A bluestone path, mottled walls, and a babbling stream lined with an endless stretch of whitewashed walls and black tiles. An old stone arch bridge spanned the water, topped by an eight-pillared wooden pavilion whose posts had long since faded.
An old man with a walking stick sat inside the pavilion, surrounded by seven or eight children.
He was telling stories of the past.
A boy in worn clothes, looking about fifteen or sixteen, stood alone by the wall. With a sack of rice in his hand, he gazed silently ahead.
The old man's words and the children's gasps of amazement drifted over to him.
The old man was a village elder. Advanced in years and blessed with ample free time, he often sat beneath the trees at the village entrance to tell tales of old. It was his way of teaching the young about the world and the rise and fall of history, while passing his own life experiences and lessons down to the village's descendants. In these times, in rural villages, many things were passed from generation to generation by word of mouth.
However, whenever a large crowd of children gathered, the storytelling changed its flavor.
Instead of grand historical events, it turned into tales of immortals and ghosts.
These kinds of stories had always been popular, from ancient times to the present.
The listeners loved to hear them, and the storyteller loved to tell them.
Over the past year, Lin Jue had also frequently come to listen.
Speaking of which, it had only been a year since he arrived in this world. Few people would willingly transmigrate to such an unfamiliar, backward place for no reason, but since he was already here and had no other choice, he could only work hard to avoid being trapped in this small village for the rest of his life.
He figured that every world must have its own wonders, and every era its own joys. He had to go out and see them for himself.
Leaving the village wasn't exactly hard, but it wasn't easy either.
It all depended on how he went about it.
Initially, Lin Jue planned to study, pass the imperial examinations for an official title, and leave this place. At the very least, it would be a proper introduction to this world.
As it happened, commerce had flourished in the area in recent years. Most of the village's Shu family formed merchant caravans, selling local ink, paper, inkstones, tea leaves, and timber to the Capital, and they had gradually grown wealthy. Furthermore, this region was deeply influenced by Confucian clan and agrarian culture. Once the wealthy increased in number, they hoped to produce more scholars from their own clan and village. That way, those who attained official ranks could support one another in the future. Thus, they pooled their funds to establish a clan academy. Consequently, fellow villagers of different surnames, like Lin Jue, managed to reap some of the benefits.
And so, he spent a year studying and a year listening to old tales.
Life was hard and impoverished, but once he grew used to it, it was rather peaceful.
But now, a new worry weighed upon him—
Last month, his uncle had gone out fishing and returned suddenly stricken with a severe illness. Sores covered his body, and it wasn't long before his life hung by a thread.
The original owner of his body had grown up in poverty. His mother had been abducted by a peddler, leaving his father to raise him alone. Later, his father joined the Shu family's merchant caravans and earned some hard-earned money. However, bandits and thieves had run rampant across the land these past couple of years. They said that the year before last, an entire merchant caravan never returned from a trip. After that, his uncle took over his father's responsibilities, providing him with food, clothing, and schooling.
Even when Lin Jue first arrived in this world and fell into the water, it was this very same uncle who risked his life to pull him from the river.
After his uncle fell ill, his older cousin went to invite a renowned local doctor to examine him. The doctor wrote a prescription and gathered the medicine. The medicine worked, but it was incredibly expensive.
For an ordinary family, leveraging local conveniences to have enough food and clothing was already good enough. Supporting a scholar on top of that pushed them to their absolute limit. A single month's medicine bills had long since hollowed out their savings.
The money left behind by the original body's father was also entirely spent.
The Shu Clan Main Household in the village was kindhearted, allowing him to collect a small sack of rice from their estate every ten days so that their fellow villager wouldn't starve to death at home.
Lin Jue had just returned from the Shu Clan Main Household's estate.
According to the miracle doctor, curing a stubborn disease took time. If they wanted his uncle to recover, he needed to drink this medicine for at least three months, which would cost another ten to twenty strings of cash at the very least.
But he had no idea where to find that kind of money.
Lin Jue was truly worried.
Snapping out of his daze, he heard a voice drift over from the pavilion ahead:
"...That man wasn't some capable Daoist priest or ritual master with cultivation to his name. He was just a bold, strapping fellow who let a bit of wine go to his head. He forcefully brawled with that ghost for half the night. By the time dawn broke, he was completely exhausted. When he dragged himself up to take a look, guess what?
"There wasn't a ghost anywhere near him! There was only a piece of skin like a torn cloth sack lying on the ground. As soon as the sun came out and shone on it, it smoked, reeking of a foul stench."
The crowd of children listened in stunned amazement, completely enthralled.
However, a trace of doubt appeared in one child's eyes:
"Second Great-Grandfather, are there really ghosts in the world?"
Over the past year of listening to these stories, Lin Jue had also often pondered this question.
Were there really immortals and ghosts in this world?
Never having seen one, he naturally didn't dare lightly claim they existed.
But if they didn't, the rumors were so widespread and felt so real.
"Of course there are! How could there not be?" The village elder raised an eyebrow. "I've told you so many stories about demons and ghosts, many of them with names and surnames. Do you think I made them all up?"
"Have you seen one?"
"Naturally, I've seen them! Haven't I told you before?"
"But our teacher says there are no demons or ghosts in this world, and that he's never seen one in his entire life."
"Ah, your teacher..."
The old man gripped his leaning walking stick and hummed with a smile. He thought carefully for a moment before replying:
"There are a thousand kinds of people in this world. Some fear ghosts, and some don't. Ghosts are the same. There are ghosts that fear people, and ghosts that do not. Therefore, there are people who walk around ghosts, and ghosts who walk around people. Your teacher has read the books of the sages extensively and possesses great knowledge. He is full of righteous energy and despises ghosts and spirits. What ghost would easily dare to appear before him?"
The children listened in a daze, only half-understanding.
The old man smiled again, stroking his beard as he continued:
"What I just talked about happened in the next county over. If you don't believe me, a haunting recently started at the branch Wang Family Ancestral Hall in Heng Village. The Wang Family has issued a massive reward, saying that as long as someone dares to stay the night in the ancestral hall, they'll pay ten thousand cash. It just so happens that you little brats have plenty of youthful fire in you. Dare you all go sleep in the ancestral hall for a night?"
"Really?"
"If you don't believe me, go home and ask your parents!"
The children looked at each other in dismay, all very frightened.
"Has anyone gone?"
"Yes. A few gamblers and drunkards from our village went. Aside from one brave fellow who got the money last month, the rest were so terrified they ran out in the middle of the night. Some even fell ill for a few days after returning."
After the old man finished, he added another sentence:
"If you don't believe me, you can go ask about that too!"
The children immediately shut their mouths.
Only Lin Jue, standing off to the side, revealed a strange expression.
The reason he was waiting here was to let the experienced and knowledgeable village elder finish a ghost story, so he could go over and ask him for a way to make money. Whether it was some odd job he could do, or relying on the elder's seniority to get him a position in the Shu clan's merchant caravan, as long as it made money, it was fine.
He hadn't expected to happen to hear this...
In the past, he had heard of drinking buddies getting drunk and betting on sleeping in a graveyard, and he had also heard many ghost stories from the old man's mouth in this very bridge pavilion. Right now, all of those memories surged up in his mind.
He recalled them carefully, thinking deeply.
Finally, the young man tightened his grip on his rice sack and took a step forward.
He walked along the stream and up into the bridge pavilion. Arriving in front of the amiable octogenarian, he naturally had to show a bit more respect, greeting him first:
"Great-Grandfather Shu."
"Ah, it's the boy from the Lin Family. What is it?"
"What you just said about the patriarch of the Wang Family of Heng Village offering a reward of ten thousand cash for sleeping in the ancestral hall for a night—is it true or false?"
"Hm? Don't tell me you want to try it?"
Although the Lin Family had a different surname, they were from the same village after all. How could the elder not know of their situation? He had even offered them some help in the past. Hearing Lin Jue ask this, he instantly guessed what he was thinking.
"Are there really ghosts in the Wang Family Ancestral Hall?" Lin Jue asked instead.
"How would I know? When I told these little brats to go try it just now, I was only trying to scare them. You can't just listen to my words and decide to go."
"..." Lin Jue fell silent for a moment before asking again, "Did someone really get the ten thousand cash?"
"Of course. I heard it was a drunkard from the county town. He was built strong and had a big pair of guts. I don't know if he'd ever practiced martial arts, but he went in and stayed the whole night. The next morning, he came out, took the money, and left."
"Then has anyone died there?"
"I haven't heard of that," the elder said. "Someone dying is a major affair. It's not some deep mountain or old forest. As long as it's a place where people live, the laws of the realm apply. Even if there really are ghosts and demons, they wouldn't dare kill anyone so casually."
Lin Jue stood still, thinking for a bit longer before saying, "Thank you, Great-Grandfather Shu."
"Are you really going? Aren't you afraid?"
The elder had already seen through his intentions.
"..."
Lin Jue was not a true naive youth. He had his own calculations and plans in mind, but he didn't voice any of them at this moment. Instead, he simply bowed in respect once more:
"Great-Grandfather Shu, please give me some guidance."
"Sigh..."
The old man sighed. "I'm not a Daoist priest, a ritual master, a witch, or an alchemist. What would I know about warding off demons and expelling evil? Even if there were a method, it would be useless. If it worked, do you think it would still be your turn to claim the reward?"
He paused and thought for a moment.
"It's just that I often hear people say humans only become ghosts after death, and ghosts are inherently weaker than humans. Even if mountain foxes and rats become spirits, at first they are only slightly stronger than they used to be. In truth, very few have high levels of cultivation.
"There is also an old saying: Demons rise from the hearts of men.
"You have never done anything evil, so you have a clear conscience. You are young, free of illness or disaster, and your vitality is robust. Ordinary demons and ghosts will not seek trouble with you. If you truly encounter one, you absolutely must not be afraid when facing them. Fear breeds a chaotic heart. A chaotic heart scatters the spirit, and when the spirit is scattered, ghosts can take advantage of the opening. If you are not afraid, your heart will be steady. With a steady heart, your spirit is whole. When your spirit is whole, demons and ghosts cannot violate you.
"That is why whenever strange things happen in a household, they always invite bold and spirited men to hold down the fort. Boldness comes first, and a robust spirit is second!
"Let alone demons and ghosts, it's the exact same when confronting another person.
"Your courage must never fade..."
Lin Jue listened carefully, his expression relatively calm.
Over the past year, most of the supernatural stories he had heard from the village elder followed the same lines.
Demons and ghosts were not necessarily stronger than humans.
And humans were not necessarily weaker than demons and ghosts.
There were demons and ghosts who bullied humans, and there were humans who bullied demons and ghosts.
And there were often cases of both sides becoming friends.
There were often chance encounters and fleeting bonds of fate.
Bizarre and fantastical, romantic and eerie.
Truly fascinating.
If there really were demons and ghosts in the world, they should at least somewhat align with the mortal legends.
It was still early morning, and the village at the foot of the mountain was incredibly peaceful. The houses were shrouded in a faint white mist. For a time, the only sounds were the chirping of birds in the trees and the babbling of the flowing water. The young man had already thanked the elder and headed home, carrying his sack of rice.
He thought as he walked.
He wondered if the strange happenings at the Wang Family Ancestral Hall in Heng Village were truly the work of ghosts, or just the mischief of someone with ulterior motives.
And he wondered what this world was really like.
Ten thousand cash for a reward...
He would go take a look today.