Mystery & Suspense - Daily Short Stories

The Wonderful Stone

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Duration:: 13m
Broadcast on:: 04 Jul 2024
Audio Format:: mp3

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Sketchers.com, a Sketchers store, or wherever stylish footwear is sold. The Wonderful Stone from the Chinese. In the prefecture of Shenzhen, there lived a man named Singh Yunfei, who was an amateur meteorologist and would pay any price for a good specimen. One day, as he was fishing in the river, something caught his net, and diving down, he brought up a stone about a foot in diameter, beautifully carved on all sides to resemble clustering hills and peaks. He was quite as pleased with this as if he had found some precious stone, and having had an elegant sandalwood stand made for it, he set his prize upon the table. Whenever it was about to rain, clouds, which from a distance looked like new cotton wool, would come forth from each of the holes or grottos on the stone, and appear to close them up? By and by an influential personage called at the house and begged to see the stone, immediately seizing it and handing it over to a lusty servant, at the same time whipping his horse and riding away. Hussain was in despair, but all he could do was to mourn the loss of his stone, and indulge his anger against the thief. Meanwhile the servant, who had carried off the stone on his back, stopped to rest at a bridge, when all of a sudden his hands slipped, and the stone fell into the water. His master was extremely put out at this, and gave him a sound beating, subsequently hiring several divers, who tried every means in their power to recover the stone, but were quite unable to find it. He then went away having first published a notice of reward, and by these means many were tempted to seek for the stone. Soon after, saying himself came to the spot, and as he mournfully approached the bank, low the water became clear, and he could see the stone lying at the bottom. Taking off his clothes he quickly jumped in and brought it out, together with the sandal wood stand which was still with it. He carried it off to his home, but being no longer desirous of showing it to people, he had an inner room cleaned and put it in there. Some time afterwards an old man knocked at the door, and asked to be allowed to see the stone, whereupon Singh replied, that he had lost it a long time ago. "Isn't that it in the inner room?" said the old man, smiling. "Oh, walk in and see for yourself if you don't believe me," answered Singh. And the old man did walk in, and there was a stone on the table. This took his Singh very much aback, and the old man then laid his hand upon the stone and said, "This is an old family relic of mine. I lost it many months since. How does it come to be here? I pray you now restore it to me." Singh didn't know what to say, but declared he was the owner of the stone, upon which the old man remarked, "If it is really yours, what evidence can you bring to prove it?" Asang made no reply, and the old man continued, "To show you that I know this stone, I may mention that it has all together ninety-two grottoes, and that in the largest of these are five words, a stone from heaven above." Asang looked and found that there were actually some small characters, no larger than grains of rice, which by straining his eyes a little he managed to read, also that the number of grottoes was as the old man had said; however, he would not give him the stone, and the old man laughed and asked, "Pray, what right have you to keep other people's things?" He then bowed and went away, his saying escorting him as far as the door, but when he returned to the room the stone had disappeared. In a great fright he ran after the man who had walked slowly and was not far off, and seizing his sleeve entreated him to give back the stone. "Do you think," said the latter, "that I could conceal the stone a foot in diameter in my sleeve?" But Asang knew that he must be superhuman and let him back to the house where he threw himself on his knees and begged that he might have the stone. "Is it yours or mine?" asked the old man. "Of course it is yours," replied Sing, "though I hope you will consent to deny yourself the pleasure of keeping it. In that case," said the old man, "it is back again." And going into the inner room they found the stone in its old place. "The jewels of this world," observed Asang's visitor, "should be given to those who know how to take care of them. This stone can choose its own master, and I am very pleased that it should remain with you. At the same time I must inform you that it was in too great a hurry to come into the world of mortals, and has not yet been freed from all contingent calamities. I had better take it away with me in three years hence you shall have it again. If however you insist on keeping it, then your span of life will be shortened by three years that your terms of existence may harmonize together. Are you willing?" Asang said he was, whereupon the old man with his fingers closed up three of the stone's grottoes which yielded to his touch like mud. When this was done he turned to Asang and told him that the grottoes on that stone represented the years of his life, and then he took his leave firmly refusing to remain any longer and not disclosing his name. Within a year after this, Asang had occasion to go away on business, and in the night a thief broke in and carried off the stone, taking nothing else at all. When Asang came home he was dreadfully grieved as if his whole object in life was gone and made all possible inquiries and efforts to get it back, but without the slightest result. In the past when one day going into a temple, Asang noticed a man selling stones, and among the rest he saw his old friend. Of course he immediately wanted to regain possession of it, but as the stone seller would not consent he shouldered the stone and went off to the nearest mandarin. The stone seller was then asked what proof he could give that the stone was his, and he replied that the number of grottoes was eighty-nine. Asang inquired if that was all he had to say, and when the other acknowledged that it was, he himself told the magistrate what were the characters inscribed within, also calling attention to the finger marks at the closed up grottoes. He therefore gained his case, and the mandarin would have bamboed the stone seller had he not declared that he bought it in the market for twenty ounces of silver, whereupon he was dismissed. A high official next offered Asang one hundred ounces of silver for it, but he refused to sell it even for ten thousand, which so enraged the would-be purchaser that he worked up a case against Asang and got him put in prison. Asang was thereby compelled to pawn a great deal of his property, and then the official sent someone to try if the affair could not be managed through his son, to which Asang, on hearing of the attempt, steadily refused to consent, saying that he and the stone could not be parted even in death. His wife, however, and his son laid their heads together, and sent the stone to the high official, and Asang only heard of it when he arrived home from the prison. He cursed his wife and beat his son, and frequently tried to make away with himself, though luckily his servants always managed to prevent him from succeeding. At night he dreamed that a noble-looking personage appeared to him and said, "My name is Sheng Chiang Hisi, stone from heaven. Do not grieve. I purposely quitted you for a year and more, but next year on the twentieth of the eighth moon, at dawn, come to the high-tie gate, and buy me back for two strings of cash." Asang was overjoyed at this dream, and carefully took down the day mentioned. Meanwhile the stone was at the official's private house, but as the cloud manifestations seized, the stone was less and less prized. And the following year when the official was disgraced for mal-administration and subsequently died, Asang met some of his servants at the high-tie gate going off to sell the stone, and purchased it back from them for two strings of cash. Asang lived till he was eighty-nine, and then, having prepared the necessities for his internment, made his son bury the stone with him, which was accordingly done. Six months later, robbers broke into the vault and made off with the stone, and his son tried in vain to secure their capture; however, a few days afterwards, he was travelling with the servants when suddenly two men rushed forth, dripping with perspiration, and looking up into the air acknowledged their crime, saying, "Mr. Singh, please don't torment us, thus." We took the stone and sold it for only four ounces of silver. Asang's son and his servants then seized these men, and took them before the magistrate, where they at once acknowledged their guilt, asking what had become of the stone they said they had sold it to a member of the magistrate's family. And when it was produced, that official took such a fancy to it that he gave it to one of his servants, and bade him, place it in the treasury. Thereupon, the stone slipped out of the servants' hand and broke into a hundred pieces to the greatest astonishment of all present. The magistrate now had the thieves bamboed and sent them away, but Asang's son picked up the broken pieces of the stone and buried them in his father's grave. It is Ryan here, and I have a question for you, what do you do when you win? Choose from hundreds of social casino-style games for your chance to redeem serious cash prizes. There are new game releases weekly, plus free daily bonuses, so don't wait. Start having the most fun ever at Shumbakoccino.com. Sponsored by Shumbakoccino, no purchase necessary, VGW Group, voidware prohibited by law, 18-plus terms and conditions apply. Hey there, listeners. Are you ready to unlock a world of captivating stories, soothing sounds, and enlightening lectures? At Solgood Media, we believe in the power of audio to enrich your life, and now we're offering you a chance to experience it all for free. 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