Translator: Exodus Tales
Editor: Exodus Tales
My aunty ran toward me and took my backpack with both hands. Then, she caressed my head with a gaze filled with affection, “Sixi, come in. Aunty stewed your favorite fish for you.”
“Thank you, aunty.”
As soon as I came back, Chubby Boy, the neighbor next door, ran over to look for me. He was studying in the middle school at the neighboring village, so I hadn’t seen him for a long time. He grew taller and heavier, but his squinty little eyes remained the same.
“Chubby Boy is here. Let’s sit down and eat together,” My aunty gave him a seat politely, and he sat down next to me without reservation, picking up his chopsticks and started eating.
He said, “Sixi, which senior highschool are you planning to enroll into?”
I glanced at him; he smiled back at me, “I want to go to the same senior high school as you.”
“Would you be able to pass the exam?”
“I’ll work hard.”
Compared to when he was a child, Chubby Boy had changed a lot now. He didn’t like to bully people as much but stilll looked lofty and impolite. Some people still disliked him.
Chubby Boy’s grades were so poor that he didn’t even get into the middle school in the town, almost a hundred points away. I thought he was daydreaming when he wanted to enroll in the same high school as me.
I thought my grades were great; I kept my current grades in the standard of enrolling in the county’s high school. Besides, I didn’t want to go to the same school as Chubby Boy. I found him a bit annoying and clingy.
Since the incident of Silly Er being possessed by a ghost, his attitude toward me had changed greatly. He used to bully me a lot, but now he tried to please me in various ways.
But I was not used to his kindness.
Aunty got a piece of fish belly meat, picked out the bones and put the meat into my bowl, telling me to eat more.
“Sixi, are you doing fine at school? I hope you don’t encounter too many troubles,” My aunty asked me.
I shook my head to reassure her, not mentioning the incident of Xu Zixi jumping off the building. However, I still felt that Xu Zixi had pinpointed me to be the substitute. I would still need to take safety measures.
I hesitated again and again before I finally said to my aunty, “Is there any way to prevent ghosts from approaching me?”
Aunty was taken aback, and asked, “Did you encounter something?”
“Not really, but the school is pretty shady. I see some scary things occasionally.”
When I said this, Chubby Boy’s face suddenly changed color. He choked, unable to swallow a mouthful of rice.
His face was flushed. I handed him a glass of water, and he drank it immediately. Finally, after a few minutes, he seemed to be more at ease.
He looked at me in shock, and asked loudly, “Did you encounter ghosts again?”
“Isn’t this normal?”
Since I was young, I had seen so many ghosts.
As soon as I finished my word, the landline in the room rang.
Aunty got up to answer the phone and said, “Bring him over to me at night.”
She hung up after speaking.
She sat back to eat, saying that it was Old Lin, claiming that his son was possessed and asking her for help.
Old Lin’s son was Lin Xiao!
I looked at Chubby Boy, and he was also looking at me.
“Lin Xiao is possessed?” He was shocked.
“I can only know after I take a look,” The aunty responded.
I buried my head down and continued to eat without saying a thing.
At night, Old Lin came with Lin Xiao on his back.
Lin Xiao was fast asleep so Old Lin carried Lin Xiao to the bed, laying him down. Then, he pleaded to my aunty, “Ji Li, please take a look. Is my Lin Xiao possessed?”
Old Lin looked anxious and his head was drenched with sweat.
I looked at Lin Xiao who was lying on the bed. His face was pale with vigor escaping him. He swelled so badly, like a corpse that had soaked in water for a long time. He was all swollen and deformed.
Aunty only glanced at Lin Xiao. Her face became very ugly.
I knew that although my aunty couldn’t see ghosts, she could sense things that ordinary humans couldn’t perceive. When she was a child, she learned about necrogamy from her grandmother. And so, she knew that Lin Xiao was indeed possessed with just a glance. Lin Xiao was most likely entangled with a malicious ghost.
She looked at Lao Lin seriously, and asked, “How long has Lin Xiao been like this?”
“It’s been three days. At first, he was just lazy and slept all day long, and the teacher asked me to pick him up at first. Then, he cried out like a baby in the middle of the night and just went back to sleep when it was day time. Today, his body was so swollen. I’m afraid that something will happen to him, so I brought him over for you to have a look.”
My aunty nodded in deep thoughts. She turned around and took three incense sticks from the cabinet under the shrine. She lit them up and prayed to the Bodhisattva. Then, she inserted the incense into the incense burner, and knelt in front of the Bodhisattva, muttering something.
After a long time, she opened her eyes and stood up. She poured a glass of water from the thermos bottle next to the altar and sprinkled it on Lin Xiao’s body with her hands. I had drunk the water in the thermos bottle before. It was weird and I couldn’t tell what it smelled like.
After doing this, she said to Old Lin, “Your son peed on the ghost infant and was entangled by the ghost.”
Old Lin’s face changed, “What should I do?”
“Request it to leave!”
“How do I make a request?”
Aunty told Old Lin the items he needed to make a request to the ghost and asked him to prepare.
Then, she decided to officially carry out the ritual at midnight tomorrow; twelve o’clock at night.
The items needed were: Five bundles of joss paper, the money for ghosts; three bowls of rice, food for ghosts; blue cloth in three feet, black cloth in three feet, and flowery cloth in three feet. All of which were the clothes for ghosts. Two incense sticks and one candle, all of which were used to guide the ghosts.
Aunt then instructed Old Lin that none of these things could be left at home. She asked him to recite the ghost beckoning chant in every corner of every room at home. Then, he would need to recite the ghost beckoning chant as he left the house. When leaving, his family should close the door not him. After that, he would need to walk southwest and stop at the abandoned iron bridge to the southwest.
On the way, he would need to whisper the ghost beckoning chant. After he arrived, he would need to light the candles and incense. He then would need to chant this: No matter whether the ghost in my house is a male or female, I will give you money for travel expenses (while lighting the yellow paper); I will give you something delicious (sprinkle the rice at the same time); I will give you clothes to wear (put three cloths in the fire and light them at the same time). You will have enough food and clothing. Take the money and go to a better place. Afterward, he should finally end with: If you come back again, I will not be courteous. I will ask someone to exorcise you. After it ends, he would need to just leave without looking back. Before entering the house, Old Lin had to let the family sprinkle ashes of burnt grass in front of the house.
Old Lin nodded his head again and again. He hurried away after carrying Lin Xiao at his back.
I followed out, helped Old Lin with the yard door, and watched him leave with Lin Xiao on his back.
Looking at Lin Xiao’s swollen and non-human appearance, I couldn’t resist taking off the blindfold of my left eye to see the ghost. What I didn’t expect was to see a bare-butt baby sitting on Lin Xiao’s neck.
At first, the back of the baby’s head was facing me, but as if he felt that I was looking at him, he suddenly turned his head. His head turned at a full 180 degrees in an extremely distorted posture with his entire face facing me.
It was a swollen face. The whole face seemed to be swollen with blisters, making it difficult to recognize its facial features. In the end, I could only see his dark eye sockets.
Shuddering, I quickly put on the blindfold again.