Ghost Diary

March 1, 2005: Sunny turning cloudy

I got up very early today, and while washing my face, I accidentally knocked over the kettle. Xiao Bi was very angry and called me a pighead, but I didn't argue with her. I heard that she lost a lot of money playing mahjong with the doctors last night. The book says that staying up late or gambling can cause emotional distress, so I forgave her.

Four years ago, a wave of interest in biology swept across the United States. Xiao Bi and I were very farsighted at that time and chose to study biology. Xiao Bi once said that from then on, life sciences would be the world. But now she works as a salesperson for a pharmaceutical company, playing cards with doctors, giving money to hospital directors, and making a living by earning some kickbacks. Her lofty ideals have long been worn away by the current state of development in China. It's so frustrating!

The postgraduate entrance exam results will be released tomorrow. Last year, my mom got a Guanyin statue from the shrine at my maternal grandmother's house. My grandmother said that as long as I wore it around my neck for forty-nine days, I would pass the exam safely. I don't remember how long I wore it, but I do remember that the red string that I wore with the Guanyin statue always faded. My poor white shirt was ruined after I only wore it once.

This afternoon, my dad called to ask about my postgraduate entrance exam results. I told him I would wait until tomorrow. He then asked if I was looking for a job. I thought I should wait until tomorrow; if I passed the exam, I wouldn't look for a job. Finally, he asked if I wanted to go abroad. I thought about it and decided to wait until tomorrow.

In the evening, I went to the cafeteria and got a plate of shredded pork and eggplant. It was too salty, so I also bought a Fanta. When I was almost finished drinking it, I suddenly remembered that yesterday's newspaper said that Fanta contains carcinogens. After hesitating for a long time, I decided to finish it anyway, because I couldn't waste that 1.5 yuan.

After finishing my meal, I decided to take a shortcut through the woods back to my dorm. I accidentally saw two handsome guys kissing. One of them had a very eye-catching earring on his right ear, so I sighed that it's getting harder and harder to find a boyfriend. I burped while trampling on the grass and suddenly regretted drinking all my Fanta.

On March 2, 2005, my neighbor, Sister Cuihua, said it would rain today.

While I was dreaming, my mom called to ask about my postgraduate entrance exam results. I touched the Guanyin statue, told her I would check later, and went back to sleep.

Around 10 a.m., my dad called to ask about my postgraduate entrance exam results. I stretched and decided to get up.

At 11 o'clock, Deng Fei called to ask about my postgraduate entrance exam scores. I told him I got 55 in English, 64 in Politics, and a total of 320, wondering if it was enough. He praised me for doing well and then said he got 402.

At 11:30, Huang Ying called to ask about my postgraduate entrance exam results. I gave the same answer as above, and she scolded me for getting such a lucky score without even reading a single page of the book.

At midnight, Xiao Bi came back and asked me about my postgraduate entrance exam results. I gave the same answer as above. Then Xiao Bi scolded Deng Fei for being a braggart and Huang Ying for being psychologically unbalanced. Finally, he thoughtfully scolded me for being incredibly lucky.

I called my mom and dad each in the evening to report my progress. They were both quite satisfied, and then I hung up.

When I went to sleep, I found out it hadn't rained today. Cuihua was lying.

It finally rained on March 3, 2005.

I woke up hungry this morning. Xiao Bi left a note on a piece of toilet paper saying that she was going to XX hospital to treat XX doctor to dinner. The toilet paper was stuck to the window with transparent tape. It was really embarrassing.

The dormitory was empty, so I went to the dormitory next door for a walk. I took Cuihua to eat, but when we got downstairs I realized I didn't bring an umbrella.

I climbed back up to the fifth floor and only found one. When I got to the cafeteria, I found that my right side was soaked with sweat, and I realized that I should start dieting. So I ordered a plate of braised beef brisket with persimmons and grilled squid, plus three ounces of rice, as my big meal before starting my diet.

Cuihua offered me Fanta, but after thinking for a while, I decided to switch to Mirinda.

On the way back, I saw a beautiful woman in a red dress, but her face was pale. Just as I was lamenting that girls these days are willing to freeze to death for the sake of beauty, I noticed that she was floating forward with her feet off the ground. So I grabbed Cuihua and ran.

Back in the dorm, Cuihua pointed to the mud all over her pants and asked me why I ran. I said I saw a ghost. Cuihua got angry and shouted that she hadn't seen a single person on the way back. Everyone agreed that I was just too fat and hallucinating.

While flipping through the newspaper that evening, I discovered that Mirinda had also been found to contain carcinogens. I was heartbroken and wailed for Xiao Bi...

On March 4, 2005, my mother's world turned completely dark.

Last night I dreamt that a beautiful woman in red kept smiling at me. She looked familiar, and I felt an instant attraction to her. So we chatted about gossip, from basic skincare to weight loss secrets to celebrity privacy. When I woke up, I realized that she was the female ghost I saw yesterday. I felt a chill. I told Xiao Bi about it and also hung up the Guanyin statue that my grandma gave me.

Xiao Bi scolded me for being superstitious, then launched into a tirade against hospital corruption, going from criticizing ordinary people for not being able to afford medical care to criticizing the wife of the hospital director for being ugly. Finally, she asked me to treat her to a meal to vent my anger.

……