by C. T. Hsia
(BOY announces them.)
CHACHA: Please ask them to come in. (She greets the guests.) Would you, Uncle and Aunt, please be seated in the front hall. I shall join you after I have put on my formal gown. (She changes her clothes and pays obeisance to them.) Uncle and Aunt, you have endured the toils of a long journey.
OLD CHILIARCH: Chacha, where did the young chiliarch go?
CHACHA: The chiliarch went hunting.
OLD CHILIARCH: Then tell the boy to ask the chiliarch to come and to tell him that Uncle and Aunt are here, come especially to see him.
CHACHA: Boy, go quickly and ask the chiliarch to come home. Would you, Uncle and Aunt, for the time being please come to the rear hall and have a drink while we wait for the chiliarch to come home.
(MALE LEAD enters dressed as SHANSHOUMA leading his subordinate officials on horseback.19)
SHANSHOUMA (recites:)
Across my waist is a windlass-like blade,
And on my back, a coat of bird feathers made.20
On the map of barbarians and Chinese,
None can my heroic style parade. (Speaks:)
I belong to the Wanyan clan of the Jurchens. My surname is Wang and my informal name is Shanshouma. At present I serve as senior chiliarch bearing a golden plaque, and my job is to guard the mountain pass. Today the sky is clear and the sun shines warmly, and, not having anything particular to attend to, I have gone hunting with some clan soldiers in tow. (Sings:)
[Xianlü mode: Touching Up Red Lips]
First, thanks to the martial family tradition of Grandfather,
And next, to my own good fortune,
I bear the general’s plaque and seal
And have wiped out enemy troops in the dust of war,
Displaying my valor and might evermore.
[River Churning Dragon]
Many times have I unfurled banners and faced battle formations,
Fighting barbarian troops, time and again honors I’ve won.
It’s all too true that I am blessed with wealth
And have livestock aplenty.
In hundreds of stables, I have raised horses hard-charging and battle-tried,
Management of barbarian-quelling troops in a thousand households I decide.21
When now I wish to dispel boredom and gloom,
There’s only hunting, as the swooping falcon and the running hound
Pursue the vanishing prey and chase the fleeing quarry.
(BOY enters.)
BOY: I have come to the hunting grounds, haven’t I! Master, there are some relatives at home who have come to visit you.
SHANSHOUMA: Boy, what did you come for?
BOY: Some relatives have come.
SHANSHOUMA (sings:)
[Oily Gourd]
No wonder this auspicious magpie sits snugly on the branch:
In truth there’s no room for doubting good news. (Speaks:)
Boy, which relatives are these who have come?
BOY: They only said they were relatives; I don’t know who they are.
CHILIARCH (sings:)
He fidgets and mumbles right and left,
Speaking of relatives: he cannot be deft.
Why does he jabber in muddled fashion, higgledy-piggledy?
Why is he flustered, thrown into confusion hurly-burly?
His eyes betray fear, roly-poly with panic,
His mouth sprays as words sputter and splatter.
Just look: he’s making a show and lacks all proper form;
I cannot bear this pathetic lack of spirit!
BOY: Let me think.
SHANSHOUMA (sings:)
[Joy for All Under Heaven]
I only see that the more he thinks the more he gets confused;
Indeed, of his three souls a pair is already diffused. (Speaks:)
I’ll try to guess. (Sings:)
Could it be Police Commissioner Tiege coming from afar to visit his kin?
BOY: No.
SHANSHOUMA (sings:)
Could it be the matriarch from the Dalu family?
BOY: It’s not she, either.
SHANSHOUMA (sings:)
Could it be the young master from the Pucha family?
BOY: That’s not it either.
CHILIARCH (sings:)
Could it be Uncle and Aunt who have come to visit?
BOY: Right! It’s Uncle and Aunt.
SHANSHOUMA: So it’s Uncle and Aunt. I’ll wind up the hunt22 for now and go home right away. (Exits.)
(OLD CHILIARCH enters together with OLD LADY and CHACHA.)
OLD CHILIARCH: How is it that the chiliarch has not come home yet?
CHACHA: Attendants, go take a look at the gate. The chiliarch is surely about to come.
(SHANSHOUMA enters.)
SHANSHOUMA: Take the horse. Chacha, where’s Uncle and Aunt? (He greets them and pays obeisance.)
OLD CHILIARCH: Son, we have been separated for several years, and the two of us have really missed you. Today we have come straight off to see you.
SHANSHOUMA: Uncle and Aunt, please sit down. (Sings:)
[Heaven for the Drunken]
Uncle, you must be tired out from the saddle,
And Aunt, with hardships on the road you had to grapple.
Since we parted, five or six springs have gone by,
For several years no news from home is nigh.
I, Shanshouma, have no other true kin,
And words hardly convey feelings within.
In coming to inquire after this unworthy son,
You have indeed braved wind and dust over a long way.
OLD CHILIARCH: Son, think how since your childhood the two of us have raised you. Now that you are mighty and successful, you must not forget our kindness.
SHANSHOUMA: Uncle and Aunt, can this be something I am not aware of? (Sings:)
[Golden Cup]
I lost both my parents from a young age;
How alone and destitute I was!
I thank you, Uncle and Aunt, for having taught me like your own son
And drilled me in arts civil and military.
Now I am in charge of the borderland as marshal,
Defending the narrow pass, commanding three armies.
For me back then, “To become a man was to not have it easy,
Having it easy was to not become a man.”23 (Speaks:)
Attendants, slaughter a sheep and a pig over there and set up the banquet.
(EXTRA dressed as ENVOY enters.)
ENVOY: I belong to the Wanyan clan of the Jurchens, and I am an envoy sent by the imperial court. Because the chiliarch Shanshouma has accomplished much in guarding the mountain pass and attacking the bandits, His Majesty has sent me to confer on him an imperial award. I have already arrived at the gate of his home. Attendants, take my horse and announce me, telling him that an official envoy is at the gate.
(BOY announces ENVOY.)
CHILIARCH: Burn some incense! (He kneels.)
ENVOY: Hear ye, Shanshouma, the imperial command: for repeatedly demonstrating extraordinary merit in guarding the mountain pass, we appoint you as grand marshal of troops and cavalry of the realm, and as acting director of the Bureau of Military Affairs. By imperial decree we grant you the golden plaque with the insignia of double tigers24 and authorize you to act on your own judgment, to execute first and report later. As for the plain golden plaque, if there be among your subordinates a capable man, give it to him to wear, and he will be senior chiliarch bearing a golden plaque in your stead to guard the mountain pass. Be grateful to His Majesty.
SHANSHOUMA (expresses his thanks:) Your Honor, you have exerted yourself too much on this journey.
ENVOY: My felicitations to Your Honor for obtaining this superior appointment.
SHANSHOUMA: Your Honor, come partake of the banquet before you go.
ENVOY: My duties are pressing, and so I must be on my way.
SHANSHOUMA (sees him off:) I wish Your Honor a safe journey!
E
NVOY: I beg leave to go now. For truly, generals from their mounts do not descend, but each gallops following his bend. (Exits.)
SHANSHOUMA: Attendants, is the banquet ready yet?
BOY: It has been ready for a while now.
OLD CHILIARCH: My Lady, the imperial court has just sent down an order appointing the young chiliarch as grand marshal of troops and cavalry of the realm, and I’ve heard it said that he should give that plain golden plaque to some capable man under him, so that he can wear it and be chiliarch in his stead. Come to think of it, I have lived all these years yet have never held any official title, not even as community leader.25 Would you ask the young mistress to have a word with the marshal, say that he should give me the plain golden plaque to wear, and I’ll go and guard the mountain pass. Wouldn’t that be better than giving it to someone else?
OLD LADY: Your Honor, all your life you have been fond of drinking, and I only fear that you will be derelict in your duties.
OLD CHILIARCH: If I bear the plaque and become chiliarch, I won’t drink even one drop of wine!
OLD LADY: You promise!
OLD CHILIARCH: I won’t drink again.
OLD LADY: If this is the case, I’ll go and speak to Chacha. (She greets CHACHA.) Daughter-in-law, I have something to say to you, but dare I speak?
CHACHA: What has my aunt got to say?
OLD LADY: According to what the imperial envoy just said, they gave to the young chiliarch a golden plaque with the insignia of double tigers, and as for that plain golden plaque, they ordered him to give it to a capable man among his subordinates. Rather than giving it to somebody else, wouldn’t it be better to give it to Uncle?
CHACHA: You are right, Aunt: I will speak to the marshal right away. (CHACHA greets SHANSHOUMA.) Marshal, Uncle and Aunt said that you now bear the golden plaque with the insignia of double tigers, and that as for the plain golden plaque, you are to give it to one of your subordinates. Rather than giving it to someone else, it would be better to give it to Uncle.
SHANSHOUMA: Who said this?
CHACHA: Aunt said it.
SHANSHOUMA: All his life Uncle has been fond of drinking, and I only fear that he will be remiss in his duties.
CHACHA: Uncle says that if he wears the plaque and becomes senior chiliarch, he won’t drink a single drop anymore.
SHANSHOUMA: If this is how things stand, bring that plain golden plaque. Uncle, the official envoy has just announced that an imperial decree has made me grand marshal of troops and cavalry. I have been granted the golden plaque with the insignia of double tigers and given the authority to execute first and report later. As for this plain golden plaque, I was told that if among my subordinates there be a capable man, I should let him wear it and become senior chiliarch bearing a golden plaque. I recall how you, Uncle, in your youth toiled for the state—Uncle, for you to wear this plaque and be senior chiliarch would be better than giving it to anyone else.
OLD CHILIARCH: Surely among your subordinates there must be many capable men, and furthermore I have done no meritorious service at all—how could I become this senior chiliarch?
SHANSHOUMA: Uncle, don’t talk like that. (Sings:)
[One-Half]
My grandfather was the country’s founding hero,
And you, my uncle, have been since childhood a valiant vanguard.26
To give you, Uncle, this golden plaque to wear
Is entirely right and fair.
I see how Aunt rejoices over there. (Speaks:)
Uncle, please accept this plaque.
OLD CHILIARCH: How can I accept this!
SHANSHOUMA (sings:)
I see him half refusing, yet half willing.27
OLD CHILIARCH: Marshal, this is uncommon kindness: I will accept the plaque.
SHANSHOUMA: Uncle, since you have accepted the plaque, you have to turn back on your old ways. You must exert yourself to serve the state, and must no longer indulge in drinking.
OLD CHILIARCH: Don’t worry; once I put on this plaque I won’t drink even a single drop.
SHANSHOUMA: That’ll be just fine. (Sings:)
[Golden Cup]
The reason I remonstrate on and on
Is but that I fear you’d be drunk and gone.
Just look at the peck-sized plaque of gold behind your elbow:
How could you the ruler fail to follow?
May you the altars of the realm uphold
And exterminate its enemies of old.
As the saying goes,
When the family’s poor, the filial son will shine;
A realm in peril will the loyal subject define.
OLD CHILIARCH: Today I’ll go to the Bohai camp and move my family to the mountain pass that I will defend.
SHANSHOUMA: Uncle, today I am going to Daxing prefecture. You go and get your baggage, and be careful on the road. (Sings:)
[Coda]
Today you will traverse fords and passes
And cross prefectures and provinces.
And if you unexpectedly meet the enemy
And tangle with them on the battlefield,
I’ll wager you’d fight fiercely.
All thanks to our ancestor—we are scions of a palace guardsman.28
Alas! Please don’t slacken and be caught
And count on a relative’s help in a tight spot.
In truth, for bravery in battle none beats a father and son team,
And we vow to destroy all enemies, be they of scale extreme!
Just guard the border pass with vigilance,
And if need be, spill your blood to repay our good ruler.
(Exit together with CHACHA and BOY.)
OLD CHILIARCH: My nephew has gone. Now I’ll go to the Bohai camp to move my household. (Exit together with OLD LADY.)
ACT 2
(OLD CHILIARCH enters with OLD LADY.)
OLD CHILIARCH: Since arriving at the Bohai camp to move my household, I have met many of my kinsmen. When they heard that I have become chiliarch, this one asked me to drink two jugs and that one asked me to drink three, and thus it was that I have been drunk every day. Although I have been drinking, I am anxious not to miss the appointed date on which I am to assume my duties. There is a second elder brother of mine living in this village, by the name of Jinzhuma. After taking leave of him, I’ll go to the mountain pass.
OLD LADY: Your Honor, I’ll wait here. You go and take leave of Elder Brother and come back soon. (Exits.)
OLD CHILIARCH: As I look into the distance, it may actually be my elder brother coming.
(MALE LEAD enters dressed as JINZHUMA.)
JINZHUMA: I am Jinzhuma. I have a brother, Yinzhuma. Now he has become senior chiliarch bearing a golden plaque and will go to defend the mountain pass. I’ve heard that he is going through this village of mine. Failing other things, I brought this jug of wine to bid him farewell. I’ll be on my way now. (Sings:)
[Shuangdiao mode: Five Offerings]
Sorrow is simmering—
I’m filled with regrets lingering;
What is to be done with my empty hands!
I could only ask others to lend me some coppers
To buy this jug of rustic koumiss wine—
For a farewell cup with that second younger brother of mine.
I think his time for departure is pressing near,
And he will find it difficult to tarry.
But as he leaves this time,
I do not know when we two shall meet again. (Speaks:)
If that isn’t my brother!
OLD CHILIARCH: If that isn’t my elder brother! (They greet each other.) Elder Brother, I have become senior chiliarch bearing a golden plaque. I am now on my way to guard the mountain pass and was about to go straight to take leave of you.
JINZHUMA: Brother, I know that you have become senior chiliarch bearing a golden plaque, and that you are on your way to guard the mountain pass. Failing other things, I bought this jug of wine and will drink a farewell cup with you.
&nbs
p; OLD CHILIARCH: I can see how straitened your circumstances are; where did you get the money to buy wine? I have put my elder brother to great trouble!
JINZHUMA (hands him the wine, sings:)
[A Wind Bringing Down Plum Blossoms]
I wipe clean this jug’s rim
And fill this goblet to the brim.
(OLD CHILIARCH receives the wine.)
JINZHUMA: Brother, don’t drink yet for a moment. (Sings:)
Let me gaze at the sun in the azure horizon and pour a libation.
I am a poor man who does not know how a prayer to say;29
My only wish is that we brothers could soon meet someday.
(He pours a libation and once more hands the wine to Old Chiliarch. He speaks:)
Drink a full cup, Brother.
OLD CHILIARCH: You drink first, Elder Brother.
JINZHUMA: All right, I’ve drunk first. Drink, Brother.
OLD CHILIARCH: Let me drink.
JINZHUMA: Brother, drink another cup.
OLD CHILIARCH: It’s only when I am with you, Elder Brother, that I’ll drink several cups of wine, but once I get to the mountain pass, I won’t drink even a single drop.
JINZHUMA: Brother, your elder brother has nothing to give you as a parting gift.
OLD CHILIARCH: Today I’m here to take leave of my elder brother; how dare I ask you for anything?
JINZHUMA (sings:)
[Enahu]30
If only I had my former wealth,
I would surely send you off with money and much ado.
Here are, with fish-bladder glue31 joined, two arrows of bamboo.
OLD CHILIARCH: I accept them.
JINZHUMA: There is something else. (Sings:)
There is also this waxed bowstring.
OLD CHILIARCH: I can really use these two things.
JINZHUMA: Brother, drink little, and attend to your duties diligently.
OLD CHILIARCH: Elder Brother, please rest assured, for when I get to the mountain pass, I will put the troops and horses in battle order, prepare to guard against the bandits, and won’t drink even one drop of wine.
JINZHUMA (sings:)
[Slowly the Golden Cup]
My unwearied mouth will spout some words of good advice.32
I urge you: be not greedy for wine;
I urge you: do not for wealth pine.
You should just guard for long the southern border’s mountain gorge,
