Shenshu and Yulü

Their images together with reed rope seasonally adorned the doors or gates to ward off evil, and are considered the earliest examples of Menshen (門神, 'gate deities' or 'door gods') venerated under such practice.

This gave rise to the custom, allegedly set forth by the Yellow Emperor (Huangdi), that at the change of seasons, giant peachwood dolls shall be erected, the two gate gods and the tiger be painted on doors, and a reed rope be left to hang, in order to ward against evil.

[9][10][5] The account is repeated with slightly differing wording elsewhere[12] and instead of invoking the legendary Hunagdi, it is stated that the "district office" (i.e., the Han dynasty administration) practices the use of peachwood figures and gate paintings for apotropaic use.

[27] The taofu, according to a 13th-century description, was a thin planks 4–5 cun (≈inches) wide and 2–3 chi (≈feet) long, inscribed with the name of Yulü on the left and Shenshu on the right, garnished with pictures of deities and mythical beasts, the lion-like suanni [zh] (狻猊) and the ox-like baize (白澤).

[25][30] The Qing dynasty period scholar Yu Zhengxie (Guisi cungao 癸巳存稿, Book 13) conjectured that originally there were not two door gods, but perhaps one, though this was evidently based on a misinterpretation of the quote from a classic work.