Grasshopper Guai Lesser Yaoguais
Location
One is guaranteed to jump out of one of the cocoons near the Verdure Bridge shrine in the Webbed Hollow.
Description
During the reign of the greatest emperor of Han, there was a village called Bath. From within its mountains, a hot spring flowed, reputed to preserve youth and vitality. Nobles flocked to it from far and wide.
One day, the Marquis of Lecheng came to visit with his six-year-old son. The young lord caught a little grasshopper and wanted to keep it as a pet, so he tore off its wings and trapped it in a teacup.
That night, the Marquis was visited in his dreams by a man clad in green. “Your child has imprisoned mine,” he pleaded. “We are both fathers. I beseech you, help my little one.”
The next morning, the Marquis summoned his son and inquired about what happened. The boy, who feared his stern father, only provided vague replies. Thus, the full story remained elusive to both. That night, the green-clad man revisited the Marquis’ dreams, with twin swords at his waist. He warned, “If you don’t return my son, you’ll never see yours again.” The Marquis woke with a start and rushed to his son’s bed, only to find it empty. Servants scoured the village but found no trace.
Only the young lord’s page remembered the bug-catching. He rushed to the study, found the overturned teacup, and gently released the grasshopper onto the grass.
By noon, the young lord returned home safely, yet his hands were red and swollen, and he couldn’t stop weeping. When questioned about the events of the previous night, he sobbed, “I dreamt of a man in green, a great jumper. He carried me on his back and hopped a few times. Then, I didn’t know where I was. He scolded me for harming others and struck my palms with his swords twenty times.” When asked how he came back, he was unable to answer, overwhelmed by fear.
Alas, it is said that all beings love their young, a truth that spans the world. Even yaoguais, it seems, are no different.
In the late years of the Han, the hot spring in Bath suddenly dried up. Insect guais sprouted in the hills, so the villagers moved down the mountain. A decade or two later, the area came to be known as the Webbed Ridge.
Poetry
Slender legs, a verdant sheen,
Each arm wields a sickle keen.
Misty woods are his home so true,
He cares for youth, like me and you.
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