Legend has it that the first cat ever in China came from "the Western lands" (India) along with Buddhism: A cat is said to have followed the great monk Xuan Zang, who brought the first Buddhist sutras to China, in order to protect the sacred texts from being chewed by mice.
傳說中國的第一隻貓，是高僧玄奘為防經書遭老鼠齧食破壞，因而乘佛學取道西域而來。