The three pests referred to Zhou Chu, the flood dragon, and the white-fronted tiger, not the zodiac. The allusions of eliminating the three evils came from "New Words of the World" and "Biography of Zhou Chu in the Book of Jin." They described Zhou Chu's violent and powerful youth, which was regarded as a great scourge by the villagers. In addition, there were flood dragons in Yixing's rivers and white-fronted tigers on the mountains. They also invaded the people. Therefore, the people of Yixing called them the three evils, and Zhou Chu was considered the most serious one. This allusion did not mention anything related to the zodiac. Therefore, eliminating the three evils did not refer to the zodiac.
The three pests represented different zodiacs. According to document 3 and document 5, the three zodiac pests referred to rats, snakes, and pigs. These three zodiac animals were considered to be the three most common pests in people's daily lives because they could easily spread diseases without modern sanitary facilities and medical equipment in ancient times, causing many troubles and harm to people's lives. Therefore, according to the information provided, the three pests represented the rat, snake, and pig.
The four pests referred to the four zodiac signs of rat, tiger, dragon, and snake. Among them, the rat was the first of the twelve zodiac animals and the first of the four pests. The tiger, dragon, and snake were ranked behind the mouse.
The zodiac animals on the battlefield were tiger, horse, and ox.
The concept of wealth in novels usually had nothing to do with the zodiac. Although some novels may suggest or reflect the relationship between the zodiac and wealth in some way, this statement does not exist in reality. Therefore, finding a novel for money was not a sign of the zodiac.
The three evils referred to the tiger, the dragon, and Zhou Chu.
The "three pests" in "Zhou Chu San Zhu" were the three wanted criminals, namely "Ox Head" Lin Luhe,"Hong Kong Boy" Xu Weiqiang, and "Guilin Boy" Chen Guilin.
The three pests of Zhou Chuchu were the flood dragon, the tiger, and Zhou Chuchu himself.