ENG
Gaping mouth, round belly, born incomplete,
Bulky form, craving and chasing tasty treats.
Greedy for flavors, it longs for delight,
Wagging its tongue, it speaks in spite.
One spring, the Webbed Ridge hosted a grand banquet to mark the blossoming of the flowers. A young guai from Mount Wushan, having presented the gift, saw the ladies chatting and laughing at the feast and decided to join the other guais in the cave for drinks and merriment.
A few cups in, the guais began to jest with each other. A pig guai remarked, "I'd rather live in this rich hollow of yours, with banquets for every season and festival. Back in our place, the Lady is too strict to allow any fun."
A proud insect guai responded, "Our ladies in the cave often host banquets to keep the mistress company. We may not compare to the halls of the Celestial Court, but our second lady has some businesses in the mortal world, so we're not short on silver. It's tough, though; if she didn't find ways to bring in money, we wouldn't have made it this far."
Another pig guai added, "Beautiful and elegant are all your ladies. I wonder which celestial mountain is fortunate enough to be where they might start their new families."
The insect guai laughed, "Our ladies can't leave this place. The businesses outside are managed by carefully chosen people. Since we only take bridegrooms who marry into the family, the talented ones don't want to come, and the ladies don't fancy those who do. Look over there, those four scorpions; their family is in decline, and their descendants are unworthy. Only one is somewhat acceptable, but not one of our ladies would marry him. Whoever gets unlucky will marry him on a fateful day, so they say."
The guais laughed heartily, enjoying themselves, when suddenly there was a shout, "Oh no! The ladies are quarreling!"
A panting pig guai in charge ran over, shouting, "The mistress in the cave has lost her mind. She got into a fight with our Lady over a few words from a maid and even smashed the very gift that was brought."
The guais were all startled. The clever ones quickly wrapped some food in lotus leaves and handed it to the pig guais as an apology, "Next time, we'll make sure there's no misunderstanding. Sorry for spoiling the fun."
"All right, all right!" The pig guais took the food and hurriedly followed the steward out, asking, "What exactly happened?"
"Who knows? It's all too odd. Every time we come, there's a commotion. I've heard their mistress is always quite muddle-headed..."
The opening lines describe a creature with a big mouth and round belly that seems born unfinished, always hungry for new tastes and quick to stick out its tongue and talk. That short poem sets the tone: these beings love food, talk a lot, and are driven by appetite and pleasure.
The scene takes place one spring at Webbed Ridge, which is holding a banquet to celebrate the flowers. A young guai from Mount Wushan arrives with a gift and, after seeing the women at the feast laughing and chatting, decides to leave the main hall and join the other guais who are drinking and joking in a cave nearby.
Among the guais in the cave there are different kinds: pig guais and insect guais are named in the conversation, and they talk about their lives and ladies. The pig guais complain about strict mistresses back home who won’t allow fun. The insect guais explain that their ladies regularly host banquets and that a “second lady” runs businesses in the mortal world, which brings in silver so they can afford comforts. They also explain marriage customs: the household only accepts bridegrooms who marry into the family, which keeps out talented outsiders and makes finding good matches hard.
The conversation turns to gossip about a scorpion family that’s fallen on hard times and how none of the insect guais’ ladies would marry their descendants. The laughter stops when someone shouts that the ladies are quarreling. A panting pig guai who seems to be in charge rushes over and reports that the mistress in the cave “lost her mind,” fought with their Lady over a maid’s remark, and smashed the gift the young guai had brought.
Afterward the guais are startled and try to patch things up: the clever ones wrap food in lotus leaves and give it to the pig guais as an apology, and those pig guais hurry out after their steward to find out exactly what happened. The steward can only shrug that such commotions happen every time they visit and that the mistress is known to be muddle-headed. The scene ends with clear tensions: social status, money, marriage rules, gossip, and a volatile mistress have disrupted what should have been a celebratory banquet.