A scholar surnamed Fan was lodging at an inn. After finishing his meal, he lit the lamp, got into bed, and closed his eyes to rest. Suddenly, a maidservant hurried in, carrying a bundle, a dressing case, and a mirror, which she placed one by one upon the table before turning and leaving. A short while later, a young married woman emerged from the room and began to apply her makeup before the mirror, now arranging her hair, now inserting an ornate hairpin, busy for a long time and showing no sign of stopping.

Moments passed before footsteps sounded again; the same maidservant returned, this time bringing a basin of hot water and a towel. The young woman dipped her hand into the basin, moistened the towel, and washed her face while the maid stood by to attend her. Having finished washing, the maidservant excused herself and departed.

The young woman opened the bundle, took out new clothes and shoes, dressed herself elaborately, and then proceeded to apply rouge and powder to her face. Scholar Fan thought to himself, "This must be a woman who has eloped; dressed so beautifully, she is surely going to meet her lover."

When the toilette was complete, the young woman took out a long sash, hung it from the ceiling beam, tied a knot, and then stepped onto a stool, placing her head into the loop of the rope and calmly hanging herself. With a single movement, her eyes clamped shut, and her breath ceased. After the young woman died, her eyebrows shot straight up, her tongue protruded a full two inches or more, and her face was utterly ghastly, like that of a demon.

Scholar Fan was greatly terrified and scrambled out of the guest room, shouting to the innkeeper, "A dead person, a dead person!" The innkeeper entered the room to check, but the young woman had vanished. The innkeeper's face turned ashen, and he murmured, "My daughter-in-law hanged herself here before; could the woman just now have been her?"