Literary Masters, Inc.
Publicists for Short Stories, Books, Poems and Songs
          a division of  Brand Masters, Inc.     100 Croatan Road     Hertford, NC     27944
    
REVIEW STORE: Did you enjoy Su Chang-Wu's short story? Please tell her so. We know
she will appreciate your feedback.  CLICK HERE  to write a review of "Passing His Own
Door".

NEW REVIEWS: Another superb morality play by Su Chang-Wu. Once again effortlessly
teaching us of her national culture and history. Although this time I believe she has decided
to tease us with more than a little colorful local jargon. Thanks for another fine story Su
Chang ****__Captain Apple Jack.

What a pleasant surprise from Su Chang. She deftly deals with a complex delineation of
Chinese authority while finding a moment to kid us a little. Thanks for the history lesson
Su Chang. ****__Jean Ann Morgan.

"Son of a gun," I liked this story. Come on Su Chang, you are pulling our legs a little, aren't
you? Good one though. Good one!****__Michelle Banda.
“Passing His Own Door”
By Su Chang-Wu
Saturday, July 18, 2009
Rated "G" by the Author.
A wise man can charm a raging river.
              [Taotang-shi was born Yi Fangxun, or Yi Qi, as the second son to Emperor Ku
                              and Qingdu. He is also known as Tang Yao.]

According to legend, the Yellow River was prone to flooding and overflowed into a huge
flood during the “Yao Period” (23rd Century BCE).

At a time prior to the great flood, Shun-lee Gun a civil engineer was place in control of the
frequently flooding Yellow River to curtail its raging waters. Gun built earthen dikes all
over the land in the hope of containing the waters. But during a period of heavy flooding,
the earthen dikes collapsed everywhere and the project failed miserably. All too soon the
smoking Gun was summoned before King Shun, the successor to Tang Yao, and executed.

King Shun then called upon Yu, son of Gun, as the successor to flood-control efforts.
Drawing lessons from his father’s failure, Yu used methods of channeling and dredging
instead of blocking and damming the waters up. To better handle the people and eliminate
the catastrophe, Yu divided the people into nine sections and dispatched them into nine
different regions. Under his leadership, the floodwaters of the Yellow River then flowed
easily to the sea through nine newly dredged rivers. Although important time had passed,
and after more than a decade of arduous works, the disastrous situation was finally brought
under the control of Yu.

It is written that Yu spent thirteen years of hard labor at this task with the help of some
20,000 workers. At the beginning, when Yu was given the task of fighting the flood, he had
been married only five days. He had then said goodbye to his wife, saying that he did not
know when he would return. His wife then asked him what name to give if a son was born.
Yu replied, "Qi," a character meaning five days in ancient Chinese.

And so it was that during his thirteen years of fighting the flood, Yu passed by his own
family's doorstep three times. The first time he passed by hearing that his wife was in
labor. The second time he passed by, his wife was holding his son's hand as he was learning
his first steps. The third time, his son greeted him and enjoined him to come in for a rest.
Each time, Yu refused to go in the door, saying that the flood was rendering countless
people homeless, and he could not rest in his own home.

Later, for his engineering feat, Yu was remembered as an example of perseverance and
determination and was revered as the perfect civil servant. Stories continue even today
that dwell on his single-minded dedication. In spite of passing his own home three times
during those thirteen years, he never once stopped in for a family visit, reasoning that a
personal reunion would distract him from dealing with the public crisis at hand.

Upon learning of Yu's passion, King Shun was so impressed by his engineering work and
diligence that he passed the throne to Yu instead of to his own son, following King Yao's
example in rewarding merit. Thus did Yu, son of a beheaded civil engineer, eventually
become known as The Great Yu in Chinese history.

At the end of The Great Yu's life, his ministers favored passing the throne to Yu's son Qi,
instituting a hereditary monarchy. Thus creating China's first hereditary dynasty, the Xia
Dynasty (2070 BCE - 1600 BCE).

                                    ©2009 Su Chang-Wu [All Rights Reserved]