Fengdu Baoluan Bamboo Mats

Fengdu Baoluan Bamboo Mats

　　    Fengdu Baoluan Bamboo Mats

　　    Long ago in Baoluan, there were already cold bamboo and water bamboo, but people didn’t know how to weave mats. Back then, they would cut the bamboo into blocks and lay them on beds, but the result was hard and prickly—extremely uncomfortable to sleep on.

　　    One day, a man named Yang Sheng from Yangjiao’ao had a dream in which he saw many different kinds of small coins. Just as he bent down to pick them up, a white-bearded old man appeared before him. The old man said to Yang Sheng, “Yang Sheng, don’t pick up these coins. If you want to get rich, remember the look of these small coins. When you go home, weave a mat with small copper coins using bamboo, take it to the market to sell, and you’re sure to make money.” With that, the old man disappeared.

　　    When Yang Sheng woke up, he found it very strange. He thought about it for a long time but still couldn’t figure out what use such a mat would be. In the end, he said, “Whatever, I’ll just give it a try.” So he started splitting the bamboo strips and weaving.

　　    He split and wove, wove and split. Just as he finished weaving the coin patterns, he dreamed of the white-bearded old man again that night. The old man said to him, “You, you—you still haven’t got the skill right. The bamboo strips you split are too rough. Who would want them? Do it all over again.” With no other choice, he had to undo his work and start again.

　　    The second time Yang Sheng finished weaving the coin patterns, he had another dream—in which he again saw the white-bearded old man. The old man told him, “You’ve made some progress, but your bamboo strips still won’t do. You need to shave them thinner.” When he woke up, he shaved the bamboo strips until they were thin and fine, and then used those well-shaved strips to weave a mat covered with hundreds of small coins. Once it was done, it looked very nice. Afraid someone might see and take the mat, he folded it up during the day and kept it in his pouch, then laid it out on the bed at night, pressing it under his body. The result was extremely comfortable, so he took it to the market and sold it.

　　    From then on, the craft of bamboo mat weaving spread in Baoluan. Today, the people of Baoluan can weave not only small coins, but also patterns like tigers, lions, dragons, and snakes.