Time: 2013-04-23 10:32 Source: Compiled from the Internet Author: Anonymous\Beside the Bodhisattva Guanyin, there was a pair of children, a boy named Shan Cai and a girl named Long Nu.\Long Nu was originally the youngest daughter of the Dragon King of the East Sea. She had delicate features, was smart and lively, and was deeply loved by the Dragon King. One day, she heard that people on Earth were playing with fish lanterns, which was extremely lively, and she insisted on going to watch.\The Dragon King stroked his whiskers and shook his head: “That place is desolate and full of people, it's not a place for you, Princess Dragon!” Long Nu both pouted and pretended to cry, but the Dragon King remained firm. Long Nu puckered her little lips, thinking to herself: If you won't let me go, I'll go anyway! After enduring until the middle of the night, she quietly slipped out of the Crystal Palace, transforming into a very pretty fisher girl. Under the moonlight, she walked to the place with the bustling fish lanterns.\It was a small fishing town, and the streets were full of countless fish lanterns! There were yellow fish lanterns, turtle horn lanterns, octopus lanterns, cuttlefish lanterns, shark lanterns, as well as lobster lanterns, crab lanterns, scallop lanterns, conch lanterns, coral lanterns… Long Nu looked around excitedly, becoming happier the more she saw, sometimes even forgetting herself and pushing into the crowd. Before long, she reached the crossroads, where it was even more interesting! Fish lantern piled upon fish lantern, lantern mountain joined lantern mountain, colorful and radiant. Long Nu stood in front of a lantern mountain, mesmerized, completely absorbed.\Unexpectedly, at that moment, someone poured half a cup of cold tea from the upper floor, and it fell directly onto Long Nu's head.\Long Nu was startled and cried out in distress. Once transformed into a girl, Long Nu could not be touched by even a drop of water; if she touched water, she would no longer be able to maintain her girl form.\Panicked and worried about revealing her dragon form in the street, which could cause the wind and rain to collapse the lantern festival, Long Nu desperately squeezed out of the crowd and ran violently toward the sea. Just as she reached the beach, suddenly with a 'clatter,' Long Nu transformed into a very large fish, lying on the shore, unable to move.\Coincidentally, two fishing boys, one thin and one fat, came to the beach. Seeing this shiny large fish, they were stunned.\“What kind of fish is this? How did it end up on the shore?” The fat boy, who was timid, stood far away and said: “I've never seen this kind of fish before; it might be unlucky, let's go quickly!”\The thin boy, who was daring, refused to leave, and while poking the fish said: “No matter what kind of fish it is, let's carry it to the market and sell it; we can surely make some extra money.” After whispering to each other for a while, the two boys carried the fish to the street and started selling it.That night, Guanyin Bodhisattva was sitting among the purple bamboo forest, fully aware of what had just happened. Moved by compassion, He said to the Wealth Boy standing behind Him:
“Go quickly to the fishing town and buy a big fish, then release it back into the sea.”
Wealth Boy kowtowed and said, “Bodhisattva, but I don't have any money to buy a fish.”
Guanyin Bodhisattva smiled and said, “Just take a handful of incense from the censer.”
Wealth Boy nodded and hurried to the Guanyin courtyard, grabbed a handful of incense ash, stepped on a lotus flower, and, as if flying, went straight to the fishing town. At this time, two boys had already carried the fish to the main street, and it was immediately surrounded by people coming to view the fish lantern. Curious people, those who admired it, and those asking the price buzzed about, but no one dared to buy such a large fish recklessly.
An old man with a white beard said, “Young fellows, this fish is too big. Why don't you cut it into pieces and sell it in parts?”
The chubby boy thought it made sense and borrowed a meat cleaver from inside, raising it to chop the fish.
Suddenly, a small child shouted, “Look quickly! The big fish is crying.”
The chubby boy stopped, and sure enough, the big fish was shedding two streams of crystal-clear tears. Frightened, he dropped the cleaver and squeezed out of the crowd.
The thin boy, worried about losing extra money, hurriedly picked up the cleaver to chop the fish, but was stopped by a panting little monk who had arrived: “Don't chop it! Don't chop it! I'll buy this fish!”
Everyone was very surprised: “A little monk buying a fish?”
The old man paused, twirling his goatee, and said, “A monk buying a fish? Is he intending to eat meat and leave the monastic life?”
Seeing the crowd's sarcastic looks, the little monk blushed and quickly said, “I'm buying this fish to release it back to the sea!” Saying this, he took out a handful of silver coins, handed them to the thin boy, and asked them to carry the fish to the seashore.
The thin boy was secretly delighted: “Extra money earned! If we carry it to the sea, maybe we can still bring this big fish back once the little monk leaves!” He signaled the chubby boy to lift the big fish and followed the little monk to the sea.
When the three reached the seashore, the little monk asked them to release the big fish into the sea. Upon touching the seawater, the fish immediately splashed and swam far away, then turned around, nodded to the little monk, and suddenly disappeared. Seeing the fish swim away, the thin boy finally gave up on the idea of earning extra money and took out the silver coins to share them with the chubby boy.Unexpectedly, when she opened her palm, the broken silver had turned into a handful of fragrant ash, which a gust of wind blew away without a trace. In an instant, she could no longer find the little monk and didn't know where he had gone. \ Meanwhile, in the East Sea Dragon Palace, ever since the little princess went missing, the palace inside and out became chaotic. The Dragon King was so angry that his whiskers stood on end; the Prime Minister, the sea turtle, stretched his neck long with worry; the gate-guarding General Crab was so frightened that he foamed at the mouth; the jade shrimp palace maid knelt on the ground trembling in fear... The commotion lasted until dawn, and it was only when the Dragon Girl returned to the Crystal Palace that everyone finally breathed a sigh of relief. The Dragon King glared, furious, and scolded: \“Little brat, how dare you violate palace rules and go out on your own! Tell me, where have you been?\” The Dragon Girl saw that the Dragon King was angry and knew that acting cute wouldn't help, so she told the truth: \“Father, I went to see the fish lanterns. If it weren't for Bodhisattva Guanyin sending the young boy Shan Cai to rescue me, I would have almost lost my life!\” \ She then recounted her ordeal. The Dragon King's face darkened. He feared that if Guanyin told others about it, the Jade Emperor would find out, and he himself would be accused of ‘not disciplining his daughter properly.' The more he thought about the Dragon Girl, the angrier he became. In a fit of rage, he banished her from the Crystal Palace. \ The Dragon Girl was heartbroken. In the vast East Sea, where could she find shelter? The next day, crying all the way, she came to the Lotus Ocean. Her cries reached the Purple Bamboo Forest, and Bodhisattva Guanyin, upon hearing them, knew that the Dragon Girl had arrived. She instructed Shan Cai to go fetch her. Shan Cai bounced up to the Dragon Girl and laughed, asking: \“Little Dragon Girl, do you still remember me, the little monk?\” \ The Dragon Girl quickly wiped her tears and said, blushing, \“You are Brother Shan Cai? You are my lifesaver!\” She then intended to bow in respect. \ Shan Cai pulled her up: \“Come on, Bodhisattva Guanyin sent me to take you!\” \ Hand in hand, Shan Cai and the Dragon Girl walked into the Purple Bamboo Forest. When the Dragon Girl saw Bodhisattva Guanyin sitting serenely on the lotus throne, she bowed deeply. Bodhisattva Guanyin liked the Dragon Girl very much and had her live with Shan Cai like siblings in a rock cave near the Chaoyin Cave, which later became known as the ‘Shan Cai and Dragon Girl Cave.' \ From then on, the Dragon Girl followed Bodhisattva Guanyin. However, the Dragon King regretted his decision and often called the Dragon Girl back. \ But the Dragon Girl, fond of the scenery of Mount Putuo, no longer wished to return to the restrictive Crystal Palace.
