There was an old man in Linqing County who made a living fishing. His life was very hard. There was only him and his wife at home, and they depended on each other. People nearby called him "Old Man Xu." Old Man Xu liked to drink. He often took a bottle of wine to the river, and while drinking, he said, "The ghost drowned in the river came to drink." Saying that, he poured a little wine and poured it into the river. He did it every day, and only he knew the secret. When he did this every day, he caught a lot of fish in the net, and even if others couldn't catch the fish, he still returned with a full load.

One day, he was drinking alone again. At that moment, a young man came from behind. Seeing that he was gentle, Old Xu came over to greet him with a smile, and politely invited him to sit down and drink together. That night, Old Xu didn't catch a single fish, and he was so angry. The young man stood up and said, "Don't worry, I'll go down and catch the fish for you." He said and left. After a while, he came back and said, "The school of fish is here! Old Xu looked into the river and saw a lot of fish jumping around. He was very happy to get into the net, and soon he caught a lot of big fish, so he thanked the young man again and again. When the man was about to go back, Old Man Xu gave him a big fish as a gift, but the man said, "Every time you drink your wine, what is this trivial matter? If you are happy, I will come to drink and catch fish every day in the future. Old Man Xu said, "You didn't just drink once, how can you say every time?The man smiled but did not answer.

As they were about to say goodbye, Old Man Xu asked, "May I ask your name?" The young man said, "My surname is Wang, and you can call me Wang Liu." The next day, Old Man Xu sold the fish and bought more wine. When they came to the river in the evening, Wang Liu was already waiting for him there. The two started drinking and chatting, and when they finished drinking, Wang Liu helped him catch the fish. After half a year of this, Wang Liu suddenly said, "Since we met, you have treated me like a brother, but unfortunately the good times did not last long. Today I will part with you. Old Man Xu asked in surprise, "Why?"Tianwang Liu wanted to say, but didn't say it. Old Man Xu kept asking, and he said, "We have such a good relationship, it doesn't matter if I tell you. I'm a ghost, but it's been several years since I fell into the river and drowned because of my love for drinking." When Old Man Xu heard that he was a ghost, he was immediately frightened, and it took a long time for him to return to normal.

Wang Liu continued, "You used to catch more fish than others, and that's because I caught them secretly for you. Old Man Xu was drunk and couldn't help feeling sad. Wang Liu said, "Today is my good day, and we should be happy. Come, let's have a drink!" After a while, Old Man Xu asked again, "I heard that when you reincarnate, someone must die for you. Is this true?" Wang Liu said, "It's true." "Then who are you looking to die for you?" Old Man Xu asked. Wang Liu said, "You will know when you come to the river at noon tomorrow. There is a woman crossing the river at noon, and she will drown." So the two talked until late at night before dispersing.

The next day, Old Man Xu came to the river and saw a woman holding a child in her arms. She accidentally fell into the river, but the child fell on the bridge and cried loudly there. The woman fell and soon floated again. She sank and floated for a long time, and after a long time she climbed ashore again. She got ashore and immediately carried the child away. At first, Old Man Xu saw the woman fall, and he couldn't bear it, but he thought, "If I save this woman, how can Wang Liu be reborn?" Thinking of this, he had the heart to see death. Seeing that the woman didn't drown, Old Man Xu thought to himself, "Why didn't this woman drown? Could it be that his words didn't work?" In the evening, he still came to the river as usual, and Wang Liu came soon after. He didn't wait for Old Man Xu to speak and said, "We can't be separated for the time being." Old Man Xu asked in confusion, "What's going on?" Wang Liu replied, "That woman was supposed to die, but when I saw that after she died, her child couldn't live, so I let her back."

Old Man Xu was moved and said, "You are so kind, God will surely bless you." After that, they went fishing and drinking together as before. A few more years have passed. This day, Wang Liu came to bid farewell to him again, and Old Man Xu asked, "Who is going to die for you this time? Wang Liu said happily," No one is going to die for you this time. "Old Man Xu said strangely," Then why did you come to say goodbye? Could it be that you are going away? "Wang Liu said," This time is different. Last time, because of my kindness, God was very sympathetic to me. This time, the landlord of Ningyuan County was vacant, and the gods recommended me and asked me to be the land god. I will take office tomorrow. Old Xu said, "Now that you have become the land god, you deserve congratulations, but unfortunately we can't meet in the future. With your kindness, the common people must be blessed. Wang Liu said," Although I am the land god, you are still welcome. "Old Xu said," Okay! I will definitely visit you in Ningyuan County when I have time. "They talked about it late at night before breaking up.

On the third night, Wang Liu did not come, and on the third day and fourth day, Old Man Xu did not see Wang Liu. He knew that he must have taken office as the land god. On this day, he said to his wife, "Wife, I want to go to Ningyuan County to see Wang Liu. His wife said," He is the land god now, and the man god has a special journey, how can you see him? Besides, this place is hundreds of miles away from Ningyuan County, how can you get there? Old Man Xu said, "No matter how far, I promise to go, and I will definitely go." After he had finished sorting out his things and settled his home, he went out.

After a long time, he finally came to Ningyuan County and went to an inn to stay. Old man Xu asked the boss, "Store owner, may I ask where the Earth Temple is?" "Old man Xu nodded when he heard this. Suddenly, the owner turned to the door and called out: The VIP from Linqing County is here! This time, many people from the whole town came to this inn, and everyone came to see old man Xu. Old man Xu asked," How did you know that I came from Linqing County? And there are so many people gathered at the door, what are they doing? "The owner slowly said," A few days ago, the land god gave us a dream and said that he had a good friend who came to visit him from Linqing County and asked us to treat him well. " Because each of us has received this instruction, everyone has heard that you are here, so they all came here to see you! "

When Old Man Xu heard this, he understood what was going on, so he went to the Temple of Earth and prayed, "Wang Liu, ever since we parted, I have missed you day and night, so I decided to walk here. I am very grateful that you asked them to entertain me in your dreams. Now I bring a bottle of wine, and you can drink it! After praying, he burned a lot of paper money again. After a while, suddenly there was a strong wind behind him, and the wind swirled in the air for a long time before it stopped. That night, he dreamed that Wang Liu said to him," I am really grateful that you came to see me from so far away. Although you and I are close at hand, yin and yang are not connected. I have taken care of the people here, they will take care of your life, and they will give you gifts when you leave. "

Old Man Xu stayed here for a few days, and every day people invited him to eat and gave him things, and all of a sudden his room was full of things. He felt embarrassed to bother them like this, and wanted to go back after staying for a few days. On the day before leaving, he said goodbye to everyone. Who knew that everyone in the town seemed to know that he was leaving today, the car was ready for him, and all the townspeople also sent a lot of gold and silver. This car took him all the way home. After Old Man Xu went home, he stopped fishing, and he lived a comfortable life with the money the townspeople gave him.