NO. I 



CHUAN MIAO SONGS AND STORIES — GRAHAM 



267 



the meat and the soup there and tliere was 

 no meat left. 



Afterward, in that stronghold, there was 

 a family actually holding memorial services 

 (Tso Chai in Chinese) and making offerings, 

 and these two girls intended to go so as to 

 choose husbands. But the concubine made a 

 bad plan and took many banana leaves and 

 gave them to her own daughter to wear. She 

 also spilled a peck of beans into the ashpit 

 and made Nao pick them all up before going. 

 Nao could not help it and wept as she picked 

 them up. Suddenly a small crow flew onto 

 the corner of the roof of the house and cawed 

 saying, "Ah, ah, you take a basket and win- 

 now it and take a sifter and sift it." When 

 the girl heard it, she understood. In a short 

 time she had sifted out all the beans in the 

 ashpit. The crow again cawed, "Ah, ah, ah, 

 you go below the cowpen and take your 

 clothing and skirt and wear them." She then 

 went and got her clothes and put them on. 

 Then she followed after the concubine and her 

 daughter. 



When they arrived, the I'm sheng and the 

 drum were resounding. Nao stood alone. 

 Ntseo Nang *^ played the liu sheng and said,*^ 

 "Tsa la, my wife is up there. Tso lo, my 

 pretty girl is up there." When the concubine 

 heard this, she secretly led her daughter up 

 above. Nao then ran down below and stood 

 there. Ntseo Nang's liu sheng again re- 

 sounded saying, "Tsa la, tso lo, my beautiful 

 wife is sitting down below. Tso lo, tsa la, 

 are you here below?" The concubine again 

 took her daughter and led her down below. 



Then the concubine and her daughter and 

 also Nao invited Ntseo Nang to go and stay 

 in their home. When they had gone halfway 

 Ntseo Nang again played the liu sheng and 

 said, "Tsa la la, my wife is walking in front." 

 The concubine then sent her daughter in 

 front. Ntseo Nang again played the liu sheng 

 and said, "Tao lo lo, my pretty girl is behind." 

 When they had reached their home, the concu- 

 bine told her own daughter to sleep with Ntseo 

 Nang. At midnight he did not want the 

 concubine's daughter to sleep with him, but 

 embraced Nao to his bosom. But the mother 

 did not know this, and before daylight she 

 took some rice biscuits and covered up com- 

 pletely her own daughter's face, ears, lips, and 

 eyes, and then boiled rice and killed a chicken 

 and called them to get up and eat. Ntseo 

 Nang said, "Mother-in-law, never mind light- 



*^ The name means good looking and cunning 

 as a snake. 



*^ The idea is that he spoke through die music, 

 which many Ch'uan Miao musicians are able to do. 



ing a light. I am very much ashamed." The 

 concubine dien said, "Eat quickly and go 

 away, lest that unworthy girl (Nao) know 

 about it." 



Ntseo Nang and Nao quickly finished eat- 

 ing and went away. Next day, in the after- 

 noon, the concubine went to wind up hemp 

 thread and said to herself, "Wheel, ji ni 

 d3i' ni'), my daughter is probably in a 

 resting place." The daughter called to her, 

 "Mama, ha, ha (shi, shi), I am still sleeping 

 here." Her mother then said, "Don't say 

 much, lest I kill you.*'^ After awhile the 

 mother again said to herself, "Wheel, gi, ba, 

 ba,^^ my daughter has probably reached her 

 husband's home." Her daughter again said, 

 "Shi, shi (ha, ha), my mama, hey, your 

 daughter loves to sleep (is still sleeping) ." 



The concubine then took a club and beat 

 her. After she had beaten her awhile, she 

 pulled aside the bedding and looked. It was 

 actually her own daughter and her mother 

 said, "My daughter, don't be afraid and I will 

 help you up." When she had helped her up, 

 she used water and washed her face clean 

 and combed her hair. Then she arranged a 

 trick for her daughter. She told her daughter 

 to quickly follow them, and when she arrived 

 Nao had already given birth to a child.^^ 

 When she arrived, Nao heard the dogs bark- 

 ing and got up and saw her and then said, 

 "Younger sister, have you come.?" She an- 

 swered, "Older sister, I think of you a great 

 deal. I have left my mother and come here." 

 Nao said, "Help me husk some rice and we 

 will cook dinner to eat." Nao then went and 

 mixed some chicken manure with the grain 

 her sister was husking. The more she beat it, 

 the dirtier it was. Nao then said to her, "You 

 are not good at husking rice. You come and 

 help me carry water.^° Let me do the husking 

 myself." 



Ts'en, the concubine's daughter, went to 

 carry water. Nao then threw away the 

 chicken manure and the dirty rice and 

 brought good rice and boiled it. When Ts'en 

 had carried the water, they two ate together. 

 When they were through eating, Ts'en used 

 a trick to injure Nao. She said to Nao, "Older 

 sister, let us go out and look at the scenery." 

 Nao said, "All right, let us go." Ts'en carried 



^'^ The mother thought that she was speaking 

 to Nao. 



*^ This is supposed to be the sound of die 

 wheel. 



^9 Probably the child was Ntseo Nang's from 

 previous intercourse. 



^0 The expression means to carry water on the 

 back. 



