As recorded in a historical book of the sixth century, in ancient times, there was a man named Huan Jing. He was learning the magic arts from Fei Changfang, who had become an immortal after many years of practicing Taoism. One day, the two were climbing a mountain. Fei Changfang suddenly stopped and looked very upset. He told Huan Jing, on the ninth day of the ninth lunar month, disaster will come to Huan Jing’s hometown. Thus, he must go home immediately and remember to make a red bag for each one of his family members and put a spray of dogwood on everyone. Then he must all tie his bags to arms, leave home quickly and climb to the top of a mountain. Most importantly, he must all drink some chrysanthemum wine. Only by doing these then his can family members avoid this disaster.
On hearing this, Huan Jing rushed home and asked his family to do exactly as his teacher said. Then, the whole family climbed a nearby mountain and did not return until the evening. When they got back home, they found all their animals dead, including chickens, sheep, dogs and even the ox. |