"Legend has it that King Mu of Zhou possessed eight fine steeds capable of traveling a thousand li a day, which he cherished deeply. He greatly enjoyed traveling and once accepted the invitation of the Queen Mother of the West to attend a grand banquet at the Jade Pool.
One day, while returning from Kunshan to Heshan, King Mu heard of a man named Yan Shi, whose craftsmanship was so exquisite that the animals he created could sing and run. Finding this hard to believe, the king immediately summoned Yan Shi and said, 'I've heard you can make all kinds of ingenious devices. Show me one so I can see it for myself.'
The next day, Yan Shi brought wooden figurines to meet the king. King Mu was astonished to see that the figurines had complete facial features, with eyebrows and beards as lifelike as real people.
King Mu asked Yan Shi, 'Can these figures you've carved move?'
Yan Shi replied, 'Not only can they move, but they can also sing and dance, just like real people.'
King Mu said, 'Then let them perform, so I can see how they differ from real humans.'
Yan Shi directed the wooden figures with drumbeats. Following the rhythm of the drums, the figures took positions and began performing attacks and defenses. The wooden figures wielded spears, swords, and staves, attacking and defending in orderly fashion. At one moment they formed a long snake formation, then suddenly transformed into an ambush from ten directions, then changed into a Nine Palaces and Eight Trigrams formation, a six-petaled flower formation, a seven-star formation, and an eight-gate formation. The formations changed endlessly, dazzling King Mu and filling him with great delight. Feeling it would be a pity not to let his concubines enjoy such a marvelous spectacle, he ordered the palace maids to invite his consorts to watch.
Seeing the arrival of the concubines, Yan Shi, eager to show off his skills, said, 'The previous performance was too intense and aggressive to be displayed before the ladies. Let us instead present some songs and dances to change the mood.'
Yan Shi picked up the cloud chimes and blew the sheng and huang. The wooden figures raised their voices in song. The melodies were melodious and lingering—sometimes like a hundred birds paying homage to the phoenix, with the sweet chirping of orioles and swallows echoing endlessly; sometimes like apes crying in the Three Gorges, filled with sorrowful lament, moving listeners to tears; sometimes like a dragon roaring from a deep pool and a tiger roaring in a secluded valley, majestic and powerful.
King Mu and his consorts were all enchanted by the delightful music.
Yan Shi slightly altered the beat of the clappers, and the wooden figures, dancing to the song, unfurled their long sleeves and moved with the grace of flowing clouds and running water. Their dance was beautiful—sometimes like lotus flowers in the rain, vying in crimson and radiance; sometimes like willow branches swaying in the wind, graceful and elegant. One of the wooden figures even repeatedly winked and made suggestive glances at the consorts, as if flirting. King Mu noticed this and became furious, believing it was improper behavior and intentional lewdness, so he ordered the beheading of the winking wooden figure.
Realizing he had caused a misunderstanding, Yan Shi quickly disassembled the figure. When King Mu saw it, he found it was made only of leather, paint, horsehair, and wood, and couldn't help but laugh. At the end of the performance, King Mu marveled, 'Incredible! It's absolutely marvelous, like the work of a celestial being.'"