally showed progress. As time went on, her belly grew more and more prominent, and it seemed she was truly pregnant. They were overjoyed, taking great care of her, thinking the Mu family would finally have an heir. But after ten months of pregnancy, when Xiao Yue went into labor, the Mu family’s hopes turned to disappointment. The Juehu feng shui ensured failure. Xiao Yue gave birth to a monster with three arms. The news spread quickly through the nearby villages.
“The Mu family has given birth to a monster! What sin did they commit in a past life?” The whole family was heartbroken beyond compare. Heaven seems to enjoy teasing ordinary people. We can only comfort these unfortunate souls. What else can we do? Jump off a building or hang ourselves? No, we must face life positively.
Though poor, Mu Dahua had the courage to face this. A tiger doesn’t eat its cubs, and a mother doesn’t find her child ugly. The couple decided to raise their hard-earned child well, regardless of others’ opinions. But sometimes, heaven is so cruel it seems almost heartless, not even giving people the chance to comfort themselves. There was a well in front of the Mu family’s house. On the third day after the child’s birth, at midnight, the time of the rat, when cats are active, a cat mistook the Mu family’s baby for a rat, picked it up in its mouth, and dragged it to the well, preparing to eat it. But after biting it twice, the cat realized something was wrong and angrily pushed the child into the well…
Thus ended the child’s brief journey in this world, exactly as Zhang Enpu had prophesied to Zhao Shan at Coffin Ridge.
When Zhao Shan learned that a child with three arms had indeed drowned downstream from Xiushan Village, he was shocked, despite being mentally prepared. But beyond his heavy heart, he began to believe even more in feng shui. He no longer had any doubts about Zhang Enpu’s words.
Early on the morning of August 15th, he began to implement the plan Zhang Enpu had taught him to break the curse. Alone, he went to the upstream outlet of the village river, the Big Dipper Formation. He was to fetch a ladle of clear water from the outlet to save his ancestral grave and break the curse. The outlet was essentially a large cave on a cliff, located on the mountain representing the last star of the Big Dipper, at the end of the spoon. The spring inside the cave flowed year-round, never-ending, symbolizing the endless cycle of life and the source of life for the villagers downstream of Xiushan Village. After an hour’s journey, he arrived, still early. Zhao Shan stood at the foot of the mountain, looking up at the cave. Besides the continuous flow of water, large clouds of mist also emerged, soon enveloping the entire area around him.
He was curious, thinking, “This mountain truly is transformed by divine energy, shrouded in mist. Let me test how deep the cave is.”
Zhao Shan picked up a small stone and threw it towards the cave. With a splash, the stone landed in the rushing water and was washed back. His throw was too weak. Zhao Shan stopped testing, took out the plastic bottle he had brought, filled it with the falling spring water, and turned to leave. He had to pour this bottle of water over his father-in-law’s grave at midnight.
But just as he turned, he heard a roar from the cave, as if a large amount of water was being squeezed out. A massive surge of water shot out from the cave, rapidly rushing towards Zhao Shan’s back.
Hearing the noise, Zhao Shan turned around and was horrified to see a wave over five meters high crashing towards him. Terrified, he hung the water bottle around his neck and ran towards higher ground. Unfortunately, he was a step too slow and was immediately engulfed by the flood. Zhao Shan, unable to control himself, was swept away by the sudden surge of water, tossed over ten meters, and fell into a large pool below. Luckily, he fell into the pool and not onto the rocks outside, or he would have been killed. He quickly swam to the shore and ran for his life, fearing a second wave from the cave. Fortunately, the situation wasn’t as severe as he imagined. After the first surge, the cave returned to its usual calm.
As he hurried back, his heart pounding, he muttered, “Did that small stone I threw disturb the spiritual energy gathered inside? How terrifying. I must leave this place quickly.”
Zhao Shan, shaken but determined, carried the “holy water” he had risked his life to obtain to his father-in-law’s grave at Coffin Ridge. It was already past 10 PM, but there was still about an hour until midnight. Next to the Zhao family grave was a small pine tree. He sat under it, leaning against the trunk, nervously waiting for the miraculous moment. The moonlight was bright. Looking at his father-in-law’s grave, he suddenly felt it had grown larger, and there seemed to be a damp mist emanating in the night.
“Could it be? I haven’t poured the water yet, but spiritual energy is already gathering. Or is it the anger of the evil curse?” He rubbed his eyes and looked again; the mist was still there. But within the mist, there seemed to be the figure of an old man. He didn’t recognize this old man, but he felt strangely familiar, especially the old man’s nose, which was exactly like his. “A ghost!” Zhao Shan was about to shout, but the old man suddenly appeared and covered his mouth.
The old man didn’t mean to harm him but spoke kindly, “Shan’er, don’t be afraid. I am your father-in-law.”
Zhao Shan broke free from the old man’s grip and stopped shouting, asking in confusion, “Father-in-law?” The old man nodded, “Yes, I am one of the three souls and seven spirits of your father-in-law, the ‘grave-guarding spirit.’ Don’t be afraid. I’m here to tell you some things you don’t know about what happened back then. I know you’ve consulted a feng shui master to break the curse on this feng shui treasure.”
“Really? Are you truly my father-in-law’s spirit?”
The old man nodded, “Yes, if I wanted to harm you, do you think you could escape? Child!”
“Oh, father-in-law!” Zhao Shan believed him and awkwardly addressed this ancestor from half a century ago. The old man, Zhao Laotai, said, “Now I’ll tell you how this land was broken.”
Zhao Shan nodded, “Please, go on.”
The old man coughed and sighed, “Actually, it’s all my fault for being too greedy. Back then, I hired a famous feng shui master from out of town to choose a burial site for me. The feng shui master found this once-in-a-millennium feng shui treasure on Coffin Ridge. At first, I didn’t believe it and insisted on digging it up to see, but the feng shui master disagreed, saying that digging it up would unleash three curses: the first curse, ‘struck by five thunderbolts from the sky,’ would happen after the feng shui treasure was broken; the second curse, ‘three months later, Xiushan Village will flood’; and the third curse, ‘a child downstream will drown.’ After saying these three curses, the feng shui master left in anger, not even taking payment. Seeing that he didn’t take the money, I was terrified, thinking this must truly be a feng shui treasure, or else he wouldn’t have refused payment. So, I didn’t dig further, protected the site, and excitedly told your grandfather about it. Didn’t I get a great deal? But your grandfather couldn’t keep his mouth shut and told your grandmother. Your grandmother couldn’t keep her mouth shut either and told her family. Eventually, the news spread, and a rogue named Youzi found out. He secretly went to Coffin Ridge, found the site, and used it to blackmail me, demanding fifty silver dollars to keep the secret.”
Despite the “Juehu” Feng Shui, one day, through their efforts, Xiaoyue’s belly finally showed signs of progress. As time passed, her belly grew more and more prominent, indicating a real pregnancy this time. They were overjoyed and eagerly waited on her hand and foot. They thought the Mu family would finally have an heir. However, when the ten months of pregnancy were over and Xiaoyue went into labor, the family’s hopes were dashed. The “Juehu” Feng Shui ensured that the child would not survive. Xiaoyue gave birth to a monster with three arms. This was shocking, and the news quickly spread throughout the nearby villages.
“The Mu family gave birth to a monster! What sins did they commit in a past life!” The whole family was heartbroken beyond comparison. Heaven seemed to enjoy teasing these ordinary people. We can only comfort these unfortunate people with such thoughts. Otherwise, what else could we do? Commit suicide by jumping from a building or hanging?
Although Mu Dahua was poor, he still had the courage to face everything. Even a tiger does not eat its own cub, and a mother never despises her ugly child. The couple decided that no matter what others said, they would raise their hard-earned child well. However, sometimes heaven was cruel to the point of being almost heartless, not even giving people the chance to comfort themselves. There was a well in front of the Mu family’s house. On the third night after the child’s birth, during the Rat Hour, which was the time of mice, it was also the time when cats became active. However, for some unknown reason, whether it was the cat’s vision or sense of smell that had a problem, it mistook the Mu couple’s infant for a mouse, grabbed it in its mouth, and dragged it to the edge of the well to eat. However, after biting it a couple of times and realizing something was wrong, it angrily pushed the child into the well with one paw…
Thus ending his short journey in the human world, exactly fulfilling the words Zhang Enpu had prophesied to Zhao Shan at the Coffin Ridge.
When Zhao Shan learned that, indeed, a child with three arms had drowned to death downstream of Xiushan Village, he was still shocked despite his mental preparation. However, besides feeling heavy-hearted, he began to believe more in Feng Shui. Now, he had absolutely no doubts about Zhang Enpu’s words.
Early on the fifteenth day of August, he began to implement the plan Zhang Enpu had taught him to break the cursed site. Alone, he came to the upstream of the village river, at the outlet of the Big Dipper constellation formation. He was going to fetch a ladle of water from the outlet to save his ancestral grave and dissolve the curse of the broken site. Speaking of the outlet, to put it simply, it was a large cave growing on a cliff. The cliff was located on the mountain representing the last star of the Big Dipper constellation, the position of the last star at the end of the ladle. The spring water inside the cave flowed year-round, never ceasing, symbolizing continuous life and becoming the source of life for the downstream villagers of Xiushan. After an hour’s journey, he arrived, and it was still very early. Zhao Shan stood at the foot of the outlet and looked up. He saw that besides the continuous flow of water, large amounts of mist also emerged from the cave, soon enveloping the entire surrounding area.
Curious, he thought, “Indeed, this is a mountain transformed by divine energy, with smoke and mist swirling around. Let me try how deep this cave really is.”
Zhao Shan picked up a small stone and aimed it at the cave entrance. He heard a splash as the stone fell into the rushing spring water and was washed back. He had thrown it too weakly. Zhao Shan stopped testing and took out the plastic bottle he had brought. He filled it with the falling spring water and turned to hurry back. He had to pour this bottle of water onto his father-in-law’s grave at the exact time of night.
But just as he turned around, he suddenly heard a roar from the cave. It sounded like a lot of water being squeezed out from inside. A huge torrent spewed out from the cave entrance, rapidly surging toward Zhao Shan’s back.
Hearing the noise, Zhao Shan turned around in alarm. Goodness, he saw a huge wave behind him, over five or six meters high, rolling toward him like a mountain collapsing. He was so frightened that he barely had six of his seven souls left. He hung the water bottle around his neck and ran toward the high ground ahead. Unfortunately, he was still a step too slow. Instantly, he was submerged in the sudden surge of water. Zhao Shan was carried helplessly by this sudden gush of spring water. In one leap and surge, he was swept more than ten meters away and fell with a splash into a large pond below. Fortunately, he landed in the pond and not on the rocks outside, or he would surely have died. He hurriedly swam to the shore from the center of the pond and quickly ran forward. He was afraid that the cave entrance would unleash a second wave of attack. Fortunately, reality was not as severe as he imagined. After releasing the first wave of water, the outlet showed no further movement and returned to its usual calm.
Zhao Shan quickly walked back, his heart pounding, muttering to himself, “Could it be that my small stone had disturbed the accumulated spiritual energy inside? How terrifying! I should leave this place as soon as possible.”
Zhao Shan, startled and shaken, took the “holy water” he had risked his life to obtain and ran to his father-in-law’s grave at Coffin Ridge. Although it was already past ten o’clock in the evening, there was still about an hour until the Rat Hour (23:00-1:00). There was a small pine tree next to the Zhao family’s ancestral grave. He sat beneath this small pine tree, leaning against the trunk, nervously waiting for that magical moment. The moonlight was bright. Looking at his father-in-law’s grave, he suddenly felt as if it had grown much bigger, and seemed to be emitting a misty vapor in the night.
“Impossible! I haven’t poured the water yet, so how can there be spiritual energy gathering? Or is it just the rage caused by the evil curse?” He rubbed his eyes hard and looked again. The mist was still there. But within the mist, it seemed there was now the figure of an old man. This old man was someone he did not recognize at all, yet strangely familiar. Especially the old man’s nose—it was exactly the same as his own. “There’s a ghost!” Just as Zhao Shan was about to shout loudly, the old man suddenly rushed over and covered his mouth.
The old man did not mean to harm him. He kindly said, “Shan’er, don’t be afraid. I am your father-in-law.”
Zhao Shan struggled free from the old man’s hand and stopped shouting, asking suspiciously, “Father-in-law?”
Zhao Shan was deeply moved and immediately got up from the ground, grabbing Zhang Enpu’s hand with tears streaming down his face, he asked, “Old sir, what should I do to break free from this terrifying curse?”
Zhang Enpu smiled slightly and made a gesture, “On the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival when the moon is full, with no demons or ghosts around, you just need to fetch a ladle of clear water from the outlet of the dam in Xiushan Village at midnight and pour it over your father-in-law’s grave. This will break the curse. When you pour the water, a meteor will appear in the east, and the grave will shine with golden light, as if the sun is illuminating the earth.”
Zhao Shan was astonished, “Is it really that simple? Just a ladle of water from Xiushan Village’s river? Is that water magical?”
Zhang Enpu replied, “The outlet of the river in Xiushan Village is located within the ‘Big Dipper Formation,’ transformed by the spiritual energy of the Big Dipper. It has the power to dispel evil and exorcise demons. So, yes, a ladle of that water will suffice.”
Zhao Shan smiled, “Oh, I forgot that the river flows from the back mountain. How miraculous.”
Zhang Enpu continued, “This month is May, and there are three months left until the midnight of the Mid-Autumn Festival on August 15th. During these three months, two major events will occur. First, next month, in June, your village will experience a major flood. Second, in Xiushan Village downstream, a child with three arms will be born on the day of Shenwu. This child will fall into a well and die three days later. Remember these two events; they are omens for your family’s revival and a test of my abilities.”
Zhao Shan nodded, “Yes, I will remember.”
Zhang Enpu asked, “Do you know why these two events will happen?”
Zhao Shan shook his head, “No, is there some mystery behind it?”
Zhang Enpu explained, “It’s because these two events are two of the three curse reactions after your father-in-law’s coffin lid was broken.”
“What about the third one?”
“The third one was prophesied the day the earth was broken: thunder will strike five times, and your father-in-law will die that day. The remaining two will manifest forty years later, this year.”
“You are truly a divine person. I think the person who chose the burial site for my father-in-law back then must not have known all these details. He must have miscalculated many mysteries, probably even thought this was a true feng shui treasure.”
Zhang Enpu sighed, “What happened back then is probably unknown to anyone now. Let the past be past. What’s important is to focus on the future. Alright, I’m going down the mountain. Take care. After this is done, marry a wife, and you will surely have a very noble son.” With that, he turned and walked away without looking back.
Zhao Shan hurried after him, “Let’s go down together. You’ve helped me so much; I must reward you heavily.”
“No need, this encounter was purely by fate, not something to be charged for. Don’t be polite. Let’s part here; we will meet again.”
June is the rainy season, and it’s also the time when weeds in the fields grow most vigorously. So, the villagers of Xiushan Village don’t want it to rain at all. They only hope that the sun will stay in the sky a little longer. Otherwise, the crops will fail, and they will have to drink pumpkin soup. Only Zhao Shan is an exception.
Zhao Shan is not a farmer; he doesn’t worry about whether his crops are fat or thin. At this moment, he only cares about the “flood” predicted by Zhang Enpu and the “drowning accident” in July.
He hopes these moments will come soon because they are related to his future. But at the same time, he feels a bit guilty and remorseful. Because these predicted events are not good things but disasters that people hate. He doesn’t know if his desire for disasters is damaging his moral integrity. He is caught in a dilemma.
But life’s trajectory is like this; what is meant to come will come, and what is not meant to come cannot be stopped even with steel wires. Just as Zhang Enpu predicted, one night in mid-June, it rained heavily. The rain was unprecedented, as if a well had been opened above Xiushan Village, pouring water down. It rained for three days and three nights. As a result, Xiushan Village was instantly flooded, and large areas of farmland were submerged, almost renaming the village Xiushui Village.
Fortunately, the flood stopped there and did not rush into the farmers’ homes. But even so, the disaster was quite significant. All the crops in the fields were lost. Zhao Shan was both sad and happy, wanting to cry but having no tears. To alleviate his guilt, he took out all his savings to help the villagers with post-disaster reconstruction. The first prophecy had come true, and so fiercely. It seemed that the second prophecy, about a child with three arms drowning downstream, was also bound to happen.
Downstream of Xiushan Village, there was a family, the master Mu Dahua, and his wife Xiao Yue. In the three years since Mu Dahua and Xiao Yue got married, without any contraceptive measures, there was no sign of them wanting to have a child. They were desperate for a child, and their parents were even more desperate for a grandchild. So, they tried everything. But after consulting doctors from various counties and cities dozens of times and taking dozens of secret remedies, there was still no response. They were at a loss; where was the problem?
Actually, their problem has an explanation in feng shui. The place they live in is called “Juehu” in feng shui.
“Juehu” means no descendants, which means being alone in old age.
There are three types of Juehu feng shui. One is naturally unable to have children. One is having children who are not successful, like dying young or from illness. One is having deformed children who are not successful. The basic geographical layout of Juehu feng shui is roughly as follows: first, there are sharp mountains and rocks directly in front of the house. Second, there is a “crying” pond in front of the house. Third, there is a vast cliff in front of the house. Fourth, the ancestral grave is buried on a dead vein. Mu Dahua belongs to the second type, with two large ponds in front of his house. The ponds are like eyes, one is the “Mingtang,” which gathers energy. But two are the “crying” character, which brings the disaster of no descendants. Mu Dahua lives here without knowing it, so of course, he suffers.
Although it is Juehu feng shui, one day, with their efforts, Mu Dahua’s wife Xiao Yue’s belly finally made progress. And as time went on, her belly became more and more prominent; it seemed she was really pregnant this time. They were so happy. They took care of her with great enthusiasm, thinking that the Mu family finally had a successor. But after ten months of pregnancy, when Xiao Yue was about to give birth, the Mu family’s hopes turned into disappointment. Juehu feng shui destined the child to be unsuccessful. Xiao Yue actually gave birth to a monster with three arms. This was outrageous, and the news immediately spread throughout the nearby villages.
“The Mu family has given birth to a monster! What sin did they commit in their past lives?” The whole family was heartbroken, beyond comparison. Heaven likes to tease these ordinary people. We can only comfort these unfortunate people like this. What else can we do? Jump off a building or hang ourselves? Otherwise, we can only face life positively.
Although Mu Dahua was poor, he still had the courage to face all this. A tiger does not eat its cubs, and a mother does not dislike her ugly child. The couple decided that no matter what others said, they would raise the child they had worked so hard to have. But sometimes, heaven is so heartless and cold-blooded that it doesn’t even give people the chance to comfort themselves. There is a well in front of the Mu family’s house. On the third day after the child was born, at midnight, which is the time of the rat, when cats come out to hunt, the cat mistook the Mu family’s baby for a rat and carried it in its mouth, then dragged it to the edge of the well to eat. But after biting it twice, it found something wrong and angrily pushed the child into the well with its paw…
Thus ended his short journey in the human world, exactly fulfilling Zhang Enpu’s prophecy to Zhao Shan at Coffin Ridge.
When Zhao Shan learned that a child with three arms had indeed drowned downstream of Xiushan Village, although he was mentally prepared, he was still very shocked. But besides feeling heavy-hearted, he began to believe more in feng shui. He now had no doubt about Zhang Enpu’s words.
Early in the morning of August 15th, he began to implement the plan Zhang Enpu taught him to break the curse. He went alone to the outlet of the Big Dipper Formation at the upstream of the village river. He was going to fetch a ladle of clear water from the outlet to save his ancestral grave and dispel the curse. Speaking of the outlet, it is actually a large cave on a cliff. The cliff is on the mountain representing the last star of the Big Dipper, which is the position of the last star on the tail of the spoon. The spring in the cave flows all year round, never ending, symbolizing endless life, and is the source of life for the villagers of Xiushan Village downstream. After an hour’s journey, he arrived, and it was still early. Zhao Shan stood at the foot of the mountain looking up at the outlet, and besides the continuous flow of water, a large amount of mist also came out, soon enveloping the entire area around him.
He was curious, thinking, “It’s indeed a miraculous mountain transformed by immortal energy, shrouded in mist. Let me test how deep the cave is.”
Zhao Shan picked up a small stone and threw it towards the cave entrance. With a “plop,” the stone fell into the rushing water and was washed back. His strength was too weak. Zhao Shan stopped testing, took out the plastic bottle he brought, and filled it with the falling water, then turned back. He had to pour this bottle of water over his father-in-law’s grave at the exact time at night.
But just as he turned around, he heard a roar from the cave, as if a lot of water was being squeezed out, and a huge torrent of water gushed out of the cave, rapidly rushing towards Zhao Shan’s back.
Hearing the sound, Zhao Shan turned around and saw, to his horror, a huge wave over five meters high crashing towards him. He was so scared that he lost six of his seven souls, hung the water bottle around his neck, and ran towards the higher ground. Unfortunately, he was a step too slow and was immediately submerged in the flood. Zhao Shan was helpless, swept away by the sudden gush of water, and was thrown more than ten meters away, landing with a “thud” in a large pool of water below. Fortunately, he fell into the pool, not onto the rocks outside, or he would have died. He quickly swam to the shore from the center of the pool and ran forward with all his might. Because he was afraid that the cave would launch a second wave of attack. Fortunately, the reality was not as severe as he imagined; after the first wave of water, the cave returned to its usual calm.
As he walked back quickly with his heart pounding, he muttered, “Was it the small stone I threw that disturbed the spiritual energy gathered inside? How terrifying, I’d better leave here quickly.”
Zhao Shan, with his “holy water” obtained at great risk, ran to his father-in-law’s grave at Coffin Ridge. Although it was already past 10 PM, there was still about an hour left until midnight (11 PM-1 AM). There was a small pine tree next to the Zhao family’s ancestral grave, and he sat under it, leaning against the trunk, nervously waiting for the magical moment to arrive. The moonlight was bright. Looking at his father-in-law’s grave, he suddenly felt that it seemed to have grown larger, and there seemed to be a misty wetness emanating in the night.
“No way, I haven’t poured the water yet, how can there be spiritual energy gathering, or is it just the anger caused by the evil curse?” He rubbed his eyes hard and looked again; the wetness was still there. But in the wetness, there seemed to be the figure of an old man. He didn’t recognize this old man, but he felt very familiar. Especially the old man’s nose, which was exactly like his. “A ghost!” Zhao Shan was about to shout, but the old man suddenly appeared and covered his mouth.
The old man didn’t mean to harm him but kindly said, “Shan’er, don’t be afraid, I am your father-in-law.”
Zhao Shan broke free from the old man’s hand and stopped shouting, asking in confusion, “Father-in-law?” The old man nodded, “Yes, I am one of the three souls and seven spirits of your father-in-law, the ‘Grave Guardian Spirit.’ Don’t be afraid, I am here to tell you some things you don’t know about what happened back then. I know you invited a feng shui master to break the curse on the feng shui treasure.”
“Really, are you really my father-in-law’s spirit?”
The old man nodded, “Yes, if I wanted to harm you, do you think you could escape? Child!”
“Oh, father-in-law!” Zhao Shan believed his words and awkwardly called out to this ancestor who was half a century apart from him. Old man Zhao Taigong said, “Now I will tell you how this land was broken.”
Zhao Shan nodded, “Yes, please speak!”
The old man coughed and sighed, “Actually, it’s all my fault, too greedy. Back then, I invited a famous feng shui master from out of town to choose a burial site for me. That feng shui master found this once-in-a-thousand-years feng shui treasure on Coffin Ridge. At first, I didn’t believe it and insisted on digging it up to see, but that feng shui master disagreed, saying that if it was dug up, three curses would appear: the first curse is after the feng shui treasure is broken; thunder will strike five times; the second curse is ‘three months later, Xiushan Village will have a major flood.’ The third curse is ‘a child downstream will drown and die.’ After saying these three curses, that feng shui master left angrily, not even taking the money. And at that time, seeing that he didn’t even take the money, I was scared, thinking that this must be a true feng shui treasure, otherwise he wouldn’t have refused the money. So, I didn’t dig further, protected the site, and excitedly told your grandfather about it. Didn’t I get a great bargain? But your grandfather couldn’t keep his mouth shut and told your grandmother. Your grandmother also couldn’t keep her mouth shut and told her family. Her family then spread it outside. Finally, a rogue named Youzi found out. He secretly went to Coffin Ridge and found this place, then used it to blackmail me, demanding fifty silver dollars to keep the secret.”
Zhao Shan asked, “Is that true? Are you really my father-in-law’s soul?”
The old man nodded again, “Yes. If I wanted to harm you, do you think you could escape?”
“Oh, Father-in-law!” Zhao Shan believed his words and awkwardly called out to this ancestor who had passed away half a century ago.
Zhao Shan was deeply moved and quickly stood up, grasping Zhang Enpu’s hand with tears streaming down his face, he asked, “Old sir, what must I do to break free from this terrifying curse?”
Zhang Enpu smiled slightly and made a gesture, “On the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival when the moon is full, there will be no demons or ghosts. You simply need to fetch a ladle of clear water from the outlet of the dam in Xiushan Village at midnight and pour it over your father-in-law’s grave to break the curse. When you pour that ladle of water over the grave, a meteor will appear in the east, and the grave will sparkle with golden light, as if the sun is shining upon the earth.”
Zhao Shan was astonished, “Is it really that simple? Just a ladle of water from the river in Xiushan Village? Is that water magical?”
Zhang Enpu replied, “The outlet of the river in Xiushan Village is located within the ‘Big Dipper Formation,’ transformed by the spiritual energy of the Big Dipper. It has the power to dispel evil and exorcise demons. Of course, a ladle of water from there will suffice.”
Zhao Shan smiled, “Oh, I forgot that the river flows from the back mountain. How mysterious.”
Zhang Enpu continued, “This month is May, and there are still three months until the midnight of the Mid-Autumn Festival on August 15th. During these three months, two major events will occur. The first event: next month, in June, your village will experience a major flood. The second event: downstream in Xiushan Village, the Zhao family will give birth to a son on the day of Shenwu. This child, with three arms, will fall into a well and die three days later. Remember these two events; they are omens of your family’s revival and a test of my abilities.”
Zhao Shan nodded, “Yes, I will remember.”
Zhang Enpu added, “Do you know why these two events will happen?”
Zhao Shan shook his head, “No. Is there some mystery behind it?”
Zhang Enpu explained, “It’s because these two events are two of the three curse reactions after your father-in-law’s coffin lid was broken.”
“What about the third one?”
“The third one was prophesied the day the coffin lid was broken: ‘Struck by five thunderbolts,’ your father-in-law died that day. The remaining two have a cycle of forty years, and this year is the year they will manifest.”
“You truly are a divine man. I think the person who chose the burial site for my father-in-law back then must not have known all these details. He must have miscalculated many mysteries, probably even thought this was a true feng shui treasure.”
Zhang Enpu sighed, “What happened back then is probably unknown to anyone now. Let the past be the past. What’s important is to focus on the future. Well, I’m going down the mountain now. Take care. After this is done, marry a wife, and you’ll surely have a very noble son.” With that, he turned and walked away without looking back.
Zhao Shan hurried after him, “Let’s go down together. You’ve helped me so much; I must reward you heavily.”
“No need. This encounter was purely by fate and not something to be charged for. Don’t be polite. Let’s part here; we’ll meet again.”
June is the rainy season, and it’s also the time when weeds in the fields grow most vigorously. So, the villagers of Xiushan Village didn’t want it to rain at all. They only wished for the sun to stay a little longer in the sky. Otherwise, the crops would fail, and they would have to drink pumpkin soup. Except for Zhao Shan.
Zhao Shan wasn’t a farmer, so he didn’t worry about whether his crops were thriving or not. At this moment, he was only concerned about the “flood” that Zhang Enpu had prophesied and the “drowning accident” in July.
He hoped these events would come sooner because they were related to his future. But at the same time, he felt a bit guilty and remorseful. These prophecies weren’t good things; they were disasters that people hated. He didn’t know if his desire for these disasters to happen would harm his karma. He was caught in a dilemma.
But life’s trajectory is like this: what is meant to come will come, and what isn’t meant to come can’t be pulled even with steel wire. Just as Zhang Enpu had predicted, one night in mid-June, it rained heavily. The rain was so heavy that it was unprecedented, as if a well had opened above Xiushan Village and poured down. It rained for three days and three nights. In an instant, Xiushan Village was flooded, and large areas of farmland were submerged, almost turning the village into Xiushui Village.
Fortunately, the flood stopped there and didn’t reach the villagers’ homes. But even so, the disaster was quite significant. All the crops in the fields were completely lost. Zhao Shan was both sad and happy, wanting to cry but having no tears. To alleviate his guilt, he took out all his savings to help the villagers with post-disaster reconstruction. The first prophecy had truly come true, and it was so fierce. It seemed that the second prophecy, about a child with three arms downstream drowning to death, was also bound to happen.
Downstream of Xiushan Village, there was a family. The husband was Mu Dahua, and his wife was Xiao Yue. Mu Dahua and Xiao Yue had been married for three years, and without any contraceptive measures, they had not shown any signs of wanting to have a child. They were desperate for a child. Their parents were even more desperate for a grandchild. So, they tried everything. They consulted doctors from various counties and cities dozens of times and tried dozens of secret remedies, but nothing worked. They were at a loss; where was the problem?
In feng shui, their problem had an explanation. The place they lived in was called “Juehu” in feng shui.
“Juehu” means having no descendants, meaning they would end up alone.
There are three types of “Juehu” feng shui. The first is being born without the ability to have children. The second is having children who are useless, like those who die young or from illness. The third is having monstrous children who are useless. The basic geographical layout of “Juehu” feng shui is roughly as follows: first, having sharp mountains or rocks directly in front of the house. Second, having a “crying” pond in front of the house. Third, having a vast cliff in front of the house. Fourth, having ancestral graves buried on a “dead vein.” Mu Dahua belonged to the second type, with two large ponds in front of his house. Ponds are like eyes; one is for “Mingtang,” gathering energy. But two are for “crying,” bringing the disaster of having no descendants. Mu Dahua lived there without knowing it, so of course, he suffered.
Despite the “Juehu” feng shui, one day, through their efforts, Mu Dahua’s wife Xiao Yue finally showed progress. As time went on, her belly grew more and more prominent; it seemed she was truly pregnant. They were overjoyed. They took great care of her, thinking the Mu family would finally have an heir. But when Xiao Yue gave birth after ten months of pregnancy, the Mu family’s hopes turned to disappointment. The “Juehu” feng shui destined the child to be useless. Xiao Yue gave birth to a monster with three arms. The news spread quickly to nearby villages.
“The Mu family has given birth to a monster! What sin did they commit in a past life?” The whole family was heartbroken beyond compare. Heaven likes to tease ordinary people. We can only comfort these unfortunate people. What else can we do? Jump off a building or hang themselves? No, we can only face life positively.
Although Mu Dahua was poor, he had the courage to face all this. A tiger doesn’t eat its cubs, and a mother doesn’t dislike her ugly child. The couple decided to raise their hard-earned child well, no matter what others said. But sometimes, heaven is so heartless and cold-blooded that it doesn’t even give people the chance to comfort themselves. There was a well in front of the Mu family’s house. On the third day after the child’s birth, at midnight, when it was the time for mice to be active, a cat came out. Whether the cat had poor eyesight or a poor sense of smell, it mistook the Mu family’s baby for a mouse, picked it up in its mouth, and dragged it to the well, preparing to eat it. But after biting it twice, it realized something was wrong and angrily pushed the child into the well with its paw…
Thus ended the child’s short journey in the human world, exactly fulfilling Zhang Enpu’s prophecy to Zhao Shan at Coffin Ridge.
When Zhao Shan learned that a child with three arms had indeed drowned downstream of Xiushan Village, although he was mentally prepared, he was still very shocked. Besides feeling heavy-hearted, he began to believe more in feng shui. He no longer had any doubts about Zhang Enpu’s words.
Early on the morning of August 15th, he began to implement the plan Zhang Enpu had taught him to break the curse. Alone, he went to the outlet of the village river upstream, at the Big Dipper Formation. He was going to fetch a ladle of clear water from the outlet to save his ancestral grave and break the curse. Speaking of the outlet, it was actually a large cave on a cliff. The cliff was on the mountain representing the last star of the Big Dipper, the end of the spoon. The spring inside the cave flowed all year round, never ending, symbolizing endless life and becoming the source of life for the villagers downstream of Xiushan Village. After an hour’s journey, he arrived. It was still early. Zhao Shan stood at the foot of the mountain looking up at the outlet. Besides the endless flow of water, a large amount of mist also came out, soon enveloping the entire area around him.
He was curious, thinking, “This mountain is truly transformed by divine energy, shrouded in mist. Let me see how deep the cave is.”
Zhao Shan picked up a small stone and threw it towards the cave. With a “plop,” the stone fell into the rushing water and was washed back. His strength was too weak. Zhao Shan stopped testing, took out the plastic bottle he had brought, filled it with the falling spring water, and turned to hurry back. He had to pour this bottle of water over his father-in-law’s grave at midnight.
But just as he turned around, he heard a roar from the cave, as if a lot of water was being squeezed out. A huge torrent of water gushed out of the cave, rapidly rushing towards Zhao Shan’s back.
Hearing the sound, Zhao Shan turned around and was shocked. A huge wave, over five meters high, was crashing towards him like a mountain. He was so scared that he lost six of his seven souls. Hanging the water bottle around his neck, he ran towards higher ground. Unfortunately, he was a step too slow and was immediately engulfed by the flood. Zhao Shan was helpless, swept away by the sudden gush of water, and was thrown over ten meters away, landing with a “thud” in a large pool below. Fortunately, he landed in the pool and not on the rocks outside, or he would have died. He quickly swam to the shore and ran forward, fearing a second wave from the cave. Luckily, it wasn’t as bad as he thought. After the first wave, the outlet returned to its usual calm.
As he hurried back, his heart pounding, he thought, “Was it the small stone I threw that disturbed the spiritual energy gathered inside? How terrifying. I’d better leave here quickly.”
Zhao Shan, still shaken, ran with the “divine water” he had risked his life to get to his father-in-law’s grave at Coffin Ridge. It was already past 10 PM, but there was still about an hour until midnight (11 PM to 1 AM). There was a small pine tree next to the Zhao family ancestral grave. He sat under the tree, leaning against the trunk, nervously waiting for the magical moment. The moonlight was bright. Looking at his father-in-law’s grave, he suddenly felt it had grown larger, and there seemed to be a misty dampness emanating in the night.
“Could it be? I haven’t poured the water yet, but spiritual energy is already gathering? Or is it the anger of the evil curse?” He rubbed his eyes hard and looked again. The dampness was still there, but within it, there seemed to be the figure of an old man. He didn’t recognize this old man, but he felt very familiar. Especially the old man’s nose, which was exactly like his. “A ghost!” Zhao Shan was about to shout, but the old man suddenly appeared and covered his mouth.
The old man didn’t mean to harm him but said kindly, “Shan’er, don’t be afraid. I am your father-in-law.”
Zhao Shan broke free from the old man’s hand and stopped shouting, asking in confusion, “Father-in-law?” The old man nodded, “Yes, I am one of the three souls and seven spirits of your father-in-law, the ‘grave-guarding spirit.’ Don’t be afraid. I’m here to tell you some things you didn’t know about what happened back then. I know you’ve invited a feng shui master to break the curse on this feng shui treasure.”
“Really? Are you truly my father-in-law’s spirit?”
The old man nodded, “Yes, if I wanted to harm you, do you think you could escape? Child!”
“Oh, father-in-law!” Zhao Shan believed him and awkwardly addressed this ancestor from half a century ago. The old man, Zhao Laotai, said, “Now I’ll tell you how this land was cursed.”
Zhao Shan nodded, “Yes, please tell me!”
The old man coughed and sighed, “Actually, it’s all my fault for being too greedy. Back then, I invited a famous feng shui master from out of town to choose a burial site for me. The feng shui master found this once-in-a-thousand-years feng shui treasure on Coffin Ridge. At first, I didn’t believe it and insisted on digging it up to see, but the feng shui master disagreed, saying that digging it up would bring three curses: the first curse is ‘struck by five thunderbolts’ after the feng shui treasure is broken; the second curse is ‘three months later, Xiushan Village will flood’; the third curse is ‘a child downstream will drown to death.’ After saying these three curses, the feng shui master left angrily, not even taking payment. Seeing that he didn’t even want money, I was terrified, thinking this must be a true feng shui treasure; otherwise, he wouldn’t have refused payment. So, I didn’t dig further, protected the site, and excitedly told your grandfather about it. Didn’t I get a great deal? But your grandfather couldn’t keep his mouth shut and told your grandmother. Your grandmother also couldn’t keep her mouth shut and told her family. Her family then spread the news outside. Finally, a rogue named Youzi found out. He secretly went to Coffin Ridge, found this place, and used it to blackmail me, demanding fifty silver dollars to keep the secret.”
Zhao Shan nodded, “Okay, please tell me!”
Zhao Shan was deeply moved and rose from the ground, grasping Zhang Enpu’s hand with tears streaming down his face, he asked, “Old sir, what must I do to break free from this dreadful curse?”
Zhang Enpu smiled slightly and made a gesture, “On the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival when the moon is full, free from demons and ghosts, you need only fetch a ladle of clear water from the outlet of the dam in Xiushan Village at midnight and pour it over your father-in-law’s grave to break the curse. When you pour the water, a meteor will appear in the east, and golden lights will sparkle on the grave, as if the sun is shining its light upon the earth.”
Zhao Shan was astonished, “Is it really that simple? Just a ladle of water from the river in Xiushan Village? Is that water sacred?”
Zhang Enpu replied, “The outlet of the river in Xiushan Village is located within the ‘Big Dipper Formation’, transformed by the spiritual energy of the Big Dipper, possessing the power to dispel evil and exorcise demons. Naturally, a ladle of that water is sufficient.”
Zhao Shan smiled, “Oh, I forgot that the river flows from the back mountain. Hehe… truly miraculous.”
Zhang Enpu continued, “This month is May, and there are still three months until the midnight of the Mid-Autumn Festival on August 15th. Two major events will occur during these three months. The first event: next month, which is June, your village will experience a major flood. The second event: downstream in Xiushan Village, the Zhao family will give birth to a son on the day of Shenwu. This child, with one head and three arms, will fall into a well and perish three days later. You must remember these two events, as they are omens for the revival of your family and a test of my abilities.”
Zhao Shan nodded, “Yes, I will remember.”
Zhang Enpu then asked, “Do you know why these two events will occur?”
Zhao Shan shook his head, “No. Is there some mystery behind it?”
Zhang Enpu explained, “It is because these two events are two of the three curse reactions after the lid of your father-in-law’s coffin was broken.”
“And what is the third one?”
“The third one was prophesied the day the coffin was broken, ‘Struck by five thunderbolts from the sky, your father-in-law will meet his end on that day.’ The remaining two have a cycle of forty years, and this year is the year they will manifest.”
“You truly are a divine person, sir. I think the person who chose the burial site for my father-in-law back then must not have known so many details. He must have miscalculated many mysteries, probably even considering this place a true feng shui treasure.”
Zhang Enpu sighed, “What happened back then may never be known. Let the past be the past. What’s important is to focus on the future. Alright, I will descend the mountain now. Take care. After this matter is completed, marry a wife and you will surely have a noble son.” With that, he turned and walked away without looking back.
Zhao Shan hurried after him, “Let’s descend the mountain together. You’ve done me a great favor, I must reward you heavily.”
“No need, this encounter was purely by fate, not something to be charged for. Don’t be polite. Let’s part here, we will meet again.”
June is the rainy season, and it’s also the time when weeds in the fields grow most vigorously. Therefore, the villagers of Xiushan Village do not wish for rain at all. They only hope that the sun will stay a little longer in the sky. Otherwise, the crops will fail, and they will have to drink pumpkin soup. Only Zhao Shan is an exception.
Zhao Shan is not a farmer, so he doesn’t worry about whether his crops are fat or thin. At this moment, he is only concerned about the “flood” predicted by Zhang Enpu and the “drowning accident” in July.
He hopes these events will come sooner, as they are related to his future. But at the same time, he feels a bit guilty and remorseful. Because these predicted events are not good things, but disasters that people hate. He doesn’t know if his desire for disasters is detrimental to his virtue. He is in a dilemma.
But the trajectory of life is such that what is meant to come will come, and what is not meant to come cannot be held back even with steel wires. Just as Zhang Enpu predicted, one night in mid-June, it rained heavily. The rain was unprecedented, as if a well had been opened in the sky above Xiushan Village, pouring down continuously for three days and three nights. As a result, Xiushan Village was instantly flooded, and large areas of farmland were submerged, almost turning the village into Xiushui Village.
Fortunately, the flood stopped there and did not develop into a trend of rushing into the farmers’ homes. But even so, the disaster was quite significant. All the grain in the fields was lost. Zhao Shan was both sad and happy, wanting to cry but having no tears. To alleviate his guilt, he took out all his savings to help the villagers with post-disaster reconstruction. The first prophecy had truly come true, and so fiercely. It seemed that the second prophecy, about a child with three arms downstream drowning to death, was also bound to happen.
Downstream of Xiushan Village, there is a family, the master is Mu Dahua, and his wife is Xiao Yue. In the three years since Mu Dahua and Xiao Yue got married, without any contraceptive measures, there has been no sign of them wanting to have a child. They are desperate for a child, anxious. Their parents are even more desperate for a grandchild, even more anxious. So they tried every possible way. But after consulting doctors from various counties and cities dozens of times, and taking dozens of secret recipes, there was still no response. At this point, they were at a loss, where exactly is the problem?
In fact, their problem has an explanation in feng shui. The place they live in is called “Juehu” in feng shui.
Juehu means having no descendants, meaning to be alone in old age.
There are three types of Juehu feng shui. One is naturally unable to have children. One is having children who are not successful, such as dying young or from illness. One is having deformed children who are not successful. The basic geographical layout of Juehu feng shui is roughly as follows: one, having sharp mountains or rocks directly in front of the house. Two, having a “crying” pond in front of the house. Three, having a bottomless cliff in front of the house. Four, having ancestral graves buried on a dead vein. And Mu Dahua belongs to the second type, with two large ponds in front of the house. Ponds are like eyes, one is the “Mingtang,” used for gathering energy. But two is the “crying” character, bringing the disaster of no descendants. Mu Dahua lives here without knowing it, of course, he can only suffer.
Although it is Juehu feng shui, on that day, with their efforts, Mu Dahua’s wife Xiao Yue’s belly finally made progress. And as time went on, the belly became more and more prominent, it seemed that this time she was really pregnant. They were so happy. They were full of energy taking care of her. They thought the Mu family finally had a successor. But after ten months of pregnancy, when Xiao Yue was about to give birth, the Mu family’s hope turned into disappointment. Juehu feng shui destined not to succeed. Xiao Yue actually gave birth to a monster with three arms. This was too much, the news immediately spread throughout the nearby villages.
“The Mu family gave birth to a monster, what sin was committed in a past life!” The whole family was also so sad, incomparable. Heaven likes to tease these ordinary people. We can only comfort these unfortunate people like this. Otherwise, what can we do? Jump off a building or hang ourselves? Otherwise, we can only face life positively.
Although Mu Dahua is poor, he still has the courage to face all this. A tiger does not eat its cubs, a mother does not dislike her ugly child. The couple decided to raise their hard-earned child well, no matter what others say. But sometimes, heaven is so heartless, almost cold-blooded, not even giving people such a comforting opportunity. There is a well in front of the Mu family’s house, at midnight on the third day after the child was born, the time of the rat, when the cat comes out to hunt. But whether it was the cat’s vision or smell that was the problem, it actually mistook the Mu couple’s baby for a rat, picked it up in its mouth, and dragged it to the edge of the well to eat. But after biting it twice, it found something wrong, and angrily pushed the child down with a paw…
Thus ended his short journey in the human world, exactly fulfilling the prophecy Zhang Enpu made to Zhao Shan at Coffin Ridge.
When Zhao Shan learned that downstream of Xiushan Village, there was indeed a newborn child with three arms who drowned, although he was mentally prepared, he was still very shocked. But besides feeling very heavy-hearted, he began to believe more in feng shui. He now had no doubt about Zhang Enpu’s words.
Early in the morning on August 15th, he began to implement the plan Zhang Enpu taught him to break the curse, alone he came to the upstream of the village river, the outlet of the Big Dipper Formation. He was going to fetch a ladle of clear water from the outlet to save his ancestral grave and break the curse of the broken tomb. Speaking of the outlet, to put it bluntly, it is a large cave on a cliff. The cliff is on the mountain representing the last star of the Big Dipper. That is, at the position of the last star on the tail of the spoon. The spring water in the cave flows all year round, never ending, symbolizing endless life, becoming the source of life for the downstream villagers of Xiushan Village. After an hour’s journey, he arrived, it was still early. Zhao Shan stood at the foot of the mountain looking up at the outlet, only to see that besides the continuous flow of water, a large amount of mist also came out, soon enveloping the entire surrounding area.
He was curious, thinking, “It is indeed a mountain transformed by divine energy, surrounded by mist. Let me test how deep the cave is.”
Zhao Shan picked up a small stone and threw it towards the cave entrance. With a “plop,” the stone fell into the rushing spring water and was washed back. His strength was insufficient. Zhao Shan stopped testing, took out the plastic bottle he brought, and filled it with the falling spring water, then turned to hurry back. He had to pour this bottle of water on his father-in-law’s grave at the exact time at night.
But just as he turned around, he heard a roar from the cave, as if a lot of water was squeezing out, and a huge torrent of water gushed out from the cave entrance, rapidly rushing towards Zhao Shan’s back.
Hearing the sound, Zhao Shan turned around, and my goodness, he saw a huge wave over five meters high, overwhelming him like a mountain and sea. He was so scared that he lost six of his seven souls, hung the water bottle around his neck, and ran towards the higher ground in front. Unfortunately, he was still a step too slow, and was immediately submerged in the flood. Zhao Shan, unable to control himself, was swept away by the sudden gush of spring water, and was thrown more than ten meters away, “thud” falling into a large pool of water below. Fortunately, he fell into the pool, not onto the rocks outside the pool, otherwise he would have died. He hurriedly swam from the center of the pool to the shore, and ran forward desperately. Because he was afraid that the cave entrance would launch a second wave of attack. Fortunately, the reality was not as serious as he imagined, after the first wave of water gushed out, the cave entrance made no more movements, returning to its usual calm.
As he walked back quickly with his heart pounding, he muttered, “Was it the small stone I threw that disturbed the spiritual energy gathered inside? Too scary, I’d better leave here quickly.”
Zhao Shan, frightened and nervous, ran to his father-in-law’s grave at Coffin Ridge with the “divine water” he had risked his life to obtain. Although it was already past ten o’clock at night, there was still about an hour before midnight. There was a small pine tree next to the Zhao family ancestral grave, he sat under the small pine tree, leaning against the trunk, nervously waiting for the arrival of the magical moment. The moonlight was bright. Looking at his father-in-law’s grave, he suddenly felt that it seemed to have grown a lot, and there seemed to be a misty wetness emanating in the night.
“No way, I haven’t poured the water yet, how can there be spiritual energy gathering, or is it just the anger caused by the evil curse?” He rubbed his eyes hard and looked again, the wetness was still there. But in the wetness, there seemed to be the figure of an old man. He didn’t know this old man at all, but he was very familiar. Especially the old man’s nose, it was exactly the same as his nose. “A ghost!” Zhao Shan was about to shout, but at this moment, the old man suddenly flashed over and covered his mouth.
The old man did not mean to harm him, but kindly said to him, “Shan’er, don’t be afraid, I am your father-in-law.”
Zhao Shan broke free from the old man’s hand, stopped shouting, and asked in confusion, “Father-in-law?” The old man nodded, “Yes, I am one of the three souls and seven spirits of your father-in-law, the ‘grave-guarding spirit’. Don’t be afraid, I am here to tell you some things you don’t know about what happened back then. I know you invited a feng shui master, preparing to break the curse of the feng shui treasure.”
“Really, are you really the spirit of my father-in-law?”
The old man nodded, “Yes, if I wanted to harm you, do you think you could escape? Child!”
“Oh, father-in-law!” Zhao Shan believed his words, and somewhat unnaturally called out to this ancestor who was half a century apart from him. The old man, Zhao Laotai Gong, said, “Now I will tell you how this land was broken.”
Zhao Shan nodded, “Yes, please speak!”
The old man coughed and sighed, “Actually, it’s all my fault, too greedy. Back then, I invited a famous feng shui master from out of town to choose a burial site for me. That feng shui master found this once-in-a-thousand-years feng shui treasure on Coffin Ridge. At first, I didn’t believe it, and insisted on digging it out to see, but that feng shui master disagreed, saying that after digging it out, three curses would appear: the first curse is after the feng shui treasure is broken; struck by five thunderbolts from the sky; the second curse is ‘three months later, Xiushan Village will have a major flood’. The third curse is ‘a child downstream will drown to death’. After saying these three curses, that feng shui master left angrily, without even taking the money. And I, seeing that he didn’t even take the money, was terrified, thinking that this must be a true feng shui treasure, otherwise he wouldn’t have left without taking the money. So I didn’t dig further, and after protecting the site, I excitedly told your grandfather. Didn’t I get a great bargain? But your grandfather couldn’t keep his mouth shut, and told your grandmother. Your grandmother also couldn’t keep her mouth shut, and told her family. The family then spread it outside. Finally, a rogue named Youzi found out. He secretly went to Coffin Ridge and found this place, then used it to blackmail me, demanding fifty silver dollars to keep the secret.”
In order to preserve this hard-earned treasure land, I agreed to his terms. But I never expected that the scoundrel would break his promise. After taking the money, he came back and ruined the land with a single act of defilement. I remember that day on Coffin Ridge, lightning flashed, thunder roared, and dark clouds loomed overhead. I desperately climbed up the ridge, but just as I reached the top, a large tree was struck by lightning and fell. I couldn’t escape in time and met my end under that tree. Ah, when I think about it, it really wasn’t worth it. This disaster was caused by one man’s poor character and extreme selfishness. My fate was destined to serve as a bloody lesson for the damage done to this precious land. So, people, it’s better to do good deeds, for that is how you earn heaven’s protection. Otherwise, bloodshed and calamity are inevitable.
Zhao Shan said, “Grandfather, no, it’s not a natural disaster. Now I’ve met a wise feng shui master who can help us break the curse.”
The old man replied, “No, it’s not a reward for my virtue. It’s because you’ve accumulated good karma in the human world that you’ve encountered a noble person to help you. So from now on, you must live a good life and not follow the selfish path of me, your grandfather, or even your father. As you’ve seen, our family lineage nearly came to an end.”
Zhao Shan nodded and said, “Yes, I understand.”
The old man said, “That’s good. Now let’s return to the topic of the feng shui treasure land. The place where I rest is actually just a coffin lid, not the entire stone coffin. That feng shui master doesn’t seem to be a top expert, as he failed to notice this. Most of his predictions were wrong. Only one of them came true. As for the other two, he completely miscalculated the timing.”
Zhao Shan nodded, “Yes, it was half a century too late. And the child who drowned had three hands.”
The old man said, “When the scoundrel discovered the lid, he thought it was the entire coffin and didn’t dig further. As a result, he made a sweeping generalization and got it all wrong. After the land was ruined, the ‘lid’ turned from brown to black and emitted a foul stench. I could hardly stay here any longer. If you don’t find a solution soon, my guardian spirit will be trapped here forever, unable to reincarnate. And this place will lose its vital energy, becoming barren and desolate.”
Zhao Shan said, “The feng shui master did mention the lid to me. But I didn’t know it was so foul-smelling.”
The old man sighed, “Ah, it’s all self-inflicted. No more words, the time has come. The Zhao family has a new master. I must go now!” With that, he vanished, leaving Zhao Shan alone, sitting in a daze under the pine tree.
“Grandfather, grandfather, I still have questions for you,” Zhao Shan called out twice, but suddenly his body involuntarily tipped to the side, and his arm hit a stone on the ground, jolting him awake—it was all just a dream.
The moon was now at the zenith of the sky, and the distant crowing of roosters from Xiushan Village hinted that it was already midnight. Zhao Shan, recalling the strange dream, stood up and walked to his grandfather’s grave.
“Grandfather, you said the Zhao family has a new master. I hope it’s true. Please bless our descendants.” He took a jug of spring water collected from the Big Dipper’s outlet and poured it over the head of the ancestral grave.
His heart froze. He widened his eyes, staring intently at his grandfather’s grave, waiting for the miraculous phenomenon that Zhang Entu had told him about.
Sure enough, after a while, something happened. First, a gust of wind blew from behind Coffin Ridge, circling the Zhao family grave three times. Then the entire grave slowly turned red, then yellow, and finally emitted golden rays of light, scattering in all directions, as if the legendary Buddha had descended. Zhao Shan turned sharply and looked toward the eastern night sky, where meteors from the Orion constellation streaked across, drifting beautifully into the depths of the universe…
Zhao Shan was overwhelmed with happiness. He had finally succeeded. The Zhao family’s legacy would soon have an heir, and it would flourish more than ever. He excitedly kowtowed three times to his grandfather, then returned home, took a bath, and fell into a contented sleep. He had been exhausted these past few days and could finally rest peacefully. Indeed, he didn’t even dream and slept soundly until dawn. When he opened his eyes the next morning, the sun was already shining on his back. “Chirp, chirp…” The long-absent call of magpies outside his window seemed to herald the start of good things.
He got out of bed, picked up his shirt, and was about to put it on when the old steward rushed in, excitedly saying, “Master, get up quickly. Auntie Chen from the village is here.”
“Auntie Chen? What’s she here for? We didn’t hire her as a matchmaker,” Zhao Shan said as he hurriedly dressed, splashed some water on his face, and went to the main hall. There sat Auntie Chen, looking travel-worn but chatting and laughing as if the Zhao household were her own.
“Auntie Chen, what wind blew you here? The east wind or the south wind? Surely not the northwest wind,” Zhao Shan joked.
Seeing Zhao Shan, Auntie Chen quickly stood up, grabbed his arm, and teased, “Oh, Master Zhao, it was the northwest wind that brought me here. Think about it, I’ve been drinking that stuff every day and am almost starving. Where else would I go but to your prosperous place?”
Zhao Shan chuckled, “Alright, Auntie Chen, stop beating around the bush. What’s the matter?” Hearing this, Auntie Chen immediately dropped her playful demeanor and said seriously, “I’ve come to arrange a marriage for your Zhao family.”
Zhao Shan asked, “For our Zhao family? Has some girl gone blind and taken a liking to my three useless sons?”
Auntie Chen replied, “Who said I’m here for them?”
Zhao Shan was surprised, “If not for them, then who are you here for?”
Auntie Chen said, “I’m here for you.”
Zhao Shan, feigning modesty, said, “For me? Ha, I’m already this old. Wouldn’t the villagers laugh at me? Forget it, thank you for your kindness.” After saying this, he thought to himself, “I see, this must be the effect of breaking the curse on the ancestral grave. I almost forgot. I didn’t expect it to happen so quickly. I wasn’t mentally prepared.”
Auntie Chen said, “Age isn’t an issue. What matters most is that you’re a decent man. Besides, the girl is quite fond of you. She’s the one who asked me to come and propose.”
Zhao Shan was so happy he nearly fainted. “What? She asked you to come? Me? What’s so great about me?”
Auntie Chen said, “It’s because of your generous act during the flood in June that won her heart.”
A week later, Zhao Shan happily married the girl.
Ten months later, during a thunderous Qingming Festival, she gave birth to a son. The child was exceptionally clever, reportedly able to call out his parents’ names just three days after birth. Moreover, after the curse on the Zhao family’s ancestral grave was lifted, his three older sons gradually recovered from their foolishness and began to take their responsibilities seriously. The Zhao family’s rice business flourished more than ever, even opening branches in other regions, achieving a level of prosperity that surpassed the previous two generations. Zhao Shan, in his middle age, finally lived the ideal, happy life he had dreamed of.
Later, he widely shared the story of the key figure who changed his fate with the villagers of Xiushan Village. His purpose was to ensure that Zhang Entu, the old sage, would not be forgotten. He even sent a stack of food ration tickets as a gift to Zhang Entu. But Zhang Entu, in his simple-minded way, declined. He merely attended the Zhao family’s wedding banquet, drank a cup of celebratory wine, and then hurriedly left.
Zhao Shandao said, “Grandfather, no, it’s not a natural disaster. Now I have met a highly insightful geomancer who can help us break the curse.”
The old man replied, “No, that wasn’t a reward for my virtue; it was because you have accumulated much good fortune in the human world, which led you to receive help from a noble person. Therefore, from now on, you must strive to be a good person and not follow the same selfish path as me, your grandfather, and even your father. You’ve seen it yourself; our family tree was nearly destroyed.”
Zhao nodded and said, “Yes, I understand.”
The old man said, “That’s good. Now let’s get back to the topic of the auspicious land. The place where I rest is actually only a coffin lid, not the entire stone coffin. That geomancer apparently isn’t a top expert; he didn’t realize this. Most of his predictions were incorrect. Therefore, only one of the subsequent prophecies came true, while the next two were completely off in terms of timing.”
Zhao nodded, “Right, he was half a century late. And the child who drowned was a thief.”
The old man said, “At the time, Youzi discovered the lid and assumed it was the entire coffin, without digging further down. As a result, he misunderstood the whole situation. After this land was ruined, the ‘lid’ changed from brown to black, and it became extremely foul-smelling; I could barely stay here any longer. If you don’t act soon, my guardian soul will be trapped here forever, never to be reborn. Moreover, this place will lose its vital energy, becoming desolate and barren.”
Zhao said, “Regarding the lid, that geomancer did mention it to me. But he didn’t say anything about the foul smell.”
The old man sighed, “Alas, it’s all self-inflicted. No more talking; it’s time. The Zhao family has a new master. I’m off!” With that, he disappeared, leaving Zhao alone and bewildered beneath the pine tree.
“Grandfather, grandfather, I still have questions for you!” Zhao shouted twice, suddenly feeling his body involuntarily tilting sideways, his arm hitting a stone on the ground, causing him pain all over his body—only to realize it was all a dream.
At this time, the moon had reached the center of the sky, and the distant sound of a rooster from Xiushan Village faintly echoed, indicating it was already midnight. Zhao stood up and walked toward his grandfather’s grave while recalling the mysterious dream.
“Grandfather, you said the Zhao family has a new master. I hope what you said is true. Please bless your descendants.” He picked up the jug of spring water collected from the exit of the Big Dipper Formation and poured it onto the ancestral grave.
His heartbeat stopped. He widened his eyes, staring intently at his grandfather’s grave, waiting for the miraculous phenomenon Zhang Enpu had told him about.
Indeed, after a while, a sound occurred. At first, a breeze blew from behind Coffin Ridge, circling three times around the Zhao family’s ancestral grave. Then the entire grave slowly turned red, then yellow, and finally radiated golden light in all directions, just like the legendary descent of Buddha Sakyamuni. Zhao suddenly turned around, gazing at the eastern night sky, where stars from the constellation of Orion successively streaked across, beautifully drifting into the depths of the universe…
Zhao was extremely happy at this moment. He had finally succeeded. Someone would soon inherit the Zhao family’s legacy, and it would flourish increasingly. Overcome with emotion, he kowtowed three times to his grandfather, then returned home, took a bath, and contentedly drifted into sleep. After these exhausting days, he could finally rest peacefully. Indeed, he didn’t dream at all, sleeping soundly until morning. When he opened his eyes the next morning, the sun had already warmed his back. “Jiajia, jiajia…” The long-missed chirping of magpies outside the window also reached his ears, seemingly heralding that something good truly began on this day.
He got out of bed, picked up his coat, and was about to put it on when the old butler rushed in from outside, excitedly saying, “Master, get up quickly, Auntie Chen from the village is here.”
“Auntie Chen is here? What does she want? We didn’t hire her as a matchmaker.”
Zhao hurriedly dressed and washed his face hastily before entering the main hall. There he saw Auntie Chen, looking travel-worn, sitting there chatting and laughing as if she were at home.
“Auntie Chen, what wind blew you here? East wind, or south wind? Definitely not the northwest wind,” Zhao joked.
Seeing Zhao come out, Auntie Chen immediately stood up and grabbed his arm playfully, saying, “Oh, Master Zhao, it was the northwest wind that blew me here. Think about it, I’ve been drinking that stuff every day and almost starved to death. Where else could I go if not to your oil-rich place?”
Zhao laughed, “Auntie Chen, don’t beat around the bush. Tell me, what brings you here?”
Upon hearing Zhao’s question, Auntie Chen immediately stopped smiling and said seriously, “I’m here to be a matchmaker for your Zhao family.”
Zhao asked, “For our Zhao family? Does any girl in the village have a blind eye and fall for one of my three unworthy sons?”
Auntie Chen replied, “Who said I’m here to matchmake for them?”
Zhao was surprised, “If not for them, then for whom are you here?”
Auntie Chen said, “I’m here to matchmake for you!”
Zhao said insincerely, “For me? Haha, I’m already of this age, still… This will make the villagers laugh at me. Forget it, forget it, I appreciate your kindness.” After saying this, he thought to himself, “I understand now. This must be the response of our ancestral grave after breaking the curse. I almost forgot. I didn’t expect it to happen so quickly, and I wasn’t mentally prepared.”
Auntie Chen said, “Age is not an issue; the most important thing is that you’re still a decent person. Besides, the young lady is quite fond of you. She even took the initiative to ask someone to send me here to propose.”
Zhao was almost overwhelmed with happiness, “What, she sent you on her own initiative? Me, me, what’s so good about me, this…”
Auntie Chen said, “Isn’t it because your generous act during the June flood moved her heart?”
A week later, Zhao married the girl happily.
Ten months later, during the Qingming Festival marked by a startling thunderclap, a son was successfully born. This child indeed proved exceptionally intelligent, reportedly able to call his parents’ names just three days after birth. Moreover, since the curse on the ancestral grave of Old Master Zhao was lifted, his three older sons gradually recovered from their foolishness and began to focus on serious endeavors. As for the Zhao family’s rice business, it naturally expanded further, opening branches in distant places, achieving a level of prosperity that surpassed the previous two generations. In middle age, Zhao indeed lived the happy life he had always dreamed of.
Later, he made it widely known among the villagers of Xiushan Village about the key figure who had changed his fate. His purpose was to ensure that the old immortal Zhang Enpu would not be forgotten. He even sent a generous gift of food and ration coupons to Zhang Enpu as a token of gratitude. However, Zhang Enpu, being somewhat simple-minded, refused to accept them. He merely attended Zhao’s wedding feast and then hurriedly departed.
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