Cai Mo deliberately asked, “I didn’t send you any money, did I?” Hui Niang pointed at the burning fire and said, “That’s the money! In the underworld, paper is used as money.” Upon hearing this, Cai Mo immediately grabbed two large bundles of paper to burn, hoping to alleviate the suffering of his parents in the underworld. Seeing this, the neighbors realized the great utility of paper money and each of them paid to buy the paper Cai Mo had made. The news spread quickly, and within a few days, all of Cai Mo’s paper was sold out. Since the day Hui Niang returned to life was the fifteenth day of the seventh lunar month, people have since burned incense and paper for their ancestors on this day every year. This custom has been passed down to this day.
At this moment, besides Liu Dashao and Village Chief Tian, there was no one else in the temple. Inside and outside the temple, it was truly a world of contrasts. Approaching the statue of the Five Manifestations of the Spirit Official, Liu Dashao placed the paper money and other offerings in the incense basin dedicated for worship inside the temple, then knelt on the straw mat in front of the statue. Village Chief Tian stood there watching, not offering to help, but occasionally distracted by the strange facial expressions of the statues, touching this and looking at that, clearly bored.
Liu Dashao lit a match, ignited the incense paper, and then scattered it into the basin, watching it curl into black waste, muttering, “Five Spirit Officials, I apologize for the disturbance the other night. We were ignorant and rashly disturbed your peace. I hope you, venerable ones, can be magnanimous and show mercy, letting us off the hook! I, Liu Dashao, swear and kowtow to you here. As long as Guoqiang, Gou Dan, and Xiao Ma Zi recover, I promise to burn a cartload of yellow paper ingots for you and clean this temple thoroughly, making it comfortable for you to reside.”
After saying this, he indeed kowtowed vigorously to the statue, banging his head on the ground with loud thuds, his forehead turning blue and purple, clearly not feigning.
As he raised his face after the third kowtow, Liu Dashao’s eyes caught the statue directly in front of him, which, like last time, was grinning hideously at him, its face so terrifying it seemed it wanted to devour him alive. This matter had already unsettled Liu Dashao, and this scare was too much. He immediately rolled on the ground, nearly fainting. When he got up, his face was pale with fear. Village Chief Tian also noticed something was wrong and quickly went to hold Liu Dashao, repeatedly asking what had happened. Liu Dashao quickly closed his eyes, hid behind Village Chief Tian, and pointed tremblingly at the statue, “Uncle Tian, let’s go! That statue is laughing again, that statue is laughing again!”
“Really?” Village Chief Tian looked up, his gaze fixed on the clay statue dressed in a python robe and red court attire, with a large yellow face, two long thin whiskers hanging from its cheeks, and eyes shaped like the character ‘eight’, looking very fierce.
“This… I didn’t see it laugh,” Village Chief Tian muttered to himself. After observing for several minutes without any movement, he finally stopped his already somewhat sore eyes and smiled indifferently, “Nephew, don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid, you must have seen wrong.” But Liu Dashao remained unmoved, still burying his head in Village Chief Tian’s chest, not daring to look directly at the eerie statue again.
Helpless, Village Chief Tian had to pick up a fire poker, stir the flames in the basin, and throw the remaining paper money into it, turning it over until it was almost completely burned.
“Alright,” Village Chief Tian clapped his hands, ready to leave, but was pulled back by Liu Dashao, “Uncle Tian, wait, this talisman paper also needs to be burned, and it must be burned completely before we can leave. Grandma Fan had repeatedly instructed this.”
“Got it, got it, that old woman always has too many things to do, just idle talk,” Village Chief Tian impatiently took the talisman paper from Liu Dashao, didn’t look at it much, and directly threw it into the fire basin. Seeing it catch fire, he didn’t think much more and pulled Liu Dashao to leave.
“Uncle Tian, is the talisman burned?”
“Burned, burned,” Village Chief Tian, who had no fondness for Grandma Fan’s things, casually replied.
“Is it burned completely?” Liu Dashao tugged at his hand and asked.
“It’s all turned to charcoal, can it not be clean? Let’s go quickly! Otherwise, once it gets dark, the mountain path will be hard to walk, and we didn’t bring a kerosene lamp,” Village Chief Tian said.
“Alright!” Since Village Chief Tian said it had turned to charcoal, it must be completely burned. Liu Dashao immediately felt relieved. He also knew that this place was somewhat better during the day, but at night it would be even worse. Thinking of the statue that had inexplicably grinned at him, his face turned pale again, and he dared not look back, quickly catching up with Village Chief Tian who had already stepped forward.
As Liu Dashao and Village Chief Tian just walked under the temple’s plaque, he clearly felt Village Chief Tian’s body shiver violently. Immediately after, Village Chief Tian turned his head to look back into the temple.
“Who is calling me?” Village Chief Tian shouted into the temple. Liu Dashao looked at him in surprise and said, “Village Chief, who are you talking to?”
“Just now I heard someone calling my name from behind, nephew, did you hear it?” Village Chief Tian suddenly asked Liu Dashao. Liu Dashao shook his head vigorously, saying he didn’t hear anything. And comforted him by saying, “Village Chief, maybe you heard wrong.” Village Chief Tian didn’t answer him, and Liu Dashao clearly saw his face suddenly become very ugly, and his steps obviously quickened. So he guessed in his heart: This time the village chief is really scared. It seems that this Spirit Official Temple can’t be visited anymore, whether it’s day or night, it’s always filled with a strange atmosphere. The two walked quickly, and soon they reached the bluestone path they had taken up the mountain earlier. They chatted and stepped on the rustling wild grass, which was quite pleasant. But after walking forward for a few dozen meters, when they reached the mountainside, Liu Dashao was dumbfounded.
It turned out that at the bend of the path, there was only a deep pit two meters long left. Below the pit was a steep stone wall, and the stone wall was next to a cliff, making people’s hearts inexplicably tighten, and their eyes dazzled.
“This… how did the path become like this?” Liu Dashao exclaimed.
Village Chief Tian silently bent down and looked around. Fortunately, the sun was still hanging on the horizon, and the night had not completely fallen, so the surroundings could still be seen clearly. After groping for a while, Village Chief Tian shook his head and sighed, “Alas! It’s my fault for being careless. This bluestone path hasn’t been renovated by the villagers for over ten years. Today, it’s really unlucky. Probably the foundation was unstable, and while we were in the temple, two steps on it collapsed and rolled down the hillside.”
“Then what should we do now? Do we have to spend the night in the temple?”
“Let me think,” Village Chief Tian rubbed his temples, and finally his eyes lit up, “No need, let’s go back first! I remember there are two paths down from the Spirit Official Temple, one is this, and the other is from the mass graves, down to Xiushan Village, and then from Xiushan Village to our village.”
“Mass graves?” Liu Dashao felt a bit uneasy hearing this term.
“What’s wrong with the mass graves? People die everywhere,” Village Chief Tian glanced at him, “Are you scared?”
“Who’s scared!” Liu Dashao pouted, and his self-esteem kicked in, immediately throwing his previous worries to the wind.
“Then let’s go!” Village Chief Tian turned around and started climbing up the slope again.
“Let’s go, whoever is scared is a bastard!” Liu Dashao muttered as he followed, reaching into his chest and holding the three paper cranes that Grandma Fan had repeatedly instructed him to take before leaving.
Under the sunset, the eyes of the three paper cranes, marked with cinnabar, were blood red, like three pairs of dazzling gems. But unfortunately, they just stayed there motionless, not flapping their wings to fly as Grandma Fan had said.
“I knew you wouldn’t fly!” Liu Dashao said to the paper cranes, “A paper-folded thing, it would be strange if it could fly, really think you’re Lu Ban!”
“Nephew, what are you doing? Hurry up!” Just as he was speaking, Village Chief Tian’s voice came from outside the temple gate.
“Got it, got it, what’s the rush!” Liu Dashao stuffed the paper cranes back into his chest, “I don’t know if the souls of Guoqiang and the others are really inside, but rest assured, I’ll take you back safely!” After saying this, he quickly caught up.
Thus, the two step by step arrived at the mass graves. It was eerily quiet all around, and the tombstones standing on the graves were like standing corpses, staring at them with hideous faces, adding a strange color to the already terrifying atmosphere of the mass graves. As they walked, Village Chief Tian, who was leading the way, began to feel a bit scared and slowed down to walk side by side with Liu Dashao, thinking that being closer would be better for mutual support.
“Ah!” Suddenly, a shrill scream came from somewhere.
The two were immediately scared out of their wits, their jaws almost dropping off. They both screamed in unison, “Ghost!”
At this moment, apart from Liu Dashao and Tian, the village chief, there was not a single person inside the temple. The atmosphere inside and outside the temple could truly be described as being in two completely different worlds—one of ice, one of fire. Arriving before the statue of the Five Manifestations of Wealth, Liu Dashao placed the paper money and other offerings into the incense basin specially designated for worship inside the temple, and then knelt on the straw mat in front of the statue. Tian stood there watching, not stepping forward to help, occasionally distracted by the strange facial expressions of the statues, touching one here, looking at another there—clearly quite bored.
Liu Dashao struck a match, lit the incense and paper, and then tossed them into the basin in batches, watching them curl into black ash, muttering all the while: “Mighty Lords of the Five Manifestations, I’m truly sorry about the other night’s disturbance. We were blind to your greatness and rashly disturbed your peace. I beg you, venerable elders, to show your mercy, grant us a sign, and spare us this time! This humble servant, Liu Dashao, is here to swear and kowtow to you. Once Guoqiang, Goudan, and Xiaomazi recover, I promise to burn an entire cartload of yellow paper and gold ingots for you, and clean this temple thoroughly so you may dwell here comfortably.”
Having said that, he truly began kowtowing repeatedly toward the statues, his forehead striking the ground with loud thuds, turning his forehead blue and purple. Clearly, he was not pretending.
When he hit the third kowtow and lifted his head, Liu Dashao’s eyes suddenly caught movement. He noticed that the central statue facing him was again grinning at him with bared teeth, just like the previous time. The grotesque smile looked so terrifying that it seemed ready to devour him alive. Liu Dashao already had lingering fears about the whole affair—how could he withstand such a fright? Instantly, he rolled onto the ground, nearly fainting. When he stood up, his face was pale with terror. At this moment, Tian also sensed something amiss and quickly stepped forward to grab Liu Dashao, anxiously asking what had happened. Liu Dashao immediately shut his eyes tight, hiding behind Tian’s back, pointing tremblingly toward the statue: “Uncle Tian, let’s go, please! The statue smiled again, that statue smiled again!”
Cai Mo deliberately asked, “I didn’t send you any money, did I?” Hui Niang pointed at the burning fire and said, “That’s the money! In the underworld, paper is used as money.” Upon hearing this, Cai Mo immediately went to fetch two large bundles of paper to burn, claiming it would lessen the suffering of his parents in the underworld. Seeing this, the neighbors realized the great utility of paper money and each began to buy the paper Cai Mo had made. The news spread quickly, and within a few days, all the paper at Cai Mo’s house was sold out. Since the day Hui Niang returned to life was the fifteenth day of the seventh lunar month, people have since burned incense and paper for their ancestors on this day every year. This custom has been passed down to the present.
At this moment, inside the temple, apart from Liu Dashao and Village Chief Tian, there was no one else. Inside and outside the temple, it was truly a world of difference. Approaching the statue of the Five Manifestations of the Spiritual Official, Liu Dashao placed the paper money and other offerings in the incense burner dedicated for sacrifices in the temple, then knelt on the straw mat in front of the statue. Village Chief Tian stood there watching, not stepping forward to help, only occasionally attracted by the strange facial expressions of the statues, touching this and looking at that, quite bored.
Liu Dashao lit a match, ignited the incense paper, and then scattered it into the burner, watching it curl into black waste, muttering, “Five Spiritual Officials, I am truly sorry for the disturbance the other night, forgive us for our ignorance and for disturbing your peace. I hope you, great elders, will be magnanimous and show your mercy, let us off this time! I, Liu Dashao, swear and kowtow to you here. As long as Guoqiang, Dog Egg, and Pockmark recover from their illness, I promise to burn a large cart of yellow paper ingots for you and clean this temple well, so you can live comfortably.”
After saying this, he indeed began to kowtow vigorously to the statue, banging his head on the ground with loud thuds, his forehead turning blue and purple, clearly not feigning.
As he raised his face after the third kowtow, Liu Dashao’s eyes caught the statue directly in front of him, which, like last time, was grinning menacingly at him, the smile so terrifying it seemed it wanted to devour him whole. This matter had already left a knot in Liu Dashao’s heart, and this scare was too much; he immediately rolled on the ground, nearly fainting. When he got up, his face was pale with fear. Village Chief Tian also noticed something was wrong and quickly stepped forward to hold Liu Dashao, repeatedly asking what had happened. Liu Dashao quickly closed his eyes, shrinking behind Village Chief Tian, pointing tremblingly in the direction of the statue, “Uncle Tian, let’s go! That statue is laughing again, that statue is laughing again!”
“Really?” Village Chief Tian looked up, his gaze fixed on the clay statue dressed in a python robe and red court attire, with a large yellow face, two long thin whiskers hanging from the cheeks, and eyes shaped like the character ‘八’, looking very fierce.
“I… I didn’t see it laugh,” Village Chief Tian muttered to himself. After observing for several minutes without any movement, he finally relaxed his already somewhat sore eyes and smiled indifferently, “Little nephew, don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid, you must have seen wrong.” But Liu Dashao remained unmoved, still burying his head in Village Chief Tian’s chest, not daring to look directly at the captivating and eerie statue again.
Helpless, Village Chief Tian had to find a fire poker, stir the flames in the burner, and throw the remaining paper money into it, turning it over until it was almost completely burned.
“Alright,” Village Chief Tian clapped his hands, ready to leave, but was pulled back by Liu Dashao, “Uncle Tian, wait, this talisman paper also needs to be burned, and it must be burned cleanly before we can leave, Granny Fan had repeatedly instructed.”
“Got it, got it, this old woman always has too many things to do, full of nonsense,” Village Chief Tian impatiently took the talisman paper from Liu Dashao’s hand, didn’t look at it much, and directly threw it into the fire burner. Seeing it catch fire, he didn’t think much more about it, pulling Liu Dashao to leave.
“Uncle Tian, is the talisman burned?”
“Burned, burned,” Village Chief Tian, who had always disliked Granny Fan’s things, responded casually.
“Is it burned cleanly?” Liu Dashao tugged at his hand and asked.
“It’s all turned to charcoal, can it not be clean? Let’s go quickly! Otherwise, once it gets dark, the mountain path will be hard to walk, and we didn’t bring a kerosene lamp,” Village Chief Tian said.
“Alright!” Since Village Chief Tian said it had turned to charcoal, it must have been completely burned. Liu Dashao immediately felt relieved. He also knew that this place was somewhat manageable during the day, but at night it would be even worse. Recalling the statue that had inexplicably grinned at him, his face turned pale again, and he dared not look back, quickly catching up with Village Chief Tian who had already stepped forward.
As Liu Dashao and Village Chief Tian just walked under the temple’s plaque, he clearly felt Village Chief Tian’s body violently shiver. Immediately after, Village Chief Tian turned his head to look back into the temple.
“Who’s calling me?” Village Chief Tian shouted into the temple. Liu Dashao looked at him in astonishment and said, “Chief, who are you talking to?”
“Just now I heard someone calling my name from behind, little nephew, did you hear it?” Village Chief Tian suddenly asked Liu Dashao. Liu Dashao shook his head vigorously, saying he didn’t hear anything. And he comforted him by saying, “Chief, maybe you misheard.” Village Chief Tian didn’t answer him, and Liu Dashao clearly saw his face suddenly become very ugly, and the pace of his steps also noticeably quickened. So he guessed in his heart: This time the chief is really scared. It seems that this Spiritual Official Temple can’t be visited anymore, whether it’s day or night, it exudes an evil aura. The two of them walked quickly, and soon they reached the bluestone path they had taken up the mountain earlier. They chatted and stepped on the rustling wild grass, which was quite pleasant. But after walking forward for a few dozen meters, when they reached the mountainside, Liu Dashao was dumbfounded.
It turned out that at the bend of the path, there was only a deep pit two meters long left. Below the pit was a steep stone wall, which was next to a cliff, making people’s hearts inexplicably tighten, and their eyes were filled with stars.
“How… how did the path become like this?” Liu Dashao exclaimed.
Village Chief Tian bent down without a word and looked around. Fortunately, the sun was still hanging on the horizon, and the night had not completely fallen, so the surrounding scenery could still be seen clearly. Village Chief Tian groped for a while, then shook his head and sighed, “Ah! It’s also my fault for being careless. This bluestone path hasn’t been renovated by the villagers for more than ten years. Today, it’s really unfortunate. Probably the foundation is unstable. While we were in the temple, two steps on it fell off and rolled down the hillside.”
“Then what should we do now? Do we have to spend the night in the temple?”
“Let me think,” Village Chief Tian rubbed his temples, and finally his eyes lit up, “No need, let’s go back first! I remember there are two paths down from the Spiritual Official Temple, one is this, and the other is from the mass grave, first to Xiushan Village, and then from Xiushan Village to our village.”
“Mass grave?” Liu Dashao felt a bit uneasy upon hearing this term.
“What’s wrong with the mass grave? Doesn’t anyone die there?” Village Chief Tian gave him a white look, “Are you scared?”
“Who’s scared!” Liu Dashao pouted, and after his pride kicked in, the previous worry was immediately thrown to the back of his mind.
“Then let’s go!” Village Chief Tian turned around and started climbing the slope again.
“Go then, whoever is scared is a bastard!” Liu Dashao muttered as he followed behind, reaching into his chest and placing the three paper cranes that Granny Fan had repeatedly instructed before departure in his palm.
Under the sunset, the eyes of the three paper cranes, marked with cinnabar, were blood red, like three pairs of dazzling gemstones. But unfortunately, they just stayed there motionless, and did not fly by flapping their wings as Granny Fan had said.
“I knew you wouldn’t fly!” Liu Dashao said to the paper cranes, “A paper-folded thing, it would be strange if it could fly, really think you’re Lu Ban!”
“Little nephew, what are you doing? Hurry up!” Just as he was speaking, Village Chief Tian’s voice came from outside the temple gate.
“Got it, got it, what’s the rush!” Liu Dashao stuffed the paper cranes back into his chest, “I don’t know if the souls of Guoqiang and the others are really inside, but don’t worry, I will take you back safely!” After saying this, he quickly caught up.
Thus, the two of them step by step came to the mass grave. It was quiet all around, and the tombstones standing on the graves were like standing corpses, staring at the two men with ferocious faces, adding a strange color to the already terrifying atmosphere of the mass grave. As they walked, Village Chief Tian, who was leading the way, began to get a little scared, so he slowed down and walked side by side with Liu Dashao, thinking that being closer would be better for mutual support.
“Ah!” Suddenly, a shrill scream came from somewhere.
The two of them were immediately scared out of their wits, their jaws almost falling off. They simultaneously screamed, “Ghost!”
“I… I don’t see it smiling either,” Tian muttered to himself. After observing for several minutes without noticing anything unusual, he finally stopped staring, his eyes slightly sore, and shrugged indifferently: “Nephew, don’t be afraid, it must’ve been your imagination.” But Liu Dashao remained unconvinced, still burying his head in Tian’s chest, too afraid to look directly at that terrifying, eerie statue again.
Helplessly, Tian could only grab a fire poker nearby, stirred the flames in the basin, and threw the remaining paper money into the fire, flipping it over so it would burn completely.
“That’s done,” Tian patted his hands together, ready to leave, but Liu Dashao grabbed him: “Uncle Tian, wait! We must also burn this talisman, and only after it’s completely burned can we leave. Grandma Fan emphasized this repeatedly.”
“Fine, fine, this old woman is just too fussy, always making things up,” Tian grumbled, taking the talisman from Liu Dashao without even looking at it, and tossing it directly into the incense basin. After seeing it catch fire, he stopped thinking about it and pulled Liu Dashao to leave.
“Uncle Tian, was the talisman burned?”
“Burned, burned,” Tian replied casually, never fond of Grandma Fan’s things.
“Was it burned completely?” Liu Dashao tugged at his hand again.
“It’s already charcoal now—how could it not be clean? Let’s go already! Otherwise, once it gets dark, the mountain path will be hard to walk, and we didn’t bring any oil lamps,” Tian said.
“Okay!” Since Tian said it had turned to charcoal, it must have burned completely. Liu Dashao immediately felt relieved. He knew this place was slightly better during the day, but would be much worse at night. Recalling the statue that had grinned at him for no reason, his face paled again. He dared not look back and hurriedly caught up with Tian, who had already started walking ahead.
As Liu Dashao and Tian were just passing under the temple’s plaque, Liu Dashao clearly felt Tian’s body shudder violently. Immediately afterward, Tian turned his head and looked back into the temple.
“Who called me?” Tian shouted toward the temple. Liu Dashao looked at him in astonishment and asked, “Uncle Tian, who are you talking to?”
“Just now I heard someone call my name from behind. Nephew, did you hear anything?” Tian suddenly asked Liu Dashao. Liu Dashao shook his head violently, saying he hadn’t heard anything, and tried to comfort him: “Maybe you just misheard, Uncle Tian.” Tian didn’t respond. Liu Dashao clearly saw his face suddenly darken, and his pace quickened significantly. Liu Dashao thought to himself: This time, Tian was really scared. It seemed that this Temple of the Wealth God should never be visited again, whether in the day or night—it was just too strange.
The two walked quickly and soon reached the stone path they had taken up the mountain. Chatting as they walked and stepping through the rustling wild grass, they felt quite relaxed. However, when they had walked another dozens of meters forward and reached the halfway point up the mountain, Liu Dashao suddenly froze.
It turned out that at the upcoming bend, there remained only a two-meter-long pit. Below the pit was a steep cliff, and the sight sent an involuntary chill through one’s spine, making one’s vision blur and head spin.
“What… what happened to the path?” Liu Dashao gasped.
Tian silently bent down and examined the surroundings. Fortunately, the sun was still above the horizon, and night had not yet fully fallen, so the surroundings were still vaguely visible. After a few moments of searching, Tian shook his head with a sigh: “Alas! It’s my fault. This stone path hasn’t been repaired by the villagers for over a decade. Today, it seems the foundation was unstable, and during the time we were in the temple, two steps collapsed and rolled down the slope.”
“So what do we do now? Do we have to spend the night in the temple?”
“Let me think,” Tian rubbed his temples, and finally his eyes lit up: “No, we can go back home another way. I remember there are two paths down the mountain from the Temple of the Wealth God. One is this one, and the other branches off from the graveyard, passing through Xiushan Village first, and then back to our village.”
“A graveyard?” Liu Dashao felt somewhat uneasy at the word.
“What’s wrong with a graveyard? Isn’t it just where the dead are buried?” Tian gave him a sidelong glance: “You’re scared, aren’t you?”
“Who’s scared!” Liu Dashao pouted, his pride flaring up, instantly pushing all previous fears far from his mind.
“Then let’s go!” Tian turned around and started climbing back up the slope.
“Fine! Whoever gets scared is a coward!” Liu Dashao muttered behind him, reaching into his robe and pulling out the three paper cranes Grandma Fan had insisted he bring along.
Under the setting sun, the eyes of the three paper cranes, marked with cinnabar, were blood-red, like three pairs of brilliant gemstones. Unfortunately, they remained motionless, not flying as Grandma Fan had claimed they would.
“I knew you wouldn’t fly!” Liu Dashao muttered to the paper cranes: “How could a piece of folded paper fly? You think you’re Lu Ban or something!”
“Nephew, what are you doing?” Just then, Tian’s voice came from the temple gate.
“I know, I know, why rush?” Liu Dashao stuffed the paper cranes back into his robe: “I don’t know if they really contain Guoqiang’s soul or not, but don’t worry, I’ll bring you all back safely!” With that, he quickly caught up.
Thus, the two slowly approached the graveyard. All around was eerily quiet. The stone tablets standing upright on the graves resembled corpses standing upright, staring at the two with terrifying faces, adding an even more mysterious and eerie atmosphere to the already spooky graveyard. As they walked, Tian, who had been leading the way, began to feel afraid and slowed his pace, walking side by side with Liu Dashao, thinking that being close together would offer some comfort.
“Ahh!” Suddenly, a piercing scream erupted from somewhere unknown.
The two were so frightened that they nearly lost their souls, their jaws almost dropping from shock. They screamed simultaneously: “Ghost!”
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