The Legend of Grain Rain

Legend has it that during the reign of Emperor Gaozong of the Tang Dynasty, the Yellow River burst its banks, flooding Caozhou. Thousands of acres of fertile fields were swirling, houses collapsed, and countless soldiers and civilians drowned. A young man named Guyu, a skilled swimmer, pushed a large wooden box and swam across to the city wall, carrying his elderly mother. He then swam back and forth, rescuing more than a dozen fellow villagers from the floodwaters. Guyu was exhausted, having not eaten all day, and his stomach growled with hunger. He squatted on the city wall, staring blankly at the surging waters. Suddenly, he spotted a peony tree, bobbing and sinking in the floodwaters. Its crimson blossoms resembled a young woman’s face, its green leaves swaying on the surface, as if waving for help. Guyu abruptly stood up, forgetting his hunger and fatigue. He stripped off his clothes, threw them to his mother, and with a splash, jumped into the water, swimming towards the peony. The water was swift and the waves were high. Guyu struggled to reach the peony, and just as he was about to grab its petals and leaves, a sudden wave struck, sweeping the peony a dozen feet away. Guyu pressed on, causing Mudan to sink and float again. He swam and swam, swimming for two full hours in the Yellow River. Exhaustion made him dizzy, his cheeks felt heavy as if two huge rocks weighed down his body, and his arms, which were paddling with water, gave way to his movements. His mother, perspiring from the city wall, stood there, worried. The villagers called out to Guyu, but he ignored them, desperately pursuing Mudan amidst the waves.

Another hour passed, and Guyu finally caught up with the peony, which was hanging on a large branch that had been knocked down by the flood. He scooped it up with both hands, tears of joy streaming down his face. Guyu swam with difficulty, lost his balance, and fell onto the city wall, pale and breathless. He handed the peony to an old man beside him. The old man was called Zhao Lao Da, an expert flower planter. Zhao Lao Da took the peony with trembling hands and said, “Don’t worry, child! When the yellow water recedes, I will plant this peony in my flower garden. I will take good care of it!” Guyu smiled, a smile so sweet!

Two years passed in a flash. That spring, Guyu’s mother fell seriously ill. Bedridden, her eyes closed, she was emaciated, her strength gone. Anxious, Guyu sought medical help everywhere, selling everything she could in the house for herbal medicine, but her condition showed no improvement. One day, Guyu borrowed two taels of silver from Boss Zhao and was about to get medicine for her mother when a young woman drifted into the thatched cottage. She was as beautiful as a fairy in a painting, wearing a red dress, rosy cheeks and lips, and a crimson flower in her temple. Her large eyes, beneath her thin, curved brows, fixed on Guyu with a faint smile. “Are you Guyu?” she asked, nodding quickly. The girl said, “My name is Danfeng, and I live in East Village. My family has been practicing medicine for generations, treating the common people. I heard you were unwell, so I came to bring you some medicine.” As she spoke, she unfolded a red scarf and placed a herbal remedy on the table. A fragrant aroma filled the thatched cottage. Guyu, unsure what to do, quickly took out her silver and handed it to him. Danfeng said that he would not charge money for treating the poor people. Then he walked to the bed. Guyu’s mother opened her eyes when she heard the voice, looked at Miss Danfeng with gratitude, and motioned her to sit down. Danfeng leaned over to look at the old lady and said sweetly, “Auntie, I will boil some medicine for you. After taking this medicine, your illness will be relieved!” When Guyu heard that Danfeng was boiling medicine, she hurried to fetch water and firewood, while Danfeng was busy making fire and boiling medicine. After a while, the two of them boiled the medicine, and Danfeng helped the old lady take the medicine. Strangely enough, after taking the medicine, the old lady suddenly felt energetic and relaxed. Most of her illness was gone. She just wanted to get out of bed and walk around. Guyu looked at Danfeng, feeling grateful in her heart, but she could not utter a word. Miss Danfeng smiled at the honest Guyu, said, “I will come again tomorrow,” and floated away like a ball of fire. For three consecutive days, Miss Danfeng came to After delivering medicine to his mother, Guyu saw Danfeng and was no longer as reserved as she had been on the first day. The two chatted and laughed, like real siblings. Soon, Guyu’s mother felt even healthier than before her illness. The wrinkles on her face faded, the gray hair darkened, and she felt like she had endless energy. Seeing Guyu and Danfeng so close, she was overjoyed and thought, “How wonderful it would be if I had a son like that!” She considered asking someone to act as a matchmaker, but was afraid Danfeng wouldn’t want to marry into such a poor family. After much deliberation, she decided to ask Danfeng secretly to hear her opinion. Perhaps she’d taken a liking to Guyu and wouldn’t mind our poverty! But since Guyu’s mother recovered, Danfeng hadn’t come again. Every day, Guyu and her mother waited, and every day, she yearned for her. Before dawn, the mother and mother would peer eastward at the gate.

“Miss Danfeng will definitely come today!” said the mother.

“She will definitely come!” said Guyu.

The sun sets! It’s dusk! Still no sign of Miss Danfeng. Mother said that East Village is not far from our home. Why don’t you buy some gifts and go to East Village to see Miss Danfeng?

Guyu left with a basket of gifts. He inquired in East Village, but found no doctors, let alone a girl named Danfeng. He then traveled several villages eastward. Still, he couldn’t find Danfeng’s home. Dejected, Guyu returned home. Passing by Boss Zhao’s Hundred Flowers Garden, he suddenly heard the sound of women laughing. It was a familiar voice! “It’s Danfeng!” Guyu parted the mulberry hedge and peered into the garden, where he saw Danfeng and several other women playing in the moonlight. Unable to resist, he called out, “Danfeng!” Suddenly, there was a gust of wind, and the women vanished. Puzzled, Guyu rushed back into the garden, searching everywhere, saying, “Don’t hide! Uncle Zhao will be furious if you break any peonies!” “I searched for a long time but couldn’t find Danfeng. Guyu thought, am I dreaming? No! I saw Danfeng clearly: red clothes, red skirt, red cheeks, red lips, and a row of red flowers stuck in the corners of her mane.

Puzzled, Guyu squatted among the flowers, watching a red peony swaying in front of him. It suddenly occurred to him that Miss Danfeng might be the Peony Fairy. He circled around the red peony. In the moonlight, the bowl-sized flower seemed to be smiling mischievously at him. Guyu bowed deeply and said, “Thanks to Miss Danfeng for curing my mother’s illness! The old lady has been missing you a lot these days. Please, fairy, show up and go home with me to talk!” After Guyu finished speaking, he stole a glance at the peony and saw a piece of red paper fluttering to the ground. He hurriedly picked it up and saw two lines of words written on it: “On April 8th of next year, I will settle down in Gumen.” Guyu jumped up happily with the red paper in his hand, bowed three times to the peony, and ran home like the wind.

Guyu met his mother and told her about his search for Danfeng and what he had seen in the Hundred Flowers Garden. His mother was overjoyed and praised him for his good fortune. From then on, Guyu frequently visited the Hundred Flowers Garden, helping Boss Zhao manage the peonies. One night, Guyu was dreaming of marrying Danfeng when he was suddenly awakened by a knock on the door. He jumped out of bed and opened the door to find Danfeng standing before him! Her hair was disheveled, her clothes were disheveled, her face was scarred, and she was panting. Guyu’s mother hurriedly pulled Danfeng into the thatched house, repeatedly asking, “Who bullied the child?” Danfeng held her mother’s hand and looked at Guyu, tears falling like pearls from a broken string. “I am the peony fairy, and the vulture on the mountain is my family’s enemy. It bullies the weak and kills the poor, harms all living things, and is a monster that does all kinds of evil. Recently, it has been seriously ill and forced us to go up the mountain to brew stamen wine to cure it. We don’t want to take our blood and brew the wine for the evil villain to drink! The vulture sent soldiers to rob us; we can’t resist. Danfeng is going today, I’m afraid it will be difficult to turn back. Even if he doesn’t die, it will be difficult for me to become an immortal after taking blood and brewing wine! Before leaving, I come to say goodbye to my mother; brother—” As he spoke, he knelt on the ground and cried. Guyu hurriedly helped Danfeng up, and their eyes met, their hearts burning. At this time, there was a loud bang like thunder in the night sky, and several demons surrounded the thatched house. The leading red-haired demon shouted, “Release the Peony Demon! “If you don’t say no, I’ll reduce this thatched house to ashes!” Guyu hurriedly closed the door, and Guyu’s mother held Danfeng tightly in her arms. Outside, roars shook the sky, and the flames were dazzling. Danfeng broke free, bowed twice, and said, “Auntie, brother, Danfeng doesn’t want to implicate you. I’m leaving!” Then he rushed out. Guyu cried and rushed to the door, falling to the ground. The red-haired demon laughed heartily, tied Danfeng up with ropes, and flew straight to the top of the mountain.

After Danfeng and the other fairies were snatched away by a vulture, the peonies in the Hundred Flowers Garden withered and died! Guyu’s mother cried herself blind! Old Zhao was bedridden, unable to get up. Guyu spent the entire day silently, sharpening her axe on a large rock! Her mother’s heart said to Guyu, “Go, sharpen your axe, kill the vulture, and free Danfeng!” She pulled a packet of medicine from under her pillow, placed it in her son’s hand, and said, “Take it with you; you’ll need it!”

Guyu set off, walking for twenty-eight and a half days until he reached the summit of a large mountain. The mountain was bare, not a single sapling growing. Where was the vulture hiding? Where was Danfeng brewing his wine? Guyu circled the mountain again and again, unable to find even a cave. He longed to call out to Danfeng at the top of his lungs, but was afraid of alerting the demon, making his attack even more difficult. So he sat on a graveyard farther from the mountain, observing the movements. One day passed, no sign of the demon; two days, no sign of Danfeng. Guyu waited on the graveyard for three days and three nights, feeling as agonized as if boiling oil were poured over his heart! At dawn on the fourth day, Guyu picked up his axe and set out to chop the mountain apart in search of the demon. Suddenly, a puff of white smoke rose from a large grave on the right. Guyu quickly crouched beside one of the graves. A moment later, two little demons emerged from the spot where the white smoke had come from, carrying a large basket and murmuring to themselves as they ran towards the summit of the mountain. After the two little demons had left, Guyu ran over to see what was happening. The entrance to the vulture’s cave was right under his feet. He leaped in, axe in hand. He found his footing at the bottom. It was so dark! It was pitch black! It was so cold! Shivering all over, Guyu felt his way inside, feeling his way along the walls. He had walked a full two miles before he saw light. The cave grew larger. Three more paths appeared before him. Which way should he go? Guyu was hesitant when he heard crying from a side cave. He crept in and saw Danfeng and the three flower fairies tied to a stone pillar. They had all turned white! Guyu cried out sadly: “Danfeng!” Danfeng swooped down. When Danfeng saw Guyu, her heart seemed to be torn in two. She never thought that Guyu had such courage. She dared to break into the magic cave and come to save her! She looked at Guyu and her tears fell like rain. With your axe, how can you save us out of the cave! Go away quickly!” Guyu said, “I’ll cut the rope, and the five of us will go and kill the vulture!” “Danfeng said anxiously, “Don’t be reckless! There are so many monsters and they are all guarding the vulture, making it difficult to kill it! Besides, because we didn’t make wine for the vulture, it ordered the two little monsters to go to the top of the mountain to carry lime and roast and boil us every day. Now our vitality is badly damaged, it is even more difficult to fight it!” Guyu was so sad and angry that he swung the axe to cut the rope. Just as he picked up his arm, a packet of medicine fell out of the cup. He remembered his mother’s words and suddenly had an idea. He persuaded Danfeng to agree to make wine for the vulture and secretly put the medicine in the wine. Guyu and the fairies were discussing how to get rid of the monsters and the two little monsters who went to carry lime. Guyu hurriedly hid behind a stone.

Danfeng and the other fairies asked the little demon to tell the old eagle that they were willing to brew wine for him, hoping to help him escape suffering. They said that this wine would not only cure illnesses, but if he drank more than one cup, he would also gain immortality. The vulture, tormented by his illness, ordered Danfeng and the other flower fairies to brew the wine quickly.

Danfeng and the flower fairies brewed two jars of wine, one for the vulture and one for the demons. The demons, hearing that drinking this wine could grant immortality, were already salivating. The vulture had barely finished half of the jar when the other demons scrambled to devour it. The wine was incredibly sweet, but soon he felt dizzy and his limbs numb. Seeing the opportunity had arrived, Guyu rushed out, axe in hand. The vulture cried out, “Oh no!” “Then he started fighting with Guyu; the flower fairies and the little demons also fought together. Vulture had been ill for a long time and had drunk medicinal wine, so even his magic was difficult to use. After less than two rounds, he was knocked to the ground by Guyu’s axe. The little demons were dazed and their hands and feet were not working. They could only see human figures swaying in front of them. Some mistook stones for people and hit them randomly. Some mistook their own kind for fairies and killed each other, pushing and shoving each other, and making strange noises. Guyu swung his axe, cutting left and right like a wheel, and killed all the demons in an instant.

Danfeng was about to leave the cave, pulling Guyu and the other flower fairies with him, when a flying sword pierced Guyu’s heart. He screamed and collapsed in a pool of blood! The vulture, though gravely wounded, was still alive. Seeing Guyu trying to leave, it attacked from behind. Danfeng, enraged, grabbed Guyu’s axe and hacked the struggling vulture into a pulp! Turning back, he embraced Guyu’s body, weeping uncontrollably.

Guyu died. Born and died on Guyu, he was only twenty-one when he was killed. Guyu was buried in Zhao Laoda’s Hundred Flowers Garden. From then on, the peonies and other flower fairies made Caozhou their home. Every Guyu season, the peonies bloomed to express their remembrance of Guyu.