Once upon a time, there lived an old and poor fisherman who struggled to support his wife and three children. He went fishing every day at dawn, with a rule never to cast his net more than four times.
One morning, he set out by moonlight. His first cast felt heavy, raising his hopes for a big fish, but he only pulled up the carcass of a donkey, which tore his net. Disappointed, he mended it and cast again. The second haul felt just as heavy, but yielded only a basket of rubbish. Annoyed, he cried out to Fortune, pleading not to be trifled with.
After cleaning his nets, he cast a third time, only to bring up stones, shells, and mud. Nearly in despair, he made his fourth and final cast. With great effort, he hauled in not a fish, but a heavy, sealed yellow jar. Delighted, he thought he could sell it to buy wheat.
He examined the jar, shook it, but heard nothing. Intrigued by the lead seal, he pried it open. To his surprise, nothing came out at first. Then, thick smoke billowed forth, rising to the clouds and spreading over the sea and shore. The smoke gathered into a dense mass, from which emerged a gigantic and terrifying genie.
The genie cried out, "Great king of the genii, I will never again disobey you!" Hearing this, the fisherman gathered his courage and asked for the genie's story.
The genie looked at him haughtily. "Speak more civilly," he said, "before I kill you."
"Why kill me?" the fisherman protested. "I just freed you!"
"That will not save you," replied the genie. "I will grant you only one favor: to choose how you die."
When the fisherman asked why, the genie explained his tale: He had rebelled against the king of the genii, who imprisoned him in the copper jar sealed with lead magic. Cast into the sea, the genie vowed in his first century of captivity to make his rescuer rich forever. When no one came, he vowed in the second century to give all the world's treasures to his deliverer. In the third century, he promised to make his savior a king and grant three daily wishes. After centuries passed with no rescue, his patience turned to rage. He then vowed to kill whoever freed him, allowing them only to choose their manner of death. "So choose," the genie concluded.
The fisherman, in despair, implored for his life, but the genie refused. Thinking quickly, the fisherman devised a plan.
"Before I choose my death," he said, "I conjure you to tell me truthfully: were you really inside that small jar? I cannot believe it."
"Yes, I was," insisted the genie.
"I must see it to believe it," said the fisherman.
The genie then transformed back into smoke, which flowed slowly and evenly back into the jar until it was all inside. A voice from within said, "Now do you believe me, unbelieving fisherman?"
Instead of answering, the fisherman swiftly replaced the lead seal, trapping the genie once more.
"Now, O genie," he cried, "it is you who must ask for pardon and choose your death! But no, I will simply throw you back into the sea and build a house on the shore to warn all fishermen against catching such a wicked being, who vows to kill the one who frees him."
The genie struggled but could not escape the enchanted seal. He then tried cunning: "If you remove the cover, I will repay you."
"No," answered the fisherman firmly. "If I trust you, I fear you would treat me as a certain Greek king treated the physician Douban. Listen, and I will tell you that story."