Chapter 102: Sickness Strikes the Ningguo House; Exorcism Is Performed in the Grand View Garden

CHAPTER 102

In the Ningguo Mansion, the Sick Are Troubled by Spirits; In the Grand View Garden, Charms and Water Exorcise Demons

When Lady Wang sent a maid to summon Baochai, she came at once and paid her respects. Lady Wang said, "Your third sister is about to be married. As her sisters-in-law, you should all guide and advise her—that's only proper for the bond between you. Besides, she's a sensible girl, and I've noticed the two of you get along well. But I hear Baoyu has been crying terribly ever since he learned of Third Sister's departure. You should try to reason with him. My health is now a constant misery, and your second sister-in-law is well one day and ill the next. You have a clearer head—don't always hold back and refuse to offend people. In the future, the entire burden of this household will fall on you." Baochai assented. Lady Wang continued, "There's another matter. Your second sister-in-law brought that maid from Mrs. Liu's family yesterday and said she should be assigned to your quarters." Baochai replied, "Pinger brought her over only today, saying it was your idea and Second Mistress's." Lady Wang said, "Yes, your second sister-in-law mentioned it to me. I thought it was no great matter and didn't want to refuse her. But one thing—I can see from that girl's eyes and brows that she's not very steady. Before, when Baoyu's maids were acting like vixens, I dismissed several of them. You knew about that at the time; otherwise, why would you have moved back home? Now that you're here, things are naturally different from before. I'm telling you this just so you'll keep an eye out. In your quarters, only Xiren is reliable." Baochao agreed, exchanged a few more words, and then left. After the meal, she went to Tanchun's place, where she offered a great deal of earnest advice and comfort—no need to elaborate.

The next day, as Tanchun was about to set out, she came again to bid Baoyu farewell. Baoyu naturally found it hard to part with her. Tanchun spoke to him about the great principles of proper conduct, and Baoyu, at first hanging his head in silence, gradually turned from sorrow to joy, seeming to show signs of understanding. Reassured, Tanchun took leave of everyone, mounted her sedan chair, and began her journey—by boat on water and by carriage on land.

In earlier days, all the young ladies had lived in the Grand View Garden. But after Imperial Consort Jia's death, the garden was no longer maintained. By the time Baoyu married, Lin Daiyu had died, Shi Xiangyun had returned home, and Baoqin was staying at her own house. With fewer people in the garden, and the weather turning cold, Li Wan and her sisters, Tanchun, and Xichun had all moved back to their original residences. On flowery mornings and moonlit evenings, they still met to amuse themselves as before. Now, with Tanchun gone and Baoyu, after his illness, never leaving his room, there was no one left with any zest for pleasure. The garden became desolate, occupied only by a few caretaker families. On the day You Shi came to see Tanchun off, because it was late and she wanted to avoid hitching up a carriage, she took the shortcut through the garden that had been opened in a previous year to connect with the Ningguo Mansion. The scene struck her as utterly bleak—the pavilions and terraces unchanged, but the parapet walls all planted over like vegetable patches. Her heart filled with melancholy, as if she had lost something. Upon reaching home, she felt feverish. She struggled on for a day or two, then took to her bed. The daytime fever was bearable, but at night her body burned abnormally, and she began to rave incessantly. Jia Zhen hastily summoned a doctor to examine her. He said the illness had started as a cold but had now penetrated the meridians, entering the Yangming Stomach Meridian of the foot, which caused her delirious, incoherent speech as if she saw things. Once she had a bowel movement, she would be safe. You Shi took two doses of medicine, but there was no improvement—in fact, she grew even more frantic.

Jia Zhen, alarmed, told Jia Rong to inquire outside about any good doctors and invite a few more to take a look. Jia Rong replied, "That imperial physician we called before is the most popular one around. I'm afraid my mother's illness isn't something medicine can cure." Jia Zhen said, "Nonsense! If she doesn't take medicine, are we supposed to let her just suffer?" Jia Rong said, "I'm not saying don't treat her. It's just that the other day, when Mother came back from the West Mansion, she walked home through the garden. As soon as she arrived, she had a fever. Could she have been struck by some evil spirit? Outside there's a fortune-teller named Mao Bansian, a southerner, whose divinations are very accurate. Why not invite him to cast a hexagram? If there's any sign, we'll follow his advice. If it's no use, then we can call in another good doctor." Jia Zhen, hearing this, immediately sent someone to fetch him. The man sat in the study, drank tea, and said, "You summoned me from your mansion—may I ask what matter you wish to divine?" Jia Rong said, "My mother is ill. Please consult the hexagrams." Mao Bansian said, "In that case, bring clean water to wash my hands and set up an incense table. Let me cast a divination and see." The servants quickly arranged everything. He took a tube of divination sticks from his bosom, went up to the table, made a respectful bow, shook the tube in his hand, and chanted: "Prostrating before the Great Ultimate and the Two Principles, the intermingling and interaction of yin and yang. The River Chart and Luo Writing give rise to endless changes; the sages made them, and sincere seeking will surely bring response. Here is a faithful official, one Jia, who, due to his mother's illness, reverently invites the Four Great Sages—Fuxi, King Wen, the Duke of Zhou, and Confucius—to look down from above; sincerity will move them to respond. If there is misfortune, report misfortune; if there is good fortune, report good fortune. First, I invite the inner lines, three yao." With that, he poured the coins from the tube onto a plate and said, "If there is spirit, the first yao will be a jiao." He picked them up, shook again, poured them out, and said it was a dan. The third yao was another jiao. He gathered the coins and said, "The inner lines have been shown. Now I invite the outer lines, three yao, to complete the hexagram." He cast them again, and the result was dan chai dan. Mao Bansian put away the tube and coins, sat down, and said, "Please be seated. Let me examine this carefully. This hexagram is the 'Wei Ji' (Not Yet Fulfilled) hexagram. The line representing the diviner is the third line. The noon fire symbolizes brotherly robbery of wealth—there is bound to be some bad luck. Now, you ask about your mother's illness. The line representing the person concerned is the first line. Truly, the parental line moves and transforms into an official ghost. On the fifth line, there is another layer of official ghost. I see that your honored mother's illness is no light matter. Still, it's not so bad: the water of zi and hai is weak and dormant, while the wood of yin stirs and generates fire. On the line representing the diviner, a child line arises, which can overcome the ghost. Moreover, sun and moon support the body. After two more days, the water official ghost of zi will fall into emptiness. When it reaches the xu day, she will recover. But because the parental line transforms into a ghost, I fear your honorable father may also be affected. As for the diviner's own line, the competition from brothers is too strong. On days when water is strong and earth is weak, it will also be unfavorable." Having finished, he stroked his beard and sat still. Jia Rong had at first wanted to laugh at his hocus-pocus, but hearing him explain the principles of the hexagram so clearly and also expressing fear that his father might be affected, he said, "Your hexagram is extremely insightful. But may I ask what exactly my mother's illness is?" Mao Bansian said, "According to this hexagram, the noon fire on the diviner's line transforms into water, which overcomes it. The illness must be a congealing of cold and fire. To determine it clearly, even yarrow-stalk divination wouldn't make it plain. Only by using the Greater Six-Ren method can one be precise." Jia Rong said, "Are you skilled in that as well, sir?" Mao Bansian said, "I know a little." Jia Rong then asked for instruction and reported a specific hour. Mr. Mao drew a diagram and arranged the gods and generals. He calculated that on the xu position there was the White Tiger, and this divination was called the 'Soul-Dissolving Divination.' Generally speaking, the White Tiger is a baleful general. If it rides on a strong, active phase and is restrained, it cannot cause harm. But now it rides on the spirit of death and the killing force of the season, and the seasonal phase is imprisoned and dying—this makes it a hungry tiger, sure to injure people. It is like the soul being startled and dispersed, hence the name 'Soul-Dissolving.' This divination indicates that a person has lost their soul to a ghost, with anxieties and misfortunes following one another; illness often leads to death, and lawsuits bring fear. According to the signs, when the tiger comes at dusk, the illness must have been contracted in the evening. The divination also says that whenever this casting occurs, there must be a lurking tiger causing mischief in the old residence, or some sound or apparition. Now, as you divine on behalf of your mother, this fits exactly: the tiger in the yang position troubles men, in the yin position women. This divination is extremely ominous." Before Mao Bansian had finished, Jia Rong turned pale with fright and said, "Sir, what you say is very true. But it doesn't quite match the hexagram. Is there any danger?" Mao Bansian said, "Don't panic. Let me examine it more slowly." He lowered his head and muttered for a while, then said, "Good! There is a saving power! I calculate that on the si position there is a noble spirit to rescue and resolve it. This is called 'the soul dissolves and the spirit returns.' First worry, then joy—there will be no harm. Only be careful."

Jia Rong presented the fortune-teller's fee and saw him off, then returned to report to Jia Zhen, saying, "Mother's illness was contracted at dusk in the old residence. She ran into some kind of 'corpse-lying white tiger.'" Jia Zhen said, "You said your mother came back walking through the garden the day before yesterday. That's probably where she encountered it. Don't you remember that time your Second Aunt-in-law went into the garden and came back ill? Although she didn't see anything herself, later those maids and old women all said there was a hairy thing on the rockery, with eyes as big as lanterns, and it could even talk. They drove your Second Aunt-in-law back, and she was frightened into an illness." Jia Rong said, "How could I forget? I also heard from Baoyu’s Mingyan that Qingwen became the spirit of the hibiscus flower in the garden, and when Miss Lin died, there was music in the air—she must be in charge of some flower too. Think of all these demons in the garden—how terrible! Before, when there were many people, the yang energy was strong, and people coming and going was no problem. But now that it's deserted, when Mother passed through there, who knows what flower she stepped on, or else she bumped into one of them. That divination was pretty accurate." Jia Zhen said, "But does it say whether there's any danger or not?" Jia Rong said, "According to him, she'll be better by the day of the Dog. I only hope she gets better a day earlier, or a day later." Jia Zhen said, "What does that mean?" Jia Rong said, "If that gentleman is so accurate, I'm afraid you, Father, might also have some discomfort." Just as they were speaking, there was a shout from inside: "The mistress wants to sit up and go to the garden over there, and the maids can't hold her back." Jia Zhen and the others went in to comfort her and settle her down. They heard Lady You babbling wildly: "The one in red calls me, the one in green chases me." The servants on the ground were both frightened and amused. Jia Zhen then ordered someone to buy some paper money and burn it in the garden. Sure enough, that night she sweated and became calmer. By the day of the Dog, she gradually recovered. From then on, one person told ten, ten told a hundred, and everyone said there were demons in Grand View Garden. The gardeners were so scared they stopped pruning flowers and trees or watering fruits and vegetables. At first, they dared not walk at night, to the point where birds and beasts threatened people, and even during the day they went around in groups carrying weapons. After some time, Jia Zhen indeed fell ill. He didn't even call a doctor for treatment; for minor ailments, he burned paper in the garden and made vows; for serious ones, he performed star-gazing and worship rituals. Just as Jia Zhen recovered, Jia Rong and others fell ill one after another. This went on for several months, causing both mansions to be terrified. From then on, every sound seemed like a threat, and every blade of grass seemed like a demon. All income from the garden was waived entirely, and the monthly allowances for each household were reinstated, which actually made the Rong Mansion even more strapped for funds. The gardeners, having lost their hopes, all wanted to leave this place and often started rumors and stirred up trouble, fabricating stories about flower and tree spirits. They all wanted to move out, and the garden gate was sealed shut, with no one daring to enter the garden anymore. As a result, the lofty pavilions and elegant towers, the jade-like halls and terraces, all became haunts for birds and beasts.

Now, Qingwen's cousin Wu Gui happened to live right outside the garden gate. Since Qingwen's death, his wife had heard that she had become a flower spirit, and every evening she dared not go out. One day, Wu Gui went out to buy things and came back late. His wife had already caught a chill and had taken the wrong medicine during the day. By the time Wu Gui got home that evening, she was already dead on the kang bed. Outsiders, because the woman had been of questionable character, all said that a demon had climbed over the wall, sucked out her essence, and killed her. This made the old lady extremely anxious. She assigned extra people to surround Baoyu's quarters, patrolling and keeping watch. The younger maids also said that some had seen a red-faced figure, others a very handsome woman, causing a great uproar. Baoyu was so frightened he was terrified every day. Fortunately, Baochai was composed. When she heard the maids talking nonsense, she threatened to beat them, so the rumors calmed down a bit. But despite this, people in every household were suspicious of ghosts and couldn't rest easy, so they added more night watchmen, which increased expenses even more. Only Jia She didn't quite believe it. He said, "A perfectly good garden—how could there be any ghosts or monsters!" He picked a day with clear wind and warm sun, took several servants with weapons in hand, and went to the garden to check the situation. Everyone advised him against it, but he wouldn't listen. Once in the garden, the air was indeed chilling. Jia She struggled to walk forward, while the attendants craned their necks and peered around nervously. Among them was a young servant who was already scared. Suddenly, he heard a whoosh, turned around, and saw a colorful thing leap past. He cried out "Aiya!" his legs went weak, and he collapsed. Jia She turned back to question him. The young man gasped breathlessly, "I saw with my own eyes a demon with a yellow face, red beard, green clothes, and black robes go behind the trees and into a cave in the rockery." Jia She, hearing this, felt some fear and asked, "Did all of you see it?" Several of those who went along with the tide replied, "How could we not have seen it? But since you, Master, were in front, we dared not disturb you. We servants could still handle it." Hearing this, Jia She grew even more frightened. He dared not go any further and hurriedly returned, instructing the servants, "Don't mention this. Just say we looked everywhere and found nothing." But in his heart, he truly believed and wanted to go to the Temple of the True Man to invite a priest to exorcise the evil spirits. Little did he know that those servants would stir up trouble even when there was none. Now that they saw Jia She was scared, not only did they not keep quiet, but they added embellishments, making everyone's hair stand on end.

Jia She had no choice but to invite Daoist priests to the garden to perform rituals to drive out the evil spirits. They selected an auspicious day and first set up an altar in the main hall of the Imperial Consort's mansion. They placed statues of the Three Pure Ones on the altar, flanked by the Twenty-Eight Mansions and the Four Great Generals—Ma, Zhao, Wen, and Zhou—and below them, images of the Thirty-Six Heavenly Generals. Incense, flowers, lamps, and candles filled the hall; bells and drums and ritual implements were arranged on both sides, with banners of the five directions planted around. The Daoist Registry assigned the duties of forty-nine Daoist priests, and they purified the altar for a whole day. After the three chief priests performed the incense-offering and water-drawing ceremonies, they beat the ritual drums. The priests donned their Seven-Star crowns and their Nine-Palace and Eight-Trigram ritual robes, stepped into their Cloud-Climbing shoes, and held ivory tablets in their hands as they presented memorials to invite the saints. They also chanted the Dongyuan Scripture for a whole day to dispel calamities, drive out evil, and receive blessings. After that, they posted a proclamation summoning the generals. The proclamation was written in large characters: "The Great Master of the Taiyi Hunyuan Shangqing Sanjing Lingbao Talismanic Teachings issues this decree commanding all local deities to appear at the altar and await orders."

That day, all the masters and servants of both mansions, relying on the priests to capture the demons, gathered in the garden to watch. They all said, "What a powerful decree! With all this summoning of gods and generals, no matter how many demons there are, they'll be scared away." Everyone crowded around the altar. They saw the young Daoists raise the banners, take their positions according to the five directions, and await the chief priest's orders. The three chief priests stood before the altar: one held a sword in one hand and ritual water in the other; one held a Seven-Star black banner; and one raised a peach-wood demon-beating whip. As soon as the ritual instruments stopped, the token was struck three times at the top of the altar, and the priests began to chant incantations. The five-directional banners then spread out in a circle. The chief priests descended from the altar and ordered the family members to lead them to various towers, pavilions, halls, corridors, houses, cliff sides, and water edges, where they sprinkled ritual water and traced symbols with their swords. Returning, they struck the token again and offered up the Seven-Star banner. The Daoists gathered the banners together, and then he took the demon-beating whip and struck the air three times. The family members all thought the demons had been captured and vied to see, but when they got close, there was nothing visible. They only saw the chief priest order the Daoists to bring jars and bottles, collect the demons, and seal them with strips of paper. The chief priest wrote charms in vermilion to seal them away, then ordered someone to take them back to the temple and suppress them under the pagoda. After that, the altar was dismantled and the generals were thanked.

Jia She respectfully kowtowed in thanks to the chief priests. Jia Rong and the other younger brothers laughed endlessly behind their backs, saying, "With such a grand show, we thought they'd catch a demon and show us what it really looks like. Who knew this was how they'd 'collect' them? Did they actually catch any demons or not?" Jia Zhen, overhearing them, scolded, "Foolish brats! Demons gather form when they coalesce and disperse into vapor. With so many divine generals here now, how dare they show themselves! They just gathered the demonic vapors so they won't cause any more trouble—that's the power of the ritual." The crowd was half-convinced and half-doubtful, deciding to wait and see if anything happened. The servants, believing the demons had been captured, had their suspicions dispelled and stopped making a fuss. After that, indeed no one mentioned it again. When Jia Zhen and the others recovered fully, they all praised the priests' divine power. Only one young servant laughed and said, "I don't know about all those noises before, but the day I followed the Great Master into the garden, it was clearly a big wild pheasant that flew by. Shuan'er was so scared he saw things and made it sound real. We all helped cover up his lie, and the Great Master took it seriously. In the end, we got to see quite a lively altar ceremony." Though the others heard this, they refused to believe it, and in the end, no one lived there anymore.

One day, Jia She had nothing to do and was thinking of calling a few household servants to move into the Garden to guard the houses, fearing that villains might hide there at night. Just as he was about to give the order, Jia Lian entered, paid his respects, and reported that he had gone to his maternal uncle’s house that day and heard a piece of alarming news: “It is said that Second Uncle has been impeached by the Military Governor, on charges of failing to supervise his subordinates and imposing excessive grain levies, with a petition to the throne for his dismissal.” Jia She started with alarm and said: “I’m afraid it’s just a rumor. The other day your Second Uncle sent a letter saying that Tanchun arrived at his post on such-and-such a day, and on an auspicious hour he saw your younger sister off to the coastal region, with calm winds and smooth seas all the way, so the whole family need not worry. He also said that the Military Governor acknowledged the kinship and even hosted a feast to celebrate. How could they become relatives and then suddenly impeach him? Don’t make this public yet; go quickly to the Board of Civil Office to find out the truth, then come back and report to me.”

Jia Lian went out at once and returned in less than half a day, saying: “I just made inquiries at the Board of Civil Office, and it is true that Second Uncle has been impeached. The memorial was submitted, but thanks to His Majesty’s grace, it was not referred to the Board for deliberation. Instead, an imperial decree was issued, stating that for failing to supervise subordinates, imposing excessive grain levies, and oppressing the people, he should by rights be dismissed; but in consideration of his being a first-time appointee to an external post, unfamiliar with official administration, and deceived by his subordinates, he is to be demoted three grades, yet by special favor allowed to continue serving as a Secretary in the Works Bureau, and ordered to return to the capital immediately. This news is reliable. While I was speaking at the Board, an official from Jiangxi, who had come for an audience as a newly appointed magistrate, mentioned our Second Uncle and was full of gratitude. He said Second Uncle was a good superior, but had chosen the wrong people, and those retainers, swaggering about outside, swindling and bullying subordinates, had already ruined his good reputation. The Military Governor had long known this and also said that Second Uncle was a good man. I don’t know why he suddenly impeached him this time. Perhaps things had become so bad that he feared future disaster, so he used this charge of negligence to impeach him—maybe it was a way to avoid a heavier penalty.” Before Jia Lian finished speaking, Jia She said: “First go and inform your aunt, but don’t tell the old lady yet.” Jia Lian went to report to Lady Wang. What words were spoken will be revealed in the next chapter.