There is a small shop called Yuandu Biangan on Huangquan Road. Thousands of ghosts pass by this shop every day, but only a few can get in. The owner is a plump woman in her thirties. She always leans at the door and looks at the ghosts passing by with a smile. Occasionally, she will see one or two people coming in, asking if they want to go back, and giving them a bowl of soup called Huihunzhan. Some ghosts drink it, and some ghosts shake their heads. Huang Anran didn't know how she stayed in this store. She just knew that she had been here since she could remember. Her task was to wait for the ghost who had drunk the soup to come again for the second time and put them into a cloth bag given by the proprietress. Before entering the bag, Huang Anran would listen to them tell their stories about their return. Day by day, year by year, she heard more and more stories. She wrote them all down and told them to the boss's wife and anyone who could hear them or ghosts.
This novel and its characters are purely fictitious. Any similarity is purely coincidental and should not be imitated.
