The Taoist furrowed his brows, formed a hand seal, and then said, “There’s been no strange noises in the house? Then… then that must mean there is a pregnant woman in your household!”

Father was astonished upon hearing this, wondering how this wretched Taoist could possibly know there was someone pregnant in his family. The truth was, Mother had been lying in bed all day because she wasn’t feeling well, and hadn’t come out of the inner room. Yet this Taoist had somehow guessed it. Father asked in confusion, “My wife is indeed pregnant, but what does that have to do with evil spirits?”

The Taoist shook his head and said, “Not so, not so. If you agree, may I enter the house to take a look?”

Seeing how mysterious the Taoist was acting, Father thought there was no harm in letting him in for a look—he was curious to see what the Taoist would say. With that in mind, Father nodded in agreement.

After entering, the Taoist walked straight toward Mother’s room, as if he already knew she was inside. Upon reaching the room, he glanced at Mother’s belly and his brows tightened. “Just as I suspected!”

Father asked what he meant by that, and Mother was also puzzled, wondering why a Taoist had suddenly barged in and was now staring at her belly, saying things she didn’t understand.

The Taoist said, “The child your wife is carrying is precisely the evil spirit I spoke of!”

At this, Father wanted to lose his temper—this was the child they had long hoped for, how could he let this wretched Taoist speak such nonsense? But just as Father was about to erupt, Mother spoke first: “Master, what do you mean by this? How could the baby I’m carrying be an evil spirit? Please, enlighten us.”

The Taoist pointed at Mother’s belly and said, “Earlier, outside your house, I sensed a heavy aura of resentment. Now that I see your belly, I realize all that resentment comes from the fetus inside you. Alas, what a sin!”

Mother was terrified, hurriedly got up, grabbed the Taoist’s sleeve, and begged him to have mercy and explain things clearly. Father, worried that Mother’s fright would affect the baby, said to the Taoist, “Master, let’s talk outside. My wife is pregnant, please don’t scare her.”

The Taoist ignored Father, turned to Mother and said, “Could you tell me your birth date and time, so I can calculate?”

Of course Mother didn’t refuse, and immediately gave her birth details. The Taoist closed his eyes and calculated for a while, then opened them, shook his head, and sighed, “This fetus is inauspicious, extremely inauspicious!”

This frightened Mother even more, and she anxiously asked, “Master, please speak plainly—what is wrong with my child?”

The Taoist seemed to be deliberately keeping them in suspense, not giving a direct answer, but instead shaking his head and saying, “If my calculations are correct, ever since you became pregnant, you must have had nightmares every night, haven’t you?”

At this, not only was Mother shocked, but even Father, who had always thought the Taoist was just a charlatan, was amazed, because he too had had several nightmares recently.

Both nodded urgently, saying they had indeed had many nightmares.

The Taoist nodded with satisfaction and said, “In your dreams, you must have seen a man enter the house, correct?”

My Parents were even more astonished—he had guessed it all! They nodded repeatedly in agreement.

At this point, the Taoist finally said, “The person you saw in your dreams is none other than the fetus in your womb!”

Chapter 4: The Debt-Collecting Ghost

“Ah!” Parents cried out in shock, because the person they saw in their dreams was someone wearing handcuffs and shackles—a death row prisoner at a glance. Now, hearing the Taoist say that was their own unborn child, how could they not be terrified?

Before my Parents could speak, the Taoist continued, “That person is someone bound in the underworld, whose time to reincarnate had not yet come. But he escaped the netherworld’s wardens and snuck into your family.”

Parents were stunned and asked the Taoist why that person had come specifically to their home.

The Taoist turned to Mother and said, “Because that person was wronged by you in a past life. Judging by the heavy resentment in your home, I’d say you caused him great suffering before. Now he’s come to collect his karmic debt—he is a debt-collecting ghost!”

A debt-collecting ghost—everyone has heard of them. It refers to a child who, after being born, is frail and sickly, constantly troubles the parents, drains their money, and once the debt is repaid, dies and leaves the parents behind.

My Parents were so shocked they were speechless. At this point, they had no choice but to believe, since the Taoist had predicted everything so accurately. Still, my Parents had to ask the Taoist if this was really true.

The Taoist said, “I would never lie. If my calculations are correct, tonight is the time for him to be born. When that happens, a stranger will come to your house!”

“A stranger will come?” My Parents were both frightened and anxious, and quickly asked, “Master, please tell us—who is this stranger, and why would they come to our home?”

The Taoist replied, “Because the soul in your womb sneaked into this world before its time, as soon as he is born, the underworld will know, and naturally the wardens will come to claim his soul.”