Maščevanje kovačevega sina

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Maščevanje kovačevega sina

Gan Jiang and Mo Ye of Chu made swords for the King of Chu, taking three years to complete them. The king was furious and wished to kill Gan Jiang. There were two swords, one male and one female. His wife was pregnant and near her time, and he told her, “I have made swords for the king, but they have taken three years to finish. The king is angry, and when I go to him, he will surely kill me. If your child is a boy, tell him when he is grown: ‘Go out of the house and look toward the southern mountain. A pine grows upon a stone; the sword is in its back.’” He then took the female sword to the King of Chu. The king, in a great rage, had it examined. He learned that there were two swords, one male and one female: the female had been brought to him, but the male had not. In his anger, he had Gan Jiang killed. Mo Ye’s son was named Chi. When he had grown into a young man, he asked his mother, “Where is my father?” His mother said, “Your father made swords for the King of Chu, taking three years to complete them. The king grew angry and killed him. Before he left, he charged me: ‘Tell your son: Go out of the house and look toward the southern mountain. A pine grows upon a stone; the sword is in its back.’” Chi went outside and looked south. He saw no mountain, only a pinewood pillar in front of the hall, resting on a stone base. He split open the back of the pillar with an axe and found the sword. Day and night, he thought of taking revenge upon the King of Chu. The king dreamed of a boy whose brows were a foot apart, declaring that he meant to avenge a wrong. He at once offered a thousand pieces of gold for the boy’s capture. When Chi heard this, he fled into the mountains, singing as he went. A stranger met him and asked, “You are so young. Why do you weep with such grief?” He replied, “I am the son of Gan Jiang and Mo Ye. The King of Chu killed my father, and I wish to avenge him.” The stranger said, “I hear the king has offered a thousand pieces of gold for your head. Give me your head and your sword, and I will avenge you.” The boy said, “I could ask no greater kindness.” He immediately cut his own throat and, holding up his head and sword in both hands, offered them to the stranger. His body remained standing, rigid. “I will not fail you,” the stranger said. Only then did the body fall. The stranger took the head to the King of Chu, who was delighted. “This is the head of a brave warrior,” the stranger said. “It must be boiled in a cauldron.” The king did as he advised. The head was boiled for three days and three nights, yet it would not soften. It leaped out of the seething water, its eyes glaring in fury. The stranger said, “This boy’s head will not cook. If Your Majesty would go and look down into the cauldron yourself, it will surely cook then.” The king went to look. The stranger struck at him with the sword, and the king’s head fell into the boiling water. Then the stranger turned the blade upon his own neck, and his head, too, fell into the cauldron. All three heads boiled to pieces and could no longer be told apart. The broth and flesh were therefore divided and buried, and the graves became known collectively as the Tombs of the Three Kings. They are now within the bounds of Northern Yichun County in Runan.