Original Text
Chen Xiucai of Shuntian, when he was sixteen or seventeen years old, once studied under a teacher in a temple, where there were many students. Among them was a student named Chu, who claimed to be from Shandong and studied with great diligence, scarcely resting, lodging in the temple without ever being seen returning home. Chen and Chu were on the best of terms, so Chen asked Chu why he was so assiduous. Chu replied, "My family is very poor, and it is not easy to raise the tuition fees. Even if I cannot cherish every inch of time, by reading an extra half of the night each day, my two days become equivalent to another's three." Chen was deeply moved by his words and wanted to move his bed to share quarters with him. Chu stopped him, saying, "Do not come yet, do not come yet! I see that this gentleman is not worthy to be our teacher. There is a Mr. Lü at Fucheng Gate, who, though older, can be our teacher. Let us move to study with him together." In the capital, it was customary for those who set up schools to collect tuition by the month; when the month ended and the fees were used up, students were free to come and go. So Chu and Chen went together to study under Mr. Lü. Mr. Lü was a renowned Confucian scholar from Yue, but due to poverty and hardship, he could not return to his hometown and thus taught here, which was not his true aspiration. He was delighted to acquire these two students, Chen and Chu. Chu was particularly clever, with a photographic memory, so Mr. Lü held him in especially high regard. The two students, Chu and Chen, were on excellent terms, inseparable, studying at the same desk by day and sleeping on the same couch by night.
By the end of the month, Chu Sheng suddenly asked for leave to return home, but after ten days he had still not come back. Everyone found this strange. One day, Chen Sheng went to Tianning Temple on some business and encountered Chu Sheng in the temple corridor, who was splitting hemp fibers and coating them with sulfur to make tinder for starting fires. When Chu Sheng saw Chen Sheng, he looked embarrassed and uneasy. Chen Sheng asked, "Why have you suddenly abandoned your studies?" Chu Sheng took Chen Sheng's hand and led him to a secluded spot, then said sorrowfully, "I am too poor to pay the teacher's tuition; I must work for half a month to afford one month of study." Chen Sheng sighed deeply for a long while and said, "Go back to your studies, and I will do my best to help you." Chen Sheng ordered his attendant to gather Chu Sheng's belongings and brought him back to Master Lü's place. Chu Sheng urged Chen Sheng not to reveal his situation and to first find some excuse to tell the teacher. Chen Sheng's father was originally a merchant who later grew wealthy through hoarding and speculation, and Chen Sheng often secretly took his father's money to pay Chu Sheng's tuition. When Chen's father questioned him about the missing money, Chen Sheng told him the truth. His father thought him a fool and forbade him from continuing his studies. Chu Sheng, feeling deeply ashamed, bid farewell to the teacher and prepared to leave. Master Lü, learning the reason, scolded him, saying, "Since you had no money, why did you not tell me earlier?" He then returned all the tuition Chu Sheng had paid to Chen's father and allowed Chu Sheng to continue studying there, eating with the teacher as if he were his own son. Although Chen Sheng no longer attended the school, he often invited Chu Sheng to drink at taverns. Chu Sheng repeatedly declined out of a desire to avoid suspicion, but Chen Sheng's invitations grew even more earnest, often accompanied by tears, and Chu Sheng could not bear to refuse too harshly, so the two continued to meet from time to time.
After two years had passed, Chen's father died, and Chen Sheng returned to study under Master Lü. Moved by his sincerity, Master Lü accepted him, but because of the long interruption in his studies, he was far behind Chu Sheng in his learning. Half a year later, Master Lü's eldest son arrived from Yue, having begged his way all the way to find his father. All of Master Lü's students contributed money to help him prepare for the journey, while Chu Sheng could only shed tears of reluctant parting. Before leaving, Master Lü instructed Chen Sheng to take Chu Sheng as his teacher. Chen Sheng obeyed and invited Chu Sheng to teach him at home. Soon after, Chen Sheng passed the county examination and, as a "reserve talent," entered the provincial examination. Fearing he could not write well, Chu Sheng offered to take the exam for him. On the day of the exam, Chu Sheng brought a man with him, saying he was his cousin Liu Tianruo, and told Chen Sheng to go with him for a while. Just as Chen Sheng stepped out, Chu Sheng suddenly pulled him from behind, nearly causing him to fall, but Liu Tianruo quickly grabbed him and led him away. They looked around, then hand in hand went to Liu Tianruo's house to stay. Liu Tianruo's house had no women, so Chen Sheng lodged in the inner chamber. After a few days, it was the Mid-Autumn Festival. Liu Tianruo said, "Today, the garden of Prince Li's mansion is full of visitors. Let us go for a stroll to dispel our gloom, and I will see you home on the way." They had servants bring tea and wine. At the garden, the water pavilion and plum pavilion were so noisy with people that they could not enter. Passing the water gate, they saw a painted boat moored under an old willow tree, and they boarded it hand in hand. After a few cups of wine, they felt bored and lonely. Liu Tianruo said to the attendant, "The Plum Blossom Pavilion has recently acquired a famous singing girl. Is she at home?" The attendant went and soon returned with the girl, who was Li Eyun from the brothel. Li Eyun was a celebrated courtesan in the capital, skilled in poetry and song. Chen Sheng had once drunk with friends at her house, so they knew each other. After exchanging greetings, they noticed a look of sorrow on Li Eyun's face. Liu Tianruo asked her to sing, and she sang a dirge, "Hao Li." Chen Sheng was displeased and said, "Even if we, host and guest, do not suit your mood, why must you sing a song of the dead to the living?" Li Eyun rose and apologized, forcing a smile, and sang a sensual song. Chen Sheng was delighted and, grasping her wrist, said, "I have read your 'Silk-Washing Stream' many times, but now I have forgotten it." Li Eyun recited:
With tear-filled eyes before the mirror stand, she drew the curtain and suddenly saw her sister-in-law approach; lowering her head, she turned aside to glance at her bound feet. Forcing a smile to ease her knitted brows, she repeatedly wiped her fragrant cheeks with her red sleeve, all the while cautious lest her secret be guessed.
Scholar Chen recited it several more times. Then the boat reached the shore, and he disembarked, walking through a long corridor. On the walls, many poems were inscribed, and Chen had someone bring a brush to write Li Eyun's lyric on the wall. By now dusk was approaching, and Liu Tianruo said, "Those in the examination hall will soon emerge." So he escorted Chen home. After entering the house, Liu Tianruo departed. Chen saw that the room was dark and empty, and while he was puzzled, Chu Sheng entered the door. But upon closer look, it was not Chu Sheng. Just as he was startled and uncertain, the visitor suddenly approached him and fell to the ground. A servant in the house said, "The young master is weary!" and together they helped him up. At that moment, Chen felt that the one who had fallen was none other than himself. Rising, he saw Chu Sheng standing beside him, and Chen was in a daze, as if in a dream. So he dismissed the others, wishing to probe the matter. Chu Sheng said, "I will tell you the truth, but do not be afraid: I am in truth a ghost. Long have I been due for reincarnation, yet I lingered here, unable to leave, because I could not forget your deep friendship. Thus I attached myself to your body and took the examination in your stead. Now that the three sessions are complete, this wish is fulfilled." Chen begged him to also take the spring imperial examination, but Chu Sheng said, "In your previous life, your fortune was thin, and the blood and bones of one with scant blessings cannot bear the honor of an imperial decree." Chen asked, "Where will you go?" Chu Sheng replied, "Master Lu and I share a bond of father and son; I often think of him and cannot forget. My cousin in the underworld manages the registers and documents; I have begged him to inform the authorities of the netherworld, and perhaps they will show some favor." Having said this, he bade farewell and departed.
Scholar Chen found this very strange. After daybreak, he went to see Li Eyun, intending to inquire about the boat excursion, but Li Eyun had already been dead for several days. Chen then went to the Imperial Garden and saw that the inscribed poem was still on the wall, though the ink was very faint, as if on the verge of fading away. Only then did he realize that the one who had written the inscription was a ghost, and the poet was a specter. That evening, Scholar Chu arrived joyfully and said, "The matter I sought has fortunately succeeded, and now I bid you a solemn farewell." He then extended both palms and asked Chen to write the character "Chu" on them as a keepsake. Chen wished to prepare a feast to see Chu off, but Chu shook his head and said, "No need. If you do not forget an old friend, after the list of successful candidates is posted, do not fear the distance and come to see me." Chen, shedding tears, saw him off. A man was waiting at the gate, and as Chu lingered reluctantly, the man pressed his hand on Chu's neck, and Chu's body instantly flattened, was placed into a bag, and carried away. A few days later, Chen indeed passed the provincial examination. He then packed his bags and traveled to Yue. Master Lu's wife had been barren for decades, now over fifty years old, when suddenly she gave birth to a son. The child's hands were tightly clenched and could not be opened. When Chen arrived, he asked to see the child and said that in the child's palm was the character "Chu." Master Lu was skeptical. When the child saw Chen, his ten fingers opened of their own accord, and indeed the character "Chu" was visible. Master Lu, astonished, inquired about the reason, and Chen told him the whole truth, filling everyone with both joy and wonder. Chen presented Master Lu with generous gifts and then returned home. Later, Master Lu, as a senior tribute scholar, went to the capital for the court examination and stayed at Chen's house. By then, Master Lu's son was thirteen years old and had already entered the county school to study.
The Chronicler of Strange Tales remarks: Master Lu established a school to teach students, unaware that the very pupil he instructed was his own son. Alas! Doing good deeds for others brings blessings upon oneself—these two are indeed interconnected! Before Chu Sheng could repay his teacher with his own life, he first repaid his friend with his spirit; his aspirations and conduct could rival the sun and moon in brilliance—how could one deem him strange merely because he was a ghost?
Commentary
This story depicts the teaching and studying lives of people from the lower strata of society, portraying the bonds of schoolmates and the affection between teachers and students in a deeply moving manner. The teacher's career of setting up a school, the location of instruction, the conditions of tuition, the students' work-study arrangements, and the practice of taking exams by proxy all bear the imprint of Pu Songling's own teaching experiences, providing authentic historical records of education during the Ming and Qing dynasties, which are particularly valuable. What is noteworthy is that Chu Sheng, whether in "repaying his teacher with his body" or "repaying his friend with his soul," prioritizes personal sentiment over the law, engaging in actions that violate norms. "Repaying his teacher with his body" involves private entrustment, while "repaying his friend with his soul" constitutes cheating in examinations. Yet Pu Songling regards such intentions and actions as "capable of penetrating the sun and moon," reflecting an unsightly aspect of traditional Chinese culture.
The story of Scholar Chen and Scholar Chu visiting the Garden of Imperial Kinsman Li was elaborated by Pu Songling based on "A Brief Account of Scenic Spots in the Imperial Capital," which allows us a glimpse into some of the geographical descriptions within the tales of "Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio."