Yi Shui had a wife named Madam Wang, and the couple enjoyed a harmonious and deeply affectionate life together. However, it was not long before Ma died young, leaving Madam Wang a widow at home. Her parents urged her to remarry, but she refused. Her mother-in-law, pitying her youth, also tried to persuade her, yet Madam Wang remained steadfast in her fidelity, vowing never to take another husband. Her mother pleaded, "Daughter, your determination to remain chaste is commendable, but you are too young and have no heir. If you remarry now, there is still time. I have seen many women who, like you, initially swore they would never remarry, only to regret it bitterly in the end. A woman remarrying is merely human nature; no one will blame you."

Madam Wang replied with solemn gravity, "This daughter will never marry again. If Mother insists further, the only recourse will be death." Her mother, helpless, had no choice but to let the matter rest. Madam Wang hired an artisan to craft a clay statue of her late husband, and every time she ate, she poured wine and made offerings to it, just as she had done when he was alive.

One night, as Madam Wang was preparing for bed, she suddenly saw the clay figure yawn, stretch languidly, step down onto the floor, and in the blink of an eye, its form swelled to become a living man—it was her husband, Ma, returned. Madam Wang was greatly startled and cried out for her mother, but Ma stopped her, saying, "Do not be alarmed. Your fidelity since my death is a blessing for which I am grateful. Having such a daughter-in-law honors the entire Ma lineage. My father’s virtue was flawed in life, and the Ma family was fated to end without an heir. However, your chastity moved the King of the Underworld, who has specially permitted me to return to fulfill our bond. I must remain until a son is born to carry on the line, after which I must depart again." Hearing this, Madam Wang was overcome with mingled sorrow and joy. They went to bed and shared the intimacy they once had.

After about a month, Madam Wang felt a stirring in her belly. Ma said to her, "The allotted time is up; we must part now forever." He never appeared again after that. Madam Wang concealed her pregnancy at first, but as time passed and her abdomen swelled beyond concealment, she secretly revealed the truth to her mother. Her mother did not believe her, yet observing her daughter day in and day out without ever seeing her associate with any outsider, she remained deeply perplexed.

Ten months later, Madam Wang indeed gave birth to a baby boy. When she told the story of his origin, all who heard burst into laughter, none believing her. Madam Wang felt wronged but had no way to prove her honesty. The village head, who held a grudge against Ma, reported the matter of Madam Wang bearing a child to the magistrate's court. The county magistrate summoned the neighbors, but none offered any testimony that differed from her account. The magistrate pondered for a moment and then declared, "It is said that the child of a spirit has no shadow. If he has a shadow, he must be false."

The child was carried into the sunlight; his shadow was faint, like wisps of smoke. The magistrate then ordered his subordinates to prick the child's finger and drip the blood onto the clay figure. The blood immediately soaked in, whereas when they tested it on another clay figure, the blood merely wiped away. Only then did they believe Madam Wang had not lied.

Several years later, the child grew up, his appearance and demeanor strikingly resembling Ma in every way, and the doubts of the villagers were finally resolved.