Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts - Chapter 5

“My dad? What’s my dad’s name? Why have I never seen him since I was little?” My heart skipped a beat. Like I said before, I was raised by my mom alone, and ever since I was born, I had no idea what my dad even looked like. How could that stone statue be connected to him?

Old fortune-teller seemed to realize something and quickly changed the topic, saying, “Let’s not talk about your dad. Let’s get back to the ghost.”

Seeing him dodge the question, I got anxious and blurted out, “Hey, old fortune-teller, come on, tell me what’s really going on. And what was that guy from earlier talking about, saying I had a curse and a fierce ghost on me?”

Old fortune-teller looked at me, sighed, and said, “Alright, I’ll tell you some things, but if there’s something I won’t say, don’t push it.”

“Your father was actually a Yinyang master. Hasn’t your mom told you stories about a certain Mr. Chen and a ghost from the Wang family? That was actually your father. After he dealt with the Wang family issue, he married your mother, but soon after, another woman came looking for him because of some feng shui problems at her home.”

“I don’t know all the details—your mom never told me much. All I know is that your dad went to check the feng shui at her house, but that woman somehow ended up dead, and she became what we call a Shanghun ghost.”

“A Shanghun ghost?” I looked at the old fortune-teller in confusion.

He explained, “That type of ghost is one that was wrongfully killed but is unable to seek revenge. It’s something that goes back to ancient times. There’s an old story that when the Yellow Emperor defeated Chiyou, his battle tiger accidentally bit an old man. That old man lingered for seven days before passing away and eventually turned into a vengeful spirit, trying to get revenge.”

“Isn’t that nonsense? How could a ghost even think of defeating the Yellow Emperor?” I laughed, thinking it sounded like a mythical tale.

Old fortune-teller nodded. “You’re right; of course, he couldn’t win. That’s one thing. But the other is that the Yellow Emperor gave him a grand burial, even mourning him for seven days to apologize. That’s what calmed the old man’s resentment.”

Old fortune-teller continued, “The ghost in your house is a Shanghun ghost, filled with resentment that hasn’t faded but unable to beat your dad. But at that time…well, your father eventually had to leave for a far-off place, unable to stay and protect you and your mother. He felt guilty about that old woman, so he sealed her within that stone statue.”

Hearing that, I finally understood. “So what should I do now? I mean, I don’t mind going to study in Chongqing, but I can’t just leave my mom at home with that thing hanging around, like a ticking time bomb! I wouldn’t feel comfortable leaving!”

“Up to you,” Old fortune-teller shrugged. “You could try sneaking it over here and let me take care of it—humanely, of course. But your mom doesn’t agree. She told me she feels your family owes that ghost, so you can’t just kill it. You’d have to help it pass on instead. But your old man didn’t stick around to mourn her like the Yellow Emperor did, so her resentment only grew stronger over the years.”

Old fortune-teller shook his head and scratched his head thoughtfully. Finally, he pulled a small book out from behind, one of those pocket-sized ones you’d find at a street stall.

He tossed it to me. “This is a collection of talismans. When you have time, mix some cinnabar with black dog’s blood, and follow the instructions to make a few charms for protection. Put some around your mom’s room, too.”

“Why can’t you just make some for me now?” I looked down at the little book. It looked like one of those sleazy pamphlets, with rough pages. I flipped it open to see some step-by-step instructions on drawing talismans, but it was pretty complicated.

Old fortune-teller lay back on the couch and shook his head. “No way, kid. I’m too old for this nonsense. Besides, this is a family matter—only you can handle it. That talisman I gave you will temporarily keep that ghost in check. But I’m warning you, her resentment growing stronger.”

“And don’t expect to master this stuff in a couple of months. Take your time. Practice slowly. Until you can handle that ghost yourself, I’ll keep an eye on things so your mom will be fine. When you’re ready, you can take over.”

“You’re saying this’ll take a long time to learn?”

“What do you think? You thought learning to draw talismans would be easy? If that were the case, I’d just print a few thousand on a printer instead of drawing them myself. Most people would be lucky to get the hang of it in a year. Now get out, I need to watch my show.”

“At least give me some cinnabar and black dog’s blood! What do you expect, me to go out and slaughter a dog?” I rolled my eyes. I mean, who do you think I am? A year? Ha! Give me a week, and I’ll show you what real talent looks like.

“In the kitchen, there’s a bottle of black dog’s blood in a liquor bottle, along with some cinnabar and yellow paper. Take what you need.”

“Oh, by the way,” the old fortune-teller glanced at me. “How’d that fierce spirit end up on you, the one perched on your back?”

“Huh?” With everything going on at home, I almost forgot about the ghost I ran into last night. His question startled me a bit, but the old fortune-teller just grinned. “Yeah, the little girl clinging to you. Luckily for you, she’s not trying to harm you yet. But if you don’t help her get revenge, she’ll definitely turn on you.”

“Help her get revenge? Dude, I’ve got no money, no power. How am I supposed to help her?” I frowned. “And why me? Why not find someone else? Is it because I’m handsome?”

“Bull. It’s because you’re a Si Chen person. You were born in the hour, day, month, and year of the Chen. People like you have a weak life force and are prone to attracting spirits. Normally, if this ghost clung to anyone else for just one day, they’d get seriously ill, and longer, they’d be dead. But you’re different, so she chose you.”

Old fortune-teller chuckled. “Practice those talismans well. She’s not as scary as you think. This ghost won’t harm you. From her looks, it seems she was harmed by evil ways. Only with good training in the Daoist arts can you help her get revenge. And don’t expect me to help get rid of her. She’s not an evil ghost; she was unjustly killed and just wants to settle the score. I’m not about to mess with something like that and bring karma onto myself.”

When he said the ghost wouldn’t harm me, I let out a sigh of relief. Even though the old fortune-teller flatly refused to help, I felt a little better.

Then he turned on the TV, flipping to a show called “If You Are the One”. I just don’t get it…what’s even interesting about that show? If it was a bunch of guys choosing a girl, maybe it’d be fun, but a bunch of not-so-pretty, middle-aged women going on and on about their philosophies on life? Meh. But the old fortune-teller seemed to love it, practically drooling over these middle-aged ladies, nothing like the grandmaster he’d been just a moment ago.

After grabbing the liquor bottle with black dog’s blood, cinnabar, and yellow paper from his kitchen, I was about to head out. Normally, I don’t bother with goodbyes, but he had helped me, after all. Turning around, I called, “I’m leaving, Old Li.”

Li Shi Gao didn’t even look up. I stuffed the little book of spells, cinnabar, yellow paper, and the liquor bottle into my pocket and headed out the door.

Old fortune-teller lived on the east side of town. Our town was centered around a cross-shaped road with a bunch of houses spreading out from it. As I left his complex, I rubbed my arms, feeling a sudden chill in the air. Looking up, I realized it had already gotten dark.

Weird…why’d it get so dark so fast today? I didn’t think much of it, though. Chongqing’s weather can be fickle. Heading home, I took a shortcut from the old fortune-teller’s complex, a narrow alley about twenty meters long and a meter wide. No idea why, but I felt a sudden urge to walk through it. It was freezing in that alley, so much so that I shivered the moment I stepped in. Halfway through, I suddenly felt like a little girl was calling me from behind.

“Chen Hui~”

The voice was soft, like a sweet girl’s, echoing in the air. For a second, I thought some girl might actually be into me. I turned around, but there was nothing there, just the empty street with a few stray leaves swirling in the breeze.

I scratched my head, feeling weird, but didn’t think too hard about it and kept walking. But a minute passed, and something felt wrong. Normally, this alley takes half a minute to walk through, but after a whole minute, I was still in the middle of it.

Could it be…am I stuck in the ghost’s path?

T/L Notes:

1.) “If You Are the One”: Originally as 非诚勿扰, a Chinese version of “Take Me Out”, a dating game show that was presented by comedian Paddy McGuinness.

2.) Ghost’s Path: Originally as 鬼打墙, meaning of a person keep looping in the same place and cannot get out of it until some conditions completed.