In Bazhou lived an old Confucian scholar who was a true gentleman enjoying high prestige. One day a fox spirit broke into his house to make trouble. When the scholar was there all would be quiet, but the moment he left the fox would start shaking the doors and windows, smashing utensils, throwing rubbish around, and doing other sorts of mischief. Thus kept from going out, the old scholar stayed home all day reading. Just then a group of scholars in Bazhou met in the local school to sign a joint petition against the prefect about a river control project. They wanted to elect the old scholar as their leader, but as he was unable to attend the gathering because of the fox in his house, they elected a Mr. Wang instead. Wang, charged with gathering a crowd to defy authority, was subsequently tried and executed, and the old scholar had a narrow escape. As soon as the case broke out, the old scholar’s house ceased to be disturbed by the fox. Only then did he realize that the fox had tied him down in the house in order to prevent him from getting involved in the case. Therefore nothing auspicious will ever happen to a petty man; if any such thing should happen to him, it must have been generated by heaven to make him aggravate his sin. Likewise, a gentleman will not meet any demon; if he should meet one, it must have been sent by heaven to help him avoid a catastrophe.
Ever since I read my first fantasy novel featuring kitsune a few years ago, I’ve loved the concept, and I’ve scoured the net for more tales about the wily multi-tailed foxes and their antics. One site that has helped me get my fix is Kitsune.org, and I found this traditional story above there, as well as other traditional and original stories.
