Man withdraws 'ghost money' from ATM

A Xi'an man apparently made a transaction with the spirit world after he withdrew 11 ceremonial "ghost" bills from an ATM machine in late August.

The man surnamed Chen explained he discovered 11 of the total 20 100-yuan notes he withdrew from an unnamed bank in Ziwu town, Chang'an district to be fake after he tried to pay his daughter's tuition fee on August 30, Shaanxi TV reported.

The ghost notes, or mingbi, are usually burned as offerings for the dead on specified days according to Chinese folk traditions.

Despite the clear differences in appearance and feel, Chen claimed he didn't notice that the bills read "The People's Bank of the Underworld" until he handed them over to a teacher at Chang'an No.1 Middle School.

"I held my handbag tightly on my bus ride to the school," Chen said, confident no one switched the money after he visited the ATM.

The case is still under investigation.