Judge Bao (or Justice Bao (包青天)) stories in literature and performing arts are some of the most popular in traditional Chinese

crime fiction Crime fiction, detective story, murder mystery, crime novel, mystery novel, and police novel are terms used to describe narratives or fiction that centre on criminal acts and especially on the investigation, either by an amateur or a professiona ...

( ''gong'an'' fiction). All stories involve the

Song dynasty The Song dynasty ( ) was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 960 to 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song, who usurped the throne of the Later Zhou dynasty and went on to conquer the rest of the Fiv ...

minister

Bao Zheng Bao Zheng (; 5 March 999 – 3 July 1062), commonly known as Bao Gong (), was a Chinese politician during the reign of Emperor Emperor Renzong of Song, Renzong in China's Song Dynasty. During his twenty-five years in civil service, Bao was kn ...

who solves, judges and sentences criminal cases.

Literary tradition

Plays from the Yuan and Ming dynasties

In the

Yuan Dynasty The Yuan dynasty ( ; zh, c=元朝, p=Yuáncháo), officially the Great Yuan (; Mongolian language, Mongolian: , , literally 'Great Yuan State'), was a Mongol-led imperial dynasty of China and a successor state to the Mongol Empire after Div ...

, many

plays Play most commonly refers to: * Play (activity), an activity done for enjoyment * Play (theatre), a work of drama Play may refer also to: Computers and technology * Google Play, a digital content service * Play Framework, a Java framework * P ...

(in the forms of '' qu'' and ''

zaju ''Zaju'' was a form of Chinese opera which provided entertainment through a synthesis of recitations of prose and poetry, dance, singing, and mime, with a certain emphasis on comedy (or, happy endings). Although with diverse and earlier roots, ''z ...

'') have featured Bao Zheng as the central character. These plays include: * '' Judge Bao Cleverly Investigates the Circle of Chalk'' (包待制智勘灰闌記) by

Li Qianfu Li Qianfu (), courtesy name Xingdao (行道), was a 14th-century Chinese playwright of the Yuan dynasty. His works include ''The Chalk Circle'' () which was used as the basis for Bertolt Brecht's play ''The Caucasian Chalk Circle'' (1948). He nota ...

* ''Judge Bao Thrice Investigates the Butterfly Dream'' (包待制三勘蝴蝶夢) by

Guan Hanqing Guan Hanqing (, 1241–1320); sobriquet Yǐzhāi (已齋), Yīzhāi (一齋), Yǐzhāisǒu (已齋叟); was a Chinese dramatist, playwright, and poet during the Yuan Dynasty. He has been described as among the most prolific and highly regarde ...

* ''Judge Bao Cleverly Executes Court Official Lu'' (包待制智斬魯齋郎) by Guan Hanqing * ''Judge Bao Sells Rice at Chenzhou'' (包待制陳州糶米) * ''Ding-ding Dong-dong: The Ghost of the Pot'' (玎玎璫璫盆兒鬼) * ''Judge Bao Cleverly Investigates the Flower of the Back Courtyard'' (包待制智勘後庭花) by

Zheng Tingyu Zheng may refer to: *Zheng (surname), Chinese surname (鄭, 郑, ''Zhèng'') *Zheng County, former name of Zhengzhou, capital of Henan, China *Guzheng (), a Chinese zither instrument with bridges *Qin Shi Huang (259 BC – 210 BC), emperor of the Q ...

Story Collections from the Ming dynasty

In 1594, the Yupan tang (與畔堂) bookstore owner An Yushi (安遇時) published the first Judge Bao-themed short story collection ''Cases of A Hundred Families Judged by Dragon-Design Bao'' (包龍圖判百家公案). * ''Cases Judged by the Dragon-Design'' (龍圖公案) by anonymous, which includes several chapters from the previous book. * "Lady Qin's Ghost Return to Exile Shimei" (秦氏還魂配世美), Ch.26, which tells the story of a heartless man

Chen Shimei Chen Shimei is a Chinese opera character and a byword in China for a heartless and unfaithful man. He was married to Qin Xianglian, also translated as Fragrant Lotus. Chen Shimei betrayed Qin Xianglian by marrying another woman, and tried to ...

betraying his loyal wife Lady Qin for power and wealth. Judge Bao stories in other collections include: *"Song the Fourth Greatly Torments Tightwad Zhang" (宋四公大鬧禁魂張) in

Feng Menglong Feng Menglong (1574–1646), courtesy names Youlong (), Gongyu (), Ziyou (), or Eryou (), was a Chinese historian, novelist, and poet of the late Ming Dynasty. He was born in Changzhou County, now part of Suzhou, in Jiangsu Province. Life Feng wa ...

's '' Stories Old and New'' (1620) *"Judge Bao Solves a Case through a Ghost That Appeared Thrice" (三現身包龍圖斷冤) in Feng's ''

Stories to Caution the World ''Jingshi Tongyan'' (警世通言, ''Stories to Caution the World'') is the second of a trilogy of widely celebrated Ming dynasty (1368–1644) Vernacular literature, vernacular story collections, compiled and edited by Feng Menglong and published ...

'' (1624) *"Squire Zhang Righteously Raises the Orphan; Judge Bao Cleverly Extracts the Contract" (張員外義撫螟蛉子包龍圖智賺合同文) in

Ling Mengchu Ling Mengchu (; 1580–1644) was a Chinese writer of the Ming Dynasty. He is best known for his vernacular short fiction collections '' Slapping the Table in Amazement'' (拍案驚奇), I and II.Yenna Wu, "Ling Meng-ch'u and the 'Two Slappings," ...

's ''

Slapping the Table in Amazement ''Slapping the Table in Amazement'' () is a collection of vernacular short stories, written by Ling Mengchu (1580–1644). It was composed in the middle of the 17th century during the end of the Ming dynasty. It involves 78 stories in all and is ...

'' (1628)

Chantefables from the Ming dynasty

In 2010, the scholar

Wilt Idema Wilt Lukas Idema (born 12 November 1944) is a Dutch scholar and Sinologist who taught at University of Leiden and Harvard University (2000–13), presently emeritus at both universities. He specializes in Chinese literature, with interests in ear ...

published an annotated translation of eight ballad-stories (''chantefable'') from a late Ming dynasty collection printed in Beijing in the late Ming and which had recently been found in a tomb.

Novels from the Qing dynasty

Famous cases

All of these cases have been favorites in

Chinese opera Traditional Chinese opera (), or ''Xiqu'', is a form of musical theatre in China with roots going back to the early periods in China. It is an amalgamation of various art forms that existed in ancient China, and evolved gradually over more tha ...

. * Civet Cat Exchanged for Crown Prince (): Bao Zheng met a woman claiming to be the mother of the reigning Emperor Renzong. Dozens of years prior, she had been Consort Li, an imperial concubine of

Emperor Zhenzong Emperor Zhenzong of Song (23 December 968 – 23 March 1022), personal name Zhao Heng, was the third emperor of the Song dynasty of China. He reigned from 997 to his death in 1022. His personal name was originally Zhao Dechang, but was change ...

's, before falling out of favour for supposedly giving birth to a bloody (and dead) civet cat. In reality, the jealous Consort Liu had plotted with eunuch Guo Huai () to secretly swap Li's infant with a skinned civet cat minutes after the birth and ordered palace maid

Kou Zhu Kou Zhu (寇珠, also translated as "Pearl") is a fictional Song dynasty palace maid popular in legends related to Emperor Renzong of Song, Emperor Zhenzong of Song, Concubine Li and Empress Liu. In the 19th-century novel ''The Seven Heroes ...

to kill the baby. However, Kou gave the baby to chief eunuch Chen Lin (), who secretly brought the child to the

Eighth Prince Zhao Yuanyan (), officially the Prince Gongsu of Zhou (周恭肅王) (c. 986 – 13 February 1044), was an imperial prince of the Chinese Song dynasty, known for his virtues. He was the 8th son of Emperor Taizong and a younger brother of Emperor ...

, a younger brother of Emperor Zhenzong. Kou was later tortured to death by Guo when Consort Liu began to suspect that the infant had survived. The child was raised by the Eighth Prince as his own son and was subsequently selected to succeed Emperor Zhenzong, who had died heirless. Due to the passage of time, gathering evidence was a challenge. With the help of a woman dressed as Kou's ghost, Bao dressed himself as

Yama Yama (), also known as Kāla and Dharmarāja, is the Hindu god of death and justice, responsible for the dispensation of law and punishment of sinners in his abode, Naraka. He is often identified with Dharmadeva, the personification of ''Dharm ...

, lord of

Hell In religion and folklore, hell is a location or state in the afterlife in which souls are subjected to punishment after death. Religions with a linear divine history sometimes depict hells as eternal destinations, such as Christianity and I ...

, to play on both Guo's fear of the supernatural and guilt, thereby extracting his confession. When the verdict was out, the emperor was reluctant to accept Consort Li. Bao then admonished the emperor and ordered that he be beaten for lack of filial piety. The emperor's Dragon Robe was beaten instead. Emperor Renzong eventually accepted his mother and elevated her as the new

empress dowager Empress dowager (also dowager empress or empress mother; ) is the English language translation of the title given to the mother or widow of a monarch, especially in regards to Chinese, Japanese, Korean, or Vietnamese monarchs in the Chines ...

. * The Case of Executing Chen Shimei (鍘美案):

had two children with wife Qin Xianglian, when he left them behind in his hometown for the

Imperial examination The imperial examination was a civil service examination system in History of China#Imperial China, Imperial China administered for the purpose of selecting candidates for the Civil service#China, state bureaucracy. The concept of choosing bureau ...

in the capital. After placing first, he lied about his marriage and became the emperor's new son-in-law. Years later, a

famine A famine is a widespread scarcity of food caused by several possible factors, including, but not limited to war, natural disasters, crop failure, widespread poverty, an Financial crisis, economic catastrophe or government policies. This phenom ...

forced Qin and her children to move to the capital, where they learned what happened to Chen. Qin finally found a way to meet Chen and begged him to help at least his own children. Not only did Chen refuse, he sent his servant Han Qi to kill them to hide his secret, but Han helped the family escape and killed himself. Desperate, Qin brought her case to Bao Zheng, who tricked Chen to the court to have him arrested. The imperial family intervened with threats, but Bao executed him nonetheless. * Executing Bao Mian (鍘包勉): When Bao Zheng was an infant, he was raised by his elder sister-in-law, Wu, like a son. Years later, Wu's only son Bao Mian became a

magistrate The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judi ...

, and was convicted of

bribery Bribery is the corrupt solicitation, payment, or Offer and acceptance, acceptance of a private favor (a bribe) in exchange for official action. The purpose of a bribe is to influence the actions of the recipient, a person in charge of an official ...

and

malfeasance Misfeasance, nonfeasance, and malfeasance are types of failure to discharge public obligations existing by common law, custom, or statute. The Carta de Logu caused Eleanor of Arborea to be remembered as one of the first lawmakers to set up t ...

. Finding it impossible to fulfill both Confucian concepts of

loyalty Loyalty is a Fixation (psychology), devotion to a country, philosophy, group, or person. Philosophers disagree on what can be an object of loyalty, as some argue that loyalty is strictly interpersonal and only another human being can be the obj ...

and

filial piety Filial piety is the virtue of exhibiting love and respect for one's parents, elders, and ancestors, particularly within the context of Confucian ethics, Confucian, Chinese Buddhism, Chinese Buddhist ethics, Buddhist, and Daoism, Daoist ethics. ...

, an emotional Bao Zheng executed his nephew according to the law and later tearfully apologized to Wu, his motherly figure. * The Case of Two Nails (雙釘記): Bao Zheng investigated a husband's suspicious death whose cause had been ruled

natural Nature is an inherent character or constitution, particularly of the ecosphere or the universe as a whole. In this general sense nature refers to the laws, elements and phenomena of the physical world, including life. Although humans are part ...

. After an

autopsy An autopsy (also referred to as post-mortem examination, obduction, necropsy, or autopsia cadaverum) is a surgical procedure that consists of a thorough examination of a corpse by dissection to determine the cause, mode, and manner of deat ...

, his

coroner A coroner is a government or judicial official who is empowered to conduct or order an inquest into the manner or cause of death. The official may also investigate or confirm the identity of an unknown person who has been found dead within th ...

confirmed the earlier report that there was no injury throughout the body. At home, the coroner discussed the case with his wife, who mentioned that someone could force long steel nails into the brain, leaving no other traces on the body. The next day, the coroner found a long nail indeed, and the

widow A widow (female) or widower (male) is a person whose spouse has Death, died and has usually not remarried. The male form, "widower", is first attested in the 14th century, by the 19th century supplanting "widow" with reference to men. The adjecti ...

was arrested and confessed to

adultery Adultery is extramarital sex that is considered objectionable on social, religious, moral, or legal grounds. Although the sexual activities that constitute adultery vary, as well as the social, religious, and legal consequences, the concept ...

and

mariticide Mariticide (from Latin ''maritus'' "husband" + ''-cide'', from ''caedere'' "to cut, to kill") literally means the killing of one's own husband. It can refer to the act itself or the person who carries it out. It can also be used in the context o ...

. Afterwards, Bao Zheng began to question the coroner's wife and learned that the coroner is her second husband, as her first husband had died. Bao ordered his guards to go to the cemetery and unearth her first husband's coffin. Sure enough, there was also a nail in the

skull The skull, or cranium, is typically a bony enclosure around the brain of a vertebrate. In some fish, and amphibians, the skull is of cartilage. The skull is at the head end of the vertebrate. In the human, the skull comprises two prominent ...

. * The Case of the Black Basin (烏盆記): A silk merchant by the name of Liu Shichang was on a trip home when he decided to ask for food and overnight lodging at the place of Zhao Da, the owner of a

pottery Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other raw materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. The place where such wares are made by a ''potter'' is al ...

kiln. Greedy over the riches carried by Liu, Zhao killed him by poisoning his dinner, and burned Liu's remains with clay in his kiln to make a black basin, in order to destroy the evidence. An old man named Zhang Biegu, whom Zhao owed a debt to, soon took the basin from Zhao as an alternate of cash payment. Zhang eventually encountered the

ghost In folklore, a ghost is the soul or Spirit (supernatural entity), spirit of a dead Human, person or non-human animal that is believed by some people to be able to appear to the living. In ghostlore, descriptions of ghosts vary widely, from a ...

of Liu, who had been possessing the basin ever since his demise, and was told the story of the latter's cruel death at Zhao's hands. Determined to put the suspect to justice, Zhang soon brought the black basin to Bao Zheng's court in Kaifeng and after several attempts, finally persuaded Liu's ghost to tell the judge everything. As a result, Zhao was finally arrested and executed for murder.

References

Sources

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