A creature that has served us well

The Bouyei ethnic group from the same province commemorates the ox king on the eighth day of the fourth lunar month, when they make a colored sticky rice dish with the sap of plants and flowers. After serving the cattle, people sit down for a banquet, drinking, singing and socializing.

Festivals of the same ethos, despite maybe different names, can be found in also Hubei, Zhejiang and Guangdong provinces.

The origins of this festival vary from region to region, but almost always involve a moving legend about how oxen saved the people.

The Bouyei people's story probably corresponds to human history the most, apart from the fictional ox king part. It goes that the group had no cattle in ancient times, and could only use human labor to tend the fields. The ox king felt sympathy for the people and sent cattle to help them, relieving the locals of the burden.