Page:Strange stories from a Chinese studio.djvu/101

72 STRANGE STORIES FROM

but there-was no help for it ; and by the time dinner was over h<e found some of his mother's servants had come in search of him, bringing a couple of donkejTS with them. It appeared that his mother, alarmed at his non-appear- ante, had made strict search for him in the village ; and when unable to discover any traces of him, had gone off to the Wu family to consult. There her nephew, who recol- lected what he had previously said to young Wang, advised that a search should be instituted in the direction of the hills ; and accordingly the servants had been to all the villages on the way imtil they had at length recognised him as he was coming out of the door. Wang went in and told the old woman, begging that he might be allowed to take Ying-ning with him. " I have had the idea in my head for several days," rephed the old woman, overjoyed ; " but I am a feeble old thing myself, and couldn't travel so far. If, however, you will take charge of my girl and introduce her to her aunt, I shall be very pleased." So she called Ying-ning, who came up laughing as usual ; whereupon the old woman rebuked her, saying, ** What makes you always laugh so ? You would be a very good girl but for that siUy habit. Now, here's your cousin, who wants to take you away with him. Make haste and pack up." The servants who had come for Wang were then provided with refresh- ment, and the old woman bade them both farewell, teUing Ying-ning that her aunt was quite well enough off to maintain her, and that she had better not come back. She also advised her not to neglect her studies, and to be very attentive to her elders, adding that she might ask her aunt to provide her with a good husband. Wang and Ying-ning then took their leave ; and when they reached the brow of ^ the hill, they looked back and could just discern the old woman leaning against the door and *' gazing towards the north."® On arriving at Wang's home, his mother, seeing a. nice-looking young girl with him, asked in astonishment who she might be ; and Wang at once told her the whole story. " But that was all an invention of your cousin Wu's ! " cried his mother ; *' I haven't got a sister, and consequently I can't have such a niece." Ying-ning here observed, *' I am not the daughter of the old woman ; my father was named Ch'in and died when I was a Uttle baby,

^ q.d. Looking sorrowfully after them*