The Rat's Wedding Day Chinese Folklore... The Wah Chiu family lived long ago in China. It was a normal and peaceful house until one night, when the father of the family heard strange noises coming from a room that had been firmly locked for years. Bravely unlocking the door, he peered in and saw an amazing sight - a traditional marriage procession of rats, dressed in fine robes. Over the next few nights, he returned to watch, in secret, as the rats went through all the Chinese wedding ceremonies. At first, he did not tell his family of his discovery, for fear that they would question his sanity. One night, however, he invited them to come and watch. The old room lay silent and still, and as he suspected, his family began to question his sanity. A few days later, a Taoist priest came by. He looked up at the house and said to the father, "This house has an evil spirit in it. With the help of the household god, I can defeat it." The father was delighted, and invited the priest into the house. The priest summoned six spirits from the walls and killed them. As he left he said, "Make sure you leave out food and drink to thank the household god." The father was very surprised indeed, because household gods do not usually require thanks in the form of food and drink. He therefore ignored the priest's warning. The very next day the house was overrun by rats, and the father realized what had happened. The priest had in fact been an evil spirit sent by the rats to get food for their celebrations. Within days, the rats had invaded every corner, and had driven the family out. Luckily, a real Taoist priest heard about the Wah Chiu's troubles and came with powerful magic to deal with the rats. Within a few days, every rat was dead. The story spread far and wide, and the Chinese realized that rats need proper care. Consequently, even now, a day is set aside as the Rat's Wedding Day. Each year, every household in China leaves out food and drink, and goes to bed early, allowing the rats to marry in peace. Source: the book "Rat" by Kwok Man-ho