法苑珠林 63.40

63.40

Under the Han, there was the Shrine of the Zhu King by the Dun River in Yelang. Long ago, a woman was washing clothes by the water's edge when a large bamboo joint drifted between her legs. She pushed it away, but it would not leave. Hearing the cries of an infant, she split it open and found a baby boy. She raised him, and he grew up talented and martial, eventually dominating the Yi and Liao peoples. He took Bamboo as his surname. The bamboo that had been split open was cast into the wilderness, where it immediately grew into a grove. Once, when the king stopped on a rock to make broth, there was no water; he struck the rock with his sword, and a spring gushed forth. Today, both the Zhu King’s Water and the Split-Rock Bamboo Grove still exist. The Han envoy Tang Meng enticed and beheaded him. The Yi and Liao grieved and complained that the Zhu King had not been born of blood and breath, and begged to establish his succession. The commandery governor Wu Ba submitted a memorial ennobling his three sons as marquises. Today, the Shrine of the Zhu King’s Bamboo Joint still stands. (The above three verifications are from the Yiyuan.)