English
English version: Zhuo Yun. A case of homicide occurred. Zi (person's name), in order to escape, ran for about two li (a Chinese unit of distance, approximately 500 meters). He hid in the Guanyin (Avalokiteśvara) Bodhisattva Hall. He saw Guanyin Bodhisattva sitting there solemnly. Two Qingyi (underworld messengers) also chased after him. Zi pleaded to Guanyin Bodhisattva, 'I have never killed anyone, why are you arresting me?' The two Qingyi took out a sign and showed it, saying, 'It was three turtledoves (a type of bird) who reported it, now we must go together for trial.' Zi argued, 'Turtledoves are just small birds, how can they compensate for a human life? Moreover, I originally had an agreement with that person, and it was he who broke the agreement, causing me to become angry and accidentally kill him. Then the blame should not be solely on me.' The Bodhisattva said, 'If the turtledoves were grown up and damaged crops, then your killing them would be a lesser crime. Now they are newly born and have not committed any wrong, so your killing them now should be compensated with your life. Moreover, although that person broke the agreement, it was indeed your crime that led to his death. But considering that you are young and have not yet established yourself, I hereby order the two Qingyi to grant you a grace period of twelve years, and come back to arrest you on a certain day and time twelve years later.' The two Qingyi obeyed the Bodhisattva's order and left. Zi also awakened because of this. Twelve years later, Zi was doing business in Songjiang. On the appointed date, he suddenly stood under Xiuye Bridge and died. Da Fu Ying Cheng Xuanwei (person's name). He had a son named Ben Da (person's name). He studied Confucianism, almost exhausting the family property. In the year of Chongzhen Xin Si (1641 AD), he went to Gusu (Suzhou) with his cousin Cheng Tianming (person's name) and sold the ancestral house in his hometown to his nephew. The price he got was only a few dozen taels of silver, which were all withheld by Cheng Tianming. He returned empty-handed and died of depression a few days later. He only left a daughter who had married into the Wu family in Shangshan. The daughter returned home for the funeral and actually saw her father's soul on the way. So it possessed her body and returned home cursing, 'Cheng Tianming is so unfeeling, causing me to die of depression. Now I have appealed to the King of the Underworld, and have informed the village elder Cheng Zonghan (person's name) to testify. I also met the deceased nephew Cheng Kuan (person's name) on the Jianggan River in Hangzhou, and he asked me to slap his daughter-in-law Wu ten times, saying that I only have one son, why are you unwilling to raise him, and have evil intentions?' Cheng Xuanwei heard this and scolded, 'When you were alive, you ruined my family property, and now that you are dead, why do you still come to haunt us?' He replied, 'In my previous life, I was a merchant, and you were the owner of a shop, and you saw my treasures.' --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chinese
谋夺我命。我今特来索债。但因汝任我挥霍。颇快我心。故恕汝命耳。何得以父礼责我哉。 淞江海口有朱姓者。惯收大猪宰杀为业。崇祯己卯年正月间。至二鼓时偶起登厕。闻人语声。疑以为盗。执杖随声寻去。乃在猪栏中作福建人语。一云。苦哉。我明日必当见杀矣。一云。汝本当作猪七次。今已六次。苦将脱矣。我当作猪五次。今方初次。是为苦耳。其人本解福建乡语。闻之大骇。遂弃恶业。 又一人宰羊为业。亦于己卯年正月间至乡间买四羊牵归。未至家中仅十里许。四羊争踯躅。触倒此人。一羊牵其头。一羊按其两足。二羊上其腹极力抵触致死(已上四事并程智用亲见故说)。 神庙时有一士子。弱冠即举进士。座师及同年诸友咸器重之。其父待之愈严。稍不如法辄加笞辱。一日有同年公请士饮酒。士因父责迟迟乃去。兼向同年哭愬此情。同年大叹服曰。甚矣。老年伯之深为年兄也。夫弟辈半生苦心。仅获一第。而兄年未二十。亦遂得第。且名声藉藉反胜弟辈。此造化所忌也。年伯若不用恶辣钳锤。则兄必恣情任意。福寿俱损矣。士乃醒悟。归时顿改旧观。父讶问之。汝为自解我意能如此改过耶。抑谁向汝说破耶。士述同年语以对。父乃敦请同年。公命士礼之为师。以受切磋琢磨之益。 现代汉语译本： ‘你曾谋划夺取我的性命，我今天特地前来索取偿还。但因为你任由我挥霍，让我非常高兴，所以饶恕你的性命。你又怎么能以父亲的身份来责备我呢？’ 在淞江海口，有一个姓朱的人，以收购大猪宰杀为业。崇祯己卯年（1639年）正月间，在二更时分偶然起身去厕所，听到有人说话的声音，怀疑是盗贼，拿着棍子顺着声音寻找过去，原来是在猪圈中说福建方言。其中一个说：‘好苦啊，我明天必定要被宰杀了。’另一个说：‘你本来应当做七次猪，现在已经做了六次，苦难将要结束了。我应当做五次猪，现在才第一次，真是苦啊。’这个人本来懂得福建方言，听了之后非常害怕，于是放弃了宰猪的恶业。 又有一个人以宰羊为业，也在崇祯己卯年（1639年）正月间到乡下买了四只羊牵回家，还没到家，离家只有十里左右，四只羊争相跳跃，把这个人触倒。一只羊牵住他的头，一只羊按住他的两只脚，两只羊在他的肚子上极力抵触，导致他死亡（以上四件事都是程智用亲眼所见，所以讲述出来）。 明神宗时期，有一位士子，刚成年就考中了进士。座师（主考官）和同年（同年考中的进士）的各位朋友都非常器重他。他的父亲对他更加严厉，稍微不合规矩就加以鞭打羞辱。有一天，有一位同年邀请这位士子喝酒，士子因为父亲的责备而迟迟才去，并且向同年哭诉这种情况。同年非常感叹佩服地说：‘太厉害了，老伯父真是为年兄（对同年进士的尊称）着想啊。我们这些同辈半生苦心，才仅仅获得一个进士功名。而兄台您年纪不到二十岁，也就考中了进士，而且名声很好，反而胜过我们这些同辈。这是造化所嫉妒的啊。老伯父如果不使用严厉的手段，那么兄台您必定会放纵自己的情感和欲望，福寿都会受到损害啊。’这位士子于是醒悟，回家时立刻改变了以前的样子。他的父亲惊讶地问他：‘你是自己理解了我的意思，能够这样改正过错吗？还是谁向你说明了情况呢？’士子讲述了同年所说的话来回答。他的父亲于是恳请这位同年，让他命令士子以老师的礼节对待他，以便接受切磋琢磨的益处。
English
English version: 'You plotted to take my life, and I have come specifically to demand repayment. However, because you allowed me to squander freely, which pleased me greatly, I will spare your life. How can you then reproach me as a father?' In Songjiang estuary, there was a man surnamed Zhu who made a living by buying and slaughtering large pigs. In the first month of the Chongzhen Ji Mao year (1639), he happened to get up to go to the toilet at the second watch of the night and heard voices. Suspecting they were thieves, he grabbed a stick and followed the sound, only to find that it was coming from the pigsty and spoken in the Fujian dialect. One voice said, 'How bitter! I will surely be slaughtered tomorrow.' Another said, 'You were originally supposed to be a pig seven times, and now you have been one six times; the suffering is about to end. I am supposed to be a pig five times, and this is only my first time; it is truly bitter.' The man understood the Fujian dialect and was greatly frightened upon hearing this, so he abandoned the evil trade of slaughtering pigs. Another man made a living by slaughtering sheep. Also in the first month of the Ji Mao year (1639), he went to the countryside to buy four sheep and led them back home. Before reaching his house, only about ten li (approximately 5 kilometers) away, the four sheep struggled and stumbled, knocking the man down. One sheep held his head, one sheep pressed down on his feet, and two sheep butted his abdomen with all their might, causing his death (the above four incidents were personally witnessed by Cheng Zhiyong, so he recounted them). During the reign of Emperor Shenzong of the Ming Dynasty, there was a scholar who passed the imperial examination at a young age. His examiner and fellow graduates all highly valued him. His father treated him even more strictly, and would whip and humiliate him for the slightest infraction. One day, a fellow graduate invited the scholar to drink wine. The scholar was late because of his father's scolding, and he wept to his fellow graduate about his situation. The fellow graduate sighed in admiration and said, 'How remarkable! The old gentleman is truly thinking deeply for you. We peers have toiled for half our lives to barely achieve a Jinshi degree. But you, brother, have obtained the degree before the age of twenty, and your reputation surpasses ours. This is something that even fate envies. If the old gentleman does not use harsh methods, then you will surely indulge your emotions and desires, and both your fortune and lifespan will be harmed.' The scholar then awakened and immediately changed his behavior upon returning home. His father asked him in surprise, 'Did you understand my intentions yourself and were able to correct your faults in this way? Or did someone explain the situation to you?' The scholar recounted what his fellow graduate had said. His father then earnestly requested the fellow graduate to instruct his son, ordering the scholar to treat him with the respect due to a teacher, so that he could benefit from his guidance and refinement. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chinese
和州有一居民。忘其姓。养鹅百余只。偶一日鹅食其亲邻稻谷。邻打杀其鹅至五十余。民妇见之。始亦甚怒。次深思曰。我设欲与成讼。力能胜彼。但须费数十金。计鹅所直不及其半。且鹅虽死。亦尚可用。何必争此空气。又吾夫今已醉卧。设与知之。或起驱打。尤为不便。遂命僮收拾死鹅腌之。次早邻人忽自暴死。其夫醉醒。叹讶其人无病而卒。甚为奇异。妇乃以昨事告之。夫深感曰。设汝昨为我说。我乘醉力必驱打之。不几成人命乎。乃集亲友作证。拜谢其妇(已上二事释成泰说)。 池州府殷家汇经纪行。有一棉花客往乡收花。途遇打狗者负一大犬。买归放生。剩食饲之。弗离左右。一日至丁家洲收花。行主人叫舟送之。犬亦随往。舟子见客银多。起不良心。撑至江边将客置布袋中。结口投水。犬遂下水口衔袋结嘶吠不已。渔人见而挽出。客因得苏。回至行中。备言其事。行主安慰客心。佯为不知。往舟子家探问。客信且邀舟子到行饮酒。乃令客出面诘。伏罪奉还原银。 九华山有住庄人。好杀鹿。一日率众网鹿。见有老鹿身斑异色。四围觅之。鹿见势迫窜入庄家。众复赶进。鹿跪伏泪下乞命。庄人以矛逆刺鹿目。鹿未去皮。而庄人眼忽先瞎矣。 青阳县老田吴六房。有家人名吴毛 现代汉语译本： 和州（今安徽和县）有一位居民，忘记了他的姓氏。他养了一百多只鹅。有一天，鹅吃了邻居家的稻谷。邻居打死了他的鹅，死了五十多只。这位居民的妻子看到了，起初非常生气，后来仔细一想，如果我一定要和他打官司，即使我能胜诉，也要花费几十两银子，算算鹅的价值还不到一半。而且鹅虽然死了，但还可以食用，何必争这口气呢？而且我丈夫现在已经喝醉睡着了，如果让他知道这件事，可能会起来打人，那就更不好了。于是她就让家里的仆人把死鹅收拾起来腌制。第二天早上，邻居忽然暴病身亡。她的丈夫酒醒后，感叹惊讶这个人无病而死，觉得非常奇怪。他的妻子就把昨天的事情告诉了他。丈夫深深感慨地说，如果昨天你告诉我这件事，我趁着酒劲一定会打人的，那不就差点闹出人命了吗？于是他召集亲友作证，向他的妻子拜谢（以上两件事是释成泰说的）。 池州府（今安徽池州市）殷家汇经纪行，有一位棉花商人去乡下收购棉花。途中遇到一个打狗的人，他买下了一只大狗放生，并用剩余的食物喂养它，狗寸步不离地跟在他左右。有一天，他到丁家洲收购棉花，经纪行的主人叫了一条船送他。狗也跟着去了。船夫看到客人有很多银子，就起了歹心，把船撑到江边，把客人装进布袋里，扎紧袋口扔进水里。狗就跳下水，用嘴衔住袋子的结口，不停地嘶叫。渔夫看到了，就把他救了上来，客人因此得以活命。回到经纪行后，他详细地说了这件事。经纪行的主人为了安抚客人，假装不知道这件事，去船夫家打听情况。客人相信了他，还邀请船夫到经纪行喝酒。于是经纪行的主人就让客人出面质问船夫，船夫伏罪并奉还了原来的银子。 九华山（位于安徽省池州市青阳县境内）有一位住在山庄里的人，喜欢杀鹿。有一天，他带领众人张网捕鹿，看到一只老鹿，身上有斑纹，颜色与众不同。众人四处追捕它。鹿见情势危急，就逃到庄户人家里。众人又追了进去。鹿跪在地上，流着眼泪乞求饶命。庄人却用矛刺向鹿的眼睛。鹿还没有被剥皮，庄人的眼睛却忽然先瞎了。 青阳县（今安徽省池州市青阳县）老田吴六房，有一位家人名叫吴毛。