Origin story:

In the late Qing Dynasty, there was a large family in Guanzhong with the surname Liu and was known as Liu Yuanwai. Liu Yuan had an only daughter named Liu Xu'er, who was sixteen or seventeen years old and had a pretty face. Liu Xu'er obeyed her parents' orders freely and was raised in a boudoir, never leaving the house or stepping outside the door.

There was a swineherd in Yuan Liu’s family, named Guan Mincai, who was sixteen or seventeen years old at that time. His parents died when he was young, and he grew up in the Liu family. Guancai was less than five feet tall, with dark skin and a dry skin. The tree bark looks like a Wu Dalang alive. Although Guan Cai looks ugly, he is gifted with a good voice. When he sings, he sounds as beautiful as a lark.

As time passed, Liu Xuer listened to Guan Cai's singing and had the urge to meet him. But how could a young girl have the nerve to make such a request to her parents? Over and over again, Miss Liu actually fell into lovesickness. She couldn't afford to be sick. She didn't want tea or food, and she became thinner day by day. She saw many doctors but nothing worked. Seeing that her daughter was about to die, Mrs. Liu stayed in front of her daughter and was filled with grief. Absolutely.

Miss Liu looked at her mother and said intermittently: "Mom, my daughter is leaving, but I have a wish that I have not yet fulfilled." Old lady Liu cried and asked her daughter: "What wish do you have? Just say it, I will satisfy you." Liu Xu'er said, "I want to meet the man who sings all day long." Old lady Liu said hurriedly, "It's easy, he is a pig herder in my family, but... "Old Madam Liu didn't say anything further, she just ordered her servant to go find Guan Cai. The servant did not dare to neglect and hurriedly checked before bringing it.

As soon as she heard that Guan Cai had arrived, Miss Liu struggled to stand up. Then the door curtain was lifted, and a man came in. He was short in stature, with dark skin and less than five feet tall. "Oh, my mother." Miss Liu shouted, "Quickly, get out quickly, I don't want to see you anymore." Ever since Miss Liu knew that the singer was an ugly monster, she no longer had any worries in her heart, and her illness soon got better. alright.

As for Guan Cai, ever since he met Miss Liu, he has been infatuated with her. No matter herding pigs, cutting grass, eating or sleeping, Miss Liu's beautiful face is always in front of him. A few days later, he also fell ill and was lovesick. Several long-term workers took turns taking care of him, but Guan Cai couldn't get over this hurdle and was about to die.

When he was about to die, Guan Cai expressed his wish: "I want to see Miss Liu again, so that I can die in peace." So several long-term workers went to ask Yuan Liu to let Liu When Xu'er met Guan Cai, Liu Yuanwai heard that although Guan Cai was ugly, he had stayed at home for more than ten years, so he told his daughter. Unexpectedly, Liu Xu'er refused: "Let me see him? What does he look like?" , I will have nightmares for a few days after watching it!" Ms. Liu refused to see her.

Not being able to see Miss Liu, Guan Cai soon fell seriously ill. Before he died, he told several long-term workers: "I died missing Miss Liu. After I die, my heart will not die. You Bury me on the hillside facing Miss Liu's boudoir, so that I can see her every day and sing to her." After Guan Cai died, several long-term workers bought a thin coffin and buried him on the hillside. .

Since then, strange things have often happened outside Liu Yuan, and beautiful singing has often been heard at night. Six months later, Liu Xuer married a wealthy businessman in Yonghe County on the edge of the Yellow River.

On this day, a Taoist priest passed by here. Liu Yuanwai treated him warmly and asked him to cast spells to ward off evil spirits. The Taoist priest set up an altar and chanted something. He quickly understood what happened. So he asked Yuan Liu to find someone to dig Guan Cai's grave, opened Guan Cai's coffin, and found that Guan Cai's body had dried up.

The Taoist priest untied Guan Cai's clothes and cut open his chest with a knife. Strangely, Guan Cai's heart was still bright red and beating "bang bang". The Taoist priest carefully put his heart into a cloth bag and kept it. Then his body was re-encased and buried.

After the Taoist priest won Guan Cai's heart, he took it everywhere to perform. Everywhere he went, he put his bag on the table and said, "Guan Cai, sing it." The same ballad came out: "Carrot arms, white radish roots, little sister and loving brother are paired together. I will never forget you once I see you. I want to tear my heart out day and night. I lament that I am ugly and unworthy of my sister. He will be handsome in the next life." Paired with mandarin ducks..." People couldn't help but burst into tears.

But it was said that on this day, the Taoist priest came to the edge of the Yellow River in Yonghe County. It happened that Liu Xuer went to the temple to offer incense because she was not getting along with her husband. She heard this song on the way, maybe it was telepathy, and she As if I remembered something, I walked straight into the inn, and the song floated out of the cloth bag. Liu Xuer said to the Taoist priest: "Taoist Master, can you let me see the heart inside?"

The Taoist priest agreed immediately and said to the bag: "Guancai, Miss Liu is here to see you." After speaking, he opened the cloth bag. The bright red heart is exposed, the heart is beating, and the sad song continues: "The arms of carrots, the roots of white radish, the little sister and the loving brother are paired together, I will never forget you once I see you.

I want to tear my heart out day and night, but I am so ugly that I am not worthy of a girl. In the next life, a handsome man is worthy of a mandarin duck..." Miss Liu couldn't help but hold her heart in her hands, lowered her head and looked at it affectionately, with a few tears falling on her heart. The singing stopped suddenly, the heart stopped beating... This time it died contentedly.

Since then, this saying has been left in Yonghe County: Don’t shed tears until you see the coffin (Guancai), and don’t give up until you reach the Yellow River.

Extended information

1. Not crying until the coffin is seen:

Interpretation: It is a metaphor for refusing to give up until complete failure.

Idiom Story

The ancient comic genius An Hongjian was particularly humorous and funny. He was very afraid of his wife. His father-in-law died of illness, and the two of them went to express their condolences. On the way, they started crying. His wife was very strict and she felt strange when she saw her husband crying without any tears and asked why? An Hongjian replied that he wiped it with a handkerchief, and his wife specifically asked him to shed tears when he saw the coffin! ?

2. Reluctant to give up until reaching the Yellow River:

Interpretation: Reluctant to give up until there is no way out. A metaphor for not giving up until the goal is achieved. Source: "Before and After the Qingming Festival"

Source: "The heart will not die until the Yellow River" originally means "The heart will not die until the Wujiang River". Wujiang is the place where Xiang Yu committed suicide. The Wujiang River has been transformed into the Yellow River, which is really inexplicable. .