There was a man named Xu who lived outside the north gate of Zichuan in Shandong Province and made a living by fishing.
Every night, he would go down to the river bank with a bottle of wine and drink while he waited for the fish to enter his net. Each time, as he drank, he would pour some of the wine on the ground and say, “May this be for the ghost of the drowned.” This became a daily practice. Others who fished here went away empty-handed; only Xu always returned with his basket full.
One evening, as Xu was drinking by himself, a young man approached him and lingered nearby. Xu invited him to drink, and the young man quickly assented. That night, Xu failed to net any fish and he was very upset. The young man rose and said, “I’ll go downstream and drive the fish up.” So saying, he wandered off. Shortly afterwards, he returned, saying, ”There are huge shoals of fish swimming this way.” Already, they could hear the sound of large schools of fish in the water catching their prey. Xu cast his net and immediately he hauled up several of the fish, all of them more than a foot long. He was very happy indeed and thanked the young man. When he got up to go home, he offered to give some of the fish to the young man as a token of gratitude, but the latter declined, saying, “I’ve drunk your wine so many times, while what I’ve done for you is hardly worth mentioning. If you don’t mind, I’ll be here at your service every night.” “But we’ve been drinking together only tonight,” Xu said, “why do you say many times? If you’re willing to join me, it would be more than I could ask for. My only regret is that I have nothing to repay you with.” Then he asked for the young man’s name, to which the young man replied, ”My family name is Wang, I have no name of my own. Just call me Sixth Brother Wang.” And the two parted.
The next day, Xu sold his fish and bought more wine. At dusk, when he went to the river bank, he found Wang already there. After drinking several cups, Wang went off to drive the fish upstream. This went on for half a year. One day, Wang suddenly said to Xu, “It’s been an honor to make your acquaintance. We have been closer than brothers. But the day of parting is at hand.” He sounded very sad as he said this, which greatly astonished Xu, who asked for an explanation. Each time Sixth Brother was about to open his mouth, he hesitated. Finally, he said, ”We know each other well enough, perhaps you will not be shocked if I speak out. Now that we’re about to part, there’s no harm in my telling you the truth: I am actually a ghost! When I was alive, I loved to drink and, because I was drunk, I fell into the river and was drowned. That was several years ago. The reason you netted more fish than anybody else is because, without your knowing it, I was driving the fish your way to repay you for your kindness in pouring wine on the ground for the dead to drink. Tomorrow, my term will be up. Someone will die to take my place, and I shall return to the world of man. This is our last get-together, that’s why I feel so sad.”
Xu was indeed shocked at first, but having been friends with the ghost for such a long time, he soon forgot his fear and couldn’t help weeping. He poured a cup of wine and said, “Sixth Brother, empty this cup and don’t feel bad any more. How sad it is that we were destined to meet and yet must hastily part. But now that you’ve served your term and will soon gain freedom from suffering, we should celebrate rather than weep.” Thus the two went on drinking. Xu then asked, “And who will take your place?” Sixth Brother replied, “Come to the river bank tomorrow and see for yourself, Elder Brother. When the sun is overhead, a woman will fall into the water while crossing the river. She will be my replacement.” Just then, the cock crowed in the village. The two wiped away their tears and each went his own way.
The next day, Xu made a point of going to the river to watch the unbelievable happen. Sure enough, a woman came along, carrying an infant in her arms. When she got to the river bank, she slipped and fell into the water. The infant, which was flipped onto the bank, was waving its arms and kicking its feet and wailing. The woman’s body sank and resurfaced several times. Suddenly, she climbed back up onto the river bank, drenched through. She sat down on the ground for a while to get her breath back. Then she picked up the baby and walked away.
When he saw the woman fall into the water, Xu couldn’t help wanting to run over to rescue her. But on second thought, he remembered that this woman would replace Sixth Brother, and he stopped in his tracks. Then, when the woman climbed out of the water, he was puzzled to see that what Sixth Brother had forecast the night before didn’t happen. He waited till dusk. Then he went to the old place again to fish and there was Sixth Brother who greeted him, saying, ”Ah, we meet again; no more need to say goodbye!” Xu asked him what it was all about. He said, “Yes, the woman had come to replace me, but I had pity for the infant in her arms. She might have replaced me, but at the cost of two lives! So I set her free. Now, there’s no knowing when someone can come to take my place. Perhaps we’re destined not to part yet.” Hearing this, Xu exclaimed, “Your kind heart will move the Emperor of Heaven!” And so the two of them met every night, just as before.
Several days later, Sixth Brother came again to bid farewell. Xu thought that there must be a new replacement coming, but the other said, “No, that’s not it. The news of my pity for the woman and child did indeed reach the heavenly court. Now, the Emperor of Heaven has appointed me the Land God of the town of Wuzhen in Zhaoyuan County, and I must start on my journey early tomorrow morning. If you cherish our friendship, you must visit me some time. Don’t you be afraid of the distance and the mountains and rivers blocking the way.” Xu congratulated him, ”The fact that your just character has made you into a god consoles my heart. But the road of man and that of the gods don’t cross. Even if I’m not afraid of the distance and obstacles, how could I make it?” To which Sixth Brother replied, “Just you go ahead. Don’t worry about anything!” After repeating that several times, he left.
Returning home, Xu decided to pack and head for Zhaoyuan in the east. His wife laughed and said, ”It’s a several hundred Ii’s journey. Even if there were a Wuzhen in Zhaoyuan, what you’d find would be just an earthen statue. You can’t converse with him.” But Xu wouldn’t listen. He finally reached Zhaoyuan County and from the local people he learned that there was indeed a Wuzhen. He put up at an inn and asked the innkeeper where the Temple of the Land God was. The man was quite astonished and asked, ”You’re not called Xu, are you?” “I certainly am,” said Xu, “but how did you know?” Instead of answering the question, the innkeeper dashed out of the house. Before long, a crowd of people had gathered in the inn, men carrying children in their arms, married and unmarried women looking on from outside. Xu was even more astonished. Then they told him, “Several nights ago, we had a dream. The Land God said that he had a good friend by the name of Xu, who would be arriving here from Zichuan shortly, and that we might help him with some travel needs. We’ve been waiting for you for some time.” Xu was profoundly amazed by this.
Later, arriving at the Temple of Land God, Xu prayed to Sixth Brother, saying, “Ever since we parted, I have been thinking of you day and night. Now, I have come a long way to fulfill our appointment. On learning that you had visited the townfolk in their dreams, asking them to take care of me, my heart was filled with gratitude. I shall long remember your kindness. Regretfully, I have nothing of worth to offer to you. There is only this cup of wine which I hope may express my feelings. If that is acceptable to you, please drink along with me as we did so often by the riverside.” Then, Xu burned some paper money. Within minutes, a puff of wind blew up from behind the statue. It swirled in the air for quite a while before fading away. That night, Xu dreamed that Sixth Brother came to visit him. He was neatly dressed in a robe and hat, quite unlike in the past He said to Xu, “Thank you for coming to see me from so far away. I can hardly hold back the tears of joy. But as I am in this holy position, minor as it is, I cannot see you in person. Though we’re only a foot apart, mountains seem to separate us. My townfolk will help you with some meagre gifts. Let them be tokens of my gratitude for your friendship. When the date of your departure is set, I shall come to see you off on that day.”
A few days later, Xu got ready to go home. Over and over, the people urged him to stay a little longer. One after another, they invited him to their homes. Xu politely declined, insisting that he must leave. Then the people came in a steady stream to present him with gifts of money and goods. By noontime, the gifts had filled a huge bag. When he left, all the townfolk, old and young, came to see him off. Suddenly a wind blew up. It accompanied the fisherman for more than ten Ii. Several times Xu bowed to the whirlwind and said, “You take good care of yourself, Sixth Brother. Please don’t go any further. With your kindheartedness, you will surely bring happiness to the people here. As an old friend of yours, I have no need to say any more.” The whirlwind swirled around, up and down, for a long time before drifting away. Some of the towns folk who’d accompanied him a piece, amazed by the wonder of the sight, turned back too.
After Xu returned to Zichuan life improved somewhat for his family and be no longer made a living by fishing. Whenever he met someone from Zhaoyuan, he would inquire after Sixth Brother, and they would all say the Land God always responded to the people’s wishes. He never failed them. Some say the place where Sixth Brother resides is actually Shikeng Village in Zhangqiu County. It’s hard to say who’s right.
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