Romantic legend about the double seventh’s day

Romantic legend about the double seventh’s day

　　The legend has been handed down for nearly 2 millennia [mɪˈlenɪə](千年). The story has been recorded as far back as the Jin Dynasty (256-420 AD). Poets composed hundreds of verses(诗句) on the love story and many types of Chinese opera [ˈɔpərə](戏剧) tell the story.
　　The Chinese people believe that the star Vega（织女星）, east of the Milky Way(银河系), is Zhi Nu and, at the constellation of Aquila（天鹰座）, on the western side of the Milky Way, Niu Lang waits for his wife.
　　Zhi Nu was said to be the youngest of seven daughters of the Queen of Heaven(皇母娘娘). With her sisters, she worked hard to weave [wi:v](织) beautiful clouds in the sky, while Niu Lang was a poor orphan [ˈɔ:fən](孤儿) cowherd [ˈkauhə:d](放牛郎), driven out of his home by his elder brother and his cruel [ˈkru:əl](残忍) wife.
　　Niu Lang lamented(悲叹) over his lonely and poor life with an old cow, his only friend and companion [kəmˈpænjən](伙伴). The magical cow kindly told him of a way to find a beautiful and nice woman as his life companion.
　　Under the direction [diˈrekʃən](指引) of the cow, Niu Lang went to the riverside [ˈrɪvəˌsaɪd](河边) on an evening, where the seven fairies(七仙女) slipped out(溜出来) of their heavenly palace to bathe [beið](沐浴).
　　He took one of the beautiful silk dresses the fairies had left on the bank. When the fairies left the water, the youngest couldn''t find her clothes and had to see her sisters fly back to heaven without her.
　　Then Niu Lang came out with the dress and asked the youngest fairy [ˈfɛəri](仙女), Zhi Nu, to stay with him.
　　Several years passed on Earth, which were only a few days in heaven. Niu Lang and Zhi Nu lived happily together and had two children before the Queen of Heaven discovered Zhi Nu''s absence [ˈæbsəns](缺席).
　　She was so annoyed she had Zhi Nu brought back to heaven. Seeing his beloved wife flying in the sky, Niu Lang was terrified(使害怕). He caught sight of the cowhide hanging on a wall. The magical cow had told him before dying of old age: "Keep the cowhide（牛皮） for emergency use."
　　Putting the cowhide on, he went after his wife with his two children.
　　With the help of the cowhide, Niu Lang was able to follow Zhi Nu into heaven. He was about to reach his wife when the Queen showed up and pulled off her hairpin [ˈheəˌpɪn](束发夹) to draw a line between the two. The line became the Silver River in heaven, or the Milky Way.
　　Zhi Nu went back to the heavenly workshop, going on weaving the clouds. But she was so sad, and missed her husband across the Silver River(银河) so much that the clouds she weaved seemed sad. Finally, the Queen showed a little mercy [ˈmə:si](仁慈), allowing the couple to meet once every year on the Silver River.