Brief introduction：

This is a collection of proses by Chen Guanxue， an accomplished writer from Taiwan， China. It contains records of daily life filled with true feelings. In response to his little daughter’s childish questions， Chen Guanxue explained the universe， various types of weather， landscapes， and animals， through telling simple stories with profound knowledge and philosophical thinking. The stories are easy to understand， and contain philosophical ideas， from which his daughter could perceive the laws of nature and the secrets of the universe.

About the author：

Chen Guanxue is a proser， a philosopher， and an admired teacher of Chinese studies.

These days， Olina is fond of chasing lycaenids. She is always chasing them around the house.

“Dad， please get a little butterfly for me！”

“What pretty butterflies they are！ Why not let them fly at ease？”

“No， please get one for me！”

“What a pity！ It will die in your hands.”

“It won’t. I’ll treat it softly！”

“A little butterfly isn’t even bigger than a golden poppy. Do you remember how the golden poppy faded in your hands？”

“No， I want one！”

Olina pouted and was in tears. Henry had no choice but to bend over for the little butterfly. The lycaenid blinked so quickly like a twinkling star. How difficult to catch！

One morning， Olina found a white spider on a strawberry leaf and dragged Henry to look at it. It was a golden spider. It looked like a small white crab. Among the green leaves it seemed to be a little white flower， so it was not to our surprise when it caught a lycaenid half an hour later.

“Dad， the golden spider got a little butterfly！”

“Really？”

“Dad， I want it.”

“What a pity！ The golden spider caught it. How could we grab its food？”

“No， I want it！”

Henry gave in and grabbed the little butterfly from the golden spider’s mouth. In a second， the butterfly’s abdomen had been emptied by the spider. Henry put it on a scrap of paper and gave it to Olina. She brought a magnifying glass and observed it as her father did. She was observing so solemnly like a little museologist.

The next day， Olina found that the golden spider caught another lycaenid. Henry had to fetch a butterfly once more. When the lycaenid was removed from the web， we found another one on the ground. What a cruel golden spider！

This day， Henry saw his little daughter running with a reed in the grassland. Soon she skipped in the room， telling him the spider had caught a grasshopper. Olina had spread the seeds of morning glories， and one strain had speared out. All the leaves had been chewed by conical-headed grasshoppers and locusts. This time， Olina lured a minor locust onto a reed， then she put it on the strawberry leaf where the golden spider lay. She watched on the sidelines， as the golden spider grabbed the little locust.

“Such a naughty kid.”

Henry hurried to pick up a pointed stone and tried to rescue the locust. As the locust had a fat abdomen and the golden spider was holding on tightly， it was hard to remove. Henry knocked it with his two fingers， and it was gone. Luckily， Olina’s eyes were sharp enough to spot it on another strawberry leaf. Henry， who had serious presbyopia， wore his spectacles and rescued the little locust. However， a green fluid flowed out of its abdomen， and it couldn’t move. It seemed that the spider had injected venom into the locust’s body. In several minutes， the little locust died.

There weren’t many big butterflies in this place. Sometimes there were species like papilio polytes and nymphalid butterflies. Olina kept chasing once she saw them. Under the sun， she was flushed red and covered in sweat. It has seemed natural that boys shoot birds and girls chase butterflies.

“Dad， can golden spiders catch big butterflies？”

“Golden spiders can only trap little butterflies. Big butterflies need big flowers for honey. But the golden spider is like a small white flower. The big butterfly doesn’t rest on it.”

Olina was very disappointed.

“Dad， why isn’t the little butterfly as beautiful as a big butterfly？”

“The little butterfly is too small， and it cannot look so beautiful even with colors and white spots.”

“Dad， get a big butterfly for me！”

“Next time we see one.”

The next morning， the moment they opened the door， they saw a papilio polyte lying on the grass under the roof. Half of its abdomen had been eaten by ants. Henry pasted it on a thick styrofoam plate. When Olina woke up and saw it， she jumped with cheers.

Olina was intrigued by the golden spider. She would look at the golden spider as soon as she got up. Then she discovered that the golden spider caught flies for food every day. The golden spider always rested on a leaf， even on rainy and windy days. One day， Olina couldn’t find the golden spider. After quite a while， she found the golden spider lying on a strawberry leaf latched on by its silk. For two days， the golden spider didn’t come out. Olina said it was molting.

That morning， Henry and Olina went shopping. When they came back， the golden spider was gone. Olina， who was in tears， kept silent.

“Perhaps the golden spider spun a long thread and flew away with the wind. Perhaps it was eaten by a bird.”

“It flew！ Flew！ Dad， how does it fly？”

“A big wind comes. The golden spider spins a long thread. Then the wind takes it away with the long thread.”

“Dad， get the golden spider back！”

“Perhaps it will come back tomorrow！”

“Dad， why did it fly away？”

“Now tell me， why did it come？”

The Dialogue Between Father and Daughter

Chen Guanxue

Beijing Times-Chinese Publishing House

July 2021

56.00 （CNY）