Paper Man

Paper Man is a collection of horror stories in Zhou Dedong's "Night Story Series," published by Writers Publishing House in 2004. The book contains three novellas and short stories—"The Nth Method of Revenge," "Hanging," and "Paper Man"—set against everyday urban life and drawing on familiar scenes such as taxis, hospitals, maternity wards, and universities to weave together folk taboos, supernatural rumors, and the malice deep in the human heart. "The Nth Method of Revenge" tells of Zhang Qingzhao, a night-shift taxi driver, who on a rainy day picks up an odd passenger wearing a raincoat whose face is never visible, and afterward encounters a series of inexplicable events; just as his wife is about to give birth, a dread concerning "reincarnation" gradually pushes him toward an irrevocable end. "Hanging" unfolds around its titular image and the fate of its characters in an oppressive, cold atmosphere. "Paper Man" centers on a woman whose place at university was taken by an impostor; her life is swapped with another's while the impostor presses forward step by step, and the injustice of reality and resentment ultimately turn into a cold, terrifying echo. Rather than blood-soaked description, Zhou Dedong excels at creating pressure through unease in the cracks of daily life, such as "a hand reaching from behind" or "a person vanishing in the rearview mirror." The book also opens with an "Anti-Horror Psychological Test," inviting readers to gauge their own limits of courage while reading. The stories are short and fast-paced, with twists and suspense advancing layer by layer, making this a primer for understanding native Chinese psychological horror writing.