Guo Zizhang, the mayor of Jianning City, had always been capable since he took office. Once on his way to report to a new post, Guo Zizhang passed through a scenic spot, so he ordered the sedan chair to stop. He stepped out of the chair to enjoy the scenery when a monkey caught his attention.
A monkey caught his attention
Guo Zizhang suddenly saw a monkey running from the mountain toward him and his entourage, crying while carefully examining each man. Worried it might harm Guo Zizhang, the servants hurriedly tried to drive it away. However, it continued to look around and cry, and its cry became even louder.
Guo Zizhang was meticulous and saw that it was not like a wild monkey living in the mountains for a long time, but looked like a tame monkey that had encountered difficulties and was trying to find help. He ordered the servants not to chase it, but instead to observe its movements.
After examining the men individually, it turned around and slowly ran up the mountain. While running, he looked back and waited, signaling the men to follow him. Guo Zizhang thought it looked peculiar, so he asked an officer to follow the monkey up the mountain. When it saw someone following him, its speed quickened as it ran up the mountain.
After some time, the soldier returned from the mountain with the monkey in his arms and reported to Guo Zizhang: “Master, this monkey brought me to a bush on the mountain, where it cried even more. I took a good look and was shocked. There was a man in the bushes who had been dead for many days and whose face was hard to recognize. The man had no money, but he had some small items a monkey might use to play.”
Guo Zizhang heard this and thought: “It seems this is a murder case. This monkey must have belonged to the man, so it is grieving over him. It was probably present when its owner was killed and might have some memory of the murderer.” He ordered the servants to bring it to his house and take care of it.
The monkey’s sensational trial
That night, Guo Zizhang could hardly sleep. He thought: “This will be the first murder case since I’ve taken office. A clear judgment will greatly impact my political performance and reputation, so I must not act rashly. However, the only clue in this case is this monkey. How can I rely on it to catch the murderer? We can’t take it to the streets daily to identify the murderer.”
Finally, he devised a brilliant idea: to put the monkey on trial. Its trial would certainly arouse people’s curiosity. Multiple bystanders would come to watch the trial, and it might be able to identify the murderer from there.
The following day, Guo Zizhang told the servants to put notices that the mayor would investigate the monkey’s silver theft. When the people of Jianning learned of this, they were puzzled: “What is the new mayor thinking?”
Early on the day of the trial, people rushed to the courtroom to see the trial. People came in and saw the mayor sitting at a table, and in the middle of the hall, a monkey was sitting on a chair gazing around. After settling the crowd, Guo Zizhang asked it: “You are a stubborn monkey. Tell us, did you steal the silver?” Naturally, it paid no attention to him and continued to look around. The crowd of onlookers burst into laughter.
The monkey recognizes the murderer
Guo Zizhang loudly exclaimed: “If you don’t tell me quickly, you will be severely punished!” Of course, it ignored him and kept looking at the crowd. The crowd of onlookers started to whisper to each other. Just then, a man said: “The mayor is crazy; such a trial of a monkey is unheard of!” The monkey jumped onto the back of the chair, crossed the crowd, and walked up to the man. The man was so scared he turned around to run away.
Guo Zizhang looked at the man, ordered him to stop, and asked sternly: “Do you know why you were apprehended?” The man immediately begged for mercy and said: “I am ignorant and offended my lord with my rude words. Please forgive me.”
Guo Zizhang laughed and said: “That offense is a small thing, but murder is a major crime. Tell me, was the man we found on Qianqiao Mountain killed by you and dumped there?” The bearer initially thought that he had angered the mayor with his language, but he never imagined he would be involved in a murder case. He was in a panic, and his hands were shaking.
He was about to deny it when he heard the mayor say: “This monkey was tamed by the deceased. It has recognized you as the murderer.” Meanwhile, it showed its teeth and made angry sounds at the sedan bearer.
The man knew he couldn’t hide it, so he told the whole story. The deceased was a beggar, Chen Ye, who made a living holding monkey shows on the street. Over time, he saved some silver. The man saw this and planned to kill him to take the money. He followed Chen Ye to the foot of Qianqiao Mountain, killed him, dragged his body to the bushes, and escaped with the silver. He thought no one knew, but he did not realize the monkey had seen it all.
Translated by Audrey Wang
