26 The Filial TigerLong ago, a kind hearted woodcutter went to the woods to gather wood. He was cutting wood when a tiger suddenly appeared from the woods. The woodcutter was scared, but had a good idea. The woodcutter began to cry. “I finally met you. Mother was worried that you didnt come back from cutting wood. We thought you died, but you appeared in my dream and told me you could not come back because you became a tiger. Im so glad that finally I met you like this.” The woodcutter cried and told the tiger. The tiger believed what the woodcutter said. It thought the mother and cried.” Lets go to see mother together.” The woodcutter told the tiger.” No, how can I go like this Ill bring you a boar twice a month. Be good to mother for me.” The next morning, there was a boar in the yard of the woodcutters house. The tiger had kept its promise. The tiger brought a boar twice a month as promised. The woodcutter did his best thinking of the tigers kind heart. A few years later, the mother died. The tiger didnt appear after that. One day, the woodcutter saw some baby tigers with hemp cloth tied to their tails. They were the babies of the tiger. The tiger has starved upon hearing that the mother died and had died itself a few days later. The woodcutter was moved and took good care of the baby tigers. 27 The Dog and the CatThere lived a poor but kind old man and an old lady near the ocean. One day, the old man caught a very large fish. The old man was very happy. But taking a close look, the fish was crying. The old man felt sorry for the fish and let the fish go. The next day, a prince appeared where the old man was fishing. “Im the fish that you let go yesterday. Im the sea gods son. My father heard what you did and told me to give you this present.” The prince gave a gold ball to the old man. The gold ball made the old man and old lady rich. A greedy old lady from the neighboring village heard about this ball and went to the old mans house to steal the ball. That greedy old lady tricked the kind old lady and took the ball. The old man and the old lady became poor again. The dog and the cat that lived with the old man and old lady went to the other village to find the gold ball for their kind owners. They succeeded in finding the gold ball with the help of the mice that lived in the house. When they reached the river, the dog said to the cat. “Ok, get on my back!” The cat held the ball in its mouth and got on the dogs back. They decided to cross the river like that. The cat was holding the ball well, but the dog got worried.” Are you holding the ball well?” But the cat had the ball in its mouth and couldnt answer. The dog was worried and asked again.” I said are you holding the ball well?” Yes, oh!” the minute the cat opened its mouth, the ball fell into the river. The cat was very disappointed. The dog felt sorry and returned home alone. The cat was hungry and saw a dead fish. It went running to the fish. But something surprising happened; the gold ball was in the fishs stomach. The cat brought the gold ball home. The old man and the old lady became rich again and lived in a huge house. The cat received all the love and lived in the house, but the dog stayed in the yard. That is why the dog and the cat do not get along. 28 The Forsythia that Bloomed from Dog DroppingsA strange old man appeared in a village. “Please give me some food.” But the villagers called the old man a bagger and didnt give him any food. “Oh, go away! You old bagger.” I wouldnt give you dog droppings.” Some people even threw water at the old man. The old man had to go away again without eating any food. But an old lady gave the old man some food. “Were poor, too, but have some of this.” The old man was moved by the womans actions. “Thank you, thank you so much.” The old man gave the woman a bowl made of straw. The woman saw it strange and opened it. Inside there were gold and silver pieces. A bad rich man heard of this and went in search of the old man to get golden and silver.” Old man, take this and give me gold and silver.” The old man knew he was a bad man, but he gave him a straw bowl anyway. The rich man was excited and opened the bowl, but inside there was dog droppings instead of gold and silver. “Huh? These are dog droppings!” The rich man was angry and threw the droppings on the ground. Yellow forsythia suddenly bloomed from the ground.” You wouldnt even give me dog droppings, so here you are. Ha ha.” The old man said and disappeared. The yellow forsythia had bloomed from the dog droppings. 29 The Legend of the Chinese DelightIn the deep mountains, there were a Buddhist priest and a priest ling. The priest ling was a young boy who came to the temple after his parents died. It was a cold winter day. “We are out of rice. Ill go to the village and get some.” The Buddhist priest left the boy and went to the village. The priest ling was left alone and waited for the Buddhist priest