Translation of Chinese legal classicshas become the subject of great attention due to the increasingly prominent role of China in the world stage.This studyintends toprobe intothe background of translation practice and thus reveal the translation purpose behind those endeavors with cases of The Qing Code,The Tang Code and The Great Ming Code. It argues that translators, more often than not, influenced by such factors as traditional value, academic communication, and cultural interaction, instead of being impartial but rather more like patriarchs of the Codes, would make use of their position to cater for target readers or retain the exotic culture, via various linguistic means; as a result, certain purposes have been achieved.