Ye Xian facts for kids

Ye Xian is a very old Chinese fairy tale. It's a lot like the famous European story of Cinderella. You can also find similar tales in places like Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, and among groups like the Tibetans and Zhuangs.

This story is one of the oldest versions of Cinderella we know! It was first written down around the year 850 by a writer named Duan Chengshi in a book called Miscellaneous Morsels from Youyang. Many different versions of the story were told by people before they were collected and written down.

The Story of Ye Xian

Long, long ago, even before the Qin and Han times, there lived a chief named Wu in a small community of cave-dwellers called Wudong. He had two wives and a daughter with each.

Ye Xian was the daughter of one of Wu's wives. She was very beautiful, kind, gentle, and good at things like making pottery and writing poetry. Her half-sister, Jun-Li, was not as pretty, and she was mean and selfish. Jun-Li and her mother, Jin (Wu's other wife), were very jealous of how much attention Wu gave to Ye Xian. Ye Xian's own mother had passed away when she was a baby, so her father, Wu, did his best to raise her.

Life with a Cruel Stepmother

Sadly, Ye Xian's father died from a sickness. Since he had no sons, a new chief took his place. Ye Xian's family became poor, and she was forced to work as a servant for her unkind stepmother, Jin, and her spoiled half-sister, Jun-Li.

Even though she had to do many chores and was treated badly, Ye Xian found comfort in a special friendship. She befriended a beautiful, 10 foot (3.0 m) long fish in a nearby lake. This fish had golden eyes and scales. It was actually a guardian spirit sent by her own mother, who still watched over her.

The Magical Fish and Its Bones

One day, Jun-Li followed Ye Xian to the lake and saw her talking to the fish. Jun-Li was angry that Ye Xian had found happiness, so she told her mother everything. The cruel stepmother tricked Ye Xian into giving her the old dress she wore. Then, the stepmother caught and killed the fish, cooking it for dinner for herself and Jun-Li.

Ye Xian was heartbroken. But then, the spirit of an old man appeared to her. He had white hair and wore a white robe. He might have been one of her ancestors or her grandfather. He told her to bury the fish's bones in four pots and hide them under her bed. He also said that if she talked to the bones, they would grant her wishes.

The Festival and the Lost Slipper

Once a year, there was a big New Year Festival. This was a time for young women to meet possible husbands. The stepmother wanted her own daughter, Jun-Li, to have the best chance. So, she made Ye Xian stay home and clean their cave-house.

After her stepfamily left for the festival, the fish's spirit visited Ye Xian again. She quietly wished to the bones, and suddenly, Ye Xian was dressed in amazing clothes! She wore a beautiful sea-green silk gown, a cloak made of kingfisher feathers, and a pair of tiny golden slippers.

Ye Xian walked to the festival. Everyone admired her, especially the young men who thought she was a princess. She was having a wonderful time until she heard Jun-Li shout, "That girl looks like my older sister!" Realizing her family might recognize her, Ye Xian quickly left. As she hurried away, she accidentally left one golden slipper behind.

When she got home, she hid her fancy clothes and the other slipper under her bed. But the fish bones were silent now. They had warned Ye Xian not to lose even one slipper. Sadly, she fell asleep under a tree. Her stepfamily returned from the festival, talking about a mysterious beauty they saw, not knowing it was Ye Xian.

The King's Search

A local farmer found the golden slipper and traded it. The slipper was passed around until it reached the king of the To'Han islets, a powerful kingdom of many small islands. The king was amazed by how tiny the shoe was. He announced that he would search for the maiden whose foot fit the shoe, and he would marry her.

The search reached the cave-dwellers' community. Every young woman, even Jun-Li, tried on the slipper, but no one's foot could fit. The king was sad that he couldn't find the woman he was looking for. He built a grand pavilion and put the shoe on display there.

Ye Xian arrived late one evening to get her slipper back, but she was mistaken for a thief. She was brought before the king. There, she told him her whole story: how she lost her friend, the gold-eyed fish, and now her slipper. The king was impressed by her kind heart and beauty, even though she came from a simple land. He believed her and let her go home with the slipper.

A Royal Wedding

The next morning, the king went to Ye Xian's house and asked her to come with him to his kingdom. Ye Xian put on both her golden shoes and appeared in her beautiful sea-green gown.

However, the stepmother and Jun-Li insisted that Ye Xian couldn't have such clothes because she was just their servant. The stepmother claimed the fancy clothes belonged to Jun-Li and that Ye Xian had stolen them. The king ignored their lies. He invited Ye Xian to marry him and live in his palace. She accepted, becoming his queen.

As for her cruel stepfamily, they were left with each other. The stepmother forced Jun-Li, who had lost all hope of marrying someone rich, into the same servant life that Ye Xian had suffered. When Jun-Li angrily rebelled against her fate, it started a violent fight. This caused a cave-in that buried both women and destroyed their home. Meanwhile, the king and Ye Xian married and lived happily.

Alternate Ending

In some versions of the story, the stepmother and stepsister were buried in a special place called "The Tomb of the Regretful Women." Later, these two women became goddesses who could grant wishes.

After Ye Xian married the king, her husband became greedy. He used the fish-bone's magic too much, and soon, the bones stopped working. Queen Ye Xian then buried the fish bones on a nearby beach with a lot of gold. A year later, the king's people rebelled. To calm them down, the king tried to dig up the fish bones and share the gold with the soldiers. But the gold was washed away by the ocean tide, along with the magical bones. What happened to the king and Ye Xian after the siege is not known in this version.

Other Stories Like This One

• The book Bound by Donna Jo Napoli tells the fairy tale again in a new way.
• Yeh-Shen: A Cinderella Story From China, written by Ai-Ling Louie and drawn by Ed Young, is a very popular children's picture book version of the story. This book was even made into an episode of the animated TV show, CBS Storybreak.
• The TV show The Puzzle Place also retold the story in an episode called "Going by the Book."
• The movie Year of the Fish is a modern retelling of the story.