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WHITE SNAKE

Deep in the mountains of Hangzhou, there lived two snakes, white and green, who possessed magical power. On the day of a festival in town, they transformed into beautiful maidens named Bai Suzhen and Xiao Qing respectively. They were on a short trip to Hangzhou when Bai Suzhen spotted a young man by the name of Xu Xian and instantly fell in love. With the help of Xiao Qing, Bai Suzhen and Xu Xian were able to come together. Eventually, they were married.The wedding was grand with hundreds of townspeople invited to congratulate the happy couple. However, there was one man who was reluctant to join the celebration: a well-known misanthrope named Fa Hai. Selfish, jealous, and resentful, he did not wish to take time out of his day to celebrate the happiness of other people. Still, he went, and at the ceremony, he sensed something peculiar. Fa Hai was secretly gifted with the ability to sense supernatural beings and thus concluded that Bai Suzhen, with her strange aura, was no ordinary human and that she was concealing her true identity.Meanwhile, the newlyweds settled in the town and opened a medicine shop. Xu Xian, despite his attractive appearance and kind disposition, was not suitable for the role of management and left the duties of medical prescription and finances to his wife. Using her natural cunningness and intelligence, Bai Suzhen was able to attract hundreds of customers. Furthermore, her sister Xiao Qing was talented in collecting and gathering herbs. And so Xu Xian was content with distributing the medicine as ordered by the experts in the shop and spoke proudly of his wife to other men in town.Many men, though privately surprised that a woman was not only responsible for the family business but also successful in managing it, responded with sincere congratulations, but one was displeased. It was none other than Fa Hai, disgruntled and annoyed that the best-selling medicine shop in town was managed by a demon woman.

One day, the jealous man called Xu Xian over and told him that his wife was a snake demon. Xu Xian was perplexed and enraged. He knew of Fa Hai’s envious personality and so did not believe him. However, Fa Hai was persistent and handed him an alcoholic drink.The jealous man instructed him, “You will see her terrifying form when she drinks this during the Dragon Boat Festival, the day when the powers of a demon are the weakest.”Xu Xian refused once more but took the drink to throw it out later.On his way home, his heart grew heavy. Suspicion began to take root in his mind, and he decided that there would be no harm in giving Bai Suzhen the drink. Thus, on the night of the festival, he offered the drink to his wife who took it without hesitation. Immediately, she grew ill and required the help of her husband to get to bed. By the time she reached the bedroom, her human form had been replaced by that of a giant white snake. Xu Xian was so terrified that he fell to the ground and lay dead. Bai Suzhen resumed her human form past midnight and lamented her husband’s death. The resourceful, helpful Xiao Qing could not bear to watch the heartbroken Bai Suzhen and gave her directions finding a celestial herb on the Kunlun Mountain that could save her husband’s life. Bai Suzhen immediately left for the mountains to steal the herb, but her path was obstructed by its heavenly guards. They fought ferociously to protect the herb, and although Bai Suzhen was powerful, she could not vanquish them all. It was a losing battle, she eventually realized, and all hope seemed lost when a voice from the heavens told them to stop. The voice belonged to the god of the Southern End, and Bai Suzhen begged for help. The god was so impressed by her earnestness and tenacity that he allowed her to take the celestial herbs.

While Bai Suzhen was on her treacherous journey, Xiao Qing had taken over all the responsibilities of the medicine shop and tended to Xu Xian. When Bai Suzhen returned with the herbs, they both rejoiced in happiness.With the magic of the herbs, Xu Xian came back to life. He was moved when he saw the bruised, scarred figure of Bai Suzhen and wept when he heard how fiercely she fought to save him. Then, he explained to her why he had reacted so poorly after her transformation. When he saw her true form, it was not the physical form that terrified him but instead the implication that came with her identity. Because he had believed that demons were incapable of human love and affection, he was heartbroken at the possibility that Bai Suzhen never loved him. However, seeing her worried face, he was surer than ever that their love was true.After their heartfelt reconciliation, Xiao Qing raised the possibility that Fa Hai could still be determined to ruin Bai Suzhen’s life. The couple knew that they needed to put an end to his malicious plans before all else. Indeed, Xiao Qing was correct; after Fa Hai heard the news of Bai Suzhen’s return and Xu Xian’s revival, he fumed and concocted new schemes that would ensure Bai Suzhen’s downfall.The following day, Xu Xian was sitting in front of his medicine shop when he met Fa Hai once again. Determined not to listen to his spiteful words, Xu Xian wordlessly turned his back on him. However, Fa Hai kept asking for Xu Xian’s attention. When Xu Xian still refused and started to make his way inside the shop, Fa Hai yelled after him that he had received a divine message that Xu Xian must become a monk and join the gods. Xu Xian showed no interest, and Fa Hai desperately clung on to him.Bai Suzhen took notice of the commotion outside and calmly told Fa Hai that she will lead the way and accompany her husband to the temple. The two confused men followed her and

Xiao Qing. They soon saw themselves standing in the bustling town market. By the entrance, Bai Suzhen stopped and called for the crowd’s attention.With her head held high and hand gesturing toward Fa Hai, she exclaimed, “This man has been using dark magic on poor Xu Xian and me, and I am here to warn all of my neighbors that he may do the same to you and your loved ones!” Furious, Fa Hai lunged at Bai Suzhen. She, however, quickly transformed into her snake form and managed to escape his grasp. Frustrated, Fa Hai then reached for Xiao Qing, who also transformed into her green snake form. Shrieks and gasps could be heard from every corner of the market, and everyone was backing away from Fa Hai. He tried to defend himself, but it was no use: their audience had seen the two lovely ladies turning into snakes in the hands of Fa Hai. Fa Hai was indeed a sorcerer of dark magic in their eyes. Outraged, he fled the town.As soon as he disappeared, the two snakes changed into their human forms and warned the people not to let him back in town. They all heeded their warning, and Fa Hai was totally shunned every time he attempted to make his reentrance into town.Xu Xian, Bai Suzhen, and Xiao Qing were treated as heroes who expelled an evil sorcerer from a peaceful town, and their business only grew more successful as the three lived happily ever after.

Author’s NoteThe ancient legend of Lady White Snake is a story imbued with excitement that comes with forbidden romance, magic, adventure, and betrayal. As one of the most frequently adapted stories in modern China and the inspiration for countless operas, TV series, and movies, this legend portrays the relationship between an immortal––a thousand-year-old powerful snake demon called Bai Suzhen––and a mortal.What is so notable about this story is that it is very much ahead of its time. Several details are distinctly feminist, especially the reversed role of the male and female protagonists. On one hand, we have Xu Xian, a poor man earning poor wages before meeting his wife. He is described as a gentle, tender––and not to mention, gullible––man. On the other hand, we have Lady White Snake, a femme fatale, sagacious wife, and skilled botanist. Although she may simply seem like an evil spirit, many of her qualities mold her into a charismatic, well-liked character. Above all, in the modern tale, the wife is more “superior” to the husband; if anything, she plays a strong, proactive role and definitely not a subordinate to her husband.That is not to say that Xu Xian as a male character displays only his weaknesses. Granted, because of Fa Hai’s intervention, he struggles to embrace his wife’s true power and identity. Initially, the fear is overwhelming, and his faith in his wife wavers. However, he does not cower for long; love prevails, and having endured the hardships that tested his devotion and resolve, Xu Xian gladly returns to Lady White Snake. In this type of plot development and characterization, we see a man and a woman who exhibit true strength of character and loyalty despite the difference in social rank and origin.The tale should be celebrated for both of its male and female protagonists. It characterizes a strong, independent woman who protects the people she loves despite the

misunderstanding that comes with her mythical origins and violent power. It also characterizes a compassionate, affectionate man who may seem weak but in fact displays true strength by defying social conventions and religious authority.Therefore, not many changes needed to be made to this tale. However, the absence of Xiao Qing’s character development and Fa Hai’s––the antagonist’s––final downfall hampers this story from being viewed as perfection from a contemporary feminist lens. The reimagined tale thus contains amendments that tailor to these issues, including subtle additions to Xiao Qing’s character and the ultimate debacle resulting in the banishment of Fa Hai.