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Bamboo with a Hundred Segments
Here is the translated story from a Vietnamese fable. Critize as hard as you can on my word usage. Thanks!
Bamboo with A Hundred Segments
Once upon a time, there was an evil and treacherous landlord. He used all means to despoil his servants and employees. He has a beautiful daughter. There was a young man names Khoai who lived and worked for him since little. Since Khoai is about eighteen, who could leave him sooner or later, he one day call him over and says: “If you really try hard on your work, stay up late and wake up early, be really diligent, I will marry my daughter to you.”
Khoai thinks he is being sincere, so he works ten times harder. Three years have past, the daughter has grown up. There is a local liege who asks to marry the daughter to his son, and the rich man agrees. Knowing that he is being cheat, Khoai madden and immediately ask him: “You have promise to marry your daughter to me, why did you back out and married your daughter to someone else?” He gets angry and is about to hit Khoai. However, he reconsiders and then answers Khoai: “Well, she has grown up, so it would be the right time for her to get married. I was preparing the wedding for you. But if you want to marry my daughter, you must do one thing for me: go and find me one bamboo with a hundred segments, carry it home and use as a wedding chopstick, I will marry my daughter to you.”
Khoai thinks he is being sincere, right away he carry the ax to the forest. But day after day, one jungle to next, he can not find a hundred segment bamboo stick. Hopeless, he sits down and cries. Then suddenly there was an old man who has a white hair, ruddy skin, bright eyes, and a cheerful smile. He walks sedately toward and asks: “Why are you crying?” Khoai tells him the whole story. The old man listens and says: “You go and cut down for me one hundred segments” Khoai complies and has quickly cut down one hundred segments. The old man chant: “Together! Together!” Just after his chant, the hundred bamboo segments lying everywhere on the ground then connect together. Khoai rejoices and bow down to thank, but the old man has disappear. He then knows that he is a fairy. Khoai wants to carry the long bamboo stick on his shoulder, but it is too long that it gets stuck between other trees. Feeling sad, he sits down and cries. Then the fairy appears, he asks: “Why are you crying?” Khoai tells him his situation. The fairy point his finger at the bamboo and says: “Apart! Apart!” The bamboo then falls apart into one hundred segments. He ties it together into bundle and carries it home. When he comes home, he sees people are partying clamorously as today is the wedding of the daughter and the liege’s son. Khoai confronts his landlord and angrily ask for explanation, the landlord only laugh and says: “Look at that, I told you to cut me a hundred segment bamboo stick not a hundred segment of bamboo sticks.” Everybody laughs at Khoai for being naive. Khoai asks him to go out and see. Khoai then chant: “Together! Together!” The hundred segments form together and also pull in the landlord to stick with it, he tries hard to pull out but still get stuck. Seeing what happen, the liege and his son run over to pull him out. Khoai then chants “Together! Together!” This time the liege and his son get pull in. The harder they try to pull out, the more pain they have. Both the groom and bride family are afraid. They kneel down and ask Khoai to release those three and promise to let him marry the landlord’s daughter. Khoai waits for a moment and chants: “Apart! Apart!” The hundred segments fall apart and release the three. Tomorrow morning, the landlord prepares the wedding for his daughter and Khoai.
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