In the past, there was a man named Ai Zi who was fond of sailing on the sea.
One night, Ai Zi had his boat moored near a small island. Around midnight, he seemed to hear someone weeping or talking under the water. He listened intently and soon heard someone say: "Yesterday the Dragon King issued an order that all living creatures with tails in water are to be beheaded. I am an alligator and have a tail. I am very frightened of being slaughtered, so I am crying. You are a toad and don't have a tail. What are you weeping for?"
After a while, Ai Zi seemed to hear someone answer: "Though I have no tail now, I am afraid that I may be traced back to the time when I was a tadpole with a tail then, so I am weeping."