Once upon a time, a traveller was on his way back to Kyoto. He had many followers along with him. They came to a lonely village along the Hokkoku-kaido. It was evening. Tired, they looked for a place to spend the night. At last, they came to a house where a woman lived all alone and were allowed to spend the night there. The next morning, the traveller and his followers got up early. When the traveller was about to set out, the woman who was the owner, followed him. She stopped him and said, “You owe me one thousand ryo. Pay it back before leaving.” The traveller was shocked. The woman said, “I do not know the reason, but when my father was on his deathbed, he called me and told me that after ten years, on this particular day of this month, a traveller would come from the north and spend the night here. He, further, told me that if I would tell this story to that traveller, he would probably give me one thousand ryo in return.”
The Traveller Pays
The woman continued, “My father repeated his story and then died. I have been waiting for this day and you came on that exact day and stayed overnight.” The traveller nodded his head and said, “I understand what you are saying. Your father was a seer. He knew that I would come after ten years, so he left you that message. I can return that money to you immediately.” The truth was that the traveller himself was a famous seer. He went in again and walked through the entire house. He stopped in one of the rooms and approached a pillar. He tried to strike it. The pillar was hollow and thus produced a different sound. One thousand ryo were hidden in it. The traveller took out the money and gave it to the woman. He, then, continued his journey to Kyoto.
