The golden slipper
During the time of the Ch'in and Han dynasties, a cave chief named Wu
married two wives and each gave birth to baby girls. Before long Chief
Wu and one wife died leaving one baby, Yeh-Shen, to be reared by her
stepmother.

The stepmother didn't like Yeh-Shen for she was more beautiful and
kinder than her own daughter so she treated her poorly.
Yeh-Shen was given the worse jobs and the only friend she had was a
beautiful fish with big golden eyes . Each day the fish came out of the
water on to the bank to be fed by Yeh-Shen.
Now Yen-Shen had little food for herself but she was willing to share
with the fish. Her stepmother hearing about the fish disguised herself
as Yen-Shen and enticed the fish from the water.
She stabbed it with a dagger and cooked the fish for dinner.
Yeh-Shen was distraught when she learned of the fish's death. As she
sat crying she heard a voice and looked up to see a wise old man wearing
the coarsest of clothes and with hair hanging down over his shoulders.
He told her that the bones of the fish were filled with a powerful
spirit, and that when she was in serious need she was to kneel before
the bones and tell them of her heart's desires. She was warned not to
waste their gifts. Yeh-Shen retrieved the bones from the trash heap and
hid them in a safe place.
Time
passed and the spring festival was nearing. This was a time when the
young people gathered in the village to meet one another and to find
husbands and wives.
Yen-Shen longed to go to the festival but her stepmother wouldn't
allow it because she feared that someone would pick Yeh-Shen rather than
her own daughter.
The stepmother and the daughter left for the festival leaving
Yeh-Shen behind. Yeh-Shen wanting desperately to go asked the bones for
clothes to wear to the festival. Suddenly she was wearing a beautiful
gown of azure blue with a cloak of kingfisher feathers draped around her
shoulders. On her feet were beautiful slippers.
They were woven of golden threads in a pattern of a scaled fish and
the soles were made of solid gold. When she walked she felt lighter than
air. She was warned not to lose the slippers. Yeh-Shen arrived at the
festival and soon all were looking her way.
The daughter and step-mother moved closer to her for they seemed to
recognise this beautiful person. Seeing that she would be found out,
Yeh-Shen dashed out of the village leaving behind one of the golden
slippers. When she arrived home she was dressed again in her rags. She
spoke again to the bones, but they were now silent.

Saddened she put the one golden slipper in her bedstraw. After a time
a merchant found the lost slipper, and seeing the value in the golden
slipper sold it to a merchant who gave it to the king of the island
kingdom of T'o Han.
Now the king wanted to find the owner of this tiny beautiful slipper.
He sent his people to search the kingdom but no one's foot would fit in
the tiny golden slipper.
He had the slipper placed on display in a pavilion on the side of the
road where the slipper had been found with an announcement that the shoe
was to be returned to the owner.
The king's men waited out of site. All the women came to try on the
shoe.
One dark night Yeh-Shen slipped quietly across the pavilion, took the
tiny golden slipper and turned to leave, but the king's men rushed out
and arrested her.
She was taken to the king who was furious for he couldn't believe
that any one in rags could possibly own a golden slipper. As he looked
closer at her face he was struck by her beauty and he noticed she had
the tiniest feet.
The king and his men returned home with her where she produced the
other slipper. As she slipped on the two slippers her rags turned into
the beautiful gown and cloak she had worn to the festival.
The king realised that she was the one for him. They married and
lived happily ever after.
However, the stepmother and daughter were never allowed to visit
Yeh-Shen and were forced to continue to live in their cave until the day
they were crushed to death in a shower of flying stones.
-Internet |