The following story is from ‘Gossips from the Micro-reading Hall’.
There was a Mr Shi living in the village of Xian, can’t remember his name now. This gentleman was broadminded and righteous on major principles. He seldom bothered himself with minor financial matters.
One day he made a small killing at the casino and was on his way home. He saw a villager, his wife and a new born baby hugging and crying in deep sorrow. Mr Shi made inquiry and was told that this family had owed thirty taels of gold to the loan shark, was unable to repay and had to sell the wife to settle the debt. And as the baby was still being fed on his mother’s breast milk, the separation was all the more painful.
Mr Shi asked about the agreed sale price of the wife and was told that it was fifty taels of gold. He also asked whether that was redeemable with cash and was told that it was still possible. On hearing that, he took out his winnings of seventy taels of gold and gave them to the villager telling him to repay the loan, redeem his wife and start a business with the reminder.
The villager was so beholden to Shi that they invited him to their house for dinner and drink. After the meal, the village carried the baby out and gestured his wife to entertain Shi for the night. Shi when learned of this proposal from the lady was furious. He said that he had been morally unblemished throughout his life and would never dream of taking advantage of someone else’s wife while that person was in distress; such conduct was not only immoral but also debased. He left in anger without saying further.
Half month later, a fire broke out around Shi’s house. It was the dry season after harvest time and all the households stacked the harvested dried hay on their roofs. The fire therefore spread rapidly to engulf the whole area. Shi was caught in the house with his wife and son. Fire was raging around them on all sides and escape seemed impossible. Then someone shouted on the roof top, ‘There is an urgent order from the god of the eastern mountain. Spare the members of the Shi family.’ Soon after this a wall on the eastern side of Shi’s house collapsed and Shi ran out with his wife and son to safety.
The whole village was razed to the ground. His neighbours remarked after the fire, ‘We were all laughing at his stupidity when he donated the entire winnings on a family in distress. Now it would appear that the donated charity had saved him three lives instead.’
In my humble opinion, the god of the eastern mountain rewarded him partly for his monetary assistance to the family in distress, may be up to the extent of only forty per cent. The remaining sixty per cent was to reward him for his exemplary conduct in rejecting the sexual offer made by the grateful family.
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献县史某，佚其名。为人不拘小节，而落落有直气，视龌龊者蔑如也。
偶从博场归，见村民夫妇子母相抱泣。其邻人曰：为欠豪家债，鬻妇以偿，夫妇故相得，子又未离乳，当弃之去，故悲耳。史问所欠几何，曰：三十金；所鬻几何，曰：五十金与人为妾；问可赎乎？曰：券甫成金尚未付，何不可赎。即出博场所得七十金授之，曰：三十金偿债，四十金持以谋生，勿再鬻也。
夫妇德史甚，烹鸡留饮，酒酣，夫抱儿出，以目示妇，意令荐枕以报。妇颔之。语稍狎，史正色曰：史某半世为盗，半世为捕役，杀人曾不眨眼。若危急中污人妇女，则实不能为。饮啖讫，掉臂径去，不更一言。
半月后所居村夜火，时秋获方毕，家家屋上屋下柴草皆满，茅檐秫篱，斯须四面皆烈焰，度不能出，与妻子瞑坐待死。恍惚闻屋上遥呼曰：东岳有急牒，史某一家并除名。攖然有声，后壁半圯。乃左挈妻右抱子，一跃而出，若有翼之者。
火熄后计一村之中，癵死者九。邻里皆合掌曰：昨尚窃笑汝痴，不意七十金乃赎三命。
余谓此事佑于司命，捐金之功十之四，拒色之功十之六。
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