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The Tale of Kieu through the Eyes of Zen, Talk 3
The happy time of Thuy Kieu and Kim Trong was short, not even a span, lasting only from about 9 in the morning until 6 in the evening. After Kim Trong left, calamity struck Kieu’s family due to the silk seller’s false accusation. The underlings and ox-headed and horse-faced demons rushed in to bind Kieu’s father and younger brother, looting property like bluebottle flies. Kieu decided to sell herself to ransom her father for over 400 taels of gold to Ma Giam Sinh. Before leaving, Kieu entrusted her destiny to her younger sister Thuy Van, handing over keepsakes including:
- The hairpin
- The cloud-patterned note
- The lute fret
- The piece of incense
Kieu followed Ma Giam Sinh to Lam Chi, discovered she had fallen into Tu Ba’s Green Pavilion, and realized the two were birds of a feather. Because Ma Giam Sinh had taken her virginity beforehand, Tu Ba beat Kieu. Kieu attempted suicide with a knife but was lured by Tu Ba into house arrest at Ngung Bich Pavilion. Here, Kieu met So Khanh, who pretended to be a hero saving a beauty but in reality tricked Kieu into escaping only to be captured again. Beaten severely, Kieu was forced to accept receiving guests and learning the trade of pleasure.
Thuc Sinh, a merchant, became infatuated with Kieu and redeemed her from the Green Pavilion. The two lived together for half a year when Thuc Sinh’s father arrived, furious, and took the matter to the mandarin to force Kieu back to the Green Pavilion. The content analyzes the character’s psychology, the corruption of society, and Kieu’s utmost suffering through repeated humiliations, from selling herself and being deceived to having to “pour out her virgin heart.” The verses describing scenes to express inner feelings, such as the eight lines of “sadly gazing” or the six words “give” in the passage lamenting her fate, clearly depict the tragedy of the rosy-cheeked beauty.