Bloodstained Clothes for Ghost Festival

Chapter 12

As he said this, he coughed. Tian Juan went over and gently patted his back.

“You look a lot like my youngest daughter. She starved to death during the three years of natural disasters. She was not even ten years old when she died. My husband has been gone for twenty years now. I really want to see them again soon.”

In the presence of this magnanimous old man, all words of comfort are superfluous.

A brief silence fell over the room, as if they were waiting for something.

Jiang Ping suddenly seemed to snap out of his daze: "Huh, when did you guys get here?"

"You've been here for ages, and you didn't even acknowledge me when I greeted you. Have you lost your mind?" Tian Juan said bluntly.

"Ha, I'm so sorry, so very sorry!" He cupped his hands in apology, then turned to Grandpa Sun and said, "Grandpa Sun, I've made up my mind! I agree to be your successor!"

"Shouldn't you go back and discuss it with your parents?"

"No need, I can make my own decisions! As you know, I've been fascinated by things like fortune telling, face reading, feng shui, and the I Ching since I was a child. Once, I even followed a blind fortune teller to another county. While others were yawning over their face reading books, I was engrossed in reading them and didn't even want to eat."

I've always wanted to write a book about the extraordinary people and their stories in modern times. If I were an extraordinary person myself, haha, that would be fantastic!

"To be honest, I really wish I were an ordinary person. When someone is down on their luck, you can comfort them without carrying any psychological burden."

But when you know the root of the misfortune, and you happen to have the ability to help eliminate it, you just can't bring yourself to offer comfort. There are so many situations like this; you don't know who you should help with, or what kind of trouble helping might cause. You have to learn to judge and refuse. Over time, people will think you're heartless and heartless, but don't argue with them.

Mr. Sun emphasized this point: "Therefore, possessing extraordinary magical powers also means greater responsibility. If you use it as a means to get rich, despise the poor and love the rich, create mystique, and extort money, then you will surely be condemned by God, and retribution will be inevitable sooner or later."

I was once blinded by money and did some things against my conscience. As a result, God took my most beloved daughter away from me, and I will regret it for the rest of my life! I hope you will always remember this, and not wait until you are battered and bruised to regret it.

Jiang Ping's smile faded, and he said sincerely, "Don't worry, Grandpa Sun, I will always remember what you said today."

Mr. Sun smiled and said, "Alright, I will pass on my magic to you tonight. Over the years, I have looked for many people, but you have the best comprehension. I am very confident in passing it on to you."

Tian Juan sobbed, "Grandpa Sun, you're so kind, but what if you..."

The rest was left unsaid. When Jiang Ping said he was willing to take over as the successor, I believe we all breathed a sigh of relief, but we quickly realized that such a thought was too selfish.

Mr. Sun understood her meaning and said with a smile, "Don't worry, I still have two months to live. Yesterday I consulted the gods, and they have agreed to use this method of transmission and have chosen Jiang Ping from among several candidates. I could have possessed Jiang Ping directly without his consent, but the situation is too urgent, so we have to find a workaround."

I myself don't like being someone with magical powers, so I still asked Jiang Ping for his opinion. I was very happy to find that he has the talent and interest in it.

Mother Tian asked, "Will that ghost come back? What should we do?"

Mr. Sun smiled kindly and said, "I don't know what to do either, and I don't have the energy to deal with it. Let Jiang Ping handle this problem. I can only tell you that this is a calamity in Mr. Bian's life. If he gets through it, he will live to a ripe old age."

Alright, go buy some incense, candles, and paper money. Come back after dinner tonight, and remember to eat vegetarian food so as not to offend the spirits. I want to give him some instructions later, and I will transfer my magic power to him this afternoon.

"Let Jiang Ping perform a ritual tonight to help Bian Jizhong's soul find peace!"

We said goodbye to the Sun family and decided that Mr. Bian and the driver would go shopping. We walked back to the hotel along the path, since it wasn't very far.

The rain stopped sometime ago, and the previously gloomy sky brightened, making everyone feel refreshed.

Not long after leaving the village, I heard the noise of children. It turned out that a group of children were barefoot, catching fish with fishing nets by the river, making a splashing sound.

The rice in the fields is already turning slightly yellow, and ripeness is in sight. Farmers can be seen walking along the ridges with shovels or hoes, stopping from time to time to drain excess water from the fields. Elderly people are also leading their oxen, leisurely walking back from the nearby mountains.

Everything was so harmonious, as beautiful as a traditional Chinese ink painting.

I recalled my dream from yesterday; the chieftain and his tribe must have once been as peaceful and happy as this place.

“I had a dream yesterday,” I said.

"Really? I had a dream too!" Tian Juan said curiously. "You'd never guess, but I dreamt that the ghost brought my dead clansmen back to life, and they danced around him. It was such a touching scene!"

"No way, I had the same dream! Was there a river nearby, and also in the middle of a forest...?"

“On a hillside in the middle, there’s a high platform. The chieftain’s wife is a very gentle and beautiful woman,” Tian Juan hurriedly added before I could finish.

Aunt Tian stopped and looked at us, her eyes wide open: "I dreamed about it too!"

"Oh my god, no way! How could it be such a coincidence? Is this another illusion created by ghosts?"

Tian Juan said in surprise, she took out her phone and called Mr. Bian: "Uncle Bian, did you have a dream yesterday? What was it?"

After a while, she hung up the phone, stuck out her tongue, and said, "He had the same dream too. It must be that ghost playing tricks on him!"

"Why would he do that?" I asked, puzzled. "Is he showing us that he's determined to succeed?"

Suddenly, Mother Tian shouted, "Stop!"

She respectfully clasped her hands together in front of a small shrine about a meter high by the field, silently reciting something.

"That ghost is still nearby. Should we tell Grandpa Sun and Jiang Ping?"

As Tian Juan spoke, she took my phone and dialed Jiang Ping's number, but the call didn't go through.

"His phone is off. Should we go back and tell them?"

"I don't think it's necessary. Old Master Sun is so capable, and besides, ghosts generally don't come out during the day."

We'll go there early tonight.

By evening, I didn't know if I should regret what I had said.

During lunch, we talked about that strange dream. Everyone's dreams were so similar. We had all forgotten some of them, but after we filled in each other's gaps, it felt like we had watched a movie together.

The driver, listening to our lively conversation, hesitated for a long time, seemingly wanting to say something but unsure. Finally, he said, "My dream was the same as yours. I think I've been to that place before, but I can't be sure..."

More than 20 years ago, I served in the army in the south. Once, during a military exercise, a comrade and I got lost and wandered around in the jungle for a long time. The forest was very humid, and we were exhausted. We had run out of food and water, and the few wild fruits we found were of no use at all.

As evening fell, I arrived at the place from my dream, but it was surrounded by trees, except for that clearing where there were no large trees, only some small shrubs. We thought there were people living there, and we were very happy to search around. We found stone steps by the river, but they were covered with moss and grass, and it had been a long time since anyone had been there.

Fortunately, we found some tall fruit trees nearby, laden with fruit, and not the usual wild fruit. There were also some potato seedlings in the clearing, so we dug up a lot of potatoes, built a campfire on the central earthen platform, roasted them, and then took turns sleeping. The next day, we finally rejoined the troops.

"Thank goodness we found that place, otherwise it's hard to say whether the two of us would have survived."

"Do you still remember that place? It might be very useful!" Tian Juan said happily.

"I can't remember the exact location, but I know the general area. I'm sure I can find it if I look for it. But I don't know if anyone has been discovered in that place yet."

I'm increasingly finding it hard to believe. Could the driver and his comrade really be the ones who rescued the child's ghost from the underworld? If someone really did enter that land, build houses, or cultivate it for farming, and all the ghosts underground were released, wouldn't the chieftain's dream be impossible to achieve? Wouldn't that be a better outcome?

However, deep down I felt that it would be too cruel to the clan leader, and given his personality, I didn't know what kind of trouble he would cause if that were to happen.

When they arrived at Mr. Sun's house that evening, Jiang Ping looked somewhat dejected, while Mr. Sun remained calm.

He saw Mr. Bian say apologetically, "I'm so sorry, I didn't expect things to turn out this way."

"What's wrong? It's alright," Mr. Bian comforted him.

"Grandpa Sun rested for a while in the afternoon and asked me to prepare the altar by myself. I don't know why, but I suddenly really wanted to see what was inside the small jar, and my hand just went out of control and peeled off the paper talisman."

"Ah, you mean Mr. Bian's ghost has come out again?" Tian Juan exclaimed in disappointment.

Mr. Sun said, “It’s not his fault. I was careless yesterday. I thought the ghost had been greatly weakened and had run away. I didn’t expect the ghost to still be nearby. Jiang Ping is not yet proficient in using it. The ghost took the risk of coming out during the day and temporarily controlled his mind.”

We were all stunned. Given that ghost's personality, the retaliation that followed was bound to be brutal.

I was filled with immense regret. I shouldn't have stopped Tian Juan when she said she was coming back to deliver the news. If anything had happened, I would have regretted it for the rest of my life.

After a long while, Tian's mother said, "Then what should we do?"

Mr. Sun said, "When I was in my prime, I might have been able to subdue this ghost, but now it's at best a draw. Whether Jiang Ping can quickly master the spirit depends on his comprehension. The reason I'm passing it on to him is because I can no longer travel far with you all."

You'd better hurry back to Hunan tomorrow and find the place where you buried those two bodies. If you can resolve the situation, that would be best; if not, try using the magic I mentioned earlier to see if you can seal the ghosts. If you can get through this Ghost Festival, you can strive for another twenty-one years.”

“But that ghost was already eager to make his move yesterday. He didn’t necessarily have to wait until then, did he?” Tian Juan raised her concerns.

Jiang Ping looked embarrassed, and I felt guilty too.

It was the driver who broke the deadlock: "This ghost has strictly followed this pattern for so many years, there must be a reason for it. I think, just like you said, he could kill Mr. Bian in advance, but he will definitely still kill someone on July 15th. If we can get through these few days and survive July 15th, then we will definitely get twenty-one years as this old man said."

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, and Mr. Bian told them about his dream.

Jiang Ping slowly regained his composure and began to analyze again: "That ghost started watching the two of us as soon as we talked about this on the train."

They must have heard of Grandpa Sun's magical powers and knew how powerful they were, otherwise they wouldn't have tried so hard to stop him. Moreover, Bian Jizhong's ghost also said that he knew Grandpa Sun's abilities were capable of saving his ghost.

So how did they know that?

But judging from yesterday's performance, the clan leader was very arrogant and initially didn't seem to take Grandpa Sun's abilities seriously. Isn't that a bit strange?

"Didn't he try to ambush me the night before last?" I said.

"Hmm, you mean after he plotted against Grandpa Sun, he realized that Grandpa Sun wasn't as powerful as he thought?"

"Perhaps."

"If that's the case, why would he bother showing himself and taking the risk? Why not just go back and wait until the fifteenth of July to commit the crime?"

"Perhaps it's because he's still not at ease?" I asked tentatively.

Tian Juan chimed in, "Is there anything strange about that? He takes pleasure in tormenting Uncle Bian's great-grandfather. He began to underestimate Grandpa Sun's power, so like a cat playing with a mouse, he showed us those scenes, increasing our suffering."

Jiang Ping said, "Yes, I agree with that. But why did the clan chief initially try so hard to stop it, and then appear in my dream? What's the reason for all this?"

Tian Juan blinked, puzzled, and said, "I really don't understand what you're trying to say?"

We didn't really understand what he was trying to say, but Grandpa Sun seemed to be deep in thought, as if he were reminiscing about something.

"I suspect there are two possibilities: first, the clan chief had dealings with Grandpa Sun before and knew of Grandpa Sun's magical powers; second, his dream message was a very subtle way of expressing reconciliation with us."

Tian Juan shook her head and said, "I don't know how you reasoned that. I don't see any connection at all."

Mr. Sun suddenly interjected, "I remember now, I did have dealings with these two ghosts, but that was many years ago."

The old man counted on his fingers; it must have been about twenty years. I went to a relative's house for drinks and got quite drunk. I was heading back in the evening. I remember it was close to winter; it got dark very early, and there weren't many people on the road. Halfway there, I saw two figures ahead of me, always walking at a distance that wasn't too close or too far. When I walked, they walked; when I stopped, they stopped.

At first, I didn't suspect they were ghosts. In fact, until today, I didn't have much doubt. It was only when Jiang Ping was talking just now that I suddenly realized that they might be them, one tall and one short.

I felt bored walking alone, so I called out to them to stop. The shorter one waved at me but didn't stop, so I followed him without really understanding what was going on.

When we finally reached a small hill, both of them disappeared. I searched everywhere and heard two voices. Listening closely, I realized they were indeed two women's voices. One was young, crying in a low, buzzing voice like a mosquito; the other was older, cursing and muttering something unintelligible.

I sobered up suddenly and realized that I had unknowingly walked into a cemetery and was standing in front of a new grave.

I hurried back, and that evening, while doing my usual divination, I felt uneasy. The next day, I cast a divination and was shocked. I rushed back to find the grave. Along the way, I inquired and learned that a young woman from the neighborhood had died. She was perfectly healthy and had fallen asleep without ever waking up; she had been dead for three days.

When we found the family, the husband was holding their child and cursing his dead wife. I later heard he was cursing her for being heartless and leaving without a word. I said, "Stop crying. Quickly find some people and get some shovels to help me save your wife."

The man was really obedient; he dutifully called over a few uncles and brothers, and together they took their weapons and went up the cemetery with me.

His brother didn't dare to make a move, so I cursed him. Without saying a word, the man started digging, and only then did his brothers dare to make a move.

After prying open the coffin, the woman's face was pale, as if she were asleep. I got some cool water and pinched her philtrum hard, and she slowly regained consciousness.

The man immediately knelt on the ground and kowtowed. I said, "Don't rush. Take your wife back and take good care of her first. Also, bring some incense and paper money. There are still things to do."

After he arranged for people to prepare the things, I told them to continue digging. Before long, they dug up a skeleton, a woman's. She was probably buried wrapped in a straw mat.