LIANCHENG

 Qiaosheng was a native of Jinning, Yunnan, and was very talented when he was a teenager. However, when he was in his twenties, he was still very unpopular; he was a very righteous person, and he was kind to his friends. He was very good friends with Gu Sheng; after Gu Sheng's death, he often helped Gu Sheng's wife and children. The magistrate valued him for his outstanding literary talent; later, when the magistrate died during his term of office, his family was trapped in Jinning and could not return to their hometown, so Qiaosheng sold his family's property and escorted the magistrate's coffin and his survivors back to their hometown, a round-trip of more than 2,000 kilometers. As a result, the readers honored him even more, and his family's situation declined even more from then on.

 Shi Juju had a daughter named Liancheng, who was good at embroidery and knew how to read and write. Mr. Shi loved her so much that he took out her embroidery "Tired of Embroidery" and asked young people to write poems to praise her, wanting to choose a son-in-law from among them. Qiaosheng presented two poems. One was written in four lines like this:

 A lazy hair in a high bun and a green bun, embroidering the blue lotus in the orchid window in the morning;

 The lovebirds' souls are about to be broken, and the needle and thread are knitted together in secret.

 Another poem praises the embroidery skills of Liancheng:

 The embroidery threads are like sketches, and the flowers and birds in the frame are made in heaven;

 When brocade is not a long skill, fortunate to put back the text to feel the holy Ming.

 Liancheng was very happy to get the poem and praised his father very much. However, Mr. Shi was too poor for Qiaosheng. Lian Cheng praised Qiao Sheng's talent; he also sent an old woman to give silver to Qiao Sheng on his father's order to subsidize his study. Qiaosheng was touched and said, "Liancheng is really my confidant!" He left a deep mark in his heart and missed Liancheng day after day.

 Soon after, Shi Zhuren promised Liancheng to a salt merchant's son, Wang Huacheng, and Qiaosheng despaired; but in his dreams, he still couldn't forget Liancheng. Some days later, Liancheng fell ill with consumption and was so sick that he was bedridden. A monk from the West claimed to be able to cure Liancheng's disease; but he had to use a penny of meat from a man's breast, pounded and mixed into the powder. Mr. Shi sent someone to Wang's house to tell his unmarried son-in-law. The son-in-law laughed and said, "This silly old man wants to dig up my heart meat!" The man who sent him came back to tell Shi Juren, who then said to others, "If there is one who is able to cut the flesh, I will marry Liancheng to him." When Qiaosheng heard the news, he rushed to Shi Juren's house, took out a sharp knife, and cut off a piece of flesh from his breast and gave it to the monk. The blood stained his shirt red, and the monk put medicine on him to stop the bleeding. The monk put the medicine on him to stop the bleeding. With this piece of meat, he mixed three pills, which Liancheng ate in three days, and he was cured immediately. When Shi was ready to fulfill his promise, he first told Wang Huacheng. Wang Huacheng was very angry and wanted to report to the government. Then Mr. Shi set up a banquet to invite Qiaosheng, put one thousand taels of silver on the table, and said to Qiaosheng, "I have really failed you in your great kindness, please let me use this to thank you." Then he told Qiao Sheng the reason why he had broken his promise. Qiaosheng said angrily, "So I am willing to cut off the flesh from my breast, but only because I want to repay my confidant. Is it selling meat!" After saying this, he whisked his sleeve away.

 When Liancheng found out about it, he was very upset, so he asked an old lady to comfort and persuade him, saying: "With your talent, you will not be long-lost and disillusioned. Why do you worry that there is no good woman in the world? I have had an ominous dream that I shall die within three years; you need not compete with others for me, a ghost in the underworld." Qiaosheng told the old lady, "'A scholar dies for a friend', I am not coveting her beauty. I am really afraid that Liancheng may not really understand me; as long as she can really understand me, even if she can't get married, what's the harm?" The old lady then swore with all her heart for Liancheng. Qiaosheng said, "If this is really the case, then when we meet, please ask her to smile at me, and I will have no regrets in death!" After the old lady went back, after a few days, Qiaosheng happened to go out, met Liancheng from uncle's home back, so sideways face to stare at Liancheng. Liancheng two eyes veins of love, to Qiaosheng sweet smile. Qiao Sheng was overjoyed and said, "Liancheng is really my confidant!" Just as the Wang family came to discuss the wedding date, Liancheng had a relapse of his old illness and died in a few months. Qiaosheng went to cry and mourn, but because of excessive grief, he also died of gas. Mr. Shi sent someone to carry him home.

 Qiao Sheng knew he was dead and had no sorrow. He walked out of the village, still hoping to see Liancheng once. From afar, he saw a big road running north-south, and the pedestrians were endless, as if they were ants. Qiaosheng mixed in the crowd. After a while, he entered a government office and happened to bump into Gu Sheng. Gu Sheng was surprised and asked, "Why did you come here?" After saying that, he took his hand to send him back. Qiao Sheng sighed and said, "I have something on my mind that I haven't gotten over yet." Gu Sheng said, "I am in charge of the clerical case files here and am trusted by my superiors. If I can be of service to you, I will definitely never refuse." Qiao Sheng asked where Lian Cheng was. Gu Sheng then led him around a few places, and saw Lian Cheng and a white-clothed woman, with sad eyebrows and tears in their eyes, sitting on the ground in a corner of the corridor. As soon as he saw Qiao Sheng arrive, Lian Cheng immediately stood up, as if he was very happy, and asked Qiao Sheng why he came here. Qiao Sheng said, "How can I live on if you are dead!" Lian Cheng cried, "Why don't you spurn an ungrateful person like me, and why do you martyr yourself? But I can no longer be married to you in this life, and am willing to swear to repay you in the next." Qiaosheng then said to Gu Sheng, "If there's something you can do, go and do it yourself. I'm happy to die and don't want to live anymore. Just please find out where Liancheng was reincarnated to, I want to go with her." Gu Sheng promised and left. The white-clothed woman asked what Qiaosheng was, and Liancheng told the story from beginning to end. The woman in white listened and also looked very sad. Lian Cheng told Qiao Sheng, "This is my sister with the same surname, her nickname is Bin Niang, and she is the daughter of Shi Taishou of Changsha. We came all the way together, so we pity each other." Qiao Sheng took a look at the girl and saw that she was very dainty and lovely in her look and physique. He was about to inquire more closely, while Gu Sheng had already returned, he congratulated Qiao Sheng and said, "I've finished the matter for you, I'll let the little lady return to the sun with you right away, do you look favorably upon it?" Qiao Sheng and Lian Cheng were both delighted.

 The two were about to take their leave, when suddenly Biniang cried out, "Where shall I go back to when my sister is gone? Please have pity on sister and save me, I would rather serve sister." Liancheng did not feel very miserable, but there was no way out, so he turned to Qiaosheng to discuss. Qiaosheng again begged Gu Sheng to think of a solution. Gu Sheng felt very difficult, and tried his best to refuse, saying again and again that he couldn't do it. Qiaosheng begged bitterly. Gu Sheng then said, "Let's give it a try." After a meal, Gu Sheng returned, shaking his hand and saying, "How about it! I really can't do anything about it!" Hearing this, Biniang cried bitterly with grief again, and clung to Liancheng's side, fearing that she would go away at once. Both of them were very sorrowful, but they could do nothing about it, so they could only remain speechless to each other; looking at those sorrowful faces, it was really saddening. Gu Sheng made up his mind, and said, "Please take Biniang away. If there is any sin, I will go out of my way to bear it alone!" Only then did Biniang break into tears and follow Qiaosheng out of the court. Qiao Sheng was worried about Biniang's long journey and the lack of a companion. Biniang said, "I'll follow you, I don't want to go home." Qiao Sheng said, "You are too silly. If you don't go home, how can you be resurrected? When I come to Hunan in the future, as long as you don't avoid me, then I will be satisfied." As they were talking, two old women were going to Changsha with official documents, so Qiaosheng asked them to carry Biniang to Changsha, and she said goodbye with tears.

 On the way home, Liancheng walked very slowly, always resting every mile or so; he rested more than ten times before he saw the door of the alley. Lian Cheng said, "I am afraid that things will be repeated after I am reborn. Please ask for my corpse, and I will return to the sun in your house, so there will be no backsliding." Qiaosheng thought she had a point, and the two of them went back to Qiaosheng's house together. But Liancheng was still worried, as if she could not even take a step, so Qiaosheng stopped to wait for her. Lian Cheng said, "I walked here, feeling weak and restless, I'm afraid that our wish can't be realized, we still need to discuss it, otherwise, how can we make a decision after being reborn?" The two helped each other and walked into the compartment of Qiaosheng's house, sat silently for a while, Liancheng smiled and said, "Do you hate me?" Qiao Sheng was surprised and asked why she said that. Lian Cheng's cheeks turned red with shame and said, "I'm afraid that I won't be able to get what I want and I'll have to apologize to you again. Please let me repay you with my ghost body first." Qiaosheng was very happy, and the two of them were very joyful. However, he was still hesitant and did not dare to return to the sun immediately, and stayed in the compartment for three days. Lian Cheng said, "As the saying goes, 'An ugly daughter-in-law must eventually meet her mother-in-law. Being apprehensive here is not a long-term solution after all." So he urged Qiao Sheng to walk into the main room. Qiaosheng just walked to the spirit bed, and woke up at once. The family was very surprised and took some soup for him to drink. Qiao Sheng then sent someone to invite Shi Zuoren to ask him to send Liancheng's body, saying that he could bring Liancheng back to life. Mr. Shi was very happy and agreed. He just carried Liancheng's body into the house and saw that Liancheng had awakened. She told her father, "I have already committed myself to Qiaolang, and there is no reason for me to go back. If anything changes, I still have no choice but to die!" Mr. Shi returned home and sent his maid to serve Liancheng. When Wang Huacheng heard the news, he wrote a complaint to the government. The magistrate took a bribe and sentenced Lian Cheng to Wang Huacheng. Qiao was angry as hell, but there was nothing he could do. Liancheng came to Wang's house and was so angry that he didn't eat or drink, just wanted to die quickly. When there was no one in the house, he hung a rope on the beam. After a day, Liancheng was even more exhausted and dying, and was about to die. Wang Huacheng was very afraid and sent Liancheng back to Shi Juren's house. Mr. Shi carried Liancheng to Qiaosheng. Wang Huacheng knew it, but there was nothing he could do about it.

 After Liancheng recovered, he often missed Biniang, and wanted to send someone to find out the news, because it was a long way to go, it was not easy to go there. One day, a family member came in and reported, "There are carriages and horses outside the door." Mr. and Mrs. Qiaosheng came out to see that Biniang had already come to the yard. When the three of them met, they were overwhelmed with grief and joy. It turned out to be Shi Taishou himself escorting his daughter, and Qiao Sheng hurriedly invited them into the house. Shi Taishou said, "My youngest daughter was reborn thanks to you, and she swore not to marry anyone else, so now I'm sending her here to fulfill her heart's desire." Qiaosheng made the great salute of husband and son-in-law to Taishou Shi. At this time Shi Juren also came, and shared with Shi Taishou the goodwill of the same clan. Qiaosheng's name was Nian, and his character Dainian.