"If thy words are not false, then thou art a worthy but unfortunate servant of the holy lord our Emperor," said the mandarin; "but who will assure us of this?'
"Truly will I, O learned judge," cried out Nicholas.
"Who is this dog, that speaks without prostrating his mean person at the feet of justice?" said the mandarin.
"A thief and a rascal, who is awaiting to be tried," cried the porter who had accused Nicholas.
"By the beard of Confucius, this is daring; give the dog a dozen strokes," said the mandarin.
"Stay thy command, O running fountain of justice; let not thy celestial ears be profanely filled by the tongues of dogs," shrieked Chow with fear, as soon as he saw that his master was a prisoner.
The mandarin would have visited this daring interruption with a heavy punishment, but for some words whispered in his ears by the merchant Yang, and which caused him to smile and say, "The honorable merchant Yang has answered for thy truth boy; but that for the future you may not be liable to such mistakes, we will give thee a fatherly correction." The mandarin then pulled fifty reeds from the case, and threw them upon the floor, whereupon two of the footmen caught hold of Chow, took off his robe, and held him on the floor, while another administered fifty blows, after which Chow got upon his legs, made a very wry face, and twisted and writhed about like an eel making an effort to walk upon the tip of his tail.
"Leave off twisting and twirling thyself out of nature, thou dog, and return thanks to his high justiceship for his kindness in correcting so miserable an affair as thy mean self," said one of the footmen.
With one eye glaring upon the footman, and the other smiling upon the mandarin, Chow held his hands behind his back to assuage the pain, and made two or three attempts to bend his back, but failing, dropped suddenly on his knees, and bowing his head to the ground, said, but with a twist of his back or grimace between every word, "Thy correction—O father—and mother—of justice, is beneficial, but like physic would be——"
"What, boy?" said the mandarin, laughing.