Dingbo the ghost-seller

"Dingbo the ghost-seller" is a ghost tale from middle land. This tale can be found in the book "Tales of unknown things"(列異傳), which might be written by Cao, Pi(曹丕), and can also be found in the book "Lorekeeps of seeking for souls and ghosts."(搜神記), which was written by Gan, Bao(干寶).

The writing shown here was overset from one wend of this tale:

Once upon the time, there was a Nan-yang(南陽) man, his name was Zong, Dingbo(宗定伯, also called Song, Dingbo, 宋定伯). At the time when Dingbo was a young man, he had ever met a ghost when he was walking at a night.

When the ghost came, Dingbo asked "Who's it?"

The ghost answered "I am a ghost, and who art thou?"

Dingbo lied to him and said "I am a ghost, too."

The ghost asked "Where art thou going to?"

Dingbo answered "I'm going to the borough Wan(宛)."

The ghost said "I'm going to the borough Wan, too."

So they fared together, after they had walked some miles, the ghost said "Faring on foot is too slow, we may bear each other on our own backs in turn when faring, is it good to bear each other?"

Dingbo answered "That's so good."

So they started to do that, at first, the ghost beared Dingbo on his back, the ghost said "I foubd that thou art too heavy, maybe thou art not a ghost."

Dingbo answered "I'm a new ghost, so my body is still heavy."

Thwn it's Dingbo's turn to bear the ghost, Dingbo found that the ghost had almost no weight. After the had bore each other in turn for some time, Dingbo asked "I am a new ghost, so I don't know what ghosts may fear."

The ghost answered "We ghosts only fear spits."

And they still fared together.

When they were faring, they met a stream, Dingbo let the ghost go first, and the ghost didn't make any steven, however, ehen Dingbo went through the stream, he made a lot of stevens, so the ghost asked "why didst thou make stevens?"

Dingbo answered "I'm a newly died ghost, so I am not good at going through waters, don't think too much."

When tjey were near the borough Wan, Dingbo put the ghost on his shoulder fastly, holding the ghost tightly, and the ghost shouted loudly, bidding Dingbo to put him down, but Dingbo didn't listen to the ghost.

After they had been inside the borough Wan, Dingbo put the ghost down onto the ground, and the ghost turned into a sheep. Fearing that the sheep, which had once been a ghost, might turn into other things, Dingbo spitted on the sheep, then he sold it for one thousand and five hundred gelds, and then he left.

Shi, Chong(石崇), a man of that time, said "Dingbo's a ghost seller, he got one thousand and five hundred gelds."