Painted Skin

"The Painted Skin" is a short story by the Chinese writer Pu Songling collected in Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio in 1740. Literary critics have recognised it as one of the best and best-known entries in Strange Tales; in particular, its textual detail and in-depth characterisation are lauded. "The Painted Skin" has also received numerous adaptations in popular media, especially in film. The story's original title has become a common phrase in Chinese vocabulary, "a synonym for duplicity that wears an outwardly human face but is inwardly demonic". Set in Shandong, the story revolves around a Chinese scholar, Wang, who becomes infatuated with a demon disguised as a beautiful young maiden. They develop a romantic relationship which goes awry after Wang discovers her true identity. Thereafter, a Taoist priest's skills are put to the task of exorcising the demon; a fight between good and evil ensues. Plot An academician from Taiyuan, referred to only by his surname, Wang, chances upon a homeless girl who claims to be an ill-treated concubine. Noting her beauty as well as feeling pity for her, Wang agrees to let her stay at his residence temporarily. They make love in his study, unbeknownst to anybody else. A few days afterward, Wang's spouse, Chen, discovers their affair and is unhappy with the arrangement; but she fails to change her husband's mind. At the marketplace, a Taoist priest informs Wang that he has been possessed by an evil spirit. The incredulous Wang dismisses this. Returning home, he finds the gates locked but manages to find a way into the courtyard, where he finds that the front door is bolted too. Peeking through the window, Wang makes a startling discovery: the girl is actually a "green-faced monster, a ghoul with great jagged teeth like a saw." All this while, she had been wearing a mask made of human skin, on which her attractive features were painted.