What’s the difference between a dragon that can’t bring rain and XXX?
Lord He of the Ministry of Rites breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing the Sixth Prince return.
This very first task of the year was indeed troublesome.
Lord He grumbled inwardly. He held no fondness for Liu Dan, the military man, and was also displeased with the Sixth Prince’s erratic behavior. But what could he do? He wasn’t the Regent. The emperor’s son was beyond reproach and punishment. Even if the prince committed a grave mistake, it wasn’t his place to reprimand.
Lord He, with a stern face, paid his respects to the royally dressed youth and advised, “Your Highness, this area is desolate and has recently been infiltrated by bandits and rogues. As we traveled, we encountered several fights and skirmishes. You witnessed it yourself. If anything were to happen to you, how would I report back to the Emperor?”
“Lord He, you worry too much. If these local ruffians were to capture me, at most they’d ask for a ransom. Even if you chose to ignore it, it wouldn’t matter much,” the Sixth Prince responded with a hint of sarcasm in his tone, a mocking smile playing on his lips.
The atmosphere grew tense.
Liu Dan glanced at the Sixth Prince and then at the visibly upset Lord He, sensing there were matters he wasn’t privy to.
As the temple rituals resumed, the Sixth Prince took an incense stick and, following protocol, paid his respects to the ancestral tablet. Under the guidance of priests, who kept their heads lowered in reverence, he burnt a written prayer to the heavens.
Then it was time for the rain ritual.
There were no dance performances in the Imperial Mausoleum, but the rain-seeking process remained.
A golden toad and a jar of well water were placed in front of the incense burner.
Tiger and dragon figures were crafted from paper, vividly colored, then displayed in a battling stance. Held by attendants, they circled the offering table seven times before being cast into the fire.
Then, a large urn was brought forth containing a four-legged lizard (gecko). It was handed over to the person leading the ritual, symbolizing a ‘whipping of the dragon’.
It was said that when it didn’t rain, it was because the dragons were too lazy.
Apart from fetching water from rivers during the rain prayer to “summon the dragon”, there’s also the act of “rousing the dragon”, making it fight with a tiger.
Since tigers were rare and even their bones and skins were costly, livestock were used in their place, evolving over time to the paper-crafted dragon and tiger figures. The popular dragon dance, where performers mimic the dragon’s pursuit of a pearl, had its origins in these grand ceremonies.
But in areas where rain remained elusive, these ceremonies proved ineffective, leading to the additional act of whipping the dragon. The idea being if the dragon can’t be summoned or roused, then beat it into action!
Yet, nobody dared to lash out at dragon sculptures. Snakes, especially the four-legged geckos, were the usual stand-ins. Poets from the previous dynasty had penned lines about the dragon being whipped into bringing rain, referring to this very act.
Liu Dan had witnessed numerous rain rituals, but for some reason, he felt a chill down his spine today.
It shouldn’t be the case! He had given away his money bag, and the harbinger of bad luck had left!
Liu Dan, trying to maintain his composure, cast sidelong glances around, signalling his guards to be on high alert.
Located to the southeast of Yongzhou, Qiong County was essentially the heartland of the dynasty, free from the threats of southern invaders and devoid of rebels.
What could possibly go wrong? Liu Dan wondered, thoroughly perplexed.
From the ridgeline behind the temple, Mo Li, with a stern expression, observed the “whipping of the dragon” ceremony. With his extraordinary hearing, he clearly heard the murmured chants of the priests.
Qiong County hadn’t faced drought for over two decades. While they experienced occasional flash floods, the region was not short of water. The rain ritual, over time, had turned into a festive event. People would make token gestures, like fetching water for the “summoning of the dragon,” but the actual act of “rousing the dragon” had become redundant, let alone whipping it.
Yet, here was Mo Li, witnessing it for the first time. The absurdity of it all!
“Is this a ritual established by the Qi dynasty?” Mo Li inquired with a frown.
“… No, it’s an age-old custom, practiced in many regions for centuries,” Meng Qi responded.
Meng Qi had previously regarded this as an act of deception by shamans when their rain prayers failed — a desperate move to scare the masses. But the tradition had surprisingly spread and become an established custom. While Meng Qi wasn’t as perturbed as Mo Li — considering himself more of a spirit of the mountain than a true dragon — the ritual still irked him to some extent.
“Physician, the places that suffer from drought tend to have more elaborate rain rituals,” Meng Qi explained.
The rain ritual was a prolonged process. When the duo had been in Qiong County, the locals were still in the early stages of summoning and rousing the dragon. The whipping act was scheduled for after midday, so Mo Li had only just realized the oddity.
“What kind of ritual is this? If it doesn’t rain, they whip the dragon. If the crops don’t yield, do they beat the earth next?” Mo Li remarked, almost wanting to leave the place, the thick smoke making him feel lightheaded.
Suddenly, things took a turn.
The priest, originally intending to hand the whip to Lord He, changed his mind upon the Sixth Prince’s arrival. Traditionally, the whip is lightly tapped on the ground beside the four-legged snake.
However, the Sixth Prince, with a flick of his wrist, sent the snake flying straight onto the hem of Lord He’s robe.
Caught off guard, Lord He felt something wriggling on his garment and in panic, shook it off, inadvertently stepping on and killing the creature.
A stunned silence engulfed the area.
The priests were so startled that they even dropped their ceremonial brushes.
“The ‘dragon’ is dead, how can we continue with the ritual?”
This wasn’t a sacrifice, just a symbolic representation of the dragon. With its death, wasn’t this an ill omen? How could they continue praying for rain?
The priests looked at each other in dismay, while Lord He, eyes wide, was about to faint from fury.
If this were the capital city, such a mishap during a ritual would be disastrous. It would be seen as an ill omen, and Lord He would have to immediately apologize, submit a confession, and await the emperor’s judgment.
With trembling hands and a face as pale as sheet, Lord He pointed at the Sixth Prince, his lips quivering but unable to form words.
Just as Liu Dan thought Lord He was about to collapse, he suddenly wailed, “Your Majesty!”
The shrillness of his cry caught everyone off guard, especially Liu Dan, who nearly bit his tongue.
The Sixth Prince’s expression froze. Lord He fell to the temple’s entrance, incessantly quoting doctrines and principles from the Confucian scriptures.
“Lord He, isn’t this an inappropriate time for such talk? ‘The master does not talk of the supernatural’, we are in the midst of a rain prayer. Why are you invoking Confucius now?” Liu Dan remarked.
He earned an approving glance from the Sixth Prince and surprised looks from Mo Li and Meng Qi on the roof.
“Moneybag Liu is quite sharp after all,” Meng Qi commented casually, playing with a small silver piece in his hand.
This was a piece Mo Li had taken out of the money bag specifically for Meng Qi, intended for buying chestnuts.
Physician Mo believed if he didn’t keep an eye on the money, by the time they reached Taijing, all the coins would mysteriously turn into delicious candied chestnuts and disappear.
Though Liu Dan hadn’t been promoted yet, one couldn’t squeeze the resources too tightly.
Might as well keep a close watch on the money bag!
“I find the Sixth Prince quite peculiar,” Mo Li commented.
The well-dressed young prince’s action seemed intentional. The whip’s technique was skilled, rolling the lizard without harming it, allowing it to move swiftly once it landed.
Lord He, infuriated by Liu Dan’s words, turned a shade between green and white, unable to muster a response.
“You aren’t a scholar, how dare you mention Confucius?” Lord He snapped.
The priests, initially trying to think of an excuse to gloss over the dead ‘dragon’, now faced a bigger issue. The “dragon child” was killed right in front of the prince, who could easily make it an issue and blame Lord He.
These priests weren’t fools. They knew better than to intervene in a dispute involving a royal.
After observing them for a while, Mo Li concluded that the priests didn’t have any martial arts skills.
“How strange,” Physician Mo murmured to himself.”
Did the Cangfeng sect really give up on this geomantic treasure of the Qiong County Imperial Mausoleum? Why wasn’t there anyone who seemed to be a confidant of the Qingwu Ancestor?
Could it be they really intended for Meng Qi to reveal himself as the State Teacher of the Chu Dynasty amongst the martial world, thus attracting the attention of the Qingwu Ancestor?
Even if this was an effective strategy, Physician Mo wasn’t pleased.
Unable to care for his patient, yet having to clean up messes behind him—was this reasonable?
“Throughout history, emperors have styled themselves as dragons. I’ve always been curious, how can a dragon be whipped upon command? Since Lord He mentioned the teachings of Confucius and Mencius, I recall Mencius once said, ‘I’ve heard of killing Zhou, the man, but never of regicide.’ Lord He, considering this, if the dragon is unwilling to bring rain, can it be casually whipped? After all, what’s being beaten is not a dragon, but a lazy, useless four-legged snake.”
The Sixth Prince said with a mischievous smile, deliberately glancing at Liu Dan.
General Liu’s heart skipped a beat, finally realizing what was off about the Sixth Prince.
It seemed that the prince constantly stirred up trouble. Though he appeared rebellious, it was clear he held a deep dissatisfaction, which he couldn’t suppress.
Liu Dan couldn’t determine if this pointed hostility was towards the court officials or his own father. Either way, the Sixth Prince was like a hedgehog, always ready to strike at anyone.
For being undeservingly labeled as a four-legged snake because it wouldn’t rain, Mo Li thought, “……”
Author’s Note:
Today, our Physician is caught in the crossfire.
Regarding the practice of whipping the dragon to bring rain, it’s said that such a custom truly exists.
Though the Physician is displeased, this custom actually reflects our country’s approach to gods and spirits. It aligns with our national philosophy – worship when useful, cast aside when not.
————
Waterfalls of three hundred feet,
Mysteries deep within the abyss.
The gorge cracked open by the thunderbolt,
The sky’s void bears the crescent moon.
Shapeshifting, sometimes testing bowls,
Exhaling might form towers.
I wish to whip the dragon to rise,
To bring rainstorms throughout the nine provinces.
—— “Observing the Dragon Pool of Jiuhua” by Wang Shouren.
What’s the difference between a dragon that can’t bring rain and XXX?
Lord He of the Ministry of Rites breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing the Sixth Prince return.
This very first task of the year was indeed troublesome.
Lord He grumbled inwardly. He held no fondness for Liu Dan, the military man, and was also displeased with the Sixth Prince’s erratic behavior. But what could he do? He wasn’t the Regent. The emperor’s son was beyond reproach and punishment. Even if the prince committed a grave mistake, it wasn’t his place to reprimand.
Lord He, with a stern face, paid his respects to the royally dressed youth and advised, “Your Highness, this area is desolate and has recently been infiltrated by bandits and rogues. As we traveled, we encountered several fights and skirmishes. You witnessed it yourself. If anything were to happen to you, how would I report back to the Emperor?”
“Lord He, you worry too much. If these local ruffians were to capture me, at most they’d ask for a ransom. Even if you chose to ignore it, it wouldn’t matter much,” the Sixth Prince responded with a hint of sarcasm in his tone, a mocking smile playing on his lips.
The atmosphere grew tense.
Liu Dan glanced at the Sixth Prince and then at the visibly upset Lord He, sensing there were matters he wasn’t privy to.
As the temple rituals resumed, the Sixth Prince took an incense stick and, following protocol, paid his respects to the ancestral tablet. Under the guidance of priests, who kept their heads lowered in reverence, he burnt a written prayer to the heavens.
Then it was time for the rain ritual.
There were no dance performances in the Imperial Mausoleum, but the rain-seeking process remained.
A golden toad and a jar of well water were placed in front of the incense burner.
Tiger and dragon figures were crafted from paper, vividly colored, then displayed in a battling stance. Held by attendants, they circled the offering table seven times before being cast into the fire.
Then, a large urn was brought forth containing a four-legged lizard (gecko). It was handed over to the person leading the ritual, symbolizing a ‘whipping of the dragon’.
It was said that when it didn’t rain, it was because the dragons were too lazy.
Apart from fetching water from rivers during the rain prayer to “summon the dragon”, there’s also the act of “rousing the dragon”, making it fight with a tiger.
Since tigers were rare and even their bones and skins were costly, livestock were used in their place, evolving over time to the paper-crafted dragon and tiger figures. The popular dragon dance, where performers mimic the dragon’s pursuit of a pearl, had its origins in these grand ceremonies.
But in areas where rain remained elusive, these ceremonies proved ineffective, leading to the additional act of whipping the dragon. The idea being if the dragon can’t be summoned or roused, then beat it into action!
Yet, nobody dared to lash out at dragon sculptures. Snakes, especially the four-legged geckos, were the usual stand-ins. Poets from the previous dynasty had penned lines about the dragon being whipped into bringing rain, referring to this very act.
Liu Dan had witnessed numerous rain rituals, but for some reason, he felt a chill down his spine today.
It shouldn’t be the case! He had given away his money bag, and the harbinger of bad luck had left!
Liu Dan, trying to maintain his composure, cast sidelong glances around, signalling his guards to be on high alert.
Located to the southeast of Yongzhou, Qiong County was essentially the heartland of the dynasty, free from the threats of southern invaders and devoid of rebels.
What could possibly go wrong? Liu Dan wondered, thoroughly perplexed.
From the ridgeline behind the temple, Mo Li, with a stern expression, observed the “whipping of the dragon” ceremony. With his extraordinary hearing, he clearly heard the murmured chants of the priests.
Qiong County hadn’t faced drought for over two decades. While they experienced occasional flash floods, the region was not short of water. The rain ritual, over time, had turned into a festive event. People would make token gestures, like fetching water for the “summoning of the dragon,” but the actual act of “rousing the dragon” had become redundant, let alone whipping it.
Yet, here was Mo Li, witnessing it for the first time. The absurdity of it all!
“Is this a ritual established by the Qi dynasty?” Mo Li inquired with a frown.
“… No, it’s an age-old custom, practiced in many regions for centuries,” Meng Qi responded.
Meng Qi had previously regarded this as an act of deception by shamans when their rain prayers failed — a desperate move to scare the masses. But the tradition had surprisingly spread and become an established custom. While Meng Qi wasn’t as perturbed as Mo Li — considering himself more of a spirit of the mountain than a true dragon — the ritual still irked him to some extent.
“Physician, the places that suffer from drought tend to have more elaborate rain rituals,” Meng Qi explained.
The rain ritual was a prolonged process. When the duo had been in Qiong County, the locals were still in the early stages of summoning and rousing the dragon. The whipping act was scheduled for after midday, so Mo Li had only just realized the oddity.
“What kind of ritual is this? If it doesn’t rain, they whip the dragon. If the crops don’t yield, do they beat the earth next?” Mo Li remarked, almost wanting to leave the place, the thick smoke making him feel lightheaded.
Suddenly, things took a turn.
The priest, originally intending to hand the whip to Lord He, changed his mind upon the Sixth Prince’s arrival. Traditionally, the whip is lightly tapped on the ground beside the four-legged snake.
However, the Sixth Prince, with a flick of his wrist, sent the snake flying straight onto the hem of Lord He’s robe.
Caught off guard, Lord He felt something wriggling on his garment and in panic, shook it off, inadvertently stepping on and killing the creature.
A stunned silence engulfed the area.
The priests were so startled that they even dropped their ceremonial brushes.
“The ‘dragon’ is dead, how can we continue with the ritual?”
This wasn’t a sacrifice, just a symbolic representation of the dragon. With its death, wasn’t this an ill omen? How could they continue praying for rain?
The priests looked at each other in dismay, while Lord He, eyes wide, was about to faint from fury.
If this were the capital city, such a mishap during a ritual would be disastrous. It would be seen as an ill omen, and Lord He would have to immediately apologize, submit a confession, and await the emperor’s judgment.
With trembling hands and a face as pale as sheet, Lord He pointed at the Sixth Prince, his lips quivering but unable to form words.
Just as Liu Dan thought Lord He was about to collapse, he suddenly wailed, “Your Majesty!”
The shrillness of his cry caught everyone off guard, especially Liu Dan, who nearly bit his tongue.
The Sixth Prince’s expression froze. Lord He fell to the temple’s entrance, incessantly quoting doctrines and principles from the Confucian scriptures.
“Lord He, isn’t this an inappropriate time for such talk? ‘The master does not talk of the supernatural’, we are in the midst of a rain prayer. Why are you invoking Confucius now?” Liu Dan remarked.
He earned an approving glance from the Sixth Prince and surprised looks from Mo Li and Meng Qi on the roof.
“Moneybag Liu is quite sharp after all,” Meng Qi commented casually, playing with a small silver piece in his hand.
This was a piece Mo Li had taken out of the money bag specifically for Meng Qi, intended for buying chestnuts.
Physician Mo believed if he didn’t keep an eye on the money, by the time they reached Taijing, all the coins would mysteriously turn into delicious candied chestnuts and disappear.
Though Liu Dan hadn’t been promoted yet, one couldn’t squeeze the resources too tightly.
Might as well keep a close watch on the money bag!
“I find the Sixth Prince quite peculiar,” Mo Li commented.
The well-dressed young prince’s action seemed intentional. The whip’s technique was skilled, rolling the lizard without harming it, allowing it to move swiftly once it landed.
Lord He, infuriated by Liu Dan’s words, turned a shade between green and white, unable to muster a response.
“You aren’t a scholar, how dare you mention Confucius?” Lord He snapped.
The priests, initially trying to think of an excuse to gloss over the dead ‘dragon’, now faced a bigger issue. The “dragon child” was killed right in front of the prince, who could easily make it an issue and blame Lord He.
These priests weren’t fools. They knew better than to intervene in a dispute involving a royal.
After observing them for a while, Mo Li concluded that the priests didn’t have any martial arts skills.
“How strange,” Physician Mo murmured to himself.”
Did the Cangfeng sect really give up on this geomantic treasure of the Qiong County Imperial Mausoleum? Why wasn’t there anyone who seemed to be a confidant of the Qingwu Ancestor?
Could it be they really intended for Meng Qi to reveal himself as the State Teacher of the Chu Dynasty amongst the martial world, thus attracting the attention of the Qingwu Ancestor?
Even if this was an effective strategy, Physician Mo wasn’t pleased.
Unable to care for his patient, yet having to clean up messes behind him—was this reasonable?
“Throughout history, emperors have styled themselves as dragons. I’ve always been curious, how can a dragon be whipped upon command? Since Lord He mentioned the teachings of Confucius and Mencius, I recall Mencius once said, ‘I’ve heard of killing Zhou, the man, but never of regicide.’ Lord He, considering this, if the dragon is unwilling to bring rain, can it be casually whipped? After all, what’s being beaten is not a dragon, but a lazy, useless four-legged snake.”
The Sixth Prince said with a mischievous smile, deliberately glancing at Liu Dan.
General Liu’s heart skipped a beat, finally realizing what was off about the Sixth Prince.
It seemed that the prince constantly stirred up trouble. Though he appeared rebellious, it was clear he held a deep dissatisfaction, which he couldn’t suppress.
Liu Dan couldn’t determine if this pointed hostility was towards the court officials or his own father. Either way, the Sixth Prince was like a hedgehog, always ready to strike at anyone.
For being undeservingly labeled as a four-legged snake because it wouldn’t rain, Mo Li thought, “……”
Author’s Note:
Today, our Physician is caught in the crossfire.
Regarding the practice of whipping the dragon to bring rain, it’s said that such a custom truly exists.
Though the Physician is displeased, this custom actually reflects our country’s approach to gods and spirits. It aligns with our national philosophy – worship when useful, cast aside when not.
————
Waterfalls of three hundred feet,
Mysteries deep within the abyss.
The gorge cracked open by the thunderbolt,
The sky’s void bears the crescent moon.
Shapeshifting, sometimes testing bowls,
Exhaling might form towers.
I wish to whip the dragon to rise,
To bring rainstorms throughout the nine provinces.
—— “Observing the Dragon Pool of Jiuhua” by Wang Shouren.
