Ghost Story of Liaozhai

Wang Taichang, from Zhejiang.When I was a teenager, I was taking a nap at home, and suddenly the sky was dark, thunder broke out, and thunderbolts pierced the sky.Amidst the sound of lightning, a creature as big as a civet cat broke into the room, curled up under it, tossing and turning, refusing to leave.Er Er's sky cleared, the creature fled by itself, looked at it intently, it looked like a fox, not a house cat.

Wang Taichang was secretly afraid, and screamed and shouted in the next room.After hearing the news, the elder brother came to check and asked the reason. He said joyfully, "Your brother, don't panic. This is a fox demon. The reason why he came here is to avoid the thunder disaster. When the auspicious omen comes, the younger brother must be a nobleman."

Later, Wang Taichang really won the Jinshi examination, the official worshiped the supervisory censor, and his family was honored and favored.

Wang Taichang gave birth to a son named Yuanfeng, who had a demented personality. He was over sixteen years old and could not tell the difference between male and female. For this reason, he has been single and has no one to care for him.

On this day, a certain woman came to visit her, followed by a young girl, who smiled sweetly and was unparalleled in beauty.Asked who she was, the woman said: "My surname is Yu, this is my daughter, her name is Xiaocui, she is twenty-eight years old, she is not married yet, if you don't mind, she is willing to sell her into a wealthy family as a concubine."

Wang Taichang was worrying about his son's marriage, and he was overjoyed when he heard the news, and asked, "How much is Mom asking for?"

The woman said: "I only want to have enough food and clothing for three meals, and I dare not ask for a price. The master makes his own decision. It's the same to give more and less."

Before Wang Taichang could speak, his wife said, "How about 500 taels?"

The woman laughed and said, "It's too much, I'm ashamed to accept it." Xi Zizi took the silver, ordered her daughter to meet the buyer, and said, "This is your in-laws, and you are very good at serving them. There are many ordinary things in the family, so I will leave first. A few days later See you again."

Wang Taichang ordered his servants to prepare chariots and horses to escort the woman back to her hometown. The woman said: "The humble house is not far from here, so don't bother." She went out.

When her mother left, Xiaocui didn't feel sad. She took out needles and threads from the dowry and took care of the housework.Seeing that she is diligent, the lady has a good impression of her.A few days later, the woman did not come. She asked Xiaocui about this and where her former residence was. Xiaocui smiled and said she didn't know.

The husband and wife went to court to get married. When the relatives and neighbors heard about this, they disliked the poverty of Xiaocui's family and secretly laughed.After meeting Xiaocui, seeing her bright eyes and bright teeth, she was astonished as a celestial being, and there was no more gossip.

Xiaocui has an intelligent personality, good at observing words and demeanor, and is deeply loved by her in-laws.The only worry is: his son is too stupid, I don't know if Xiaocui will hate it.Fortunately, Xiaocui is virtuous and gets along with Yuanfeng harmoniously without disputes.

Xing Cui loves to play, and often makes cloth balls and Cuju for fun.Every time I play football, I must wear small leather boots, and the ball will fly dozens of steps away.At this time, Yuanfeng would act as a coolie, running to pick up the ball, going back and forth, often exhausted and sweating profusely.

This day, Wang Taichang was passing by the courtyard and met Xiaocui playing ball.Suddenly a ball flew over and hit his cheek, the pain was unbearable.Wang Taichang was furious, and Xiaocui fled in a hurry when she saw that he was angry.Unafraid of fear, Yuanfeng still played football back and forth, never tired of it.

Wang Taichang was furious and angry, seeing his son in a daze, hopeless and hopeless, he hated that iron could not be made into steel, so he picked up a stone and threw it with all his strength, hitting Yuanfeng's vital point.When Yuanfeng was punished, he was in pain and fear, and wept loudly, with tears rolling down his face.

Wang Taichang sighed secretly, and mentioned this matter to his wife after returning home.When the lady heard the words, she also felt annoyed: Xiaocui is so playful, she is not a lady, and if her son is infected by her, how can she be successful?Fearing that she would spoil Yuanfeng, he immediately rushed to Xiaocui's residence, coaxing, cursing and reprimanding her all the time.

Xiaocui lowered her head and smiled, pressed the bed with her hand, and stroked it back and forth.Let her mother-in-law scold, neither fear nor speak.The wife had no choice but to leave.

After her mother-in-law left, Xiaocui remained the same as before, her playfulness remained unchanged.Sometimes I dress up Yuanfeng and put rouge on his face; sometimes I dress him up and order him to be Xiang Yu, and I am Yu Ji, dressed in colorful clothes, with chicken feathers on his head, or playing the pipa, or dancing music, All kinds of acrobatics are all excellent; sometimes Yuanfeng is ordered to pretend to be a desert business traveler, with strange costumes to make people laugh.And so on, and so on.

The wife persuaded him many times, but there was no change. In a fit of anger, she beat Yuanfeng with a wooden stick.The husband was punished, so Xiaocui was afraid, and knelt down to plead for mercy, begging for forgiveness.The madam relieved her anger and walked away.

Xiao Cui laughed and pulled Yuan Feng into the room, dusted off his clothes, wiped away his tears, gave him sweet dates and snacks, and coaxed him in every possible way.Yuanfeng's mind is immature, his emotions don't matter, he comes and goes quickly, he speaks softly to Xiaocui, turns his anger into joy, and laughs through his tears.

Wang Gejian of the county seat lives in the same alley as Wang Taichang, separated by more than ten households.The two had always been at odds, and it was a three-year exam. The imperial court assessed officials and promoted them based on merit.Wang Taichang has excellent political achievements and is most likely to be promoted to Henan Daotai.Wang Jijian was dissatisfied, and planned a trick secretly, intending to slander him.

When Wang Taichang heard about this, he was worried and troubled, and he couldn't sleep or eat.As the saying goes, it's hard to guard against a stab in the back, and it's hard for a villain to be vigilant.Seeing her father-in-law's depression, Xiaocui couldn't bear it, so she decided to do a little trick to share his worries.

In the early morning of this day, Xiaocui got a set of official clothes from nowhere, and pretended to be the head of the imperial court. She cut off her hair and dyed it to make a fake beard. , a curly bearded man.

After changing his appearance, he ordered his personal servant girl to pretend to be an official servant and follow her around.The three rode out on horseback, ostentatiously passed through the market, and shouted, "Yu visit Mr. Wang."

Seeing this, the passers-by said one after another: "Mr. Wang, is your Excellency referring to Wang Gejian? His house is nearby." Pointing the way in their mouths.Xiaocui was noncommittal, rode her horse and walked slowly, and came to the palace after a while, and the servants came out to greet her, Xiaocui's complexion darkened, and she said angrily: "Who wants to visit what king to advise? I want to visit Lord Yushi Wang Taichang." Bi, walk away.

Back at the door, the guard saw the dignified three officials, but he didn't know it was his own lady, so he mistook it for the truth and hurriedly informed the master.When Wang Taichang heard that Mr. Shoufu was visiting, he hurried out to greet them. When they met each other, he knew it was Xiaocui's prank. His face was displeased, and he complained: "Little girl willfully messes around. If you give someone a handle, the disaster will not be far away."

Xiaocui let him complain, smiled and said nothing.

At that time, Master Shoufu was very popular, covering the sky with one hand, Xiaocui pretended to be this old man, so lifelike, it was hard to tell the truth from the fake.Wang Jijian didn't know the authenticity. Seeing that Wang Taichang had a good relationship with the chief assistant and had a strong backing, he felt uneasy.Watching outside the door day and night, inquiring about the news.

At dawn the next day, Wang Gejian took the initiative to strike up a conversation and asked, "Yesterday, the honored guest in the mansion, but Mr. Shoufu?" Wang Taichang was obsequious and perfunctory.The more so, the more frightened Wang Jijian became.From then on, he restrained his conspiracy, deliberately made friends with Taichang, and temporarily stopped.