You probably have already realised that Ghost Hunters of Geylang is out. You probably have seen the reel of the book launch, of the workshop at CHIJ Katong Convent, and also where to find my book at Kinokuniya. In short, it’s been a busy April and this will probably continue in May. I also have plans for June, but that will be unveiled later.
For my blog, I will post a series of excerpts and behind-the-scenes chapters that show you what went into the book. The chapter below was deleted, because it did nothing for the book; it showed the readers what we already know about the relationship between Su Lynn and her grandfather, and their stances on capturing ghosts. I just wanted to include a langsuir for the sake of it, too, but she was too similar to the pontianak and we already had one in the opening scene.
Anyway, here’s the deleted chapter. Enjoy!
“Ah Gong, I’m scared.” I pleaded. It was a weeknight and for once, I had no homework. My grandfather took this opportunity to take me on one of his outings. We’d walked through the avenues of our neighbourhood, and hiked into one of the forested areas. It was my first time experiencing total darkness—Asyraf hadn’t convinced my grandfather to use infra-red goggles yet, and I was forbidden from using my phone. An owl hooted, and my grandfather perked up. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary—yet.
“Why should you be scared? You have your ah gong here,” he replied, surveying the scene. “You must learn to be observant. Did you hear the owl hoot just now?”
I nodded.
“That is a sure sign that a langsuir is nearby.”
I gulped. Ah Gong had already told me what these creatures were, and they sounded dangerous. They were kind of like pontianaks, who died when they were pregnant or giving birth, but either looked pretty, or gruesome. They were similar to pontianak, but perched on trees like birds, with their long nails hanging down from the trees.
“Ah Gong, how do you know it’s a langsuir?” I asked.
“Well, the ladies in the market talked about sightings,” he explained. “What’s more, you know she’s around when an owl hoots.”
“It could be a normal owl,” I said, but Ah Gong shook his head, irritated. He’d become more and more like that, lately, especially when I asked him questioned. But of course, 9-year-old me hadn’t realised that. She just saw that her ah gong had mood swings more and more.
“Look at this fern,” he commanded. There was an edge to his voice. I could vaguely make out the outline of these plants. I switched on my phone light, but Ah Gong immediately covered it.
“No! You’ll attract her attention! The way to hunting a powerful ghost is to always sneak on her from behind!” he’d lowered his voice to a whisper. I kept my phone, but not seeing anything made me feel uneasy.
“Anyway, this fern indicates that she’s near. They grow whenever she’s around,” Ah Gong lectured. We tip-toed as much as we could, trying not to make noise. My grandfather took a deep breath. “She’s here. I know it.”
I felt it too. Something was watching me, and unease crept up my spine. I wasn’t sure if we were hunting her or if she was stalking us. Even though it was a cool night, I was sweating. It wasn’t just the humidity. My eyes darted around, trying to see something within the shadows. But I needn’t have bothered.
A whoosh of white raced past us, and perched atop a nearby tree. It was an owl. I wasn’t sure how, but this bird gave us a malicious grin, and slowly, but surely, its features morphed into a beautiful young woman with long hair that seemed to blend into the vines of the forest. Was she part of the forest? She smirked at us.
“What is an old man and his young granddaughter doing here? Sacrificing her to me?” she asked, licking her lips. My stomach churned. I didn’t like this at all. It seemed like this creature was going to eat me.
“I’d like to see you try,” Ah Gong said. Without warning, the langsuir surged towards my grandfather, and in a movement so swift that I almost didn’t see it, he pasted a talisman on her forehead. The beauty from her face faded and wrinkles appeared. Her evil grin was now a sad frown.
“Who—are you?” she choked. The piece of paper on her forehead glowed. My grandfather grinned, relishing this moment. At that point in time, I thought it was a triumphant grin. Now, I see it as something more sinister.
“I am the grand ghost hunter Zhong Kui, and you are now at my mercy. You will no longer terrorise the residents here.” He stared her down, and her once evil expression was now mournful.
“Please… let me go…” she managed to rasp.
But my grandfather shook his head.
“You should’ve thought of that before terrorising the neighbourhood,” he growled. The ghost stretched out her arm and reached for me, her nails missing me by just a hair. I stepped away from her.
“Your child… she–”
“You will not take her away from me!” Ah Gong thundered. Sensing that she was weak, Ah Gong jammed his sword into her. Black blood oozed out.
“I—I lost her,” she sobbed. “I can’t find her. She’s never coming back. S—she–”
My grandfather twisted the sword inside her. She screamed. I covered my eyes with my hands, but something made me look. He pasted another talisman on her, and her body jolted up unnaturally, like she was being shocked. She no longer made any noise, but looked right at me. I couldn’t explain how it felt–it was like she saw me for who I was, and yet, her gaze was helpless and glassy. She opened her mouth in a silent scream. Her voice was gone. There was no fight in her anymore. But what my grandfather did next was just downright cruel. He took out beads from his pockets, and stuffed them in her mouth, one by one. Gradually, the ghost’s mouth filled up, and its body made another choking noise. In the next moment, it shrank and shrivelled up, a husk of what it was.
I shut my eyes before my grandfather could do something else, but I shouldn’t have bothered. It was the end. He took out the gourd, and the magical container made this disgusting, gurgling noise, as though eating the ghost. I shuddered. Finally, my grandfather spoke.
“Aiyo, Suling,” he said. “How are you going to catch ghosts if you are so afraid?”
I opened my eyes. There was no trace of the spirit.
“I will try,” I replied, noticing that the plants where her body was had faded. At least, I thought they had, in the dark.
“Now let’s go home,” Ah Gong said, and we made our way back. But something didn’t sit right with me.
“Ah Gong,” I said, “how come the langsuir started talking?”
“You shouldn’t listen to them,” he replied. “They all do this to make your pity them, and then, they slaughter you.”
“But I don’t think that she’s cunning,” I said. “It seemed like she was in trouble.”
“Ghosts, ghouls, and creatures like her are trouble,” Ah Gong stated, a bit too sharply. I winced. But then, he softened.
“They always target girls like you, so you have to be mentally strong. You cannot be swayed.”
We had now come to the main pavement, and streetlamps came into view. I could see properly. I knew the way home.
“Ah Gong?” I asked.
“What?”
“Why do we live here, if there are so many ghosts?”
“You with the questions,” he snapped, but he’d probably seen the wounded expression on my face and then recovered.
“There are always ghosts in Singapore. It’s just that many don’t have the third eye, like us.”
“But we encounter a lot of ghosts here,” I said.
“When you grow up, you will encounter more. People like us attract them. And sometimes, I will not be there to protect you. It’s best that you learn the way of slaying, and show no mercy.”
No mercy. But the monster’s glassy, helpless gaze would haunt me in the nights to come. I had the sense that we’d done something wrong, but I wasn’t sure what.