Murder in Ancient China: Two Judge Dee Mysteries

Chicago Shorts

by Robert van Gulik

Judge Dee—Confucian Imperial magistrate, inquisitor, and public avenger, based on a famous statesman—was Dutch diplomat and Chinese cultural historian Robert van Gulik’s (1910–67) lasting invention. A welcome addition to the elite canon of fictional detectives, the Judge steps in to investigate homicide, theft, and treason and restores order to the golden age of the Tang Dynasty. In Murder in Ancient China’s first story, we watch as Judge Dee attempts to solve the mystery of an elderly poet murdered by moonlight in his garden pavilion; in the second, set on the eve of the Chinese New Year, the Judge makes two rare mistakes—will peril result?

Genres: Mystery, Short Stories, Fiction, China, Historical Fiction, Detective, Classics

35 pages, ebook

First published December 13, 2013

About the author

Robert Hans van Gulik was a Dutch diplomat best known for his Judge Dee stories. His first published book, The Celebrated Cases of Judge Dee, was a translation of an eighteenth-century Chinese murder mystery by an unknown author; he went on to write new mysteries for Judge Dee, a character based on a historical figure from the seventh century. He also wrote academic books, mostly on Chinese history.

Reviews

[Christmas Carol ꧁꧂ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'll keep it short & sweet - just like this Kindle book of two of van Gulik's short stories!

This was a kindle freebie, so it is a good way to see if van Gulik's work is for you!

I preferred the second story Murder on New Year's Eve to the first story (less judgemental on female characters) but both show Judge Dee's Sherlockian ability to solve a crime & van Gulik's love of China.

[Richard Derus · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short mysteries are almost always slightly disappointing, these too-brief tales are no exception. I enjoyed reading about Judge Dee again. I first encountered the stories thirty-five or so years ago and was captivated by the settings and pleasures of the ancient world van Gulik crafted.

As a place to start reading the Judge Dee mysteries, I wouldn't recommend the reads; but if a quick hit of a time so remote that it feels more like a fantasy world than an historical epoch is needed then here you are. Those of us who, at some murky moment in the past, devoured the books will get a nostalgic pleasure from them.

But don't expect subtle, character-driven development, there just wasn't room for that in such short works.

[Sharon Barrow Wilfong · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the first book I've read by Robert van Gulik. It contains two murder mysteries that are solved by Judge Dee.

The first starts with the murder from the murderer's point of view. We know his thoughts, but we do not know him. He kills a poet, why we do know yet know. He is in the garden of the poet's house by a pool. A frog jumps out of the pool, startling him. The murderer squashes the frog and throws his lifeless body into the pool. This sets the whole pond of frogs croaking, which sets up such a racket that the murderer runs away before the household is alerted. Even though he escapes, ultimately the frogs will prove his undoing.

Who is the murderer and why did he do it?

The second story is very brief. A young boy comes running to Judge Dee. He is crying that his father killed his mother. Judge Dee returns to the house and finds the rooms covered in blood.

The mystery's solution is as surprising as it is original. You'll have to read the story to find out what I mean.

Judge Dee was an actual Judge in China in 600AD. Robert van Gulik was a Dutch diplomat and a historian of Chinese culture. He created a detective based on the actual Judge Dee and incorporates the history and folklore of China in his stories.
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Why the three stars? I found the writing a little pedantic, almost as if it were written for a younger audience. It might have been the translation, however. Too many subject-verb sentences without much variation.

This particular edition is free on Kindle.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Free download available at The University of Chicago Press Books.

Contents:
The Murder on the Lotus Pond
This case occurred in the year A.D. 667 in Han-yuan, an ancient little town built on the shore of a lake near the capital. There Judge Dee has to solve the murder of an elderly poet, who lived in retirement on his modest property behind the Willow Quarter, the abode of the courtesans and singing-girls. The poet was murdered while peacefully contemplating the moon in his garden pavilion, set in the centre of a lotus pond. There were no witnesses— or so it seemed.

Murder on New Year's Eve
The scene of this story is laid in Lan-fang. As a rule a magistrate’s term of office was three years. But at the end of the year A.D. 674, when Judge Dee had been serving four years in Lan-fang, there was still no news from the capital.

[Eustacia Tan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I haven't read Judge Dee before, so I was quite happy to find two of his stories released as an ebook. And since they're short, I thought I'd just review each individual story:

The Murder on the Lotus Pond

First line for The Murder on the Lotus Pond:

"From the small pavilion in the centre of the lotus pond he could survey the entire garden, bathed in moonlight. "

I should say before I start that I don't have any experience with Chinese mysteries. Apart from the TVB dramas "A Pillowcase of Mystery" and "Xi Yuan Lu", I have no idea what ancient China was like and how they solved crimes back then.

The first story was definitely interesting, and more like a Western mystery than I expected. It's got a twist, a almost super-sleuth, a beautiful young woman, etc. I guess some things really do transcend culture.

I thought Mrs. Meng was an interesting character - even though she's not the main character (not even close to it), she's essentially the hooker with a heart of gold character, and I would have liked to see more of her.

Murder on New Year's Eve

First line of Murder on New Year's Eve:

"When Judge Dee had put away the last file and locked the drawer of his desk he suddenly shivered."

Just finished the second story, and it's really very charming. I won't give the ending away, but I had a smile on my face at the end of it.

Oh, and the start, where they mention his three wives really reminded me of Xi Yuan Lu - specifically the ending of the first season, where Song Ci ends up with his two wives. And that's all I wanted to say - that I was reminded of it.

This story starts with what looks like a murder, and the lonely Judge Dee goes and investigates right away. And then... One thing leads to another hahaha. Really can't say without giving it away.

By the way, you really shouldn't read the starting note for this, because it does give the twist away. Or at least, that's what I thought when I read it after the story (didn't read it before).

Oh, and I realise that I'm really not used to how they transliterated the Chinese here haha. It's quite different from the hanyu pinyin that I'm used too.

That said, I would totally read more of Judge Dee. These stories are short and satisfying, and I would like to see if by reading more, certain characters would be more fleshed out.

This review was first posted at Inside the mind of a Bibliophile

[Zadignose]

Uhhh...

So, I had this notion that I wanted to read Celebrated Cases of Judge Dee. And maybe some day I do, because it supposedly includes at least one story originally written in 18th Century China, and I'm kind of curious.

But getting this freebie sample of two of van Gulik's Chinese murder mysteries turned me off quick. I didn't get far enough to appreciate anything about the mystery because I couldn't bear it. The tone seems all wrong, the style so commonplace and generic, it just feels as I would expect a randomly selected book from the mystery section would feel, if written by someone with little literary sense... except, they're Chinese!

Whoopdie doo. I quit.

[Richard · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have been drawn to stories of late about Judge Dee in his various disguises.

I have been meaning to read Robert Van Gulik’s take on this iconic character and these two short stories enabled me to immerse myself in his writing and the world of Ancient China.

I love Dee’s authority and clear thinking.
He solves the murders in each case with close observation, direct interrogation and simple logic.
He is fair, compassionate and a faithful servant as an upholder of the law.

The writing is inclusive. This allows the reader access to the facts to reach a judgement along with our protagonist. Well we might be two steps behind, but we accept this as good storytelling as the clues were there all along.

In Chinese literature I am not sure you can say “…… two wrongs made a right!” Yet here it is in the introduction to the second story, no irony intended though, just old fashioned entertaining crime mysteries beautifully told. More enchanting and colourful due to the location and historical setting.

[Antonia · Rating 3 out of 5]

In Elsa Hart’s novel, Jade, Dragon, Mountain, the storyteller Hamza tells a story about Judge Dee. Somewhere else (maybe an interview with Hart?), I found out that there are several novels and some stories by Robert van Gulik about Judge Dee, a magistrate-detective Dee in ancient China.

I tried this title because it was free for Kindle, just to get a taste of Gulik’s character. Quick read. I might like to try a full-length novel about the character sometime. But I’d rather read Elsa Hart’s writing and eagerly await her next one.

[magdalena sosa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read of an ancient culture.

Judge Dee mysteries are a delight. You are exposed to a different logic. Different ways of crime detection. A different way to apply justice. You are transported to ancient times and find that human emotions are very similar to today"s.

[Michael D Keen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good short stories

I liked the flow of the stories. Just enough information to keep my attention but not too much. No obvious red herrings that gave away the solution. Was a good read.

[Kelvin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book contains two short stories of Judge Dee. Like all Judge Dee stories, they are set in ancient China. The historic atmosphere is nicely created. However, like many short stories, there is not enough chance to develop the plot.

[Pat · Rating 4 out of 5]

I do like Judge Dee

I first met him in a paper book I got at a sale. I found it very interesting. Knowing very little about China before the 20th century I enjoy learning a bit about what it was like hundreds of years ago.

[Tania · Rating 4 out of 5]

2 very short stories. A good (free) introduction to the Judge Dee series if you haven't read any, and if you have they are just what you would expect.

[Pamela · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it

This was an unusual read for me and i truly enjoyed it. It was way too short though!
I think I'll try more Judge Dee books.

[Amy Snide · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting as usual. good mystery wrapped in another culture

Recommended. Though one of the shorter yarns. It still gives us a good mystery with the trappings of Chinese culture.

[Sae-chan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice short stories of Mr. Van Gulik. And nice little ehem drawings too... as usual in your style and taste 🙃

[P. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Two very short, not very interesting stories about crime in ancient China.

[Laurel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Read

Van Gulik is an excellent writer. I have really ekoyed reading the Judge Dee series based in ancient China. Great mysteries!! Highly recommended.

[Karen Blackburn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Murder in Ancient China features two stories taken from the longer book of short stores ''Judge Dee at Work''.
The first story features a dead man found in a pond side pavillion in his garden. He was an older widower who had remarried a girl from the Willow quarter and at first it seems that she may well be the guilty party. But further investigation shows that this case is connected to another case which the Judge's other assistants are currently investigating (a case of a gold robbery). Taking a leaf from a local duck hunter the use of a decoy flushes the guilty party into the open and both cases are solved, partly thanks to a croaking frog.
The second case seems to be a murder without a body. On the eve of the new year celebrations the Judge is called to an apparent case of murder. A lot of blood has been found, someone is missing but there is no body. After making a couple of mistakes the Judge finally works out the answer and gives some advice to a couple whose marriage has been going through a rocky patch.
Two excellent short stories from the pen of Dr. R H vanGulik and, like all of his writings in this series, give an excellent, realistic, view of life in 8thC China.
I can't recommend his books highly enough, they are the one series where I have deliberately sought out all the books in the series and purchased them. Both in paper form and as ebooks on the Kindle. Truly excellent and if you have any interest in this part of the world at all then I suggest that you find and read the books. Taken in order is best but you can also read each book as a separate entity in its own right. But reading them in order does give some background to the characters and you will often find the same characters being mentioned in books set in the same district. The author also gives a great deal of information on the workings of imperial China at that time both for the judicial system and also for the lives of the common people.
The claim by one reviewer that the author was at heart a Chinese literati born in the wrong century and country (he was a Dutch diplomat) was a very insightful and extremely accurate observation.

[Rania Melhem · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good short mysteries.

Well written and easy to read, with logical and gratifying solutions. I am going to get more of the Judge Dee mysteries

[Kathy Chung · Rating 4 out of 5]

first story is about how Judge Dee solved the murder of an elderly poet.

what I like here is the guessing game where we don't know who is the murderer till its revealed in the end.

what I am not quite satisfied was that the two cases was conveniently connected.

in the second case, it is surprisingly how judge dee managed to jump into conclusion without much thought. it's very unlike his other cases.

overall, I would love to read more of judge dee's books

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

A quick, enjoyable read and a good introduction to Judge Dee. The mysteries themselves weren't terribly difficult to figure, and this ebook had several punctuation / spelling / formatting errors that proved to be distracting. But it has me interested in further writing by van Gulik, which was probably the point.

[Tim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Two short stories, one longer and one shorter, free from U of Chicago Press. Judge Dee continues to be interesting historically rather than compelling as a mystery and the place of women, while historically accurate, is certainly disturbing.

[Cori · Rating 3 out of 5]

I usually like these sorts of 5 minute mystery stories but I wasn't particularly impressed with these two. There isn't the level of clue dropping I've come to expect from more modern tales.
But it wasn't a huge time commitment and I've learned about an author I hadn't read before.

[Joe Hofmann · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a freebie from University of Chicago Press. Good light mystery, short stories set in ancient Confucian China. I'm intrigued and may check out one of the novel length Judge Dee books.

[Paweł Sobiegraj · Rating 3 out of 5]

This ebook was really nice bus-lecture. :)

[Ed · Rating 2 out of 5]

Two very short Judge Dee mysteries. Not my cup of tea.

[MsFolio * · Rating 1 out of 5]

Two short stories. Interesting, but not great.
(I don't know much about criminal investigations in ancient China in the year 667, but I would be very surprised if it included autopsy.)

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating little mystery tales from Ancient China.

[Wiebke Kuhn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Two short stories featuring Judge Dee -- nothing too special.