by Ta Duy Anh

During a trip to my native village to uncover my clan’s genealogy I was taken to a shrine dedicated to Lady Tran Thi Doan Trang. This small temple stood in the shadow of an age-old banyan tree by the river bank where most of us local kids used to come and play every day, rain or shine. When we were tired of frolicking, we hauled fresh, clean water from a nearby well.

While burning incense at the altar, I often wondered about the sacred young woman and why she was so respected in this region. Moreover, her name sounded familiar to me although it did not appear in my history books. Then I remembered that it was Mum who first mentioned her name in a story she told me about twenty years ago.

My home town was famous for wrestling. Every year on the sixth day of the first lunar month, the local authorities organised a wrestling festival. The story told by Mum happened a very long time ago.

In those days, Doan Trang was a beautiful young girl in her late teens. Strangely enough, whenever a youth came and asked her hand for marriage, she always shook her head. Every year she only appeared in public during this event. When the tournament came to an end, she withdrew into her home.

That year, the wrestling season was greater than ever. Well-known wrestlers came to our home town to compete. Usually, after a few combative days, there were some casualties. Therefore, those who attended the tournament were brave people who made light of death.

Prior to the festival, our village notables opened a contest to choose a talented athlete who might bring a laurel wreath to our small community.

On the third day and last day of fighting, there appeared a tall young man who squatted down in front of the grandstand where sat our local bigwigs. Usually such insolence would be severely punished. But he was forgiven.

Worse still, after each round, he slapped his leg and laughed contemptuously. The spectators showed their annoyance, except for just one person – Doan Trang – who he saw by chance when he gazed at the crowd. "Who is that comely maiden who admires me so much?" he asked himself. After years of martial arts practice and avoiding the fairer sex, he fell in love with her at first sight.

"Well done! Well done! But I want to measure my strength with you military officer," he shouted loudly.

To the surprise of the attendants, the master of ceremonies stood up.

"What’s your name, young man?" asked a juryman.

"I’m Binh, sir," the youth replied bending his head. At once he glanced at the fair lady as if he was going to say, "I’ll fight, not out of honour, but because of you."

She nodded her head as if she wished to say, "Yes, I see, I see."

The juryman sanctioned the fight.

"You officer, as a rule, have to compete with wrestler Binh, who’s just defied you," he said.

***

After greeting the spectator, the two competitors started their fight.

Although the officer tried to defeat him, Binh stood firm. All of a sudden Binh lifted the officer up onto his shoulder and ran three laps around the wrestling mat. When the officer declared himself beaten, Binh stopped at the centre of the arena and released his opponent there. After saluting the jury and the spectators he jumped up and landed in the same place, bowing his head.

The master of ceremonies stepped down from the stands, helped him up and led him to the jury with a broad smile. Refusing to accept the prize, he turned his head towards the stand where the beauty was elbowing her way out through the crowd.

"I know whom you’re looking for, my brave youth. Without your victory I don’t know whom I would marry her to," confessed her father, the village chief.

Binh prostrated himself on the ground and expressed his thanks.

***

In response to the wish of the jury, Binh agreed to join the all-region wrestling competition provided that Doan Trang was present at the event. Although an engagement had not been announced, Binh knew that his happiness lay in his triumph over his opponents. His longed-for laurel wreath would be his wedding gift to his future wife.

Accompanying him was his master who had taught him martial arts since childhood. Never had the tournament attracted so many superb wrestlers like that year. However, a new rule added a different dimension to the competition: a wrestler might beat his rival to death if the seemingly defeated wrestler refused to recognise that he was the loser.

After six days of fighting against well-known rivals, Binh managed to enter the final round to compete with a wrestler from the region of Son Tay. Regrettably, in the final he was not as lucky. He was lifted up by his opponent while the drumbeats resounded. Suddenly, they came to a stop and Binh’s master asked to halt the match. Consequently, Binh was allowed step off the mat and consult his manager.

"Why don’t you resort to your secret move?" asked Binh’s master angrily.

Binh stared at his old instructor in bewilderment. Then he glanced at Doan Trang who was now in great despair. He did not want to kill another man.

"At any cost, you must be the victor," urged Binh’s coach.

"Yes, Sir! I’ll obey your order."

***

Binh returned to the wrestling mat and calmly climbed up onto his opponent’s shoulder and stayed in the same position as been before. The spectators thought that Binh would accept his death. In the meantime, nobody paid any attention to Doan Trang who was praying. "I wish that he is not defeated," she said softly. To the surprise of onlookers, Binh rose up. One of his hands seized the hair on the top of his opponent’s head and with his other hand, he punched upwards at his opponent’s chin while jabbing his foot into his rival’s backbone. In a second, the man collapsed onto the ground and blood oozed out of his mouth and nose.

Binh was victorious. Walking unsteadily towards his master, he breathed heavily. He glanced at the crowd to look for his fair lady, but she was nowhere to be seen.

The next day Doan Trang’s body was discovered in the well close to the banyan tree by the river bank. Legend had it that Binh spent all tournament winnings on a shrine in her memory.

***

During my trip home to fill in our family tree, I remembered Mum’s story. I asked people about this tragic story. The keeper of the communal house in Ha Village clarified the story.

"In the reign of Emperor Quang Trung, or Nguyen Hue, one of his generals on the way to the ancient capital of Thang Long, took a rest at my village to enjoy the beautiful scenery of the surroundings.

"In the evening, during his stroll by the river bank, by chance he met a charming girl. She gave him a handkerchief stained with blood then disappeared immediately. He had this keepsake washed carefully, but the blood remained. Later, he unexpectedly dropped the handkerchief into the well. After he drew it back up, it was completely white. Early the next morning, he summoned all the old men and asked them about the origin of the well.

He reported the event to the king and requested the sovereign ordain Doan Trang as the Goddess of Happiness and the general himself took charge of building the shrine.