Time: 2013-03-28 10:20 Source: "Stories of a Hundred Families" Author: Zi Wu Qing\Snowflakes drifted down, like fragments of jade from a heavenly flower. Lin Zige walked slowly out of the study, preparing to enjoy the snow and recite poetry. Suddenly, a girl came running in a panic and accidentally bumped into him. The girl was terrified and immediately knelt down: "Young master, please save me!" While she was speaking, a few servants came chasing after her, holding sticks and shouting. Lin Zige asked what was going on. The leading servant replied, "Her name is Qing Yi. She was recently bought to serve the Seventh Madam. Because she broke the madam's belongings, the madam ordered..."\The Seventh Madam had always been harsh with her servants. So, before the man could finish, Lin Zige impatiently said, "I will explain it to your madam myself."\Lin Zige was the beloved only son of his father, so when he told his father that he wanted to take Qing Yi as a maid, his father readily agreed, smiling and saying, "What is one maid? In the future, the Lin family's vast fortune will all be yours anyway." At this moment, the Seventh Madam cast a resentful glare at the young man.\One day, Lin Zige was playing the zither in his study, and Qing Yi brought tea over, standing by as she listened. When the piece was over, seeing how absorbed she was, Lin Zige couldn't help but ask if she knew how to play the zither. Qing Yi smiled, gladly sat down, and skillfully plucked and strummed the strings, producing beautiful music.\It turned out that Qing Yi had once been a young lady from a prominent family, skilled in the arts of zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting, and especially an excellent zither player. But her father was convicted and her family's assets confiscated, leaving the poor young lady to be sold into servitude, suffering greatly under the Seventh Madam. Fortunately, Lin Zige rescued her, leading to her eventual happiness.\From that point on, Lin Zige gained a confidante and companion. Every day they recited poetry, painted, discussed chess and music, and lived in affectionate harmony.\Time flew by. Winter passed and spring came. Lin Zige began to take over some of the family's business affairs, becoming busy and seeing Qing Yi very little each day.\One evening, with a little free time, Lin Zige came to Qing Yi's room. A melodious zither sound floated from inside, filled with loneliness and sorrow. Lin Zige felt a pang in his heart and hurried in. Qing Yi was startled to see him and, in her shock, accidentally broke a zither string. Seeing her distressed, Lin Zige smiled and said, "I will give you a fine zither another day, so it can be by your side for me.""Not long after, Master Lin passed away, and all the family affairs fell entirely on Lin Zige, keeping him extremely busy. One day, he went to handle business in another place, and by the time he returned, it was already late. While walking through the wilderness, he unexpectedly got lost.\The servant pointed to a few lights in the distance and said, 'Look, there are some houses over there. Why don't we hurry over and stay for the night?' As they approached, they saw a tall mansion, and the homeowners warmly invited them in.\Once inside the courtyard, the clear and melodious sound of a guqin caught Lin Zige's attention. He paused to listen carefully, and when the piece ended, he could not help but comment on the skill of the player. Just as he finished speaking, a little maid came to invite him to meet the hostess—Miss Jiangzhu.\Through a layer of gauze, Jiangzhu's graceful figure appeared faintly. She asked Lin Zige questions about guqin playing. Lin Zige spoke eloquently, and Jiangzhu nodded continuously, secretly thinking, 'This young Master Lin is truly a kindred spirit.'\Lin Zige remembered that he had promised Qingyi a fine guqin, and he earnestly requested, 'The guqin you use has an excellent tone. I wonder if you could part with it and sell it to me. I am willing to pay a generous price.'\Jiangzhu smiled and said, 'I feel an immediate connection with you, Sir. This guqin is yours without any charge.' Lin Zige was overjoyed and quickly thanked her. Unexpectedly, Jiangzhu continued, 'But there is one condition—you must marry me.'\Lin Zige was stunned and could only explain his love for Qingyi, politely refusing the marriage. Jiangzhu stepped out from behind the gauze and softly said, 'Take a good look—am I not beautiful?'\Under the lights, Jiangzhu's bright eyes and perfect teeth were stunningly beautiful. Lin Zige glanced at her and dared not look again: 'Although you are more beautiful and more talented than Qingyi, I still only love her.' Jiangzhu felt embarrassed and disappointed, then walked away.\Back home, Lin Zige decided to marry Qingyi as soon as possible. On an auspicious day, a flower sedan chair carried the bride into the Lin household. Amidst the lively atmosphere, Lin Zige and the bride performed the ceremonies for heaven and earth and entered the bridal chamber. However, just as he closed the door, he was shocked to open his eyes wide—two brides who looked exactly the same appeared before him. What on earth was going on?\There was only one real bride, so Lin Zige decided to distinguish her by playing the guqin. He knew Qingyi's guqin playing best and could recognize it immediately. With two pearl curtains separating the brides, each holding a guqin, they began to play against each other. Lin Zige sat in the middle, listening attentively."The bride on the left played a piece called 'Spring River, Flower, Moon, Night,' while the bride on the right played 'Three Variations on Plum Blossom.' When both pieces ended, it was still impossible to discern the real from the fake.\Lin Zige suddenly remembered that when he used to travel away from home, Qingyi often worried about him and had once composed a piece called 'Love Song' to play and sing. Thinking of this, he instructed the two women to play this piece. The bride on the left placed both hands on the qin, and 'Love Song' flowed from the strings, moving Lin Zige to tears. Then, the bride on the right stretched out her delicate fingers, and the same melody reached Lin Zige's ears. Before she could finish playing, Lin Zige stood up and held the left bride's hand, saying, 'This is the real Qingyi. Only she can play the true rhythm of love.'\The sound of a silver bell-like laugh rang out, and the other bride reverted to her original appearance—it was actually Jiangzhu. She presented valuable gifts to the couple and praised them, saying, 'You truly have deep and sincere affection!'\Qingyi held Jiangzhu's hand and said with immense joy, 'Sister, you play wonderfully! You must come often to practice music with me.' Jiangzhu smiled and agreed, then disappeared in a wisp of smoke. Lin Zige did not expect that Jiangzhu was actually a celestial sister.\From then on, whenever Lin Zige was away from home, Jiangzhu would often come to keep them company. One day, as the two sisters were in high spirits, they drank a lot of wine. Taking advantage of the inebriation, Jiangzhu played a new piece she had composed for Qingyi. Qingyi was captivated, closing her eyes in pleasure, and when she happened to open them, she was astonished. It turned out that Jiangzhu had drunk too much and revealed her true form: she had become a red fox, now pawing at her large tail. The qin music came directly from her fox tail, and Qingyi was so frightened that she fainted.\When the Seventh Concubine heard of this, she hypocritically hurried over, claiming she could ask a Taoist priest to capture the fox. Qingyi felt that Jiangzhu had no ill intentions, so she did not agree. The Seventh Concubine left sulking but secretly stuck a talisman at the door.\That night, under the hazy moonlight, Jiangzhu came to visit Qingyi and reminisce. Just as she reached the door, suddenly, with a 'whoosh' sound, a beam of golden light struck her, knocking her to the ground and revealing her true form. The Seventh Concubine's subordinates quickly ran over, caught her, and locked her in a cage before claiming credit. When Qingyi heard of this, she hurried over anxiously...\Lin Zige was out on business, and upon hearing that something had happened at home, he rushed back day and night. However, he was still a step too late.The house had already been set up with a mourning hall. Seventh Concubine, sobbing and wailing, told him that Qingyi had been killed by that vixen. Lin Zige was furious and prepared a treasured sword. If Jiangzhu appeared again, he would not go easy on her. That day, Seventh Concubine, in a fluster, sent someone to call him, saying that the red fox was causing a commotion in her room. Lin Zige grabbed his sword and ran over. As soon as he entered the room, he was pinned to the ground by ambushers, captured, and then bungled off to the authorities. Seventh Concubine, crying and wailing in the main hall, told the county magistrate that Lin Zige lusted after her youthful beauty and had tried to seduce her repeatedly. She firmly refused, but unexpectedly Lin Zige threatened her with a sword. The magistrate had already accepted silver from Seventh Concubine, and Lin Zige was charged with a serious crime and imprisoned. The vast estate of the Lin family fell entirely into the hands of Seventh Concubine.
That day, under the moonlight like flowing water, Prefect Zhang ordered his subordinates to set up a banquet in the garden, and even had his beloved concubine play music to entertain. Unexpectedly, the concubine played a tune that Prefect Zhang had never heard before. The music was mournful and moving, bringing tears to the eyes. Zhang was deeply saddened but could not bear to ask her to stop. When the piece ended, Zhang asked if she had any concerns. The concubine stepped forward, bowed deeply, and reported that her cousin, Lin Zige, was currently wrongfully imprisoned and suffering in jail. Hearing this, Prefect Zhang was furious. The next day, he personally summoned the case files and discovered many suspicious points. He decided to reopen the case.
It turned out that Qingyi could not bear to harm the red fox and had personally opened the cage to let her go. This enraged Seventh Concubine. Seventh Concubine, who had long had an affair with the steward, instructed him to kill Qingyi and frame the red fox. Poor Lin Zige, unaware for the moment, fell into their trap.
Prefect Zhang investigated the case thoroughly, and Seventh Concubine and the steward finally fell into the law's net. When Lin Zige returned home and heard that it was Prefect Zhang's favored concubine who had saved him, he was very puzzled. How had he never heard of such a cousin before? He brought gifts to pay his respects, and when they met, Lin Zige was stunned—this woman was clearly Jiangzhu.
Back at home, Lin Zige had a strange dream. Jiangzhu came to him and spat out a red pill from her mouth—this was a miraculous elixir she had cultivated for a thousand years. She said that if Qingyi took the medicine, she would surely be revived. After saying this, Jiangzhu transformed into a red fox and ran off.\After Lin Zige woke up, he indeed found that red elixir. He had someone open the grave, and Qingyi in the coffin appeared lifelike. He placed the red elixir into his beloved wife's mouth, and after an hour, Qingyi woke up. The couple bowed to the sky, giving thanks to the red fox for saving their lives.\Although Lin Zige ultimately did not obtain the Fox Tail Qin to give to his wife, the red fox's affection for the couple surpassed all treasures in the world.\
