When Li Gan of the Tang was Governor of the Capital, he had a clay dragon set up at Qujiang to pray for rain, and several thousand people came to watch. When Li arrived, one old man alone stood leaning on his staff and would not make way. Li, angered, had him beaten, but the blows landed as if on a drumhead, and the old man swung his arms and walked off. Suspecting he was no ordinary man, Li ordered an old constable of the ward to track him down. The constable followed him to the south of Lanling Ward, where the old man went in through a small gate and said loudly, "I've been badly humiliated today. Get the hot water ready." The constable hurried back to report, and Li was badly frightened.
So he changed into shabby clothes and went there with the constable. It was already dark. The constable went straight in and announced Li's rank and office; Li, answering "yes," hurried in and prostrated himself. "Earlier I failed to recognize who you were, venerable sir. My offense deserves ten deaths." The old man said in surprise, "Who brought the Governor here?" and at once drew him up the steps. Li saw that he could win him over with reason, and said slowly, "I am Governor of the Capital. If the Governor's authority is diminished even a little, the government cannot function. You, sir, hide your form and mingle with the crowd; no one without the eye of wisdom could know you. To punish a man for that would be to bait him into a fault for the sake of your name, and that is not the heart of a righteous man." The old man laughed. "The fault is mine." He set out wine, spread mats on the floor, and called the constable over to sit as well.
Deep into the night they talked of nourishing life; the old man's words were few and his reasoning sharp. Li's respect turned to awe. Then the old man said, "I have a skill. Allow me to show it to the Governor." He went inside, and after a long while came out in purple robes, his sidelocks red, holding seven swords long and short, and danced with them in the central hall. He leapt and whirled, the blades flashing like lightning. Now they stretched out flat like a bolt of silk, now they spun like a ring of fire. One short sword, a little over two feet long, kept brushing the front of Li's robe, and Li knocked his head on the floor, his legs trembling. After about the time it takes to eat a meal, the old man threw the swords to the ground in the shape of the Big Dipper. He turned to Li. "That was to test the Governor's nerve." Li bowed. "From this day on my life is your gift, sir. Let me serve at your side." The old man said, "The Governor's bones show no sign of the Way. I can't teach you just like that. Another day I'll look in on you." He bowed to Li and went inside. Li went home looking as if he were ill. Only when he faced a mirror did he find that more than an inch of his beard had been shaved away. When he went back the next day, the house was empty.
