Formal story texts: The Story of General Xiang

Home > Language > Archive > General Xiang

Previous Lite Next Wordlist Pronunciation

（Play All）Formal story texts: The Story of General Xiang

Tian Jinggui, Dianfang Township, Longshan County
recorded on 30 May 2002

This text tells the traditional story of General Xiang, one of the three great quasi-historical (c.10th century) heroes of the Tujia in Xiangxi, along with Hero Tian and Duke Peng. The tale contrasts the integrity of General Xiang with the duplicity of the emperor. Even in death General Xiang's integrity wins the day. This is a prepared text, written down using Chinese characters as phonetic aide-memoires to indicate Tujia words.

01	ba³ti³ xian²lao¹guan¹reng³-nie³ gu¹ lao⁴ li³. Let me tell you the story of General Xiang.
02	xian¹xi¹ bi²zi¹ka³ wo²tu¹ hu²ni¹ ha⁴ri³-nie³ di¹ga³-nie³ luo⁴ suo¹ hu³ xie², la² hu³ peng³gong¹ jiao²zu¹, la² hu³ xian²lao¹guan¹reng³, sang¹ hu³ tian³hao¹hang². lei⁴ mo³ xian²lao¹guan¹reng³-nie³ gu¹ lao⁴ li³. Every Tujia person in Xiangxi has heard of these three great historical figures: Duke Peng, General Xiang, and Hero Tian. Today I'm going to tell you the story of General Xiang.
03	xian²lao¹guan¹reng³ nie²kuo³lai² jie³-la¹, sa³li³-hhe¹, wu¹ni³zi³ xie². ai¹ la² long¹, long³ma³zui¹ pu²meng³ a³si³ lao⁴ ci¹ba¹ ti³-lie³ luo⁴ zu²-diu². General Xiang's real name was Ye Kelai. He was an eloquent speaker, and also excelled in martial arts. He became famous one year after obtaining a white dragon-horse at Longmazui.
04	tu¹wan³ guo² bo³ sa³ si⁴-lie³ ga²me¹ lao⁴ po¹-lie³, luo⁴die¹ guo² jiu¹ xian²lao¹guan¹reng³ jie³-la¹. The local Tujia chieftain made him an official, and so people called him General Xiang.
05	huan³di² ha⁴ri³-lie³ guo² yi³-ya¹ca¹, tu¹wan³ jiu¹ guo² duo³ jing²gong¹-xie², guo² li² ta²pa⁴ ce²ce¹-die¹ huo³-bo³, ma⁴ a³si³ jia¹-lie³ jing¹ceng³ ye⁴. When the emperor heard about him he wanted to meet him, so the chieftain sent him to the capital to pay tribute. He arrived in the capital, riding on his white horse, and bearing tiger skins, honey, and other local products.
06	huan³di² guo² ka⁴, re² hu³-zu² guo² si¹lie³: "luo⁴ li³-xi² xi⁴, se² eng¹ge¹ ye³ tai², kuo¹ tai², ngo⁴ tai², kang³ku¹-nie³ ye³ huo³-bo³ wo¹ si², sou³ma¹?" The emperor held a banquet for him, and when they were drinking wine together, he said to Xiang: "I hear your area is very poor, and has no gold, silver, or any other valuable goods, so you had to bring me these local products as tribute - isn't that so?"
07	xian²lao¹guan¹reng³ nie⁴-bo³ li³: "eng¹di¹ ye³-die¹ kuo¹-nie³ ngo⁴-nie³ ai¹ ya ca²-nie¹, kuo¹ xie² ngo⁴ xie², pii¹-duo³-ta¹ti¹; ang² ge³ sang¹ zou¹ lu² dong² a, kuo¹ ri³ ngo⁴ ri³, ai¹ya¹ pu² pu³ xie², xie²-xi³tai² a!" General Xiang smiled and said: "These gifts are better than silver and gold, they cannot be bought with gold or silver. In our three prefectures and six districts there is gold and silver everywhere, as well as dragons and phoenixes, truly we are very rich!"
08	huan³di² guo² si¹lie³: "se² cu¹ qi²ma¹ la?" Then the emperor asked: "What is your home like?"
09	xian²lao¹guan¹reng³ li³: "ang² cu¹ xie²ma¹ka³ ze³-da², hi² hi² hi² ka³tong³ li⁴ti³ ti¹, hi² hi² hi² hi² la¹meng³ zu² qi⁴lie³; General Xiang replied: "My house is not like a rich man's house, as it is only built on a thousand pillars and there are but ten thousand doors.
10	re²su⁴ ruo⁴ hhi³, su³su³ tie⁴tie³ ti²-nie³ cuo⁴; [ye³] hi²-nie³ luo⁴ ka³ wo⁴, [nie³] hi²-nie³ luo⁴ ce³ ke⁴; bu⁴ suo¹ ca¹ ce³ da³ mo³ la²bu¹ ye⁴. ai¹ la² nie¹ bang² tang¹ ruo⁴ lao⁴ ha³-lie³ suo¹ nie¹ la²bu¹ ga²-ci³ tai² a!" The wind sweeps the floor and the moon lights the lanterns in the house. Eighty carry firewood and seventy draw water; three salt-barges ferry salt. Once, when one of them overturned on the Last Eagle shoals, we had to do without salt for three days!"
11	huan³di² me³ wo²tu¹ ge⁴ mo³ si¹lie³: "se² cu¹ luo⁴ he²la³ xie², ye³ ga²-ci³ xie² ma?" The emperor was secretly amazed, so he asked: "There are so many people in your house, do they all have enough to eat?"
12	xian²lao¹guan¹reng³ li³: "ang² cu¹, qiao² ge³la¹bi¹ a³bu³ cuo⁴, qiao² gu³la¹bi¹ tuo²ga¹ xie², la² cuo⁴ he¹he¹ ye³ cu⁴ mo³ ku¹za⁴ da⁴ze³. General Xiang replied: "On one side of my house is a barn for kudzu vine, and on the other a barn for bracken; the food in them is heaped up like mountains.
13	suo¹ qi¹ ta²ci¹-nie³ yan¹si¹ huo³lie³ cuo⁴ la¹meng³ tong², ye³ di⁴ ye³ ong¹-xie², ong¹-lie³ tuo¹-ta¹-duo³." The key to the barns weighs three and a half pounds, and if anyone wants food, they can just take as much they want, without having to pay anything back."
14	hang²la³, xian²lao¹guan¹reng³ ka³ cu¹ ye³ tai², mu⁴nie³ huo³lie³ wo³-bo³-xi², dong³qi²dong³ga²-nie³ ka¹ba¹ cuo⁴ la² cuo¹ xie². In actual fact, General Xiang's family was very poor. They lived in a decrepit thatched hut where there were huge gaps in the bamboo walls.
15	ye³ hi² se¹tong¹-nie³ a³ba¹ ka³ wo⁴, nie³ hi² se¹tong¹-nie³ a¹nie³ ce³ ke⁴; guo² a, suo¹ qi¹ ta²ci¹-nie³ pii¹ki¹ be⁴-lie³ a³bu³ tuo²ga¹ di³-bo³ nie⁴ka¹. His eighty year old father carried firewood and his seventy year old mother fetched water, whilst he shouldered his three and a half pound hoe to go and dig for kudzu vine and bracken to enable them to survive.
16	sa⁴ suo¹ long³ long⁴-bo³-la¹, sa⁴lie¹ huo³lie³ la²bu¹ a²li¹ mo³ ga². ai¹ la² nie¹, bang² guo² lao⁴ di¹die⁴-lu³, sa⁴lie¹ tao², suo¹ nie¹ la²bu¹ ga²-ci³ tao². He kept three ducks, to get a bit of salt by bartering their eggs, but one day an eagle carried off one of the ducks, so for three days there were no eggs or salt.
17	huan³di² li³: "se² ge³ ye³ gei⁴di³ a, yi²si¹ tu¹mang³zi³, qiao²se¹-nie³ luo⁴ tai², sa³ tie²ba¹ ri¹-ta¹ti¹." The emperor went on to say: "You lot, you are all barbarians, there are no capable men who can do great deeds."
18	xian²lao¹guan¹reng³ me³-lie¹ he²ba³ mo³ li³: "ang²ni¹ a, sang¹ zou¹ wo³ dong² a, qiao²se¹ ca²-nie³ luo⁴ xie², li³-hhe¹, ri¹-hhe¹; ce³ da³ mo³ pu² xi⁴, ku¹ca⁴ gu³-bo³ li² ji¹, re²su⁴ me²ze³ jie³, seng³xian³ guo² duo³ ge⁴." General Xiang replied haughtily: "Our three prefectures and six districts are full of able men, both with pen and sword; they wrestle with the flood dragon in the rivers, and catch tigers in the mountains; the wind and rain are at their beck and call, and even the immortals submit to them."
19	zeng¹ li³-nie³-zu², li³-nie³ jing² ca²-zu², hou²gong¹ mi⁴ gi³-liao³, huan³di² ge⁴ mo³ qi²ma¹ ri¹-duo³ ha¹tai², Just as he was warming to his subject, the concubines' palace quarters caught fire, and the emperor panicked, at a complete loss as to what he should do.
20	xian²lao¹guan¹reng³ li³: "eng¹di¹ sa³ bi²kui¹ la, huan³sang² ni² ge⁴-ta¹-duo³." li³-zu² le, a²ce¹ suo¹ ze² hu³-lie³ hou²gong¹ wo²tu¹-bo³ la² dong² peng², mi⁴ se²-liao³. General Xiang reassured him: "Your Majesty, don't be afraid, this is just a small matter." So saying, he drank three mouthfuls of tea and spat them out towards the concubines' quarters, putting out the fire.
21	hou²gong¹ tong²-lie³ ze²: "mo¹cai³ me² tie²ba¹ ze³-lie³ mi⁴ tao²." huan³di² xi⁴-liao³, ge⁴ mo³ yi²la¹ bie⁴-bo³ mo³ la²xie¹ duo³ ku²ru¹-ta¹tiu¹. From the concubines' quarters came the report that a sudden squall had put out the fire. The emperor was so frightened when he heard this that his tongue hung out of his mouth, and for a long time he was not able to draw it back.
22	huan³di² me³-lie¹ xian²lao¹guan¹reng³ za²xi¹-si³tai² a, guo² guo² a³-bo³ jian¹sang¹ ka⁴-i, huan³di² li³: "ni² ta⁴ song¹kuo¹-gu², nga² da⁴ha³ ge³ nie⁴ cai² ka¹-gu²!" The emperor realised that General Xiang had amazing abilities, and wanted him to stay in the capital to help protect the nation: "Don't go back, why not stay with me and enjoy prosperity and a high position here?"
23	xian²lao¹guan¹reng³ kuo¹ba¹ qi⁴qi³-bo³ li³: "ni² ge³ jing¹long³bao¹dian² a, ang² eng¹ge¹ wan²bao¹ ku¹ca⁴-lie¹; se² ge³-nie³ luo⁴die¹ nie⁴ cai² ka¹-hhe¹, sa³ ri¹-ci¹hhe¹; But General Xiang shook his head and replied: "You have a gilded palace here, we live on Wanbao [Ten Thousand Treasures] Mountain. You only know how to enjoy yourselves, but don't know how to do anything.
24	ang² eng¹ge¹-nie³ luo⁴die¹ jie²ri¹-xi² ca², qie⁴ ri¹ duo³ heng⁴, kuo¹ di³ ngo⁴ di³ mo³ nie⁴ka¹-bo³ cai² xie²." We are hard-working folk, excelling at whatever we do. We spend our days happily digging for gold and silver."
25	huan³di² guo² a³po¹li¹, guo² ta⁴ ce³; huan³di² guo² song¹kuo¹-lie³ jian¹sang¹ a⁴yi³-xi² ge⁴, me³-lie¹ ta⁴-nie³ sa³ ze²; The emperor tried again and again to persuade him to stay, but he adamantly refused. The emperor was afraid that after he returned he would rebel and usurp the throne, and would say bad things about him.
26	zu²-bo³ mo³ re²ti¹ku¹ lao⁴ lie², re² hu³-lie³ guo²duo³ se². guo² bo³ li³: "ni² huo³-lie³ se² eng¹ge¹-nie³ luo⁴die¹ [hu³], hu²ni¹ da⁴ la² ze² hu³." So as General Xiang was leaving, the emperor gave him a flagon of [poisoned] wine, which would kill him when he drank it. Moreover, he told him: "Take this wine back with you to your people and drink it together in each other's company."
27	xian²lao¹guan¹reng³ luo⁴zi², guo² guo² re² huo³-lie³ se²-xi² ha¹tai², re²ti¹ku¹ huo³-bo³ [pu²meng³] a³si³ jia¹-lie³ song¹kuo¹-diu². General Xiang was a straightforward man and took the wine, never thinking for a moment that it would kill him. So clutching the flagon of wine, he rode back home on his white dragon-horse.
28	yan³leng³ be²ma¹du² ye⁴-lie³ ze²ga³-la¹-hu³, guo² jiu¹ re² la² ze² hu³, kuo¹ba¹ ye³luo³-la¹-hu³, me³ di²-xi³tai², eng²qi⁴ luo²bu¹ mie⁴ zu²-diu², jiu¹ meng³ ga³ ong³-bo³ mo³ se²-liao³. When they reached Baimadu in Yuanling, he began to feel thirsty, so he drank a mouthful of wine. At once his head began to spin, his stomach became unbearably painful, and blood gushed out of from his nose and eyes. He died, still seated on his horse.
29	pu²meng³ a³si³ luo⁴ sa³ hao⁴ri³, xian²lao¹guan¹reng³ wo⁴ mo³ be¹ce³cu¹cu¹ mo³ jing¹ceng³-bo³ xi⁴ca³-lie³ huan³di² da⁴ha³ si¹lie³. The white dragon-horse understood human nature, so with General Xiang's body on its back and tears streaming down its face, it galloped back to the capital to denounce the emperor.
30	huan³di² yi³-lie³, guo²duo³ a¹ye³ ri¹-bo³-xi² ge⁴ mo³ se². When the emperor saw them, he knew he had done wrong and was frightened to death.
31	guo² luo⁴se²tu¹ bo³ li³: "nga² ni² bo³ nie³ nie³ re¹ hi² ge¹-nie³ dao²cang³ ri¹-i, ang²ni¹ hu²ni¹ da⁴ ni² bo³ jie²zu¹ a³si³ die⁴-bo³ si²-lie³ bong³." He addressed the corpse: "I will give you the full forty-nine days of funerary rites, and I and the entire court will dress in mourning for your burial."
32	luo⁴se²tu¹ ei¹ya¹ geng¹ke⁴-ta¹-zu², huan³di² li³: "nga² ta¹nie³ku³ ka⁴, ni² lang³qi¹-cai³ ka⁴, nga² ni² bo³ tu¹wan³ pu³sa³ lao⁴ po¹, hi² hi² hi² hi² long¹-nie³ ci¹ke¹ta¹ xian¹ sou², me² da⁴ha³ nie³hhe² hhe³, lao³ci³ su³su³ da⁴ha³ ku¹su³." But the corpse still did not topple, so the emperor added: "Let me rule this world and you the netherworld, I will deify you as the Tuwang god, so that you may enjoy the incense offerings of countless generations; you will live for ever, as bright as the sun and moon."
33	eng¹-zu², pu²meng³ a³si³ kuo¹ba¹ ga⁴ dong² ku²ku¹-lie³ xian²lao¹guan¹reng³ wo⁴-bo³ xian¹xi¹-bo³ eng³zou². At this, the white horse bowed, and galloped back to Xiangxi bearing General Xiang's corpse.
34	ta¹nie¹, bi²zi¹ka³ guo² die²-bo³ mo³ tu¹wan³gong¹ lao⁴ su²-lie³, peng³gong¹ jiao²zu¹ tian³hao¹hang² da⁴ha³ gong²-bo³ jing²-la¹. Afterwards, in order to commemorate him, the Tujia people built a Tuwang temple, and worshipped him alongside Duke Peng and Hero Tian.

n: below pn: General Xiang suff: ['s] n: story num+cl: one (person/animal) vt: to say pn: Xiangxi Prefecture (in north-west Hunan province) n: Tujia minority n: inside pron: everyone vt: to know advt: formerly n: person num: three cl: (for people) vt: to have num: one pn: Duke Peng (immortalised founder of Peng chieftainship) n: duke num: three pn: Hero Tian advt: today part: (until) pn: (name of a person) vt: to shout, call vsuff: [continuous, repetitive] n+vt: to speak vsuff: [know] n: martial arts pron: that cl: year pn: (name of a place) n: legendary 'dragon horse' vi: to be white n: large (one) vt: to get vsuff: [past] vi: to go out vsuff: [come+now] n: Tujia chieftain (later deified) pron: he part: (IO) n: words, matters vt: to use n: official vt: to place, pasture, release, shoot pron: (other) people conj: then n: emperor vt: to see vsuff: [want to] part: (agent) vi: to offer tribute vsuff: [come] n: tiger n: skin n: honey nsuff: [plural] vt: to hold vsuff: [stative] n: horse vt: to ride, drive n: capital vt: to arrive vt: to guard n: wine, spirits vt: to drink, smoke suff: [then] vt: to ask vsuff: [that which] vt: to hear pron: you (pl) advl: there n: thing vi: to not have n: gold n: silver n: (in the) mountains pron: I, me vt: to send expr: isn't that so? vi: to smile, laugh pron: this part: (excl) vi: to be good vsuff: [some] vt: to sell vsuff: [reach] vsuff: [can't] pron: we pron: this n: prefecture num: six n: former tribal region in minority areas part: (excl) vi: to be many advm: yet, still n: dragon n: phoenix vsuff: [very] n: home pron: how part: (excl) n: rich family vt: to resemble vsuff: [not] num: ten n: (wooden) pillar n: ground vt: to place n: door, gate vi: to enter n: wind n: ground vt: to sweep n: moon n: lamp vt: to light (lamp, candle) n: house num: eight n: firewood vt: to carry on the back num: seven n: water vt: to carry (usually with a carrying pole) n: boat cl: (for boats, cooking-tripods) vt: to go down part: (-wise) n: salt vt: to pull cl: day n: eagle n: beach, shoal vt: to hit vt: to eat, bite vsuff: [that which] n: belly vt: to fear advm: like this n: cooked rice, meal part: (excl) vt: to face advl: here n: kudzu vine advl: there n: bracken num: [each one] vt: to pack n: mountain vt: to resemble cl: catty (500g) num: [plus] n: key vt: to use vt: to open vt: to want vt: to borrow/lend (tool, etc) vt: to repay, give back vsuff: [won't] vsuff: [want] advm: like this n: bamboo vt: to surround vi: to be full of holes n: couch grass cl: (for houses) cl: year (of age) n: father n: mother n: hoe vt: to lift with both hands vt: to dig (up) vi: to live, get by n: duck cl: (for animals, fish, jars, logs, plants) vt: to give birth; to raise n: duck's egg vt: to exchange vt: to carry vsuff: [go] vt: to not have now pron: many; how many? advm: all n: barbarian vi: to be skilled n: large (one) vt: to work, do nsuff: [at, from] advm: such a big one pron: we num: six vt: to lead n: mountain vt: to go up vt: to fight n: rain n: immortal being advm: all advt: just n: strength n: concubines' palace n: fire vi: to be hot, to burn vsuff: [past+now] vt: to not know n: small (one) n: Your Majesty pron: you part: (new topic marker) n: tea (drink) cl: mouthful, sentence nsuff: [towards] cl: (for holes, mouthfuls) vi: to sneeze vi: to die vt: to tell advm: just now n: sky vt: (to rain) n: tongue vt: to leave, fall, shed n: a (long) while vt: to retract vsuff: [can't+now] vi: to be formidable vsuff: [very] vt: to fetch n: kingdom vsuff: [irrealis] neg: don't vi: to return vsuff: [now] pron: I, me advm: all, together n: day n: good (one) vt: to spend (time) n: head vt: to shake n: (palace name) pn: (name of a mountain) vsuff: [not know] vi: to labour pron: what vi: to be formidable vt: to repeatedly urge vi: to agree vt: to steal n: large wine jar vt: to give pron: (him)self vsuff: [go] advm: all, together vi: to be kind pn: Yuanling (town in north-west Hunan province) pn: (name of a place) vi: to be thirsty vsuff: [imminent] vi: to spin vi: to hurt n: nose n: eye n: blood n: horse n: on vi: to sit vt: to know expr: to cry copious tears vi: to run n: ghost n: corpse num: four num: nine n: funerary rites (Taoist or Buddhist) n: handkerchief, headcloth vt: to wear (a hat) vt: to bury expr: (excl) vi: to fall, topple advt: during the day advt: at night suff: [there/then] n: god, Buddhist idol n: paper n: incense vt: to send n: life(span) vi: to be long, far n: to shine (of the sun) vi: to be bright pron: this num: several, how many? cl: (for actions taking a short time to do) vi: to stoop vi: to come n: back vt: to think of n: temple to the deified Tujia chieftain vt: to build vt: to offer (in worship) vt: to show respect