Visions of human nature His childhood during the Japanese colonial era gave Cheng an early vision of human nature. In his work Three-Legged Horse, Cheng uses the first person voice. A classmate introduces the narrator to a wood-carving eccentric named Tseng Chi-hsiang, nicknamed "the white-nosed fox," who is a member of the Japanese police force.
三腳馬與報馬子日治時期的童年，讓鄭清文提早看到人性；〈三腳馬〉中，作者以第一人稱，透過同學介紹拜訪木雕怪人，竟是日治時期在家鄉擔任警察的「白鼻狸」曾吉祥。