Original Text
In Jinghai there was a scholar named Shao, whose family was very poor. On his mother's birthday, he prepared offerings in the courtyard to celebrate, but after kowtowing and rising, he found all the offerings on the table had vanished. Shao was greatly startled and went to inform his mother. She suspected that because he was too poor to buy offerings, he had deliberately deceived her. Unable to clear himself, Shao remained silent. Soon after, the imperial examiner arrived in Jinghai for the examinations, and Shao, troubled by a lack of travel funds, borrowed a small sum to go and take the test. On the road, he encountered a man who respectfully waited by the roadside and earnestly invited Shao to follow him. Shao complied and went along. He saw a series of halls and towers connected, lining both sides of the street. Entering one, a figure like a monarch sat in the hall, and Shao knelt and kowtowed. The monarch, with a kindly countenance, bade him sit, immediately set out a feast, and said, "Not long ago, passing by your honorable residence, my servants, weary and hungry from the journey, disturbed you for a fine meal." Shao was astonished, not understanding the reason. The monarch said, "I am the Tenth King of Hell. Do you not recall preparing wine and meat for your mother's birthday sacrifice?" After the feast, the King brought out a packet of silver, saying, "Having partaken of your offerings, I now repay you with this." Shao took the silver and walked out, only to find that the palaces and people had all vanished, with only a few large trees sparsely standing by the roadside. Examining the gift of silver, it proved genuine, and weighing it, it came to five taels. After the examination, he spent only half of that silver, and was able to bring the remainder home to honor his mother.
Commentary
In "Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio," there are many works with the theme of Yama, the King of Hell; besides this piece, there are also "Yama" in Volume Three, "The King of Hell" in Volume Five, "Yama" in Volume Six, and "The Death of Yama" in Volume Seven, all of which are relatively brief, merely using Yama's name to reward good and punish evil. This particular story, however, tells of the poor scholar Shao, who, due to his respectful and filial nature, received a reward from Yama.