Ghost Pot

Chapter 18

"It was that little girl. I never imagined that I, Fei Ziyun, who has hunted countless geese in my life, would have my eyes pecked out by a little sparrow..." Master Fei sighed sadly.

"A little girl?" Secretary Qin was taken aback.

"It was that adopted daughter of the Guo family who took one of my eyes with a single spit!" Master Fei sneered.

"You mean Nizi?" Mayor Guo asked in surprise.

"That's right, it's her. The black dog that I killed with a single peg. It's not an exaggeration for this little brat to 'spit' at me. I didn't expect her spittle to be so poisonous. It seems she has already received some kind of true teachings of witchcraft from Guo Pu. Based on this, I deduce that the 'Hidden Wind Diagram' must be in her hands," Master Fei said indignantly.

Secretary Qin said with a hint of disbelief, "That child is only six or seven years old, it's simply unbelievable..."

"We must find her immediately. How could a mere girl like her withstand my bone-dislocating technique?" Master Fei raised his arm, his clenched fist cracking as his knuckles popped.

"Old Fei, it's best if no one dies..." Secretary Qin stammered.

"I know what I'm doing," Master Fei replied calmly.

We boarded the jeep and sped towards Fenglingdu, bumping along the way. By the time we returned to the old house, the sun was almost setting.

"Where's Nizi?" Mayor Guo shouted as he rushed through the gate.

"Waaah... Youcai, you're finally back..." Qin Ruhua, her face streaked with tears, threw herself into Mayor Guo's arms.

"Ruhua! What's wrong with you?" Mayor Guo was stunned.

"It's all your fault! If it were up to me, I would have kicked this girl out long ago. Now she..." Qin Ruhua cried.

"Tell me quickly, what's wrong with her?" Mayor Guo shook his wife's shoulder and said anxiously.

"She hit Da Guai." Qin Ruhua grabbed Mayor Guo's arm and led him into the east wing.

Big Goody was lying on the bed, his lower body naked, his eyes red and swollen from crying, while Second Goody was curled up in the corner of the bed, not making a sound.

Mayor Guo stepped forward for a closer look and saw that his son Da Guai's penis was red and swollen, and even his scrotum was shiny and swollen...

"What happened?" Secretary Qin asked anxiously, feeling sorry for his grandson.

Qin Ruhua sobbed as she recounted what had happened. It turned out that at noon, Da Guai and Er Guai came home from school. Lunch was hot noodle soup, and Ni Zi was squatting in the yard eating alone with her bowl. Just then, Da Guai needed to urinate, so he pulled down his pants and stood at the kitchen doorway, urinating into the yard. Ni Zi inadvertently spilled a bowl of hot noodle soup onto Da Guai's penis…

“This little girl is so vicious at such a young age…” Master Fei said indignantly, standing by the bed.

"Have you seen a doctor?" Mayor Guo asked anxiously.

"Director Liu from the town's health center came and applied the medicine. It hurt so much, I was crying out in pain..." Qin Ruhua said with heartache.

"And what about the little girl?" Master Fei asked.

“They ran away,” Qin Ruhua replied.

"It ran away?" Master Fei asked, puzzled.

"Hmph, she's caused such a huge mess, if she doesn't run away, I'll teach her a lesson!" Qin Ruhua shouted angrily.

Chapter 25, Part 1

Along the old course of the Yellow River, along the sand-buried banks, there is a grove of willows that provides shelter from the wind. A little girl of six or seven years old walks along the path in the grove, carrying a large bundle on her back. This is Nizi.

Along the vast expanse of yellow earth, amidst the verdant willow groves, Nizi walked, inquiring about Fengling Temple, her lingering fear still evident on her face. At midday, she squatted on the kitchen steps, the bowl of hot, oily noodles too scalding to eat, left to cool on the steps, her mind still preoccupied with the thimble. Just then, a sudden "splashing" sound of water filled the air. Turning her head, she glimpsed Da Guai with a wicked grin, his pants pulled down to his knees, his hand gripping his penis as he poured urine into her bowl of noodles…

Enraged, Nizi grabbed the bowl of noodles and slammed it down on Da Guai's crotch. Da Guai screamed in pain and then began to wail loudly. Knowing she had caused a great disaster, Nizi ran back to her room in a flash, dragged a large bundle from under the bed and slung it over her shoulder. Then, while "Landlady" Qin Ruhua was busy taking care of Da Guai, she rushed out of the old house.

She could no longer stay at home. Her grandfather was gone, Dahei was dead, and she had no relatives left in Fenglingdu. She was completely alone and had nowhere to turn.

Nizi remembered her grandfather's dying words: Fengling Temple...

Along the way, a kind person pointed out a path to Fengling Temple to Nizi, and she followed it. No matter what would happen if she went to Fengling Temple, she had nowhere else to go.

Before sunset, Nizi finally arrived at the foot of the Wind Chime Temple.

The young novice monk in the temple came out to close the gate and saw Nizi sitting on the stone steps resting. He asked in surprise, "Little benefactor, it's almost dark. Why aren't you going home yet?"

Nizi stood up and, seeing that it was a bald-headed little monk, asked, "Is this Fengling Temple?"

"Oh, it's Fengling Temple," the young novice monk said, sizing up the girl. "Did you come to offer incense with your parents?"

Nizi shook her head, hesitated for a moment, and then timidly asked the little monk, "Is there a monk named Yidu in Fengling Temple?"

The young novice was even more surprised and nodded, saying, "Master Yidu is my master. Why are you asking him?"

As expected, there was a monk named Yidu! These were some of the first characters her grandfather taught her.

"I want to see Master Yidu," Nizi said loudly.

The young novice monk waved his hand with some skepticism and led Nizi through the mountain gate.

Nizi grew up in the old house and rarely played with children her age. She had never left Fenglingdu. This was the first time she had seen a temple. Just the clay sculptures of blue-faced Vajra warriors holding vajras on the walls behind the mountain gate startled her. She walked around them in fear, which made the young novice monk laugh.

Crossing the courtyard and stepping onto the steps of the main hall, the young novice called out loudly, "Master, someone is looking for you."

Inside the main hall, an old monk was meditating with his eyes closed on a prayer cushion. Upon hearing this, he opened his eyes and stood up.

"Are you Master Yidu?" Nizi asked cautiously, tilting her head up.

"That is indeed me," Yidu replied with a kind smile.

Chapter 25, Part 2

Nizi put the large bundle on her back down to the ground, deftly untied it, took out a yellow silk handkerchief from the pocket of her sheepskin coat, and then gently opened the handkerchief to reveal the brass thimble...

Master Yidu's smiling face gradually froze, his sharp gaze fixed on the thimble. He reached out and slowly picked it up, examining it closely before finally letting out a sigh of regret: "So, Guo Zichang is dead..."

Nizi knew that Guo Zichang was her grandfather's name. The old monk immediately recognized her grandfather's name as soon as he saw the thimble, proving that he knew her grandfather and that she had found the right person.

"Grandpa is dead..." Two lines of tears streamed down Nizi's cheeks as she sobbed.

"Good child, what's your name?" Master Yidu patted Nizi's head and said affectionately.

"Guo Ni," Ni Zi sobbed.

“Nizi, tell this old monk when your grandfather passed away and what happened?” Yidu said kindly to Nizi, while instructing the young novice, “Youliang, go and close the mountain gate.”

"Yes, Master." The young novice monk named Youliang responded and left.

Seeing that Master Yidu had a kind face and was so gentle and kind to her, just like her grandfather, Nizi couldn't help but feel a surge of warmth in her heart. She burst into tears and recounted in broken sentences everything that had happened in the days before and after her grandfather's death.

After listening, Master Yidu remained silent for a long time, gently wiping away the tears from Nizi's eyes, and finally said softly, "Nizi, do any other people know that you came to Fengling Temple?"

Nizi shook her head: "I didn't tell anyone."

“Alright, Nizi, you can stay in the temple for now, okay?” Master Yidu said.

Upon hearing what the old monk said, Nizi nodded repeatedly to indicate her willingness.

"Youliang, take Nizi to the guest room to stay, and then take her to the kitchen for some vegetarian food. Nizi hasn't eaten a single grain of rice all day," Master Yidu instructed the young novice.

"Come with me." Youliang stepped forward, picked up Nizi's large bundle, and led her toward the side hall.

Watching the child's retreating figure, Master Yidu's expression turned solemn. He muttered to himself, "This Daoist Fei from the Daluo Palace in Jiexiu, who came from the capital, is clearly up to no good..." He looked down at the brass thimble in his hand, a sense of loss washing over him. "The secret that the Guo family has guarded for 1500 years has finally come to an end. It's fate..."

Youliang was a twelve-year-old novice monk from Aoli Village, on the opposite bank of the Yellow River at Fenglingdu, within Shaanxi Province. Due to his family's poverty, his parents sent him to Fengling Temple to become a monk at the age of seven. Master Yidu knew that most temples had been destroyed during the Cultural Revolution, and all monks had been forced to return to secular life. Apart from the elderly, there were very few young people who believed in Buddhism. Therefore, he did not perform the "burning of incense scars" or give Youliang a formal name, but instead called him by his secular name and taught him to read so that he could continue his studies like other children after his parents took him back to secular life.

Youliang was, after all, still a child at heart. The temple was a place of quiet solitude and austerity, where people observed vegetarianism and chanted Buddhist prayers. He was overjoyed to see a little girl arrive and patiently introduced the temple's Buddha statues and the interesting stories of the worshippers until the girl fell asleep. Only then did he reluctantly leave the guest room.

At midnight, with the bright moon high in the sky and a clear, refreshing breeze, Master Yidu was still sitting cross-legged on his meditation cushion.

"Knock knock knock..." A series of urgent knocks came from outside the mountain gate.

Chapter 25, Part 3

Nizi put the large bundle on her back down to the ground, deftly untied it, took out a yellow silk handkerchief from the pocket of her sheepskin coat, and then gently opened the handkerchief to reveal the brass thimble...

Master Yidu's smiling face gradually froze, his sharp gaze fixed on the thimble. He reached out and slowly picked it up, examining it closely before finally letting out a sigh of regret: "So, Guo Zichang is dead..."

Nizi knew that Guo Zichang was her grandfather's name. The old monk immediately recognized her grandfather's name as soon as he saw the thimble, proving that he knew her grandfather and that she had found the right person.

"Grandpa is dead..." Two lines of tears streamed down Nizi's cheeks as she sobbed.

"Good child, what's your name?" Master Yidu patted Nizi's head and said affectionately.

"Guo Ni," Ni Zi sobbed.

“Nizi, tell this old monk when your grandfather passed away and what happened?” Yidu said kindly to Nizi, while instructing the young novice, “Youliang, go and close the mountain gate.”

"Yes, Master." The young novice monk named Youliang responded and left.

Seeing that Master Yidu had a kind face and was so gentle and kind to her, just like her grandfather, Nizi couldn't help but feel a surge of warmth in her heart. She burst into tears and recounted in broken sentences everything that had happened in the days before and after her grandfather's death.

After listening, Master Yidu remained silent for a long time, gently wiping away the tears from Nizi's eyes, and finally said softly, "Nizi, do any other people know that you came to Fengling Temple?"

Nizi shook her head: "I didn't tell anyone."

“Alright, Nizi, you can stay in the temple for now, okay?” Master Yidu said.

Upon hearing what the old monk said, Nizi nodded repeatedly to indicate her willingness.

"Youliang, take Nizi to the guest room to stay, and then take her to the kitchen for some vegetarian food. Nizi hasn't eaten a single grain of rice all day," Master Yidu instructed the young novice.

"Come with me." Youliang stepped forward, picked up Nizi's large bundle, and led her toward the side hall.

Watching the child's retreating figure, Master Yidu's expression turned solemn. He muttered to himself, "This Daoist Fei from the Daluo Palace in Jiexiu, who came from the capital, is clearly up to no good..." He looked down at the brass thimble in his hand, a sense of loss washing over him. "The secret that the Guo family has guarded for 1500 years has finally come to an end. It's fate..."

Youliang was a twelve-year-old novice monk from Aoli Village, on the opposite bank of the Yellow River at Fenglingdu, within Shaanxi Province. Due to his family's poverty, his parents sent him to Fengling Temple to become a monk at the age of seven. Master Yidu knew that most temples had been destroyed during the Cultural Revolution, and all monks had been forced to return to secular life. Apart from the elderly, there were very few young people who believed in Buddhism. Therefore, he did not perform the "burning of incense scars" or give Youliang a formal name, but instead called him by his secular name and taught him to read so that he could continue his studies like other children after his parents took him back to secular life.

Youliang was, after all, still a child at heart. The temple was a place of quiet solitude and austerity, where people observed vegetarianism and chanted Buddhist prayers. He was overjoyed to see a little girl arrive and patiently introduced the temple's Buddha statues and the interesting stories of the worshippers until the girl fell asleep. Only then did he reluctantly leave the guest room.

At midnight, with the bright moon high in the sky and a clear, refreshing breeze, Master Yidu was still sitting cross-legged on his meditation cushion.

"Knock knock knock..." A series of urgent knocks came from outside the mountain gate.

Chapter 25, Part 4

When Youfu returned to the old house in the evening, he learned that something had happened at home.

Looking at Master Fei's blinded eye and Da Guai's scalded groin, they felt somewhat incredulous. Given Ni Zi's temperament, she would never have resorted to such violence unless Da Guai had provoked her. Furthermore, the claim that Ni Zi's saliva contained strong corrosive substances that blinded Master Fei's right eye—even such a far-fetched story was believed by Secretary Qin and his brother. Where had their Communist Party spirit gone?

“Nizi won’t go far. As far as I know, she has no other relatives in Fenglingdu. I wonder if Nizi might have run to the back mountain valley, to her grandfather’s grave?” Youfu speculated.

"We've already searched the back hillside, but we haven't found her anywhere," Mayor Guo said angrily. Da Guai's penis and scrotum were burned, which could cause problems if it affected her future fertility. This girl is too cruel.

Master Fei pondered for a moment and then said, "Take me to her room."