This is a story from Strange Tales from Make-Do Studio.
Old man Gan had two sons. He died when the second son was only five. After his death, the parrot he had kept flew away.
The second son grew into a handsome young man. His elder brother and sister-in-law decided to find a suitable wife for him. One day, the second son met a beautiful girl in the fields. Looking around to ensure they were alone, she whispered, "Your father betrothed us when he was alive. Why are your brother and sister-in-law looking for someone else?"
Having never heard of this, the young man rushed home to tell his elder brother, who was also unaware of any betrothal.
Several days later, the elder brother encountered a tearful, beautiful girl on the road. When he inquired, she said, "My name is A'ying. I was betrothed to the second son of the Gan family, but now they wish to break the engagement."
The elder brother hurriedly dismounted and said, "I am the eldest son of the Gans. I truly did not know my father had arranged this. Please, come to our home."
When they arrived, the second brother recognized her as the girl from the fields. The two were married.
One year, during the Mid-Autumn Festival, the sister-in-law sent for A'ying. Despite her husband's urging, A'ying did not go. The next day, the sister-in-law came to ask why A'ying had seemed so sad the previous night.
At that moment, the second brother realized his wife possessed magical powers and suspected she was not human. He asked her to leave.
"Yes," A'ying explained. "I am not human. I am the parrot, your father's parrot. He betrothed me to you when you were very young. Because I cannot bear you children, I have long wished to leave. I was only held back by your kindness. Now I must go. Take good care of yourself."
With those words, she transformed into a parrot and flew away.
When Old Man Gan was alive, he had often joked with his second son, "When the parrot grows up, you shall take her as your wife." When he wanted the boy to feed the bird, he would say, "Go and feed your wife." The bird had returned to fulfill his wish.