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an only child, a girl who was called "Little Golden Daughter." She had
a face of rare beauty and was the jewel of his love. She had been
versed in the lore of books from her youth up, and could write,
improvise poems and compose essays. She was also experienced in
needlework, a skilled dancer and singer, and could play the flute and
zither. The old beggar-king above all else wanted her to have a
scholar for a husband. Yet because he was a beggar-king the
distinguished families avoided him, and with those who were of less
standing than himself he did not wish to have anything to do. So it
came about that Little Golden Daughter had reached the age of eighteen
without being betrothed.

Now at that time there dwelt in Hanchow, near the Bridge of Peace, a
scholar by the name of Mosu. He was twenty years of age, and
universally popular because of his beauty and talent. His parents were
both dead, and he was so poor that he could hardly manage to keep
alive. His house and lot had long since been mortgaged or sold, and he
lived in an abandoned temple, and many a day passed at whose end he
went hungry to bed.

A neighbor took pity on him and said to him one day: "The beggar-king
has a child named Little Golden Daughter, who is beautiful beyond all
telling. And the beggar-king is rich and has money, but no son to
inherit it. If you wish to marry into his family his whole fortune
would in the end come to you. Is that not better than dying of hunger
as a poor scholar?"

At that time Mosu was in dire extremity. Hence, when he heard these
words he was greatly pleased. He begged the neighbor to act as a
go-between in the matter.

So the latter visited the old beggar-king and talked with him, and the
beggar-king talked over the matter with Little Golden Daughter, and
since Mosu came from a good family and was, in addition, talented and
learned, and had no objection to marrying into their family, they were
both much pleased with the prospect. So they agreed to the proposal,
and the two were married.

So Mosu became a member of the beggar-king's family. He was happy in
his wife's beauty, always had enough to eat and good clothes to wear.
So he thought himself lucky beyond his deserts, and lived with his
wife in peace and happiness.

The beggar-king and his daughter, to whom their low estate was a thorn
in the flesh, admonished Mosu to be sure to study hard. They hoped
that he would make a name for himself and thus reflect glor