The Secret of the Yellow River Old Course: The Curse of the Eel Fairy

At the junction of Shandong, Henan, and Anhui provinces on the south bank of the old course of the Yellow River, there is a village called Wang'an, where all the residents are surnamed Wang. There was an elderly man named Wang, who inherited a special technique for treating "facial paralysis" that had been passed down through generations in his family. The so-called facial paralysis, in medical terms, refers to symptoms such as a twisted mouth and drooping eyelids.

Whenever patients came for treatment, Wang would locate acupuncture points below the cheekbone and use silver needles to pierce them three times (if the face is leaning to the left, pierce the right side; if leaning to the right, pierce the left side), squeezing out a drop of blood. He would then cut a live eel with scissors, drip the eel's blood onto a palm-sized piece of grass paper, let it dry slightly, and then stick the paper with eel blood onto the patient's face. This treatment would usually result in a complete recovery with just one dose for newly afflicted patients, and no more than five doses for severe cases.

The villagers knew that the Wang family paid homage to a fairy, known as the Eel Fairy. It was a portrait depicting a coiled eel, with its head raised from the middle and staring out at the viewer. It was said that on the first and fifteenth of each month, Wang would offer incense to the Eel Fairy.

Wang used wild eels caught from a pond in the back of the village for treating patients. Regardless of the weather, he would personally go into the water to catch an eel and bring it back home, never catching more than needed. In a water bucket under the table dedicated to the Eel Fairy in his house, there was always a live eel ready to sacrifice its life for the patients. If multiple patients came, Wang would go back into the water to catch more eels, always successfully catching one each time. It was well known in the village that with the blessing of the fairy, all patients would be cured.

Once, a young man brought his mother for treatment. Not knowing the severity of the situation, the young man pointed to the image hanging on the wall and asked, "Why do you worship a long worm (snake) in your house?" Wang was furious and demanded that the young man kneel down and apologize for his disrespect. The young man, realizing his mistake, complied and only then did Wang treat his mother.

After this incident, no one dared to question the Eel Fairy in Wang's house anymore. To avoid unnecessary trouble, Wang moved the portrait of the fairy to a wall behind the door. Wang had a rule when treating patients: he would not treat those who had previously been treated elsewhere and the illness had recurred.

One day, a middle-aged patient, a construction project contractor, came with facial paralysis that he had acquired while working outside. Despite taking medication and receiving injections for over two weeks, his condition did not improve. Hearing about Wang's miraculous treatment, he decided to seek help.

Wang prepared a piece of grass paper and scissors on the table, but as he bent down to fetch an eel from the water bucket, he accidentally hit his head on the table leg. In pain, tears welled up in his eyes. After a moment of contemplation, Wang changed his expression abruptly and told the patient to leave, refusing to treat him. Despite offering a substantial sum of money, the patient was turned away as Wang discovered that the patient had already received a similar treatment elsewhere in the past week.

The people in the village would often say that Wang's family respected the fairy, and no one could deceive or go against the will of the fairy. To prevent any malicious competition, Wang's ancestors established a rule: only the designated heir could inherit the technique.

Wang had two sons and following the family tradition, he passed down the unique technique to his eldest son, Hong Fa. The younger son, Hong Qing, was pampered and disliked working hard. Despite the lucrative nature of the treatment, Hong Fa's success in treating patients left Hong Qing envious. His gambling habits and refusal to return borrowed money caused tensions in the family. In a fit of rage, Hong Qing ended up poisoning the pond in the Yellow River old course with pesticides, causing fish and eels to die.

Upon returning home, Hong Qing encountered a mysterious old man who reprimanded him for harming the fairy's descendants. In a frightening encounter, Hong Qing woke up tangled in a snake's coil and vowed never to cause trouble at the Yellow River old course again.