At the end of the Qing Dynasty and the beginning of the Republic of China, there lived a beggar in Shandong. No one knew his name, but there was a rumor in the neighborhood that this beggar had lived for hundreds of years. He knew astronomy and geography, could do calculations, and could predict the future. Because this beggar often wanders around Lijiatun, everyone calls him Li Banxian .
Although Li Banxian begged for a living, he was never greedy. He stopped asking for food when he was full. As long as there was official business around him, he would be diligent to help. In March of one year, Li Banxian was walking on the street. At this time, his stomach was so hungry that he kept growling. Li Banxian walked to a cake seller and said, "I'm very hungry now. Please give me a cake to eat."
The cake seller saw that he was a beggar and ignored him. He added: "Whoever gives me a piece of cake to eat, I will give him a message." The cake seller still ignored him. At this time, someone who knew him came over and bought him a piece of cake. While he was eating, he said, "Good man, I tell you, you should go back quickly and cut the wheat in the field. The beans are harvested."
Everyone said, "This man must be sick. The wheat is sprouting now, so cut it." It's a pity." He still said seriously to the person who bought him the cake: "You heard me right." This man was also dubious. After returning, he thought, "I'll have to harvest less wheat." So he went to the field to cut the wheat and harvest the beans. After he harvested the beans, there were two light rains in the spring, and the wheat harvest was basically no. The beans were drought-resistant, and the beans were harvested early that year.
Lijiatun is at the foot of a mountain. One day, the weather was sunny and cloudless. Li Banxian came to the village. Suddenly, he ran into a family's home, hugged that family's young son and ran away. The child's parents chased him and shouted: "The beggar is robbing the child, please help me." All the men, women and children in the whole village ran out and chased each other, trying to rescue the child. Everyone followed and ran far away. When Li Banxian saw that it was almost done, he put the child on the grass and disappeared in a blink of an eye. As soon as the family picked up the child, the weather suddenly changed and a flash flood submerged the village. The villagers were shocked. It turns out that Li Banxian snatched the child just to save everyone.
Soon after, the Anti-Japanese War began. There were wars every day in the surrounding villages. Li Banxian hid with the people in Lijiatun, and often quietly led the strong men in the village to ambush the Japanese. In a later ambush, he was hit by a cannonball in order to save the people. The people were especially grateful to Li Banxian.
Later, some people said that Li Banxian was not dead and had gone to be a beggar on some street again.
