Original Text
A military graduate named Shi, carrying funds, journeyed to the capital to seek an official post. Upon reaching Dezhou, he suddenly fell ill, vomiting blood, unable to rise, and lay all day in his boat. His servant stole his money and fled, leaving Shi enraged and his condition worsening, with no food or funds left. The boatman planned to abandon him. Just then, a woman arrived by boat and anchored there for the night. Hearing of Shi's plight, she offered to take him aboard her vessel. The boatman, overjoyed, helped Shi onto the woman's boat. Shi saw that the woman was over forty, dressed in fine clothes, with lingering charm. Groaning, he expressed his gratitude. The woman approached, examined him closely, and said, "You had the root of consumption before; now your soul has already reached the grave." Hearing this, Shi wept bitterly. The woman said, "I have a pill that can revive the dead. If you recover, do not forget me." Shi, wiping his tears, swore an oath. The woman then fed him the medicine, and after half a day, he felt somewhat better. She served him fine food and drink by his bedside, her deep affection surpassing that of a married couple, and he grew even more grateful. After over a month, Shi fully recovered. He knelt and crawled before her, honoring her like a mother. The woman said, "I am alone and without support. If you do not despise my age and fading looks, I wish to be your wife." At that time, Shi was over thirty and had been widowed for over a year. Hearing this, he was overjoyed, and they became a loving couple. The woman then brought out her savings and gave them to Shi to bribe officials in the capital, agreeing that they would return home together upon his return.
A certain Mr. Shi went to the capital to curry favor with the powerful and secure an official post, and was appointed as the local military commander of his own province. With the remaining money, he bought a saddle and horse, and for a time his robes, carriage, and steed were all splendid. Then he thought that his wife was already advanced in years and ultimately not a suitable match, so he paid one hundred taels of silver to take a woman named Wang as his secondary wife. But his heart was filled with fear and trepidation, lest his wife should hear of it, so he avoided the road through Dezhou and took a detour to his post. For over a year, he had no news of his wife. A cousin of Mr. Shi happened to come to Dezhou and became a close neighbor of the wife. When the wife learned of this, she went to ask about Mr. Shi's circumstances, and the cousin told her the truth. The wife burst into a torrent of abuse and recounted the past to the cousin, who also felt indignant on her behalf, comforting and advising her, saying, "Perhaps my cousin's official duties are too numerous and he has no time for family matters. Please write a letter, and I will deliver it for my sister-in-law." The wife did as he said. The cousin solemnly handed the letter to Mr. Shi, but he completely ignored it. After another year or more, the wife came to find Mr. Shi herself, first lodging at an inn and asking the reception clerk at the official residence to announce her name. Mr. Shi ordered that she be refused entry. One day, while Mr. Shi was feasting and drinking merrily, he heard shouts of abuse coming from outside. As he set down his wine cup to listen intently, the wife had already lifted the curtain and entered. Mr. Shi was greatly alarmed, his face turning ashen. The wife pointed at him and cursed, "Faithless man! Are you happy now? Think—where did your wealth and position come from? My feelings for you were not shallow; even if you wished to take a concubine, what harm would it have done to discuss it with me?" Mr. Shi was so terrified he dared not move or breathe, and could not utter a word. After a long while, he knelt upright, knocked his head on the ground, and with honeyed words begged for forgiveness, and only then did the wife gradually calm down. Mr. Shi consulted with Wang, asking her to claim to be his sister when meeting the wife. Wang was very unwilling, but after Mr. Shi's repeated entreaties, she went to see the wife. Wang bowed to the wife, and the wife returned the courtesy. The wife said, "Sister, do not be afraid. I am not a domineering or jealous woman. As for the past, it was truly unbearable for anyone, and you, sister, would not want such a man either." She then recounted the whole story to Wang. Wang was also enraged, and together they cursed Mr. Shi, one after the other. Mr. Shi was mortified and could only beg to reform and atone for his faults, and so peace was restored.
At first, before the woman entered the household, Shi had instructed the gatekeeper not to let her in. By this time, Shi was greatly angered at the gatekeeper and secretly rebuked him. The gatekeeper insisted that he had not opened the door and that no one had entered, so he was quite unconvinced. Shi was perplexed but dared not question the woman; although they chatted and laughed together, they were no longer intimate. Fortunately, the woman was gentle and compliant, not vying for marital favors; after supper she would close the door and retire early, never asking where her husband spent the night. Wang, the wife, had initially been somewhat anxious, but seeing the woman behave thus, she grew even more respectful toward her. Every day at dawn she would go to pay her respects, as if serving a mother-in-law. The woman managed the servants with leniency and propriety, yet with keen discernment, like a celestial being. One day, Shi lost his official seal, throwing the entire yamen into chaos; everyone paced about in panic, at a loss for a plan. The woman laughed and said, "Do not fret; drain the well dry, and you shall find it." Shi followed her advice and indeed found it. When asked the reason, the woman merely smiled and did not reply. Vaguely, it seemed she knew the name of the thief who had taken the seal, but she never revealed it. By the end of the year, Shi observed many of the woman's actions as unusual and began to suspect she was not human. Often, after she slept, he would send someone to spy and eavesdrop, but they only heard the rustling of clothes on the bed all night, not knowing what she was doing. The woman and Wang felt deep mutual sympathy and affection. One evening, Shi had gone to the provincial judge's office and did not return home; the woman drank wine with Wang, and without realizing it, became thoroughly drunk, collapsing by the wine table and turning into a fox. Wang, pitying the woman, covered her with a brocade quilt. Soon after, Shi entered the room, and Wang told him of this strange occurrence. Shi wanted to kill the woman, but Wang said, "Even if she is a fox, how has she wronged you?" Shi would not listen and hurriedly sought his dagger. By then, the woman had awakened and cursed, "With the behavior of a viper and the heart of a jackal, I can no longer dwell with you! The medicine you took before—return it to me!" She then spat in Shi's face. Shi felt a chill of eerie cold, as if drenched with ice water; a tickling sensation arose in his throat, and he finally vomited up the pill, which was still intact. The woman picked up the pill and, in a fury, strode out the door; when pursued, she had vanished without a trace. In the middle of the night, Shi's old illness recurred; he coughed up blood without cease, and after half a year, he died.
The Chronicler of Strange Tales remarks: The scholar-official Shi was elegant and refined, much like a learned student. Some said he was humble and deferential, always careful in speech lest he offend others. He died in the prime of his life, and all the literati and officials mourned him deeply. Yet later, when word spread of how he betrayed the fox woman, how was this any different from Li Yi's abandonment of Huo Xiaoyu?
Commentary
Following the tale of "Hua Guzi," this story recounts how a man wronged a fox.
The opening section vividly depicts the martial candidate's dire straits: struck by a sudden severe illness, his servant absconded with funds, and the hired boatman prepared to abandon him. In such desperate circumstances, a kind-hearted woman, a stranger, took him in, treated his illness, and even provided money to secure his wealth and status, setting the stage for what follows. The middle section describes how, after gaining wealth and rank, the martial candidate's heart changed; he remarried, cutting off all contact with the woman, ignoring her letters, and refusing to see her when she sought him out, only reluctantly receiving her when she forced her way in. It further portrays the woman's strict adherence to the three obediences and four virtues after their reunion, her gentle and kind nature, yet when the martial candidate accidentally discovered she was a fox spirit, he ruthlessly plotted to kill her. The final part tells of the woman, seeing through his true character, leaving resolutely, reclaiming the miraculous elixir that had saved his life, and the martial candidate's old illness relapsing, leading to his death without recovery.
This story echoes what Pu Songling wrote in his "Historian of the Strange's Commentary" in "Hua Gu Zi": "To receive kindness and be bound in gratitude even unto death—there are men who ought to feel shame before the beasts." Thus it serves to condemn the human failing of ingratitude. Though the tale is fictional, from the author's concealment of the man's name in the narrative while detailing his impression in the commentary, it seems the Martial Licentiate likely truly existed, and the story had its basis in fact; his early death must have been linked to some moral failing on his part.