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by Yuan Mei |
| A young woman who lived in a Dai village in Yancheng County
was once bewitched by a demon. She eventually grew tired of the host of
ineffectual magic charms she had tried, and decided the time had come to
take personal action against the demon. So, she lodged a complaint with
the god of the Guandi Temple that lay to the north of the village. After
she burned her letter the demon did indeed cease its harassment.
One night not long after this, everyone in her household had an identical dream. A god dressed in full battle array spoke to them. "I am General Zhou, a subordinate of the great god of war, Guandi. A few days ago one of your family requested help in exorcising a demon. This demon was in fact a fox fairy and I have already executed the beast. "However, tomorrow all the fox's friends are planning to take up arms against me to avenge its death. I will need your support in this battle. So, bring your drums and cymbals to the temple to spur me on. " The next morning, the family hurried to the temple, their numbers swelled by supportive neighbors. From somewhere in the air they could hear the thundering of horses' hooves and the clanking of armor. They took these battle sounds to be their cue. The people in the crowd picked up their drums and cymbals and began to beat the rhythms of the war drums with all their might. Soon a black smoke filled the courtyard, and as it wafted into the village the sky began to rain fox corpses. Several days later, the family dreamed that General Zhou returned. He said, "I have offended the Patriarch of the Foxes by slaughtering so many of his kind. The patriarch has logged a complaint against me with the heavenly emperor, and the imperial police will soon be investigating the case. I hope I can depend on your support when I make my defense." Zhou then left details of the time and place of the hearing. At the appointed time, the family gathered at the temple, taking care to hide along the corridors leading to the hall. They waited until nightfall and then the emperor himself arrived in a carriage, surrounded by various guards and attendants. Behind the entourage came a white-haired person escorted by two guards bearing a placard upon which was written "The Fox Patriarch." The patriarch had strong, sharp teeth and white eyebrows. Next the god of war came forward and welcomed them most respectfully to his temple. The fox patriarch then took the lead saying, "There is no doubt the mischievious young fox deserved to die, but your subordinate has taken the matter too far. He has cruelly and ruthlessly killed scores of other innocent foxes. This is completely unforgivable." The god of war nodded his head as if he agreed, and the horrified villagers hurried out of their hiding places and knelt before the assembled court. They pleaded on General Zhou's behalf for lenience. A scholar among the kneeling crowd, also named Zhou, then cursed the patriarch. "Your hair may be white with age but you're still as cunning as ever. It is you who should be begging for forgiveness! Your subordinates spend all their time seducing innocent women and ultimately it is your responsibility! How can you be patriarch to such shameless creatures? You should be beheaded!" Faced with this barrage of insults, the fox patriarch merely smiled and said in a calm and relaxed manner, "If humans commit adultery, what would be their punishment?" Scholar Zhou replied, "They would be beaten." The old fox replied, "Since adultery is not punishable by death, why did my underlings face death? Even if one considers that they commited adultery across species, this is only a crime of marginally increased severity, deserving exile at the worst. But what has happened? General Zhou has slaughtered not just one fox but scores of foxes! What sort of justice is that?" Before Scholar Zhou had a chance to reply, the emperor's verdict was heard. "The emperor had decided that General Zhou's vigilance against evil was excessive and the punishments he administered were far too severe for the crimes committed. However, the court has taken into account that Zhou was acting unselfishly and was prompted by pleas for help from villagers who were suffereing from the fox fairy's mischieviousness. His punishment will be the loss of a year's salary and transfer to Haizhou District." The relieved villagers shouted with joy and then bowed their heads with prayers of thanks to the wisdom of heaven before heading back to their homes. |
