s in those distant regions."

That same night preparations were made for the marriage; and the
rooms and passages were filled with damsels who passed and repassed,
filling the air with the sound of their dancing and music. They
surrounded Ch'un-yue and kept up a constant fire of witty remarks,
while he sat there overcome by their grace and beauty, unable to say
a word. "Do you remember," said one of them, coming up to Ch'un-yue,
"the other day when with the Lady Ling-chi I was listening to the
service in the courtyard of a temple, and while I, with all the other
girls, was sitting on the window step, you came up to us, talking
nonsense, and trying to get up a flirtation? Don't you remember how
we tied a handkerchief on the stem of a bamboo?" Then she continued:
"Another time at a temple, when I threw down two gold hairpins and an
ivory box as an offering, you asked the priest to let you look at the
things, and after admiring them for a long time you turned toward me,
and said that neither the gifts nor the donor were of this world;
and you wanted to know my name, and where I lived, but I wouldn't
tell you; and then you gazed on me so tenderly, and could not take
your eyes off me. You remember this, without doubt?" "I have ever
treasured the recollection in my heart; how could I possibly forget
it?" was Ch'un-yue's reply, whereat all the maidens exclaimed that they
had never expected to see him in their midst on this joyful occasion.

At this moment three men came up to Ch'un-yue and stated that they
had been appointed his ministers. He stepped up to one of them
and asked him if his name was not Tzu-hua. "It is," was the reply;
whereupon Ch'un-yue, taking him by the hands, recalled to him their
old friendship, and questioned him as to how he had found his way
to this spot. He then proceeded to ask him if Chou-pien was also
here. "He is," replied the other, "and holding very high office;
he has often used his influence on my behalf."

As they were talking, Ch'un-yue was summoned to the palace, and as he
passed within, a curtain in front of him was drawn aside, disclosing
a young girl of about fourteen years of age. She was known as the
Princess of the Golden Stem, and her dazzling beauty was well in
keeping with her matchless grace.

He writes to his Father

The marriage was celebrated with all magnificence, and the young
couple grew fonder from day to day. Their establishment was kept up
in princely style, their