Strange Tales from Liaozhai--Volume 3

by Pu Songling

  216. The Scholar from Hejian

  There was a certain scholar from Hejian who for some time had been piling cut wheat into a large mound, with his servants taking some of the stalks from it each day to use as fuel for fires, until they eventually created a hole in the side of it. A fox who looked like an old man took up residence inside this burrow, often coming out to meet with the Hejian scholar.

  One day, he invited the scholar to come inside for a drink, bowing respectfully to make his request. The scholar expressed his reluctance to accept the invitation, but was forced by the old man and followed him inside. Once he’d entered, he found himself in a building corridor that was magnificently impressive.

  As he took a seat, he noticed that fragrant tea and wine had been set out for them to enjoy. But because the scholar could no longer see the daylight from inside there, he couldn’t tell what time of day it was. When they’d concluded their drinking and he’d stepped back outside, all signs of the corridor completely vanished.

  The old man would go out each night and return the next morning, though the scholar could never find any trace of his footprints. He asked the old man about it, and he explained that he’d been invited to drink with some friends. The scholar asked if he might join them, but the old man said he couldn’t take him along; when the scholar persisted in his request, the old man finally gave in and consented.

  _______________________________

  Hejian: A prefecture located in Hebei province.

  He took the scholar by the arm, rushing them along like they were riding the wind, and in the time it would take to fix a meal, they’d arrived at a town. They walked into a wine shop full of customers drinking enthusiastically, and the old man led the scholar upstairs. They could see the patrons drinking below, as well as the dishes of snacks on their tables.

  The old man then went downstairs, arbitrarily picking up wine from some of the tables and bringing it back upstairs to give the scholar. No one tried to stop him from also gathering up things for them to eat. In a short while, the scholar noticed that a man in red clothing had some kumquats set before him, so he told the old man to bring them, too.

  “But he’s an upright man,” the old man replied, “so I can’t go near him.”

  The scholar thought to himself: I’m wandering around with this fox, so that must mean that I’m a wicked person. From now on, if I turn my back on my old ways, surely I can become a good man!

  Having made this resolution, he felt himself lose control of his body, and he dizzily fell down the stairs. The customers below were quite startled, and everyone took him for some kind of demon. When the scholar looked up at where he’d been, there was no longer an upstairs area there—just a roof beam instead.

  Then he truthfully told the people drinking there what had happened. The crowd went over the details and decided that the scholar was a trustworthy fellow, so they offered him some money in order that he could afford to go home. When he asked them where he was, they told him he was in Yutai, and that Hejian was a thousand li away.

  _______________________________

  Yutai: Located in Shandong province.

  A thousand li: The scholar had been magically transported over three hundred miles from his hometown (one li = one-third of a mile).

  217. Yun Cuixian

  Liang Youcai, who originally came from Shanxi province, had no permanent home in Jinan, where he made a living as a small-time traveling merchant. He wasn’t married, and owned no land.

  It once happened that he was following some villagers who were heading to Mt. Tai. In the fourth month of the year, pilgrims swarmed to the mountain to burn incense and pay their respects. There was a band of devoted Buddhist laypeople, leading a group of a hundred or so men, who were on their knees before some Buddhist statue, and Liang watched them as they held their incense sticks there until they entirely burned out, performing a devotion called “Kneeling with Incense.”

  Liang noticed that among the group there was a beautiful girl, about seventeen or eighteen years old, and was immediately attracted to her. Pretending that he was one of the pilgrims, he drew near the girl and knelt down behind her; he also faked a weakness in his knees to justify placing his hands on her feet for support.

  _______________________________

  Jinan: The capital of Shandong province.

  Mt. Tai: A traditional sacred site for more than twenty-five centuries, Mt. Tai is located in Shandong province. Dorothy Perkins notes that pilgrims travel a 15-mile road north from the city of Tai’an to Mt. Tai, climbing a path of close to 7,000 stone steps before arriving at the mountain’s summit, 5,069 feet above sea level (502). Today, lifts are available to carry visitors to the summit, but one still observes a number of pilgrims making their way laboriously up the long climb of steps.

  Fourth month of the year: That is, of the lunar calendar; this is the date of the Buddha’s Birthday Festival.

  The girl turned her head to glare angrily at him, then crawled on her knees to get away from him. Liang, too, crawled on his knees, and approached her; soon, he was grabbing her feet again. When the girl felt this, she quickly got up, no longer kneeling, and stormed out through one of the gateways. Liang also stood up and left to follow her, but couldn’t tell which way she’d gone.

  He figured it was hopeless, so, disgruntled, he just started walking. Along the road, he spotted the girl following an old woman, who apparently was her mother. Liang hurried to join them.

  The old woman and the girl were having a conversation as they walked along. “It’s wonderful that you came to pay homage to the goddess!” exclaimed the old woman. “You don’t have any brothers or sisters to take care of you, so maybe the goddess can help find a good husband to protect you. As long as you two can get along together, and show filial kindness to your parents, it doesn’t matter whether or not he comes from an influential family or is some rich nobleman’s son.”

  Liang, happy to overhear this, gradually moved closer and closer, and began to ask the old woman about herself. She replied that her name was Yun, and the girl was her daughter, Cuixian. Their family lived forty li west of Mt. Tai. Liang remarked to her, “These mountain paths are hard-going, and since you seem to be walking with some difficulty, while your daughter’s so delicate-looking, how will you ever make it home?”

  “It’s already so late in the day,” the old woman replied, “we’re just going to her uncle’s house to spend the night.”

  Liang said, “When you were talking together just now about a son-in-law, you said you wouldn’t despise someone for being poor, or of humble background—and since I’m not married, would you consider me for your son-in-law?”

  _______________________________

  Forty li: About 13.33 miles, since one li equals 1/3 mile.

  The old woman asked the girl what she thought about it, but Cuixian didn’t respond. She asked her again, several more times, till Cuixian replied, “He’s got very little good fortune, he’s dissolute and has no moral scruples, he’s rash and weak-spirited, and it’s easy for him to be fickle. I couldn’t possibly make this trivial man my husband.”

  When Liang heard this, he sincerely pledged that he would become an exemplary man, and that he would never break his word to her. This pleased the old woman, who subsequently gave her consent to the marriage. Cuixian wasn’t happy about it, but with misgivings obeyed her mother. The old woman then did what she could to console her daughter.

  Liang was eager to demonstrate his diligence, so he took out some money and arranged for a pair of mountain sedan chairs to carry Cuixian and her mother down. Liang followed along behind them, like he was their servant. Every time they came to a narrow pass, he anxiously chided the chair carriers that they mustn’t allow the chairs to sway.

  When they finally reached a cottage, the old woman invited Liang to come inside with them. The uncle stepping out proved to be an old man, accompanied by an old woman. Cuixian’s mother greeted them as her elder brother and her sister-
in-law. “This is Liang Youcai, my son-in-law,” she told them. “This has been a most auspicious day, so we don’t need to wait to select another, but should see them married tonight.”

  Cuixian’s uncle was delighted to hear this, so he had some wine and delicacies brought out for Liang to enjoy. After awhile, Cuixian emerged, dressed in bridal array, and the two were hurried off to their bedroom. Cuixian told Liang, “I know very well that you’re an immoral man, and I’m only marrying you because my mother wanted me to do so, and I always comply with her wishes. If you’ll just become a decent man, then we won’t have to live together in misery.” Liang insisted that he understood her concern, and accepted her advice.

  The next morning, when they got up, Cuixian’s mother informed Liang, “You should go home first, and then my daughter and I will arrive later on.”

  When Liang got home, he swept it out from top to bottom. Mrs. Yun subsequently arrived with Cuixian. When they came inside and the old woman saw how empty it was, she exclaimed, “How can you possibly live like this? I’ll hurry home and see what I can do to help you out a bit.” Then she left.

  The next day, a number of men and women showed up, carrying in food, furniture, and clothing, till the house was filled. They didn’t stay to have anything to eat, but left a maidservant for the newlyweds.

  From that point on, since Liang found himself warmly dressed and well-fed, not a day went by without him inviting his scoundrel buddies over to drink and gamble, and he gradually began to steal from Cuixian’s jewelry to pay his debts. Cuixian tried to advise him against this behavior, but he wouldn’t listen; since she really couldn’t stand it, she turned her attention to guarding the trunk in which she kept her valuables, as though she was defending it from bandits.

  One day, the gang of gambling acquaintances showed up at the gate asking for Liang, and when they caught a glimpse of Cuixian, they were amazed at how beautiful she was. They teased Liang, “You’re a great man, with plenty of money, so why do you worry about ending up poor?”

  Liang asked them what were implying, and one of them replied, “We saw your wife, and she’s a really gorgeous woman. She just doesn’t fit in a house like yours. If you were to sell her to someone as a concubine, you could get hundreds of taels for her; but if you were to make her a prostitute, you could get thousands. With thousands of taels to spend, would you ever run out of money for drinking and gambling?”

  Liang didn’t say anything, but he decided they were right. When he was with Cuixian, he often sighed, and constantly griped that he’d never be free of his poverty. Cuixian would pay no attention to him, so Liang repeatedly struck the table, threw down his chopsticks, and cursed at the maidservant, throwing all kinds of tantrums.

  One night, Cuixian purchased some wine for them to drink. All of a sudden she remarked to Liang, “Every day, you worry about being poor. I can’t relieve your monetary concerns, but since it’s my duty to share your worries, how can I not also feel your shame? Although we don’t have much left by way of belongings, I still have this maidservant, and if we sold her, it could help us to get by.”

  Liang shook his head disapprovingly and cried, “She’d hardly be worth anything!”

  They drank some more, till Cuixian remarked, “What else can I offer you? I’ve already tried my best. Considering our poverty, suppose that we manage to stay together until we die: there’d just be a lifetime of bitterness for both of us, so how could our fortunes ever improve? But if you were to sell me to a wealthy family, both of us might be better off for it, since you’d certainly make much more than you would by selling the maidservant.”

  Liang made it appear that he was shocked by the suggestion, for he replied, “How could I do such a thing!” Cuixian firmly reiterated her words, apparently quite serious. Overjoyed, Liang declared, “Let me think about it.” Thus he made an arrangement with a high-ranking court eunuch for Cuixian to serve as a prostitute.

  When the eunuch personally came to Liang’s home, he saw Cuixian and was extremely pleased with her. Afraid that he might not be able to secure her right away, he immediately presented a document proposing that he pay Liang eight hundred strings of cash for her, and was just about to close the deal.

  “Knowing that her son-in-law is poor,” Cuixian told Liang, “my mother has always worried about me, and now that all contact between us is about to be severed, I have to return home temporarily to tell her; besides, how can I not tell her that you and I are splitting up?”

  Liang worried that her mother might try to stop her from going through with it. Cuixian reassured him, “I agreed to this, so I won’t go back on it.” Liang then went along as she left.

  They finally arrived at Mrs. Yun’s home around midnight. When they knocked and then walked inside, shutting the door after them, Liang discovered that they were in a magnificent building, with female servants constantly in motion, coming and going.

  Back when they were still married, whenever Liang had suggested that she should visit her mother, Cuixian had always put him off, so he hadn’t been there in more than a year after their marriage. Thus he was quite astonished to see this huge home, and feared that her mother wouldn’t stand for his selling Cuixian off to become a concubine or a prostitute.

  Cuixian led him upstairs. “Why has the married couple come?” the old woman asked in surprise.

  In resentment, Cuixian declared, “I could tell he was immoral, and now he’s proved it.” Then she took out two ingots of gold, set them on a table, and said, “Fortunately, I didn’t let this vile man have them, so now I can give them back to you.” Her mother was surprised, and when she asked her to explain, Cuixian declared, “He was going to sell me to raise money, so I hid the gold to be sure he couldn’t use it.”

  She pointed then to Liang and cursed at him: “You rat bastard! In the past, when you had to make a living by carrying things around on a shoulder pole, your face was caked with mud like some kind of demon. When you originally came near me, you brought the stench of rank sweat with you, your skin so filthy it made me want to pass out, your feet and hands covered with caked dirt a cun thick, so I had to endure that nastiness all night long. From the time I came to your house, you’ve been able to sit around idly, with plenty to eat, till your caked dirt skin finally had a chance to flake off. Tell my mother—am I falsely accusing you or not?” Liang hung his head, not daring to let out even a shallow breath.

  _______________________________

  Cun: A measure equal to 1/3 decimeter.

  Cuixian then remarked, “My looks may not be utterly ravishing, and I may be inadequate to wait upon high-ranking officials; but I’m still more than a match for your kind of man. How have I ever let you down, to cause you to think so little of our marriage? Given that, why would I have a new house built for us, or purchase some fertile farm land? When I think of how frivolous and weak you are, and how you’d turn us into beggars, I realize there’s just no way for us to live together!”

  In the course of Cuixian’s comments, the maidservants joined arms and began circling around Liang. When they heard Cuixian’s many reproaches, they all spat and cursed at him, exclaiming together, “You might as well kill him to settle it—no need to keep on just talking at him.” Liang was terribly frightened and flung himself to the ground, saying that he knew he’d been wrong and was sorry for it.

  Cuixian then exploded angrily, crying, “Selling off your wife is already a great evil, but even that wasn’t wicked enough for you; how could I stand to be made a prostitute by my own husband!”

  No sooner had she finished speaking than the circle of maidservants, wide-eyed with hate, all took up sharp hairpins and scissors, and as a group began stabbing him in the legs and sides. Liang howled in pain, begging for his life.

  Cuixian stopped the servants, telling them “You can let him go for now. He may be unjust and immoral, but I can’t bear to hear his frightened cries.” Then she led the maidservants downstairs and left with them.

  Liang sat the
re listening for a bit, till the sound of the women speaking was replaced by silence, and his thoughts turned to escaping. Suddenly he looked up, and as he noticed the stars, he saw that the sky in the east had begun to turn white, although the countryside all around him remained dark; he also noted that all of the lights around him had gone out.

  Then it happened that the house he’d been in was no longer there, and he found himself seated on the edge of a cliff. He looked down into the gaping chasm below, which appeared both dark and bottomless. Terrified, Liang was afraid he was going to fall. When his body shifted ever so slightly, he detected the sound of the promontory giving way, and he fell with the stones as it collapsed beneath him.

  Halfway down the cliff, he ended up hanging from a withered tree that stopped him from falling any further. Though the tree had caught him around his midsection, he was unable to touch anything with his hands and feet. As he looked into the boundless expanse below him, he couldn’t see the bottom.

  He dared not try to change his position, but screamed for help till he was hoarse, and finally his body started swelling—eyes, ears, nose, tongue, everything—as all his strength gave out. The sun gradually began to rise, and people who were out gathering firewood spotted him from a distance; they located a well rope and lowered it down to him, but by the time they’d pulled him up to the top of the cliff, he was on the verge of dying. They subsequently carried him back to his home.

  When they arrived at his gate, they found the door wide open; his house appeared to be as ruined as an abandoned monastery, the bed and all the furniture nowhere to be found, with only a hammock and a broken-down table left behind. The whole place looked like something ancient, with only parts of it still standing.

  Liang was so depressed that he just laid around. Whenever he felt hungry each day, he went to beg food from his neighbors. Before long, the swollen portions of his body began rupturing into leprous sores. The villagers began acting coldly towards him, spurning him.