Half Screen Mountain

故事全文


One day, Han Zhongli the Immortal waved his magic fan at a mountain and said, "Change into delicious glutinous rice balls!" Suddenly, the soil on the mountain changed into many delicious glutinous rice balls. Han Zhongli turned into an old man with white hair, and pushed his cart along the streets, shouting, "Large and delicious glutinous rice balls for sale! One for a dollar, two for two dollars, and three for free! Come quick!" All who heard him came to gather around his cart. They said, "Three for free! I won't need to pay a cent if I order three rice balls!" "Wow! Rice balls for free!" Many days passed, and all of the people who gathered at Han Zhongli's cart wanted to have the rice balls for free.

Just as Han Zhongli was about to give up, a young scholar came up to him and said, “Dear sir, please give me a rice ball, thank you.” After he finished eating, he gave Han Zhongli a dollar. Then he said, “Could you please give me another? It is so delicious!” After he finished eating the second rice ball, he gave Han Zhongli another dollar. Han Zhongli asked the young scholar, “Young man, why didn't you order three rice balls like the others? You could have eaten three for free.” The young scholar replied, “Dear sir, you are elderly, and you seem to have traveled here from afar to do business, I could not bear to see you lose money!” The young scholar ordered three more rice balls, one at a time, and paid five dollars in total.

After hearing the scholar's reply, Han Zhongli thought to himself, “This scholar is kind and virtuous by nature. He is the disciple that I have been looking for.” He changed back into his original appearance and told everyone who he really was. Then, he asked the scholar, “I would like you to be my disciple. Are you willing to come with me?” The scholar agreed and became Han Zhongli's disciple.

Before they left for another place, the disciple asked Han Zhongli where all the rice balls came from. The Immortal replied, “I made the rice balls using soil from the mountain ahead. Because there were so many greedy people, only half of the mountain is left.” From then on, the mountain became known as “Banping Mountain (Half Screen Mountain).”