The Boat-Girl Bride by Pu Songling
The young widower Wang Kuli-ngan searches for Mêng Yün after seeing her on a boat and eventually marries her after observing the proper ceremonies. His false claim that he already has a wife drives her to jump into the river, where a passing boat rescues her. A later encounter at an inn reunites Wang with her and their young son.
By Pu Songling · Genre: Short Story, Romance · 3,130 words
First lines
Wang Kuli-ngan was a young man of good family. It happened once when he was travelling southwards, and had moored his boat to the bank, that he saw in another boat close by a young boat-girl embroidering shoes. He was much struck by her beauty, and continued gazing at her for some time, though she took not the slightest notice of him. By-and-by he began singing --
"The Lo-yang lady lives over the way: [Fifteen years is her age I should say]. "[1]
Genres
- Short Story — A compact prose narrative follows Wang’s search, marriage, separation and unexpected reunion.
- Romance — Wang’s pursuit of Mêng Yün leads through rejected proposals and marriage formalities to a wedding, separation and reconciliation.
Tags
courtship · marriage customs · prophetic dreams · separation · reunion
What this Textopian page supports
The Boat-Girl Bride is listed on Textopian as a short story by Pu Songling, dated Date unknown.
This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.
- Work type: Short story
- Author: Pu Songling
- Date: Date unknown
- Language: English
- Genres: Short Story, Romance
- Length: 3,130 words
- Structure: 1 section, 15 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Standard (8th-9th Grade)
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