There is Jiugong Bridge Town in Shaoyang, Hunan Province. The town is named after a bridge. There is a very interesting legend here.

In the early years, there was a rich family in the town named Zhang, who was good at charity and helping the poor, and was called Zhang Shanren by the village. In his family, there was a long-term worker named Zheng Honest, who got tuberculosis, lost weight day by day, and coughed up blood. He borrowed a lot of silver from Zhang Shanren to see the doctor grab medicine, but in the end he didn't save his life and left his wife and children behind.

Zheng Honest's wife Yun Niang took her four-year-old son Xiaohu to Zhang's mansion after dealing with the funeral with the help of neighbors. She knelt in front of Zhang Shanren and said, "We owe a lot of money to the owner. The slave family is willing to work to pay for it, and please let the owner complete it."

Zhang Shanren looked at the orphans and widows, moved with compassion, and agreed: "Alright, you can do some sizing and darning work in the mansion, and it can be regarded as a livelihood. Don't worry about the money you owe, if you have spare money, you can pay it back, and if you don't have spare money, you can leave it for now."

At the end of the third year, Yun Niang took a boat to the market on the other side of the river to buy some cloth heads, thinking of adding new clothes to Xiaohu. When she came back, a gust of wind suddenly blew the cloth head in Yun Niang's hand into the river. Yun Niang reached out to grab it in a hurry, but she did not protect herself and fell into the river. Instantly, she was submerged by turbulent waves, and the owner only picked up a cloth head.

After Zhang Shanren heard the news, he sent out people to salvage along the way, searching the river for more than 40 miles without finding anything. Looking at the crying tiger, he couldn't stop shaking his head and sighing. The family was really in trouble, and such a small child became an orphan.

Zhang Shanren paid for a piece of Yunniang's clothes and buried it with Zheng Honest. Afterwards, he took Xiaohu, who was over six years old, home and had a companion with his daughter. Zhang Shanren did not expect Xiaohu to pay back his money when he grew up, but he could not bear that he had nowhere to live and could not save his life.

Although Xiaohu was young, he was very ambitious. At the age of eight, he took the initiative to find Zhang Shanren and said in an adult tone, "Master, I have grown up, I can't let you keep it for nothing, let me herd cattle!"

Zhang Shanren stroked his head and said with a smile, "It's rare to be so sensible at such a young age. Don't be busy, wait two years, and you can follow Uncle Liu to herd cattle."

Xiaohu had been herding cattle for three years and was already thirteen years old. He was tall and strong. He felt that herding cattle at home was better than working in the fields, so he could earn more wages and pay off his parents' debts earlier. So he found Zhang Shanren and asked to work in the fields.

Zhang Shanren still smiled and said, "Alright, tomorrow you will follow the other uncles on the field. Don't be arrogant, do as much as you can, and don't tire your body."

After Zhang Shanren agreed, Xiaohu was very happy, and decided to tell his parents under Jiuquan about it. He was talking about paying his debts to his parents' graves when a hen suddenly came out of the grass nest behind the grave, "giggling, giggling" and came to him. He was startled, where did the chickens come from in the barren mountains? When he got home, he took the chicken back and put it in Zhang Shanren's flock.

Xiaohu worked very hard, and it was similar to the whole labor force. Zhang Shanren asked Mr. Accountant to record the whole work for him. Xiaohu was overjoyed and worked even more vigorously.

Time flies, and in the blink of an eye, Xiaohu has grown to 19 years old. After finishing work that day, he hummed a ditty back to Zhang Shanren's house with a spring breeze on his face. Seeing that he was so happy, Zhang Shanren asked why. Xiaohu said respectfully: "Thanks to the benefactor's acceptance, Xiaohu herded cattle for three years and worked in the field for six years. I just asked the accountant, except for the occasional copper money I spent in recent years, my wages could already cover the debt owed by my father. I was so happy that I couldn't help humming a few ditties."

Zhang Shanren looked at Xiaohu in front of him and couldn't help but have mixed feelings. He arranged for the kitchen to add two good dishes, let Xiaohu accompany him to have a glass of wine, and said during the dinner: "Actually, when I lent money to your father, I didn't think about asking for it. When I took in your mother and son, it was just a pretext to repay the debt. All these years, your wages have been saved for you, and you will keep it for you to start a family and start a business in the future. As for the debts in the past, it will be written off. It is good that you are willing to stay and work for me in the future. If you want to go out and find another job, I will support it."

Xiaohu was moved to tears, but no matter what, he had to pay back the debt. Zhang Shanren did not argue with him, and wanted to use the money to talk about his marriage in the future and discuss it in the long run.

Little Tiger's heart was up and down, and he couldn't help but drink a few more cups. He went back to his room drunk and lay down, and soon fell asleep. When it was almost dawn, he had a dream. A woman in yellow clothes came to his bed and cried and said, "Son, our family owes Zhang Shanren a debt. I am afraid that you will be affected at a young age, so I specially reincarnated into a hen and laid eggs for Zhang Shanren every day to pay off the debt. Now that I have laid eggs for six years, the last egg has been laid today, and the debt has been paid off. The Zhang family will kill me tomorrow, and I will leave you a chicken leg. After eating the chicken leg, tell Zhang Shanren about my dream, and then settle the wages for these years, go home to marry and have children, and continue the incense of the Zheng family."

Little Tiger shouted, "Mother, how can I eat you!" Immediately, he woke up from his dream. He was no longer sleepy, remembering that he had heard similar legends before, how could he have had such a dream? He suddenly remembered the hen he brought back from the grave six years ago, could it be the change of his mother? He shook his head with a wry smile, impossible, people die like lights go out, how could they become chickens?

After dawn, when Xiaohu went to the kitchen to eat, he casually asked the cook if he wanted to kill chickens today. The cook laughed and said, "What kind of chicken do you kill every year? Are you greedy?"

Xiaohu also thought it was ridiculous, and casually joked: "If you are greedy, remember to leave me a chicken leg if you kill a chicken." After breakfast, he went to work in the field. When he came back from work in the evening, the cook came to Xiaohu's house with a crock pot like a treasure, and said loudly: "You really have a good taste. You just mentioned the chicken thing this morning, and there were guests at noon. The master ordered the chicken to be killed by guests. I accidentally told the lady what you said, and the lady laughed and told me to keep a chicken leg for you."

The cook turned around to leave, but suddenly remembered something, turned around and said, "Little Tiger, this chicken is still the one you brought home six years ago!"

When Xiaohu heard that, the crockpot in his hand suddenly fell to the ground and shattered, and he burst into tears.

Zhang Shanren was shocked by the cry and rushed to ask why. Xiaohu stared at the dream and said angrily, "My mother turned into a hen to lay eggs to pay off her debt, but you actually killed her to eat meat and left me a leg. I hate you to death!"

After saying these words, Xiaohu suddenly pushed Zhang Shanren and staggered, rushed out of the door, rushed out of the yard, and ran away.

Zhang Shanren thought to himself that this was too coincidental. The chicken was brought home by Xiaohu six years ago, but when Xiaohu had just had this dream, he ordered someone to kill the chicken. No wonder he hated himself. Xiaohu must have been thinking of his mother, and he had such a strange dream at night.

Zhang Shanren hated and regretted that he had done good all his life, but had done such a bad thing when he was old. He took out Xiaohu's nine years of wages and built a bridge on the river where Yunniang fell into the water, hoping to make up for his sins. It was much more convenient for the people of the town to travel to and from the east of the river, but when he mentioned this matter, he sighed and did not know how to evaluate it.

Because of the guilt, Zhang Shanren's body was getting worse every day, and after three years, he had run out of oil. After Lang Zhong came to see him, he said, "Zhang Yuanwai has heart disease, and taking medicine is not very useful."

The Zhang family was anxious, watching Zhang Shanren's spirit weaken a little bit, but they were helpless. The family stayed by his side and wept, waiting for the moment when the deadline came.

At this time, there was a sudden sound of rapid footsteps in the yard, and a man shouted with a crying voice: "Master, wait for me!"

I saw a big man rushing into the house with a gust of wind, "plopped" and knelt down in front of the bed, crying loudly: "Master Zhang, I am Xiaohu, I am back, you must not leave!"

Zhang Shanren opened his eyes miraculously and said trembling, "It really Xiaohu… Xiaohu, I'm sorry for you!"

Xiaohu slapped himself twice and cried, "It was Xiaohu who was confused and took a dream seriously. My mother..."

Just as she was saying this, an old woman came in from outside, panting, fell to the ground, kowtowed and said, "Duke Zhang Engong, the slave family is Zheng's Yunniang, I'm not dead!"

Zhang Shanren's eyes widened as he listened to Xiaohu talk about the ins and outs of the matter.

That day, Xiaohu rushed out of the town in excitement and walked aimlessly down the river. Wherever he went, he would work for a few days. He vowed never to return to the place that made him sad.

One day, he saw an old woman pushing an old man crooked forward with a wheelbarrow, so he ran up to help. During the conversation, he learned that the old man was seriously ill, and the old woman pushed him to see the husband.

Xiaohu helped push the old man to the hospital, a pair of decoctions was poured down, and the old man calmed down. Langzhong prescribed a few more medications, and Xiaohu helped send the old man home.

The old woman thanked him with a thousand thanks and raised the knife to kill the chicken to entertain him. Xiaohu was moved by the scene and stopped him with tears: "Auntie, I can't do it. As soon as I see the chicken, I think of my hard-working mother, let alone let me eat it."

The old woman felt strange and asked, and Xiaohu choked and said, "My father owed Zhang Shanren a lot of money when he was sick, and my mother fell into the river and drowned, but she didn't even find the body. Later, my mother told me in a dream that she turned into a hen and laid eggs to pay off my father's debt."

Just as she said this, the old woman grabbed his arm and asked tremblingly, "Are you Xiaohu?"

Xiaohu was surprised and asked strangely, "How did you know my name is Xiaohu?"

"Child, I am your mother!"

Xiaohu stepped back and shook his head: "My mother died long ago and became a hen… How could you be my mother?"

The old woman suddenly came forward to hug the tiger and burst into tears, recounting what had happened.

That year, Yun Niang fell into the water and was quickly choked unconscious. When she opened her eyes, she found herself lying on a wooden board drifting with the current, so she shouted for help. It happened that the old man passed by the shore and heard a cry for help to save her. Yun Niang was a peasant woman with little knowledge. She only knew that her hometown was called Li Family Village, and she didn't even know the place name of Shaoyang. The old man took her home and asked around. Li Family Village found a few, but Yun Niang rushed to take a look, but none of them were her homeland. Neither of them knew that Yun Niang had drifted hundreds of miles away, and naturally they couldn't find it when they asked nearby.

After a long time, Yun Niang and the old man developed a relationship, found someone to match, and the two became husband and wife. Hearing Xiaohu mention the past today, she immediately realized that this was her long-lost son.

After finally narrating the love affair, Xiaohu punched himself several times in annoyance: "The owner is so kind to us, I actually blamed him for a dream. No, I have to go back and apologize to him immediately."

After dealing with family affairs, the family of three rushed back along the river bank day and night. As soon as they entered the town, they saw Zhang Shanren's bridge. When they grabbed the pedestrian and asked, the pedestrian recognized Xiaohu and immediately said, "This is the bridge built by Zhang Shanren with your nine years of wages." We all call it Jiugong Bridge. Zhang Shanren feels ashamed of you and is depressed in his chest.

As soon as Xiaohu heard it, he ran to Zhang Shan's house, so this scene happened just now.

When Zhang Shanren heard Xiaohu's story, he was surprised and delighted. He actually got up from bed and helped Xiaohu get up. Seeing this, the family immediately served ginseng chicken soup, and Zhang Shanren drank a big bowl in one go, and his face suddenly got better.

Xiaohu's family of three settled down in his hometown, and he still worked as a long-term worker for Zhang Shanren's family. A year later, Zhang Shanren saw that he was honest and capable, and decided to marry his daughter to him, which became a story in Ten Miles and Eight Villages, and the story of Jiugong Bridge has been passed down.