72. WHIPPED BY THE GOD

　　In Guangdong there was a general who was also a great scholar. His name was Zhang Chendao. He was a highly trained martial artist. He was rough and strong, and could take on any number of enemies. But he was also a very highly educated scholar who could write poetry as well as the best poets of his day. He was as well known for his writing as for his military prowess.

　　But, like so many Cantonese, he had a weakness. He loved to eat dog meat. There was never a day when a dog wasn't cooking in his kitchen. He ate dog the way other people eat chicken or pork. As a result, wherever he went, all the dogs howled. They can tell.

　　Zhang was so talented that he was given important posts. Once he was sent to Fujian. During a tour of inspection, he climbed the famous Wuyi Mountain, which sticks straight into the sky like a baseball bat. It is very difficult to climb, so he had to spend the night at a village there.

　　His subordinates knew their chief liked dog, so they bought some local dogs for his dinner.

　　The next day, they went to take a look at a Taoist temple with great scenery somebody had told them about.

　　When they got to the temple, the sorcerer in charge, Cai Yuanying, seemed to want to stop them, but he did not dare say anything to such a powerful imperial official as Zhang Chendao!

　　As soon as Zhang stepped into the temple, he saw a piercing gold light. He couldn't stand it. He fell down in a faint. When his subordinates picked him up, he couldn't speak, and he seemed to be paralyzed. His whole body was limp, like he didn't have a bone in him. When they felt his forehead, they realized that he was already dead!

　　His subordinates were in a panic. They asked the sorcerer what was up. He said, "The god we worship here, Wangling, is very powerful. He loves dogs, so people who eat dog meat are usually afraid to come near this place. They dare not provoke such a powerful spirit, or profane his temple.

　　"I wanted to stop his honor Zhang, but he was a powerful Mandarin, so I did not dare to do anything. His choice of coming here means that he was fated to die."

　　Zhang's subordinates were awed. One of them asked, "But why is his body so limp?"

　　The sorcerer replied, "It always happens that way. Every bone in his bones has been broken into bits, because he has been whipped by the god Wangling."

72.被神鞭打

　　广东有一位叫张辰道的将军，他武功高强，又是一位出色的学者。他粗犷强壮，能以一当十同时他又是一个杰出的、受过良好教育的学者，他写的诗可以和那个时代最好的诗歌媲美。他的书法充满阳刚之气，也非常出名。

　　不过，像很多广东人一样，他有个缺点，特别爱吃狗肉。他的厨房没有一天不煮狗肉的。他吃狗肉就像别人吃鸡肉猪肉一样，所以，不管他去哪里，那里所有的狗都冲他狂吠不止，这就是证明。

　　　张有如此天赋，所以得到了很高的职位。有一次他被派往福建，在一次视察中，他去爬有名的武夷山，这座山象笔一样直剌天空。那座山很难爬，他晚上就投宿在一户人家里。

　　他的下属都知道他喜欢吃狗肉，所以他们就给他买了一些本地狗吃。

第二天，他们去参观一座道教寺庙，有人提起过那里景致很好。

　　当他们来庙里的时候，那里的道长蔡元英看上去很想阻拦他们，但是他又不敢对张辰道这么有权势的朝廷大员说什么。

　　张一走进庙里，就看到一道刺眼的金光。他忍受不住，晕倒在地。下属们把他扶起来后发现，他不能说话了。他好像瘫了，全身就像没有骨头一样，软绵绵的。下属们摸了摸张的额头，发现他已经死了！

　　下属们乱成一团。他们质问道士这是怎么回事。道长回答说，“我们这里祭祀的神，Wangling,非常厉害。他很喜欢狗，所以喜欢吃狗肉的人通常都不敢靠近这个地方。他们不敢激怒这么强大的神灵，或者亵渎他的寺庙。”

“我本想阻止张大人，可是他是一个有权势的官员，我就不敢说了。他既然选择来这里，说明他是命中注定要死在这里的。”

　　张下属们都怕了。有一个问，“他的尸身为什么这么软？ ”

　　道长回答，“都是这样的，因为他被Wangling鞭打，他的每根骨头都碎了。”