A naive young man was deeply troubled by a strange rumor recently whispered around town. The rumor was a crude and vulgar one—that a beautiful housewife in the neighborhood would sleep with anyone who asked. Though men joked about it, the details were clearly sexual. As he heard the gossip, the youth kept telling himself there was no way someone as gentle and composed as that woman could possibly be involved. Yet from that day on, his mind gradually became consumed, fixated entirely on her. And once again, he found himself walking through the streets, picturing her in his mind—almost as if chasing after her shadow.