Chapter 164: Talisman Paper
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Ye Ling glanced at Lin Fang one last time before turning around and walking to the well on the west side of the courtyard. She threw three green-brown pills into it.
After completing these actions, Ye Ling was prepared to leave when she suddenly noticed piles of ashes in the four corners of the Wu family’s courtyard.
Ye Ling frowned in confusion and walked to the ashes. She saw a few pieces of torn paper that had not been completely burned in the ashes. There were also various strange symbols drawn on the paper with red cinnabar.
It looked like talisman papers obtained from a Taoist or a witch.
Although it had been thirty years since the founding of the People’s Republic of China, the rural areas were still very superstitious. From Aunt Mei’s trust in the witch doctor, it could be seen that the rural people were still very afraid of ghosts and gods. Therefore, the social status of Taoists and witches was still very high.
Why did these things appear in the Wu family’s courtyard?
Ye Ling knew Lin Fang very well. Lin Fang was a very stingy person. These talismans were not cheap. If she had nothing to do, why would she buy these talismans?
Ye Ling took a deep look at the pile of ashes and turned to leave through the back door. After locking the door, Ye Ling placed the key in the gap between the mud bricks.
Ye Ling climbed up the hill and walked to the main road. By then, the sky was already completely bright, and there were already people carrying farm tools out of the house.
Ye Ling pondered for a moment before finding a friendly-looking woman. “Auntie, has this place been peaceful recently?” she asked.
Ye Ling’s words were more euphemistic, but the rural woman would understand.
Ye Ling inquired if there had been any recent supernatural occurrences in the area.
Upon hearing Ye Ling’s words, the village woman’s expression grew nervous. She quickly approached Ye Ling and lowered her voice. “Don’t you know about this? The back mountain near Lin Fang’s house has been haunted. When she went up the mountain to pick mushrooms, she saw a ghost. Later on, the ghost followed her home, and during that time, she could see ghosts every night!”
“Huh?” Ye Ling furrowed her brow upon hearing the woman’s words. “When did Lin Fang see the ghost?” she asked.
After a moment of thought, the woman provided a rough date.
Ye Ling was momentarily surprised. The haunting at Lin Fang’s house occurred just a few days after her accident.
Was this a coincidence? Ye Ling had a sense that something was amiss.
“Speaking of which, Lin Fang was miserable during that time. She didn’t even dare to go out of the door. She was so scared that she lost more than ten pounds. When I went to visit her, she was so scared that she hid under the bed. She looked like a mouse that couldn’t see the light.” The woman sighed.
Hearing about Lin Fang’s difficult situation, Ye Ling naturally felt no sympathy.
If there were ghosts in this world, Ye Ling felt that the ghosts that came to Lin Fang had a sense of justice and knew how to find bad people.
However, Ye Ling still didn’t believe in ghosts.
“What happened after that?” Ye Ling asked calmly.
“Later? What else could she do? Although haunted incidents are rare, they have occurred a few times in our area in the past few decades. Lin Fang could only go to a Taoist to obtain talismans. She went to Wudang Mountain in the city and spent a significant amount of money to hire a Taoist to perform two exorcism rituals. Only then did the ghost stop bothering Lin Fang.”
“However, the Taoist mentioned that this ghost was very fierce. The exorcism ritual had to be performed every six months, and the talismans had to be burned every three days. Tsk, tsk, those talismans are not cheap. Lin Fang told me that her family had no money left.
“So that’s how those burned -to-ashes talismans came about, ” Ye Ling sneered in her heart.
After this haunted incident, Lin Fang must have given all her savings to the Taoist who performed the exorcism.
Ye Ling was Lin Fang’s daughter-in-law in her previous life. She knew that even though the Wu family was poor, Lin Fang still had some money on hand. However, Lin Fang did not give her a single cent.
When Wu De married Ye Ling, Lin Fang said that Ye Ling was no longer a good girl. She felt that Ye Ling had married up and even felt wronged for Wu De. Therefore, she didn’t provide any dowry money to Ye Ling, and they didn’t have a wedding ceremony. Instead, they only invited a few relatives and neighbors to have a meal.
After the wedding, Lin Fang made her do all the housework. After dinner, she had to wait for Lin Fang and Wu De to finish eating before Ye Ling could sit at the dining table.
Sometimes, when there wasn’t enough food at home, Ye Ling would go without a meal..
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