The two children who had smashed the river lanterns were crying loudly, their faces covered in tears and snot after being scolded by Wu Zhen. Once released, they limped away as fast as they could, clearly terrified and thinking they had encountered some villains. Seeing the unfortunate souls whose guiding lanterns had been sunk still floundering in the water, Wu Zhen clicked her tongue and went to a nearby stall to buy and light a few more river lanterns.
As the couple walked along the canal, people were releasing lanterns on both sides. In the wealthier neighborhoods nearby, there were more lanterns, some places almost covering the entire water surface. At one spot, some generous young master had bought so many river lanterns that they were blocking the waterway, and servants were using long poles to clear a path.
Wu Zhen looked on curiously for a moment and realized she recognized this generous young master. It was the white fox spirit, Master Bai, who had recently moved his entire clan to Chang’an.
Master Bai, originally standing dashingly to one side chatting with a blushing lady, suddenly locked eyes with Wu Zhen and Mei Zhuyu on the riverbank. Although both were wearing masks, Master Bai still recognized the couple. The fox spirit froze instantly, then quickly ducked behind a large willow tree, startling the lady he had been talking to.
Wu Zhen turned back, saying, “Come to think of it, when this Master Bai first settled in the spirit market, he was quite attentive to me. But later, for some reason, he would run away as soon as he saw me. How strange.”
Mei Zhuyu remained silent, recalling how he had warned the white fox spirit away from Wu Zhen, thinking she was an ordinary human at the time and suspecting Master Bai of ill intentions. He felt a twinge of embarrassment and chose not to respond.
Wu Zhen had mentioned it casually, but noticing Mei Zhuyu’s expression, she paused and then smiled with interest, studying her husband until he became uncomfortable.
“Did you do something, my lord?”
“You must have done something, didn’t you? Did you go and frighten him? Or perhaps you got jealous when you saw us talking?”
Mei Zhuyu didn’t understand why she was so excited. He explained quietly, “No, it’s not that. At the time, I thought you were an ordinary person and was worried the white fox might approach you with harmful intentions, so I spoke to him briefly.”
Hearing this honest answer, Wu Zhen sighed and held onto her husband’s waist as they walked forward. “I would have been happier if you said it was out of jealousy.”
Mei Zhuyu didn’t quite understand why, but after they had walked for a while, Wu Zhen heard her husband’s low voice beside her, “There was some selfish motive… He… is handsome, more handsome than me. I was afraid you might like him.”
Wu Zhen was not an easy person to please. In the past, many young men and women had tried to make her happy, but few had succeeded. On the contrary, many had only managed to annoy her with their futile efforts. But now, with just a few words, Mei Zhuyu had made her beam with joy, her voice softening considerably.
“I’ve seen many handsome people before, but I didn’t like any of them. I only like you, my lord.”
Wu Zhen waited to see her husband’s reaction after saying this, but saw him frown instead.
“What are those?” Mei Zhuyu asked seriously, pulling Wu Zhen closer to the water and pointing at something in the river. Beneath the flower lanterns, they could see the shadows of many fish, each about six inches long. With his keen eyesight, Mei Zhuyu could tell these fish weren’t physical entities, but mere illusions, moving through the water without disturbing its flow.
As they watched, one fish suddenly leapt from the water and swallowed the souls from two guiding lanterns in one gulp. Mei Zhuyu furrowed his brow and began to form a hand seal… only to be stopped halfway by Wu Zhen.
She continued to watch calmly, saying, “Don’t rush. Let’s continue our previous conversation.”
Mei Zhuyu: “…”
Wu Zhen: “It’s alright, just watch. Nothing’s wrong.”
The school of fish began to surface continuously, swallowing the wandering souls. As each soul was consumed, its lantern would extinguish, and the fish shadow that had swallowed it would grow slightly larger.
Wu Zhen watched with great interest, showing no intention of intervening. Mei Zhuyu sensed something was amiss and asked her, “Weren’t you supposed to prevent these things from harming the wandering souls?” Earlier, when they were watching the lanterns from the tower, she had briefly mentioned that something would try to eat the souls, and she was responsible for driving those things away.
Wu Zhen, grinning, walked along the edge of the canal, half her body suspended over the water. After watching for a while, she explained, “I am indeed supposed to prevent certain things from devouring the wandering souls, but not these soul fish.”
Only then did Mei Zhuyu realize he had misunderstood. Relieved, he joined her in watching the fish shadows, which Wu Zhen called “soul fish,” consume the wandering souls.
As they walked, Wu Zhen explained to her husband, “During the Zhongyuan Festival, the waters connect to the netherworld, but not everything that enters the water can reach the underworld. They must pass through the River Styx. In the netherworld, the River Styx is indeed a river, but in the mortal world, what we call the ‘River Styx’ is formed by these fish shadows. They swallow the wandering souls here, then travel in schools through the bottom of the water back to the netherworld, connecting to the River Styx and carrying these souls back.”
“They are manifestations of the water from the River Styx. Although fish-shaped, they are not actually fish. They can neither see nor hear, but they can sense the guiding lanterns. Therefore, only by riding on these lanterns can the wandering souls be captured by these fish shadows.”
Mei Zhuyu listened attentively. Looking back at the water, he indeed saw that the wandering souls remained calm as they were devoured by the fish shadows. They seemed to understand that these fish were their path to their final destination, and many eagerly entered the fishes’ bellies.
Although Mei Zhuyu, having grown up in the Changxi Temple with teachings from his master and senior disciples, as well as ancient texts left by predecessors, was considered knowledgeable, he truly didn’t know about these things. So listening to Wu Zhen’s detailed explanation was quite intriguing.
Seeing his interest, Wu Zhen elaborated further. The school of fish in the river, after swallowing the wandering souls, slowly grew to several feet wide, almost filling the water’s surface. Then they stopped consuming souls and began to sink slowly, about to disappear into the water.
At that moment, a clear bird call suddenly rang out from the sky.
Mei Zhuyu looked up and saw countless white birds descending from between the clouds. These birds had outstretched wings, light as clouds, with elegant and beautiful white feathers that were particularly striking even in the darkness of night.
Despite the sudden appearance of so many white birds from the clouds, the crowds by the river remained oblivious, continuing their festivities.
Mei Zhuyu felt a sudden gust of wind beside him, and when he looked back, Wu Zhen had vanished from her spot.
A giant cat’s shadow appeared in the sky. This cat shadow was slender, almost not quite cat-like, more resembling some other, more terrifying creature. It stood above the canal, opening its mouth to catch several white birds that were trying to fly down to the river to grab the fish shadows. It swallowed them whole, and the falling white feathers dissipated into smoke in mid-air.
Mei Zhuyu had been prepared to help, but from start to finish, he hadn’t been able to act. Wu Zhen single-handedly maintained control over the canal, not letting a single white bird approach the water’s surface.
The fish shadows sank in groups and reappeared in waves, with more and more lanterns on the river’s surface extinguishing.
Unable to catch the fish shadows, the white birds seemed to grow more desperate, launching increasingly fierce attacks. The giant cat raised its paw and mercilessly swatted the white birds away. One fell at Mei Zhuyu’s feet, and as he saw it still struggling, he thought to finish it off. However, he found that neither talismans nor spells had any effect on it, and he couldn’t even touch the white bird.
The enormous cat shadow continued to display its might, opening its mouth like a giant net to swallow all the white birds.
Seeing her actions, Mei Zhuyu suddenly worried if Wu Zhen would have a stomachache later, as she always seemed to have a habit of swallowing things indiscriminately.
While he was pondering this concern, the white bird at his feet struggled and dissipated, leaving only a puff of white smoke. Mei Zhuyu reached out to touch the smoke and suddenly had a realization: these birds seemed to be manifestations of life force.
Unlike malevolent energy, life force is harmless to humans, but it poses a threat to departed wandering souls. The reason these birds wanted to prey on the fish shadows in the river was likely because the fish shadows, formed from the water of the River Styx, carried the energy of death. The two energies naturally conflicted, resulting in this struggle between fish and birds.
Realizing he couldn’t be of help, Mei Zhuyu stopped trying and simply stood watching. Wu Zhen didn’t need his assistance; she dealt with all the white birds with ease. As the hour of zi (11 pm-1 am) passed, no more white birds appeared from the clouds, and all the fish shadows in the water had sunk.
The ghost gate had closed, and the night of the Zhongyuan Festival had come to an end.
Instead of his wife, Mei Zhuyu was greeted by a tabby cat that looked like it had overeaten, its belly round and full.
The cat landed in his hands and instinctively climbed onto his arm to settle down, involuntarily letting out a burp. Covering its mouth with a furry paw, the tabby cat said, “I swallowed too much life force, my stomach feels bloated. Can you carry me back?”
Mei Zhuyu gently touched the furry belly, which was indeed round and full. When he pressed it slightly, the tabby cat burped again, exhaling a puff of white mist.
“Don’t press it,” Wu Zhen complained, swatting his hand away. She thought to herself, if he pressed any harder, her stomach might burst.
Mei Zhuyu glanced back at the canal behind them, then hesitantly asked as he carried the cat home, “If you’re really uncomfortable, perhaps I could prepare a bowl of talisman water for you.”
Upon hearing this, Wu Zhen promptly refused, “No, no need. If you make that stuff again, I won’t go back.”
Mei Zhuyu fell silent. He actually thought the talisman water was quite good; it would help expel the contents of her stomach and make her feel much better. But Wu Zhen clearly didn’t share this view; the mere thought of its disgusting taste made her want to bristle.
Left with no choice, Mei Zhuyu had to spend the entire night rubbing the tabby cat’s belly once they got home. He struggled to find the right amount of pressure; too much would cause the tabby cat to exhale clouds of mist. When he pressed too hard, the tabby cat would swipe at him with its claws. Mei Zhuyu endured countless swipes throughout the night.
While the couple had an eventful Zhongyuan Festival, they were unaware that someone else had experienced an indescribable ordeal that night.
Shortly after nightfall on the Zhongyuan Festival, Mei Si passed through the Eastern Market. He and a few friends, including Young Master Zhao, had just finished drinking and were preparing to head home when Mei Si remembered that there was a shop in the Eastern Market that sold particularly delicious yangmei cakes, which his parents loved. He changed course and entered the Eastern Market.
The Eastern Market tonight was even more bustling and lively than Mei Si remembered from previous years. In his drunken state, he thought that this year’s Zhongyuan night market almost rivaled the Lantern Festival market of the first lunar month.
As Mei Si walked forward, he suddenly realized something was amiss. He couldn’t find the shop that sold yangmei cakes. It was supposed to be at the end of this street, but now it had been replaced by an apothecary.
“Am I lost?” This thought slowly bubbled up in Mei Si’s alcohol-addled mind. He belatedly realized that he didn’t seem to be in the familiar Eastern Market anymore, even though he was certain he had walked in the right direction.
Turning his head in bewilderment, Mei Si noticed another oddity. Although everyone was supposed to wear demon masks tonight, some of the people walking by seemed to have not only put on masks but also attached fake tails?
Why would they add tails? Was this some new kind of street performance? Mei Si stared dumbly at the tails of the passing spirits.