🧚 Opening, part 26

To the Geni’s astonishment the river immediately dried up, and a shallow stream running through the grass lay at their feet.1

The Geni was much impressed by the wonderful things Pei-Hang seemed able to do.2 He was not bad-hearted, so he showed him the nearest way to the home of the Genii on the top of Mount Sumi.3

It was a long and wearisome climb, but at last they got up there, and found eight of the Genii sitting on eight snow-peaks, and looking down on the Lake of Gems, as Yun-Ying had said.4

The Lake of Gems lay on the other side of Mount Sumi, and was a beautiful sheet of water, flashing all the colors of the rainbow.5

Pei-Hang could not take his eyes away from it.6 He forgot all about the pestle and mortar as he watched the waves rippling along the shore, and leaving behind them diamonds, rubies, sapphires and pearls in thousands.7

Each pebble on the margin of the lake was a precious stone, and Pei-Hang wanted to go down and fill his pockets with them.8

“We must let him have the pestle and mortar,” said the Geni who had been his guide, and who had told the others about the wonderful red and white seeds while Pei-Hang was standing spell-bound by the beauty of the Lake.9 “If we don’t he won’t give us back our rivers.”10

The eight Genii nodded their eight heads, and spoke all at once, and the noise they made was like the rumble of thunder among the mountains.11 “Let him take it, if he can carry it,” they said.12

And they laughed until the snow-peaks shook beneath them; for the mortar made of jade was six feet high and four feet wide, and the pestle was so heavy no mortal could lift it.13

Pei-Hang, when he had finished staring at the Lake of Gems, walked round it, and wondered how he was to carry it down the mountain and across the plains to Chang-ngan.14

Then he sat down on the ground to think the matter over, and the Genii, even his own good-natured Geni, laughed at him again.15

“Come!” they said.16 “If you like to fill the mortar with precious stones, you may do so.17 Any man who can carry it empty can carry it full.”18

“Because no one can carry it at all,” concluded the good-natured Geni softly to himself.19

Pei-Hang folded his arms and sat still, and thought, and thought, and took no notice of their gibes and jeers.20 He had not studied for three years under the wisest man in Chang-ngan for nothing, and, besides, he was determined to marry Yun-Ying, and when young men are very much in love, they sometimes accomplish things which seem to be impossible.21

At last he jumped up and asked the friendly Geni if he would make a little heap of stones at one side of the mortar.22

“I want to be able to look inside it, and I am not tall enough,” said he.23

“And why don’t you do it yourself?” asked the Geni.24

“Because I must go down to the Lake of Gems and collect precious stones,” replied Pei-Hang.25

Then he ran down to the shore of the lake and gathered diamonds, rubies, emeralds, pearls, and sapphires, as many as he could carry.26

This he did again and again, emptying them into the mortar each time, until it was quite full and held gems enough to make Pei-Hang the richest man in China.27

And this was just what he wanted to be, for the yellow-faced mandarin was only the richest man in Chang-ngan, and he knew that the richest man in China would have much the greater chance of winning Yun-Ying.28

“Well, what next?” cried the eight Genii, when he had finished.29 “Will you take it on your shoulder or on your head?”30

“I will just carry it under my arm,” replied Pei-Hang.31

He took out his little box, threw one of the red seeds on top of the gems, and in a moment the tremendous pestle and mortar shrank into one of ordinary size.32

Pei-Hang put the pestle in his pocket, and took up the mortar carefully, because he did not wish to lose any of the precious stones.33 Then he bowed low to the Genii, thanked them, and said good-by.34

This time they did not laugh, but each of them roared with rage.35 They dared not stop him, knowing that he had the power to turn the four brooks into rivers again.36

Pei-Hang hastened away, and on his journey did exactly as he had promised.37

After crossing the first brook, he threw a white seed into it, and turned it into an inky black waste of water a mile wide, full of fishes six yards long, and every fish covered with spikes.38

When the Genii saw this they stopped roaring, so glad were they to see the Black River guarding them once more from the outer world.39

On reaching the Red River, the White River, and the Blue River, Pei-Hang did the same thing, and since that time no one has been able to find the home of the Genii, because no one else could cross the Blue River, much less the other three.40

Having traveled for seven days Pei-Hang came to his father’s and mother’s house.41 He told them all that he had experienced, and for each white seed his mother had given him he gave her a jewel as large as an egg.42 Then he went on to Chang-ngan, where he found that Yun-Ying’s mother had spread a report that he was dead, and had invited all her friends to attend a wedding feast in honor of her daughter’s marriage with the yellow-faced old mandarin.43

The wedding had not taken place when Pei-Hang arrived, but Yun-Ying was already arrayed in her wedding dress, and was standing beneath a peach tree which stood in front of the house.44 As soon as she saw him she threw herself into his arms, and shed tears of joy at his safe return.45

He put down the pestle and mortar and kissed Yun-Ying’s tears away.46 Then her mother came, and said:47

“You are too late to marry my daughter, but I’ll buy the pestle and mortar from you with some of the money the mandarin gave me.”48

“Oh, no, you will not,” replied Pei-Hang.49 He then dropped one of his white seeds into the mortar, and it at once became so large that it covered the whole grass plot under the peach tree, and it was filled to the brim with glittering precious stones.50 He then climbed into a branch overhanging it, and from there he threw down to the wedding guests handfuls of jewels, and the yellow-faced mandarin was as busy as any one picking them up, much to the disgust of many who thought he was rich enough already.51

Pei-Hang offered him three diamonds, each as large as a sparrow’s egg, if he would go away and forget that he ever knew Yun-Ying.52 These the mandarin took and away he went.53 He was sure that Yun-Ying’s mother would have no more to do with him now that she could marry her daughter to one who scattered jewels as Pei-Hang did.54

The wedding feast took place, only the bridegrooms were changed.55 Pei-Hang married Yun-Ying, and took her to where his father and mother lived, and they were as happy as could be.56

The pestle and mortar of jade stood beneath the peach tree, for it was too large and too heavy to be moved, and it was certainly of no use to Yun-Ying’s mother, because it was too big for her to pound her magic drugs in, even if she could get inside it, which she couldn’t.57 This made her very angry, but it served her right because of the unfair manner in which she had treated Pei-Hang.58