The Prince Li’s residence is a historical heritage of Prince Li Daishan, who was the second son of Nurhaci (the first king of the Qing dynasty). It is located in Xicheng District of Beijing and is one of the biggest and roomiest prince residences that was built in the Ming dynasty. Nevertheless, it is considered as one of the biggest haunted houses in the gossip by local people. Some local people suggested tearing down the Prince Li’s residence due to worries about their property devaluation by gossips. Obviously, they exaggerated the impact on Prince Li’s residence by gossip. We should not tear down a historical heritage because of rumors.

There is no evidence to prove the truth of “haunted house” rumors. Some people said that they saw weird wind surrounding the buildings of Prince Li’s residence, but in fact there are no winds nearby. They explained this phenomenon as ghost haunted. However, according to research, no one had seen such winds nearby the Prince Li’s residence. Furthermore, dust devil, a kind of wind that is similar to and lighter than a tornado, commonly occurs in Beijing. Therefore, it is reasonable to speculate that “ghost haunted” is in fact a natural phenomenon.

Rumors of the “haunted house” are indeed fake news that cannot damage the Prince Li’s residence’s historical value and cultural value. The Prince Li’s residence is a witness of Chinese history for several hundred years across Ming dynasty, Qing dynasty, the period of the Republic of China and new China. It has been used as a dormitory for Huabei Wenfa Academy and an office for the Ministry of Civil Affairs. Tearing down this historical heritage would be real damage irreversibly.

For most younger generations, ghost stories and superstitions are entertainment elements. Combining historical culture and horror story elements for heritage as cultural IP is a way to attract younger tourists. For example, Higurashi (When They Cry, 寒蝉鸣泣之时), a game IP formed by historical heritage and horror story elements has attracted many young tourists successfully and added value to local culture heritage. We can use this way of IP for reference to reverse the negative image of the Prince Li’s residence.

To conclude, “haunting events” do not exist in reality. Furthermore, there are huge undiscovered economic and cultural values ​​of the Prince Li’s residence that are important and cannot be recovered after being destroyed. So tearing down the Prince Li’s residence due to some gossips and rumors is short-sighted and non-strategic.