by C. T. Hsia
CLERK: I won’t fool you. He promised five taels.
MAGISTRATE: You’d better give me two of them. (Exit together.)
ACT 3
(EXTRA dressed as PREFECT enters with ZHANG QIAN.)
PREFECT (recites:)
Corrupt officials ride fat horses and hold purple silken reins;
Dishonest clerks wear spring garments trailing the ground.
Whose fault is it that crops are destroyed?
Who sends wind and rain to ruin farms and mulberries?
I am a Jurchen of Wanyan lineage. The Wanyans became Wangs, the Puchas became Lis.38 From my youth I have studied books, and later I had military training. Since my grandfather had many meritorious accomplishments, his descendants for many generations have inherited positions and have become officials and generals. Here in Henan the officials are corrupt and the clerks are crooks, and they frequently wrong good people. Our sage emperor has personally appointed me prefect, and, because I cast out the deviant and hold to the just, by imperial order I am bestowed with the ordinance sword and the golden tablet, so that I can “execute first and report to the throne later.” I have been in this post for three days: today I will ascend the hall and hold court early. Why don’t I see the clerk in charge of cases?
ZHANG QIAN: Clerk, His Honor is calling you.
CLERK (enters:) Here, here!
(CLERK greets PREFECT.)
PREFECT: You are the clerk?
CLERK: I am.
PREFECT: Then listen. Because you Henan officials and clerks are all corrupt and dishonest, by imperial order I am bestowed with the ordinance sword and the golden tablet, so that I can “execute first and report to the throne later.” If there should be the least iota of error in your cases, I will exercise this authority and first cut off your own donkey head! If there are any documents to be endorsed, bring them and I’ll sign.
CLERK: Here, here, here … just have a look at this one, Your Honor.
PREFECT (looks at it:) What case is this?
CLERK: This is the case of Liu Yuniang who poisoned and killed her husband. Her confession states this to be true. We only need you to put down the judgment: “Behead.”
PREFECT: If Liu Yuniang on account of adultery poisoned and murdered her husband, this is one of the Ten Major Crimes. Why didn’t the former official finish the case off himself?
CLERK: We’ve been awaiting your arrival, sir.
PREFECT: Where is the criminal whose sentence is awaiting approval?
CLERK: She is in the cell for the condemned.
PREFECT: Bring her here: I’ll reinterrogate her.
CLERK: Zhang Qian, go to the jail and bring out Liu Yuniang!
ZHANG QIAN: Understood!
LIU YUNIANG (is brought in:) What, sir, are you calling me for?
ZHANG QIAN: You must go to see His Honor.
CLERK: Woman, now a new official has taken up his post. When he interrogates you, say nothing! If you say anything untoward, I’ll beat you to death! Zhang Qian, take her up to the hall.
ZHANG QIAN: Come before him, woman! (LIU YUNIANG kneels.)
PREFECT: Is this the woman whose sentence awaits approval?
CLERK: It is she.
PREFECT: Are you Liu Yuniang? Why did you commit adultery and poison your husband? I fear the former official might have made an error and you still have something more to say. Tell me the truth and I’ll seek justice for you.
LIU YUNIANG: I have no statement to make.
PREFECT: Since this criminal has no statement to make, what is the use of further interrogation? Bring a brush and I’ll put down the judgment, “Behead.” Then you’ll take her out to the marketplace and execute her. (ZHANG QIAN takes her out.)
LIU YUNIANG: Oh heavens! Who will seek justice for me? (Exits.)
(MALE LEAD dressed as ZHANG DING enters.)
ZHANG DING: I am Zhang Ding, and my style name is Pingshu. Here in Henan I am judicial inspector, and I supervise the affairs of the Six Bureaus. I have just returned from a trip to speed the plow following the command of His Honor. Today he is ascending the hall and holding court, and he is endorsing several cases awaiting his signature. When I think about how clerks twist things around to make the crooked seem straight and play around with the letter of the law to pervert rules, it is obvious that this brush has sent many to wrongful deaths. (Sings:)
[Shang mode: Gathering Fine Guests]
For some time there has been mischief in the Office of Law;
For me here, arranging signatures took me out of the courtroom.
Now again I am responsible for public and private gain or loss,39
And my brush tip will determine life and death.
I examine the case of an estranged wife,
Doing evil and acting wrong,
And the case of an unfilial son,
Drifting along and chasing vanities.
But then I also, on the prefect’s request, oversee the Six Bureaus.
Where there is a case,
How dare I be careless?
But now I hear the beating of the courtroom drum,
And the cries that start today’s business.
[Joy of Freedom]
I raise my head and look around:
The officials have all ascended the hall;
All is silence, as if they are listening to a sermon.
Hurriedly I set my clothes aright,
And while walking I inspect them all.
I see a fearsome officer like a tiger or wolf,
Pushing along a condemned woman.
I only see her sad brows and weeping eyes.
She bears a lock and carries the cangue:
Could this be a land dispute or fight over mulberries? (Speaks:)
Beyond the wall of the Main Hall I see a sentenced woman: I don’t know why. …
How sad she seems! (Sings:)
[Scent of Golden Chrysanthemums]
I only see clammy blood staining her old clothes.
Her body must be all scarred, covered with fresh sores from the rod.
How can she bear, on top of it all, the cangue for the condemned crushing her back!
She cranes her white neck:
Heartbroken, her tears stream down. (Speaks:)
Just look at that condemned woman! She must have been wrongly accused! Bearing cangue and lock, her tears continue to stream down. The ancients have said, “To judge a person, there is nothing better than observing his eyes. The eyes cannot hide his evil.”40 They have also said, “Observe his words and examine his conduct. Judge his crime and determine the correction.”41 (Sings:)
[Vinegar Gourd]
Carefully I have watched her a while,
Clearly I have observed for some time.
I see that, suffering injustice, she must hide her thoughts within.42
Oh, woman, how did you get so caught in this web of injustice
That now you must carry the cangue and feel the rod?
Stop, stop, stop!
Don’t you know that your effort will be in vain!43
[Same tune as above]
I have here slowly turned two corridors,
With deliberate steps I have come to the main hall.44
There she is, weeping and pouring forth her feelings;
For my part, twice or thrice I try to be evasive and ignore her. …
ZHANG QIAN: Liu Yuniang, tell this inspector about it; he will seek redress for you.
LIU YUNIANG (clutches the clothes of ZHANG DING:) Sir, help me!
ZHANG DING (sings:)
She is tightly grabbing my clothes and won’t let go:
I have no choice but to talk this over with her!
ZHANG Qian, tell that woman to come before me properly; let me question her.
ZHANG QIAN: Liu Yuniang, come forward. (LIU YUNIANG kneels.)
ZHANG DING: Woman, let me hear your statement.
LIU YUNIANG (makes her statement:)45
Sir, do not be angry,
An
d I’ll tell you everything from the beginning.
Li Dechang had left to avoid bad luck,
And his business in Nanchang brought a tidy profit.
He came to a temple and rested because of his fatigue,
But unexpectedly he was taken ill.
We got him home: fresh blood was gushing from all Seven Holes,
And I knew he had somehow taken poison.
As soon as we entered the gate, he died right away;
I was so frightened I called my brother-in-law.
He said that I had secretly been keeping a lover,
And that we had poisoned my husband.
Who knows how it all happened: dragged to court,
I was beaten endlessly.
I am but a woman:
How could I endure this repeated interrogation and torture?
And so I, all confused, signed a false confession.
Li Dechang and I had been husband and wife since such a young age,
How could I have acted so vilely?
My brother-in-law, Li Wendao, had secretly hatched this plot:
Truly I have been wronged.
ZHANG DING: Woman, I will appeal to the prefect on your behalf. If he approves, don’t rejoice yet; if he disapproves, don’t be worried. Zhang Qian, just stay the execution.
ZHANG QIAN: Understood!
ZHANG DING (greets PREFECT:) Sir, this humble servant is Zhang Ding. I have just returned from a trip to speed the plow in the country, and I’ve heard that you had ascended the hall and were holding court. There are a few documents to be endorsed: please sign them.
PREFECT: This is Judicial Inspector Zhang Ding, a very capable official. Tell me, are there any affairs that should be looked into? (Zhang Ding hands over some documents.) What documents are these?
ZHANG DING (sings:)
[Scent of Golden Chrysanthemums]
This is a closed case about a robbery; we retrieved and reviewed the loot.
This is a concluded investigation about the illegal trade of tea and salt.46
All these are cases that should come under our jurisdiction.
This is a newly arrived official tally;
This, a case of granary goods to be sent far away.
PREFECT: What document is this?
ZHANG DING (sings:)
[Vinegar Gourd]
This one is on building bridges along the Canal.
This one is on setting up granaries in keeping with towns.
This one is on Wang Shou and Chen Li owing rent on their land;
This one is on Zhang Qian beating Li Wan and wounding him. (Speaks:)
Concerned that Your Honor may not trust me, (sings:)
I have called them to match their confessions with the case statements.
This one is on Wang, née Zhang, cursing her neighbors again and again.
PREFECT: Aren’t there any more documents?
ZHANG DING: Sir, there are not.
PREFECT: We will have the officers dispense sentences for them all. Zhang Ding, I grant to you ten excuse slips and a ten-day holiday. After this holiday, report back to duty.
ZHANG DING: Thank you, sir! (Exits.)
ZHANG QIAN: Inspector, did you discuss that affair?
ZHANG DING: Oh, I forgot about it! (Sings:)
[Same tune as above]
It was not that official duties kept me too busy,
But somehow my mind was confused.
Had this been a matter of great concern,
My negligence would have brought disaster.
Such a limited number of cases,
And I could not remember.
Little wonder that men of exalted rank are forgetful.
Oh Zhang Qian,
Tell her to wait a while and not be anxious. (Speaks:)
All I did was make my report and I forgot this. Let me go again to His Honor and speak about it.
ZHANG QIAN: Sir, take pity on her and speak on her behalf!
(ZHANG DING returns to PREFECT.)
PREFECT: Zhang Ding, what have you returned to say?
ZHANG DING: Your Honor, just now when I left the yamen, I saw beyond the wall of the Main Hall a condemned woman bemoaning injustice. Those who know the case would think that she simply longs for life and fears death, but those who don’t might think that there was a miscarriage of justice in our yamen. Your Honor, please give this your consideration.
PREFECT: This affair was settled under the previous official with Clerk Xiao in charge.
ZHANG DING: Clerk Xiao, I am the judicial inspector who oversees the Six Bureaus. This is a case of life and death—why didn’t you tell me about it?
CLERK: You had gone to the country to speed the plow. Suppose you didn’t return for one whole year; was I then, too, to wait for you?
ZHANG DING: Bring the deposition here for me to see.
CLERK: Here, look for yourself.
ZHANG DING (reads:) “The undersigned is Liu Yuniang, thirty-five years of age. She came from a family properly registered in the city registry of Henan prefecture as eligible for conscript service. Her husband, Li Dechang, went on a business trip to Nanchang with ten ingots of silver as capital. For a year after he left there was no news of him. Then, in the seventh month, a man of unknown surname brought a message to the effect that he was suffering from illness in the temple of the General of Five Paths and could not move. When Yuniang heard this, she immediately hired a horse, went straight to that temple south of the city, and, supporting him, brought him home. Once he entered the gate, he stopped breathing and fresh blood gushed from the Seven Holes. Yuniang immediately reported this to her brother-in-law, Li Wendao. This brother-in-law said that Yuniang and a lover had plotted together to concoct poison to murder her husband. This confession is all truthful; there was no fabrication.” Your Honor, this deposition is no good.
CLERK: What cannot be bought cannot be any good!
ZHANG DING: This case is like a house without supporting walls on four sides. …
CLERK: His Honor is holding court in open air!
ZHANG DING: And there are holes all over the roof.
CLERK: The rats have been gnawing it through!
ZHANG DING: If Your Honor does not believe me, let me take time to explain.
PREFECT: Go ahead, I will listen.
ZHANG DING: “The undersigned is Liu Yuniang, thirty-five years of age. She came from a family properly registered in the city registry of Henan prefecture as eligible for conscript service. Her husband, Li Dechang, went on a business trip to Nanchang with ten ingots of silver as capital.” These ten ingots: have they been confiscated by the government? Or by the relatives of the deceased?
CLERK: They have not.
ZHANG DING: We will let that pass. “For a year after he left there was no news of him. Then, in the seventh month, a man of unknown surname brought a message …” Your Honor, this man who brought the message: how old was he? Has he ever been summoned before the court?
CLERK: We have not summoned him.
ZHANG DING: If he was never summoned, how could you interrogate him? It goes on: “… to the effect that he was suffering from illness in the temple of the General of Five Paths and could not move. When Yuniang heard this, she immediately hired a horse, went straight to that temple south of the city, and, supporting him, brought him home. When he entered the gateway, he stopped breathing and fresh blood flowed from the Seven Holes. Yuniang immediately reported this to her brother-in-law, Li Wendao, and he said that Yuniang and a lover had plotted together …” Your Honor, was this lover named Zhang, Li, Zhao, or Wang? Has he ever been brought before the court?
CLERK: If there was no lover, then I did it myself!
ZHANG DING (reads:) “… to concoct poison to murder her husband.” Your Honor, in whose home was this poison concocted? That poison must have been prepared somehow.
CLERK: If no one concocted that poison, then it must also have been me!
ZHANG DING: Your Honor, just think: there is
no silver, no messenger, no lover, no preparer of the poison, and no collaborator: if all these people are nonexistent, how can you execute this woman?
PREFECT: Clerk Xiao, Zhang Ding says this case is no good.
CLERK: Inspector Zhang, you are overreaching: what business is it of yours?
ZHANG DING: Clerk Xiao, let me tell you: a human life concerns heaven and earth. It is not a mere trifle. The ancients have said, “For a prisoner in jail, a day is longer than three years.” Outside, the body suffers; inside, the heart is tortured. He is beaten or caned, driven away or sent into exile. The official who administers punishment must carefully examine the case. Rewards and punishments represent the authority of the state. Joy and anger are the common emotions of man. Do not, because of joy, increase the reward, nor should you, because of anger, increase the punishment. Even when you increase rewards because of joy, you may regret it later. How much more momentous then if you should increase punishments because of anger! How about the wrongful end of a human life! Truly, “Only when the frost came down did they know the suffering of the chaste wife; only when the snow flew was the injustice done to Dou E made known.”47 (Sings:)
[Same tune as above]
Indeed the one serving as official had a nature too unyielding,
But you, as clerk, had a vision too blinding.
So this case adds up to little sense.
How could they not have sought the man who brought the message?
And they did not even have the confession of the lover! (Speaks:)
Your Honor, consider (sings:)
How could you, with this unresolved muddle, push her onto the executioner’s block?48
CLERK: Sir, Zhang Ding is castigating Your Honor as muddleheaded!
PREFECT: Zhang Ding, who is muddleheaded?
CLERK: Zhang Ding says Your Honor is muddleheaded!
PREFECT: Zhang Ding, who is muddleheaded?
ZHANG DING (kneels:) How dare I?
PREFECT: Zhang Ding, this case of Liu Yuniang killing her husband on account of adultery was settled by my predecessor. Any errors must be the responsibility of Clerk Xiao: how could you say I am muddleheaded? I have been in office here for only three days. You accused me of being muddleheaded, but I was not an official here before! You! Come forward! I hand this affair over to you, and within three days you had better settle it; if you don’t settle it, don’t think I’ll spare you punishment! Alas! (Recites:)
