A Stomach Full of Mischief
Busy with various activities, time flew by, and it was already October.
In the past few days, Xinan County had become lively again. The streets were bustling with people, and the liveliest places were the funeral paper shops and the ghost clothing stores. This was because today was the first day of October, the Ghost Head Day, also known as the Cold Clothes Festival.
With the arrival of winter, this day symbolized the beginning of the season. In the capital, the emperor, along with the civil and military officials, held a ceremony to welcome winter, bestowing winter clothes and robes. After the ceremony, everyone, officials and civilians alike, returned home to set up offerings because in the afternoon, the gates of the underworld opened. Ancestors who hadn’t yet reincarnated were given leave by the King of Hell to return to the mortal world, enjoying the offerings made by their descendants.
On this day, the living tried on new jackets to ward off the winter cold, known as “trying on cold clothes.” The ghosts also shared in the festivities, naturally needing new clothes as well.
Therefore, from the end of the previous month, the funeral business became prosperous. Items like ghost clothes, ghost hats, ghost beds, and even paper-made cars, houses, and other household items, all meticulously crafted and lifelike, were in high demand. Some even had floral embossing on the colored paper, with cotton stuffed between two layers of paper to ensure the ghosts wouldn’t feel cold, ensuring families remembered their ancestors’ needs.
Though it was a ghost festival, Yu Jinnian had no time to rest. As the saying goes, “On October 1st, everything’s greasy.” Besides funeral paper and money offerings, food offerings were also essential. The underworld was cold and barren, so providing a rich meal for the returning spirits was crucial. Therefore, from yesterday, the noodle shop was busy with customers ordering fried food offerings until late at night.
Early in the morning, Yu Jinnian began frying radish noodle meatballs and dumplings.
He washed, peeled, and shredded the white radish, then chopped it finely. Afterward, he mixed it with a small amount of minced meat, eggs as an auxiliary ingredient, finely chopped scallions and ginger, and a little salt for seasoning. He then added flour to form a suitable consistency for the filling, ensuring it could be shaped into balls without being too dry, resulting in meatballs that were crispy yet chewy when fried.
The fried radish meatballs were golden and plump, looking very appealing.
Among those who ordered offerings yesterday, one customer was particularly special. He was a tall, slender young man with a delicate appearance and a smiling face, wearing an ill-fitting gray hemp garment with a matching cloth wrapping his head tightly, not revealing a single hair. At first glance, he looked like a beggar, but he casually pulled out a shiny silver ingot, requesting Yu Jinnian to prepare an offering set for him and his mother. His polite and respectful demeanor resembled that of a scholar.
Yu Jinnian was somewhat flattered. Because there were many customers ordering food these days, his shop had more expenses than income. He didn’t have enough change for the silver ingot and asked the young man to wait while he ran to a nearby silver shop to exchange it for copper coins.
Though he was quick, it actually took a considerable amount of time. Yet the young man remained in the same spot, not moving an inch, like a meditating monk. When Yu Jinnian returned, the young man nodded politely, thanking him for his trouble.
“It’s no trouble, no trouble,” Yu Jinnian quickly said, handing back the change.
The young man didn’t take the change, instructing Yu Jinnian to add more sugar and ginger to whatever offering he made and to help buy some fruits. He then said, “Please deliver it to the banyan tree by the back gate of Fengbo Temple after noon. The remaining money can be your travel expense.”
Adding a lot of sugar and ginger would make it a strange, spicy-sweet dish. But since it was the customer’s request, Yu Jinnian had to comply. After all, he was paid well for the job. The remaining money was more than enough for travel expenses, enough to buy a small donkey. Yu Jinnian, who had never encountered such a generous customer, eagerly agreed. The young man bowed slightly and left.
After frying the batch of radish noodle meatballs, Yu Jinnian remembered this special order. He set aside a small bowl of filling, gritted his teeth, and added two large spoonfuls of sugar and a whole head of minced ginger, creating a “special” spicy-sweet radish filling.
He couldn’t imagine what it would taste like but forced himself to make it. Surprisingly, he made more than enough.
Turning around, he saw Ji Hong drawing water in the courtyard and ran out, smiling and grabbing his arm, “Ah Hong!”
Ji Hong, knowing the sweet call was probably a trap, still enjoyed it and patiently asked, “What’s the matter?”
Yu Jinnian’s eyes curved into a smile, “I made new meatballs. Try one.”
They walked into the kitchen, and Yu Jinnian brought a ginger-sugar meatball to Ji Hong’s mouth, asking him to take a bite. He nervously, mischievously, and eagerly watched, rubbing his hands together like a fly, anticipating Ji Hong’s reaction. He thought that if Ji Hong only frowned at the sweet egg custard, he should surely show some surprise at this strange meatball!
Unexpectedly, Ji Hong showed no sign of disgust, not even a frown. He calmly swallowed it and said, “Hmm.”
“Huh?” Yu Jinnian looked at his face and felt his neck, surprised, “You just ate it?”
Ji Hong: “Hmm?”
Yu Jinnian looked at him with an innocent and natural expression, mumbling, “Could it be that I am so gifted that I can turn dark cuisine into a world-class delicacy?” He looked down at the plate of sweet meatballs but still didn’t have the courage to try them, so he turned to ask Ji Hong, “Quick, tell me, what does it taste like?”
“Mm.”
Ji Hong uttered three consecutive “mm”s without opening his mouth. Just as Yu Jinnian realized something was amiss and was about to sneer at him for lying, a hand suddenly wrapped around his waist, pulling him tightly. The next moment, the man lowered his head and unyieldingly covered Yu Jinnian’s mouth with his own.
“Mm? Mm? Mm!” Yu Jinnian stared at him, keeping his mouth tightly shut, with an expression that said, “You better have a knife to pry it open.”
Ji Hong narrowed his eyes slightly and pinched Yu Jinnian’s lower back. Yu Jinnian felt a sharp pain and his tightly closed lips parted slightly like a soft shell. (Hahahahaha this sentence is gone hahahahaha I’m not crazy hahahahaha scared hahahaha use your imagination hahahaha.) Ji Hong licked along the roof of the boy’s mouth, and Yu Jinnian, unable to resist the intrusion, obediently opened up, giving in completely.
Yu Jinnian bent backward, with one hand lightly rubbing his side. Though it wasn’t ticklish, he felt a tingling sensation spread from the spot where Ji Hong’s hand touched. After bending over to fry meatballs all morning, his waist was indeed a bit stiff. Being kneaded like this, to be honest, felt quite comfortable.
Perhaps the celestial officials were trying to comply with the festival; it suddenly got much colder today. The kitchen became more steamy, making their figures appear hazy. Yu Jinnian, relaxed and comfortable like a cat with its belly exposed, let his guard down. In the midst of their entanglement, an unexpected object was suddenly pushed into his mouth. Realizing what it was, he hurriedly closed his teeth, but ended up biting himself hard instead and swallowed the sweet radish meatball.
“…” His eyes immediately filled with tears.
The boy’s eyes, already round and innocent-looking, now seemed even more pitiful, as if he had just been washed by rain. Given his age, he had just outgrown his childishness but wasn’t yet fully mature. Even with his eyes wet, he didn’t seem pretentious, but genuinely in pain.
Ji Hong gently lifted his chin and said, “Open your mouth and let me see.”
Yu Jinnian opened his mouth and pointed to the painful spot, mumbling if he had bitten through.
At the edge of his soft pink tongue, there was indeed a small red spot. Ji Hong nodded sympathetically, seeing the boy wilt like a bound crab. He couldn’t help but add, “Full of bad ideas.”
Yu Jinnian covered his mouth and mumbled, “Didn’t eat!”
Miraculously, Ji Hong understood and nodded slightly, “Of course you didn’t eat it. It was pressed under your tongue. Was it good?”
Having bitten his tongue, Yu Jinnian, in his excitement, swallowed it directly. Who knew if it tasted good? Fearing Ji Hong would use this excuse again, he hurriedly put away the plate of dark cuisine radish meatballs and pushed a plate of normal meatballs to him. Ji Hong picked one up, eating while watching Yu Jinnian cook.
Offerings for ancestors and the deceased also vary in formality. The wealthy and noble would cook pigs and sacrifice sheep, travel with carriages, and sweep and worship graves with great ceremony, comparable to the Qingming Festival. Commoners, however, were more casual. Those with extra money would bring a fried fish, while the very poor could offer a bowl of buckwheat noodles; it was all about the intention.
Due to the generosity of that mysterious guest, who asked for nothing more than sugared ginger, Yu Jinnian was even more attentive. He fried a fish, made a bowl of braised pork, prepared various vegetable dishes, and added a few big steamed buns from his own steamer, filling the food box to the brim.
However, these dishes all met the guest’s requirements — extra sugar and ginger. While they looked bright and appealing, the taste couldn’t be guaranteed.
Although Ji Hong couldn’t cook, he had been helping Yu Jinnian for months and had some understanding. Seeing these ginger-sugar dishes made his brow furrow. He couldn’t help but say, “Are you trying to get the Ghost King to take your name off early?”
Hearing him joke, Yu Jinnian was delighted and said, “It’s not me playing tricks; the guest asked for it.” He then told Ji Hong about the mysterious young man from the day before.
While talking, Yu Jinnian didn’t stay idle. Inspired by the young man and seeing it was still early, he decided to make some sugared ginger slices. The weather was cold, and these could be eaten as snacks to warm the stomach.
Making sugared ginger slices required tender ginger, which was crisp and mildly spicy. The process was similar to making winter melon candy or sugar-coated peanuts. He cut the ginger into thin slices, blanched them if needed based on spiciness preference, dried them, marinated them with sugar for half an hour, and then cooked them over a fire.
Once the ginger slices became semi-transparent and the syrup thickened enough to pull threads, he quickly turned off the heat, stirred to cool, and as the temperature dropped, the ginger slices developed a frosted appearance, white and snowy on the tender yellow ginger slices.
Thus, the sugared ginger slices were ready.
After hearing this, Ji Hong was silent for a moment, then pondered, “There might be some reason behind it. Perhaps that person…”
At that moment, a cold wind blew in. Ji Hong, who had been standing at the door, quietly moved inside. Seeing how he was afraid of the cold, Yu Jinnian didn’t finish listening to him and ran out to find Qing Huan — Qing Huan often had some handicrafts in the shop for sale — he wanted to get an unsold sachet.
Qing Huan, naturally generous, told him to take whatever he liked. Yu Jinnian picked and chose, finally selecting a blue silk sachet embroidered with bamboo patterns. He then returned to the kitchen, wrapped some sugared ginger slices in oil paper, folded it neatly, and stuffed it into the sachet, tying it around Ji Hong’s waist. Looking up, he smiled and said, “This way, when you feel cold, you can take one to eat anytime!”
Ji Hong: “…”
Though it was a bit strange to carry a sachet of sugared ginger slices, Ji Hong didn’t oppose it. Instead, he allowed the boy to fiddle around his waist for a while, securing the sachet. When Yu Jinnian lowered his head, Ji Hong gently pinched the boy’s slender, fair neck.
Yu Jinnian suddenly remembered, “What did you say about that person earlier?”
Ji Hong paused and said, “Nothing, you’ll know when we see him.”
Yu Jinnian was very puzzled.
After noon, the two of them carried the food box and, following the customer’s instructions, bought some seasonal fruits along the way and headed to Fengbo Temple.
Just outside the southern city gate, they encountered several wealthy families’ carriages heading out for tomb sweeping. Xinan County was a major commercial hub, so even a simple outing for worship by these wealthy merchant families was a grand display, as if to show off their wealth.
Sandwiched between two such groups, Yu Jinnian thought to himself that this was understandable. After all, if you appeared poor, it wouldn’t be easy to attract business, especially big deals.
Anyway, as a noodle shop assistant, he didn’t quite understand the business practices of these wealthy gentry, so he simply carried his food box peacefully and followed the crowd.
At that moment, a servant from one of the families ahead of them whispered, “Why do we only see the Second Master but not Madam Li?”
Another servant replied, “Isn’t Madam Li ill? I heard that after today’s ancestor worship, the Second Master will go to the temple to burn incense and pray for her!”
“Still sick?” The first servant said disdainfully, “Since that incident, first the Third Master’s concubine hanged herself, then the Third Master’s wife had a miscarriage, and later Madam Li also fell ill. Now even the Master… It’s really like they’re cursed; no one escaped. They said that person was a demon causing havoc. Looks like it’s true!”
“Shh!” someone quickly covered his mouth, glanced around furtively, and after his eyes skimmed past Yu Jinnian and Ji Hong, turned back, whispering, “How dare you gossip about this? If the masters hear it, they’ll tear your mouth apart!”
The two finally fell silent.
Having heard everything, Yu Jinnian glanced up at Ji Hong and smiled quietly. Ji Hong frowned at him slightly, signaling him to behave and not cause trouble.
“I know!” Yu Jinnian whispered, “Just listening.”
Fengbo Temple was originally not called Fengbo Temple but Aranya Temple. It was founded by two foreign monks who, after traveling long distances, settled there, saying that the place was rich and beautiful. They attracted many followers and started preaching, with teachings said to differ slightly from mainstream Buddhism. The specifics were lost to time, but it was known that the temple flourished.
Later, an emperor highly revered Buddhism and couldn’t tolerate the spread of foreign beliefs, so he ordered the expulsion of all foreign monks and their disciples from the country. Aranya Temple was not spared. After it was abandoned, many years passed until a local monk saw the potential of the site and restored the dilapidated temple.
The temple, situated on a mountain, offered a view from the highest point where the lush green mountains looked like waves crashing against the shore, hence the name “Fengbo Temple.” It was revitalized and had regained its former glory over the past century.
Although today was the Ghost Festival, Fengbo Temple was bustling with people, with devout men and women coming in an endless stream. Yu Jinnian and Ji Hong squeezed through the carriages, making their way up the mountain with difficulty. Upon reaching the temple gate, they spent nearly half an hour finding the designated meeting spot, being unfamiliar with the temple. When they finally arrived at the banyan tree outside the rear temple gate, the man was already waiting there.
Yu Jinnian was suddenly taken aback. The person was indeed the same, but he hadn’t expected him to be a young monk in monk’s robes, which explained why he had wrapped his head yesterday when placing the food order.
He glanced sideways at Ji Hong, who seemed to have anticipated this and showed no surprise at all.
Regardless of the customer’s identity, Yu Jinnian was just a worker doing his job. He quickly composed himself and handed the food box to the monk, then took out a bag of sugared ginger slices, saying, “Peace be with you, Master. I apologize for the delay. We encountered some carriages on the way and were delayed. We also took a wrong turn on the mountain… This is homemade sugared ginger slices. You mentioned you wanted it with extra sugar and ginger, so I think you’ll like this.”
The young monk accepted the food box and the sugared ginger slices with a gentle demeanor, saying, “You’re too kind. I am just a novice monk. Thank you for making this trip and for the sugared ginger slices.”
“You’re welcome, you’re welcome,” Yu Jinnian replied.
The young monk seemed uninterested in further conversation. He performed a single-handed salute, then carried the food box down the small path beside the rear temple gate.
Watching the young monk disappear, Yu Jinnian turned to Ji Hong and said, “Since we’re here, why don’t we go inside and burn some incense to pray for Aunt Xu?”
Ji Hong wiped the sweat off Yu Jinnian’s forehead, which had formed from their hurried walk, and slowly replied, “Mm.”
Just as they finished speaking, the previously closed rear temple gate was suddenly flung open. A young woman, looking frantic and in a hurry, rushed out, clutching a few pages of a book tightly to her chest, not knowing where they had been torn from.
As soon as she ran out, two young novice monks chased after her, shouting, “Stop, stop!”
The young woman kept running and shouting, “I need to find Master Chengkong! I need to find Master Chengkong!”
One of the novice monks, distressed, said, “We’ve told you, there is no Master Chengkong in our temple. Even if you need to find someone, you can’t just sneak into our scripture library and tear our Lotus Sutra!”
The other novice monk, while chasing the woman, shouted to his companion, “What are you talking to her for? Quickly get those pages of the Lotus Sutra back, or the master will scold us!”
The young woman cried out, “He’s from your temple. Please bring out Master Chengkong! He said he would drive away the evil spirits for my mistress!”
As the three of them chased each other, the young woman kept insisting on finding a nonexistent “Master Chengkong.” She glanced back at the novice monks chasing her and failed to notice what was in front of her.
She collided head-on with Yu Jinnian!