In a small village called Shankouzhuang, east of Tai’an County in Shandong, China, life moved in a familiar rhythm. On the first and sixth day of every month, the market would come alive — voices rising, goods exchanged, people gathering like a tide that came and went. Among them was an elderly man surnamed Liu, who ran a tavern at the marketplace. His business flourished, and over the years, he became a man of comfortable means. But more than wealth, it was his character that quietly set him apart.
Aiding a destitute couple
One day, Liu’s nephew came to him with a request. Already past middle age and without a son, he wished to buy a young woman as a concubine. “How much will you need?” Liu asked. “Twelve thousand coins.” Liu nodded and agreed. But just then, a sound drifted in from outside — soft at first, then unmistakable: the sound of someone weeping bitterly. Not ordinary tears, but the kind that carry helplessness in them.
Liu stepped outside. There, by the roadside, stood a young couple, clinging to one another, crying as though the world had just ended. He gently asked what had happened. The man bowed his head and said: “My name is Yang Zhong. This is my wife. We fled the famine in our hometown, but we have exhausted all our money and now have nothing left. We cannot survive any longer. In desperation, I must sell my wife.” His voice trembled. “To be torn apart like this — it is unbearable.” The young woman was to be sold to Liu’s nephew.
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