Page:Leaves from my Chinese Scrapbook - Balfour, 1887.djvu/111



his disordered cap and clothes, they were filled with contempt and scorn. Very soon they began to insult him and treat him with impertinence, pushing, hustling, and shoving him about; there was nothing, in fact, they did not do to show their superiority. Shang Ch'iu-k'ai bore all their rudeness without the slightest appearance of anger, until the ingenuity of his assailants was exhausted and they themselves tired with their game. Then they drove him to the top of a high tower, and one of them cried with a loud voice, "A thousand ounces of gold to any man who will jump down!" The rest all vied with one another in professing their willingness to do it; but Shang Ch'iu-k'ai, believing them to be in earnest, threw himself over at once. His body looked like a flying bird, and he alighted on the ground without sustaining the slightest injury. Mr. Fan's people all thought it was an affair of pure chance, and made as though there was nothing surprising or extraordinary about it; so they pointed out a place in the bend of the river, where the water was exceptionally deep, and said, "There is a precious pearl at the bottom; dive in and fetch it." So Shang Ch'iu-k'ai complied again, and plunged in; and, sure enough, out he came again with a fine pearl in his hand.

Then, for the first time, the others began to wonder what sort of a man this was; and Tzŭ-hua ordered a residence to be prepared for him, where he could eat and dress. One day a fire suddenly broke out in the family treasure-room; and Tzŭ-hua said to Shang, "If you will venture into the flames and save the dresses that are in danger, I will reward you in proportion to the number of garments you bring out." So Shang went straightway, without the slightest expression of fear, plunged into the burning room, and returned, free from dust and perfectly unscorched. Then they all came to the conclusion that he was in possession of the True Doctrine, and with one consent began to excuse themselves, saying, "We did not know that you possessed the Doctrine when we insulted you; we did not know that you had supernatural powers when we used you with dishonour. Treat us as clods, as deaf and blind! And then we will venture to ask you to instruct us."