Justice Pao

Bao Zheng (; 5 March 999 – 3 July 1062), commonly known as Bao Gong (), was a Chinese politician during the reign of Emperor Renzong in China's Song Dynasty. During his twenty-five years in civil service, Bao was known for his honesty and uprightness, with actions such as impeaching an uncle of Emperor Renzong's favourite concubine and punishing powerful families. His appointment from 1057 to 1058 as the prefect of Song's capital Kaifeng, where he initiated a number of changes to better hear the grievances of the people, made him a legendary figure. During his years in office, he gained the honorific title Justice Bao () due to his ability to defend peasants and commoners against corruption or injustice. Bao Zheng is depicted as the incarnation of the Astral God of Civil Arts (Wenquxing, 文曲星), while another protagonist — famous Northern Song warrior Di Qing as the Astral God of Military Arts (Wuquxing, 武曲星).

Bao Zheng today is honored as the cultural symbol of justice in Chinese society. His largely fictionalized ''gong'an'' and ''wuxia'' stories have appeared in a variety of different literary and dramatic mediums (beginning with ''The Seven Heroes and Five Gallants''), and have enjoyed sustained popularity. In mainstream Chinese mythology, he is often portrayed wearing a judge's zhanjiao futou hat and a crescent moon on his forehead. Some Chinese provinces later deified Judge Bao, equating him to the benevolent war god Guan Gong.

Early life

Bao Zheng was born into a scholar family in Shenxian (), Hefei, Luzhou (present-day Feidong County near Hefei, Anhui). Bao's family was in the middle class, his father Bao Lingyi () was a scholar and an official, while his grandfather Bao Shi Tong () was a commoner. Though Bao's parents could afford to send him to school, his mother had to climb up mountains to collect firewood just before she gave birth to him. As Bao grew up among low working class, he well understood people's hardships, hated corruption and strongly desired for justice.

At the age of 29, Bao passed the highest-level imperial examination and became qualified as a Jinshi. Bao was appointed as magistrate of Jianchang County, but he deferred embarking on his official career for a decade in order to care for his elderly parents and faithfully observe proper mourning rites after their deaths.

During the time Bao looked after his parents at home, Liu Yun (), Magistrate of Luzhou who was renowned as an excellent poetic and fair-minded officer, usually visited Bao. Because the two got along well, Bao obtained great influence from Liu Yun in respect of the love for people.

As magistrate of Tianchang

After the passing of his parents, Bao Zheng, then 39, was appointed magistrate of Tianchang County not far from his hometown. It was here that Bao first established his reputation as an astute judge. According to an anecdote, a man once reported that his ox's tongue had been sliced out. Bao told him to return and slaughter the ox for sale. Soon another man arrived in court and accused the first man of privately slaughtering a "beast of burden", an offense punishable by a year of penal servitude. Bao bellowed: "Why did you cut his ox's tongue and then accuse him?" In shock, the culprit had to confess.

As prefect of Duanzhou

In 1040, Bao Zheng was promoted to the prefect of Duanzhou (modern Zhaoqing) in the south, a prefecture famous for its high-quality inkstones, a certain number of which were presented annually to the imperial court. However, Bao discovered that previous prefects had collected far more inkstones from manufacturers than the required tribute—several dozens of times more—in order to bribe influential ministers with the extras. Bao abolished the practice by telling manufacturers to fill only the required quota.

When his tenure was up in 1043, Bao left without a single inkstone in his possession. It was in Duanzhou that he wrote this poem:

As investigating censor

Bao Zheng returned to the capital and was named an investigating censor in 1044. For the next two years in this position, Bao submitted at least 13 memoranda to Emperor Renzong of Song on military, taxation, the examination system, and governmental dishonesty and incompetence.

In 1045, Bao was sent to the Liao dynasty as a messenger. During an audience, a Liao official accused the Song of violating the peace by installing a secret side door in the border prefecture of Xiongzhou, so as to solicit defectors from Liao for intelligence. Bao retorted: "Why is a side door required for intelligence?" The Liao subject could not respond.

In the following years, Bao held the following positions:

* Fiscal commissioner of Hebei
* Vice Director of Ministry of Justice
* Auxiliary in the Academy of Scholarly Worthies ()
* Vice Commissioner of Ministry of Revenue

Impeaching Zhang Yaozuo

Emperor Renzong's favourite consort had been Concubine Zhang, whom he had wanted to make empress but could not because of opposition by his (unknown to him, fake) mother, Empress Dowager Liu. Nevertheless, the concubine's uncle Zhang Yaozuo () was quickly promoted within a few years from minor local posts to high office, including the state finance commissioner (). On July 12, 1050, Bao and two other censors together presented a memorandum, which in strong language accused Zhang of mediocrity and shamelessness, even attributing natural disasters to his appointments. Probably annoyed, Emperor Renzong not only did nothing to Zhang Yaozuo, he awarded Consort Zhang's sister with a title four days later. But Bao did not give up. In another memorandum submitted by himself alone, he wrote:

Partly to appease protests by Bao and others, the emperor relieved Zhang Yaozuo as state finance commissioner, but instead appointed him a concurrent four-commission position: commissioner of palace attendants, military commissioner of Huainan, Qunmu military commissioner-in-chief (), and commissioner of Jingling Palace (). In a memorandum dated December 26, Bao voiced his strong protest and wrote:

In the next court meeting to confirm Yaozuo's appointments, there was a heated argument in court led by seven ministers including Bao, which resulted in the emperor deciding to strip the commission of palace attendants and commission of Jingling palace from Zhang's promotion.

A few decades later, Zhu Bian (朱弁, 1085–1144) wrote a humorous account in his ''Anecdotes from Quwei'' (),''Qu Wei Jiu Wen'
ch. 1.
/ref> which probably contributed to the development of future legends:

During his years in the government service, Bao had thirty high officials demoted or dismissed for corruption, bribery, or dereliction of duty. In addition, as the imperial censor, Bao avoided punishment despite many other contemporary imperial censors having been punished for minor statements.

As prefect of Kaifeng

In 1057, Bao was appointed the magistrate of the capital city of Bian (present day Kaifeng). Bao held the position for only one year, but he initiated several material administrative reforms, including allowing the citizens to directly lodge complaints with the city administrators, thereby bypassing the city clerks who were believed to be corrupt and in the pay of local powerful families.

Bao had also been the Minister of Finance. Despite his high rank in the government, Bao led a modest life like a commoner.

Apart from his intolerance of injustice and corruption, Bao was well known for his filial piety and his stern demeanor. In his lifetime, Bao gained the name "Iron-Faced Judge" () and it was also said among the public that his smile was "rarer than clear waters in the Yellow River".

Due to his fame and the strength of his reputation, Bao's name became synonymous with the idealized "honest and upright official" (), and quickly became a popular subject of early vernacular drama and literature. Bao was also associated with the god Yanluo (Yama) and the "Infernal Bureaucracy" of the Eastern Marchmount, on account of his supposed ability to judge affairs in the afterlife as well as he judged them in the realm of the living.

Family

Bao Zheng had two wives, Lady Zhang () and Lady Dong (). Bao had one son, , born 1033, and two daughters with Lady Dong. His only son Bao Yi died in 1053 at a relatively young age while being a government officer, two years after his marriage to Lady Cui (). Bao Yi's son, Bao Wenfu (), died prematurely at the age of five.

However, when a young maid Lady Sun () in Bao Zheng's family became pregnant, Bao dismissed her back to her hometown. Lady Cui, Bao Yi's wife, knowing that the maid was pregnant with her father-in-law's child, continued to send money and clothing to her home. Upon the birth of Lady Sun's son named Bao Yan (包𫄧) (1057 - 1105), Lady Cui secretly brought him to her house to foster him. The following year, she brought him back to his biological father, thus enabling the continuation of Bao's family line. Bao Zheng and his wife rejoiced, and they renamed their new son as .

Bao Yi's wife Lady Cui was greatly praised in the official sources for her devotion to the protection of family line. This story was very influential to the formation of the legend that Bao Zheng was raised by his elder sister-in-law, whom he called "sister-in-law mother" ().

Death

Bao died in the Capital City of Kaifeng (present day Kaifeng, Henan) in 1062. It was recorded that he left the following warning for his family:

Any of my descendants who commits bribery as an official shall not be allowed back home nor buried in the family burial site. He who shares not my values is not my descendant.

Bao was buried in Daxingji in 1063. His tomb was rebuilt by officials of the Huaixi Road in 1066. Lady Dong died in 1068 and was buried next to him.

Remains

Cultural Revolution period

During the Cultural Revolution, the Baogong Temple in Baohe Park of Hefei City was looted, and the Bao Zheng statue was ruined. The Bao Zheng portraits preserved by the generations of his descendants and the Baoshi Genealogy () were burned.

The relevant personnel set up a relic rescue effort "Bao Cemetery Clearing and Excavation Leading Group" () to excavate and clean up the cemetery. They unearthed Bao Zheng's remains and the two newly discovered tombstones with Chinese engravings in forms of () and (). It was found that the tombstones of Bao Zheng and Lady Dong had been displaced due to destruction. In addition, the tomb of the eldest son and his wife, the tomb of the second son and his wife, and the tomb of the grandson Bao Yongnian () were also excavated and cleaned up. The excavation group handed back the remains of Bao Zheng and his family to their descendants.

One day in August 1973, the remains of Bao Zheng and his family were carried out in 11 wooden coffin boxes and transported back to Dabaocun (), the hometown of Bao Zheng. However, the local commune secretary there would not allow their ancestors' remains to be buried on the grounds, otherwise they would be destroyed immediately.

Bao Zheng's descendants, in fear that the remains of Bao Zheng and his family would be destroyed, with the help of a fellow 34th generation descendant Bao Zunyuan (), secretly hid them elsewhere without knowing what to do. The remains, consisting of 34 Bao Zheng's bone fragments, would later be sent to Beijing for forensics research before they were returned to the newly reconstructed cemetery.

Reconstructed cemetery

The Bao Gong Cemetery () was reconstructed next to the Bao Gong Temple in Hefei in the forested area of Anhui in 1985 and was completed in 1987 to preserve the remains of Bao Zheng and artifacts from the former tombs. The exact location of Bao Zheng and his family's remains however is unknown, known only to his descendants.

Notable descendants

* 8th generation: Bao Xun
* 9th generation: Bao Hui
* 27th generation: Bao Fang Wu (包方务)
* 28th generation: Pao Siu Loong
* 29th generation: Yue-Kong Pao, Yue-Shu Pao, Pao Teh-ming
* 30th generation: Anna Pao Sohmen, Bessie Pao Woo, Cissy Pao-Watari, Doreen Pao
* 32nd generation: Bao Zhenming
* 33rd generation: Bao Huacheng (包华成), Bao Huazhang (包华章), Bao Huabing (包华兵), Bao Huajun (包华军), Bao Huaxiu (包华秀), Bao Shengdong (包胜东), Run Bao, Anthony Bao, Tino Bao
* 34th generation: Bao Tingzheng, Bao Xi (包玺), Bao Dan (包丹), Bao Huifang (包慧芳), Bao Yong (包勇), Bao Zunyuan (包遵元), Bao Zunxin

Legends

Literary traditions

Bao Zheng's stories were retold and preserved particularly in the form of performance arts such as Chinese opera and pingshu. Written forms of his legend appeared in the Yuan Dynasty in the form of Qu. Vernacular fiction of Judge Bao was popular in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. A common protagonist of gong'an fiction, Judge Bao stories revolve around Bao, a magistrate, investigating and solving criminal cases. When Sherlock Holmes was first translated into Chinese in the Qing Dynasty, the Chinese called Sherlock “the English Judge Bao.”

In the Yuan Dynasty, many plays (in the forms of '' qu'' and ''zaju'') have featured Bao Zheng as the central character. These plays include:

* '' Rescriptor Bao Cleverly Investigates the Circle of Chalk'' () by Li Qianfu
* ''Rescriptor Bao Thrice Investigates the Butterfly Dream'' () by Guan Hanqing, English translation can be found in Yang & Yang 1958
* ''Rescriptor Bao Cleverly Executes Court Official Lu'' () by Guan Hanqing, English translation can be found in Yang & Yang 1958 (as ''The Wife-Snatcher'')
* ''Rescriptor Bao Sells Rice at Chenzhou'' (), English translation can be found in Hayden 1978
* ''Ding-ding Dong-dong: The Ghost of the Pot'' (), English translation can be found in Hayden 1978
* ''Rescriptor Bao Cleverly Investigates the Flower of the Back Courtyard'' () by Zheng Tingyu, English translation can be found in Hayden 1978

Also discovered from this period include some ballads which had been translated by Wilt L. Idema in 2010.

The 16th-century novel ''Bao Gong An'' by An Yushi () (partially translated by Leon Comber in 1964) increased his popularity and added a detective element to his legends.

The 19th-century novel ''The Seven Heroes and Five Gallants'' by the storyteller Shi Yukun () (partially translated by Song Shouquan in 1997 as well as Susan Blader in 1997) added a wuxia twist to his stories.

In '' Pavilion of Ten Thousand Flowers'' (), '' Five Tigers Conquer the West'' (), '' Five Tigers Conquer the South'' () and '' Five Tigers Conquer the North'' (), four serial wuxia novels composed by Li Yutang () during Qing Dynasty, Bao Zheng, Di Qing and Yang Zongbao appear as main characters.

In ''What the Master Would Not Discuss'' (), a Qing Dynasty biji by Yuan Mei (), Bao Zheng as well as the belief that he was able to judge affairs of both human beings and supernatural beings is featured.

Stories

In opera or drama, he is often portrayed with a black face and a white crescent shaped birthmark on his forehead.

In legends, because he was born dark-skinned and extremely ugly, Bao Zheng was considered cursed and thrown away by his father right after birth. However, his virtuous elder sister-in-law, who just had an infant named Bao Mian (), picked Bao Zheng up and raised him like her own son. As a result, Bao Zheng would refer to Bao Mian's mother as "sister-in-law mother".

In most dramatizations of his stories, he used a set of guillotines (鍘刀, "lever-knife"), given to him by the emperor, to execute criminals:
* The one decorated with a dog's head (狗頭鍘 or 犬頭鍘) was used on commoners.
* The one decorated with a tiger's head () was used on government officials.
* The one decorated with a dragon's head (龍頭鍘 or 火龍鍘) was used on royal personages.

He was granted a golden rod () by the previous emperor, with which he was authorized to chastise the current emperor. He was also granted an imperial sword () from the previous emperor; whenever it was exhibited to the persons surrounding, irrespective of their social classes, they must pay respect and compliance to the person exhibiting the sword as if they were the emperor (unless the person has an object of equal power). Each of Bao Zheng's guillotines were authorized to execute the corresponding social-ranked person without first obtaining approval from the emperor, though any interference from the emperor would stop the process.

He is famous for his uncompromising stance against corruption among the government officials at the time. He upheld justice and refused to yield to higher powers including the Emperor's Father-in-Law (), who was also appointed as the Grand Tutor () and was known as Grand Tutor Pang (). He is depicted to have treated Bao as an enemy. Although Grand Tutor Pang is often depicted in myth as an archetypical villain (arrogant, selfish, and cruel), the historical reasons for his bitter rivalry with Bao remain unclear.

Bao Zheng also managed to remain in favour by cultivating a long-standing friendship with one of Emperor Renzong's uncles, the Eighth Imperial Prince () and Prime Minister Wang Yanling ().

In many stories Bao is usually accompanied by his skilled bodyguard Zhan Zhao () and personal secretary Gongsun Ce (). Zhan is a skilled martial artist while Gongsun is an intelligent adviser. When Sherlock Holmes was first translated into Chinese - Watson was compared to Gongsun Ce. There are also four enforcers named Wang Chao (), Ma Han (), Zhang Long (), and Zhao Hu (). All of these characters are presented as righteous and incorruptible.

Due to his strong sense of justice, he is very popular in China, especially among the peasants and the poor. He became the subject of literature and modern Chinese TV series in which his adventures and cases are featured.

Famous cases

All of these cases have been favorites in Chinese opera.

* Executing Chen Shimei (): Chen Shimei had two children with wife Qin Xianglian, when he left them behind in his hometown for the Imperial examination in the capital. After placing first, he lied about his marriage and became the emperor's new brother-in-law. Years later, a famine 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 in order 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 (): 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, and was convicted of bribery and malfeasance. Finding it impossible to fulfill both Confucianism, Confucian concepts of loyalty and filial piety, an emotional Bao Zheng was about to reluctantly execute his nephew. In the end, the real criminals were forced to confess and Bao Mian's sentence was commuted.
* The Crown Prince Replaced by a Cat (Chinese tale), 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 (Zhenzong), Consort Li, an Ranks of imperial consorts in China, imperial concubine of Emperor Zhenzong of Song, Emperor Zhenzong's, before falling out of favour for supposedly giving birth to a bloody (and dead) civet, civet cat. In reality, the jealous Empress Liu (Zhenzong), Consort Liu had plotted with eunuch Guo Huai () to secretly swap Li's infant with a skinning, skinned civet cat minutes after the birth and ordered palace maid Kou Zhu to kill the baby. However, Kou gave the baby to chief eunuch Chen Lin (), who secretly brought the child to the Zhao Yuanyan, Eighth Prince, 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 (Buddhism and Chinese mythology), Yama, lord of Naraka (Buddhism), Hell, 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 Ten Abominations, 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.
* The Case of Two Nails (): Bao Zheng investigated a man's suspicious death whose cause had been ruled as death by natural causes, natural. After an autopsy, his coroner confirmed the earlier report that there was no injury to the whole body. At home, the coroner discussed the case with his wife, who mentioned that someone could force long steel nails into the brain without injuring the body. The next day, the coroner indeed found a long nail, and the dead man's widow was arrested; she confessed to adultery and mariticide. 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 driven into the human skull, skull.
* The Case of the Black Basin (): 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 kiln. Greedy for the riches carried by Liu, Zhao killed him by poisoning his dinner, burying his 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 in lieu of cash payment. Zhang eventually encountered the Liu's ghost, who had been possessing the basin ever since his murder, and was told the story of the latter's cruel death at Zhao's hands. Determined to bring 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.

Modern references

Linguistic influence

In modern Chinese language, Chinese, "Bao Gong" or "Bao Qingtian" is invoked as a metaphor or symbol of justice. There is a chain of cafes selling baozi in Singapore called Bao Today (Bao Jin Tian), which is a pun on Bao Qingtian (Justice Bao).

In the Thai language, ''Than Pao'' (wikt:ท่านเปา, ท่านเปา; "Lord Bao") has become a Colloquialism, colloquial term for a judge. The Royal Institute of Thailand recorded the term in the ''Dictionary of Neologism, New Words, Volume 2'', published in 2009. Furthermore, the word "Pao" is used colloquially by the sports media to mean a referee in a game, especially a football match.

Films

* ''Redressing a Grievance'' (), a 1927 Chinese silent film featuring Ling Wusi as Bao Zheng.
* ''The Crimson Palm'' (), a 1964 Shaw Brothers musical film features Cheng Miu as Bao Zheng, and is about a scholar who is framed for murder by his fiancée's father.
* ''Inside the Forbidden City'' (), a 1965 Shaw Brothers musical film stars Cheng Miu as Bao Zheng, and tells the story of the "Wild Cat for Crown Prince conspiracy" case.
* ''The Mermaid'' (), a 1965 Shaw Brothers musical film features Cheng Miu as Bao Zheng, and is a fantasy about a carp spirit who is in love with a human scholar.
* ''King Cat'' (), a 1967 Shaw Brothers film features Cheng Miu as Bao Zheng.
* ''The Wrongly Killed Girl'' (), a 1976 Hong Kong film stars Jen Hao as Bao Zheng and tells the Liu Jinchan murder.
* ''Cat and Mouse (2003 film), Cat and Mouse'' (), a 2003 Media Asia Entertainment Group, Media Asia romantic comedy stars Anthony Wong Chau-Sang, Anthony Wong as Bao Zheng.
* ''Game of a Cat and Mouse'' (), a 2005 film stars Jin Chao-chun as Bao Zheng.
* ''Hua Gu Di Wang'' (), a Mainland China film planned for 2013 release.

Stephen Chow also made a spin-off movie based on Bao Zheng called ''Hail the Judge'' and titled ''Pale Face Bao Zheng Ting'' in Chinese. In the movie Chow plays a descendant of Bao Zheng called "Bao Sing" living during Qing Dynasty, whose family lost its once glorious prestige due to generations of incompetence and corruption.

Television

Some of the more prominent TV series include:

* ''Justice Bao (1974 TV series), Justice Bao'' (), a 1974–75 series produced by Chinese Television System, CTSTV totaling 350 episodes With English subtitles. Yi Ming portrayed Bao Zheng.
* ''Justice Bao (1993 TV series), Justice Bao'' (), a 1993–94 series produced by Chinese Television System, CTSTV with 41 cases totaling 236 episodes produced in one season. This would be the first series where Jin Chao-chun portrayed Bao Zheng.
* ''Young Justice Bao'' (), a 1994 series produced by Singapore Broadcasting Corporation, SBC (now Mediacorp) and starring Chew Chor Meng as young Bao Zheng.
* ''Justice Bao (TVB series), Justice Bao'' (), a 1995 series produced by TVB and starring Ti Lung as Bao Zheng, with 16 cases totaling 80 episodes.
* ''Justice Bao (ATV series), Justice Bao'' (), a 1995–1996 series produced by Asia Television, ATV and starring Jin Chao-chun as Bao Zheng, with 25 cases totaling 160 episodes.
* ''Young Justice Bao (2000 TV series), Young Justice Bao'' (), a 2000 Mainland Chinese series starring Zhou Jie as Young Bao Zheng, with 40 episodes divided into seven cases. This series is heavily inspired by mainstream crime fiction such as Sherlock Holmes and Detective Conan
* ''Justice Bao (2008 TV series), Justice Bao'' (), a 2008 Mainland Chinese series starring Jin Chao-chun as Bao Zheng, with five cases totaling 61 episodes.
* ''Justice Bao (2010 TV series), Justice Bao'' (), a 2010 Mainland Chinese series starring Jin Chao-chun as Bao Zheng. The first season airing in 2010, three seasons totaling 120 episodes have been shown as of 2012.
* '':zh:包青天再起風雲, Justice Bao: The First Year'' (), a 2019 series produced by TVB and starring Shaun Tam as young Bao Zheng, totaling 30 episodes. His father Ti Lung played the titular role 24 years earlier.

Novels

Bao Zheng briefly appears in the novel ''Media about Zhou Tong#Fictional biography, Iron Arm, Golden Sabre'' and sponsors young Jow Tong, Zhou Tong's entry into the military as an officer.Wang, Yun Heng (汪运衡) and Xiao Yun Long (筱云龙). ''Tie Bei Jin Dao Zhou Tong Zhuan'' (铁臂金刀周侗传 - "Iron Arm, Golden Sabre: The Biography of Zhou Tong"). Hangzhou: Zhejiang People's Publishing House, 1986 (UBSN—Union Books and Serials Number) CN (10103.414) and 464574

In March 2012, Frederic Lenormand, author of 18 ''Judge Dee's New Cases'' (Fayard 2004–2011), published at Editions Philippe Picquier ''Un Thé chez Confucius'' (''A Tea with Confucius''), first novel of his new series, ''The Judge Bao Cases''.

Video games

An unlicensed Nintendo Side-scrolling video game, side-scrolling/platform game for Nintendo Entertainment System, Famicom, entitled ''Bāo Qīngtián'' (), also known as ''Justice Pao'', was made in Taiwan by ex-Thin Chen Enterprise, Sachen developers and published by Ka Sheng in 1996.

Comics and manga

In the Marvel comic series ''New Universal'', Young Judge Bao is one of the characters in an in-universe comic book.

"Les éditions Fei" also publishes a series of French-language comics about Bao Zheng. As of August 2010, two volumes have been printed.

A 16-volume Japanese manga series ''Hokusō Fūunden'' (:ja:北宋風雲伝, 北宋風雲伝), partly adapting the 1993 TV series, was serialized in the magazine ''Princess (magazine), Princess GOLD'', published by Akita Shoten, from May 2000 to May 2008.

See also

* ''Bao Gong An''
* Chinese crime fiction
* Generals of the Yang Family
* ''The Seven Heroes and Five Gallants''
* Zhan Zhao

References

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Further reading

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Another biography

External links

"The CCP vs Bao Zheng, Patron Saint of the Petitioners"
by Wang Yichi (pseudonym), ''Bitter Winter'' (March 29, 2024)

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bao, Zheng
999 births
1062 deaths
Chinese judges
Cultural depictions of Bao Zheng
Deified Chinese men
Gong'an fiction
Mayors of Kaifeng
Song dynasty government officials
Politicians from Hefei
The Seven Heroes and Five Gallants characters
The Three Sui Quash the Demons' Revolt characters