Chinese Colorful Fairy Tales

Author: Wang Yizhen / Country: Mainland China
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-12-01
Features: In front of a big mountain, there is a small village. In the village, there is a blue, shimmering pond with many little fish. However, the villagers often go fishing in the pond, and the fish keep getting fewer and fewer. Finally, only one small gray fish was left in the pond. The little gray fish missed so many friends—how lonely! The little gray fish thought, If only there were a little fish to keep me company, how nice that would be. This wish was overheard by the sun, which had just come down the mountain. The sun transformed itself into a shiny golden fish and leaped into the small pond. The golden fish swam toward the little gray fish and greeted it politely: "Little gray fish, hello!" "Golden fish, hello!" The little gray fish had never seen such a beautiful fish before and was truly happy. The golden fish and the little gray fish swam among the water plants, playing hide-and-seek. The golden fish told the little gray fish stories—about the stars, about the moon, about Chang'e and Wu Gang. The little gray fish listened, captivated. The little gray fish told the golden fish stories—about tadpoles, about toads, about the giant water monster with big feet. The golden fish listened, deeply engrossed. As dawn approached, the golden fish and the little gray fish were still whispering sweetly. The golden fish said to the little gray fish, "I have to leave now. I have very important things to do." The little gray fish didn’t want the golden fish to leave and said, "You can stay here and keep me company. That would be wonderful!" "No, I can’t, little gray fish. I have extremely important things to do. Everyone needs me! But I’ll come back tomorrow night, and I’ll tell you more stories." "Tomorrow night, you must, must come back! I’ll be waiting for you in these dense water plants."
The next night, the sun transformed into a golden fish again and leaped into the small pond. Days passed—third day, fourth day, a week, a month. The golden fish and the little gray fish became inseparable friends.
One day, a fishing enthusiast passed by the pond and noticed small ripples in the water. "There are still fish in this pond," the person said. "I must catch them." And so, the little gray fish was caught again. That night, the sun transformed into a golden fish once more and swam to the pond. But no matter how he searched—through every patch of grass—he couldn’t find the little gray fish. The golden fish realized the little gray fish must have been caught. His best friend was gone, and his heart was filled with sorrow. He cried and cried, tears flowing into the pond until it was full. The water overflowed, flooding a large field.
As dawn approached, the golden fish had no desire to transform back into the sun and return to the sky. He hid in a patch of water plants and fell into a deep sleep.
It’s already seven or eight o’clock, and the sun hasn’t come up. What’s going on? people murmured to each other.
It’s already nine or ten o’clock, and the sun still hasn’t appeared. People looked at each other, puzzled.
Oh no! The sun is gone! The sun is gone! people shouted in alarm.
Without the sun, what would happen? Crops wouldn’t grow, flowers wouldn’t bloom, and the whole world would be plunged into darkness. How would they live?
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