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

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

Song dynasty The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. The Song conquered the res ...

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 Renzong in China's Song Dynasty. During his twenty-five years in civil service, Bao consistently demonstrated extr ...

who solves, judges and sentences criminal cases.

Literary tradition

Plays from the Yuan and Ming dynasties

In the

Yuan Dynasty The Yuan dynasty (), officially the Great Yuan (; xng, , , literally "Great Yuan State"), was a Mongol-led imperial dynasty of China and a successor state to the Mongol Empire after its division. It was established by Kublai, the fif ...

, 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, ''za ...

'') 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 '' Hui Lan Ji'' (灰闌記) — ''The Chalk Circle — classical zaju verse play and gong'an crime drama,'' which was u ...

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

Guan Hanqing Guan Hanqing ( 1241–1320), sobriquet "the Oldman of the Studio" (齋叟 Zhāisǒu), was a notable Chinese playwright and poet in the Yuan Dynasty. He has been described as among the most prolific and highly regarded dramatists of the Yuan pe ...

* ''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

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 ...

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's ''

Stories Old and New ''Stories Old and New'' (), also known by its later name ''Stories to Enlighten the World'' (喻世明言), is a collection of short stories by Feng Menglong during the Ming dynasty. It was published in Suzhou in 1620. It is considered to be pivot ...

'' (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'' (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'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 i ...

'' (1628)

Chantefables from the Ming dynasty

In 2010, the scholar

Wilt Idema Wilt L. 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 earl ...

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 an ...

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) (985 – 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 Zhe ...

, 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 (Devanagari: यम) or Yamarāja (यमराज), is a deity of death, dharma, the south direction, and the underworld who predominantly features in Hindu and Buddhist religion, belonging to an early stratum of Rigvedic Hindu deities. ...

, lord of

Hell In religion and folklore, hell is a location in the afterlife in which evil souls are subjected to punitive suffering, most often through torture, as eternal punishment after death. Religions with a linear divine history often depict 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 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 Chinese, Japanese, Korean, or Vietnamese emperor in the Chinese cultural sphere. The title was a ...

. * 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 (; lit. "subject recommendation") refers to a civil-service examination system in Imperial China, administered for the purpose of selecting candidates for the state bureaucracy. The concept of choosing bureaucrats by ...

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 factors including war, natural disasters, crop failure, population imbalance, widespread poverty, an economic catastrophe or government policies. This phenomenon is usually accompan ...

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 judic ...

, and was convicted of

bribery Bribery is the offering, giving, receiving, or soliciting of any item of value to influence the actions of an official, or other person, in charge of a public or legal duty. With regard to governmental operations, essentially, bribery is "Cor ...

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 the ...

. Finding it impossible to fulfill both Confucian concepts of

loyalty Loyalty, in general use, is a devotion and faithfulness to a nation, cause, philosophy, country, group, or person. Philosophers disagree on what can be an object of loyalty, as some argue that loyalty is strictly interpersonal and only another ...

and

filial piety In Confucianism, Chinese Buddhism, and Daoist ethics, filial piety (, ''xiào'') (Latin: pietas) is a virtue of respect for one's parents, elders, and ancestors. The Confucian '' Classic of Filial Piety'', thought to be written around the lat ...

, 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, in the broadest sense, is the physical world or universe. "Nature" can refer to the phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general. The study of nature is a large, if not the only, part of science. Although humans ar ...

. After an

autopsy An autopsy (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 death or to evaluate any d ...

, 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, and to investigate or confirm the identity of an unknown person who has been found dead within the coroner's jur ...

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 died. Terminology The state of having lost one's spouse to death is termed ''widowhood''. An archaic term for a widow is "relict," literally "someone left over". This word can so ...

was arrested and confessed to

adultery Adultery (from Latin ''adulterium'') 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 ...

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 in the

skull The skull is a bone protective cavity for the brain. The skull is composed of four types of bone i.e., cranial bones, facial bones, ear ossicles and hyoid bone. However two parts are more prominent: the cranium and the mandible. In humans, th ...

. * 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 ceramic materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. Major types include earthenware, stoneware and ...

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 A ghost is the soul or spirit of a dead person or animal that is believed to be able to appear to the living. In ghostlore, descriptions of ghosts vary widely from an invisible presence to translucent or barely visible wispy shapes, to re ...

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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