Slapping the Table in Amazement is the unabridged English translation of the famous story collection Pai'an jingqi by Ling Mengchu (1580?1644), originally published in 1628. The forty lively stories gathered here present a broad picture of traditional Chinese society and include characters from all social levels. We learn of their joys and sorrows, their views about life and death, and their visions of the underworld and the supernatural.

Ling was a connoisseur of popular literature and a seminal figure in the development of Chinese literature in the vernacular, which paved the way for the late-imperial Chinese novel. Slapping the Table in Amazement includes translations of verse and prologue stories as well as marginal and interlinear comments.

Shuhui Yang is professor of Chinese at Bates College. Yunqin Yang is a simultaneous interpreter in the United Nations Secretariat. Together they translated the three-volume set of Ming dynasty stories by Feng Menglong: Stories Old and New, Stories to Caution the World, and Stories to Awaken the World.

Acknowledgments

Introduction by Robert E. Hegel

Translators' Note

List of Illustrations

Chronology of Chinese Dynasties

Slapping the Table in Amazement

Preface [1628 Edition]

Five Editorial Principles for This Collection

1. The Man Whose Luck Has Turned Chances upon Dongting Tangerines; The Merchant from Persia Reveals the Secrets of a Turtle Shell

2. Yao Dizhu Flees from Disgrace Only to Incur More Disgrace; Zhang Yue'e Uses a Mistake to Advance Her Own Interests

3. Liu Dongshan Brags about His Prowess at the City Gate; Eighteenth Brother Leaves His Mark in the Village Tavern

4. Cheng Yuanyu Pays for a Meal at a Restaurant; Lady Eleventh Explains Swordsmanship on Mount Cloud

5. Zhang Derong Encounters a Tiger Sent by the Gods as a Matchmaker; Pei Yueke Becomes the Lucky Mate Just in Time for the Blissful Date

6. Zhao the Nun Drugs a Beauty into a Stupor; Jia the Scholar Takes Revenge in a Brilliant Move

7. Emperor Minghuang of Tang, a Daoist Devotee, Seeks Out Eminent Daoists; Consort Wu, a Buddhist Disciple, Witnesses Contests of Magic Power

8. General Wu Repays the Debt of One Meal; Chen Dalang Reunites with Two Loved Ones

9. In the Director's Garden, Young Ladies Enjoy a Swing-Set Party; At Pure and Peaceful Temple, Husband and Wife Laugh and Cry at Their Reunion

10. Scholar Han Takes a Wife in a Wave of Panic; Prefect Wu Makes a Match for a Talented Scholar

11. An Evil Boatman Commits Blackmail with a Dead Body; A Heartless Servant Wrongfully Presses Murder Charges

12. Mr. Tao Takes In Strangers Seeking Shelter from the Rain; Jiang Zhenqing Gains a Wife with a Jest

13. Mr. Zhao Spoils His Son and Dies as a Result; Magistrate Zhang Sentences an Unfilial Son to Death in an Ironclad Case

14. To Steal Money, Yu Dajiao Does Violence to a Drunken Man; To Confront the Culprit in Court, Yang Hua Attaches Himself to a Woman's Body

15. Squire Wei, with His Merciless Heart, Plots to Seize Another Man's Property; Scholar Chen, with His Clever Plan, Wins Back His House

16. Zhang Liu'er Lays One of His Many Traps; Lu Huiniang Severs a Bond of Marriage

17. Prayer Services Are Held at West Hill Temple for a Departed Soul; A Coffin Is Prepared in the Kaifeng Yamen for a Living Criminal

18. An Alchemist Turns Half a Grain of Millet into a Nine-Cycle Pill; A Rich Man Squanders Thousands of Taels of Silver to Win a Beauty's Smile

19. Li Gongzuo Ingeniously Reads a Dream; Xie Xiao'e Cleverly Snares Pirates

20. Li Kerang Sends a Blank Letter; Liu Yuanpu Begets Two Precious Sons

21. Yuan's Face-Reading Skills Impress the High and Mighty; Zheng's Good Deed Wins Him a Hereditary Title

22. With Money, a Commoner Gains an Official Post; Out of Luck, a Prefect Becomes a Boatman

23. The Older Sister's Soul Leaves Her Body to Fulfill a Wish; The Younger Sister Recovers from Illness to Renew a Bond

24. The Old Demon of Yanguan County Indulges in Debauchery; The Bodhisattva on Mount Huihai Puts the Evil Spirits to Death

25. Revenue Manager Zhao Leaves Word for His Love a Thousand Li Away; Su Xiaojuan Achieves Happiness with a Single Poem

26. In a Competition for Sexual Favor, a Village Woman Is Murdered; In Claiming Celestial Authority, a Judge Solves a Case

27. Gu Axiu Donates to a Nunnery with Joy; Cui Junchen Is Shown the Lotus Screen through a Clever Scheme

28. The Master of Golden Light Cave Recalls the Past; The Venerable Elder of Jade Void Cave Is Enlightened about His Previous Life

29. They Remain Loyal to Each Other through Their Trysts; His Success Is Announced at the Jailhouse

30. Commissioner Wang Rides Roughshod Over His Subordinates; Adjutant Li Gets His Comeuppance from a Reincarnated Victim

31. Priest He Commits Fornication via Black Magic; Registrar Zhou Wipes Out Rebels via Fornication

32. Mr. Hu Corrupts a Fellow Man in a Wife-Swapping Scheme; A Chan Master in Meditation Explains the Principle of Retribution

33. Squire Zhang, in His Noble-Mindedness, Adopts an Orphan; Judge Bao, in His Wisdom, Recovers a Document

34. Scholar Wenren Shows His Prowess at Cuifu Nunnery; The Nun Jingguan Goes in Glory to Huangsha Lane

35. A Pauper Keeps Temporary Watch over Another Man's Money; A Miser Resorts to Tricks When Buying His Nemesis's Son

36. The Monk of the Eastern Hall Invites Demonic Spirits during a Lapse in Vigilance; The Man in Black Commits Murder in an Abduction Attempt

37. Qutu Zhongren Cruelly Kills Other Creatures; The Yunzhou Prefect Helps His Nephew in the Netherworld

38. To Stake His Claim on the Family Fortune, a Jealous Son-in-Law Plots against the Rightful Heir; To Continue the Bloodline, a Filial Daughter Hides Her Brother

39. Heavenly Preceptors, with Their Theatrics, Claim to Subdue Drought Demons; A County Magistrate, in His Sincerity, Prays for Sweet Rain from Heaven

40. On the Huayin Trail, Li Meets One Extraordinary Man; The Jiangling Commander Opens Three Mysterious Envelopes

Notes