Chapter 175 Zhao Chenghu

A woman in Zhaocheng County, more than 70 years old, gave birth to a son. One day, his son went into the mountain and was swallowed by a tiger. The old woman was in pain and informed the government about this matter.

The county magistrate laughed and said, "I don't know which law should be used to deal with tigers hurting people." When the old woman heard this, she cried loudly and couldn't control herself. The county magistrate scolded loudly, and the woman was not afraid. The county magistrate pitied her for being old and lonely. He couldn't bear to use torture, so he had to coax her, "Okay, okay, I will order you to arrest the tiger." The old woman refused to leave and said, "Please issue an official document immediately to seize the culprit."

The county magistrate had no choice but to ask the officials under the hall, "Who has the ability to capture tigers?"

A yaman, surnamed Li Mingneng, came out drunk and said, "I can." The county magistrate was overjoyed and immediately showed the official document and ordered him to handle the case. Seeing this, the old woman was willing to leave.

After Li Neng woke up, he regretted it and thought, "Is it that the county magistrate deliberately set up this situation and asked me to top the jar in order to perfunctory the old woman?" He didn't pay attention to this matter. He walked around and went back to recover. The county magistrate said angrily, "Bold dog, you are obviously proud of Haikou, claiming that you have the ability to capture the real murderer. In the court, do you allow you to go back on your word?" Li Neng scolded his boss, embarrassed and unconvinced. He immediately shouted, "If you want a small tiger, you can catch it. But I must be given the power to live and kill, and the hunters in the county are assigned to me. The county magistrate didn't think about it and said with a smile, "It's accurate."

Li Neng then gathered the hunters, went into the mountain to search, ambush the valley day and night, and thought, "If you catch a tiger randomly, you can cross it. As for whether this tiger is the real murderer or not, it doesn't matter much.

A month passed in a blink of an eye, but nothing was found. The county magistrate was furious and immediately ordered, "Li Neng, this fellow, cheated his duty, and hit a hundred military sticks first." Li Neng repeatedly complained and complained. His buttocks were strong and he was hit by a hundred boards, but he was afraid and anxious.

With nothing to do, he went to the King's Temple in the east of the city to beg for God, knelt down and prayed, and cried loudly. Not at all, a tiger came in from the outside. Li Neng was very stunned and was afraid that the tiger would commit violence. Fortunately, the tiger had no intention to do evil, but just squatted in front of the door, looked aside, and did not know what the intention was.

Li Neng asked in a trembling voice, "Brother Tiger, Brother Tiger, did you kill the son of the old woman? If that's the case, I'm going to arrest you. OK, don't resist. While talking, he took out the rope and tied the tiger's neck. The tiger bowed his head and listened and was at his mercy.

Li Neng took the tiger to the court, and the county magistrate asked it, "The son of the old woman, is it really you who swallow?" Hearing this, the tiger nodded and admitted it. The county magistrate said, "Killing is worth your life. This is the law of the ages. The old woman has only one son. Now that she is killed by you, you call her the end of her life. How can she live? If you are willing to be her son, I will pardon you. The tiger nodded again. The county magistrate was overjoyed and was about to release the tiger and let him go.

When the old woman heard about this, she couldn't help complaining that the county magistrate was confused and didn't avenge her son. The next day, at dawn, I opened the door and saw that there was a dead deer on the ground outside the house. Naturally, it was sent by the tiger. The old woman was surprised and happy, so she sold the venison and exchanged it for money to live. Since then, tigers have often sent things, either dead pigs and sheep, or silver and cloth. They are used to it. Over time, the old woman's family is getting richer and has no worries about food and clothing, which is far better than when her son was alive. I am secretly grateful to the tiger.

Every time the tiger comes, he likes to lie under the eaves and doesn't go all day. People and animals coexist, they are at peace with each other, trust each other, and there is no suspicion. A few years later, the old woman died, and the tiger came to the house to worship, roaring loudly and sad.

The old woman has a lot of savings. The family used this silver to handle the after-the-shi shi for her. On the day of the funeral, the coffin was put into the earth. As soon as the grave was closed, the tiger suddenly ran wildly. The guests were afraid and fled one after another. The tiger went straight to the grave, howled sadly, and his voice was like thunder. It took a long time before he left.

The villagers felt the kindness of the tiger and specially built a "righteous tiger shrine" in the eastern suburbs to offer sacrifices every festival.

The ancestral hall still exists today.