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墨書 Inktalez
The village elders say that many things, over time, develop a spirit and can become sentient.
In one household, there was a painting depicting a group of people heading to the market. It seemed to have been hanging on the wall since the establishment of the People's Commune and remained there until the Household Responsibility System was implemented. Over the years, the painting not only retained its colors but the figures within it appeared even more vibrant and lifelike.
Back then, there was no electricity in the countryside, and oil lamps consumed a lot of fuel. People generally had dinner early and went to bed soon after. However, for some time, this family found themselves waking up at night to strange sounds: the creaking of a handcart, the snorting of a Mule, the swishing of a Shoulder Pole, and what sounded like a group of people chatting back and forth. When morning came, they asked their neighbors if they had heard anything unusual during the night—there had been quite a crowd passing through the alley—but everyone claimed they hadn’t heard a thing.
As time went on, unease began to settle in their hearts. They decided to invite a master from Three Miles and Five Villages known for his Daoist skills to come and “take a look” (which in their dialect meant to investigate). Although the master did not wear a Daoist robe or crown, he carried a compass and Peach Wood Sword among other tools. He began to sway them left and right as he entered the alley, but upon reaching their courtyard, he found nothing unusual.
The master was puzzled; such occurrences typically indicated the presence of a supernatural creature, and with his abilities, he should have detected something. The family was very hospitable; regardless of whether the master found anything or not, they invited him inside for tea.
In those rural areas, houses were typically open-plan regardless of size; only when children grew older or families expanded would they use mats or tall sorghum stalks to create simple partitions. This family had young children, so their three main rooms were interconnected. Upon entering, the master immediately noticed the painting hanging above the bed.
He called the homeowner over: “Take a look at this painting; does anything seem off?” The homeowner examined it closely but shook his head in confusion. The master then instructed him to reach out and touch it. At that moment, the homeowner felt something unusual: what had once been a thin piece of paper now bulged outward as if the figures of people and trees had become three-dimensional!
The homeowner was taken aback; depicted in the painting were newlyweds—a Young Man pushing a wheelbarrow with his Little Wife beside him—along with merchants bustling about with their loaded Mules and Shoulder Poles, all appearing lively and cheerful!
The master reached out and pulled down the painting with his Peach Wood Sword, tossing it into the stove: “Anything that has existed for long enough can develop a spirit. This painting is old enough that its figures and animals have gained sentience. They dare not cause mischief during the day but become restless at night; what you’ve been hearing at night is everything depicted in this painting!”
Once the painting was burned to ashes, that family never again heard those strange noises at night.
There was another similar story about a household with a daughter who had just turned eighteen—an age full of budding romance. That spring, she began dreaming of a Handsome Young Man who would visit her at midnight. At first, they exchanged sweet nothings, but soon he began staying overnight in her room… Yet no matter which day it was, he always left at dawn when the rooster crowed, leaving her to wake up alone.
As time passed, her mother noticed something amiss: although life was tough at home, her daughter’s figure grew increasingly plump. After two months without seeing any signs of her monthly cycle in the bathroom, her mother finally became alarmed.
No matter how much she pressed her daughter for answers, the girl insisted she was innocent and had never behaved improperly! However, her belly continued to grow visibly larger.
In that rural setting, such matters were considered an immense disgrace; her father was furious. The girl’s Aunt, who possessed Daoist skills, heard about it and rushed over. She comforted her sobbing niece and coaxed her into revealing what happened in her dreams after explaining everything thoroughly. The girl nodded in agreement with her aunt’s words.
That night in her dream, the Handsome Young Man returned again. In the midst of their intimate encounter under cover of darkness, when dawn approached and he began dressing to leave, she seized an opportunity while he wasn’t paying attention to secretly tie a strand of knitting yarn onto his clothing. Due to the darkness, he didn’t notice anything amiss.
As dawn broke, Aunt led her brother and sister-in-law along the path of yarn, only to discover that the other end was tied to a massive Gray Herb in the backyard. The elder explained that this perennial Gray Herb had gained sentience, transforming into human form to seek out flowers and indulge in earthly pleasures, causing trouble for humanity.
—What happened to that girl afterward? Don't ask me; the story ends here.
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