Records of Mysterious Things in the Southern Dynasties

Chapter 25 Soul-Returning Incense

At noon the next day, Mr. Feng was in his study, writing the four lines of poetry he had heard yesterday, when he suddenly heard a servant report that the temple priest from the Nanshan Temple in the village had arrived.

He quickly dropped his pen and ran barefoot to the door to greet him. He saw Ren Yuan wearing a blue cloth Taoist robe with a black edge, a Ziwu Taoist hairpin in his hair, a embossed gourd hanging from his waist, and a seven-star peach wood sword on his back. He was riding on a red leopard, and a delicate little Taoist boy was following him.

Whether it works or not is another matter, but this style is 90% cool.

Feng Shusheng wanted to go forward, but he was very afraid of the leopard. Ren Yuan smiled and said, "Don't worry, Feng Sheng, this is the spiritual mount of the mountain god. It is smarter than humans and will not hurt anyone."

Only then did he dare to help Ren Yuan get off the leopard, and ordered the servants to send the leopard to the stable and feed it well.

Ren Yuan said calmly, "No need."

After saying this, the little Taoist boy waved his hand and turned the red leopard into a horse armor, and put it into his pocket.

Scholar Feng was amazed and quickly invited the young master to come in and take a seat, and served him some good tea.

Ren Yuan took a sip of the tea flavored with green onion and ginger... Hey, this taste is enough to make tea eggs.

He put down his teacup and said to the scholar, "The mountain god has informed me of Mr. Feng's prayer."

"I really miss my late wife. I went to the Hebo Temple, but they said it couldn't be done." Feng Shusheng sighed sadly and looked at Ren Yuan eagerly, "I wonder if the mountain god can make my wish come true?"

"What the River God can do, the Mountain God can do; what the River God cannot do, the Mountain God can also do." Then I heard the little master bull say.

Feng Sheng was overjoyed when he heard this, and was about to thank him, but Ren Yuan changed the subject and said, "It's just that the different paths of yin and yang are determined by heaven, and it's extremely difficult to go against heaven. If you want to revive someone who has passed away many years ago, you need a very special and precious material."

"What is it?" Feng Sheng asked hurriedly.

"Soul-Returning Incense." Ren Yuan said in a deep voice, "Have you ever heard of Feng Lang?"

"I have an impression." Feng Sheng thought for a moment and said, "It seems that during the reign of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, the Yuezhi Kingdom sent envoys across the Ruoshui River to pay tribute to the Soul-Returning Incense. It is said that this is a rare magical item, and its fragrance can be smelled for hundreds of miles. Dead bodies on the ground will come back to life if they smell its fragrance."

"That's right. Mr. Feng is really knowledgeable and has a good memory. As you know, this thing is not produced in the Central Plains, and now it is blocked from the Western Regions, making it even harder to find. There is only one left in the small temple." Ren Yuan sighed.

"Please don't be stingy." Feng Sheng hurriedly ordered people to present generous gifts and promised to reward them handsomely after the matter was accomplished.

It was not until he offered a hundred strings of coins that Ren Yuan said with satisfaction: "Since you are so infatuated with me, I will fulfill your wish."

He then solemnly warned, "But I have to say this in advance. As the saying goes, 'People are three parts afraid of ghosts, and ghosts are seven parts afraid of people.' If you want to meet the late Madam, not only can I not give you any protection, but even in the room where you meet, all swords, mirrors, erotic paintings and other objects that can ward off evil will be removed. Otherwise, even if I call her back, she will not dare to come near you."

Mr. Feng said that it was no problem, and said confidently, "Everyone, please evacuate. My wife and I have been in love for half our lives, and my wife will never harm me."

Ren Yuan shook his head and said, "Even if she doesn't want to harm you, the ghost's soul is incomplete and her mind is too simple. She might do something bad with good intentions and hurt you unintentionally. So I advise you to think twice."

Mr. Feng said he would keep it in mind, but he remained determined and insisted on seeing his deceased wife.

Seeing this, Ren Yuan stopped trying to persuade him and ordered Feng Sheng to prepare the strongest rooster in the house, and then gave him a quiet room to rest and wait for the sun to set.

When there was no one else in the quiet room, the little Taoist boy's illusion disappeared and he became a senior sister again. This was the first time that Ren Yuan came out to perform a ritual, so she was worried and wanted to follow him.

"A Yuan, why are you still trying to extort money?" The elder sister asked in confusion, "What if the pilgrims are scared away from coming to our store?"

"Sister, haven't you heard the saying 'The Way is not easily passed on, the Dharma is not sold cheaply'?" Ren Yuan said, "If we sell it cheaply, we will be annoyed by too many people coming to us. If we are too busy to handle it, it will also ruin your reputation."

"There is some truth in what you said." The senior sister pinched her porcelain-like chin, as easy to fool as ever.

"I have inquired about it. This scholar Feng is one of the three elders in this village. He has a rich family. Not to mention a hundred strings of cash, he can also take out a thousand strings of cash." Ren Yuan lowered his voice and said:
"Besides, we extort money from the rich in order to run the Charity Bureau, the Orphanage, the Anjifang and the Louze Garden. The money cannot all come from Xiejiazhuang, as that would be too conspicuous. We have to make the big families bleed to cover me." "I see." The senior sister was overjoyed to hear this. She would of course wholeheartedly support this kind of good deed that would benefit the people and greatly enhance the reputation of the mountain temple.

"Then we can rip him off and give to the poor!"

~~
At dusk, Ren Yuan asked Feng Shusheng's unmarried sister to take him to the Feng family's ancestral tomb.

When they arrived at the cemetery, it was already dark. Ren Yuan ordered the little Taoist boy to light a handful of incense, one stick at each grave, and greeted each one. He then lit a talisman and chanted the "soul-calming spell":

"Left and right, do not panic. Everyone stays in their positions, inside and outside the country are peaceful, hurry and obey the order!"

Ren Yuan then cut off the head of a chicken in front of the grave of Feng Sheng's deceased wife, and carefully sprinkled the chicken blood around the grave to prevent the wrong soul from being summoned.

Finally, he ordered Feng Sheng's sister to stand by the grave with a lantern.

After completing the preparations, Ren Yuancai burned some paper in front of the inscriptionless stele, lit a stick of incense, and then rang a bell to perform a ritual, chanting:
"The gates of heaven and earth, the gates of the four directions and eight directions are open to ghosts. The Yin must be guarded, the Yang must be at peace, the afterlife knows and listen to my curse..."

As he recited the words, the temperature around him dropped noticeably, ghostly blue fires danced in the air, and whimpering and wailing sounds were heard.

“In the underworld, those who see my fragrance will come! In the dark underworld, those who hear my voice will return!”

The last word "return" fell heavily to the ground, and there was a bang. The lantern in Feng Sheng's sister's hand went out instantly, and then lit up again.

However, the original orange light turned into a chilling blue-green color, flickering faintly in the lanterns.

The noisy cemetery suddenly became quiet, and the ghost lights and the howling of ghosts and wolves all disappeared. Feng Sheng's sister was so frightened that she dared not breathe.

"Why don't you take your sister-in-law home?" Ren Yuan growled, grabbing a handful of dirt from the grave.

Feng Sheng's sister suppressed her fear and said in a trembling voice, "Sister-in-law, come home with me."

After saying that, he swallowed his saliva, and walked back carefully holding the lantern, fearing that if he moved too much, the will-o'-the-wisp inside would jump out.

~~
The journey was uneventful and I arrived home safely.

Feng Sheng had been waiting eagerly, and hurried over to ask Ren Yuan, "Did you pick him up?"

"I took it back." Ren Yuan nodded.

"Why can't I see it?" Feng Sheng looked around in confusion.

"Don't worry." Ren Yuan said, pouring out a cup of seven treasures juice from the gourd, which is the pure water for offering to the gods. He added a handful of grave soil, mixed it well, and handed it to him, saying:

"Apply it on your eyelids after entering the room, and you will be able to see your wife."

Feng Sheng thanked him, holding the wine cup and lantern and about to go into the house. But Ren Yuan grabbed him and said seriously: "When you hear the drum, you must get up and leave immediately. You must not look back, otherwise you will bear all the consequences!"

"Okay, okay." Feng Sheng agreed repeatedly and couldn't wait to enter the inner room. He first inserted the lantern on the lamp stand, then dipped his fingers in mud water and smeared it on his eyelids.

When he opened his eyes again, the whites of his eyes turned blood red, and the world in front of him became hazy and distorted. But Feng Sheng was ecstatic because he saw his wife, whom he had been thinking about day and night, really appeared before him!
She was still wearing her favorite dress, and her voice, appearance and smile were the same as when she was healthy.

"Husband..." Madam Feng smiled with tears in her eyes, her voice as soft as a cuckoo.

"My wife..." Feng Sheng was extremely excited, tears streaming down his face, and he hugged his wife tightly.

ps. A new day, please vote~~~~
(End of this chapter)