Man finds red packet full of money in Choa Chu Kang, realises he might have taken a ghost bride

Finders keepers?

Belmont Lay | September 02, 2022, 12:22 PM

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A man in Singapore found a red packet stuffed with a thick wad of cash lying on the ground next to a parked car while on his way to McDonald's.

He put up a video on TikTok documenting his find in Keat Hong, Choa Chu Kang.

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Thousands of dollars inside?

The video has been watched close to 400,000 times within a day as it was clear many viewers were trying to catch a glimpse of how much money was inside.

Based on a rough estimation of the number of visible S$50 bills, there could have easily been several hundred dollars inside, excluding the red notes.

If the red notes are S$100 bills, the amount would easily exceed S$1,000 in total.

Superstition: Man has accepted ghost bride

However, it soon transpired that the man could have unwittingly availed himself to a "ghost bride".

Many commenters who responded to the TikTok video said this was due to the Chinese superstitious practice of seeking a husband for a ghost bride, which is supposedly less prevalent these days and mostly perpetuated by pop cultural representations of it, such as through movies.

The belief entails the family of a deceased woman who never got married leaving red packets with money inside on the street, so that the first man who picks it up is destined and obligated to be the husband.

The act of even acknowledging the red packet is lying there is indicative the person is the chosen one, as not everyone is supposedly able to notice or "see" the red packet.

Man appears to have kept money

In response to queries if the man who found the money kept it, he responded personally to say he got a good deal: Money and a partner.

No commenter on the TikTok video has explicitly staked a claim on the money and asked for it back.

Superstitious belief

The belief of never picking up and keeping money, especially if it is kept in red packets, is particularly strong in some places, such as in Taiwan.

The advice dished out is to always avoid using one's hand to pick up the money if possible.

If the red packet is left intentionally on a chair or motorcycle for the male recipient who is bound to touch it, it is advised that the red packet should be allowed to fall to the ground by tilting the chair or motorcycle.

However, there are those who also said doing so would be even more disrespectful and the proper way is to bring the red packet with money to a temple.

It is unclear what the implications are in such instances if it was a woman who ultimately finds and keeps the red packet with money.

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