Mực swamp

Long time ago, when Vietnam was managed by recent king whose family name was Trần the country had a venerated teacher with extensive knowledge his name was Chu An. Therefore, so many people came to be his students.

The recent king also heard about good things of him so he invited him to come the castle, supervised Quoc Tu Giam which was the only one school in Vietnam that time and taught prince directly.

After one year, people saw him came back home.

“I couldn’t stay at there and see 7 bad courtiers say lies to the king”, he said.

Then he continued teaching at home. People came to study more crowdedly than before that he had to build 4 shacks for them sitting.

Hearing his fame two sons of dragon king, a god, who was king of seas and responsible for rain-making also came to study. Everyday, they swam to riverside in dragon form and transformed into human form when they landed on ground. They acted, spoke, and moved like human. Therefore, none had realized who they were for long time.

One day, when Chu An was marking a person came.

“Early morning when I came back from district market I crossed riverside and saw two people who were walking on water from middle sea toward riverside. They looked like Gan and his brother but I wasn’t sure. Therefore, I followed them. Of course they went to here”, said the person.

“What we should do now teacher”, he added.

“Ignore them. It is good thing if monsters also wanted to study”, Chu An nodded his head.

That year, it had never rained that region for entire year. Ground was cracked. Trees, rices wilted and wilted each day. People became confused and the teacher also worried as them.

A afternoon after he finished session he asked the two students stayed and said:

“My students, you two help others a little.”

They bewildered and still didn’t know to say anything. They looked the other to have a hint but none understood.

“You don’t need to hide me. I had known everything. Now only you two can save people. You can make a rain now”, the teacher added.

They had looked the other for few minutes. Then they said:

“We can make a rain but Ngoc Hoang who was king of all God, king of heaven, forbiden not to take water from any lakes, rivers or seas so we can not make a rain.”

“Think you can take water in which that are not forbiden places. If you can not make a rainfall you can make a drizzle”, Chu An said earnestly.

They kept silent for few minutes then they pointed at ink bottle and said:

“Rules of my king were very hard but your words, my teacher, I can not ignore so we will use water in this ink bottle.”

Chu An was very happy he sprinted toward his table, brought his ink bottle with his brush in it to give them. Then, three of them went to riverside. The students took the brush pointed at the ink bottle and waved the brush toward sky few times. At last, they threw the ink bottle and the brush down the sea. They kneeled before their teacher then disappeared.

That night it rained, a rainfall. Chu And felt both happy and worry he couldn’t sleep that he went to door and came back all night. The next morning, people were surprised that only their region had the rain and the water had black color but their fields were saved. Therefore, they were very happy.

King of heaven and gods were very surprised when it rained. The king was angry he forced gods to find out who had made the rain. Of course, the students were discovered. The king ordered to cut off their heads. Two of them were cut of their heads and thrown down the sea from heaven.

Their bodies now were in dragon form but their bodies and their heads were in other places. Chu An was very sad, exactly brokenheart. He cried and he made all of his students brought the students, that time they were two dead dragons, to bury. The students were buried carefully near riveside. After that, people built a temple at their tombs which was called Gan, names of the students.

The ink bottle was drifted to a village called Quynh Đo it made the all water in swamp had black color. Therefore, people called the swamp “Mực” swamp (Ink swamp). The brush was drifted to a village called Tó (now it is Thanh Oai) that village had many people who had high marks in many contest from that time to now.

THE END

"Translated by Hung Nguyen"

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