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Story 96: Umetsuma Tsuruko Folktales Story

Umetsuma Tsuruko

Author: Anonymous

Lin Bu lived in seclusion in Xiaogushan, West Lake, Hangzhou in his later years. Three hundred and sixty-five plum trees were planted on the mountain. Weeding, fertilizing and working hard every day.

When the plums are ripe, groups of vendors come to buy his plums. He sells plums not by the pound, but by the amount of plums per tree, and the valuation is fair. Therefore, traders all like to buy his plums.

He also prepared 365 bamboo tubes and put the money from each tree into separate bamboo tubes and numbered them. No matter there are guests or no guests or there are many guests or few guests. Live with the money of a bamboo tube of plums a day, never use an extra penny.

He also raised two white cranes. When the guests arrived, the gentleman would send a whistle, and the white crane would immediately fly over and stand in front of the gentleman.

He put the money and the note in a bag, hung it on Baihe’s neck, and asked Baihe to fly to the city to buy fish, meat, wine, and food. When the merchants saw the white crane flying in, they knew that the gentleman had a customer, so they collected the money and paid for the goods specified in the note, and handed the white crane back to him.