Skip to main content

Bu and Ngoc

Bu and Ngoc were idiots but Bu always thought that he was smarter than Ngoc so he always acted as big brother of Ngoc.
One day, Bu found Ngoc and asked him to go with him and found honey but they both didn’t know where they could find honey. Thought for a while, Bu pretended as if he knew everything.
“Hey boy! Honey is liquid so we will not find it in forest. We must go sea. It must be there”, said Bu.
vietnamese fairy tales
Ngoc nodded his head he did never protest Bu’s words. Then they found a boat and began rowing toward the sea. Two days had passed but they didn’t find any hive. They were on the third day and it’s getting dark. They were forced to get in river and find a place to rest. They rested on shore for that night. They woke up in next morning and happily as they saw shape of a huge hive on water surface.
“See. I did say we only found hives in water”, said Bu, “We will get much honey to eat and sell with this hive. Go Ngoc! You are great in diving. Go and get the hive.”
Ngoc obeyed he took off his clothes and then jumped into water. But, he couldn’t found that hive though his eyes turned red because he stayed in water too long.    
 “You don’t find it though it that big.” said Bu, “Try again.”
Ngoc dived again but again he emerged from water with nothing. Bu thought for a while then he yelled.
“Yes, I know it. Because you are too hurry to get up so you could not find the hive. You need to dive more deeply”, he said while he used the paddle pushed Ngoc down in water. It’s about half of daytime Bu kept Ngoc staying in water. When Bu rose the paddle up Ngoc had died. His body floated on water but Bu didn’t know Ngoc had died. He thought that Ngoc was smiling with the bared teeth. He scolded.
“Greedy of you. You filled full of your stomach then you show me that your smile.”
Bu didn’t know Ngoc had died until people on a boat which moved crossed said to him.
“Hey you! Why don’t you bury that dead. It will be stinky if you leave it there”, said the people.
Bu knew Ngoc had died so he brought Ngoc to go to the shore and dug a hole. He buried Ngoc in that hole. Later, he came back his boat and at there he farted. It’s stinky and it made him   remembered what people on boat did talk to him.
“Gosh! Stinky! That means I also died. I have to bury myself, too”, he said to himself then he went on the shore and dug another hole. Later, he laid down in the hole and then covered his body, his face by sands but only few seconds later, he couldn’t breath and so he emerged from sands. As soon as, he saw boats which were going toward where he was.
“Go! Away!” He shouted, “Don’t go near me. I’m stinky”.
Children who were standing near that couldn’t stop themselves not to laugh one they heard him said that. They took a stick and started beating on whole of his body.
“Die or alive you are”, yelled the children.
That’s so pained as he was beaten. He hurriedly got out from the hole and started running he didn’t want to be beating more. He ran far away but in a sudden he thought. Exactly, he got an idea.
“I had been died but the stick saved my life. It must be magical stick. I have to go back and ask them to get that stick”, thought him then he turned back.
Firstly, the children didn’t give him that stick but he’s headstrong insisting them in long time. At last, the children threw him that stick. Happily he took the stick, brought it around. He planned to save dead. So he made his way to funerals. At last he found a funeral. He went in that funeral pretending as if he was holy mage. He asked people to meet relatives of the dead and people led him to them.
“This is resurrecting stick”, he said, “It can save people’s lives. And I bring it to here to do a favor for you all. Open the coffin and I will save the person in it.”
People at one stopped crying as they heard him say that. They as soon as kneeled as if the person who was front of their faces now was a god.
“Please! Sir! Save him. We will never forget you for whole of our lives”, said the relatives of the dead.
The carriers were ordered to put the coffin down and then they could open it. The dead was undressed and laid on coffin cap. All people was ordered to get away letting Bu and the dead have space. Bu approached where the dead was laid and started he beat the dead.
“Bump! Bump! Bump!” he shot into the dead so pained that made flesh threw out everywhere. That hurt people who were there. They couldn’t stand that. Therefore, they hurriedly rounded him and started beating him. They punched, kicked and beat him by rods for a long time. Later, they stopped and scattered. That time, Bu lay motionlessly on ground he had died.

THE END
"Translator: Hung Nguyen"

Book Introductions

1. Complete Collection of Vietnamese Fairy Tales - A Treasury of Legends and Folklore

Discover over 240 enchanting Vietnamese fairy tales, translated into English and beautifully illustrated. This collection is a treasure trove of legends and folklore that reflect Vietnam's rich cultural heritage. Available as an ebook on: Kobo, Apple Books

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

3. The Treasury of Fables

An enchanting collection of timeless fables, written in English and beautifully illustrated. Perfect for all ages, these stories offer valuable moral lessons. Available as an ebook on: Kobo, Apple Books


Read more:
Tale 182: Bu and Ngoc
-----

Essential Reads: Engaging Books You Can't Miss!

Comments

BÀI ĐĂNG ĐƯỢC XEM NHIỀU

List of Vietnamese fairy tales

Vietnamese  fairy tales includes many stories as Tam and Cam; So Dua; Hundred – knot- bamboo tree... which were spread in folk. Each stories has  its own meaning. I think I can not translate exactly each word into english but I will try my best to convey its meaning to you. Hope you like them!

Thuong Luong

Thuong Luong was common name of creatures which are in people’s imagines. They are distant relatives of dragons. While dragons are worshiped as gods, the gods ruled rivers and sea and the gods can make rains, Thuong Luong is not respected as dragons that the creatures are too amorous, combative, wild, and have bad behaviors. All most of them like to harm people.

The third wife of Cai Vang.

Once  upon a time, Hoang Van area was managed by a mandarin. People called him Cai Vang. When he was child, he picked up a pearl. That was a magical pearl. It helped him not to be harm by any arrow. All arrows turned to other direction when they flew nearly him. Cai Vang had brought the pearl with him every time since he got it. While the time he was mandarin, he used taxes for himself. Therefore, he was imprisoned and tortured. One day, soldiers escorted him cross a forest. When they spent very litte noticing on him, he ran. Soldiers chased after him and shot arrows toward him. Because of magical pearl, he could escape safely. From that time, Cai Vang grouped people and trained them. He planned to fight against the king. He called himself Thuong Cong. vietnamesefairytales.blogspot.com Cai Vang had three wifes. His third wife was great in martial arts though she was only 20 years old. Before he started to fight he called three wifes to come and ask: “I am now sitting ...

The tale of waiting - husband stone

Once  upon a time, a couple had born two children one boy and one girl. The boy was 11 years old and his sister was 6 years old. Everyday when the couple went to farm to work they always asked the boy to take care of his sister. His mother usually added: “Don’t make your sister cry. Your father will punish you if you do.” vietnamesefairytales.blogspot.com Everyday, the boy and the girl played in their garden together or play with your friend around their house. Until they were bored they stopped playing to eat some sugar canes. The boy used to take a knife to cut sugar canes.     One day, when the boy took the knife cut a sugar cane but the blade flew toward his sister’s head although the hilt was in his hand. The girl was fainting immediately, blood poured from her head. The boy was very scared he thought he had made a very serious mistake. He believed that his father would kill him. Therefore, he left his home and went away. He went to hide himself fr...

So dua - Coconut boy

Once upon a time, there in a village had a couple who worked as servants for a landlord. Although they were over fifty years old, they had ever not had a child. They were sad about that, but they had never given up to dream about a child. One day, it's a very hot day, when the wife was working in the field and felt very thirsty. She seeked for water, but she didn't see any but a little water in a skull which was in a hole beside an ancient tree. She had no choice but to drink it. Right the moment she drank, the feeling of cold water running from her throat to her stomach made her felt very comfortable. As a magic, she was pregnant after that short time. Then, the husband died before he got the happiness looking his child be born. After nine months and ten days, the wife gave birth a son but he didn't look like any child on the world. He had no feet, no leg, and even no body. He just had a head with full of eyes, nose, ear, hair and mouth on it. He didn't ugly but was ...

Thanh Giong

Once  upon a time, a woman was old but she had not given birth a child. One day, when she went to her field, she saw a stranger footsore on the ground. The big footsore made her surprise and said: “omg, this footsore is so big” the she put her foot into the footsore. More 9 months later, she gave birth to a little boy named Giong. The boy was extraordinary that he was over three years old but had not spoken. He only knew lying and smiling. vietnamesefairytales.blogspot.com That year, the enemies they were known An planed to attack the country of the boy. They were merciless. Wherever they had gone, houses were ruined, fields were fired, people were killed. The sight behind them is mess of corpse and blood and ashes.The King was worry he forced his servants to look for person who could fight against the enemies.  One day, a servent went to Giong’s village while the woman was holding the boy in her arms, she said sadly that: “Giong, I wonder that when you hav...

The tale of watermelon

Once  upon a time, a young man whose name was Mai An  Tiem   was a slave. He was sold to a King named Hung   Vuong . Mai An   Tiem   was clever, he   learned   vietnamese   language very fast.   Futher , he knew so many stories, places and could do everything so good so he was liked by Hung   Vuong   very much that wherever Hung   Vuong   had come he also came with him. Three years later, he was Hung   Vuong   let to become a noble and was stayed in a building near the castle. Besides, Hung   Vuong   made his daughter become his wife.  Mai An   Tiem   now had wife, a five-year-old son, servants and assets. He seemed to lack nothing. Although he had never been arrogant people still were jealous with his his luck. vietnamesefairytales.blogspot.com One day, people who were participating in a party complimented as much as they could but he only said: “That because of ...

The Tale of the Hundred - knot Bamboo tree

Once upon a time, there had a boy who was poor, had no field. Therefore, he found the way to work for a landlord. He was healthy, worked hard and great in working so the landlord wanted him to work for him long time without any pay. One day, he called the boy to come. "You are honest and healthy. If you agree to work for me in three years without pay, I will let you marry with my only daughter after that." The boy agreed. He believed completely. He worked very hard, help the landlord turn richer that he could build more houses, buy more fields and cattles. Then, time passed. Three years nearly crossed, the boy always remembered his master's promise while his master, the landlord didn't want to do his promise. He in secret had found another boy for his daughter, a son of another landlord in that area. Therefore, what he need was a reason to refuse the boy. One day, he called the boy to come. "You have worked very hard for three years, waken early, slept late....

Clever wife has idiot husband

Long  time ago, that had a woman working as a weaver. She was clever woman but had an idiot husband. One day, she gave rolls of cloth to his husband and said: “Sell them only if people pay two hundreds and forty coins  a roll.” vietnamesefairytales.blogspot.com The husband went to market to sell he spent much time staying at market, inviting people to take a look his cloth but he didn’t sell any roll. Till an old man came and bought two rolls but he didn’t bring money. Therefore, the old man said to him: “Come to my home to get your money after you finish. My home is also in this village.” “Where is your home?”, asked the husband. “I live in a place which has a crowded market without sellers, has flutes spread tunable noise by themselves and has one-knot bamboo tress.”, said the old man then he went. Late afternoon the husband pucked up his cloth and went to find the old man. He asked people about the place the old man had described but none knew the place ha...