唐元和中，有李璜李璜唐代官员之子，因父亲在外地做官而随行。路遇白衣美女，被迷惑随之而去。者，随父官于外。途中遇一白衣女子，姿容绝代，自云独居无依。李璜惑于其色，随之入宅。
同居三日，李璜归家后身体日渐消瘦，精神恍惚。家人疑之，寻其去处，见荒宅之中唯白蛇白蛇巨大的白色蟒蛇。白蛇化为美女以吸食人之精气，是唐代志怪中典型的蛇妖形象。一尾。李璜不久病死。
During the Yuanhe reign of the Tang dynasty, a man named Li Huang李璜 Lǐ HuángSon of a Tang official, accompanying his father to an outlying post. On the road he encounters a beautiful woman in white and, enchanted by her beauty, follows her to her residence. accompanied his father, an official posted elsewhere. On the road, he met a woman in white of surpassing beauty, who said she lived alone with no one to rely on. Bewitched by her, Li Huang followed her home.
After three days together, Li Huang returned home only to waste away day by day, his spirit dimming. His family, suspicious, traced his steps and found in the deserted house nothing but a great white serpent白蛇 bái shéA massive white python. The white snake transforms into a beautiful woman to feed on men's vital essence — a classic snake-demon image in Tang supernatural tales.. Li Huang soon died of his illness.
李璜随父官于陇右陇右唐代行政区划，大致在今甘肃省一带。陇右地处西北，地广人稀，常有精怪传说。。一日独行街中，见一白衣女子，年可二十，容色殊丽。女子见璜，敛衽施礼曰：「妾独居于此，郎君可愿枉顾？」
璜见其美貌，心动。随至一宅，门庭华丽，侍婢数人。入室陈设精美，非寻常人家可比。女子设宴款待，酒馔丰盛。璜留宿，极尽欢爱。
Li Huang accompanied his father, an official posted in Longyou陇右 lǒng yòuA Tang administrative region in present-day Gansu. Sparsely populated and remote, Longyou was a land rich in tales of spirits and monsters.. One day, walking alone through the streets, he saw a woman in white, about twenty years of age, of extraordinary beauty. She saw Huang, curtsied, and said: "I live alone here — would the young gentleman condescend to visit?"
Huang, captivated by her beauty, followed her to a mansion with ornate gates and several serving maids. Inside, the furnishings were exquisite — far beyond any ordinary household. The woman hosted a banquet with lavish food and wine. Huang stayed the night, and they reveled in each other's company.
居三日，璜辞归。女子赠以绢帛绢帛丝织品。唐代以绢帛为贵重礼物，此处蛇妖赠绢帛以加深李璜的迷恋。数匹，含泪相送曰：「郎君勿忘妾。」璜亦恋恋不舍。
归家后，觉身体倦怠，日渐消瘦。饮食渐减，夜不能寐。家人问其所往，璜不肯言。每至深夜，恍惚间似见白衣女子在侧。半月之后，形销骨立，几不成人形。
After three days, Huang took his leave. The woman gave him several bolts of silk绢帛 juàn bóSilk fabric. In the Tang dynasty, silk was a precious gift; here the serpent-demon uses it to deepen Li Huang's infatuation. and, weeping, saw him off: "Do not forget me." Huang too could not bear to part.
After returning home, he felt fatigued and grew thinner by the day. His appetite waned; he could not sleep at night. His family asked where he had gone; he would not say. Each night, in a daze, he seemed to see the woman in white beside him. After half a month, he was emaciated beyond recognition.
家人疑而密随，至其所，见荒宅颓垣，蔓草丛生。入内唯见白蛇白蛇白色巨蟒。蛇身巨大，盘踞在荒宅之中，令人不寒而栗。一尾，长数丈，盘踞宅中。蛇身之上，犹见绢帛之痕。
家人大骇，急归。璜闻之，惊惧交加，吐出物如痰涎痰涎痰液和唾液。此处指蛇妖吸食精气后在人体内残留的秽物，吐出后人即死。，其中有小蛇数条。遂不治而亡。
His family, suspicious, secretly followed him to the place. They found a crumbling, overgrown ruin — and inside, nothing but a great white serpent白蛇 bái shéA massive white python, coiled in the ruined mansion — a chilling sight., several zhang丈 zhàngA traditional Chinese unit of length, approximately 3.3 meters. "数丈" suggests the serpent was over ten meters long. long, coiled within. Upon its body, they could still see traces of the silk fabric.
The family fled in terror. When Huang heard the news, shock and fear overcame him. He vomited matter like foul phlegm痰涎 tán xiánPhlegm and spittle. Here it refers to the corrupt residue left in the body by the serpent-demon after feeding on vital essence; once expelled, the victim dies., within which lay several small serpents. He perished shortly after.
文学价值
《白蛇记》是唐代"蛇妖"叙事的早期代表，也是后世白蛇传说（《白蛇传》）的源头之一。与后来被浪漫化的白娘子不同，此篇的白蛇是纯粹的"妖"——她化为美女的目的不是爱情，而是取命。李璜的悲剧是一个典型的"色戒"寓言：美色之下，暗藏杀机。
值得注意的是"三日"这一时间设定：三天足以让李璜深陷其中，但还不足以致命。白蛇放他回去，或许不是仁慈，而是猎食的策略——让猎物在恍惚中慢慢衰竭。
比较研究
与希腊神话中塞壬（Siren）以歌声诱惑水手触礁的故事异曲同工——都是用美来引诱，最终导致死亡。但蛇妖叙事有其独特的中国内涵：蛇在中华文化中兼具正邪两面（女娲是蛇身、白素贞是善妖），此篇则代表了"蛇即妖"的恐惧叙事。
Literary Merit
"The White Serpent" is an early representative of the Tang "snake-demon" narrative and an ancestor of the later Legend of the White Snake. Unlike the romanticized Bai Suzhen of later tradition, this tale's white serpent is purely demonic — her purpose in taking human form is not love but death. Li Huang's tragedy is a classic "lust-warning" parable: beneath beauty lurks mortal danger.
Notable is the "three days" timeframe: enough for Li Huang to become deeply ensnared, but not enough to kill. The serpent lets him return — perhaps not out of mercy but as a hunting strategy, letting the prey slowly waste away in a daze.
Comparative Study
This parallels the Greek Sirens who lure sailors to their deaths with song — both use beauty as a lure ending in death. But the snake-demon narrative carries unique Chinese connotations: serpents in Chinese culture embody both good and evil (Nüwa has a serpent's body; Bai Suzhen is a benevolent spirit). This tale represents the "serpent as pure monster" strand of that tradition.
中国志怪文学中最经典的妖怪类型之一。蛇修炼成精后可化为人形，通常为美女。蛇妖叙事有两种传统：一是"恶蛇"——以色惑人、吸食精气、取人性命（如本篇）；二是"善蛇"——虽为异类却心地善良、追求爱情（如《白蛇传》的白素贞）。这两种传统共同构成了中国蛇文化的丰富内涵。
One of the most classic monster types in Chinese zhiguai literature. A serpent that has cultivated spiritual power can take human form, usually as a beautiful woman. Two traditions of serpent-demon narratives exist: the "evil serpent" — seducing humans, feeding on vital essence, taking lives (as in this tale); and the "good serpent" — though non-human, possessing a kind heart and seeking love (as in Bai Suzhen of the Legend of the White Snake). Together, these form the rich fabric of Chinese serpent culture.
中医和道家修炼理论中的核心概念。"精"指人体最精华的物质基础，"气"指运行于体内的生命能量。精气充足则身强体健，精气亏损则百病丛生。在志怪文学中，妖怪吸食人的精气是常见的害人手段——被吸食者面色苍白、形销骨立，最终枯竭而亡。本篇李璜的消瘦过程，正是精气被吸食的典型描写。
A core concept in traditional Chinese medicine and Daoist cultivation theory. "Jing" (essence) refers to the most refined material foundation of the body; "qi" (vital energy) refers to the life force circulating within. When essence and energy are abundant, the body thrives; when depleted, illness follows. In zhiguai literature, demons feeding on human vital essence is a common means of harm — victims grow pale, emaciated, and ultimately perish from exhaustion. Li Huang's wasting away in this tale is a textbook depiction of essence being drained.