Bao Zheng (包拯) (999–1062) was a renowned official and judge of the Northern Song Dynasty (960–1127) who was known for his strong sense of justice and fairness. During his service, Bao solved many complicated cases, fought vigorously against corruption and punished unscrupulous governors, abusive relatives of high-ranking officials, and crafty businessmen. Bao won wide respect and popularity among the people in the regions he served. His upright character, selflessness, honesty and impartial judgment earned him the nickname “Bao of the Clear Sky” or “BaoQingtian (包 青天).”
Justice through investigation Bao Zheng was very much unlike other magistrates and imperial officials who often used torture to force confessions, a practice that resulted in many innocent people being wrongly convicted.
On the contrary, as a righteous and intelligent judge, Bao solved cases involving both commoners and aristocrats by means of thorough investigation, relying on his sharp observation skills, deduction, wits and patience. Best known as a wise judge who could crack any case, Bao Zheng became a legendary figure and the first – and probably most famous – Chinese detective. Many legends about Bao, also referred to as Lord Bao (包公), have been passed down for more than a thousand years through popular culture, such as storytelling, novels, stage drama, TV shows and movies. The stories of Bao and his cases established the classical Chinese literary genre “gong’an (公案),” the Chinese version of a detective series in the form of chapter novels. The lasting impact of Lord Bao and the gong’an tradition can even be seen in 20th-century modern Chinese detective stories based on the formula of Western detective novels such as “Sherlock Holmes”. The most famous and popular is Cheng Xiaoqing’s (程小青) “Huo Sang Tan’an (霍桑探案),” a series of stories set in Shanghai in the 1920s and 1930s about a Chinese master detective named Huo Sang. Today, as a popular character in various forms of performing arts, Bao Zheng is often portrayed as a magistrate with a stern black face, a light crescent-shaped birthmark on his forehead, and a few outstanding martial artists at his service.
Filial piety before civil service Bao Zheng was born into a scholar family and studied diligently as a youth. He passed the imperial civil service examination at the age of 29 and was soon offered a government post as a county magistrate. However, with his aged parents in poor health, Bao dutifully put filial piety first. He resigned from the prestigious position and returned home to care for his parents for nearly a decade until they both passed away. Bao then returned to government to serve as a local official. As an honest and judicious official, he was soon promoted to become magistrate of the Song capital, Kaifeng. Kaifeng was a most challenging city to govern as many aristocrats and powerful families lived there. However, by implementing a series of reforms, Bao transformed and brought order to the capital in just over a year. For example, according to the system in place at the time, a plaintiff was required to prepare a written claim and pass it to the court through clerk officials, and powerful families would often bribe the clerks to drop or block a lawsuit by manipulating the paperwork. Bao Zheng established a new regulation allowing plaintiffs to make oral complaints directly to the court without having to complete paperwork, thus enabling poorly educated people in particular to avoid the injustices that had been perpetrated by some of the corrupt officials in the past. This new approach greatly improved public order in the capital, as Judge Bao dealt fairly and impartially with all complaints brought to him, no matter who was involved. The stalwart magistrate also came to be known as the “Iron-faced Judge”.
Justice for all Once, Kaifeng flooded and Bao Zheng’s investigation revealed that the flood was caused by the many gardens and pavilions illegally built by powerful families that blocked water from flowing freely through the river channel. When Bao ordered that the gardens and pavilions be demolished, one of the offenders ignored the order and instead presented a deed claiming that he owned the land in question. Bao thoroughly inspected the deed and discovered a flaw that proved it was counterfeit. Despite protest from the powerful family, he ordered the immediate demolition of the garden and reported the matter to the emperor. Soon, the flood receded. Bao Zheng was disciplined, upright, and impartial to all. Once, when one of his uncles broke the law and was sued by the victim, Bao summoned the contemptuous uncle to the court and ordered him to be beaten 100 strokes as punishment.
Virtues passed down to descendants Despite his high position, Bao was very strict with his family and lived a frugal life. His children and grandchildren mainly wore plain, simple clothes and only adorned finer clothing when visiting friends or attending social functions. In his later years, Bao established a family rule: “If any of my children or grandchildren who serve in government breaks the law or becomes corrupt, he shall not be permitted to return to our hometown, nor shall he be permitted to be buried in the family cemetery. I will disown anyone who does not heed these words.” After Bao passed away, several of his sons excelled in the imperial court examinations and became government officials. They all followed in the footsteps of their father’s virtues and were praised by the people as upright officials. Due to his uncompromising dedication to fighting injustice and corruption, Bao Zheng later came to be honoured as the cultural symbol of justice and fairness in the Far East.
