Ghost Story of Liaozhai

Peng Haogu, a scholar in Laizhou, was studying abroad alone.During the Mid-Autumn Festival of this year, Peng Haogu was far away from his hometown, lonely and chatting, thinking: "There is no one in the village to talk to. There is only one Qiu Sheng, who is a celebrity in the county, but his conduct is bad. Drinking alone is boring. Do you want to invite him?" Is he a companion?" Peng Haogu became more and more lonely when he was thinking about it, so he had no choice but to write a letter asking Qiu Sheng to attend the meeting.

After a while, Qiu Sheng came.The two drank together at the same table, and after a few glasses of wine, there was a knock on the door outside the house. The book boy got up to check, and saw a handsome scholar standing by the door, and asked, "Is the master at home?" Peng Haogu left He rose from the table, respectfully invited the scholar into the room, sat down, and asked about the origin of the guests.

The scholar said: "My surname is Peng, and my style name is Haiqiu. I am from Guangling. Tonight is a good day with good wine, and the stranger travels lonely. I have heard of your son's name for a long time, so I don't take the liberty to visit him." , Said: "Brother Taiwan and I are of the same clan. When distinguished guests come, they will be full of glory."

Peng Haogu secretly observed the scholar, only to see that he was arrogant and contemptuous of Qiu Sheng.Every time Qiu Sheng talked to him, the scholar would be indifferent and arrogant.Peng Haogu secretly felt ashamed for Qiu Sheng. Seeing him talking endlessly, he immediately interrupted him with a wave of his hand, and said with a smile: "All the talents are gathered, this is a rare event. I suggest that each person sing a song ,how?"

The scholar smiled and said: "Good idea, Brother Peng, as the master, it starts with you." Peng Haogu was not humble, and immediately opened up his singing voice and sang "The Song of Fufeng Heroes".The scholar smiled and said, "Good singing. Now it's my turn, but I can't understand the rhythm, can I ask someone to sing for me?"

Peng Haogu said: "Of course." The scholar nodded and asked, "Dare to ask the master, is there a famous chicken in Laizhou?" Peng Haogu said: "No." There is a beauty for company, right now she is outside the door, you can invite her in." The book boy went out as he said, and he saw a beauty wandering outside the house, so he immediately invited her into the house.

The beauty is fifteen or sixteen years old, as beautiful as a fairy.When Peng Haogu saw it, he was overwhelmed and immediately invited her to the table.The young girl sits full, and the fragrance fills the room.Peng Haogu asked, "Is the girl from Guangling just like Brother Peng? Please travel thousands of miles, I'm sorry." The girl smiled lightly, noncommittal.Peng Haogu was puzzled and asked, "Then where is the girl from?"

Before the girl answered, the scholar said with a smile: "There are no beauties in your place. Just now I passed by the West Lake, and I came across this girl, so I invited her here." Looking at the girl, he said: "The girl sang in the boat earlier. The first 'Hasukiro song' is very flavorful, please sing it again." <Marsh.The sound of people is far away, but the sound of horses is quiet; the river and sky are high, and the mountains and moons are small.Turning around and not returning, Bai Xiao was born in the court.Don't complain about parting more, but worry less.Where do you sleep?Don't act like the wind.If you don't make a Marquis, don't go to Linqiong! "When the girl sang, the scholar took out the jade flute from his arms and accompanied her.

At the end of Er'er's flute, Peng Haogu was amazed and said: "The distance from the West Lake is more than a thousand miles. Brother Peng will come here in a blink of an eye. Could it be a fairy?" The scholar said: "I can't talk about a fairy. Speaking of it, it is no different from strolling in the courtyard. The wind and moon in the West Lake tonight is better than in the past, you must watch it, are you interested in swimming with me?"

Peng Haogu wanted to take this opportunity to observe the scholar's supernatural powers, and said with a smile: "It's a pleasure to meet you." The scholar asked: "Will you ride a horse or take a boat?" Peng Haogu thought: "Water is more comfortable." He said with a smile "By boat." The scholar mused, "The ferry is very far away. For today's plan, I have to go to Jiutian Galaxy to borrow a boat." So he stretched out his right hand, shook it twice to the void, and shouted: "Boat, boat! Come! I will go to West Lake later, and you will pay for the boat."

Before he finished speaking, a colorful boat floated down from the sky, surrounded by smoke and clouds.Everyone boarded the boat one by one, and saw one person holding a short oar, the tail of which was covered with long hairs, shaped like a feather fan.The man flicked his wrists lightly, paddled his short oars, and with the breeze blowing, the colorful boat rose straight up, gradually entered the sky, and headed south, as fast as a flying arrow.After a while, the colorful boat landed in the water, only the melodious strings and singing could be heard.Peng Haogu got out of the boat and looked around, only to see the vast mist around him, and he was already in the West Lake before he knew it.The shadow of the moon in the lake is bright and clear, and the cruise ships are like weaving.

The boatman stood with his oars closed and let the colorful boat float.A group of people took out delicious food and wine, and drank happily.Not long after, a painted boat floated on the water, and the two boats ran side by side, adding a lot of emotion.

Peng Haogu peeped through the window, and saw three or two women playing Go in the opposite painting boat, all of them were stunning.The scholar poured a glass of wine, smiled at the girl, and said, "This glass of wine is to see you off." The girl took the glass and tasted it lightly.

Peng Haogu knew that the girl was going to leave after the glass of wine was finished, and he was reluctant to let go, so he secretly kicked the girl's show feet, hoping that she would stay.The girl was looking forward to her with a glance of affection, and Peng Haogu was even more moved, and asked, "When can I see you again?"

The young girl said: "If the young master really loves me, you only need to ask people for Juanniang's name, and no one will know." The scholar smiled slightly and asked Peng Haogu, "Do you wear a silk scarf?" He took a snow-white silk scarf and handed it to the scholar. The scholar turned around and stuffed the silk scarf into the girl's hand without looking at it. He said with a smile, "As a proof of the silk scarf, I will make a three-year agreement for the two of you. Three years." Years later, there is still a chance to see you again.”

After speaking, he got up and stood up, lifted the girl up, put it in the palm of his hand, held the window of the neighboring ship with his left hand, and pushed the girl in through the pane. The pane was only the size of a magnetic disk.Only the woman's voice could be heard from the opposite cabin, "Juanniang is awake." The soul of the daring girl has always been out of her body, and it was only at this moment that she came back to life.

Peng Haogu stared at it infatuatedly, watching the painting boat on the opposite side gradually drifting away, and finally docked. The women on the boat went ashore one after another, and disappeared in a blink of an eye.

Peng Haogu's interest in traveling dropped sharply, he sighed, and said to the scholar, "I want to go on land." Just as he finished speaking, the colorful boat had already arrived at the shore, and Peng Haogu abandoned the boat and went ashore, wandering aimlessly, Before I knew it, I was already a mile away.

The scholar came after him, took a steed in his hand, and said to Peng Haogu, "Brother Peng, this horse is for you. You wait for me here, and I will bring two more horses." Turning around and leaving, I haven't seen you back for a long time.There are few pedestrians on the road, and the dawn is gradually appearing on the horizon.Peng Haogu waited for a long time, feeling irritable, his friend Qiu Sheng, who was walking with him, has disappeared at this moment.

Peng Haogu was in a dilemma, thought for a while, led his horse back to the place where the boat was parked, and saw that the boat was empty, he thought: "I came out in a hurry last night, and I forgot to bring my money with me. The West Lake and Laizhou are thousands of miles away. How can I go back here?" What?" While he was in trouble, he suddenly saw a bag beside the saddle, opened it, and found three or four taels of silver in it.So with these silver taels, I bought some dry food, had a random meal, looked up at the sky, the red sun was shining brightly, and it was already noon.

Peng Haogu thought: "For the current plan, one is to inquire about Juanniang's residence and borrow some money from her. The second is to find out the whereabouts of Qiu Sheng." Asking the nearby people about Juanniang's residence, they all replied: "I have never heard of this. People." Peng Haogu was in a low mood and rode back home the next day. Fortunately, the horse was tame and he was able to control the cao with ease. After half a month, he finally returned home.

At the beginning, when Peng Haogu took a boat to the sky, the book boy hurried back to his residence and said to his family: "The master has become a fairy and has ascended." The whole family grieved and said: "My son has become a fairy, I'm afraid I won't be able to come back."

Now that Peng Haogu returned safe and sound, his family members were full of surprises and asked what had happened. Peng Haogu tied up the horse, briefly explained the whole story, and finally said: "I went to the West Lake with Qiu Sheng, and now I am the only one coming back. If the Qiu family knows this It is not a small trouble to ask me for my son. Everyone should keep their mouths shut, you know?"

The crowd agreed loudly, and everyone heard that the horse was a gift from a fairy, and they all clamored to watch the excitement.When a group of people came to the stable, the horses had long disappeared, only Qiu Sheng was bound by the reins and tied to the side of the manger.Peng Haogu saw that Qiu Sheng's face was ashen, his eyes were closed, his soul was lost, and he couldn't bear it. He quickly ordered his family to help Qiu Sheng to the bed, and poured several bowls of hot soup to wake him up.

After waking up, without further ado, Qiu Sheng ran to the toilet in a hurry, pulled down a large pile of horse manure, drank a few mouthfuls of hot soup, and recovered his spirits.Peng Haogu asked what happened, and Qiu Sheng said: "After the colorful boat docked, the scholar took the initiative to strike up a conversation with me, took me to a place where no one was around, stretched out his hand and patted the back of my neck a few times, and I felt dizzy. Then he passed out and fell to the ground. After waking up, he has turned into a horse. Although he is awake in his heart, he cannot speak. This is a great disgrace, please don’t tell my wife, otherwise, you will be ashamed to see others.” Peng Haogu nodded in agreement, and immediately Order the servant: Escort Qiu Sheng home.

Since then, Peng Haogu often misses Juanniang.Three years later, Peng Haogu's brother-in-law was an official in Yangzhou and went to visit.There was a young master Liang in Yangzhou, who had long been in touch with the Peng family, and invited Peng Haogu to a banquet.During the banquet, several singers came forward to pay their respects. Mr. Liang asked, "Why didn't you see Juanniang?" He replied, "She's sick."

Mr. Liang was furious and scolded: "The lowly servant girl is self-righteous and likes to put on airs. If she doesn't come, I will arrest him even if I use a rope."

Hearing Juanniang's name suddenly, Peng Haogu felt a surge of emotion, and asked in surprise: "Who is Juanniang?" Mr. Liang said: "She is the number one singer in Guangling, and she is quite famous, but she has a big temper and is arrogant and rude. .” Peng Haogu nodded, thinking, “Maybe it’s someone with the same name and surname.” He asked, “Can I meet her?”

Mr. Liang said: "Of course."

After a while, when Juanniang came to the meeting, Mr. Liang was furious because she was late, and opened his mouth to scold her.Peng Haogu opened his eyes and looked at Juanniang, it turned out to be the girl in the West Lake, he was overjoyed, and begged: "Juanniang met me, for my sake, please forgive her this time."

Juanniang looked up at Peng with a surprised expression, never expecting to meet again here.Mr. Liang ordered Juanniang to pour wine, and Peng Haogu asked, "Do you still remember the song 'Bo Xinglang'?"

Juanniang smiled and said: "I will never forget the moment." While speaking, she lightly opened her voice and sang "Bo Xinglang" again. The rhythm of the tune is the same as before.After Er'er's banquet was over, Mr. Liang told Juanniang, "It's good to serve Brother Peng, and nothing will be lost."

When the two entered the bedroom, Peng Haogu grabbed Juanniang's palm and said with a smile: "The three-year agreement has finally come true today." Drowsy and sleepy. I was taken away by someone in the middle of the day, and I came to a village. A bookboy led me into the house. There were three guests at the banquet, and the young master was one of them. Later, I took a boat into the West Lake, and a scholar I was stuffed into the window pane, and when we were parting, the young master took my arm and held on to it, I thought it was all a dream, but the scarf is still vivid in my memory, and I still hide it."

The two reminisced about the past and sighed with each other. Juanniang threw herself into Peng's arms, choked up and said, "Since the immortal has become a matchmaker, from now on, I will never leave you. Please don't feel disgusted because I have fallen into prostitution. "Peng Haogu said: "The appointment in the boat, I dare not forget it for a day. As long as the girl is willing, she will go bankrupt and redeem herself for you."

The next day, Peng Haogu bought Juanniang with a thousand taels of silver and took her back to her hometown.The two went to the study occasionally, and Juanniang remembered all the past events, and never forgot.