每年盂蘭節，街頭總會搭起臨時戲棚，神功戲通宵演出，台前香火不斷，紙紮祭品整齊排列。有人說，那些位置，不只是給活人看的。
During the Hungry Ghost Festival, temporary opera stages appear across the city, burning offerings and incense filling the air. Some say the front rows are never meant for the living.
中文版本
那晚我只是路過，那條街比平時暗，只有幾盞臨時燈照著戲棚的位置，遠遠已經聽到鑼鼓聲，節奏很慢，像是刻意拖長，我走近一點，看見整個戲棚已經搭好，台上有人在做戲，臉上塗著厚厚的顏色，動作很慢，台下擺滿一排排紅色膠椅，整齊對著戲台，但奇怪的是，那些椅子全都空著，沒有一個人坐，我站在旁邊，看了一會，才注意到戲棚前面擺了一排香爐，香燭一直在燒，煙慢慢向上升，沒有散開，而是停在半空，像是被什麼擋住，我再向旁邊看，路邊放滿紙紮祭品，有紙屋、紙人、還有整疊整疊的冥鏹，有些還在燃燒，火光很細，但一直沒有熄，我不知道為什麼會停下來，只是覺得那裡很安靜，明明有鑼鼓聲，但四周卻沒有其他聲音，沒有車聲，也沒有路人經過，我再看回戲台，台上的人還在唱，但聲音好像不是從台上傳來，而是從很遠的地方慢慢傳過來，我開始分不清距離，我向前走了一步，站在那些椅子後面，我沒有坐下，只是站著，那一刻，我突然覺得那些椅子不是空的，只是看不見有人坐著，我沒有再動，只是看著前面，戲還在繼續，動作一樣，節奏一樣，像沒有開始，也沒有結束，我不知道自己站了多久，直到我發現香爐的煙開始慢慢向我這邊飄過來，我後退了一步，再看那些椅子，那一刻，我很確定，每一張椅子前面，都有一支香，而那些香，是對著座位的，我沒有再看下去，轉身離開，那條街很快恢復正常，有車經過，有人說話，就像什麼都沒有發生過一樣，但當我走到街口的時候，我回頭看
English Version
I wasn’t planning to stop that night, I was just passing by, the street was dimmer than usual, lit only by a few temporary lamps around the opera stage, I could hear the distant rhythm of drums and gongs, slow and deliberate, as if stretched on purpose, I moved closer and saw the entire setup, the stage was active, performers in heavy makeup moved in measured gestures, their expressions unreadable, rows of red plastic chairs were arranged neatly in front of the stage, all facing forward, but none of them were occupied, I stood to the side and watched for a moment, then noticed the incense burners lined up in front, sticks of incense burned steadily, the smoke rising upward but not dispersing, as if something was holding it in place, along the roadside were paper offerings, folded houses, figures, stacks of joss paper, some still burning with a faint but persistent glow, I don’t know why I stopped, but the entire place felt unusually quiet, even with the sound of the opera, there were no other noises, no passing cars, no footsteps, I looked back at the stage, the performance continued, but the sound didn’t seem to come directly from it, it felt distant, layered, as if carried from somewhere else entirely, I stepped forward slightly, standing just behind the rows of chairs, I didn’t sit down, I just stood there, and in that moment, I had the distinct feeling that the seats weren’t empty, only that I couldn’t see who was there, I stayed still, watching, the performance continued without change, no beginning, no end, I lost track of how long I had been there, until I noticed the incense smoke shifting toward me, slowly, deliberately, I stepped back, and when I looked again at the chairs, I realized each one had a stick of incense placed in front of it, aligned carefully, facing the seat, I didn’t stay any longer, I turned and walked away, the street returned to normal almost immediately, cars passed, voices returned, as if nothing had happened, but when I reached the corner and looked back, the stage was still there, the lights still on, only now the chairs no longer looked empty
