Yang Yi, courtesy name Qianzhi, was a native of Huayang in Chengdu. Known for his honesty, kindness, and integrity, he appears in a story from the Ming Dynasty collection Stories Old and New (Yu Shi Ming Yan), titled “Yang Qianzhi Meets a Monk with Extraordinary Powers on a Passenger Boat.”

One year, the imperial court appointed Yang as magistrate of Anzhuang in Guizhou. While traveling to take up his post, he encountered a monk aboard a boat. The monk behaved wildly and without restraint, yet he was said to possess extraordinary spiritual powers.

From the moment he appeared, the monk caused trouble. He snatched buns from other passengers, drank heavily, became thoroughly intoxicated, and deliberately behaved in ways that others found offensive.

Yang, however, did not look down on him. Nor did he put on airs because he was an imperial official. He continued to treat the monk with patience and kindness, even personally caring for him while he was drunk and staying awake through the night without complaint.

Having seen Yang’s character for himself, the monk concluded that he was an unusually good man and decided to help him.

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