Penrhyn Wingfield Coussens

“ Pei-Hang folded his arms and sat still, and thought, and thought, and took no notice of their gibes and jeers. He had not studied for three years under the wisest man in Chang-ngan for nothing, and, besides, he was determined to marry Yun-Ying, and when young men are very much in love, they sometimes accomplish things which seem to be impossible.
At last he jumped up and asked the friendly Geni if he would make a little heap of stones at one side of the mortar. ”

“ Then Pei-Hang told her about the dream, and the red cord, and when he said that he wanted to marry her daughter, the old woman did not look at all pleased. "If I had two daughters, you would be welcome to one of them," she said.
Pei-Hang was not a bad match, for his parents were well-off, and he was their only child; but Yun-Ying was a very pretty girl and a mandarin of Chang-ngan was anxious to marry her.
"He is four times her age, it is true," said her mother, explaining this to Pei-Hang, "but he is very rich." ”

“ And so Pei-Hang got safely over the troubles of his babyhood, and grew from a baby into a big boy, and then to a tall, handsome youth. Then he left off wearing his fish-net shirt, but still wore the silver chain round his neck and had red silk in his pigtail.
"It is time that Pei-Hang saw a little more of the world," said his father. "He must go to Chang-ngan and study under the wise men there."
Chang-ngan was the ancient capital of China, a very large city indeed, and Pin-Too, the teacher to whom Pei-Hang was sent, was the wisest man there. ”

“ Pei-Hang soon learned what the world was thinking about, and many other things also. As soon as he was eighteen he took the red silk out of his pigtail and the silver chain from his neck, because grown-up people were supposed to be able to protect themselves against the Genii without the aid of charms. ”

“ It is well-known that a wicked Genii will not come near a Chinese boy if he has some red silk braided in with his pigtail, or if he wears a silver chain around his neck, and all of them dread an old fishing-net. So Pei-Hang's mother made him a little shirt out of an old fishing-net, and she took care that his pigtail should be plaited with the brightest of red silk. ”

“ He then climbed into a branch overhanging it, and from there he threw down to the wedding guests handfuls of jewels, and the yellow-faced mandarin was as busy as any one picking them up, much to the disgust of many who thought he was rich enough already. ”