A long time ago, in Gyeongnam Province, in Jinchu Castle, there lived a rich man named Zhangche. Stingy and cruel, he spared no one. He had a daughter - honest, kind - but she was not born like her father. Sometimes a poor man would come, she would give him rice or money, and she would not offend the beggar - she would give alms so that the father would not know. If my father finds out, he will beat me. My daughter will endure it and again do good to people.
One day an old beggar came with a stick and could barely drag his feet. My father was just standing there, he and his servant were washing the horse. The old man's father saw him, got angry and said:
-What do you want?
The old man held out a patched and patched bag and answered:
“Have mercy, dear man, give me at least a little rice, I’m dying of hunger.”
[Mal is a measure of bulk solids equal to 18 kg.]
The father whispered with the servant and ordered him to take the bag from the old man and put some manure in it. The servant immediately ran to get some manure, put it in a bag, and gave it to the old man. The old man was glad, bowed to the rich man’s ground, and barely hit his nose on the ground. And he went his way. And the rich man and his servant look after him and laugh. Stomachs are wrenching.
I feel sorry for the daughter of Zhangche the old man, and I’m ashamed of my father. She ran into the house, put rice in a bowl, wrapped it in a silk scarf, and ran off like an old man. She caught up and said:
- Throw away your bag, good man, and take this!
The old man looked at the girl and asked:
- Why throw away the bag?
The girl answers:
“You don’t have rice in your bag—it’s manure.” Father ordered to put it down. He has no heart. I brought some rice, take it!
The old man says:
“I know, dear, that there is manure in the bag.” I came on purpose to test your father. Thank you, dear, for your kindness, for your care. Now come with me. If you stay here, you will die.
The old man said this, took the girl by the hand, and led her along.
As soon as they left, a roar was heard - thunder struck, lightning flashed.
The girl looked around and saw that where her house stood, there was a large lake overflowing. And the old man disappeared somewhere. The girl went to the lake, crying, shedding tears, her father was no more, he drowned in the lake. Tears are dripping into the lake. Wherever a tear falls, a lotus blooms.
And in the morning, in the place where the girl was sitting, there is an image of the merciful Buddha. The residents realized that this was the spirit of the rich man’s daughter, and they named the lake Zhangche.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru