Original Text
There was a scholar named Lian, a native of Zhangde, who from youth was fond of learning but lost his father early, leaving his family in great poverty. One day, Lian went out and, returning at dusk, lost his way. Entering a village, an old woman came up and said, "Where is Master Lian going? Is it not already dark?" Lian, anxious and with no time to ask who the woman was, begged for lodging. The woman led him into a large mansion, where two maids, holding lanterns, guided a lady out. The lady, about forty years old, bore herself with the manner of a noble house. The old woman greeted her, saying, "Master Lian has arrived." Lian hastened forward to pay his respects. The lady said with delight, "The young master is so refined and elegant—he is fit to be more than just a wealthy man!" Then she ordered a feast laid out, seated herself to one side, and repeatedly urged Lian to drink, though she herself raised her cup without drinking and took up her chopsticks without eating. Lian, puzzled, pressed her repeatedly about her family background. The lady smiled and said, "Drink three more cups, and I will tell you." Lian obeyed and drank three cups. The lady said, "My late husband was named Liu. While sojourning in Jiangxi, he met with an untimely death. I dwell alone in this desolate mound, and my family fortunes daily decline. Though I have two grandsons, one is a wastrel and the other a good-for-nothing. Young master, though not of the same clan, you are yet a kinsman by three lives, and your nature is pure and honest, so I have come forward boldly to see you. I have no other trouble to trouble you with: I have saved a little money, and I wish to ask you to take it out and engage in trade, sharing in the profits, which would be better than toiling over your books." Lian declined, pleading his youth and bookishness, fearing he might fail in the trust. The lady said, "Making a living is the foundation of study. With your intelligence, what can you not accomplish?" Then she ordered the maids to bring out the money and handed over over eight hundred taels of silver on the spot. Lian, filled with awe, insisted on refusing, but the lady said, "I know you are not accustomed to trade, but just try it; it will surely go smoothly." Lian, considering that so much silver was more than one man could manage, proposed finding a partner. The lady said, "No need. Just find an honest and capable servant to work for you, and that will suffice." Then she counted on her slender fingers and said, "A man named Wu would be auspicious." She ordered the servants to prepare a horse and pack the silver to see Lian off, saying, "At the end of the twelfth month, I will surely wash the cups and await to welcome you back." Turning to the servants, she added, "This horse is already tamed and can be ridden; give it to the young master, and do not bring it back."
Lian Sheng returned home at the fourth watch of the night; his servant had tied up the horse and gone back on his own. The next day, Lian Sheng searched everywhere for a servant and indeed found one surnamed Wu, whom he hired at a high price. Wu was well-versed in the trade of transport and commerce, and being honest and straightforward, Lian Sheng entrusted all his money to him. They traveled to the region of Hubei to conduct business, returning only at year's end, having tripled their capital. Because Wu had proven so capable, Lian Sheng gave him extra compensation beyond his wages, planning to record this additional payment under a separate account so that his wife would not know. No sooner had he arrived home than his wife had already sent someone to welcome him, and they went together. There, in the hall, a lavish feast had been laid out; the wife came forth and repeatedly expressed her gratitude. Lian Sheng handed over the money and presented the account ledger, which his wife took and set aside. Soon, they all took their seats at the banquet, with song and dance filling the air in great splendor; Wu was also given a feast in an outer chamber and returned home drunk. Because Lian Sheng had no family of his own, he stayed on for the New Year. The next day, Lian Sheng again asked his wife to check the accounts. She smiled and said, "There is no need for this in the future; I have already calculated everything." She then brought out a ledger for Lian Sheng to see, which recorded everything in great detail, even including the payments made to the servant. Lian Sheng exclaimed in astonishment, "Madam, you are truly a divine being!" After staying for several days, the wife entertained him with the utmost hospitality, treating him like her own nephew.
One day, a feast was laid in the hall, with one table facing east, another facing south, and a table below the hall facing west. The lady said to Lian Sheng, "Tomorrow, the star of wealth shines upon us, fitting for a distant journey to engage in trade. Today, I have prepared this banquet to see you and your servant off, to bolster your spirits for the road." Shortly after, she summoned Wu, surnamed, and bade him sit below the hall. At once, drums and music arose in harmony. A female performer presented the playbill, and Lian Sheng selected the piece "The Wealth of Tao Zhu." The lady smiled and said, "This is an omen; you shall surely gain a Xi Shi as your helpmate." When the feast concluded, the lady entrusted all the funds to Lian Sheng, saying, "On this journey, set no fixed term; do not return until you have reaped a profit of ten thousand. The young master and I rely on fortune and destiny, and we place our trust in those close to our hearts. You need not trouble yourself with calculations; the gains and losses afar, I shall know of myself." Lian Sheng assented repeatedly and withdrew. They journeyed to the regions of Lianghuai to engage in trade, becoming salt merchants. After a year, their profits multiplied severalfold. Yet Lian Sheng was deeply fond of reading; even in business, he never forgot his books, and his companions were all men of letters. When profits swelled, he secretly considered ceasing his endeavors, gradually entrusting all matters to the management of Wu.
In Taoyuan, Scholar Xue and Scholar Lian were the best of friends. One day, happening to pass by Xue's home, Lian went to visit him, but unfortunately, Xue's entire family had gone to their country villa. As night had already fallen, Lian had nowhere to go. The gatekeeper invited Lian inside, swept a bed, and prepared a meal to entertain him. Lian inquired in detail about Xue's situation, learning that at that time, a false rumor was spreading that the court was selecting virtuous women to be sent to comfort frontier soldiers, causing great panic among the people. It was said that any young man without a wife could simply send a girl to his home without a matchmaker, and some families even received two brides in a single night. Xue had just recently become engaged to a daughter of a prominent family and, fearing that the clamor of carriages and horses would attract official attention, had temporarily moved to the countryside. Before the first watch had ended, Lian was about to sweep the bed and retire when he suddenly heard many people pushing open the main gate and entering. The gatekeeper was heard speaking indistinctly, but one voice said, "Since the master is not at home, who is the one holding the candle?" The gatekeeper replied, "It is Scholar Lian, a guest from afar." In a moment, the questioner entered, dressed in neat and splendid attire. He made a slight bow and asked Lian's place of origin and surname. Lian told him. The man said joyfully, "He is my fellow townsman. Who is your father-in-law?" Lian replied, "I have none." The man was even more delighted and hurried out, calling a young man to come in and pay respectful greetings. Then he suddenly said, "To tell you the truth, my surname is Mu. I came here tonight intending to marry my younger sister to Scholar Xue, but I find that it cannot be done. Now, caught between advance and retreat, I encounter you, sir. Is this not the will of heaven?" Lian hesitated to agree, as he was a stranger to this man. But Mu, without waiting for Lian's answer, hastily summoned the bridal party. Soon, two elderly women supported a young lady into the room and seated her on Lian's bed. Lian glanced sidelong at her and saw that she was about fifteen or sixteen years old, of incomparable beauty. Overjoyed, Lian straightened his clothes and cap to thank Mu, then ordered the gatekeeper to buy wine and entertain them. Mu said, "My ancestors were from Zhangde, and my mother's family was also a great house, now fallen into decline. I heard that my maternal grandfather left two grandsons, but I do not know how they are faring." Lian asked, "Who is your maternal grandfather?" Mu replied, "His surname is Liu, style name Huiruo, and he is said to live thirty li north of the city." Lian said, "I live southeast of the city, far from the north, and being young, I have few acquaintances. Among the many Lius in the prefecture, I only know of a Liu Jingqing north of the city, also a literary man, but I do not know if he is the one. However, that family is very poor." Mu said, "My grandfather's grave is still in Zhang Prefecture, and I have long wished to bring my parents' coffins back to our native place, but lacking travel funds, I have not been able to do so. Now that my sister has gone with you, my resolve to return is even stronger." Upon hearing this, Lian readily agreed to help him with the relocation of the graves. The Mu brothers were greatly pleased. After drinking for a while, the Mu family took their leave and departed. Lian dismissed the servants, moved the lamp closer, and the couple enjoyed conjugal bliss beyond description. The next day, Scholar Xue learned of this and hurried into the city, selecting a residence to settle the couple.
Lian Sheng returned to Huai Shang, settled his business affairs, left the man surnamed Wu there, then loaded up his money and returned to Taoyuan. Together with the Mu brothers, he exhumed the remains of his wife's parents, gathered both families, young and old, and brought them all back to his hometown. After returning home and making proper arrangements, Lian Sheng took the money to visit the lady. The servant who had previously escorted him was already waiting on the road, and Lian Sheng followed him. The lady came out to greet him, her face beaming with joy, and said, "The merchant Tao Zhu has brought back Xi Shi! Before, you were a guest; today, you are my grandson-in-law." She set out wine to wash away the dust of travel, and their intimacy grew even warmer. Lian Sheng admired the lady's foresight and asked, "What relation are you to my mother-in-law?" The lady replied, "Do not ask; in time, you will know." Then she piled the silver on the table, divided it into five portions, took two for herself, and said, "I have no use for this; I only leave it for my grandson." Lian Sheng thought she was giving him too much and declined to accept it. The lady said sorrowfully, "My family has fallen into ruin; the great tree in the courtyard has been cut down for firewood. My grandson is far away, and the household is desolate. I trouble you, sir, to set things in order." Lian Sheng agreed, but took only half the silver. The lady pressed it upon him. She saw him out, weeping as she turned back. Lian Sheng was puzzled, and when he looked back at the courtyard, he saw only a stretch of graves. Then he realized that the lady was his wife's maternal grandmother. When he returned home, he bought a qing of burial land, raised mounds and planted trees, building it up most magnificently.
Madam Liu had two grandsons; the elder was Liu Jingqing, and the younger was Liu Yuqing, a dissolute fellow fond of drinking and gambling, and both were very poor. The brothers went to thank Liansheng for repairing their ancestral tomb, and Liansheng gave them a great deal of money. From then on, the two families grew close. Liansheng told them how his wife had instructed him in the ways of commerce, and Yuqing secretly suspected that the tomb contained much wealth. That night, he colluded with several gambling friends to dig open the ancestral tomb in search of treasure. When they opened the coffin and exposed the corpse, they found nothing at all and had to disperse in disappointment. When Liansheng learned that the tomb had been robbed, he informed Jingqing. Jingqing and Liansheng went together to inspect the site; entering the burial pit, they saw on the table the two portions of silver that had previously been set aside. Jingqing wished to share them with Liansheng, but Liansheng said, "My lady left this here expressly for you." Jingqing then packed up the silver and carried it home, after which he reported the tomb robbery to the authorities, who pursued the matter with great severity. Later, a man was caught trying to sell a jade hairpin from the tomb; when interrogated, he revealed his accomplices, and it was discovered that Yuqing was the ringleader. The magistrate was about to sentence Yuqing to the extreme penalty, but Jingqing pleaded for him, and he was merely spared execution. The two families jointly repaired the tomb, both inside and out, making it stronger and more magnificent than before. From then on, both the Lian and Liu families prospered, only Yuqing remained as poor as ever. Liansheng and Jingqing often gave him assistance, but it was never enough to sustain his gambling habits.
One evening, thieves broke into Lian Sheng's home, seized him, and demanded money. The silver that Lian Sheng had stored was all in ingots of one thousand five hundred taels each, which he brought out to show the robbers. The thieves took only two ingots, and since only the ghost horse was tethered in the stable, they used it to carry the silver. They forced Lian Sheng to escort them to the outskirts before releasing him. The villagers, seeing the thieves' torches still not far off, shouted and gave chase, causing the robbers to flee in panic. The villagers gathered at the spot and found the silver ingots lying by the roadside, while the horse had collapsed and turned to ashes. Only then did they realize the horse was also a ghost. That night, only a single gold bracelet was lost. Initially, when the thieves seized Lian Sheng's wife, they were struck by her beauty and sought to violate her. But another thief, wearing a mask, shouted loudly to stop them, his voice very much like Yu Qing's. The thief released Lian Sheng's wife, merely taking the gold bracelet from her wrist. Lian Sheng thus suspected that person was Yu Qing, yet secretly felt grateful to him. Later, when the robber used the gold bracelet as a gambling stake, he was captured by the constables. Upon interrogation of his accomplices, Yu Qing was indeed among them. The magistrate, enraged, arrested Yu Qing and subjected him to the five tortures. Jing Qing consulted with Lian Sheng, proposing to bribe the magistrate heavily to free Yu Qing from the case, but before they could arrange it, Yu Qing had already died. Lian Sheng continued to regularly provide for Yu Qing's wife and children. Later, Lian Sheng passed the provincial examination and his family remained wealthy for generations. Alas! The character for "greed" is shaped quite similarly to that for "poverty." A man like Yu Qing can indeed serve as a cautionary example!
Commentary
Chinese people possess a profound sense of historical mission. The rise and fall of dynasties evoke reflections on the fortunes of family and state, while the waxing and waning of clans stir sighs of desolation akin to the lament over ruined capitals. Pu Songling harbored a deep attachment to family lineage and a fervent desire to revive his own clan. In his preface to the Genealogy, he wrote: 'To stir thoughts of the source of water and the root of trees, to understand the reasons for rise and fall and continuity or severance—this cannot but be of some benefit to human hearts and customs.' In Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio, stories such as Wang Cheng and Xiao Mei use the words of fox spirits to express ancestors' anxiety over their descendants' poverty. This tale, however, depicts the female ghost Lady Liu lamenting her descendants' lack of progress and the decline of the family, leading her to enlist an outsider, Liansheng, to engage in commerce on her behalf to amass wealth for her progeny. To ensure the money reaches her grandson, she does not hesitate to suffer the desecration of her grave and exposure of her corpse, portraying the profound and heartfelt devotion of ancestors with vivid and moving detail.
Although the story uses a female ghost as a plot device, many of its details serve as vivid folk historical records. For instance, when Lady Liu invites Scholar Lian to engage in trade, she says, "I have a modest store of silver and wish to entrust you with venturing across the rivers and lakes, sharing in the profits, which is far better than wasting away your life over a desk like a firefly dying in the dust." This reflects the commercial traditions of the Zichuan region. The line, "At that time, false rumors spread that the court intended to select maidens from good families to be sent as rewards to the frontier troops, causing great unrest among the people," fills a gap in historical records regarding the late Ming practice of selecting women for the frontier. Lady Liu's grandson, who robs graves and breaks into homes, does so out of gambling debts, illustrating the severe harm caused by rural gambling during the Ming and Qing dynasties.