The Urn

It was six in the evening. The weather was perfectly pleasant at 17 degrees. Sixteen-year-old Raymond Chong wore a black jumper and sat at the dining table with his paternal grandmother, Mrs Chong and his two cousins, Chengfang and Chengli. 

They were staying over for the weekend as their parents travelled for work. The very poised elderly lady in her 60’s was dressed in a pair of beige Samfoo with gold embroideries and rolled up her gray hair into a neat Chinese bun. She wore a thick gold bracelet on her left wrist and a necklace with Jade pendant.

The dining was furnished with a long 12-seater marble table. One wall was decorated with family portraits, and another had shelves that displayed exclusive China plates and vases.  A crystal chandelier hanged from the high ceiling above the dining table.

Mrs Chong served her grandchildren their favourite red date tea that she had personally brewed for them, in a floral cup and saucer. A servant walked out of the kitchen and placed a gold-plated China with six pieces of chicken bao on the table. Another servant brought them each, a bowl of freshly cooked wanton noodles and roasted pork and a bowl of dumpling soup. The fragrance from the spring onion and the smell of roasted pork made the children very hungry. Raymond took a deep breath before he picked up the chopsticks and enjoyed his dinner with his cousins, while their grandmother watched over them. The dining was filled with loud chatter and laughter.

Mrs Chong lived in a private mansion in Hangzhou with her businessman husband. They were a wealthy family. Their home was very isolated, and it got very quiet at night. The grandchildren spent a lot of time with the elderly couple and enjoyed Mrs Chong’s stories especially the ones about Qiu’s mansion, which was located not too far away from her home.

Mrs Chong would always warn them against going anywhere near the mansion. She believed that whatever was left in that building was very evil and there have been tales of haunting and death in the nearby mansions. 

“Ah ma, do you really think Qiu’s mansion is haunted?”

“Of course, it is. I have personally met people who made gruesome discoveries while refurbishing the mansion. Why do you ask Raymond?”

“I was just wondering.” Raymond responded with a smile.

“Don’t tell me you are up to something naughty? You do realise that today is the fifth day of the fifth month, don’t you? The last thing you should even think about is that mansion.” Mrs Chong replied firmly.

“Oh no, nothing of sort Ah Ma. I was just asking.” Raymond exchanged looks with his two cousins. 

Raymond was fascinated with Qiu’s mansion since young, but he never believed in the fifth month. He would make fun of his grandmother and his mother when they placed the calamus and garlic above their front door to ward off evil from their house, but his grandmother would patiently advise him against making fun of it.

The children finished their dinner and helped Mrs Chong clear the table. Just then a servant came in to the dining and took the dishes away from them. 

“We are going upstairs to change and will join you in the family room Ah Ma.” Said Chengfang as she grabbed her sister’s hand and walked towards the stairs.

“Don’t be long.” Replied Mrs Chong.

The family room was at the end of a long corridor. The corridor was brightly lit, and the walls were decorated like the wall of fame. There were graduation pictures from different generations, accolades, swords and a large vertical mirror with very rustic hand-crafted wooden frame. Mr Chong had bid and won the mirror at an auction many years ago. The wooden flooring along the corridor was well polished. A long Persian runner adorned the center of the corridor floor.

 Just as Raymond walked pass the mirror, the light above it flickered and he felt a movement in the mirror. He stopped, took a few steps back and investigated it again. Was it just me?

He took a step forward. The lights went off. There was a blackout. It was so unusually dark that he could barely see his own hands. Raymond scrambled to walk along the corridor to reach for the light switch which was right at the end near the family room.

“Ah ma, is everything okay?”

“Yes Raymond. We can’t see anything. There is a torch light in the console cabinet in the dining. Could you try and get it?” 

            “Okay. Just stay there.” He replied.

            Raymond turned around and walked back towards the dining. This time he felt someone following him closely from the back. So close that he felt the breath on the back of his neck. He froze. The breathing got closer to his ears. 

He was startled by a soft whisper in Chinese. 

"Ni ba guhui he fang na erle?

"Ni ba guhui he fang na erle?

"Wo buhui fangguo ni de jiaren."

            Raymond did not move an inch. He was horrified. Why is it asking where I kept the urn? Whose urn? Why would it not spare my family? A million questions popped in his head. He knew right away that they were not alone in the house and were in great danger. He had to alert his grandparents.

Just then Raymond felt wind swoosh past him. He could not see anything in the dark. 

There was a loud thud at the end of the corridor.

“Ah Ma are you okay? 

“Yes ok.” A strange voice replied.

“Ah Ma, is that you?”

There was silence.

“Ah Ma? Chengfang? Chengli?” Raymond called out softly. There was silence. 

Should I go and check on them?

He felt a sudden chill. It was getting very cold around him. He remembered closing all the windows and doors before dinner.

He continued towards the dining. He tripped over something and fell on his face. His clothes were soaked from the fall. It was not water. What was it? He had no time to think. He sped up towards the dining room despite the slippery floor. He bumped into the dining chairs as he found his way to the console table. 

Raymond opened the cabinet and grabbed the torchlight. It would not turn on. There were no batteries in it. He moved his hands around and checked in the cabinet. There were no batteries. He then opened the drawer above and skimmed through the things in the drawer. He felt a cylinder-shaped object. There were two of them. Batteries!!

He put them into the torchlight and turned it on. He pointed the torchlight towards his legs.

Blood?

He pointed the torch towards the path that he walked. There was a trail of bloody footsteps. 

“Ah Ma?”

“Aunty Ko?” He called out to one of the servants.

“There was pin drop silence. He was shivering from the cold. 

Raymond walked slowly towards the corridor. He looked around for movements. He pointed the torchlight back to the corridor. He noticed something on the floor. It looked like a body. He cautiously walked towards it. 

There was so much blood on the floor next to and all over the body. He must have tripped on the body earlier. 

The light pink pants with floral prints looked familiar. He looked again.

“Chengli! Chengli.” He whispered softly teary eyed. 

Again, wind swooshed pass him from the back. He froze. He pointed the torch towards the end of the corridor. He noticed two red dots floating in the air, as if reflecting from the shining light. It then stopped moving. He looked harder. The red dots moved towards him at high speed, and he began to see a dark figure. The red dots were a pair of eyes. He fell back and dropped his torchlight, and everything went dark. 

“Raymond! Raymond!” He heard a voice in his head. 

His vision cleared as if awakened from a deep sleep. He looked around a little lost.

“Where have you been? You were staring at that wall for so long. Are you okay?” Mrs Chong placed her right hand on Raymond’s shoulder looking concerned. 

Raymond looked at his grandmother and then at his cousins.

“Are you okay Chengli?”

“Yes, why? You look so pale as if you have seen a ghost. Are you okay?”

“Yes, yes I am fine.”

Everything looked normal. Raymond was back at the dining table with his grandmother and cousins. His grandmother was serving the red date tea. A servant walked out of the kitchen and placed a gold-plated China with six pieces of chicken bao on the table. Another servant brought them each, a bowl of freshly cooked wanton noodles and roasted pork and a bowl of dumpling soup. I have seen this before. How is it even possible? 

“Ah Ma, I need to speak to you!” Raymond stood up and held Mrs Chong’s hand and pulled her towards the corridor. 

Chengfang and Chengli were surprised by Raymond’s reaction.

“What is it, Raymond? Why do you look disturbed?” Asked Mrs Chong who was equally puzzled.

“I think I just had a premonition Ah Ma. The dinner…. the noodles…. tea….and then the lights went off…breathing…. whisper…blood…. Something is going to happen. I saw Chengli lying in a pool of blood right in front of the staircase.” Raymond rambled endlessly; his voice trembled.

“Slow down Raymond. Calm down. I don’t understand. What are you saying? Why are you so nervous?”

“I have a bad feeling Ah Ma.”

“You are just overthinking. What could happen? What are you talking about?”

“The voice…there was a voice Ah Ma! I swear I heard it.”

“What voice…when?” Mrs Chong asked curiously.

“Along the corridor when the lights went off. I saw it all happen. It asked for the urn. It said it would not spare our family.”

Mrs Chong was stunned. She looked away and walked back and forth along the corridor anxiously.

How did Raymond know about the urn? He can’t be joking. It happened 20 years ago. Why now? Why Raymond?

“Is everything okay Ah Ma? “What is it, Raymond? What did you tell Ah Ma?” Asked a very concerned Chengfang.

“Nothing. It’s nothing.” Mrs Chong intervened. “Why don’t we gather at the family room and chat? I will wait for you all there.” She continued and walked over.

“Sure, Ah Ma. Chengli and I will go and change and see you then.” Chengfang grabbed Chengli’s hand, and they disappeared along the corridor and up the stairs.

Mrs Chong walked along the corridor towards the family room at the other end. Raymond watched her. She stopped to look in the mirror and adjusted her Samfoo before she continued.

Raymond observed Mrs Chong. He knew something was not right. She was anxious. His grandmother was hiding something from him. He had to find out. 

He quickly walked towards the console cabinet and took the torchlight. He opened the drawer above and picked up two batteries. They were exactly where he had found them earlier.  Raymond was about to insert them into the torchlight when the lights went off. He panicked and dropped a battery. 

“Raymond?”

“Yes Ah Ma? Just hang in there. I am bringing the torch light.”.

“Okay.”

It was pitch dark. He quickly knelt on the floor to look for the other battery which had rolled under the console table. He used his hand to feel the floor underneath and suddenly touched what felt like fingers. It moved. He retracted his hand, but he needed the battery. 

He took a deep breath and put his hand under the console table again and this time he heard something roll towards his hand. It was the battery. He wanted to be sure, so he pushed it back and it rolled away. A few seconds later it rolled back to him. It was as if someone was playing with him. 

He picked the battery and as he pulled his hand out, something grabbed him. He struggled and pulled away and kicked around as hard as he could. He threw himself back against the dining chair, breathing heavily. He quickly inserted the battery into the torch and turned it on. 

Raymond then nervously pointed the torch in all direction and then stood up slowly. He continued to look around. He heard someone running near the stairs. He pointed the torchlight towards the corridor. It was empty. 

“Ah Ma? Chengfang?”

The house was very quiet. Where were the servants? Where were his cousins?

He sped towards the family room. He was shocked at the sight of the family room. There was blood on the floor. A lot of blood. He could not find his grandmother. He pointed the torch around the room and all that he could see was blood splashed across the wall and the floor. Whose blood? 

Suddenly someone grabbed him from the back and covered his mouth and pulled him down and behind the couch. 

“Chengfang!”

“Shhhhh…..Turn off the torch! Turn it off now.” 

“Okay, okay.” Raymond managed to turn it off. 

“Something is watching us. I am so scared.” Chengfang said, crying and shaking nervously.

“What is? It’s okay stop crying. I am here.”

“Shhhhh…. keep the voice low. I don’t know but I saw two red dots floating around and pulled Ah Maaway from my grasp. It was too dark to see anything.” Chengfang trembled and continued to sob as she mentioned what happened.

“What? So where is she? Where is Ah Ma?”

“I don’t know where she is. You knew this was going to happen, didn’t you? Did you see the blood? What did it do to Ah Ma?”

“Where is Chengli?”

“I don’t know. I thought she was with you.” Replied Chengfang. “Chengli told me that she will check on you in the dining. The lights went off as soon as she entered the corridor.” She murmured.

“I haven’t seen her. She did not come to the dining.” Whispered Raymond.

“What do you mean?”

“I don’t know Chengfang, but something is not right, and we need to get out of here and get some help. I don’t even know where the servants are. Let me just check if it’s safe to move.”

Chengfang grabbed Raymond’s hand.

“It’s okay.”

Raymond got on his knees behind the couch and peeped to see but he could not see anything.

“I need the light.” He whispered. I am going to count till three and turn the torchlight on and we will make a dash to the front door together, okay? As fast as we can!”

“Okay.” Said the nervous Chengfang.”

“Ready….One, two, three…….” Raymond turned the torch on and they ran as fast as they could to the front door. Raymond grabbed the doorknob. He could not turn it.”

Chengfang let out a loud scream. 

“What is it?”

“It’s coming Raymond. It’s there at the corner. Quick. Open the door!”

“It wouldn’t open.” He replied as he struggled to turn it. “Quick, run to the kitchen. We can try the backdoor. Hurry!” He shouted.

“They ran back through the corridor, into the dining and into the kitchen.”

Raymond tried to open the back door and that too was locked. He tried the windows but failed. He could not find the keys. The servant’s outhouse lights were on. He tried banging on the window, but it was useless.

They heard a voice calling from a distance. It was coming from the corridor.

“Help me! Someone please help me! It’s me Chengli!”

“It’s Chengli. We have to help her.” Chengfang took a step forward and Raymond grabbed her hand.

“Don’t be stupid! It does not sound like her. It may be a trap. Whatever is in this house is not going to let us go alive. We need to find the urn. I know exactly what it wants. I saw everything happen.”

“What urn? What are you talking about?”

“The urn is the cause of this problem. First, we need to go somewhere safe. We need a quiet hideout. I wished Ah Ma had believed me.”

Raymond sat down and placed his face in his palms.

There was a loud thud.

“Turn off the lights Raymond. Turn…..off…….the……lights……..now.” Chengfang whispered. Everything went black again.