Folk stories of the Miao people in Jinping

Legend has it that a long time ago, there was a Miao girl named Niangbanlou Sou. Her round face was as full as the moon in the sky, her pair of watery eyes were as dazzling as the stars in the sky, and her skillful hands could embroider ninety-nine kinds of flowers. Each pattern was different, which attracted young men from all over the country to wish they could surround her every day.

Her talent and beauty would one day spread to Miao King City. In Miao King City lived a young man named Nuoran Geou who was very good at playing Lusheng. He could play ninety-nine sheng tunes, with different tunes. When he heard about this girl, he wanted to meet her. He climbed ninety-nine mountains and waded through ninety-nine rivers, and finally met the mother Lou Sou. As soon as they met, he fell in love with her deeply, and his melodious Lusheng music also won the girl's favor. However, the girl's father couldn't bear to let her marry far away, so he asked her to cook a pot of rice for Nuoran Ge and told her to cook it well. If the rice is cooked well, it would imply that their marriage was happy. Otherwise, their marriage would be full of misfortune, and she could only marry him if the rice was cooked well.

My mother, Lou Sou, went to cook a pot of rice for Brother Nuoran. As soon as she was cooking, she heard Brother Nuoran playing Lusheng in the yard. She ran out to listen to him playing. The Lusheng he was playing was so beautiful that it fascinated her. As a result, the pot of rice was cooked half cooked like charcoal and half raw like sand. Mother Lou Sou saw that the rice was not cooked and the marriage was about to fall through, so she burst into tears. She begged her father to let them get married, but the mother's father saw that the rice was burnt and firmly disagreed. Mother Lou Sou had to beg his father to let her cook it again, but her father couldn't resist her and had to agree. This time, the mother Lou Sou decided to cook a good pot of rice, but as soon as her rice was put into the pot, she heard Brother Nuoran playing Lusheng outside, so she couldn't help but run out to listen. This time, she was more fascinated than last time, and the rice was cooked again. The mother had no choice but to beg his father again to let her cook it again. When his father saw that the rice was burnt again, he sighed and said to her: "My beloved daughter, your marriage with Noran Ge has already been hinted at in the first pot of rice. Now that you love Noran Ge so much and he is also a good young man, let him take you away. However, in the future life, you must listen to Noran's words and not listen to gossip, so that your marriage can last long."

In this way, Nuoran Gekou and Niangluolou happily returned to Miao King City to start their happy life, and had two lovely children, a boy and a girl. One day, Nuoran Gekou and Niangbanlousou said that his Lusheng played too well and alarmed the gods in the sky. Now that there was a happy event in the heaven, he would play the Lusheng. After he left, his body would stay at home. He would put a bowl of clean water in the main room and ask Niangbanlousou to replenish the bowl with water every day. He also asked Niangbanlousou to promise him that no matter what others said, his body would not be buried. As long as his body was there and the water in the bowl would not dry, he would come back in seven days. Mother Lou Sou promised Nuoran Brother Enough, and Nuoran Brother Enough went to the sky with confidence.

Three days later, the neighbors did not hear the sound of Lusheng in Nuoran Ge or see him, so they kindly came to their home to visit. They saw Noran Gekou lying on the bed. Although his face was lifelike, he was no longer breathing and his body was cold and without heat. Everyone said that Noran Gekou was dead and asked his mother Lou to bury him. Mother Lou Sou told everyone that Brother Noran had gone to the sky and was not dead. He would come back in seven days, but no one believed her. Everyone helped her with the funeral, and the mother Lou Sou was also said to be moved by everyone, so she agreed to bury Nuoran Geou's body. In this way, Noranggou's body was no longer there. Seven days later, he came back and couldn't see his body, so he had to go back to heaven.

One night, my mother Lou Sou slept with her two children in her arms. The two children were calling for Dad in their dreams. The old woman opened her eyes and saw Noran Gehou standing in front of her. She hugged him and called his name, but Noran Gehou said that he didn't know her. She shook her hand and ran away. Mother Lousou chased after her and chased her to the sky. When Brother Nuoran saw her coming, he had to admit that he was Brother Nuoran. However, he asked Mother Lousou to return to the world. He said that she would not listen to him and buried his body. He could no longer go back and asked her to go back and raise her two children well. Mother Lousou refused to return to the world. She said that I finally found you with difficulty, and I will never go back again. I want to be with you forever. Brother Nuoran had no choice but to take her to the door of the sky, kick open the door, push away the clouds and mist, and let the mother-in-law look into the world. Mother Lou looked at her and saw their two children crying out for Dad and Mom, each pulling a strap. Just then, Nuoran pushed her down. The mother rushed away and woke up from her dream. Her tears had already soaked her pillow.