A wealthy man who lost his wife early had an only son but his son was stupid and giddy he was lazy to study. He was sad because of his son’s bad behavior and thought that after he died all his assets would vanish if his son didn’t change. Therefore, he want find a wife for his son who was wise and ingenious the wife would prevented his son and protected his assets. Thought that, he set off to find. He had gone many placed but had not found any one.
One day, he stopped by a tree to take a rest. He saw children picking apples near that, then a short time later, a girl who was about 18 years old approach and pick apples. He approached the girl and prayed to have something to eat. That time, all ripe apples were taken the girl tried to find apple which were nearly ripe and gave him.
“She is kindness”, he thought, “only kindness person deserves have weath”. Then that night he found the way to come the girl’s house. He pretended as a pedestrian who missed the road and had to pray to stay at her house a night. The girl pleased to let him stay at her house.
To find out that whether the girl was wise he had a conversation with her. The next morning, when the girl went to the market he gave her money and asked her to help him buy a handful of wind and a bunch of fire. The girl didn’t ask him any thing. She went and as she came back she gave him a paper fan and an ignition knife. The man was satisfied but he wanted to challenge her more.
The next day, he gave her a bowl of sticky rice and asked her to help him cook a pot which had both steamed sticky rice and dumplings. The girl didn’t refuse. She divided the rice in two. One she boiled and one she grinded. She made dumplings then put them into the pot with rice. As she brought the pot to the man, the man, another time, had no chance to be disappointed. “That has very few people who have both kindness and ingenuity”, he thought then he went to his house, prepared the gift to come back and ask her to be his son’s wife.
The son had been more dissipated since he had the wife. He used to go out days, grouped with bad people. The man was very sad but the thing which made him saddest that he discovered that his son often stole his money and sent it into gambles. Though he beatened and his son’s wife advised but the son had been accustomed to the way. Because of that the man had illness and was more and more serious each passing day. One day, the man called his son’s wife to come and said:
“I am gonna die. But I can not close my eyes in peace because of you, a wretch who had a gambling husband. I know he will make the assets vanish early. So sorry for your fate. So, I have hid a jar of gold under ground by a tree stood in our garden. That belongs to you, only you. Don’t talk to your husband until he changes. Only that time, you can decide to use the gold and to help him or not”.
Then the man died. The son became worse. Though the wife tried her best to prevent him but he did not listen her. Whenever he lost they had an argument. After many times, the conflict became worse. The son beat his wife whenever she prevented him. At last, he expelled his wife away.
Now, nobody could prevented him so he could do whatever he wanted. He rushed gamble. As his father had said the assets went away then he lost every things, house, field, gold, silver… Had no money, no skill he wandered to pray to have food and drinks.
The wife since was expelled he went to a town and started business. She opened a small restaurant then days pass he got much more money and opened a bigger restaurant. One day, he met two children who came to pray to have food. She kept children staying and took care of them. She treated them as her children. God treated her not bad, one time, when the children went to forest to collect wood they brought back a trunk in which hid few golden bars. As she had the gold she started a big business plan then it took no longer time for her to become the richest person in the town. Though she was rick she had no husband. Many men came to asked her to become their wife but she refused all. She couldn’t forget her bad husband and had many time asked people to go and looked for any information about her husband but they couldn’t get any thing.
One year, it didn’t rain. Plants were dried and died. Price of rice increase that made many people couldn’t afford to buy. She asked mandarins to be allowed to donate food to others. She thought that her husband would find the way to come and receive food. Of course, as she thought the first day she served she saw he was in the long line waiting for food. He was not better since he was a beggar. When he heard that a person would serve food he found the way to come at one and stood in right line. But the wife asked servants to serve for people who stood in left line first. When his turn came servant said loudly: “No more rice. People come home and turn back on tomorrow”. He felt disappointed but had no choice. Tomorrow, he tried to come early and stood on the top of left line. But he had never thought that that day servant started serving food for people who stood in the other line. And as his turn came servants showed people their empty pannier.
“No more rice. Go home and come back here tomorrow”, said the servants.
He sighed and went. The next day, he went to early and stood in the middle of a line and he was sure that he would had a serving but he had never thought that the time, servants started serving tops of the lines and people who stood at middle of lines were the last people served. Three times he didn’t get any thing. Therefore, he was reckless to come to the mistress’ house to pray. As he met two foster daughters of the mistress he prayed. The mistress, the wife stayed in the house knew that her husband came she asked her servant went to ask what he can do.
“I can do any thing, cleaning, washing… If the mistress want I will tried my best”.
The servant went and few minutes later came back to say that he was hired. He worked hard to get the mistress’s satisfaction but he didn’t know that the mistress was his wife he had no chance to meet her. The wife, of course, didn’t give him the chance but she asked her foster daughters and servants treated him well.
After long time observing, the wife was happy as she saw he was hard working. One day, she called him to and asked:
“Can you read and write?”
“I have studied a little when I was I child”, he said.
“Tomorrow you can stay at the guest house and teach children. I will pay for that”, said the wife.
He happily agreed. As a teacher he also tried his best. He wanted to be trustworthy in his mistress’ eyes. But, his mistress, his wife still wanted to challenge him.
One day that was one day of Tet holiday and gamble was likest game in the Tet holiday, the mistress gave each servant big money and asked them.
“Take this money and go to play gamble. If you lose all, come back I will give you more”, she said.
He also got the money but he brought the money back and gave the mistress.
“Why don’t you play?”, asked the mistress.
“I have lost all things I had because of gamble so I promised that I will never play again”, he said.
Then he said the mistress his story that he had had many assets, had a wife then how he lost all things and his wife, why he had to wander to pray to have food. He regretted for what he had done.
“You still love your wife, don’t you?”, asked the mistress.
“Course, I love her but I can not find her though I have gone to many places to have her information”, he said.
“Use the money to find her. If you can not find her as you are out of money, come back I will give you more”, said the mistress.
He took the money and went but three months later he came back with bad mood. Course, he couldn’t catch any information and believed that his wife had died.
The mistress realized her husband had changed he was better and especially, he didn’t forget her. She was happy but still didn’t let him see her face.
Her husband 's father's death anniversary came the mistress asked him to write an oration. He was surprised as he saw name of people who was worshiped on altars was name of his ancestors. That moment, he realized the mistress was his wife. They hugged the other and cried in happiness. Then they talked to people who participated in the feast about the extraordinary reunion.
Later, they found husbands for foster daughters and gave them the business and came back their hometown. They redeemed their home, their field. They worked hard and got comfortable lives. The wife, that time, dug up the jar of gold and showed his husband.
She said: “Gold is not sure to give you happiness. Therefore, I did’t take it when I was in the most difficult case. Now I don’t need it”. Then they brought the gold to divide poor people and donate to temples.
They had comfortable lives till they died.
THE END
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"Translated by Hung Nguyen"
Book Introductions
1. Complete Collection of Vietnamese Fairy Tales - A Treasury of Legends and Folklore
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2. Vietnamese Fairy Tales - Stories in English and Vietnamese
This bilingual collection features 162 Vietnamese fairy tales in both English and Vietnamese, with stunning illustrations. Ideal for language learners and cultural enthusiasts. Available as an ebook on: Kobo, Apple Books
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