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墨書 Inktalez
When my grandmother was alive, she lived in the countryside. During that time, my mother often took me back to visit her. Each visit not only brought delicious food but also thrilling ghost stories.
This particular story begins with my grandmother in her youth. Back then, she was exceptionally beautiful and had a kind temperament, attracting countless matchmakers who nearly wore out the threshold of her home. Among many suitors, my maternal grandfather carefully selected a handsome young man.
Upon hearing the news, the young man was so excited that he couldn't sleep all night. He rode a donkey through the night to present a token of his affection. My grandmother looked at the young man and then at the token, moved to tears. The young man smiled and said, "This is an antique Golden Hairpin that I specially had someone buy for me. I swear I will give it to the most beautiful girl in the world, and clearly, you are that girl."
Though my grandmother was delighted by the young man's sweet words, she was even more enamored with the Golden Hairpin. Unable to resist, she placed it in her hair and playfully pretended to be a bride, admiring herself shyly from side to side.
Finally, the long-awaited wedding day arrived. The groom sent an elaborate sedan chair carried by eight bearers, accompanied by lively music and festivities, creating a grand atmosphere.
At the moment my grandmother sat in the flower sedan chair, she felt certain she was the happiest woman in the world. But who could have predicted that strange events would unfold along the way? First, they encountered two fierce bandits. Although there were many people in the wedding procession, they still lost a box of dowry.
The groom refused to give up and led everyone in a desperate chase after them. Fearing further mishaps, my grandmother quickly removed the Golden Hairpin from her hair and carefully locked it away in her jewelry box.
As she anxiously awaited the groom's return, her sedan chair suddenly began to rise into the air without warning. Soon after, music filled the air again; however, this tune sounded far from festive—it resembled a mournful dirge instead.
My grandmother's heart sank as she sensed something was terribly wrong. Gathering her courage, she peered outside. What she saw nearly scared her soul away. The bearers of her sedan chair had sprouted long braids and their faces were grotesquely decayed. Most horrifying of all, they had no legs and floated through the air as they moved forward. "These are no longer my original bearers; they are clearly ghosts carrying the chair!" my grandmother thought in terror.
The Ghostly Sedan Chair Bearer heard her exclamation and abruptly turned their heads, revealing their ghastly faces before swiftly floating deeper into the mountains with the flower sedan chair.
My grandmother's instinct for survival surged within her as she seized an opportunity and leaped out of the sedan chair with all her might. In her panic, she crashed into a nearby rock and lost consciousness. When she finally regained her senses, she found herself lying in a patch of grass. Just then, she heard the sound of a Suona nearby; it turned out that those ghostly wedding bearers had not gone far but were spinning around in an open area not too far away.
Looking up, my grandmother saw several scattered graves in that open space with crooked tombstones that appeared long abandoned. She later recounted how terrified she had been at that moment; yet strangely enough, that fear dissipated as curiosity took over—what could these ghosts possibly want? After what felt like an incense stick's worth of time passed, the flower sedan chair finally descended slowly back to the ground.
As soon as the palanquin was set down, the ghosts hurriedly began to dig up the grave. Once they had opened it, they retrieved a wooden box from the flower palanquin and placed it inside the coffin. My grandmother saw clearly that the wooden box was her own makeup case, which contained the antique Golden Hairpin. After burying the makeup box, the ghosts respectfully knelt before the grave and then vanished without a trace.
My grandmother felt reluctant to part with the Golden Hairpin but dared not approach the grave. She stumbled down the mountain to find the groom, tearfully recounting her experience. Upon hearing this, the groom's eyes widened in anger as he declared, "Since you cherish that Golden Hairpin so much, even if I have to face death at the hands of ghosts, I will retrieve it!" With that, he led everyone back up the mountain to search. However, despite their efforts scouring the area, they could not find that cluster of graves.
Although the Golden Hairpin was ultimately not recovered, the groom's fearless determination deeply moved my grandmother. Thus, they chose another auspicious day and held a new wedding ceremony. This groom later became my grandfather.
Later on, my grandfather sought to understand my grandmother's encounter with the Ghostly Palanquin by visiting a wise man. After listening to his tale, the wise man stroked his beard and pondered for a moment before saying, "That Golden Hairpin likely came from a deceased person's tomb. In the past, only women of high status living near a prince's residence would wear such an exquisite ornament. After the fall of the Qing Dynasty, a princess who became a commoner lived in sorrow until her death; her grave might be on that mountain. The Golden Hairpin you gifted your grandmother could very well be a burial item belonging to that princess."
"In that case," my grandfather mused, "the ghosts carrying the palanquin must have been servants of the royal family. Loyal in life and even more so in death, they seek to recover stolen possessions for their master—truly a testament to their unwavering loyalty!" The wise man shook his head slightly and sighed.
Though my grandmother's story was quite fantastical, I found it utterly captivating. Each time I heard it, I couldn't help but snuggle into her embrace, feeling both frightened and curious.
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