According to the “Zhengyi Fu Suan,” the Fei Jiang is another name for Han Ba, also known as the corpse spirit. Legend has it that when a Jiangshi cultivates enough, it transforms into a Han Ba. Once transformed, the Jiangshi gains the ability to fly, hence the name Fei Jiang. Han Ba is described as having red steel-like fur on its body and fingers as sharp as iron claws. It can kill dragons, swallow clouds, and move as swiftly as the wind. Wherever it goes, it leaves a trail of scorched, barren land, making it the king of all Jiangshi. The original text in the “Zhengyi Fu Suan” describes Han Ba as follows: “In the south, there lives a strange creature, about two or three chi tall, naked, with eyes on its head, moving as swiftly as the wind. It is called Han Ba. Wherever it appears, the country suffers from severe drought, leaving the land barren and lifeless.” Since transformed Han Ba can fly, kill dragons, and swallow clouds, causing droughts, people would search for and burn Jiangshi to ashes whenever a drought occurred.
At this moment, Liu Dashao was suspecting that the reason for the lack of rain in Xiu Shui Village might be caused by the presence of Han Ba. Otherwise, why would it be raining in the surrounding areas while Xiu Shui Village remained dry? According to common sense, this situation was simply unreasonable.
However, despite his suspicions, Liu Dashao still found it hard to believe in the existence of flying Jiangshi. Not only flying ones, but he had never even seen an ordinary Jiangshi with his own eyes. He did know of one true incident of a corpse rising again, though, because it was witnessed by his father, Liu Laoshi, and many others.
When Liu Dashao was a child, there was a neighbor in the village named Zhao Chui Niu (Zhao the Braggart). His real name was Zhao Geming. (For the sake of convenience, we will use his nickname here.) Zhao Tie Tou was a lazy good-for-nothing who skipped work and spent his days drinking and bragging. In colloquial terms, he was described as being annoying and acting foolishly. Because of his lack of ambition, he was already in his forties and still hadn’t found a wife. Liu Laoshi once described him as having reached the highest level of bragging—so much so that he actually believed his own lies. What exactly is this highest level of bragging? It’s when someone lies so convincingly that they start to believe their own fabrications.
However, Zhao Chui Niu wasn’t entirely useless. He had one special skill—he was particularly good at dressing corpses. This task might sound simple, but it was not something just anyone could do. Even if you were brave enough to dress a corpse, it required specific techniques; otherwise, it could cost you your life. Some might think this is nonsense—how could dressing a corpse lead to death? Surely there’s more to it than that.
At this point, let me explain in detail. As is well known, when a person dies, they exhale one last breath, commonly referred to as “passing away.” This last breath, once entering the corpse, will soon transform into “Yang Qi” (harmful energy). Yang Qi, also known as evil breath, can cause plants to wither instantly if it touches them. If it is expelled onto a person’s face, it can cause sudden fatal illness. (Note: Please resist your curiosity and don’t try to test this. I won’t be held responsible for any consequences!)
Therefore, dressing a corpse requires skill. Without the proper techniques, one might accidentally come into contact with this harmful Yang Qi, leading to serious illness at best or sudden death at worst.
On this particular day, Zhao Chui Niu had been helping someone build a house. After finishing the job, he stayed at the homeowner’s place for a drinking session. After consuming over a jin of alcohol, he started talking wildly.
He claimed that in his previous life he was the Jade Emperor himself, and Wu Zetian had once been his personal secretary. He even said that his “manhood” was as mighty as Sun Wukong’s golden staff, capable of anchoring the seas. (This was just a small part of his endless ramblings.) He rambled on about all sorts of fantastical things from all corners of the world, and only returned home after drinking another half jin of alcohol.
Zhao Chui Niu was completely drunk, staggering as he walked down the alley toward his home. Before he could even open the door, he heard someone calling him. He immediately knew it must be someone needing his help to dress a corpse, since that was the only reason anyone ever came to see him.
Still tipsy, he mumbled to the man, “Y…you… look how drunk I am. Can I… still do this?” The man was desperate because someone in his family had just died, and they were ready to dress the body. He urged Zhao, “Everything else is prepared. We’re just waiting for you to dress the elder. Please hurry. Otherwise, normally we’d pay ten yuan for this, but I’ll give you twenty now. If you agree, great. If not, I’ll have to find someone else.”
As the saying goes, money can make a ghost push a millstone, and with enough money, even the impossible can happen. Especially back in the 1950s, when money was worth a lot more—back then, one yuan was worth hundreds today. A regular worker might earn only about ten yuan a month. Twenty yuan was a huge sum for Zhao Chui Niu, who had no source of income, so naturally, he was tempted.
Now, someone might ask: Zhao was drunk, how could he even tell if the money offered was generous or not? To that I say, whoever asks that must not have been drunk before. As the saying goes, “A drunk mind is still sober at heart.” A drunk person might slur their words, but their mind remains clear. Seeing the generous payment, Zhao agreed and followed the man.
The deceased was an old man surnamed Zheng, over seventy years old. His wife had passed away three years earlier. He had three sons and two daughters, who were all quite filial and had taken good care of him in his lifetime. After his death, everything that should be bought and arranged had been taken care of. The only thing left undone was dressing the body, which no one was willing to do.
Zhao Chui Niu, despite being tipsy, came just for the twenty yuan. Without saying a word, he entered the house and began dressing the old man. He was extremely familiar with this process—he must have dressed at least ninety or a hundred corpses in his lifetime. But today, he was indeed a bit too drunk, and his movements were sluggish. It took him a long time just to put one sleeve on the old man. As he lifted the old man’s head to put on the other sleeve, he suddenly felt a wave of nausea from the alcohol and vomited, spraying his alcoholic breath onto the old man’s face.
At the very moment Zhao’s alcoholic breath hit the old man’s face, suddenly—the old man’s eyes and mouth flew open at the same time! A foul and deadly Yang Qi sprayed straight onto Zhao Chui Niu’s face!
Zhao felt his mind go completely blank, like a pot of glue had been poured into his head, and he suddenly collapsed backward onto the bed. As for Old Man Zheng, he sat up immediately!
Zhao fell, and Old Man Zheng sat up—all in an instant. The people inside the room hadn’t even had time to realize what had happened. By the time they saw it with their own eyes, Old Man Zheng had already gotten off the bed!
The room immediately erupted into chaos. Everyone was so scared they ran out screaming, some even kicking off their shoes in panic. At that time, Liu Laoshi was also attending the funeral. Because the room was too crowded, he was waiting outside, chatting with a few acquaintances and smoking. When he saw everyone running out into the yard, he didn’t know what had happened and asked the first person who ran out, “What’s going on? Why are you all running?” The man was so frightened his face turned pale as he stammered, “Zheng… Zheng… Zheng Laoye has risen from the dead!”
When Liu Laoshi heard this, he was still somewhat skeptical. He thought maybe Old Man Zheng hadn’t died completely and had just revived momentarily. He was about to go inside to check when he saw Old Man Zheng already slowly stepping out from the house!
Liu Laoshi was stunned. He saw that Zheng’s eyes were dull and lifeless, his face was pale green, green mucus was dripping from the corner of his mouth, and his legs seemed unable to bend, forcing him to shuffle forward in tiny steps. This was clearly not the appearance of a living person.
After stepping into the yard, Old Man Zheng did not immediately attack anyone. Instead, he slowly walked toward a poplar tree in the courtyard. When he reached the tree, he suddenly opened his arms and tightly embraced it. Many people saw his fingers actually dig into the bark. If he had hugged a person instead, the consequences would have been unimaginable.
No one at the funeral, including Liu Laoshi, dared to approach Old Man Zheng. After a long time passed and Zheng remained still, a few brave individuals finally dared to approach and pulled his body away from the tree. Without wasting any time, Zheng’s children immediately burned his corpse that very day.
The story didn’t end there. Zhao Chui Niu, who had reached the pinnacle of bragging, was sent back home after the incident. A few days later, he fell gravely ill and died, going to the underworld to boast to the ghosts. The poplar tree in Old Man Zheng’s courtyard also withered and died overnight.
Having recounted these true stories, sigh! Old Jiu has gone off track again. Now, let’s return to the main story.
Tai Sui Yellow Amulet Paper FuLu Taoist Love Talisman Traditional Chinese Spiritual Charm Attracting Love Protecting Marriage