knees only one son, called Wang Hsi-feng.'
When the company heard so far, they began to laugh.
'Now isn't this a duplicate of our girl Feng's name?' old lady Chia laughingly exclaimed.
A married woman hurried up and pushed (the girl). 'That's the name of your lady Secunda,' she said, 'so don't use it quite so heedlessly!'
'Go on with your story!' dowager lady Chia shouted.
The girl speedily stood up, smiling the while. 'We do deserve death!' she observed. 'We weren't aware that it was our lady's worthy name.'
'Why should you be in such fear and trembling?' lady Feng laughed. 'Go on! There are many duplicate names and duplicate surnames.'
The girl then proceeded with her story. 'In a certain year,' she resumed, 'his honour old Mr. Wang saw his son Mr. Wang off for the capital to be in time for the examinations. One day, he was overtaken by a heavy shower of rain and he betook himself into a village for shelter. Who'd have thought it, there lived in this village, one of the gentry, of the name of Li, who had been an old friend of his honour old Mr. Wang, and he kept Mr. Wang junior to put up in his library. This Mr. Li had no son, but only a daughter. This young daughter's worthy name was Ch'u Luan. She could perform on the lute; she could play chess; and she had a knowledge of books and of painting. There was nothing that she did not understand.'
Old lady Chia eagerly chimed in. 'It's no wonder,' she said, 'that the story has been called: 'A Feng seeks a Luan in marriage,' '(a male phoenix seeks a female phoenix in marriage).' But you needn't proceed. I've already guessed the denouement. There's no doubt that Wang Hsi-feng asks for the hand of this Miss Ch'u Luan.'
'Your venerable ladyship must really have heard the story before,' the singing-girl smiled.
'What hasn't our worthy senior heard?' they all exclaimed. 'But she's quick enough in guessing even unheard of things.'
'All these stories run invariably in one line,' old lady Chia laughingly rejoined. 'They're all about pretty girls and scholars. There's no fun in them. They abuse people's daughters in every possible way, and then they still term them nice pretty girls. They're so concocted that there's not even a semblance of truth in them. From the very first, they canvass the families of the gentry. If the paterfamilias isn't a president of a board; then he's made a minister. The heroine is bound to be as lovable as a gem. This young lady is sure to understand all about letters, and propriety. She knows every thing and is, in a word, a peerless beauty. At the sight of a handsome young man, she pays no heed as to whether he be relation or friend, but begins to entertain thoughts of the primary affair of her life, and forgets her parents and sets her books on one side. She behaves as neither devil nor thief would: so in what respect does she resemble a nice pretty girl? Were even her brain full of learning, she couldn't be accounted a nice pretty girl, after behaving in this manner! Just like a young fellow, whose mind is well stored with book-lore, and who goes and plays the robber! Now is it likely that the imperial laws would look upon him as a man of parts, and that they wouldn't bring against him some charge of robbery? From this it's evident that those, who fabricate these stories, contradict themselves. Besides, they may, it's true, say that the heroines belong to great families of official and literary status, that they're conversant with propriety and learning and that their honourable mothers too understand books and good manners, but great households like theirs must, in spite of the parents having pleaded old age and returned to their natives places, contain a great number of inmates; and the nurses, maids and attendants on these young ladies must also be many; and how is it then that, whenever these stories make reference to such matters, one only hears of young ladies with but a single close attendant? What can, think for yourselves, all the other people be up to? Indeed, what is said before doesn't accord with what comes afterwards. Isn't it so, eh?'
The party listened to her with much glee. 'These criticisms of yours, venerable ancestor,' they said, 'have laid bare every single discrepancy.'
'They have however their reasons,' old lady Chia smilingly resumed. 'Among the writers of these stories, there are some, who begrudge people's wealth and honours, or possibly those, who having solicited a favour (of the wealthy and honorable), and not obtained the object, upon which their wishes were set, have fabricated lies in order to disparage people. There is moreover a certain class of persons, who become so corrupted by the perusal of such tales that they are not satisfied until they themselves pounce upon some nice pretty girl. Hence is it that, for fun's sake, they devise all these yarns. But how could such as they ever know the principle which prevails in official and literary families? Not to speak of the various official and literary families spoken about in these anecdotes, take now our own immediate case as an instance. We're only such a middle class household, and yet we've got none of those occurrences; so don't let her go on spinning these endless yarns. We must on no account have any of these stories told us! Why, even the maids themselves don't understand any of this sort of language. I've been getting so old the last few years, that I felt unawares quite melancholy whenever the girls went to live far off, so my wont has been to have a few passages recounted to me; but as soon as they got back, I at once put a stop to these things.'
'Sister-in-law' Li and Mrs. Hsueeh both laughed. 'This is just the rule,' they said, 'which should exist in great families. Not even in our homes is any of this confused talk allowed to reach the ears of the young people.'
Lady Feng came forward and poured some wine. 'Enough, that will do!' she laughed. 'The wine has got quite cold. My dear ancestor, do take a sip and moisten your throat with, before you begin again to dilate on falsehoods. What we've been having now can well be termed 'Record of a discussion on falsehoods.' It has had its origin in this reign, in this place, in this year, in this moon, on this day and at this very season. But, venerable senior, you've only got one mouth, so you couldn't very well simultaneously speak of two families. 'When two flowers open together,' the proverb says, 'one person can only speak of one.' But whether the stones be true or fictitious, don't let us say anything more about them. Let's have the footlights put in order, and look at the players. Dear senior, do let these two relatives have a glass of wine and see a couple of plays; and you can then start arguing about one dynasty after another. Eh, what do you say?'
Saying this, she poured the wine, laughing the while. But she had scarcely done speaking before the whole company were convulsed with laughter. The two singing girls were themselves unable to keep their countenance.
'Lady Secunda,' they both exclaimed, 'what a sharp tongue you have! Were your ladyship to take to story- telling, we really would have nowhere to earn our rice.'
'Don't be in such overflowing spirits,' Mrs. Hsueeh laughed. 'There are people outside; this isn't like any ordinary occasion.'
'There's only my senior brother-in-law Chen outside,' lady Feng smiled. 'And we've been like brother and sister from our youth up. We've romped and been up to every mischief to this age together. But all on account of my marriage, I've had of late years to stand on ever so many ceremonies. Why besides being like brother and sister from the time we were small kids, he's anyhow my senior brother-in-law, and I his junior sister-in-law. (One among) those twenty four dutiful sons, travestied himself in theatrical costume (to amuse his parents), but those fellows haven't sufficient spirit to come in some stage togs and try and make you have a laugh, dear ancestor. I've however succeeded, after ever so much exertion, in so diverting you as to induce you to eat a little more than you would, and in putting everybody in good humour; and I should be thanked by one and all of you; it's only right that I should. But can it be that you will, on the contrary, poke fun at me?'
'I've truly not had a hearty laugh the last few days,' old lady Chia smiled, 'but thanks to the funny things she recounted just now, I've managed to get in somewhat better spirits in here. So I'll have another cup of wine.' Then having drunk her wine, 'Pao-yue,' she went on to say, 'come and present a cup to your sister-in-law!'
Lady Feng gave a smile. 'There's no use for him to give me any wine,' she ventured. '(I'll drink out of your cup,) so as to bring upon myself your longevity, venerable ancestor.'
While uttering this response, she raised dowager lady Chia's cup to her lips, and drained the remaining half of the contents; after which, she handed the cup to a waiting-maid, who took one from those which had been rinsed with tepid water, and brought it to her. But in due course, the cups from the various tables were cleared, and clean ones, washed in warm water, were substituted; and when fresh wine had been served round, (lady Feng and the maid) resumed their seats.
'Venerable lady,' a singing-girl put in, 'you don't like the stories we tell; but may we thrum a song for you?'
'You two,' remarked old lady Chia, 'had better play a duet of the 'Chiang Chuen ling' song: 'the general's command.''
