The Story of Kuixing

☯ Kuixing was originally a poor scholar in the mortal world. Although he was extremely talented, with the ability to memorize things at a glance and compose essays effortlessly, he failed every imperial examination. Why was that? It is said that it was because of his extremely ugly appearance. Even though there was already a teaching that one should not judge people by their appearance, why was such an extraordinarily talented person repeatedly rejected just because of his ugliness? Could he really have been so ugly that he was unbearable to look at?

☯ What did Kuixing look like exactly? It is said that his face was inherently ugly, covered with pockmarks; what was worse, he had a lame leg, walking with a left-right sway, which made him seem utterly worthless.

☯ However, Kuixing wrote excellent articles. All the examiners who reviewed his works couldn't help but slap the table in praise. Thus, he was finally admitted in the provincial and metropolitan examinations, and topped the list every time.

☯ When it came to Kuixing's palace examination, it was conducted by the emperor himself. Many people who valued talent were on tenterhooks for him, and of course, many others waited to see his joke. Although the emperor had heard beforehand that he was ugly, when he saw Kuixing's ugly face, full of pockmarks, and his limping walk up the hall, he was still greatly displeased and asked bluntly, "What's the matter with your face?" Kuixing replied, "Your Majesty, these are 'pockmarks reflecting the celestial phenomena, holding and picking the stars'." Upon hearing this, the emperor thought the man was quite interesting, and his mood improved half. Then he asked, "What about your leg?" Kuixing answered again, "This is 'one foot leaping over the Dragon Gate, standing alone on the head of the mythical turtle'." Amazed by his wit, the emperor was secretly delighted. He said, "I'll only ask you one question, and you must answer truthfully: In the world today, who writes the best articles?" Kuixing thought for a moment and replied, "Your Majesty, the best articles in the world come from my county; the best in my county come from my township; the best in my township come from my younger brother; and my younger brother asks me to revise his articles." The emperor said, "Well said! Then I must verify it." He then read Kuixing's article on the spot and couldn't help slapping the table in admiration, exclaiming, "Truly the best article in the world!" He immediately appointed him as the top scholar of the imperial examination.

☯ This ugly scholar, with his extraordinary wisdom, profound knowledge, and diligent efforts, finally achieved success—he ascended to heaven and became the first four stars of the Big Dipper, in charge of official ranks and fortunes in both the celestial and mortal worlds. Because of his ugly appearance and great talent, he was called "Kuixing". The character "魁 (kui)" is composed of "鬼 (gui, ghost)" and "斗 (dou, bucket)", which exactly corresponds to his ugly face and extraordinary talent. Kuixing holds a red brush in his hand, governing the fate and future of literati.

☯ The emperor ordered that dragons and sea turtles be carved on the stone slab in the center of the steps of the main hall of the imperial palace, and a kui dou (a kind of vessel symbolizing the top scholar) be placed beside them. When the results of the palace examination were announced, all candidates would gather here. The successful candidates (jinshi) could only stand under the steps to receive the list, while the top scholar had to hold a kui dou in one hand and stand on the head of the sea turtle with one foot, symbolizing "winning the first place in one fell swoop" and "standing alone on the top".