Pu Songling’s Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio (Liaozhai Zhiyi) is famous for its ghost stories, but beneath the supernatural surface, many of these tales carry sharp social and political commentary. One such story is “Ghosts Weeping“. At first glance, it is a simple haunted-house tale. But when placed against the historical backdrop of the Xie Qian Rebellion – a bloody anti-Qing uprising in 1640s Shandong – it reveals a much deeper critique of power, virtue, and the moral failures of those who served two masters.
The Story: A Haunted Mansion
During the Xie Qian Rebellion, the mansions of officials in Zichuan (in present-day Zibo, Shandong) were all occupied by rebel forces. The residence of Wang Qixiang, an Educational Commissioner, housed more rebels than most. When Qing forces retook the city and crushed the uprising, the house was left filled with corpses and blood. Wang had the bodies removed and the blood washed away, then moved back in.
But the dead did not rest. By day, ghosts appeared; by night, will-o’-the-wisps flickered beneath the beds and weeping echoed from every corner. One evening, a scholar named Wang Haodi heard a small voice from under his bed calling his name, then wailing: “I died in agony!” Soon the entire courtyard was filled with weeping. Wang Qixiang, armed with his sword, stormed in and shouted: “Do you not recognise me, the Educational Commissioner Wang?” The ghosts answered with a hundred sneers of contempt. His authority meant nothing to them.
Defeated by the spirits, Wang resorted to Buddhist and Taoist rituals – a Water-and-Land Dharma Assembly, offerings of ghost food, and chanting. Only then did the hauntings cease.
The Historical Backdrop: The Xie Qian Rebellion
To understand the story’s deeper meaning, we must first understand the rebellion that triggered it.
In 1645, the newly established Qing dynasty issued the infamous “tonsure decree” (剃发令), ordering all Han Chinese men to shave their foreheads and wear their hair in a Manchu queue. The decree was championed by Sun Zhixie (孙之獬), a native of Zichuan who had served the Ming but surrendered to the Qing. He personally urged the Qing regent Dorgon to enforce the order, declaring: “Keep your head, lose your hair; keep your hair, lose your head” (留头不留发，留发不留头).
This humiliating edict sparked widespread resistance. Among the rebels was Xie Qian (谢迁), a peasant from Gaoyuan County (now Gaoqing County, Zibo) who had once worked as a servant in an official’s household. In November 1646, he gathered several thousand followers and launched an anti-Qing uprising. The rebels captured multiple towns and, in June 1647, with the help of an insider, took Zichuan. They stormed Sun Zhixie’s mansion and executed the man who had championed the tonsure decree. The rebellion was finally crushed in 1648, with Xie Qian killed in battle.
Wang Qixiang: A “Turncoat” Official
Wang Qixiang – whose real name was Wang Changyin (王昌胤), courtesy name Qixiang (字七襄) – was a native of Zichuan. He had been a county magistrate under the Ming, but after the Ming fell, he surrendered to the Qing and continued his official career. In 1647, he was appointed Educational Commissioner for Shuntian Prefecture (present-day Beijing).
In traditional Chinese historiography, officials who served two dynasties were condemned as “turncoats” (二臣, erchen) – men who lacked moral integrity. As a result, Sun Zhixie was included in the Qianlong‑compiled Biographies of Turncoat Officials. The reason why Wang Qixiang was not included in the Biographies of Turncoat Officials was because Wang’s official rank and influence were comparatively limited, so no separate state‑history biography was composed for him. Undoubtedly, he belonged to the same category as Sun Zhixie: both were traitors who who swapped loyalties for power and position.
And Pu Songling, the author, had personal reasons to know about Wang’s household.
Pu Songling’s Personal Connection
Pu Songling was himself a native of Zichuan. From a young age, he was fascinated by strange tales and ghost stories. But more importantly, he had a direct link to the Wang family: Wang Yongyin (王永印), Wang Qixiang’s sixth brother, was one of Pu’s employers. Pu taught in the Wang household as a private tutor. Through Wang Yongyin, he would have had first-hand knowledge of the family’s affairs.
This personal connection gave Pu an intimate perspective on Wang Qixiang – and it likely fuelled his critical portrayal.
The Moral of the Story: Virtue, Not Power
After recounting how Wang Qixiang finally rid his house of ghosts through religious ceremonies, Pu Songling adds a sceptical note:
“Could it be that the sounds of bells, drums, and gongs, and the recitation of rituals, truly had such an effect?”
Then comes his famous commentary, delivered in the voice of the “Strange Historian” (Yishi Shi):
“Evil and monstrous things can only be stopped by virtue. When the city fell, Wang’s power and prestige were at their height – at the mere sound of his voice, men trembled. Yet the ghosts dared to mock him. Perhaps they foresaw that he would not come to a good end? I would like to say to all the great lords and gentlemen of the world: even if you put on a human face, you cannot frighten ghosts; and I hope you will not put on a demon’s face to frighten men!”
Pu’s point is razor-sharp: Wang Qixiang’s authority, however formidable in the mortal world, meant nothing to the spirits. The ghosts – the souls of the anti-Qing rebels he had helped suppress – laughed at him because they saw through his moral emptiness. His power was borrowed; his virtue was non-existent.
The Deeper Meaning: A Critique of the “Turncoats”
Wang Qixiang was not the only turncoat in this story. Sun Zhixie, who championed the tonsure decree, was another – and he met a brutal end at the hands of Xie Qian’s rebels. Both men had abandoned their dynasty and people for personal gain.
Pu Songling, writing from the perspective of a local scholar who lived through these turbulent times, used the ghost story to pass judgment. The weeping ghosts are not just generic spirits – they are the victims of a brutal suppression, the rebels who died fighting for their dignity and their hair. Their weeping is a condemnation of those who collaborated with the conquerors.
And Wang Qixiang’s failure to intimidate them with his sword and his title is a powerful symbol: worldly power cannot silence the truth. Only virtue can.
Conclusion
“Ghosts Weeping” is far more than a simple haunted-house tale. It is a story about moral accountability, wrapped in the language of the supernatural. Through the historical lens of the Xie Qian Rebellion, Pu Songling exposes the hypocrisy of officials who switched sides for power, and reminds us that no amount of authority can shield a person from the judgment of history – or of the dead.
As Pu himself warns: “Even if you put on a human face, you cannot frighten ghosts; do not put on a demon’s face to frighten men.” In the end, the story is a call to integrity – a reminder that true authority rests not in titles or force, but in virtue.
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