Thu Huon

Once upon a time, Vietnam had a person whose name was Thu Huon worked as a mandarin.

He had done so many bad things, broken many families, made very many people were in crimes though that crimes they had never done. Therefore, he had gotten so much money from the bad things he had done. His wife dead early and he also had not any child so he didn’t know what to do with his money but burying, buying fields, buying houses. He had an immensity field that made birds fell tired because of flying.

Then he quitted his job and lived a luxury life but was also boring.

One day, a person talked to him about Manh Ma market where living people and soul of dead people could meet. If people wanted meet a dead person they had took goods to the market at midnight, june 1st every year and could find the person. Though his wife had dead over ten years he still wanted meet her. Then he took an item, left his house to his servants and went.

He came the market and saw his wife but she was now covered by noble clothes that made him not dare to go closely. Then, his wife realized him. He was so happy. He handed his wife and pulled to a personal place. He talked her about his life after she dead then he asked:

“How about you? What are you doing, honey?”

“I am nanny of king’s children. Easy life, I have a house in the castle and don’t need to care about any things. The king provides all things I need,” she said.

“I miss you so much. I can follow with you, don’t you?” he said.

“Yes, you can but you can only stay with me few days or you can meet danger”, she said

Then they went. Go pass a long dark street they cross a gigantic entrance with atrocious-face gatekeepers who made Thu Huon frightened. Because of his wife he could get pass the entrance easily. She led him to a small room.

“This is kitchen. That is prison and front of your face is harem where I stay. Pass the harem is where the king stays. Now you stay here. I will bring you to come some places then you have to go”, she said.

That afternoon his wife gave him a magical paper and said: “Only place where the king stays you don’t go and the other places you can go and take a look.”

He went around kitchen few times then went straight to prison. Although he had not passed the gate of prison he had heard horrible noises of yelling, crying and shouting that made hair in his back neck stand up. Pass some rooms in prison he saw, saw the ways people were punished. Someone was cut their hand, some were gutted and some were taken out their eyes. So terrible, that sight so terrible. He went through the rooms so fast and came a strange room with full of neck shackles making from wood in many sizes. He was attracted by a heavy gigantic shackle, the biggest shackle in the room. He went to ask wardens.

“What do shackles use for?” he said.

“They will be on bad guys when they came here. All shackles in here also had their owners. You only need to see sizes of shackles you will know how many crimes they have done”, said a warden.

“Who does the biggest shackle belong to?” he said.

The warden opened a thick black book and read:

“Vo Thu Huon living in Phuc chinh district, Gia dinh province, Dai nam.”

Just hearing that thing, Thu Huon was panicked his face now was dull but he still kept his calm to ask.

“What crimes he has ever done?” he added.

Eyes were still on the book the warden spoke.

“He is a mandarin but he dared to do crimes that were written full of papers. At Suu, he rewrote manslaughter to murder that made mrs. Nhan and his son were sentenced to death. Because of that thing brother-in-law of her could get her assets and gifted him 10 gold bullion, 10 silver bullion and a little money. Also that year, he made Mr. Ngo Lai have 20 crimes because he had gold clothes then he usurped all his assets…

Hearing that things, his face was now white completely he had never thought what he had done always wrote clearly there. He asked to distract the warden.

“Does his wife have to take the shackle with him?” he asked.

“No, punishments only give sinners. Uhm, I heard his wife had come here. She is a good person”, said the warden.

Thu Huon tried to asked more.

“If he fell remorseful and want to repair. What does he have to do?”, said Thu Huon.

The warden took down the book and said: “If you borrow something you have to return them. That is rule. Therefore, all things he has usurped now have to be separated to poor people, temples…”

He said goodbye the warden and now he didn’t fell interested to look around more. He went straight to find his wife. He asked his wife to come back. His wife felt him had strange behaves but she didn’t ask. She took him back the market.

“I come back to pay. I will come here in three years. That time, you don’t forget to take me here”, he said.

He came back his home. The first thing he did was separated his money, his field, assets and gave to poor people, temples and made many ceremonies. People felt strange with his behaves.They spread some rumors but he didn’t pay noticing. He still gave people what they wanted.

Three years passed. He came back the market and convinced his wife to come the castle one more time.

Back the prison, he saw the prison like the prison he had seen three years ago. He met the warden he had met. See his shackle and realized it was now smaller and the others also had other sizes. He asked the warden: “Oh this shackle, I remember it was bigger than now so much. What happened with it?”

“You are right. Maybe, he felt sorry and did many good things so his crime was relieved. If he continued doing good things he will get big furtune”, said the warden.

Thu Huon went back. That time he sold whole remaining assets include his house to build a Buddhist temple. He went to Dongnai river to do the last thing, bringing people cross the river.

That time it had not any bridge on the river so people hesitated to pass the river to live in other side. Thu Huon made a big boat with outhouse. He have enough things to use, food, drink, clothes, pots… He helped people cross the river, let they stayed in his boat, give them food, drink and something they needed. Sometime, people stayed in his boat few weeks or months but he didn’t took anything from them. He did that job until he dead.

Long time later, the new king of China ordered his messenger came to Vietnam to ask about a person whose name was Thu Huon. People said that when the king of China was born his hand have some words that were “Dainam, Giadinh, Thu Huon” so he wanted to know who is Thu Huon. After knowing about Thu Huon, the king gifted to the temple Thu Huon had built 3 gold Buddhist statues. People only could explain that Thu Huon had done many good things that were enough to have the fortune that became the king of China.

Nowaday, the temple Thu Huon built still exists it is Bien Hoa temple or Thu Huon temple.

THE END

"Translated by Hung Nguyen"

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