Once upon a time in Zhaocheng County there was an old lady in her seventies who had only one son. One day, her son went into the mountains and was eaten by a tiger. The old lady was so grieved that she nearly committed suicide.
When she went to see the magistrate of Zhao Cheng County and wept in front of him, the official laughed, “It was a tiger that killed your son. How do you expect me to use my power to punish a wild beast?” The old lady howled when she heard these words. The county magistrate criticized her, but she was not afraid. Taking her age into consideration, the county magistrate could not bring himself to be unsympathetic, so he promised her that he would try to have the tiger caught and take revenge for her loss. She knelt on the ground and would not get up until the document was issued ordering the capture of the tiger. So the county magistrate asked of his staff who would volunteer to catch the tiger. One man, by the name of Li Neng, who happened to be drunk at the moment, walked up to the official and took the job. Only then did the old lady get up and leave the county government office.
As soon as he awoke from the stupor, Li Neng regretted his foolishness. Still he believed that the order issued by the county magistrate to catch the tiger was only a show and a method to free the magistrate from the nagging of the old lady. As a result, Li did not really carry out the order, but took the document back with him to the government office. The county magistrate was enraged, saying:”Since you’ve promised to do it, there is no way for you to be allowed to take back your word!”Embarrassed, Li Neng finally asked to have all the hunters in the county gathered. Then he took them to the mountain valley in the hope of catching a tiger and reporting that the job was done.
Over a month passed and Li Neng was punished with several hundred lashings for failing the job. Having no other place to pour out his grievances, Li went to pray at the Mountain God Temple in the eastern suburbs. Soon, a tiger came in, catching Li off guard. The tiger, however, pruned itself in the center of the room. Li prayed: “If you are the one who ate the old lady’s son, please lower your head and let me tie you up.” So saying, he tied a rope around the tiger’s head without meeting with any resistance from the beast.
Li took the tiger to the county government office where the county magistrate questioned the tiger: “Were you the one who ate the old lady’s son?” The tiger nodded its head. The magistrate went on:”Paying for a life you’ve taken with your own life has been a rule since antiquity, besides the man was the old lady’s only son. How can she live in such an advance age without the care of her son? If you can serve as her son, I’ll let you free.” The tiger nodded its head again. The magistrate had it unbound so that the tiger could leave.
Although she complained that the county magistrate had let the tiger go instead of avenging her son, the lady opened her gate in the morning and found a deer, which had already been killed. She sold the deer meat and skin and used that money to support the family. Such things happened pretty often. Sometimes, you could see the tiger bringing in money and silk in its mouth. In a way the tiger was more filial than her son and quietly she felt grateful to the tiger. When the tiger came, it would lie under the eaves all day long. She and the tiger lived in harmony.
Several years later, the old lady died and the tiger roared in the living room. The savings of the old lady were more than enough to cover her funeral. As soon as the tomb was built, the tiger rushed to the sight, frightening away the guests. The tiger went straight to the tomb, roaring even more loudly. It did not leave until it had vented its grief. The locals built the Virtuous Tiger Temple, which still stands today.
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