Then he remembered the pearl. He ran to the jar to make certain the precious gem was still there. To his great surprise, the jar, which had been nearly empty, now brimmed with rice, and the lovely pearl sat on the top, gleaming in the morning light. "Mother, come quickly," he called. When she saw this miracle, she rejoiced. "We will eat a big bowl of rice in celebration," she said. This they did. "Let us put the pearl back as it was," she said. The next morning, to their great joy, they found the jar was full once more.
"This is a magical pearl," said the mother. "We must care well for our treasure." That night she put the pearl in the money box. The next morning the box was overflowing with coins. That night they placed the pearl inside the oil jar. In the morning, the jar overflowed with oil.
The mother and her son no longer had any worries. Whatever they needed, the pearl created for them. Their friends and neighbors noticed the change in their fortunes, but no one minded in the least, for mother and son were generous beyond compare. They were always giving things to others.
Two men in the village, though, were selfish and greedy, and were suspicious of the good fortune the mother and son possessed. One day these men went to the house and bullied the woman to share the secret of her wealth.
"But gentlemen," said the woman, "our fortune is no secret. We are lucky enough to own a magical pearl." She took the pearl from its safe place in the cupboard.
The men crowded close. Suddenly one of them snarled, "We shall have your pearl," but before he could grab it, Jian Ho snatched it up and put it in his mouth.
"Give it to us!" cried the men. One of them began to shake the boy. He shook so hard, Jian Ho swallowed the pearl.
The boy felt a burning sensation in his stomach. He was thirstier than he had ever been. "Oh, Mother," he cried. "I am so thirsty! I need water, tea
-- anything."
Distressed to see her son in pain, the mother poured him glass after glass of tea and water, but soon she had nothing more to offer. Jian Ho dashed outside to the well and drank the well dry, and still he was thirsty.
He ran to the river. His mother and the two men and all the neighbors stood helplessly nearby by as Jian Ho drank the river dry.
And then, suddenly, a loud crack of thunder sounded. Wind roared. Lightning flashed. Rain poured from the heavens. The earth trembled, and people fell to the ground, grateful that their drought had ended.
But now they were astonished at the sight before them, for Jian Ho began to grow. Larger and larger he grew, and soon scales appeared on his back. Horns sprouted from his head. His eyes grew and bulged from his head. The woman wept as she watched her son turn into a dragon.
She knew the pearl was to blame.
Rain kept coming, and the dragon walked into the overflowing river. The mother wept. "Come back, child," she said. Jian Ho could not help himself from turning around to look at her. As he did, his mighty tail swept the river's edge, creating huge mud banks.
Jian Ho then knew that he would not change back. He had become a dragon, the guardian of the river. His mother understood this, too. "Farewell, my son," she called. "Guard the river well."
And from then on the Shoushu long guardian dragon lived in the River Min. There he kept the magical pearl safe, in a secret chamber in the barrel .The pearl gave off a glowing light that never faded, and it continued to increase the things among which it was placed.