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The fighting quails (1)
Wang Cheng belonged to an old family in Ping-yuan, but was
such an idle fellow that his property gradually disappeared, until
at length all he had left was an old tumble-down house. His wife
and he slept under a coarse hempen coverlet, and the former was
far from sparing of her reproaches.
At the time of which we are speaking the weather was unbearably hot; and Wang went to pass the night with many other of his
fellow-villagers in a pavilion which stood among some dilapidated buildings belonging to a family named Chou. With the first
streaks of dawn his comrades departed; but Wang slept well on
till about nine o'clock, when he got up and proceeded leisurely
home. All at once he saw in the grass a gold hair-pin; and taking
it up to look at it, found engraved thereon in small characters -
"The property of the Imperial family." Now Wang's own grand-
father had married into the Imperial family, and consequently he
had formerly possessed many similar articles; but while he was
thinking it over up came an old woman in search of the hair-pin,
which Wang who though poor was honest, at once produced and
handed to her.
The old woman was delighted, and thanked Wang for his
goodness, observing that the pin was not worth much in itself,
but was a relic of her departed husband. Wang asked what her
husband had been; to which she replied, "His name was Wang Chien-chih, and he was connected by marriage with the Imperial
family."
"My own grandfather!" cried Wang, in great surprise; "how
could you have known him ?"
"You, then," said the old woman, "are his grandson. I am a
fox, and many years ago I was married to your grandfather; but
when he died I retired from the world. Passing by here I lost my
hair-pin, which destiny conveyed into your hands." Wang had
heard of his grandfather's fox-wife, and believing therefore the
old woman's story, invited her to return with him, which she did.
Wang called his wife out to receive her; but when she came in
rags and tatters, with unkempt hair and dirty face, the old
woman sighed, and said, "Alas! alas! has Wang Chien-chih's
grandson come to this?" Then looking at the broken, smokeless
stove, she added, "How, under these circumstances, have you
managed even to support life?" Here Wang's wife told the tale of
their poverty, with much sobbing and tears; whereupon the old
woman gave her the hair-pin, bidding her go pawn it, and with
the proceeds buy some food, saying that in three days she would
visit them again. Wang pressed her to stay, but she said, "You
can't even keep your wife alive; what would it benefit you to have
me also dependent on you?" So she went away, and then Wang
told his wife who she was, at which his wife felt very much
alarmed; but Wang was so loud in her praises, that finally his
wife consented to treat her with all proper respect.
In three days she returned as agreed, and, producing some
money, sent out for a hundredweight of rice and a hundred-
weight of corn. She passed the night with them, sleeping with
Mrs. Wang, who was at first rather frightened, but who soon laid aside her
suspicions when she found that the old lady meant so well
towards them. Next day the latter addressed Wang, saying,
"My grandson, you must not be so lazy. You should try to
make a little money in some way or another." Wang replied
that he had no capital; upon which the old lady said, "When
your grand- father was alive, he allowed me to take what
money I liked; but not being a mortal, I had no use for it,
and consequently did not draw largely upon him. I have,
however, saved from my pin-money the sum of forty ounces of
silver, which has long been lying idle for want of an
investment. Take it, and buy summer cloth, which you may
carry to the capital and re-sell at a profit." So Wang
bought some fifty pieces of summer cloth; and the old lady
made him get ready, calculating that in six or seven days he
would reach the capital. She also warned him, saying,
Be neither lazy nor slow -
For if a day too long you wait,
Repentance comes a day too late.
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