滕邑趙旺，夫妻奉佛，不茹葷血，鄉中有「善人」之目。家稱小有。一女小二，絕慧美，趙珍愛之。年六歲，使與兄長春並從師讀，凡五年而熟五經焉。同窗丁生，字紫陌，長于女三歲，文采風流，頗相傾愛。私以意告母，求婚趙氏。趙期以女字大家，故弗許。未幾，趙惑于白蓮教；徐鴻儒即反，一家俱陷為賊。小二知書善解，凡紙兵豆馬之術，一見輒精。小女子師事徐者六人，惟二稱最，因得盡傳其術。趙以女故，大得委任。
滕邑赵旺，夫妻奉佛，不茹荤血，乡中有「善人」之目。家称小有。一女小二，绝慧美，赵珍爱之。年六岁，使与兄长春并从师读，凡五年而熟五经焉。同窗丁生，字紫陌，长于女三岁，文采风流，颇相倾爱。私以意告母，求婚赵氏。赵期以女字大家，故弗许。未几，赵惑于白莲教；徐鸿儒即反，一家俱陷为贼。小二知书善解，凡纸兵豆马之术，一见辄精。小女子师事徐者六人，惟二称最，因得尽传其术。赵以女故，大得委任。
Zhao Wang of Teng county and his wife were devout Buddhists who ate no meat or fish, and in their village they were known as “the good people”. The family was fairly well off. They had one daughter, Xiao’er, who was exceptionally clever and beautiful, and Zhao doted on her. When she was six he sent her to study under a tutor with her elder brother Changchun, and in five years she knew the Five Classics thoroughly. A fellow pupil, a scholar named Ding, courtesy name Zimo, three years older than she, was gifted and dashing, and the two were much drawn to each other. Ding told his mother privately what he wished, and she asked the Zhaos for the girl’s hand. But Zhao hoped to betroth his daughter into a great family, and refused. Before long Zhao was taken in by the White Lotus sect, and when Xu Hongru rose in revolt, the whole family was drawn in among the rebels. Xiao’er was well read and quick to understand: the arts of paper soldiers and bean horses, and all the rest, she mastered at first sight. Six young girls served Xu as their master, and Xiao’er was counted the best of them, so he passed all his arts on to her. Because of his daughter, Zhao was given great trust.
時丁年十八，游滕泮矣。而不肯論婚，意不忘小二也。潛亡去，投徐麾下。女見之喜，優禮逾于常格。女以徐高足，主軍務；晝夜出入，父母不得間。丁每宵見，嘗斥絕諸役，輒至三漏。丁私告曰：「小生此來，卿知區區之意否？」女雲：「不知。」丁曰：「我非妄意攀龍，所以故，實為卿耳。左道無濟，止取滅亡。卿慧人，不念此乎？能從我亡，則寸心誠不負矣。」女憮然為間，豁然夢覺，曰：「背親而行，不義，請告。」二人入陳利害。趙不悟，曰：「我師神人，豈有舛錯？」女知不可諫，乃易髫而髻，出二紙鳶，與丁各跨其一；鳶肅肅展翼，似鶼鶼之鳥，比翼而飛。質明，抵萊蕪界。女以指拈鳶項，忽即斂墮。遂收鳶。更以雙衛，馳至山陰裡，托為避亂者，僦屋而居。
时丁年十八，游滕泮矣。而不肯论婚，意不忘小二也。潜亡去，投徐麾下。女见之喜，优礼逾于常格。女以徐高足，主军务；昼夜出入，父母不得间。丁每宵见，尝斥绝诸役，辄至三漏。丁私告曰：「小生此来，卿知区区之意否？」女云：「不知。」丁曰：「我非妄意攀龙，所以故，实为卿耳。左道无济，止取灭亡。卿慧人，不念此乎？能从我亡，则寸心诚不负矣。」女怃然为间，豁然梦觉，曰：「背亲而行，不义，请告。」二人入陈利害。赵不悟，曰：「我师神人，岂有舛错？」女知不可谏，乃易髫而髻，出二纸鸢，与丁各跨其一；鸢肃肃展翼，似鹣鹣之鸟，比翼而飞。质明，抵莱芜界。女以指拈鸢项，忽即敛堕。遂收鸢。更以双卫，驰至山阴里，托为避乱者，僦屋而居。
By now Ding was eighteen and had become a licentiate of the Teng county school. Yet he would not hear of marriage, for he could not forget Xiao’er. He slipped away from home and joined Xu’s forces. Xiao’er was glad to see him and treated him with honours beyond the usual rule. As Xu’s best disciple she was in charge of military affairs, going in and out day and night, and her parents had no chance to interfere. Ding saw her every night; she would send all the attendants away, and they often talked till the third watch. Ding said to her privately, “Do you know why I have come here?” “No,” she said. “It is not that I have some wild hope of climbing onto a dragon,” said Ding. “The reason I came — truly, it was for you. This crooked way will get nowhere; it leads only to destruction. You are a clever woman. Have you not thought of that? If you will run away with me, my heart will not have been given in vain.” She was lost in thought for a while; then she woke, as if from a dream. “To go behind my parents’ backs would be wrong,” she said. “Let me tell them.” The two went in and set out the gains and the dangers. Zhao would not see it. “Our master is a divine being,” he said. “How could he go wrong?” Xiao’er knew he could not be talked round. She changed her girl’s tufts for a married woman’s coil and took out two paper kites, and she and Ding each mounted one. With a whir the kites spread their wings, and like the jianjian birds they flew wing to wing. At first light they reached the border of Laiwu. Xiao’er pinched her kite by the neck, and at once it folded its wings and dropped. She put the kites away. They changed to a pair of donkeys and rode on to the village of Shanyin, where they passed themselves off as refugees from the fighting and rented a house.
二人草草出，嗇于裝，薪儲不給。丁甚懮之。假粟比舍，莫肯貸以升斗。女無愁容，但質簪珥。閉門靜對，猜燈謎，憶亡書，以是角低昂；負者，駢二指擊腕臂焉。西鄰翁姓，綠林之雄也。一日，獵歸。女曰：「『富以其鄰』，我何懮？暫假千金，其與我乎！」丁以為難。女曰：「我將使彼樂輸也。」乃剪紙作判官狀，置地下，覆以雞籠。然後握丁登榻，煮藏酒，檢《周禮》為觴政：任言是某冊第幾葉，第幾行，即共翻閱。其人得食旁﹑水旁﹑酉旁者飲，得酒部者倍之。既而女適得「酒人」，丁以巨觥引滿促釂。女乃祝曰：「若借得金來，君當得飲部。」丁翻卷，得「鱉人」，女大笑曰：「事已諧矣！」滴瀝授爵。丁不服。女曰：「君是水族，宜作鱉飲。」方喧競所，聞籠中戛戛。女起曰：「至矣。」啟籠驗視，則布囊中有巨金，纍纍充溢。丁不勝愕喜。後翁家媼抱兒來戲，竊言：「主人初歸，篝燈夜坐。地忽暴裂，深不可底，一判官自內出，言：『我地府司隸也。太山帝君會諸冥曹，造暴客惡籙，須銀燈千架，架計重十兩；施百架，則消滅罪愆。」主人駭懼，焚香叩禱，奉以千金。判官荏苒而入，地亦遂合。「夫妻聽其言，故嘖嘖詫異之。而從此漸購牛馬，蓄廝婢，自營宅第。
二人草草出，啬于装，薪储不给。丁甚懮之。假粟比舍，莫肯贷以升斗。女无愁容，但质簪珥。闭门静对，猜灯谜，忆亡书，以是角低昂；负者，骈二指击腕臂焉。西邻翁姓，绿林之雄也。一日，猎归。女曰：「『富以其邻』，我何懮？暂假千金，其与我乎！」丁以为难。女曰：「我将使彼乐输也。」乃剪纸作判官状，置地下，覆以鸡笼。然后握丁登榻，煮藏酒，检《周礼》为觞政：任言是某册第几叶，第几行，即共翻阅。其人得食旁﹑水旁﹑酉旁者饮，得酒部者倍之。既而女适得「酒人」，丁以巨觥引满促釂。女乃祝曰：「若借得金来，君当得饮部。」丁翻卷，得「鳖人」，女大笑曰：「事已谐矣！」滴沥授爵。丁不服。女曰：「君是水族，宜作鳖饮。」方喧竞所，闻笼中戛戛。女起曰：「至矣。」启笼验视，则布囊中有巨金，累累充溢。丁不胜愕喜。后翁家媪抱儿来戏，窃言：「主人初归，篝灯夜坐。地忽暴裂，深不可底，一判官自内出，言：『我地府司隶也。太山帝君会诸冥曹，造暴客恶箓，须银灯千架，架计重十两；施百架，则消灭罪愆。」主人骇惧，焚香叩祷，奉以千金。判官荏苒而入，地亦遂合。「夫妻听其言，故啧啧诧异之。而从此渐购牛马，蓄厮婢，自营宅第。
The two had left in haste and brought little with them, and they had no firewood or stores to speak of. Ding was very worried. He tried to borrow grain next door, but no one would lend them so much as a pint or a peck. Xiao’er showed no sign of worry; she simply pawned her hairpins and earrings. With the door shut they sat quietly facing each other, guessing lantern riddles and reciting from memory the books they had left behind, competing to see who came out ahead; the loser was struck on the wrist with two fingers held together. Their neighbour to the west, a man named Weng, was a chief among the greenwood outlaws. One day he came back from hunting. “‘Wealthy through his neighbour,’” said Xiao’er. “Why should I worry? We will borrow a thousand taels from him for a while. Surely he will give them to us!” Ding thought that would be hard. “I will make him glad to hand it over,” she said. She cut the figure of a judge out of paper, set it on the floor, and covered it with a chicken coop. Then she took Ding by the hand up onto the couch, heated some wine they had stored away, and took down the Rites of Zhou to make the rules of a drinking game: either of them would name a volume, a page and a line, and they would look it up together. If the officer named there had the sign for food, water or wine in his title, the player drank; if he was one of the wine officers, the player drank double. Presently Xiao’er turned up the Wine-Maker, and Ding filled a great horn cup to the brim and pressed her to drain it. She made a wish over it: “If the money comes to us as a loan, you will turn up a drinking officer.” Ding turned the pages and found the Turtle-Catcher. Xiao’er laughed aloud. “It is done!” she said, and handed him a cup so full it dripped. Ding protested. “You are one of the water folk,” she said. “You must drink like a turtle.” While they were still noisily arguing, they heard a clattering in the coop. Xiao’er got up. “It has come,” she said. They opened the coop and looked: there was a cloth sack stuffed with big silver ingots, packed tight and bulging. Ding was astonished and delighted beyond words. Later an old woman from the Weng house came over with a child in her arms to visit, and told them on the quiet: “When the master got home, he was sitting up at night by the lamp when the floor suddenly split open, so deep you couldn’t see the bottom, and a judge came up out of it. ‘I am a constable of the underworld,’ he said. ‘The Lord of Mount Tai is holding a council of all the officers of the dead to draw up the black register of men of violence. A thousand silver lamp stands are needed, each weighing ten taels. Whoever gives a hundred stands will have his sins wiped away.’ The master was terrified. He burned incense, knocked his head on the floor and prayed, and offered up a thousand taels. The judge sank slowly back down, and the ground closed over him.” Husband and wife heard her out and made a show of clucking in wonder. From then on they gradually bought oxen and horses, kept servants, and built a house of their own.