The Catfish Swaps with the Prince: A Story of Bao Gong's Judgment: English

Author: Editor-in-Chief: Jia Xianfeng
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 1999-01-01
Features: Excerpt: Interrogating a Buddhist Statue
After obtaining the title "metropolitan graduate," Lord Bao stayed in the imperial capital, Kaifeng, waiting for an appointment. Soon he received papers from the court making him magistrate of Dingyuan County in Fengyang Prefecture, Anhui Province. He packed his luggage, tucked away his official papers, and set out with his servant, Baoxing. Upon entering the district of Dingyuan County, Lord Bao changed out of his official robes so he could obtain some information firsthand, dressed as an ordinary traveler. They stopped to eat at an inn. Just then, a man walked in and was warmly greeted by the waiter.
"Haven't seen you for a long time, Mr. Pi!" The man sat down at the table next to theirs. The waiter went inside and soon returned with two pots of wine and two cups. The man looked up in surprise, "Hey! I am alone. Why do you bring two pots and two cups?" The waiter was stunned. "I saw someone behind you when you came in," he said. "His hair was all tangled and his face smeared with blood. So I thought you had just dragged him out of a fight, and the two of you were going to have a few drinks together. But now he's gone! Or maybe I just got dizzy in the head and didn't really see anything." At these words, the man's face changed color. Without saying anything, he got up, paid for the wine, and left in a hurry. Lord Bao, who had taken everything in, asked the waiter to come over.
"Who is that fellow?" he asked. "That's Pi Xiong, the leader of the 24 local horse peddlers. I don't know what's wrong with him today." Lord Bao finished his meal and told Baoxing to go to the magistrate's office to announce his arrival. Then he left the inn and walked leisurely down the street. By the time he arrived at the yamen (the government office), the runners and clerks had already lined up in front of the gate. He entered the office, exchanged papers with his predecessor, and accepted the magistrate's seal as well as all the files and documents. He immediately sat down and began to leaf through the case records of criminals that had been executed in autumn. When he came across a recent murder case about a man named Shen Qing, charged with killing a monk in the Buddhist temple, he found the judgment unconvincing and decided to try the case again. The runners, informed by Baoxing that the new magistrate had traveled incognito to the yamen, all realized that Lord Bao must be a very astute and stern person and that they could not afford to neglect their duties. As soon as Lord Bao issued his order, the runners walked into the principal hall of the yamen in an orderly file and announced the opening of the trial in resounding voices. Lord Bao sat down at his table and ordered Shen Qing to be brought in. A short while later, Shen Qing was taken from prison, brought into the hall, and relieved of his shackles. Lord Bao looked at him closely. Shen Qing appeared to be in his early thirties, weak in physique, timid in expression, and trembling with fear. He did not have the look of a murderer.