Summary
Highlights
Around 500 years ago, Emperor Yongle of the Ming Dynasty commanded his official Kan-Nuh to cast an immense bell whose sound would resonate throughout Peking. The bell needed to be fortified with various metals and inscribed with sacred writings. Kan-Nuh and his craftsmen worked diligently, but their first two attempts failed, with the metals refusing to blend properly, resulting in a fragile bell full of cracks.
After two failures, Emperor Yongle sent Kan-Nuh a stern letter, threatening him with execution if the third attempt also failed. Kan-Nuh's beautiful and devoted daughter, Kongai, was deeply distressed by this news. She sought out an astrologer, hoping to find a solution to save her father.
The astrologer revealed a grim prophecy: the metals would never combine perfectly until 'the flesh of a maiden will be melted with a crucible' and 'the blood of a virgin being mixed with the metals in their fusion.' Realizing the terrible meaning, Kongai returned home with a heavy heart, keeping the prophecy a secret.
During the third casting, as the molten metal glowed, Kongai, in a selfless act of love for her father, threw herself into the furnace. Her serving woman only managed to grab one of her petite shoes. The metal, now perfectly blended, produced a flawless bell. The bell's powerful sound was said to travel over a hundred li, and each strike created a long, low, weeping murmur, uttering Kongai's name, a symbol of her eternal sacrifice.