Original Text
The merchant Bai Yougong once told this tale: At the mouth of the Luo River, he saw a man carrying a bamboo chest on his back, leading two large dogs. From the chest, the man produced a wooden carving of a beauty about a foot tall, whose hands could move and eyes could turn, adorned in splendid attire, as lifelike as a living person. He then placed a brocade saddle pad on the back of one dog and set the wooden beauty astride it. Once arranged, he commanded the great dog to gallop. The beauty rose of her own accord, mimicking all manner of circus feats—now lying flat beneath the dog's belly while stepping on the stirrups, now sliding from the dog's flank to its tail, then leaping back onto its back from the tail, now kneeling, now standing, shifting with such agility that not a single misstep occurred. The man then performed the tale of Zhaojun's departure beyond the frontier. He brought out another wooden carving, a boy with a pheasant feather stuck in his cap and a sheepskin coat draped over his shoulders, riding the other dog and following behind the wooden beauty. The beauty frequently turned her head to look back, while the boy raised his whip and gave chase—so vivid and lifelike was the scene.
Commentary
A minor trick is narrated by Pu Songling with vividness and grace, no less than a superb piece of writing. This is not only due to the author's supreme literary skill but also stems from his curious, romantic, almost childlike heart, which allows him to delight in and appreciate such wonders, committing them to paper. Feng Zhenluan, a commentator on Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio, remarked: "Generally, a person of deep feeling can find sentiment even in lifeless objects, while a heartless person would regard even a sovereign or father as a stranger." This can be seen as a piercing commentary on this tale.