The Stories of Ye Jingneng

The term "huaben" refers to scripts used for storytelling, which were known as "shuohua" during the Sui and Tang dynasties. Therefore, the manuscripts, or records of shuohua, can also be called huaben. Previously, most believed that huaben novels began in the Song Dynasty. However, the discovery of Tang-dynasty huaben in the Library Cave made it clear that the Tang Dynasty nurtured the embryonic form of huaben novels, but such works were already widely copied in far-off Dunhuang in the northwest. The Dunhuang manuscript S.6836, titled The Stories of Ye Jingneng, was also founded in the Mogao Caves. Although this document is titled The Stories of Ye Jingneng at the end, it is not a collection of poems but rather a huaben resembling a novel.

The Stories of Ye Jingneng is filled with elements of fantasy. Ye Jingneng was a renowned sorcerer during the reigns of Emperor Gaozong and Empress Wu Zetian of the Tang Dynasty. In this huaben, Ye attains enlightenment while practicing Taoism in Kuaiji Mountain and encounters various demons and hazards on his way to Chang'an. Later, he is summoned by Emperor Xuanzong of Tang to slay a dragon and pray for rain. He also takes Xuanzong on a magical journey to Jian'nan to observe lanterns and even visits the Moon Palace during the Mid-Autumn Festival. The various strange tales in The Stories of Ye Jingneng have been documented in many Tang-dynasty notes and novels. This huaben compiles existing fantastical stories and attributes them to Ye Jingneng. Notably, the episode in which Emperor Xuanzong of Tang Visits the Moon Palace features an imaginative narrative about human lunar exploration which had multiple versions during the Tang Dynasty and gradually became a widely-circulated theme. This story later inspired various forms of art including dramas, novels, and paintings.

《葉凈能詩》

話本是說唱故事的底本，隋唐時把講故事稱為“說話”，“說話”的底稿或記錄都可以稱為話本。原來一般認為話本小說開始于宋代，直到藏經洞中出土了唐代話本，大家才認識到唐代不僅孕育著話本小說的雛形，甚至遠在西北的敦煌都已經廣泛傳抄。敦煌文獻S.6836《葉凈能詩》出自于藏經洞，這件文獻雖然卷末題名為“葉凈能詩”，但其實并不是詩作，而是一部像小說一樣的話本。

《葉凈能詩》充滿了奇幻色彩。葉凈能是唐高宗、武則天時有名的方士。在這件話本中，葉凈能在會稽山修道有成，赴長安途中降妖除害；后來被唐玄宗召見，斬龍祈雨，還帶著玄宗神游劍南觀燈，并在中秋游月宮。《葉凈能詩》里的各種怪談，在唐人多部筆記小說中已有記載，這件話本是把已有的奇幻故事編排到葉凈能的身上。特別是其中“唐明皇游月宮”的情節，這個充滿想象力的人類登月故事，在唐代就有多種版本并逐漸成為一個廣為流傳的題材，后來還以此創作出雜劇、小說、繪畫等。