Original Text
Ma Erhun lived inside the East Gate of Qingzhou, making his living by selling noodles. His family was poor, and he had not taken a wife, toiling alongside his mother in hardship day after day. One day, when his mother was alone at home, a beautiful woman suddenly entered, about sixteen or seventeen years old, with her hair in a simple bun and clad in a plain cotton skirt, very unadorned yet radiantly striking. Mother Ma stared at her in astonishment and questioned her origins; the woman smiled and said, "Because I see that your son is sincere and honest, I wish to marry into your family." Mother Ma was even more startled and replied, "Lady, you are like a celestial being; with such words, you would shorten the lives of us mother and son by several years." The woman pleaded repeatedly. Mother Ma suspected she must have fled from some wealthy household and refused more firmly, whereupon the woman finally departed. Three days later, the woman returned again, lingering with reluctance. When asked her surname, she said, "If Mother is willing to take me in, then I will tell; otherwise, there is no need to ask." Mother Ma said, "We are poor folk with the bone structure of hired laborers; to gain a daughter-in-law like you would be neither fitting nor auspicious." The woman smiled and sat at the bedside, deeply attached and especially sincere. Mother Ma dismissed her, saying, "Lady, you should leave quickly, and not bring calamity upon our house." Only then did the woman go out, and Mother Ma watched her as she walked westward.
After a few more days, Old Mrs. Lü from the western lane came to the Ma household and said to Ma's mother, "The neighbor girl Dong Huifang, orphaned and alone with no one to rely on, is willing to become your son's wife—why do you not take her in?" Ma's mother told Old Mrs. Lü all her doubts. Old Mrs. Lü said, "How could such a thing be? If any trouble arises, the blame shall rest on me." Ma's mother was overjoyed and agreed to the match. After Old Mrs. Lü left, Ma's mother swept the room and spread out the mats, waiting for her son to return and fetch the bride. As evening fell, Huifang herself drifted in. Entering the room, she paid respects to Ma's mother, rising and bowing in perfect accordance with propriety. She said to Ma's mother, "I have two maidservants, but without your permission, I dare not bring them into the house." Ma's mother said, "We mother and son live in a humble thatched hut and know nothing of commanding maids and servants. Each day we earn but a pittance, barely enough to sustain ourselves. Now with a new daughter-in-law, sitting idly and eating without working, I fear we cannot even fill our bellies; with two maidservants added, can we live on the northwest wind?" Huifang laughed and said, "When the maids come, they will not cost you a penny, Mother—they can all feed themselves." Ma's mother asked, "Where are the maids?" Huifang then called out, "Qiu Yue! Qiu Song!" Before the words had faded, as if birds alighting from the sky, two maids stood before them. Huifang immediately ordered them to kneel and kowtow to Ma's mother. Shortly after, Ma Erhun returned, and Ma's mother went to greet him, telling him he had a wife. Ma Erhun was overjoyed. Entering the room, he saw carved beams and painted rafters, like a palace; the tables, screens, curtains, and canopies within dazzled the eyes. He was so astonished he dared not enter. Huifang descended from the bed and greeted him with a smile. When Ma Erhun saw that Huifang was as beautiful as a celestial maiden, he was even more terrified and stepped back. Huifang took his hand, sat him down, and spoke gently to him. Ma Erhun was beside himself with joy, his soul lost, and immediately stood up to go buy wine. Huifang stopped him, saying, "No need." She then ordered the two maids to prepare food and drink. Qiu Yue took out a leather pouch, went behind the door, and shook it with a "gege" sound. After a moment, she reached inside and brought out a pot filled with wine and a plate piled with meat, each steaming hot. After drinking, they went to sleep on a flowered blanket and brocade mattress, which were very warm, soft, and fine. When dawn came and he stepped out the door, the thatched hut remained as before, and both mother and son found it strange.
Ma's mother went to Old Lady Lu's residence, intending to investigate Huifang's origins. Upon entering, she first thanked Old Lady Lu for the kindness of acting as matchmaker. Old Lady Lu said in surprise, "It has been a long time since I last visited you; how could there be any matter of a neighboring girl asking me to arrange a marriage?" Ma's mother grew even more suspicious and recounted the whole story from beginning to end. Old Lady Lu was greatly startled and immediately went with Ma's mother to see the new bride. Huifang greeted them with a smile and lavishly praised Old Lady Lu's kindness in matchmaking. Old Lady Lu, seeing her intelligence and beauty, stood dumbfounded for a long time, and then, no longer disputing, merely nodded and murmured in agreement. Huifang presented Old Lady Lu with a white wooden back-scratcher, saying, "Unable to repay your kindness, I humbly offer this back-scratcher for your use." Old Lady Lu took it home and examined it closely, whereupon the back-scratcher turned into pure silver. Since acquiring his wife, Ma Erhun no longer sold noodles; his household was transformed with a new splendor. In the clothes chest were countless sable and brocade garments, which he could choose to wear at will, but once he stepped outside, they changed into plain cotton clothes, though they were light and warm. Huifang's own garments were likewise.
After four or five years had passed, Huifang suddenly said, "I have been banished to the mortal world for over ten years now, and because of our destined bond, I have lingered here with you. Now it is time to bid farewell." Ma Erhun earnestly tried to detain her, but Huifang replied, "Please choose another worthy companion to carry on the Ma family line. I will come to see you again in a few years." In an instant, she vanished. Ma Erhun then remarried a woman named Qin. Three years later, on the night of the Qixi Festival, as the couple were chatting, Huifang suddenly appeared, smiling as she said, "How happy the new couple seems—have you forgotten your old friend?" Ma Erhun rose in astonishment, and with a pang of sorrow, he pulled her to sit down and poured out his innermost feelings. Huifang said, "I was just escorting the Weaving Maid across the Celestial River and stole a moment to visit you." They clung to each other, reluctant to part, talking endlessly. Suddenly, a voice from the sky called out, "Huifang!" and she hastily rose to take her leave. When Ma Erhun asked who it was, Huifang said, "I came just now with Sister Shuangcheng, and she grew impatient with the long wait." Ma Erhun saw her off. Huifang said, "Your allotted lifespan is eighty years. When that time comes, I will come to collect your bones." With these words, she disappeared. Now Ma Erhun is over sixty years old. He is merely a simple, honest man of few words, with no other remarkable qualities.
The Chronicler of Strange Tales remarks: Scholar Ma was named "Hun," meaning muddled, and his occupation was lowly; what did Huifang see in him? From this it is evident that immortals value those who are simple in speech and sincere in heart. I once said to a friend: For people like you and me, even ghosts and foxes would disdain to take notice. And the only one who is slightly worthy of the immortals is this word "muddled."
Commentary
This tale writes of the honest Ma Erhun, who gained the favor of a celestial maiden; it is a fairy tale or myth that praises the simple, sincere, and trustworthy nature of a person, where goodness is rewarded with goodness. It is noteworthy that the male protagonist is not a scholar, nor a farmer, but a small peddler. This coincides with the lament of Ling Mengchu in the late Ming dynasty, who, in his commentary at the end of "The Merchant Cheng Receives Help through Accumulated Wealth" from "Slapping the Table in Amazement, Second Collection," remarked, "But I wonder how Cheng Zai, merely a vulgar merchant, could have been fated for such a wondrous encounter."
In his "Preface to Shou Chang Jian Gu," Pu Songling wrote: "Heaven bestows upon man the essence of life, which remains fresh and vibrant after decades—this must be what Heaven's heart holds most dear." The manifestation of this "essence" is "guarding simplicity." He said: "Simplicity is the opposite of cunning. Those versed in worldly affairs attain cunning; those ignorant of worldly affairs attain simplicity. Is it not that cunning approaches falsehood while simplicity approaches sincerity?" "Plain, reticent, sincere, and steadfast" was the human spirit Pu Songling always praised. He also took pride in this spirit, saying: "Born without talent to suit the age, I find peace in one simple heart." "Firm adherence is not due to dullness; wild songs never tire of folly." "Throughout life, I have few close friends, yet even in old age, I remain like a child." The "chaos" mentioned at the end of this tale refers to the "chaos" in Laozi's phrase "There is a thing chaotic yet complete, born before Heaven and Earth"—meaning the primordial, vital state before the separation of Heaven and Earth, which is the childlike heart, synonymous with "plain, reticent, sincere, and steadfast."