Bi Gan
was a
faithful civilian official and the uncle of the
tyrannical and concupiscent Emperor Zhou
of the Shang Dynasty,
for whom he took charge of the Imperial finances. Legend has it that to
prove his loyalty
he took out his heart and presented it to the Emperor by throwing it on
the floor. Having no heart Bi Gan
was impartial in the
distribution of the Emperor’s wealth amongst the people
and so became a Chinese civilian wealth deity (fig.).
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