I became an immortal in the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 102 Demons and Ghosts Discuss Poetry Under the Moon (+3)

Finally, the four of them sat under the eaves, with Jiang She concealing their figures. Watching the ghost from under the eaves was quite a spectacle.

yard.

The figures were unaware of what was happening; they were all seated at the table, drinking and talking.

The scholar looked at the monk.

"When I was young, I heard people recite your poem about gathering snow to form mountains. Isn't that exactly the same as what we are doing tonight? Master, do you still remember this poem?"

A scholar who had passed the imperial examination and was now an official asked.

"Do you still remember what this poem says?"

The scholar said, "Whose courtyard is covered in snow? A thousand peaks and valleys are all contained in a single fist. My heart feels the chill seeping into my clothes. I once lived here for several years."

As the monk listened, he also recalled his own poems from many years ago.

Several figures were eating, their chopsticks touching the plates.

It makes a faint sound.

The cat in Jiang She's arms, which had been very sleepy, suddenly perked up, its ears twitching as it looked around. Its eyes were fixed on the yard, trying to find the source of the sound.

Jiang She stroked the cat's head and whispered to it.

"Don't disturb them."

Li Bai whispered, "Even ghosts can write poetry."

Yuan Danqiu, clutching his fur coat, watched from afar, his heart filled with surprise. He had heard of haunted houses before, but he had always avoided them. Now, thinking back, it seemed to have lost much of its appeal.

He told it to Li Bai.

Li Bai thought for a moment and said, "If you rush into any place you see gods or ghosts, I'm afraid you won't live to see the day you meet me."

Jiang She couldn't help but laugh.

Upon closer inspection, they discovered that although there were only three figures composing poetry, there were clearly more than three "people"—several smaller shadows playing the roles of monk disciples.

The cat listened to the sounds coming from the yard and meowed.

Even though he couldn't hear it, the monk's disciple still trembled.

"It looks like there's a cat, it's really scary."

Those ethereal figures began to mutter amongst themselves.

"Oh dear, this family even keeps a cat..."

Then another figure remembered their identities and asked in a serious tone, "Is this how the master's disciple gets sick? I didn't see the cat scratching anything during the day."

The monk stroked his chest.

"An illness caused by being scared."

Some suggested, "Why don't we move..."

"I came first!"

As the monk spoke, he ate his food and drink. Buddhists do not eat meat, but the shadowy figure playing the monk seemed to have forgotten that. He ate a dish that looked like mutton and then served food to the young disciples beside him.

These figures somehow found some alcohol, and the smell of alcohol wafted through the snow.

The cool fragrance wafted towards him, and Li Bai, watching from afar, felt his craving for wine almost awakened.

Apart from the sounds of drinking and the ghosts talking, the courtyard was very quiet. Jiang She and his companions could also hear a house creak open in the distance.

He told his family, "Here we go again!"

"This house is truly haunted!"

The few people drinking and composing poetry in the courtyard were clearly quite pleased with themselves, and one of them, holding his wine cup, said:
"That's how it should be."

"What's wrong with us talking?"

"We should have scared them a long time ago. It would have been better if they had all moved away, then we would have had more places to drink."

"Keep your voices down, don't let this family hear you."

One of the figures said, "This family keeps cats."

After talking for a while, they resumed their discussion of poetry and literature. The official, a scholar who had passed the imperial examination, composed a poem about his life in Chang'an in the past.

"East of Chang'an, on the road to Luoyang, carts never cease, dust billows. Driven by greed and ambition, they whip their horses, meeting only petty figures amidst the dust..."

The other figures all referred to it as a masterpiece.

Li Bai listened with great interest.

The old deer mountain god said to Jiang She, "They do have some poetic talent."

Yuan Danqiu listened and asked Li Bai, "Taibai, did you write it down? You can write it down for Master Meng."

Li Bai nodded.

The banquet in the courtyard never stopped; the wine in the jug seemed endless, and the aroma of the food wafted from the table. Wine glasses clinked together, and the several ethereal figures appeared to be thoroughly drunk.

Under the moonlight, several figures, drunkenly arguing over poetry and prose, began to debate.

The scholar said that the Jinshi (successful candidate in the highest imperial examination) had been demoted, which was why he had gone from Chang'an to Yanzhou.

The scholar was furious.

"You're quite capable, staying in the same place for hundreds of years."

He then berated the monks and disciples, saying, "They're so timid and cowardly, they're even afraid of a cat."

Immediately, the figures started arguing and debating, each pointing out the other's faults.

He almost poured the water from his wine cup over the other person's head.

Under the eaves, Jiang She and his three companions listened with great interest.

Li Bai wondered:

"So ghosts can argue too."

Yuan Danqiu watched with great interest, and even the howling wind didn't feel so cold anymore. He wrapped himself in a fur coat, thoroughly enjoying himself.

"Seeing all this excitement, sir, you've rented this house very well."

"Thank goodness I didn't move to another place."

The old deer mountain god found it interesting and watched intently.

The argument in the courtyard grew heated. Jiang She gently stroked the cat that was trying to grab him.

Suddenly, he heard footsteps in the snow outside, and a flickering oil lamp burning in the cold wind in the distance. Du family servants, wearing their clothes, walked over, squinting as they observed from afar.

The arguing in the courtyard stopped abruptly.

A very soft voice said, "Someone's coming!"

far away.

Even in the quiet alley, a sound could be heard, followed by the barking of a dog.

The courtyard was quiet.

The several ethereal figures stopped arguing and fell silent.

The servant waited for a while, but didn't hear anything unusual. He squinted and looked, but from the outside, he couldn't see the other people's yard very clearly.

Half an hour later.

The servants of the Du family resumed their steps and walked away.

Those figures finally breathed a sigh of relief.

He muttered to himself, complaining, "Why are these people so troublesome?"

"Yes, yes."

"Can we scare them away?"

"We can't move it, Master, why don't you give it a try?"

The ethereal figure playing the monk, somewhat reluctantly, abandoned his haughty demeanor and asked:
"Who's responsible if someone gets trampled to death?"

The figures in the courtyard discussed for a while, but couldn't reach a conclusion, and no one was willing to step forward and drive all the neighbors away. Seeing that it was almost dawn, the figures lost their interest in discussing poetry.

The banquet under the moon came to an end.

Jiang She saw it.

The original low seating area completely disappeared, and the courtyard was transformed back into a snowy field, leaving no trace.

These figures.

Some disappeared into the courtyard, some went towards the wall, and one returned to the main hall.

Li Bai was curious.

"Sir, these ghosts have all returned to the house. Could it be that they usually stay here?"

He looked left and right, but he hadn't seen any ghosts during the day. It was different from the Lu family's ghosts; back then, he could see hanged ghosts in the trees.

Yuan Danqiu also wanted to know.

Jiang She smiled and said, "Tomorrow, you can go and take a closer look."

It was too late, so the four people and the cat went back to sleep.

As dawn broke in the east, a rooster crowed on his pillow. Jiang She lay on his bed, eyes closed, listening to the rooster crowing from some unknown neighbor's house.

The cat woke up, became energetic, and stared intently at the person on the nearby table.

Suddenly he called out:
"Rat!"

I don't know where he learned it, but he pronounced those two words perfectly, without a single mistake.

(End of this chapter)