Chinese Fairy Tales and Fantasies (Pantheon Fairy Tale and Folklore Library) by Moss Roberts Read Free Book Online

famous rich men of history would seem like small-timers. Once he had the money in hand, however, his convictions turned upside down. His self-indulgent nature was as strong as ever, and within a few years he was poorer than ever.
    For the third time he met the old man at the familiar place. Tzu-ch’un could not master his embarrassment; covering his face with his hands, he fled. But the old man grabbed the tail of his coat and stopped him. “I should have known you’d need more,” he said, giving Tzu-ch’un thirty million cash. “But if this doesn’t cure you, there’s no remedy.”
    Tzu-ch’un thought, “When I fell into evil ways and spent everything I had, relatives and friends took no notice of me at all. But this old man has thrice provided for me. How can I be worthy of his kindness?” And he said to the man, “With this sum I can put my affairs in good order, provide the necessities for widows and orphans, and repair my character. I am moved by your profound kindness and will perform any service for you once I have accomplished my tasks.”
    “Such is my heart’s desire,” said the old man. “When you are done, meet me on the fifteenth day of the seventh month at the temple of Lao Tzu that stands between the juniper trees.”
    Since most widows and orphans lived south of the Huai River, Tzu-ch’un transferred his funds to the city of Yangchou. He bought over fifteen hundred acres of choice land there, erected mansions for himself in the city, and set up more than a hundred buildings on the main roads to house the widows and orphans of the region. He arranged marriages for his nieces and nephews, provided all the clan dead with a place in the temple, matched all generosity shown him, and forgave all injuries. When he was done, it was time to seek out the old man.
    Tzu-ch’un found him whistling in the shade of the junipers. Together the two ascended the Cloud Pavilion Peak of Hua Mountain at the western end of China. They had gone more than ten miles when they came to a clean, austere residence, unlike any where mortals dwelt, under a canopy of high arched clouds. Phoenix and crane winged through the air. Above them rose the main hall, inside which was an alchemist’s furnace nine feet high used for brewing potions and elixirs. Purple flames licking up from it illuminated the door and windows in a fiery light. Around the furnace stood a number of jade-white fairy women, while a black dragon and a white tiger mounted guard front and back.
    The sun was beginning to go down. The old man, no longer in mortal garb, appeared now as a Taoist wizard, yellow-hatted and scarlet-mantled. He held a beaker of wine and three white pellets to expand the mind, all of which he gave to Tzu-ch’un. The young man swallowed the pills, and the wizard spread a tiger skin against the western wall and seated Tzu-ch’un facing east.
    “Take care not to speak,” the wizard cautioned. “Be it revered spirit, vicious ghost, demon of hell, wild beast, hell itself, or even your own closest relatives bound and tormented in a thousand ways—nothing you see is truly real. It is essential that you neither speak nor make any movement. Remain calm and fearless and you shall come to no harm. Never forget what I have said.” With that, the wizard departed.

     
    Tzu-ch’un looked around. He saw nothing but an earthen cistern filled with water. Suddenly flags and banners, shields and spears, a thousand war chariots, and ten thousand horsemen swarmed over hill and dale. The clamor shook heaven and earth. A warrior called the General appeared. He was ten feet tall, and he and his horse wore metal armor that gleamed brilliantly. The General’s guard of several hundred men, swords drawn and bows taut, entered the space in front of the main hall.
    “What man are you,” they cried, “that dares remain in the presence of the General?” Left and right, swords poised, they advanced, demanding Tzu-ch’un’s identity. But Tzu-ch’un