any further words, Qin Yu went outside to look and saw that Wang Xing had just finished arranging his produce. “Our young master has asked me to come and call you,” said Qin Yu.
Wang Xing quickly asked Guo Four to watch his fruit for him and went inside with Qin Yu. Wang Xing was smiling and thinking that he would probably sell enough fruit to earn several ounces of silver. It must have seemed to him that the young master wished to buy the best-quality fruit. They hurried on until they came to a palatial studio in a flower garden. There, Wang Xing saw that the Demon of Doom, Qin Da, was just sitting down on the veranda with several of his attendants standing on either side of him.
Wang Xing immediately went forward and said, “The small person whom the honorable young master has called is here. What may I do?”
Qin Da asked, “Wang Xing, what people do you have at home and how old are you? Speak the truth!”
Wang Xing did not know what this was all about, but promptly replied, “Since the honorable young master asks, in my home there are only this insignificant person, who is twenty-two years old; my mother, who is fifty; and my wife of nineteen. There are only three of us at home.”
When Qin Da heard this, the rascal gave a wild laugh and said, “Wang Xing, I have heard it said that your wife is not bad-looking. I will give you two hundred ounces of silver for her and you may get another. Bring your wife here and give her to me.”
Hearing these words, Wang Xing felt a cold chill, and he thought to himself: “If I refuse, they will beat me to death.” So, trying to guess the thoughts in Qin Da’s mind, Wang Xing said, “Honorable young master, you are above me, and I, beneath, beg for your kindness. My wife is nothing but someone who takes care of my old mother. After my mother dies, I will send my wife to the honorable young master, but I would not dare to accept the two hundred ounces of silver you offer.”
When Qin Da heard the words of Wang Xing, he was about to say, “Go! Be off with you!”
But Qin Yu came to him and said, “Honorable young master, do not listen to this kind of talk. This is clearly just a pretense. His mother is just now fifty and will probably live another thirty years. Then he will send his wife to you to take care of in her old age.”
Upon hearing this, Qin Da suddenly became very angry and cried out, “You dog head, you dare try to deceive the one who is master of your household, and to his very face! You are being quite vexatious. Come, my men, seize him, tie him, and hang him up for me!”
Qin Da’s wicked thugs tied Wang Xing and hung him up. Qin Da then said, “Qin Yu, what do you suggest? Suppose you trick his wife into coming here. I will have her look at him to get her consent to stay with me.”
Qin Yu rolled his eyes. This was just as he had planned. He went outside and, calling three of the other rogues together, instructed them in several sentences. They then hired a sedan chair and two of the three men carried it. The third went with them to Wang Xing’s home and knocked at the gate. Wang Xing’s mother came out of the house immediately and asked, “Who is there at the gate?”
The third man then said, “Old lady, you do not know me. My name is Zhang. There is a little problem at Prime Minister Qin’s flower garden. I am a good friend of Elder Brother Wang. Early today, just as Elder Brother came and spread out his fruit, he fell down flat; froth began to come from his mouth, and he lost his understanding of things. We carried him into the flower garden and asked a doctor to look at him. The doctor said that Brother Wang’s illness is extremely serious. The doctor wants to speak to a near relative of Wang before treating him. Elder Brother Wang said that I should bring his wife.”
The old lady said, “Perhaps it would be good for me to go to see him.”
The man said, “Old lady, at your age if you go to see him, you might be quite shocked. Also, leaving the young wife here at home alone might not be fitting.”
The old woman replied, “What, then, is best?” She went back into her house to talk the matter over with her daughter-in-law, Wu Shi.
Wu Shi was a person who understood about three-fourths of what she heard. When she heard that her husband was ill, her heart was in turmoil. She quickly changed her clothing, saying, “Your daughter will go and see.” Outside, she said a few polite words to the waiting people and got into the sedan chair.
At Prime Minister Qin’s estate she was taken into the flower garden. The sedan chair was put down. When the curtain of the chair was pulled up, she looked out and saw the young master sitting under the roof of the high veranda. Qin Da had dressed with especial care for his meeting with Wu Shi. The kerchief on his head was shaped into the form of a regal scepter from which hung a number of gaudy streamers. His loose robe was embroidered with flowers and bordered with gold. He sat with his feet propped up, showing the white soles of his shoes. The bulbous chin of his repulsive face was thrust out at her. His cruel eyes staring at her made him seem like the image of an evil demon that had somehow come to life.
After Wu Shi had looked at him she asked, “Young master, who are you? Why have you tied up my husband?”
One of the men who was standing at Qin Da’s side said, “This is our young master, no less than the honorable son of Prime Minister Qin. Are you not going to bow your head to him?”
Before Wu Shi could reply, she heard Qin Da say, “Do not be afraid, young woman. I am truly very kind and gentle. To my surprise, this dog head, Wang Xing, is not willing to agree with me. I wanted so much to see the lovely face of the young woman, yourself, admired by the entire city—in fact, by the entire nation. I thought of your being with Wang Xing, where you had no choice but to drink his crude tea, eat his tasteless rice, and wear garments made from the coarsest cloth. Therefore, I called him in to discuss this matter with him. I thought that I would give him two hundred ounces of silver to take another wife. Was this not killing two birds with one stone and the best possible arrangement for both of you? After all, he would not need two hundred ounces of silver to buy a wife, and he would still be a little rich. To spare him punishment I had you brought here to see me. I have here with me a person who understands me very well. He has also discussed this matter with your husband, who was extremely unwilling to agree with me. Because of this, I had him tied up.”
When Wu Shi heard this speech, she raised her long, beautiful eyebrows and gave Qin Da an angry look from her almond-shaped eyes. Then she said, “Young master, take my advice. Forget this idea and let us, husband and wife, go before it is too late. You are indeed the son of the prime minister of the present reign, and you are living in the house of this high government official. Your house is filled with charming concubines. Why must you take such actions against us? Young masters should be benevolent, help others in need, and maintain their own virtue. If such actions as yours become known to the imperial censors, even great ones may be ruined.”
Wang Xing also spoke up from where he was tied up. “Honorable young master, when I was selling fruit at the gate of your estate, I did no wrong to you. Be merciful and release us both, husband and wife.”
When Qin Da heard these words, they made him very angry. He ordered two of his rogues to hang the husband and wife up together. His underlings then did so, striking the husband and wife with their bamboo staves. Wang Xing and Wu Shi were terrified, but called out that they would die before they would submit to Qin Da’s demands.
By this time it was already evening, and Qin Da called for wine, saying that he would have them beaten later. Suddenly, from the eastern courtyard of the estate came the cry that demons were creating a disturbance. Qin Da sent his people to inquire. They in turn sent word back to him that he should come and look. Upon hearing this, Qin Da sent the rest of his household ahead,
