KNOT 2 - THE DEITIES' MISHAP

SANDARA's POV

AWESOME. This is just freaking awesome.

I was breathing in short gasps as my heart painfully pounded inside my chest. I was not even blinking as I tried to comprehend the situation. What just happened here?

A red cord appeared out of thin air. A red cord...appeared...out of thin air.

A woman appeared out of thin air. A woman...appeared...out of thin air.

Out of thin air, you guys.

A g-ghost?

Am I losing my mind?

Yes, indeed. I've gone totally nuts.

Mommy.

Help!!

"Don't panic, don't panic, don't panic! Let's not panic, okay? I can fix this!"

Ha ha ha. She's talking to us. The ghost is talking to us!

"Oh no! It's not supposed to be tied on the wrists! And it's not supposed to be visible! What's happening?!", she shrieked.

My knees buckled until I eventually slumped on the floor. My eyes are probably as big as saucers as I stared at her with a mortified look on my face.

"What are you..This is..How did...", surely nobody would be able to understand the gibberish that was coming out of my mouth. I don't even know what I was saying. My mind can't form any cohesive thoughts as I looked with a mixture of fear and disbelief at the red string attached to my wrist and to an unknown man's wrist.

"What the hell is this?!", the guy angrily asked.

Thank you, unknown man. I couldn't have phrased it better. WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?!

"Uhm...Uhmmm....", she bit her fingernails while looking at us worriedly. "SEUNGHYUN! DO SOMETHING!", she suddenly shouted while looking behind her, but I don't see anybody behind her. She grabbed my arm and tried to yank the cord and her eyes widened.

"Why won't it stretch?!", she whispered.

I remained slumped on the floor, unable to move, still trying to process the absurdity that is happening before me. My nervousness scale is skyrocketing but I held it in. The guy was furiously trying to untie the knot on his wrist but to no avail because the red cord is magically tying itself! GAHHH!!

Maybe this is just a trick? Perhaps we are being filmed for a 'hidden camera' show? Any moment now, somebody will appear and will gleefully announce that we've been punked!

"SEUNGHYUN!", she repeated. I knew it! Whoever that Seunghyun is might be a member of the camera crew or...

"WHAT?! This is all your fault. You fix it!", a man appeared out of thin air.

...or another ghost.

And so, I did what any normal female would do - I started freaking out. And this is not just your average 'freaking out' extravaganza. Oh man, I was screaming like crazy.

_____________________________________________________________

Let me tell you something about red string of fate...they're not supposed to be visible to anyone!

According to the myth, the old lunar matchmaker god ties the red string to the destined couple. It was believed that the two people connected by the red thread are destined lovers, regardless of time, place, or circumstances. This magical cord may stretch or tangle, but never break.

source: http://en.wikipedia...._string_of_fate

One story featuring the red string of fate involves a young boy. Walking home one night, a young boy sees an old man standing beneath the moonlight. The man explains to the boy that he is attached to his destined wife by a red thread. The old man shows the boy the young girl who is destined to be his wife. Being young and having no interest in having a wife, the young boy picks up a rock and throws it at the girl, running away. Many years later, when the boy has grown into a young man, his parents arrange a wedding for him. On the night of his wedding, his wife waits for him in their bedroom, with the traditional veil covering her face. Raising it, the man is delighted to find that his wife is one of the great beauties of his village. However, she wears an adornment on her eyebrow. He asks her why she wears it and she responds that when she was a young girl, a boy threw a rock at her that struck her, leaving a scar on her eyebrow. She self-consciously wears the adornment to cover it up. The woman is, in fact, the same young girl connected to the man by the red thread shown to him by the old man back in his childhood, showing that they were connected by the red string of fate.

source: http://en.wikipedia...._string_of_fate

It's supposed to stretch and no one except the deities should have the ability to see them. Plus, it's supposed to be tied on the pinky fingers, not the wrists.

Seunghyun scratched his chin while deeply contemplating what could have possibly gone wrong while Bom was pacing back and forth, muttering to herself. Meanwhile, the hotel staffs are already on their way towards their direction since Dara is still hysterically screaming her lungs out.

"Oh, shut up!", Jiyong tugged the red cord forcefully, causing Dara to topple on the floor. Dara hurriedly sat up straight again in between sobs.

The screaming stopped and peace was restored to humanity. The peace, however, lasted for about five seconds. Her hysterical shrieks ensues and the hotel staffs crowded over her.

"Motherfc-", Jiyong sighed deeply. He looked at the girl slumped on the floor and at the two 'ghosts' who were now bickering in front of them. This has been a hellish night for him and being scared of these two creatures, whatever they are, is far from what he is feeling right now. He is exhausted and furious and damn it, he wants to get out of the hotel now.

"What are you two? And what's going on?", Jiyong asked, ignoring the commotion caused by Dara.

Two of the security staffs exchanged curious glances at each other and looked at him.

"S-Sir?", one of them asked while looking behind him to see if he is talking to someone else. Jiyong furrowed his eyebrows as he gazed at Seunghyun and Bom who were both standing in front of the two security staffs.

"Nobody can see us except you two. We're not that super stupid to reveal ourselves to other humans", Seunghyun calmly said.

Great. This is just fcking great. Of course, this kind of insanity has to happen to him on top of dealing with his father.

"Untie us!", Dara cried and raised her arm, which was welcomed with bewildered looks from all the staffs crowding them.

"Can't you see this red cord?", she asked.

When nobody responded, Dara began wailing again, louder than before. The hotel staffs were lost in confusion as they began murmuring to one another. Seunghyun and Bom continued battling on whose fault it was. And the elevator door opened, revealing Joo Won.

"Dara?"

"Joo Won-ah!!", Dara exclaimed.

"What happened?"

And the madness ensues, with the addition of Joo Won. Jiyong tightly shut his eyes and exhaled audibly. His blood pressure is reaching a new high and he can feel that one of the veins in his temple is about to explode.

"Mr. Kwon?", the front desk manager recognized him, making him curse under his breath. Since the hotel is owned by his father, it was inevitable that someone will recognize him.

His patience ran out and to Dara's surprise, Jiyong yanked the red cord, forcing her to stand up. He then started striding towards the exit while pulling the cord, dragging Dara with him and leaving the bewildered people behind.

Seunghyun and Bom remained transfixed on their spot as they looked at the destined couple leaving the premises. Then, Bom heard chime bells ringing while Seunghyun heard the sound of a gong. The ringing chime bells indicates that Hadana Bom is being summoned by her ascendant, Yang Goon, the lunar matchmaker god while the gong signifies that Jursa Seunghyun is being called by his ascendant, Jae Sang or Psy, also known as Old Man Coyote.

Bom and Seunghyun exchanged worried glances at each other. They are screwed. They don't even want to imagine the kind of punishment that awaits them.

The situation is beyond their control.

And their as$es are beyond their protection.

_____________________________________________________________

SANDARA's POV

Everything became a blur as the guy dragged me out of there and all I can do is, well, flip out.

He then abruptly stopped in front of a motorcycle and glared at me as if he wants to rip my arm and beat me to death with it. So I stopped screaming.

I silently watched him as he pulled a swiss knife out of the motorcycle bag. He then aimed it at the red cord, but the knife just went through! It's as if he was cutting air! We both looked at each other with 'WTF' expressions on our faces.

With furrowed eyebrows, we both touched the cord and oddly though, we were able to touch it. He tried to cut it again but the knife just passes through the cord again!

"Oh my God", I whispered.

We can't cut it. And we can't untie it.

"Oh my God!", I exclaimed a little bit loudly, scaring some of the passers-by.

Ghosts. Red cord. Tied to a stranger.

I'm getting crazier at each passing second as I assess our situation. I can feel that any moment now, I am bound to have another meltdown.

Then, an old lady walked between us and passed through the cord as if it was not there. She just passed through it. I held my forehead in disbelief and looked at the guy to see if he has the same reaction as mine, you know, gaping open mouth, eyes bulging out of their sockets, about to go completely insane...but nothing. Nada. This man must have nerves of steel. He is just massaging his temples and appears to be lost in deep thought.

I heard him mutter a string of curses before he finally looked at me.

"We need to get the help of those two ghosts", he said.

GAH! I'm not particulary happy with that plan.

All of a sudden, *Poof! Out came the female ghost, stepping out of a swirling sphere of white glittery smoke and the male ghost, stepping out of a swirling black smoke.

I couldn't even scream in fright anymore. I was gasping for breath as I stepped backwards while shaking my head, trying to deny that everything I'm witnessing is indeed happening. Please let this be a dream!

I swear, I'm about to lose it and go bananas. I fcking swear. I can already envision myself chilling with a bunch of inmates inside an asylum.

"Sandara Park", the woman called my name and then turned to the guy, "Kwon Jiyong".

"We are being summoned by our ascendants. Meanwhile, you two can go to a more private place. We will find you. Please wait for our return", she instructed.

My mind went blank.

Uh, what?!

_____________________________________________________________

"WHAT?!", the booming voice of Yang Goon, the lunar matchmaker god, echoed all over the Sky Palace located in the Upper World

Bom flinched and bit her lips. Her head hung low while trying to figure out how to appease her erupting ascendant. Even though she's on the top of the list when it comes to spawning troubles against her Jursa-counterparts, her acts never affected the destined couples assigned to her. This is the first time that her temper resulted to such bizarre event.

The other Hadanas who were waiting to be assigned were peeking behind the pillars, eavesdropping to the conversation. If she's not in enough trouble right now, she would've hunted those Hadanas one by one and tied them to a nearby tree. Argh!

Yang Goon took a deep breath while eyeing Bom. He was just as astounded and confused when he found out about what happened. He clasped his hands behind him and began gathering his thoughts. So far, these are the main issues:

1. The string is visible to the destined couple. Fortunately, the string is NOT visible to the other people.

2. The string does not stretch. It is just more than a meter in length.

3. The couple can hold the string but people or objects pass through it. In other words, the string is not tangible to others except for the couple.

4. It is now tied to the couple's wrists.

Being the lunar matchmaker god, Yang Goon always carries with him a bag of red strings. He opened the tattered brown bag and looked at the bunch of sparkling red strings contained inside while pondering about the predicament they are currently in. Somehow, he can understand that the combined ethereal energies of Hadana Bom and Jursa Seunghyun can cause the red string to be unstretchable as well as visible and tangible to the couple since during their fight, they are both in a yin (shadow) disposition. The anger that was merged in their ethereal energies which was thrown at the destined couple disrupted the balance of the red string causing it to be in that state.

However, what he does not understand is how can the red string end up on the couple's wrists? Once the red string has been tied to the pinky fingers, even the combined powers of all Hadanas and Jursas will not be able to break it or even tie it to other parts of the destined couple's bodies.

Yang Goon sighed and closed his bag. What worries him the most is that he himself does not know what the repercussions will be if the string is tied to the wrists. Tying it to the pinky fingers means the couple is destined for each other regardless of any circumstances. But if it is not tied to the pinky fingers, does it mean that this couple will have a different outcome? What kind of outcome?

He was still pondering the situation when the boisterous laugh of Jae Sang, otherwise known as Old Man Coyote, was heard all over the Sky Palace. Then, he and Seunghyun stepped out of a swirling sphere of black smoke at a near distance where Yang Goon was. Seunghyun hurriedly stood beside Bom and lowered his head.

There are a lot of written human folklores and myths about Old Man Coyote and just like the lunar matchmaker god, he is known for a variety of names. One prominent legend about him is that he is the one who stole fire from the god of fire and then, he gave it to humans which resulted to an amazing progress of the human civilization. (source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trickster)

His tricks can be somewhat annoying but in the end, they have positive effects.

"I heard about what happened!", Jae Sang excitedly said.

"You looked very pleased about it", Yang Goon arched his eyebrows.

"I am! Fun fun fun!!!", he exclaimed and laughed heartily, thoroughly enjoying the bizarre event that they have to resolve.

"Jae Sang", Yang Goon said in a reprimanding tone. Jae Sang shut his mouth and drummed his fingers on his belly while smiling from ear to ear.

While the two ascendants are discussing the matter at hand, Seunghyun and Bom are starting a new war.

"In case you didn't know, this is all your fault", Seunghyun icily said.

"Blah blah blah", Bom mockingly replied and rolled her eyes.

"How very cute", he sarcastically retorted.

Bom glanced at him and gritted her teeth in frustration. Seriously! Why is it that this Jursa has to be the one assigned to be her counterpart in handling the destined couple? HE.IS.ANNOYING. All he needs to do is breathe and she will instantly get irritated.

"Hadana Bom and Jursa Seunghyun", Yang Goon called out. They instantly lowered their heads again and nervously waited for the verdict.

"In accordance with our Ancient Laws, once I've tied the red string to the destined couple, I am no longer allowed to exert any power over it. For this reason, I am unable to undo what you two has caused", he said.

"But there are two ways to fix this situation", Yang Goon continued, "The first one is up to the destined couple. If their feelings finally connected, the red string will go back to its form. The second one is ..."

"The second option is something unnecessary and should never be mentioned", Jae Sang interjected, his lips stretching in a lopsided smile. Yang Goon sighed and silently nodded his head, realizing his mistake.

Bom and Seunghyun furrowed their eyebrows in bewilderment and looked at each other, both of them wondering what the second option is.

"Nevertheless, you two should be punished", he continued.

'Uh-oh. Here comes the ugly part', Bom thought.

"Hadana Bom, since this whole thing is the result of your uncontrollable temper, you won't be able to use your ethereal orb. You won't have any power to help the destined couple", Yang Goon declared.

This means she won't be able to use her power to do some fancy romantic things to help the destined couple in their journey of love. Hadanas usually utilize their ethereal orbs in creating a romantic ambience and chances for the destined couple. This also means that she won't be able to fight the misfortunes that the Jursa is planning to cause to the destined couples.

"But Ascendant! How can I fulfill my duty without my power?!", she screeched in shock. Seunghyun chuckled while lowering his head.

"Simple. You just have to talk to them during their trying times"

"T-Talk to them?", Bom stuttered. Communication is never her strong point. And what the hell, she's not a psychiatrist! She's a deity!

"As for you Jursa Seunghyun...", Jae Sang smirked playfully at the nervous Jursa, "I'm stripping you of your teleportation power. You can only teleport back and forth our realm but you cannot warp from one place to another in the realm of humans. That means to be able to follow the destined couple around, you have to either walk or use human transportation"

"WHAT?! ASCENDANT JAE SANG!", he whined pitifully.

Bom snorted upon hearing Seunghyun's punishment.

"Regardless of this predicament, you two should still fulfill your duties as Hadana and Jursa", Yang Goon said with finality.

After sending out the two, Yang Goon paced back and forth with his hands clasped behind him.

"Want to drink?", Jae Sang asked.

"No", he declined as he remembered the time when he got really wasted to the point of blacking out after drinking with him. He never want that kind of shame to happen to him again.

"Old Man Coyote, what will become of this tragic event?"

"What makes you so sure this isn't a blessing?", Jae Sang asked. He then started recounting a Chinese folktale about 'The Lost Horse'.

A man who lived on the northern frontier of China was skilled in interpreting events. One day, for no reason, his horse ran away to the nomads across the border. Everyone tried to console him, but his father said, "What makes you so sure this isn't a blessing?" Some months later his horse returned, bringing a splendid nomad stallion. Everyone congratulated him, but his father said, "What makes you so sure this isn't a disaster?" Their household was richer by a fine horse, which the son loved to ride. One day he fell and broke his hip. Everyone tried to console him, but his father said, "What makes you so sure this isn't a blessing?"

A year later the nomads came in force across the border, and every able-bodied man took his bow and went into battle. The Chinese frontiersmen lost nine of every ten men. Only because the son was lame did the father and son survive to take care of each other. Truly, blessing turns to disaster, and disaster to blessing: the changes have no end, nor can the mystery be fathomed.

source: http://www.noogenesi...ist_Farmer.html

credits: Ellen J. Langer, in" The Power of Mindful Learning," Reading, Mass: Addison-Wesley, page 99-100. (1997).

"So let me ask you again, old friend. What makes you so sure this isn't a blessing?", Jae Sang smirked while tapping his fingers on his round belly.

Yang Goon remained silent but in his mind, he had but one thought, 'What makes you so sure this isn't a disaster?'

_____________________________________________________________

SANDARA's POV

A wise man once said that luck comes in two flavors - good and bad. Guess what flavor my luck is right now.

Red cord that wouldn't untie, mythological creatures appearing out of nowhere, tattooed guy with a detached air...what a night.

In this world of iPhones and facebook, who would've thought this kind of magical madness exists? And what's up with those two ghosts...or whatever they are? What exactly is their purpose? I don't even know if they want to steal our souls or collect our tears of anguish as they rip our limbs apart. *shiver*

I glanced at the guy tied to me whom the ghost called Kwon Jiyong. He was just standing silently in front of his motorcylce while staring at the red string, lost in deep thoughts.

"Dara!", I heard someone yell and when I turned around, I saw Joo Won running towards us.

"Are you all right? What the hell happened back there?", he asked and eyed Kwon Jiyong suspiciously. This is the part where I should go dramatic and try to cling to Joo Won, but tonight's events are such a shocker that I literally felt numb.

"I'm fine. It was just a misunderstanding", I weakly said.

Joo Won stared at me and sighed, "Come on, I'll drive you home". He held me by the right wrist and was about to drag me away but to my surprise, the tattooed guy suddenly grabbed my left wrist.

"She's coming with me", he declared.

What?!

I looked at him and he stared back, then he inconspicuously glanced at the red string binding us. Realization dawned on me that I obviously have no choice but to stick with him for the time being since we are tied together.

"Uh, yeah. We already have plans", I said.

There was a momentary pause before Joo Won finally spoke again, "What are you doing, Dara?"

"Huh?"

"Is this your ploy to get me back?"

"Excuse me?", my eyes widened at what he said. Wow. Now I'm being accused of being the culprit behind this intricate spiderweb of madness? Because I want him back? WHOAH!!

"Joo Won, I..."

I stopped and just looked at him directly on the eyes. I'm exhausted beyond words that I don't even want to explain myself anymore.

"You made it clear that we're over. I accept that because I felt that you're no longer happy being with me", I simply said and glanced back to Kwon Jiyong whose eyebrows are already forming one line as he impatiently leans on a nearby tree while waiting for me.

"We have to go. Thanks for your concern"

He didn't say another word while silently watching me as I strode towards Kwon Jiyong.

"I'm just a call away, Dara", Joo Won said before I heard his heavy footsteps against the concrete ground. My heart constricted painfully but I dared not look back, in fear of crying because of those stupid ninjas cutting onions again.

_____________________________________________________________

SANDARA's POV

Life is such a bully.

After breaking up with my boyfriend, here I am magically tied with this tattooed guy.

"Let's go", Kwon Jiyong instructed and tossed me the open-face helmet.

"Wait. Where are we going?"

"Away from here", he simply said and mounted on the motorcycle. "Get on"

I hesitantly wore the helmet and mounted behind him, clumsily hugging the paper bags containing the wrapped food.

"Give me those paper bags and just hold on to me"

I did what I was told.

"Hold on tight"

I pinched his shirt.

"I said, hold on tight", he muttered and grabbed both of my hands and entwined my arms around his torso. Gah! My face is almost planted on his shoulder and okay, I'll admit he smelled really nice. Ahem.

He glanced back and looked at me, "You okay?"

"Uh, y-yes", oh man, this is awkward.

==

I hate crowds. And he took me to Hongdae. In the middle of Hongdae, to be exact. The area where people pass out on the streets in a puddle of their own vomit after drinking gallons of alcohol.

"Can we just go to some other place?", I asked, and he just ignored me. He continued walking, with me trailing behind him, until we reached a door leading to, I don't know, hell perhaps?

He grabbed the keys from his backpocket and opened the door, revealing the stairs towards the basement. We descended the stairs and upon reaching the basement, I noticed that the area is quite big with band instruments set up at the corner, a big couch and chairs at the other side, a desk and computer, among others. It looks like a jam studio for a band.

"We can stay here while waiting for those two...ghosts", he said and sat at the couch.

I sat on the other side of the couch and rested my chin on my palms while propping my elbows on my knees. I stared at the red cord tied to us and sighed heavily. The string is probably more than a meter long and tied at the other end is the most detached guy I've ever encountered.

We just sat on the couch silently. Minutes passed. I'm feeling a bit out of sorts already - sitting here without uttering anything while a magical cord binds us together. I mean, we should be freaking out or excitedly talking about this absurd situation we're currently in, right? MAGIC RED CORD, hello?

"This is really unbelievable, isn't it?", I said, trying to start a conversation. Much to my dismay, he remained silent.

In a desperate attempt to remain sane, I started humming. Then I started singing. Afterwards, I started bobbing my head to the music that is playing in my mind. But when I accidentally gazed at him, uh-oh, there's that sharp glare again. So I instantly shut my mouth because with such powerful glare, he has successfully instilled in me the fear of death.

What is up with this man? He has just but two reactions, angry and frustrated. But for the past hour that I've been with him, his expression remained impassive. So, yeah. I'm stuck here with this cyborg.

Needless to say, I want to go home! AAhhhh, I'm so looking forward to sleeping on my bed.

With that thought, the two ghosts made their magnificent entrance again with the swirling smoke of white and black. Armed with my bulging eyes again and gaping open mouth, I instantly stood up and gawked at the two of them.

"We have a problem", the female ghost said.

"What problem? Can you untie us already? It's getting late", Kwon Jiyong complained.

She nudged the male ghost's shoulder, as if coaxing him to tell us what that 'problem' is. But the male ghost just nudged her shoulder back. Then the two turned around and started bickering. I glanced at cyborg man and he doesn't look happy at all. Ghost or not, I'm sure these two will be reduced to dust if he unleash his evil power.

"START.TALKING", he hissed.

The two faced us and cleared their throats. The male ghost was looking anywhere else but us while the female ghost kept twiddling her fingers.

"We have a problem about that red cord tied to both of you", she mumbled.

Kwon Jiyong sighed in resignation as if he already know the bad news that is about to be thrown to us. I actually have a fairly good idea about what it is as well but I refuse to believe it. This can't be happening! I don't want to be tied to this guy!

"W-What problem? You can fix this, right? RIGHT?"

More twiddling of fingers and shifting of weight from one foot to another.

"Oh my God, please tell me you can fix this!", I said more forcefully.

Silence.

That does it for me. I went into a full-blown galactic flip out. Please excuse me while I lose my mind once again. I haven't been counting on the number of times I practically went insane tonight but I'm guessing it's a lot.

"WTF, GHOST! WHAT THE HELL! WHY DID YOU LET THIS HAPPEN? WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO NOW?", I was wildly shrieking in full volume.

"Uhm, we are not ghosts. We're deities", the male ghost said.

Oh my gosh, I am about to go homicidal right now!

And don't get me started with this tattooed cyborg with nothing but an impassive expression on his face! Why am I the only one weirded out by the whole fcking situation? He's accepting everything like it's the most normal thing in the world! Tied to another person? Okay. Mystic creatures with supernatural powers? Okay. WTF! WTF, cyborg man!

His calm demeanor is.driving.me.insane! We are being sucked in a vortex of magical crap and I'm the only one freaking out!

Here I am passionately cursing each and every second of this horrible, HORRIBLE night and there they are chilling.

"Will you stay still? You're making me dizzy", he muttered.

Can someone please hand me a knife already?

====================================

Writer's Note:

By the way, it was Prometheus who stole the fire from the gods. I'm mixing up some myths to the story but please don't be confused. Here's an excerpt:

In many cultures, (as may be seen in Greek, Norse, or Slavic folktales, along with Native American/First Nations lore), the trickster and the culture hero are often combined. To illustrate: Prometheus, in Greek mythology, stole fire from the gods to give to humans. He is more of a culture hero than a trickster. source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trickster

The folklore mentioned in this chapter is actually one of the many versions of The Red String or Old Man In the Moonlight folklore. I will provide you with the different versions in the writer's note ^_^

Here is one version from http://rosalyndriver...ng-of-fate.html

Chinese Legend of The Red String of Fate

-An invisible thread connects those who are destined to meet. regardless of time, place or circumstance. The thread may stretch or tangle, but will never break.

source: http://rosalyndriver...ng-of-fate.html

The ancients in China believed in "fatalism," that amidst the unknown everything in life is predetermined. Hence, it was thought that one should rarely force the issue in matters for fear of creating karma. The Chinese idioms "The Old Man in the Moonlight" and "The Red String that Binds the Predestined People" both come from an ancient parable that illustrates how important events like marriages are predetermined.

According to the parable, Wei Gu of Dulin lost his parents when he was little. He wanted to get married early. However, all his marriage proposals were unsuccessful. In the second year of Zhenguan during Emperor Tang Taizong's reign, on a sightseeing trip to Chinghe, he stayed at a hotel in the southern region of Song City. A traveler brought a prospect with him, the daughter of Pan Fang, a former Chinghe government official. He was invited to meet with the Pan family in front of Longxing Temple, west of the hotel, the next morning.

Very early next morning, Wei Gu, being eager to get married, rushed to the temple. The moon was still lingering high above in the sky when he arrived. There was an old man sitting on the steps, leaning on a bag and reading a book in the moonlight. Wei Gu glanced at the book, but could not recognize the writing. So, he asked the old man, "What kind of book are you reading, sir? Ever since my youth, I've studied many different writings, even Sanskrit. But I've never come across what's written in this book. What's it all about?"

The old man smiled and said, "This isn't a book from the human world. How could you have seen it?" Wei Gu asked, "Where does the book come from?" The old man said, "It comes from the netherworld." Then Wei Gu asked, "How can someone from the netherworld appear here?" The old man replied, "It's not that I should not be here, but that you have arrived too early. All officers of the netherworld have jurisdiction over and administer matters in the human world. How can we not be here?"

Wei Gu asked, "Tell me, please, What are you responsible for?" The old man replied, "Marriages in the human world." Wei Gu was elated and said, "My parents died when I was little. I want to get married early to ensure the family name is passed on uninterrupted. However, all my marriage proposals during the last 10-plus years were rejected. Somebody told me about official Pan's daughter. That's why I am here today. Do you think this marriage will consummate?"

The old man responded, "No. The woman you'll marry has just turned three. She'll be your wife when she turns 17." Wei Gu asked, "What's in your bag?" The old man said, "Red strings used to tie together the feet of couples. Once they are destined to marry each other, I'll tie their feet together with this red string. Whether these two are foes, polarized by extreme disparity of wealth or poverty, or separated by vast distances, as long as the red string is tied, they will be together. When your feet are tied to hers, why search for another?"

Wei Gu asked, "Who is my wife? Where does she live?" The old man answered, "The girl was born into a family that sells vegetables, north of the hotel." Wei Gu asked, "May I see her?" The old man said, "She is always with the old woman who sells vegetables. Come with me and I'll point her out to you." They waited until sunrise, but the people Wei Gu was supposed to meet at the temple didn't show up that morning. The old man closed the book and picked up the bag. Wei Gu followed the old man to the market.

There they saw an old woman with one eye blind who held a three-year-old girl. Both looked very dirty and ugly. The old man pointed to the girl and said to Wei Gu, "That's your wife." Wei Gu angrily asked, "Can I kill her?" The old man responded, "This girl is destined to be very wealthy and enjoy life's blessings together with you. How can you kill her?" Then the old man disappeared.

Wei Gu sharpened a knife after he went back home. He gave the knife to his servant and told him, "You've always handled matters well. If you can kill this girl for me, I'll reward you with 10,000 coins." The servant promised to carry out Wei Gu's wish. He went to the market hiding the knife in his sleeve. He waited for a chaotic moment when there were lots of people jostling around. He stabbed the girl and hurried away.

After the servant returned, Wei Gu asked, "Did you stab her?" The servant replied, "I tried to stab her heart, but missed the target, and stabbed her between the eyebrows instead."

Wei Gu continued proposing marriages with no success. Another 14 years went by when, owing to his late father's contacts, he was offered a job working for Wang Tai, a defense officer at Xiangzhou. Wei Gu was put in charge of interrogating prisoners. Wang Tai gave him his daughter's hand in marriage because he found Wei Gu to be quite capable. Wei Gu's wife was between 16 and 17 years old and beautiful. Wei Gu was very pleased. However, he found his wife always put a small artificial flower between her eyebrows and would never remove it, even when taking a bath.

At the end of the year, he asked his wife why she always wore an artificial flower between her eyebrows. She told him in tears, "I'm actually Wang Tai's niece, not his daughter. My father was the head of a county and died in office. I was a baby at the time. My mother and brother died soon after. The only property my parents left me was a house south of the city of Song. I lived there with my nanny, Chen. We survived by selling vegetables. Chen felt sorry for me and always took care of me. When I was three, Chen took me to the market where a crazy man stabbed me between my eyebrows leaving a scar, which I cover up with an artificial flower. About 7 or 8 years later, my uncle came to Lulong to take up a position. He adopted me as his daughter and I moved in with him and subsequently married you."

Wei Gu asked, "Did nanny Chen have one blind eye?" His wife said, "Yes, how did you know?" Wei Gu confessed, "That crazy man was actually sent by me." Then he told his wife the whole story.

Thereafter, the couple became even more respectful of each other. Later they had a son, named Wei Kun, who became the governor of Yanmen. His mother also received high honors from the throne because of him.

Destiny cannot be changed by man. When the mayor of Song City learned about this incident, he named that hotel west of Longxing Temple the "Engagement Hotel."

Ever since then, nuptial intermediaries are referred to as "The Old Man in the Moonlight."

Cheers!

Lotsa Love

huntress