At the time of Qing Ming, the shores of West Lake were blooming with vibrant flowers, the willows were green, and the Broken Bridge was bustling with visitors—a truly beautiful scene of spring in full bloom. Suddenly, two stunningly beautiful young women quietly emerged from the bottom of the lake. What’s going on? How could people be rising from the water? It turned out that they were two snake spirits who had transformed into human form. Despite this, they meant no harm; they were simply fascinated by the colorful life of humans. One took the name Bai Su Zhen, and the other, Xiao Qing, and they came to the shores of West Lake to enjoy a day out.
Just then, the heavens grew angry, and suddenly, a torrential downpour began. Bai Su Zhen and Xiao Qing were drenched and had nowhere to hide. Just as they were feeling troubled, they suddenly noticed an umbrella appearing over their heads. They turned around to see a refined, fair-skinned young scholar holding the umbrella to shield them from the rain. Their eyes met, and both of them blushed at the same time, immediately feeling a sense of affection for one another. Xiao Qing, seeing this, quickly said, “Thank you! May I ask your honorable name?” The young scholar replied, “My name is Xu Xian, and I live right by this Broken Bridge.” Bai Su Zhen and Xiao Qing hurriedly introduced themselves as well. From then on, the three often met, and the relationship between Bai Su Zhen and Xu Xian grew stronger. Before long, they married and opened a pharmacy called "Bao He Tang", living happily together.
"Bao He Tang" became well-known for curing many difficult and rare diseases, and they even treated the poor without charging a fee. As a result, the pharmacy's business flourished, and more and more people came from afar to seek Bai Su Zhen's help. People affectionately called her "Lady Bai". However, the success of the pharmacy and the happiness of Bai Su Zhen and Xu Xian irritated one person—who was it? It was the monk Fa Hai from Jin Shan Temple. Because Bai Su Zhen had cured so many people, fewer people were visiting Jin Shan Temple to pray to the Buddha, causing a decline in temple offerings. Naturally, Fa Hai was not pleased. One day, he came to "Bao He Tang" and saw Bai Su Zhen treating patients. A surge of jealousy burned in his heart. Upon closer inspection, he realized that Bai Su Zhen was no ordinary woman but a transformed white snake!
Although Fa Hai had some minor magical powers, his heart was not pure. Once he discovered Bai Su Zhen’s true identity, he schemed to break up the couple and ruin the pharmacy. He secretly called Xu Xian to the temple and told him, “Your wife is a snake spirit. You must divorce her, or she will eat you!” Xu Xian was furious upon hearing this. He thought, "My wife is kind-hearted, and her love for me is deeper than the sea. Even if she is a snake spirit, she would never harm me. Moreover, she is now pregnant—how could I abandon her?" Fa Hai, seeing that Xu Xian did not believe him, became enraged and locked Xu Xian in the temple.
At the pharmacy, Bai Su Zhen anxiously waited for Xu Xian’s return. Days passed, and still, he did not come back. Bai Su Zhen grew desperate and soon found out that Xu Xian had been detained by Fa Hai at Jin Shan Temple. Bai Su Zhen hurriedly went to the temple, accompanied by Xiao Qing, to beg Fa Hai to release Xu Xian. When Fa Hai saw Bai Su Zhen, he sneered and said, “How dare you, demon snake! I advise you to leave the human world at once, or don’t blame me for being ruthless!” Bai Su Zhen, seeing Fa Hai’s refusal to release Xu Xian, had no choice but to remove a gold hairpin from her head, twirl it in the wind, and summon a raging wave that surged toward Jin Shan Temple.
Fa Hai, seeing the flood approaching, quickly removed his monk’s robe and transformed it into a long dike to block the waves at the temple’s entrance. The water level rose a foot, and the dike rose a foot; the water level rose a meter, and the dike grew taller. No matter how powerful the waves became, they could not breach the dike. But Bai Su Zhen, who was pregnant, could not fight Fa Hai’s powers. Eventually, Fa Hai used deceitful methods to trap Bai Su Zhen in a golden bowl, imprisoning her under Leifeng Pagoda. He successfully tore apart the loving couple, Xu Xian and Bai Su Zhen.
After Xiao Qing escaped from Jin Shan Temple, she spent decades in the deep mountains practicing her skills. Ultimately, she defeated Fa Hai and forced him into a crab’s belly. She rescued Bai Su Zhen, and from then on, she, Bai Su Zhen, Xu Xian, and their child lived happily together, never to be separated again.
[The End]
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