This page has been validated.
66
THE JADE STORY BOOK
them, saying that her heart was full of love for them, and that she was leaving them against her own will. The Emperor also she bade good-by. Then she was transported through the air to the chariot, which mounted, swiftly towards the moon.
And now came the morning light, and no trace of the moon-chariot was left to those who gazed upwards with tearful eyes, and with a full heart the Emperor ordered his warriors to return.
Sorrowful as were the old bamboo-cutter and his wife, yet were they full of gratitude for having known the love of a daughter, who, while not with them in the body, would always dwell with them in spirit.
