The Revenge of a Ghost

(Yin hun xue hen)

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This is an adaptation of a ghost story which is popular in Guangdong Province. Set during the Qing Dynasty, it is a story of revenge.

A courtesan named Liao Xiaoqiao lives in Guangzhou, the capital city of Guangdong Province, and she works hard everyday. She is a pretty young lady in her early twenties and, unlike the other courtesans, she saves all her earnings and hopes to be free one day to settle down with a man who truly loves her. As a result, she always pays special attention to her clients, hoping to find her Mr. Right. She finally finds a client who visits her frequently, and the two vow to love each other. Unfortunately, he deceives her and takes all her savings. She refuses to see any other clients, and is expelled from the brothel. Having no other place to go, she ultimately commits suicide.

One day, a good-looking young scholar comes to a small inn and asks for a room. The inn has no vacancy, but the owner shows him an empty room which is called a "ghost chamber" by travellers. The young scholar is unafraid, and takes the room without hesitation. During the night, he is awakened by a strange sound and, to his surprise, he sees a lady in white standing beside his bed. He is shocked and asks what she wants of him. The ghost starts to cry, telling him that she has been deceived and wants revenge. The scholar's fate has been destined to intertwine with hers, so she will not hurt him. He agrees to lead her soul to her previous lover. She tells him that he needs to call out her name from time to time to keep from losing her, and that he must use an umbrella to guide her soul to the man.

The person who has deceived her is now the owner of a drug store bought with her money. She describes the route and follows the young scholar to the shop. She sees that the shop owner already has a beautiful wife and two children, but her anger gets the better of her, and she kills the man. The young wife is deeply shocked and expires as the ghost takes away the two children. The ghost is later reincarnated and marries the young scholar. They live right beside the shop and take care of the two children until they reach adulthood.