On Guji Island in the East Sea, there grew a flower called the naidonghua ( or the flower that fears not winter). Its blossoms came in all colors and they never faded, whatever the season. No one lived on that island and few outsiders ever went there.
There was a man named Zhang in Dengzhou, Shandong Province. He was by nature curious and loved to travel and go hunting. When he heard how enchanting the scenery on Guji Island was, he prepared some food and drink and headed for the island in a small boat all bv himself. The naidonghua on the island were in full bloom, their aroma wafting for miles around. Some of the trees were so huge that more than a dozen people linking hands wouldn’t have been able to embrace one. He walked around, feeling intoxicated, and was reluctant to leave. He opened the pot of wine and helped himself, all the while regretting that he hadn’t invited company.
Suddenly, he saw a young woman emerge from the flower bushes. Dressed in a dazzling red skirt, she was incomparably beautiful. When she saw Zhang, she smiled and said, “I thought I was unique in my love of travel. I never thought there would be someone here already, with the same interest.” Surprised, Zhang asked who she was. She said, “I am a courtesan from Jizhou. I came here with the Prince of the Sea. He was so excited that he went off to see the sights. I’m too tired to walk, so I stayed here.” Zhang, who was feeling lonely, was delighted to have the company of this beauty, and so invited her to sit and join him in a drink. The maiden spoke with a sweet, soft tone that made one’s head turn. Zhang liked her very much. For fear that once the Prince of the Sea came back, they would not be able to enjoy themselves to the full, he wasted no time proposing that they make love, and the maiden readily agreed.
The two were in the midst of their dallying when they suddenly heard the howling of a fierce wind followed by the sound of falling trees. The maiden pushed Zhang away and exclaimed, “The Prince of the Sea is here!” Zhang looked around with panic as he tied up his clothes. Meanwhile, the maiden had disappeared. Suddenly, he saw a huge snake coming out of the woods, its body as big as a barrel. Frightened, Zhang hid himself behind a big tree, hoping the snake would not see him. But the reptile came and wound his body around the man and the tree several times, binding them together. Zhang’s arms, hanging straight by his sides, were fastened so that he couldn’t bend them. The huge snake lifted its head and flicked at Zhang’s nose with its tongue until blood flowed from it, forming a pool on the ground. Then, the snake lowered his head to suck the blood.
Zhang was certain he would die. Suddenly, he remembered that he had some poison for hunting foxes in the bag which was tied to his waist. With two fingers, he managed to extract the packet of poison from the bag, poked a hole in the paper and held the poison in his palm. Then he turned his head to the side and looked down at his palm so that the blood from his nose dripped onto the poison, filling his cupped hand. Sure enough, the snake was lured by the chance to suck that blood, too. Before it could finish, it stretched its body and flapped its tail about, making a terrible noise. When it hit a tree, half of it fell to the ground. The snake finally lay still, stretching out on the ground like a fallen pillar, dead.
Zhang’s head was still swirling and he couldn’t get up. Only after a while did he fully come to. He carried the huge snake home in his boat and was seriously ill for more than a month. He suspected the maiden had been a snake-fairy.
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