During the Kaiyuan period of the Tang Dynasty, there was a family of three brothers named Pei living outside the Yanping Gate in Chang’an. All three brothers were not officials, but they were known far and wide for their filial piety and benevolence. Although his family was poor, they liked to give charity to others.
An old man often passed by Pei’s house and asked for a drink of water. The old man’s dress and face were slightly different from those of ordinary people. The three brothers treated him with respect and consideration. They asked the old man what he did for a living, and he said he sold medicine for a living. They also asked the old man how his family was, and the old man said he could not tell. The old man came and went to live in the Pei family, so after several years, the Pei family did not show any sign of boredom.
One day, the old man said to them: “Although your brothers are poor, they have been able to respect and take care of their guests for a long time, so you are really honorable people. If you are as virtuous as this, you will have great blessings in the future. I am also deeply benefited by you, and today I give you a small amount of money and goods for the next few years.” The Pei family was very grateful for the old man’s kindness. So the old man asked them to prepare a few pounds of charcoal for him, dug a pit in the ground as a stove, and lit a fire. Shortly after, the old man asked to bring a few finger-sized bricks and tiles and put them in the fire to burn. In a few moments, the bricks were burned red, then the old man took out a little medicine from his arms into the fire, a purple smoke came out of the furnace, a meal of work, the bricks all turned into gold, weighing about a hundred taels. The old man gave all the gold to the Pei family. The old man said: “The price of these gold, is the general gold double, estimated to be enough for your family for three years. I am leaving here today, and when the gold is used up, I will come back.” The Pei brothers respected the old man more and more, and thanked him. They asked him where he lived. The old man said, “I will tell you later.” After saying that, the old man said goodbye and went away.
The Pei brothers sold their gold and bought a lot of grain to stock up. In the next year, there were floods and droughts, but only his family was spared.
Three years later, the old man came again and burned some gold and gave it to them. One of the Pei brothers was willing to follow the old man to learn the way, so the old man took him to the west. After walking for several miles, he came to the west rock under the Taibai Mountain. When he saw a big rock with a stone wall on the left, the old man knocked on the wall with his walking stick. The rock immediately moved away and it turned out to be a cave where a Taoist priest and a child came out to greet him. The old man led him into the cave, which at first felt dark, but gradually became brighter and brighter, and only saw the city and the people. The temple and palace inside were no different from the temples in the human world. There were countless Taoist priests, jade children, and fairy maidens. They welcomed him with songs and music. Some of the Daoist priests were playing the zither, some were playing chess, some were reading, and some were talking. The old man led him to all the Daoists, and said to the people, “This is the master of the city of Chang’an.” The old man invited him to stay overnight, and gave him houmou rice and dried lins to eat, and prepared immortal wine for him. He bade farewell to the Daoists and to each other. The old man sent him out of the cave and gave him some gold and silver jewels, saying to him, “You should not stay here long now, go back for the time being, for in twenty years’ time there will be great chaos in the world. This is the left cover cave in Taibai Mountain, when that time comes, you can still come here and I will welcome you.” The man named Pei thanked him and said goodbye.
When the An Shi Rebellion came, Pei’s whole family went to take refuge in the Left Covered Cave of Taibai Mountain and lived in seclusion in the cave for several years. Living in the fairyland, Pei’s family learned the Way as a result. After the rebellion was settled, they came back to live on earth, and all three brothers became big officials. The family, both the master and the servants, all lived long lives.
(Source: Taiping Guangji)
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