" Sung Yu said: "Of all the women in the world,
the most beautiful are the women of the land of Ch'u.
the most beautiful are the women of the land of Ch'u.
Waley - 170 Chinese Poems
"Such is the Woman-wind of the common people. "
The following is a sample of Sung Yu's prose:
MASTER T? NG-T'U
By Sung Yu (third century B. C. )
One day when the Chamberlain, master T? ng-t'u, was in attendance at the
Palace he warned the King against Sung Yu, saying: "Yu is a man of
handsome features and calm bearing and his tongue is prompt with subtle
sentences. Moreover, his character is licentious. I would submit that
your Majesty is ill-advised in allowing him to follow you into the
Queen's apartments. " The King repeated T? ng-t'u's words to Sung Yu. Yu
replied: "My beauty of face and calmness of bearing were given me by
Heaven. Subtlety of speech I learnt from my teachers. As for my
character, I deny that it is licentious. " The King said: "Can you
substantiate your statement that you are not licentious? If you cannot,
you must leave the Court.
" Sung Yu said: "Of all the women in the world,
the most beautiful are the women of the land of Ch'u. And in all the
land of Ch'u there are none like the women of my own village. And in my
village there are none that can be compared with the girl next door.
"The girl next door would be too tall if an inch were added to her
height, and too short if an inch were taken away. Another grain of
powder would make her too pale; another touch of rouge would make her
too red. Her eyebrows are like the plumage of the kingfisher, her flesh
is like snow. Her waist is like a roll of new silk, her teeth are like
little shells. A single one of her smiles would perturb the whole city
of Yang and derange the suburb of Hsia-ts'ai. [3] For three years this
lady has been climbing the garden wall and peeping at me, yet I have
never succumbed.
[3] Fashionable quarters in the capital of Ch'u state.
"How different is the behaviour of master T? ng-t'u! His wife has a wooly
head and misshapen ears; projecting teeth irregularly set; a crook in
her back and a halt in her gait. Moreover, she has running sores in
front and behind.
"Yet T? ng-t'u fell in love with her and caused her to bear him five
children.
