Chapter 86

That night was truly chaotic. The news that Xiao Wang’s wife had fallen and was having a difficult labor quickly spread along Fumin Road. Many people rushed over, standing downstairs at Old Man Wang’s house-some helping out, others just watching the commotion. The most common thing people said was how miserable Xiao Wang’s wife was now; giving birth was already like taking a trip to the gates of hell, extremely dangerous, and no one knew if the baby would make it. To put it even more bluntly, even the mother’s life was at risk-wasn’t it common for women to die in childbirth?

“How did Xiao Wang’s wife fall? She’s about to give birth, how could something like this happen now?”

“I heard she slipped when she went to the bathroom, took a tumble, and started bleeding right there on the spot!”

“Even an ordinary person would be half-dead from such a fall, maybe even break some bones. How can a pregnant woman handle that?”

“Sigh, let’s hope she’s all right.”

“Hiss, why did it suddenly get so cold…”

Just as they were talking, the sound of the ambulance siren grew louder and louder. The ambulance pulled into the alleyway, and the crowd instinctively made way. Several doctors and nurses carried a stretcher upstairs. Soon, Xiao Wang’s wife-her face bloodless and covered under a quilt-was carried down. These old buildings didn’t have elevators, and Old Man Wang’s family lived on the second floor. Carrying a pregnant woman who couldn’t be jostled at all downstairs was no easy task. Two people simply weren’t enough. Xiao Wang’s wife weighed at least 140 or 150 pounds, and now she had no strength left, her hair soaked with sweat from pain, unable to handle even a slight bump. Thankfully, the neighbors helped out; five or six strong men lent a hand.

Once they got her downstairs, they rushed her into the ambulance, which left Fumin Road with its siren wailing.

Granny Wang and Xiao Wang got in the ambulance with her, constantly comforting Xiao Wang’s wife, urging her again and again to stay calm and listen to the doctors. Now that she was in the hands of doctors and nurses, she’d surely be fine…

Even Xiao Wang couldn’t help but wipe away his tears several times. “Darling, hang in there! You can’t leave me and our son behind. Without you, how could we go on? We can’t be without you…”

Xiao Wang’s wife was in tears, of course from the pain. If she had any strength left, she’d have loved to punch Xiao Wang so he could experience what childbirth felt like. Granny Wang couldn’t help but smack her son, “What kind of unlucky talk is that? Can’t you say something more auspicious?” But she herself couldn’t hold back her tears either, worried sick.

Xiao Wang hurriedly spat several times, “What nonsense am I spouting, nonsense! All Bodhisattvas, please don’t take it seriously!”

The ambulance finally left Fumin Road. Old Man Wang carried his little grandson, following behind as best he could-there wasn’t enough room in the ambulance for everyone. Luckily, the neighborhood was full of good people. Seeing the situation, they all offered to drive them over. Old Man Wang thanked them again and again, and the old and the young followed the ambulance together, racing towards the hospital.

Liao Yuan the monk stood among the crowd, watching as the ambulance, siren wailing, drove away, followed by over a hundred little ghosts, a dark mass floating in the air, chasing after it. They even pumped their fists, shouting, “Come on! Come on!” And not only did they cheer, but they prayed to gods, to the Buddha, even to Jesus. Their cold and terrifying faces looked oddly devout.

It was the first time anyone had seen such a scene. For a moment, they were all dumbfounded-such a sight might only happen once in several centuries.

Jingxing said, “Shifu, I see that female Shizhu’s brow is shrouded in darkness, her face has a faint sign of death. I’m afraid…”

Zhen Du pressed his palms together, “Amitabha. That’s not quite right. Though the female Shizhu does bear the sign of impending death, heaven never gives anyone a completely hopeless road. There’s always a sliver of life left, and her sliver of life has already appeared.”

Jingxing paused. A chance at life? He turned to look at Gu Feiyin, hovering in the darkness above.

Her single chance at life-did it mean her?

If so, then it could only be her. Besides her, he couldn’t think of anyone else.

Liao Yuan glanced at Zhen Du. He hadn’t expected this unlucky monk, despite his misfortune, not to be incompetent, but rather to have some real skill in the Dao. But if that was the case, shouldn’t he be someone with deep Buddhist affinity, highly accomplished in the Dharma, blessed by heaven? Why was he so down on his luck now? Was it a trial sent by heaven?

Just like his own Shifu-his Shifu was also highly accomplished in the Dharma, with Buddhist learning second to none in the world. But before he became a monk, when he was still an ordinary person, his life had been anything but smooth. As a child, he lost both parents, and his grandparents who raised him died when he was eleven or twelve. At that time, the world was in chaos, and people suffered greatly. He lived with his uncle’s family for a few years, but they were separated in the turmoil. With no family left, he wandered from place to place, tasting all the bitterness of the world. Later, he fainted from hunger by the roadside and was rescued by the passing Abbot. The old Shifu said, upon seeing him for the first time, that he had affinity with the Buddha and took him as a disciple.

After that, he was tonsured and became a little monk, following the old Shifu as they wandered the world, witnessing the joys and sorrows of life.

Later, the old Shifu passed away, and his Shifu arrived at Baiyu Town, never to leave again.

His Shifu’s life was full of hardships, even more so than Zhen Du’s. Could it be that Zhen Du also had some karmic bond with Buddhism? But if he was so destined, how could he be so unlucky? It was as if heaven itself had singled him out.

Old Man Wang was truly on the verge of panic. Every second felt unbearably long, especially since it was just past eight o’clock and the traffic was overwhelming. They had hoped to take the emergency lane, and the ambulance’s siren was blaring so loudly that anyone would know there was an incident, so surely people would make way.

Who could have guessed things wouldn’t go that way at all? The road was packed with a surging stream of cars, and nobody cared about the wailing ambulance. Drivers just kept going as they pleased, even occupying the emergency lane. A rare few would slow down and make some room, but there were even more who didn’t. As they approached another traffic light, a long line of cars was queued ahead, forcing the ambulance to a halt.

Xiao Wang, seeing the vehicle stop, thought they’d arrived at the hospital. “We’re here, we’re here! Honey, we’ve made it!”

Granny Wang sensed something was wrong-how could they possibly have arrived so quickly? She looked up and saw that they were still stuck in the middle of the main road! Word was there’d been a rear-end collision up ahead that hadn’t been cleared yet. Their supposed emergency lane was jam-packed with cars. Many people, eager for convenience and speed, liked to use the emergency lane, never considering what would happen when someone truly needed it. This kind of delay could cost lives!

It was one thing to be stuck in traffic normally-waiting a bit longer didn’t matter. But now, with a life on the line, who had the luxury to wait?

The ambulance driver was anxious as well. He’d seen the pregnant woman’s massive bleeding-if he arrived late and lost both mother and child, how could he bear it? He honked the horn again and again, stuck his head out the window, and shouted for the cars ahead to make way, but it seemed to do little good.

“Pull over, those in front! We have a pregnant woman with severe bleeding, we must get to the hospital at once!”

“Move aside, please! Let us through first!”

“Beep beep beep beep-traffic police are on the way, please move aside!”

“……”

The little ghosts watching nearby were beside themselves with anxiety, eyes burning red, ghostly energy swirling. The woman in red ghost’s whip snapped through the air, wishing she could fling those selfish, lane-blocking cars into the sky-but sadly, her powers were limited, and she could only imagine it.

The Middle-aged Female Ghost said, “What’s wrong with these cars? The ambulance is blaring behind them-don’t they know to pull over?”

The Armless Ghost said, “Hurry up and make way, you shameless lot! Do you even have any decency left?”

The Headless Ghost, with his nonexistent mouth, cursed as well. “Damn, these people are truly heartless-have they never needed help themselves?”

“I saw Xiao Wang’s wife bleeding so much she doesn’t even have the strength to cry. Is she about to die?”

“Shut your crow’s mouth already!”

“……”

Not every driver was deliberately blocking the way. Many did take the emergency lane for speed, but they never expected an ambulance would actually come up behind them. They wanted to make way, but the traffic was so dense and the lanes so messy that, with the cars ahead not moving and the ones on the side stuck, there was just no way to make room.

This really was enough to drive both the living and the ghosts mad.

The woman in red ghost, face pale as death, poked her head into the vehicle and saw Xiao Wang’s wife in agonizing pain. Xiao Wang himself couldn’t hold back his tears, kneeling and weeping, while Granny Wang was desperate to get out and curse at the other drivers. Old Man Wang had already gotten out, risking danger as he begged the drivers to move aside and let the ambulance through…

Little Wang pressed his face against the window, lips trembling as he wiped away tears, calling out for his sister and mother in turn.

He was, after all, still a child, and the sudden accident had terrified him.

Jumpy was hopping anxiously at the side. What were they supposed to do?

The woman in red ghost pulled her head out, turned around, and said in a cold voice, “Move all the cars in front out of the way. I refuse to believe we can’t open up a path!”

She remembered the rules set by the Special Unit for good ghosts: never use supernatural abilities to cause public panic or reveal the existence of ghosts to the masses. Otherwise, they could just carry the ambulance straight to the hospital, not worrying about traffic or detours, and save a lot of time.

But since they couldn’t do that, they might as well try to get the other cars to move.

She waved her hand, Yin Energy surging. “Move all those cars blocking the way to the side! I don’t believe we can’t carve out a bloody path!”

The Middle-aged Female Ghost clapped her hands. “That’s a great idea-just move all the obstacles, and the ambulance can pass!”

“Waa waa waa, excellent! We’re done talking with them-let’s just move everything aside!”

“Come on, let’s move these cars! All that pig head meat, chicken, duck, and goose we ate wasn’t for nothing. Now I can finally put my Resentment Energy to use!”

“Coming, coming! Moving cars is nothing. Back when I went to support the disaster zone, I carried who knows how many planks. This is easy.”

“Don’t lift them too high, though. That’ll cause panic. Just make a bit of space.”

No sooner said than done. A hundred or so little ghost heads rolled up their sleeves to help. The Ghost Lady and her maids floated in midair, and with a wave of her hand, Xiao Xi led the ghost maids down to join in as well. After all, she’d secretly watched plenty of TV-how could she just stand by and not help with something this small? She wasn’t that stingy a ghost.

They started by moving the cars closest to the roadside, clearing a path for the ambulance!

One, two, three-move!

One, two, three-move!

One, two, three-move!

These hundred or so little ghosts truly possessed considerable strength. Well-fed and well-off, their ghostly energy was abundant. Five or six little ghosts were in charge of each car, and in no time, they managed to move twenty or thirty vehicles aside. The ambulance driver, originally so anxious that he was cursing and frantically honking the horn, suddenly saw the tightly packed cars in front of him all swish to the left by dozens of centimeters, clearing out space right in front of his vehicle.

The ambulance driver thought he must be hallucinating. Was he playing PS or something? Since when could cars slide sideways like that?

Unable to help himself, he rubbed his eyes and looked again, only to find that the newly cleared space was growing, and the cars ahead were also collectively sliding to the left…

Not just the ambulance driver-even the frustrated drivers inside their cars felt as if a weight had been lifted from them, only to be dropped down hard again, almost like something was disgusted with them and had kicked their cars aside. The cars even bounced a few times.

Bewildered, one driver propped himself up and glanced around, only to see his car had shifted much closer to the flowerbed, nearly scraping it. The car on the left seemed to have moved as well… What was going on?

Old Man Wang was still pleading with the drivers to move aside, but the drivers, equally troubled, said there was no way; there were cars in every direction, how could they move?

Yet in the blink of an eye, Old Man Wang watched as the cars were lifted and dropped. He had been leaning against the window, but now he almost lost his balance and fell with a crash. Fortunately, something grabbed him by the collar and hauled him back, so he barely managed to stand steady.

Old Man Wang stood dazed for a moment, then suddenly understood. He looked ahead and, sure enough, the cars had shifted to open up a path. The ambulance, which had been stuck, was now moving forward along this newly created road…

His eyes immediately reddened. Seeing the ambulance moving, a neighbor quickly called out, “Old Man Wang, get in the car! Let’s hurry to the hospital!”

Old Man Wang nodded and ran to the car. Once inside, he couldn’t help but wipe away his tears, pressing himself against the window to look outside. From a distance, he could see the cars on the road noisily shifting to the left, sliding sideways in a way that no driver could achieve. Other than those lonely spirits and wild ghosts living around the overpass, he couldn’t think of anyone else capable of such a feat.

They had saved him and his grandson before, and now they had come to save his daughter-in-law.

On the other side, Xiao Wang and Granny Wang were so anxious they were stomping their feet, trying to comfort Xiao Wang’s wife. Xiao Wang, leaning against the window, wished all those blocking cars would vanish. In the next instant, he saw with shock and joy as the cars slid aside, clearing a path wide enough for the ambulance. Overjoyed, he shouted, “Driver, go! Quick!”

The ambulance driver floored the gas pedal, and the vehicle sped off.

Excitedly, Xiao Wang tried to comfort his wife, telling her they were saved, that they would soon reach the hospital, and to relax. But just as relief washed over him, he suddenly wondered if he’d been hallucinating-did he really see cars sliding sideways? It wouldn’t be so strange if they moved forward or backward, but sideways by several dozen centimeters? What car could do that?

Puzzled, he turned his attention back to his wife’s pain-stricken face, and all other thoughts faded away.

Granny Wang, seeing the ambulance finally able to move, gratefully prayed for Heaven’s blessing, wishing peace and safety for her daughter-in-law and granddaughter.

Xiao Wang’s wife, her mind clouded by pain, felt her vision blur.

She seemed to hear her doctor telling her to stay calm, breathe deeply, not to scream but to save her strength for childbirth. She heard her mother-in-law cheering her on, and her husband, crying by her ear, professing his lifelong love and begging her not to leave him. She wanted to say she wouldn’t die, but she didn’t even have the strength to speak.

In her daze, she also heard many people talking, a noisy commotion outside the car. Someone was cursing those who blocked the emergency lane, saying they deserved to have nightmares every night and be so unlucky as to choke on water. Others were calling for everyone to move the cars and open up a bloody path at any cost.

She couldn’t help but want to laugh, though she hadn’t the strength. She really must be delirious from the pain-she was even hallucinating people moving cars…

…

While excitement filled the car, Old Man Wang was equally overjoyed after returning to his own vehicle. Little Wang clutched his grandfather’s clothes, wailing, “Waa, Grandpa, don’t cry!”

Old Man Wang pulled his little grandson onto his lap, both excited and grateful from the bottom of his heart. He never expected the lonely spirits and wild ghosts would truly come to help them. They must have known about his daughter-in-law’s difficult labor, which is why they followed along, and seeing the traffic jam, couldn’t help but step in.

He was deeply grateful, and hoped that someone would remember this kindness. Pointing ahead, he told his grandson to look, and the child, with big, watery eyes, saw the cars zipping aside. He opened his mouth in surprise and said, “Grandpa, is Sister here? Sister and the others must have heard me, so they came to save Mommy and my little sister!”

Old Man Wang nodded heavily and said yes, not only was Sister here, but surely many uncles, aunties, grannies, brothers, sisters, and Ghost Lady had come too. They truly came to help, and they must always remember this kindness and thank them properly in the future.

The child threw himself at the window, his face streaked with tears and snot. He looked out with utter curiosity at everything happening outside. His big round eyes seemed determined to remember this moment forever.

He nodded vigorously and said, “Grandpa, I remember everything!”

Old Man Wang smiled with satisfaction and nodded.

The neighbor was driving, his face full of confusion and bewilderment. He couldn’t make sense of it-the old man and his grandson in the back seat had switched emotions so quickly. Just a while ago, they were desperate, and now they looked happy, even saying things like “Thank you, sister!” and “Uncle, aunt, granny, sister-in-law, you really came to save us…?”

What kind of nonsense was this? Had the grandpa and grandson been scared out of their minds?

……

The ambulance sped through the streets and headed straight for the hospital, leaving behind a group of stunned drivers. They all felt as if they’d just woken from a dream. Why did it feel like the car had just slid sideways? But that couldn’t be right-no one came to lift it, so how could it have moved sideways? And yet, the car seemed to be in a different spot…

No matter how they thought about it, the whole thing felt strange, as if they’d stumbled into a supernatural incident. When they remembered the ambulance that should have been stuck in traffic but instead sped away in an instant, they couldn’t help but shiver. Surely they hadn’t just experienced some ghostly prank?

They couldn’t resist posting about the bizarre event online. Of course, nobody believed them, but a few drivers who claimed to have been on the same road said they’d found it weird too. One of them, who’d been behind the ambulance, saw the vehicle slide sideways with his own eyes-but it all happened in a flash, and by the time they thought to record it, the ambulance was already gone!

“Could we have run into some powerful deity? The kind who can soar to the heavens and burrow to the earth, conjure things out of thin air with a wave of the hand, like in the movies? Were we blessed by a deity?”

“Blessed? Why do I feel like, when I got moved out of the way, it was more like I was being tossed aside? My car bounced a couple of times!”

“It wasn’t ‘like’-it was exactly that. Think about it, moving the cars was just so the ambulance could get through, right? All because someone didn’t follow the traffic rules and nearly cost a life. Otherwise, the deity wouldn’t have intervened!”

“How do we know it was a deity and not a ghost?”

“……”

Speculations of this kind ran rampant. The internet was abuzz with stories of cars moving on their own at night, and for a while, it was the talk of the town. Meanwhile, far away at the hospital, Xiao Wang’s wife finally gave birth via cesarean section-to a baby girl weighing six jin.

Mother and daughter were safe.

The little girl was so frail at birth, she looked like a tiny mouse. Gu Feiyin lay on Old Lady’s back, hiding outside the window, peering in. She saw the little one’s wrinkled, red face, eyes tightly shut, only interested in sleeping. So ugly-she didn’t even notice all the heads poking through the wall to look at her.

The woman in red ghost floated in midair. Afraid that her Yin Energy would harm the child, she didn’t dare get too close. Her gloomy eyes glowed red. “What a cute little one.”

Gu Feiyin said, “How is that cute? She’s so ugly.”

The woman in red ghost rolled her eyes. “……”

But this didn’t affect the woman in red ghost’s good mood in the slightest. The Middle-aged Female Ghost was overjoyed, the Armless Ghost and the Headless Ghost even let out soft, whimpering sounds. Old Lady hugged her broom and looked and looked, her cold gaze trying hard to squint, wanting to seem kind and friendly. But she was so stiff, the harder she tried, the more sinister she looked.

“Even though tonight was a mess, at least mother and daughter are safe. They both survived.”

“Yeah, I was so worried. I thought she was going to die in her mother’s belly. Such a calamity.”

“Good thing we got here in time, or it would have been tragic.”

“They say that those who survive great disasters are sure to have blessings afterward. This child must have a great fate-she survived even this. She’s destined for good fortune.”

“…She’ll have good fortune just because of this?”

Gu Feiyin felt a little envious of the little one. What was the use of being pretty? She couldn’t compare to someone ugly but blessed.

She watched and watched, and suddenly a memory flashed through her mind. It seemed that a long, long time ago, she had also held a baby. That child had just been born, so ugly she couldn’t bear to look, wrapped in swaddling clothes, light and soft as cotton, so delicate that even a gentle touch seemed to squash her.

She rubbed her head, puzzled as to why this memory would suddenly surface. Why did she have such a scene in her mind? It wasn’t anything that had happened after she became a ghost-could it have been something from when she was still alive?

Gu Feiyin thought for a while, recalling how she’d suddenly remembered witnessing bloody scenes before… Could it be that she had helped deliver babies when she was alive?

She couldn’t figure it out. The memories were fragmented and incomplete, leaving her thoroughly confused.