Classic New Translation of The Carnal Prayer Mat Chapter 10

After bidding farewell to Sai Kunlun, Weiyangsheng moved into a temple to stay. This temple was the temporary palace of the child-giving Zhang Xian. There were not many rooms inside, and outsiders were never allowed to stay overnight. Because Weiyangsheng was willing to spend generously—elsewhere the rent was one tael of silver per month, but he offered two taels—the Taoist priests agreed to rent him the room. Why was he willing to pay such a high price? It was because the reputation of Zhang Xian in this temple was extremely renowned and unusually efficacious, attracting many women from far and near seeking children. Weiyangsheng intended to use this place as an examination hall for selecting beauties, which is why he went to great lengths to scheme his way in. Since moving in, several groups of women came to burn incense every day. Moreover, the women burning incense here were quite different from female devotees elsewhere—out of ten, one or two could still catch the eye. What was the reason? In other temples, most women burning incense were middle-aged or elderly, with few young girls, so it was impossible to pick out an attractive one on ordinary days. But the women who came to this temple were all seeking offspring. Elderly women past their prime had long ceased menstruation and had no hope of bearing children; middle-aged women nearing menopause had also lost interest in childbearing. Thus, those entering the temple to pray for sons were exclusively young married women, at most accompanied by one or two steady elders. Women in their prime fertility years from fourteen to twenty, regardless of their natural looks, carried a peony-like delicate glow on their faces, subtly captivating. Therefore, out of ten, there would surely be one or two pleasing to the eye. Every morning Weiyangsheng would rise, groom himself neatly, and pace before the altar and divine seat. When he saw a woman approaching from afar, he would slip behind the statue of Zhang Xian, listen to the Taoist report her prayer to the deity, and coldly observe her offering incense and bowing, taking in every detail of her face, figure, and every movement. Once satisfied, he would suddenly emerge from behind the statue. The women, caught off guard by his peerless handsome appearance, would all be startled, suspecting their sincerity had brought the clay Zhang Xian to life to deliver a son. Only after Weiyangsheng strode down the steps and swaggered about for a while did they realize he was human—yet their souls had already been half-snatched by this “living Zhang Xian.” The young women were left flustered, their eyes and brows conveying affection, reluctant to leave; some even deliberately dropped their handkerchiefs as tokens. Thereafter Weiyangsheng’s behavior grew even more frivolous and his thoughts more unrestrained; he even arrogantly believed that every beautiful woman in the world was his to enjoy at will. Upon entering the temple, he had specially bound a palm-sized pocket notebook, kept close in his jacket, with four characters inscribed on the cover—“Broadly Gather Spring Colors.” Any woman entering to burn incense who possessed some beauty was recorded in the book. Details such as her surname, age, husband’s name, and residence were all meticulously noted. Beside each name he used a vermilion brush to draw circles rating her rank: three circles for top grade, two for superior, one for average. After each name he painstakingly added a four-six parallel prose critique detailing her charms. How did Weiyangsheng learn so many women’s and their husbands’ names and addresses? Whenever a woman burned incense, a temple Taoist stood beside her reciting prayers to the deity and would inquire her name, age, which good patron’s wife she was, and which neighborhood and lane she lived in. Even if she was too shy to answer, her accompanying maidservant or servant woman would reply. Hidden in the shadows, Weiyangsheng memorized everything; once the worshipper left, he would take out his notebook and copy it down. Within days, nearly every woman of some beauty in the area had been collected by him. Yet although many women were recorded, they were merely of middling or superior looks; not a single top-grade beauty worthy of three circles had appeared. He pondered inwardly: “In this life I vowed to marry the world’s finest beauty. At first I married Yuxiang at home, thinking her peerless; now looking around, women equal to her are everywhere, so she is hardly the absolute best under heaven. How can there be second- and third-place beauties but no champion? There must be a top-ranked beauty elsewhere, only I have not encountered her yet. For now I shall keep the women in this notebook as alternatives; if I truly meet none better, I can use them to make up the numbers. I shall wait patiently a few more days and see what comes later.” From then on his standards grew stricter, refusing any compromise. One day, feeling drowsy, Weiyangsheng was lying in his room napping when a servant boy rushed in anxiously shouting, “Young master, get up quickly—extremely beautiful women have arrived outside!” Weiyangsheng hurriedly got out of bed, changed into a new headscarf and splendid robes, and still paused to check himself in the mirror, inevitably delaying some time. When he reached the hall and looked, he saw two young married women—one in silver-red, one in lotus-root color—accompanied by a middle-aged matron. The three had finished burning incense and were heading toward the temple gate. From a distance Weiyangsheng appraised the two young women and felt they were like the Goddess of Mount Wu or the Luo River fairy descended to earth, utterly unlike the common rouge-and-powder women he had seen before. His spirit was instantly captivated, lost in rapture. Seeing the three about to exit, he dashed forward like an arrow from a bow, “thud” kneeling outside the temple threshold, kowtowing repeatedly toward the inside. This startled the two servants and the incense Taoist, who feared the noble ladies would be angered and cause trouble on the spot. Yet although Weiyangsheng appeared deranged outwardly, his mind had calculated finely. He reasoned: if these three women were licentious by nature, they would understand he was kneeling out of uncontrollable admiration for their beauty and would not turn hostile; if they were proper, rule-abiding wives and truly became angry, he could claim he was a worshipper who had come from outside to pray to Zhang Xian, and upon seeing ladies inside had withdrawn outside to kowtow rather than intrude. How would they know he already lived in the temple? Having secured his retreat in advance, he believed himself invincible and thus dared act so brazenly. Sure enough, the three women, unaware of the truth, thought him a sincere believer desperate for a son and stepped aside to wait until he finished kowtowing before leaving. While bowing, the two young women glanced back at him, their expressions normal and showing no excessive emotion. Only the accompanying middle-aged matron repeatedly made eyes at Weiyangsheng, covering her mouth and giggling nonstop. Before leaving she turned back to give him several lingering looks from head to toe, then departed slowly. Weiyangsheng stood dazed for a long while, unable to speak. Only after their sedan chairs had gone a mile or two did he regain his senses and ask the incense Taoist whose women they were. Seeing his earlier reckless behavior had nearly caused trouble, the Taoist grumbled and refused to reveal a single word. Weiyangsheng wanted to follow the sedans to investigate, but knowing they were already too far, he had no choice but to return to his room in dejection, sitting gloomily. The more he thought, the angrier he became: “How absurd! Those ordinary women I didn’t even like, I learned every one of their names and addresses; yet these two most desirable peerless beauties—I don’t know the slightest clue about them, missing a pair of kingdom-toppling beauties right before my eyes!” He took out his notebook, intending to add the two, but since he knew neither their surnames nor names, he could only note first: On a certain day of a certain month I encountered two women of national beauty, unknown surnames. For now I name them according to the colors they wore, and estimate their ages, appearances, and temperaments below for future reference and search. First: the silver-red woman, about seventeen or eighteen. Judging by her demeanor, she seems not yet betrothed, her feelings of love still unawakened. Second: the lotus-root beauty, about twenty. Judging by her bearing, she seems long married yet her primal yin energy unspent. After recording this, Weiyangsheng suddenly thought again: “That accompanying middle-aged matron also possesses charm not inferior to the young women. Setting other matters aside, those soul-captivating eyes alone are a rare treasure in this world. Earlier she kept sending me glances; because my mind was entirely on the two young women, I never returned a single look. Now that I think of it, I feel somewhat sorry. Moreover, those who travel with peerless beauties must be either sisters-in-law or close kin; for the sake of the two beauties I should treat her with more kindness. Besides, her willingness to help stir things up and make the two women look back at me shows she is clearly someone who understands romance and human feelings. If I can find her first in the future, why worry the two peerless beauties won’t fall into my trap? I might as well add her to the notebook and grant her an excellent critique. First, as thanks for her matchmaking just now; second, if I truly find them later, I can show her this notebook, first flattering her thoroughly until she is pleased and compliant—then why fear she won’t run errands for me?” Thus he picked up his brush and changed the “two” in “encountered two women of national beauty” to “three.” Because she wore a black robe, he added another entry: The black-robed beauty, seemingly thirty-six years old, yet her figure and looks like those of a sixteen-year-old. Judging by her bearing and movements, she seems one whose marital pleasures are rare yet whose inner desires burn hot. After writing, Weiyangsheng drew three vermilion circles above each of the three names, then carefully folded the notebook and tucked it back into his jacket. From that day on he lost interest in the Zhang Xian hall; the women coming and going to burn incense no longer stirred him. His mind was constantly filled with the figures of these three beauties. All day he carried the notebook, wandering the streets and alleys, yet found not the slightest trace. Weiyangsheng pondered: “Sai Kunlun has an extremely discerning eye, is widely experienced, and knows the local ways well—why not ask him? Yet there is one concern: he previously promised to find me a beauty, and has not shown up these days, presumably searching everywhere. If I rashly tell him this matter, he will think I already have someone in mind and abandon his previous task. Moreover these two women have no names, so how could he search? I had better keep this matter to myself and wait patiently a few more days; perhaps he really can bring me a peerless beauty as news. One should not fear abundance of fine things—how could there be too many beautiful women in the world?” Thereafter, every morning after rising he either went out to wander blindly for luck or stayed in his lodging waiting for news. One day, on the street he happened to meet Sai Kunlun face to face and quickly grabbed him, asking, “Elder brother, the matter you promised me days ago—why is there still no word? Have you long forgotten it beyond the clouds?” Sai Kunlun said, “I keep it constantly in mind; how could I forget? Ordinary-looking women fill the streets, but truly peerless beauties are few. Only recently did I finally find one of the very best and was just about to report to you when we happened to meet here.” Upon hearing this, Weiyangsheng’s face immediately bloomed with smiles and he said hurriedly, “In that case, please come quickly with me to my humble lodging for a detailed talk!” The two then walked hand in hand back to the temple lodging. Weiyangsheng first sent his servants far away, then the two shut the door tightly and began a secret discussion inside the room.

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