The villagers used to say that the acacia forest took up good land and blocked the view for passersby, so it would be best to chop it down.

But just one day after the work began, something happened to the families of the men who had been cutting down the trees.

That very night, the men in those families who had cut the trees were all drenched in sweat and plagued by endless nightmares. Some of the more timid ones even wet the bed in fright and couldn’t speak for days.

No one could say for certain what they had dreamed. All that was known was that a rumor later spread: a Yin God resided in that acacia forest. Anyone who dared to disturb the trees would be possessed by it. In mild cases, a person would become incontinent and feverish. In severe cases, they would be driven mad.

Once the rumor got out, the acacia forest became a forbidden place.

Most people who had to pass by the forest made sure to do so before sunset. Otherwise, there was no telling what might happen.

Chen Lian had a classmate with a "light" birth chart who had suffered from countless colds and fevers as a child. For a long time, his family worried he wouldn’t survive. They were especially strict about him avoiding the acacia forest. Even if he just passed by it, he had to carry a peach wood branch, terrified he would be snatched away by the Yin God.

Chen Lian didn’t believe in all this talk of gods and ghosts, but the closer he got to the acacia forest, the more he seemed to feel a sinister chill in the air. He was on the verge of tears from fear and couldn’t help but ask his grandfather, his voice trembling, "Where exactly are we going? It’s the middle of the night. What could possibly be so important that it has to be done right now? Can’t we just go home and come back tomorrow?"

Chen Dachang remained silent. His grandmother, however, pulled her clothes tighter around herself and said in a soothing voice, as if coaxing a child, "It’s the New Year. It’s time to invite the ancestors home to receive their incense offerings."

"So, we’re here to invite the ancestors? But shouldn’t we be doing that at the ancestral graves?"

The old woman had her own twisted logic. "Our family fled here as refugees. The only ones enshrined in our ancestral tomb are your great-grandfather and great-grandmother. The rest of our relatives all died on the road. The Yin God has vast powers. We’ll burn some paper money and ask the Yin God to summon all our ancestors here for us."

Chen Lian stammered, "Then... where’s the paper money you prepared?"

"Oh, dear. We left in such a hurry, I must have left it at home. But once we get there, we can just kowtow a few times. When the Yin God sees our sincerity, I’m sure it will be pleased."

When they were still about a li from the acacia forest, the old woman asked her son, "What hour is it now?"

"You’re asking me? How should I know? You should ask my dad about that."

Chen Dachang glanced at the moon and casually named an hour. The old woman estimated the time, then cocked her ear and listened carefully. Hearing nothing, she relaxed. She said to Chen Dachang, "Pull over to the side of the road for a bit. I need to relieve myself."

Chen Lian was about to cry. "Grandmother, we’re in the middle of nowhere..."

"The middle of nowhere is perfect. An old woman like me doesn’t have to worry about any peeping Toms."

But the old woman disappeared to who-knows-where to do her business and didn’t come back for a long time.

Chen Lian grew anxious from the wait and urged his grandfather, "You should go look for her. Maybe she stepped in a rabbit trap."

Chen Lin said, "Your grandmother isn’t an idiot. If she stepped in a trap, wouldn’t she call for help? Since she hasn’t called out, it means she’s fine."

"But she’s been gone for so long..."

"Then her ’number one’ must have turned into a ’number two’."

Chen Lian: "..." 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

A little while later, Chen Lian heard the faint, distant sound of hoofbeats.

The sound seemed to be coming from the acacia forest. For some reason, Chen Lian’s mind immediately jumped to the legend of the "Passing of the Phantom Soldiers."

He was so scared he nearly wet himself. Trembling, he clutched his grandfather’s arm. "Did you see any spirits? I... I think I..."

Chen Dachang’s tone was heavy as he said, "What’s so scary about spirits? They’re just the souls left behind by the dead. They can’t hurt anyone. The living are the truly terrifying ones."

Chen Lian had heard his grandmother talk about their escape as refugees.

She said that back then, coming from Guanzhong, it was a journey where nine out of ten didn’t make it.

Along the way, to survive, people selling their sons and daughters, or even swapping children to eat, were commonplace.

But he had only ever listened to the stories before. Now, he couldn’t help but wonder, ’What if those phantom soldiers are the refugees who died on the road?’

’Tens of thousands of refugees... If each one of them stepped on me, I’d be flattened into a meat patty.’

Chen Lian couldn’t hold it in any longer and broke down sobbing. "Grandfather, hurry up and call Grandmother! Let’s go home! I’m not lying, I really heard hoofbeats! It must be the phantom soldiers! If we don’t leave now, we’ll be trampled into meat patties!"

Chen Lin lowered his voice. "You really heard hoofbeats?"

"Yes, Grandfather, I’m not lying. We have to run, now! If we’re fast enough, we should still be able to get away."

Chen Lin forcefully exhaled a breath of frustration. ’Run my ass!’

’I’ve waited an eternity for this goddamn windfall!’

’I’m finally about to strike it rich, and you want me to go back now? You must want me to stay poor for the rest of my life!’