“Ping'er, why don't you tell us what exactly happened to Old Man Ji?” Man Niao Niao urged from behind me. That single sentence jolted me awake. Until that moment, my fear of Old Man Ji, triggered by Qin Ping'er’s terror, had been purely subjective speculation. What exactly was going on remained unclear. “What is Old Man Ji doing?” I pressed my face against the small hole in the window paper, my voice tight with urgency, my mouth almost touching Qin Ping'er's lips.

Qin Ping'er jumped, pulling her mouth back slightly, which afforded me a fraction more clarity into the room’s scene. Old Man Ji appeared to be kneeling before a woman who was almost entirely covered—her body obscured—his head bowed deeply to the floor. “Old Man Ji… is kneeling?” I asked Qin Ping'er for confirmation, bewildered.

“Yes. As soon as he came in, he took one look at that sister-in-law, and then… he just plop fell to his knees… He didn't even help that older auntie with the birth… He’s on the floor, shaking like… like a sieve… I tried to pull him up, but… but I couldn’t budge him. It was like… like he’d grown roots into the floor. And he kept… kept muttering something…” Qin Ping’er gasped out the description of Old Man Ji's state between ragged breaths.

My anxiety spiked. I turned to Qiao Ge, who stood just as dumbfounded, and said, “Brother, I apologize. In this situation, we can’t worry about propriety anymore. You’re concerned for your wife and child, and I’m worried about my Old Man Ji. Plus, something this bizarre has happened. Look…”

Qiao Ge snapped out of his daze and quickly nodded. “Okay… alright!”

Seeing Qiao Ge set aside his reservations and agree to let me enter, I turned back to Qin Ping'er. “Ping'er, first find a sheet or something to cover your sister-in-law. We need to go in and see what’s going on with Old Man Ji…” Qin Ping’er agreed with a small sound, “Okay, but don't look inside… Wait until I cover her first…” Then, with a shuffle and a thud, she walked away. I pushed the door, only to find the wooden barrier, which should have swung open with a nudge, was solid as iron. I panicked internally. Why had Ping'er bolted the door? Was she afraid I would barge in? It didn’t matter if I went in, but surely her husband shouldn’t be barred too? I glanced sideways at the helpless Qiao Ge, thinking, The nerve of this fellow, making the door so darn sturdy!

The few seconds felt like an eternity, but Qin Ping'er finally returned. I called out first, “Ping’er, why did you lock the door? Were you afraid Man Niao Niao would peek, or did you not trust me either?” Man Niao Niao, standing behind me, angrily kicked my backside.

“I didn’t lock it… This is strange, the door won’t open!” Qin Ping’er gasped from behind the door, tugging at it with all her might.

“What?” Suspicion immediately coiled in my gut. I lifted my foot and delivered a mighty kick, sending a jolt of intense pain through my body, yet the door remained utterly unmoved, as if forged from iron. Unwilling to give up, I kicked with my other foot, then slammed my shoulder against it, but the door didn't budge an inch. Man Niao Niao forgot his fear and roared, “Get out of the way, let me!” His thick leg shot out like a cannonball towards the door, but it felt like striking a stone wall; he rebounded several steps, nearly tumbling over the railing down to the floor below.

The three men exchanged looks, eyes meeting quickly to formulate a plan to break through. “Ping’er, step aside, we’ll smash it open…” Qin Ping’er murmured an assent and moved to the side of the door. The three men assumed their positions and pushed simultaneously, letting out a collective grunt, their shoulders hitting the wood at the same moment. Not only did the door remain shut, but the impact jolted the three young, strong men backward several steps. I slammed my waist against the corridor railing, eliciting another wave of sharp pain.

“Stop hitting it! The baby… the baby seems to have been born…” Qin Ping’er suddenly cried out.

“Born?” Qiao Ge exclaimed in sudden delight, shoving me aside and pressing his eye against the small peephole. “Why didn’t I hear a cry? Is my tangke… is my wife alright?” I didn’t contest him for the hole. Instead, I stuck out two fingers and poked near the adjacent window paper. What happened next was even more bizarre: the thin paper didn't tear; instead, it exerted a repulsive force that made my finger joints crack loudly, nearly breaking them. I couldn't believe my eyes, my gaze flicking back and forth between my fingers and the window paper. Damn it… damn it, this was too strange.

Man Niao Niao tried testing it with his finger too, with the exact same result—the layer of paper refused to yield.

While we were stunned, we suddenly heard a clear, high-pitched, vigorous baby’s laughter coming from inside the room. Simultaneously, a dazzling bolt of lightning tore across the sky, casting the silhouette of the nearby Huanhou Temple into an immense shadow. A thunderclap followed immediately, its massive sound seeming capable of shattering the primordial void. Heaven and earth felt caught inside a giant, violently struck gong, the only sensation being a deafening, resonant hum. When the thunder receded, a torrential downpour began, as if a massive hole had opened in the heavens. The sky grew dark.

Amidst the flashes of lightning and rolling thunder, the wooden door creaked open. Old Man Ji emerged, holding a baby wrapped in white cloth. His expression was grave. He walked slowly toward Qiao Ge, who stood frozen as if under a spell, patted his shoulder, and said, “Your wife is fine. This child, within minutes of being born… alas!” That sigh landed like a heavy club, sending Qiao Ge collapsing onto the floor. He stared blankly at the infant in Old Man Ji’s arms, snot mixing with tears streaming down his face. My own legs felt weak, and I grasped Qin Ping’er, who had walked out of the room with me, unable to look at the dead infant.

Old Man Ji helped Qiao Ge to his feet and spoke solemnly, “Do you trust what I say?”

Qiao Ge, utterly lost, nodded silently.

“Good. His Elder said,” Old Man Ji pointed at the infant in his arms, “that he is merely a passerby in your home, and he will not stay long. He lacks the affinity to become part of your family…” I was so shocked by Old Man Ji referring to a newborn corpse as “His Elder” that I almost couldn't believe my ears. I craned my neck to look at the baby hidden beneath the white cloth: the infant’s eyes were tightly shut, his face a mass of wrinkles, his head smeared with blood, his skin unnaturally pale. How could this infant, who was just laughing moments ago, have told Old Man Ji those words? What was his true origin? Was this what they called a ‘Spawn of the Ghost’?

“His Elder also said that the reason he made this brief visit and is now turning back is due to karmic retribution. This cause must have its effect. You two, husband and wife, will give birth to a pair of fraternal twins exactly one year from today, and they will be highly successful when they grow up. His Elder instructs you not to grieve; just pretend he never came to your house. The sins committed by you two have now concluded…” Old Man Ji continued speaking slowly to Qiao Ge, his face serene.

Qiao Ge’s complexion turned instantly ashen. He stammered, “Master, what you are saying… is it true?”

Old Man Ji nodded gravely and asked, “Did your wife start showing symptoms at precisely 1:50 PM?” Qiao Ge nodded. “That’s right. His Elder is my Master. This child is just His Elder’s substitute. He has transformed into a Huashangzi (Spawn of Transformation), and I must take him elsewhere now. I will ensure he is properly buried. Do you consent?” Old Man Ji’s tone remained utterly calm, as if discussing the most mundane affair, yet to my ears, these nonsensical words were louder than the loudest thunderclap.

Qiao Ge nodded. “My wife and I… alas, this is the retribution we deserve… Master, please take him! Will we really have twins next year?” Old Man Ji nodded solemnly once more. “Go inside and check on your wife! While her life is not in danger, His Elder has exhausted her greatly.” Qiao Ge took one long look at the infant in Old Man Ji’s arms and rushed into the room.

Old Man Ji turned to face me, Qin Ping’er, and Man Niao Niao, who stood there gaping. After a long silence, he extended his right index finger, dipped it into the still-damp bloodstain on the deceased infant’s forehead, and wrote two large characters on the wall beside the wooden door: Mǎo Wèi (Rabbit-Sheep). Having finished, he paid us no further heed, carrying the infant down the stairs with heavy thuds, his figure flashing away and vanishing into the pouring, stormy night…

Old Man Ji’s abrupt action left the three of us too stunned to react, staring blankly in the direction he disappeared. It wasn’t until another violent thunderclap roared in our ears that the three of us, frozen like statues, were jolted back to awareness. I called out frantically, “Old Man Ji… Old Man Ji… Where are you going? Wait for us!!” Qin Ping’er and Man Niao Niao also screamed hoarsely. But aside from the overwhelming sounds of thunder, rain, and wind, there was no response from Old Man Ji whatsoever. By this time, the sky was completely pitch black.

Successive lightning bolts illuminated the two blood-red characters on the wall—the lightning a blinding white, the script a piercing crimson.

We were trapped—unable to chase and afraid to leave. We kept glancing between the bloody inscription and the inky black sky, the three of us clinging tightly together, neither speaking nor moving.

“Yingying, what is a… Huashangzi?” After a long silence, Qin Ping’er asked me in a trembling voice.

I froze. Honestly, I didn't know what a Huashangzi was, though I knew what a peanut (huasheng) was.

“A Huashangzi is an infant who dies right after birth. Legend says their lingering souls are extremely malevolent, and they must be buried in a wooden box in a desolate rocky area or beneath a main road, with a stone slab placed on top to prevent their ghost from returning to harm others…” Qiao Ge leaned against the doorframe and interjected.

An extra person brought extra courage. In a flash of lightning, I saw Qiao Ge’s expression returning to normal and quickly asked, “How is your wife?”

“She’s fine. If it hadn’t been for your Old Man Ji, I can’t imagine… The heavy rain caused a landslide, so the ambulance couldn't get through…”