The Play Read online

  (Recites)

  Sharply defined is the palace-hall moon leaning against the “celestial” tower,398 The song turns, goes higher, the cloudy night grows clearer;399 I’ve obtained by theft several kinds of new melody,400 When I play my flute in wine-houses, I’ll have some new music to finger.401

  Act Fifteen: Presenting fruit to the empress

  (Enter Hsi-chou402 posting-station messenger, grasping a pole, on which he bears a basket of lychees, and whipping his horse along)

  HSI-CHOU POSTING-STATION MESSENGER: (Sings)

  Alone for ten thousand miles I straddle my far-journey saddle,

  In order to present lychees to the empress,

  I undergo hardship and trouble.

  The emperor’s ordered me on this mission, so my hands are tied,

  I reckon government-career fame and fortune aren’t as good as staying out-of-work idle!

  I can’t wait get to Ch’ang-an,

  Just aiming for the Most-prized-empress to set eyes on this bundle.

  (Says)

  I’m the Hsi-chou Posting-station Messenger. Because milady Most-prized-empress Yang’s fond of eating fresh lychees, I’ve respectfully received the imperial command to go to Fu-chou,403 for that region to send in annual tribute of lychees. The weather’s hot, and it’s a long way away, but I just have to be fearlessly diligent, and make my horse fly on.

  (Whips his horses. Sings the last three lines of the previous song again. Exit racing.)

  (Enter Hai-nan404 Circuit Posting-station Messenger, holding a basket of lychees, and whipping his horse along in haste)

  HAI-NAN-CIRCUIT POSTING-STATION MESSENGER: (Sings)

  The lychees of Hai-nan have a special sweet taste,

  Empress Yang in eating them takes such delight.

  When they’re picked, they’re wrapped-up along with their leaves,

  Fastened and sealed, and stored in a small bamboo basket.

  To present them to the throne, I don’t halt my steed dawn till night,

  Fearing all the way to dally,

  Galloping from one posting-station to the next.

  (Says)

  I’m the Hai-nan-circuit Posting-station Messenger. Milady Empress Yang is fond of eating fresh lychees, and the ones produced in our Hai-nan region surpass those of Fu-chou, so because of that I’ve received the imperial command to present ours along with those of Fu-chou. But the road from our Hai-nan is even longer than that from Fu-chou, and after seven days the delicious taste of the lychees deteriorates, so I’ll just have to rush there at a flying gallop.

  (Whips horse, and sings the last two lines of the previous aria again). Exit in haste.)

  (Enter elderly farmer)

  ELDERLY FARMER: (Sings)

  A farmer’s ploughing and planting’s so much hardship and pains,

  Worrying about drought, then worrying about rains.

  The whole year we depend on these few stems and corn-sprouts,

  When we harvest them, half goes to pay off government taxes,

  And poor us!

  how many can we get into our stomachs of the grains!

  Every day, we look forward to crops’ ripening.

  Beseeching Heaven and worshipping the gods

  for their help that us sustains.

  (Says)

  I’m an old farmer of Eastern Village in Chin-ch’eng county.405 There’s eight of us in our family, and we rely solely on these couple of acres of meagre land for our livelihood. This morning I heard say that the posting-station messenger taking lychees to be delivered to the empress is taking short cuts all the way along his journey, so I wonder how many grain-sprouts of other people’s farm-fields he’s trampled flat?! That’s why I’ve come into my fields, to keep a watch over the them.

  (Gazes)

  There are two fortune-tellers over there, coming this way.

  (Enter, travelling together, a blind fortune-teller holding a stick, and a blind woman playing a Three-string Banjo.406)

  BLIND FORTUNE-TELLER and BLIND WOMAN: (Sing)

  We dwell in Pao city,407

  Frequent Hsien-ching,408

  Looking in detail at the Fortune

  of the Flowing Year409 and the Five Planets.410

  Life and death,

  We judge with discernment and clarity,

  And as soon as we open wide our trusty Iron Lips,411

  we’re famed in all places.

  Blind Taoist,

  Truly effective in prognostications and sage,

  Calling a cry of “We surpass the immortals!”,

  I come to tell your fortunes.

  BLIND WOMAN: Old fellow, we’ve walked a few leagues, and today my feet are hurting, and I truly can’t walk any further. Talk about predicting others’ lives, we’re now just about collapsing in our death-throes!

  BLIND FORTUNE-TELLER: Mum, there’s someone talking over there. Let me ask him a question.

  (Calls out) Might I ask you, yon gentleman: what’s this place here?

  MAN: This is East Village in Chin-ch’eng city.412 It shares a border with West Village in Wei-ch’eng city.413

  BLIND FORTUNE-TELLER: (Bowing) Many thanks for your guidance, sir.

  (Sound of small bells backstage)

  (Blind fortune-teller gazes) Ah, there’s a band of horsemen coming this way.

  ELDERLY FARMER: (Calls out) You gentlemen bosses on horseback, keep to the main highway: don’t trample the young corn in my fields!

  BLIND FORTUNE-TELLER: (To one side, says to blind woman) Mum, let’s be glad it’s not far to the capital. Let’s press on, calling out our sales-cries, and hire a little donkey for you to ride on.

  (Re-sings the four final lines of the preceding song as they walk along)

  (Enter Hsi-chou Posting-station Messenger in a hurry, whipping his horse and re-singing the three final lines of his opening song of this act. He charges at the Blind Fortune-teller and Blind Woman and knocks them over. Exit.)

  (Enter Hai-nan-circuit Posting-station Messenger, in a hurry, whipping his horse and re-singing the two final lines of his song above. His horse tramples the Blind Fortune-teller to death. Exit.)

  ELDERLY FARMER: (Stumbling over, facing the stage-door and weeping) Oh Heaven! Look, a whole stretch of my farm grain has all been stamped to a mash by that fellow, and looks as if it’s no use any more. Not to mention that me and all my family will now find it impossible to keep ourselves alive, and we’re in a crisis just now about government grain-tax, so how are we going to manage to pay it? Such terrible hardship!

  BLIND WOMAN: (To one side scrambling to her feet.) Help, he’s trampled and crushed someone. My old chap, where are you?

  (Groping and feels Blind Fortune-teller) Ah, it’s my old fellow! Why isn’t he making any sound? I suppose he must have been trampled unconscious?

  (Feels Blind Fortune-teller again and sniffs her hand) Oh, that’s bad: the trampling’s knocked out his brain-juice!

  (Weeps and calls out) Oh my Heavens! Village beadle, help, save us!

  ELDERLY FARMER: (Turns around and looks) Why it’s a Taoist Fortune-teller, been trampled to death over there.

  (Blind woman stands up, and puts her sleeves together to greet him with the female greeting “Ten Thousand blessings!”)

  BLIND WOMAN: I just beg you, beadle, get that man galloping his horse to come and pay for this with his life.

  ELDERLY FARMER: Oh dear no, that galloping man’s delivering tribute of fresh lychees to Empress Yang, and all along his route goodness knows how many people he’s trampled and destroyed, but I wouldn’t be so foolhardy as to demand he pay for it with his life for all them, let alone for this blind bloke of yours!

  BLIND WOMAN: In that case, what am I to do?

  (Weeps) My old man, I did predict you’d die stretched out dead on the road here! But now how am I to dispose of your corpse!

  ELDERLY FARMER: All right then. You go and call the local constable. Just let you and me carry it off and bury it. eh.

  B
LIND WOMAN: In that case, many thanks, and I’ll go with you and be your wife. That’s a great idea, isn’t it!

  (They carry the Blind Fortune-teller together. Blind woman weeps, does comedy.414 Exeunt)

  (Enter Posting-station groom)

  POSTING-STATION GROOM: (Sings)

  Posting-station boss has decamped,

  Posting-station boss has decamped,

  Horses died, this one single “horse-prick” me all to remain!

  Just this one posting-station fellow,

  Gets of the tax money or tax grain not even half a portion.

  He’s left in the lurch, up for beatings and cursings,

  Left to fend on his own!

  Left to fend on his own!

  (Says)

  I’m a posting-station groom in the posting-station in Wei-ch’eng city. Just because Empress Yang’s fond of eating fresh lychees, and on the First Day of the Sixth Month it’s her birthday, the posting-station messengers of the two regions Fu-chou and Hai-nan both have to rush to the imperial palace. Their routes go past this posting-station, but, what can I do? We haven’t got a cents worth of tax money or grain here in the station, and only one thin horse left. My boss, the local mandarin of this station, being afraid of a beating, has fled I don’t know where, so my little self is in provisional charge of this posting-station. If any posting-station messengers arrive, how am I to deal with their needs! I’ll just leave things up to them!

  (Enter the Hsi-chou Posting-station Messenger on a horse at full gallop)

  HSI-CHOU POSTING-STATION MESSENGER: (Sings)

  In yellow-dust shadows, the sun holds the mountains in its mouth,415

  I hurry, hurry, hurry,

  And am near to Ch’ang-an city.

  (Dismounts) Posting-station Groom, hurry up and change the horse.

  (Posting-station Groom takes his horse from him, and the Hsi-chou Posting-station Messenger puts his fruit-basket down and tidies his clothing)

  (Enter Hai-nan-circuit Posting-station Messenger on horse at full gallop)

  HAI-NAN-CIRCUIT POSTING-STATION MESSENGER:

  (Sings)

  I rain sweat all over my body, and my four limbs are numb,

  Galloping, galloping, galloping ever,

  I change my travel-saddle for another.

  (Dismounts) (Says)

  Posting-station Groom, hurry up and give me a change of horse.

  (Posting-station Groom takes the horse from him, and the Hai-nan-circuit Posting-station Messenger puts down his fruit-basket, and meets with Hsi-chou Posting-station Messenger)

  HAI-NAN-CIRCUIT POSTING-STATION MESSENGER: Greetings! Are you also delivering lychees to the imperial court, excellent sir?

  HSI-CHOU POSTING-STATION MESSENGER: Yes, indeed.

  HAI-NAN-CIRCUIT POSTING-STATION MESSENGER: Posting-station Groom, where’s the Next-posting-stage Meal-with-wine for us?

  POSTING-STATION GROOM: I’ve not been able to prepare one.

  HAI-NAN-CIRCUIT POSTING-STATION MESSENGER: All right then. We won’t have a meal. Hurry up and bring our horses here.

  POSTING-STATION GROOM: With all due respect to you two posting-station messengers, this posting-station has got only one horse left. It’s solely up to you to decide which of your two excellencies rides off on it.

  HAI-NAN-CIRCUIT POSTING-STATION MESSENGER: Tcha! Such a big Wei-ch’eng city posting-station, so how come you’ve only got one horse! Quickly call that dog of a mandarin station-head of yours here, and we’ll ask him where all the posting-station horses have gone.

  POSTING-STATION GROOM: Now you mention posting-station horses, year in year out they’ve all been ridden to death by the gentlemen delivering lychees to the imperial court. There was nothing the station-head mandarin could have done about it, so now he’s run away.

  HAI-NAN-CIRCUIT POSTING-STATION MESSENGER: Well, since the station-head mandarin’s run away, there’s only you for us to ask for them.

  POSTING-STATION GROOM: (Pointing) Isn’t that a horse in the corral?

  HSI-CHOU POSTING-STATION MESSENGER: I got here first, Posting-station Groom. So give it to me to ride off on first.

  HAI-NAN-CIRCUIT POSTING-STATION MESSENGER: I’ve come a longer way, from Hai-nan, so it was better if you let me ride off first.

  (Hsi-chou Posting-station Messenger faces backstage)

  HSI-CHOU POSTING-STATION MESSENGER: (Sings)

  I’ll just change horses first,

  I’m not going with you to have a ruction.

  (Hai-nan-circuit Posting-station Messenger tugs at him)

  HAI-NAN-CIRCUIT POSTING-STATION MESSENGER: (Sings)

  Don’t try and play it tough,

  You’ll sting me into action.

  (Hsi-chou Posting-station Messenger takes lychees in his hands)

  HSI-CHOU POSTING-STATION MESSENGER: (Sings)

  Would you dare wildly throw down and scatter these lychees of mine!

  HAI-NAN-CIRCUIT POSTING-STATION MESSENGER: (Taking lychees and facing Hsi-chou Posting-station Messenger, sings)

  Would you dare tear this bamboo basket of mine to tatter on tatter!

  POSTING-STATION GROOM: (Trying to dissuade them) (Sings)

  Please cease and stop,

  Eschew angry roaring,

  It was better you rode this one skinny horse

  all the way together!

  (Hai-nan-circuit Posting-station Messenger puts down his basket, and hits Posting-station Groom)

  HAI-NAN-CIRCUIT POSTING-STATION MESSENGER. (Sings)

  Tcha!

  Balderdash blether!

  (Says)

  I’ll just give you a beating you dissolute, filthy death-row inmate!

  (Hsi-chou Posting-station Messenger puts down his lychees and hits Posting-station Groom)

  HSI-CHOU POSTING-STATION MESSENGER: (Sings)

  And I’ll beat you, too, you vicious thief-chief obdurate!

  HAI-NAN-CIRCUIT POSTING-STATION MESSENGER: (Sings)

  Embezzling government horses,

  Your mouth is too oily slick!

  HSI-CHOU POSTING-STATION MESSENGER: (Sings)

  You’ve misappropriated the emperor’s expenses,

  As big as a measuring-cup your cheek.

  (They beat him together)

  TOGETHER: (Sing)

  We play our whips wildly,

  With our fists we thump you thoroughly,

  We’ll beat you unbearably,

  So those horses turn up automatically!

  (Posting-station Groom kow-tows)

  POSTING-STATION GROOM: (Sings)

  I kow-tow on the ground again and again repeatedly,

  Hoping Your Honours will draw back your hands,

  and go lightly.

  HSI-CHOU POSTING-STATION MESSENGER and HAI-NAN-CIRCUIT POSTING-STATION MESSENGER: If you want us to spare you, quickly change our horses.

  POSTING-STATION GROOM: (Sings)

  There’s still one horse now present ready in this posting-station,

  HSI-CHOU POSTING-STATION MESSENGER and HAI-NAN-CIRCUIT POSTING-STATION MESSENGER: We need another horse, too.

  POSTING-STATION GROOM: (Sings)

  A second horse will be truly impossible to scrape together.

  HSI-CHOU POSTING-STATION MESSENGER and HAI-NAN-CIRCUIT POSTING-STATION MESSENGER: If you haven’t got one, we’ll just keep beating you up!

  POSTING-STATION GROOM: (Sings)

  Go easy with your wrenching, won’t you,

  Please listen to this deposition of mine:

  I’ll just have to pull off my smock

  and give it you to pawn for wine.

  (Pulls off smock)

  HSI-CHOU POSTING-STATION MESSENGER: Who wants that smock of yours!

  (Hai-nan-circuit Postal-station Messenger looks at the smock, and wraps it round himself)

  HAI-NAN-CIRCUIT POSTING-STATION MESSENGER: All right then. What’s important is to hurry on along our way. I’ll go and change horses at the next posting station

  (Picks up his bas
ket of fruit, mounts horse. Re-sings last two lines of second song of this act. Exit at a rush)

  HSI-CHOU POSTING-STATION MESSENGER: Hurry up and give me the exchange horse for me to ride.

  POSTING-STATION GROOM: Here’s the horse.

  (Hsi-chou Posting-station Messenger picks up fruit and mounts horse. Re-sings three final lines of the first aria of this act)

  (Posting-station Groom does a Final Scene.)

  POSTING-STATION GROOM: Ah me, Empress Yang, Empress Yang, all this just because you want those few lychees!

  (Recites)

  Iron door-bars and gold locks are open all day through,416

  At last the words of imperial command return on their Yellow Paper417 & 418 The sound of the posting-station horseman’s whip’s a crack of flowing lightning,419 Nobody knows that it’s the lychees coming hither.420

  Act Sixteen: Dancing on a tray

  (Enter emperor leading two eunuch attendants, followed by Eunuch-chamberlain Kao)

  SHINING AUGUST-EMPEROR. (Sings)

  My mountains are quiet. the breeze slight,

  and the clepsydra drags the daytime long,

  Shining at the corner of my palace-hall,

  the fiery clouds stretch ten thousand feet;

  The Scarlet Vapour421 comes from the east,

  As I gaze west to Jasper Mere,422

  The fluttering Green Bird423 alights to the fore of my court.

  (Says)

  I and Empress Yang are taking a holiday on Mount Li to avoid the summer heat. It’s now the First Day of the Sixth Month of the year, which is Empress Yang’s birthday. I’ve specially had a feast set out in my Lasting-life Palace-hall to celebrate it for her, and at the same time to have the new melody Rainbow-skirt performed. Eunuch Chamberlain Kao, convey my command to the Rear Palace for Empress Yang to come here to this palace-hall.