Classical Chinese Literature Popular Reader - Awakening the World to Constant Principles (Volume 1 and 2)

Author: (Ming) Feng Menglong / Country: Mainland China
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2003-01-01
Features: It is said in the modern Zhejiang Qizhou Prefecture, there was a man named Wang Feng. His brother was Wang Chun, and the two brothers each had a daughter: Wang Chun's daughter was named Qiongying, and Wang Feng's was called Qiongzhēn. Qiongying was betrothed to the son of a wealthy local named Pan Baimai, Pan Hua. Qiongzhēn was betrothed to the son of a local magistrate, Xiao Yǎ. Both engagements were arranged from a young age. Qiongying was only ten years old when her mother passed away first, followed by her father. When Wang Chun was on his deathbed, he entrusted his daughter Qiongying to his younger brother, instructing him, "I have no sons, only this daughter. Treat her as your own biological daughter. When she grows up, marry her well to Pan's family. Give her all the dowry and clothing left by your sister-in-law. The original betrothal gifts from the Pan family, including the estate, should be given to her as funds for her personal expenses. Do not fail me in this!" After giving these instructions, he breathed his last. The funeral rites were completed, and Wang Feng took his niece Qiongying back to live with his own daughter Qiongzhēn.
One New Year's Day, Pan Hua and Xiao Yǎ arrived at Wang Feng's house to pay New Year's greetings without prior arrangement. Pan Hua had a fair face and red lips, resembling a beautiful woman, and was called the "Jade-Child." Xiao Yǎ, however, had a pockmarked face and buck teeth, looking like a demon from the heavens. The contrast between the two was striking—the handsome one seemed to enhance the radiance of jade, while the ugly one appeared as if covered in mud. Moreover, Pan Hua wore dazzling clothes, deliberately showing off his wealth by changing them frequently. Xiao Yǎ, a modest man, paid no attention to his attire. As the saying goes, "Buddhas are adorned in gold, and people are dressed in fine clothes." Most people are superficial, judging only by appearance and not by character. No matter how old or young, male or female in the Wang family, who did not admire Pan Hua's beauty, comparing him to Pan An reborn, whispering behind his back and criticizing the ugliness of the "heavenly demon." Even Wang Feng could not help but feel pleased at the sight.
Before long, the local magistrate Xiao passed away in his post. Xiao Yǎ returned to mourn and carry his coffin back. Although his family was a well-established one with generations of honest officials, they had no surplus wealth. After his death, the family gradually declined. Pan Baimai, a sudden fortune, saw his family's wealth grow day by day. Wang Feng suddenly harbored an evil thought: "The Xiao family is poor, and their daughter-in-law is ugly. The Pan family is wealthy, and their daughter-in-law is handsome. Why not secretly exchange Qiongying and Qiongzhēn? Who would know? And it would prevent my own daughter from suffering in a poor family." With this plan in mind, when the wedding day arrived, he disguised Qiongzhēn as his niece and married her to the Pan family, giving her all the dowry and estate left by her brother. Instead, he took Qiongying as his own daughter and married her to the "heavenly demon," providing only a meager dowry. Qiongying had no choice but to obey her uncle, though she was angry and dared not speak out.
However, after the wedding, Pan Hua, relying on his family's wealth, neglected his studies and business, dedicating himself to gambling and carousing. His father scolded him repeatedly but to no avail, and eventually died out of frustration. Pan Hua grew bolder, associating with rogue elements, indulging in wine and entertainment. In less than a decade, he squandered his entire million in wealth, leaving him with nothing. His father-in-law repeatedly lent him money, but it was like adding snow to a fire, offering no relief. In the end, driven by hunger and cold, he secretly planned to take his wife to serve as a maid in someone else's household, without informing his father-in-law. Upon learning of this, Wang Feng took Qiongzhēn back home to care for her and forbade Pan Hua from visiting. Pan Hua vanished into the world, his whereabouts unknown. Meanwhile, Xiao Yǎ worked hard at his studies and later achieved fame, rising to the position of Minister of State. Qiongying was enshrined as a First-Class Lady.
As the poem goes:
Wealth and poverty are not predetermined,
Fate may yet bring fortune or misfortune.
Let the world deceive and twist as it will,
The spirits and gods will judge with impartiality.
P1-2