From the fact that he dared to refuse to open the door for King Wen of Chu who fled back from the army, it can be seen that the official of Chu State, Wan Quan, was a loyal minister with a strong temperament, who dared to make mistakes and speak out. It was precisely with the existence of such a group of courtiers that King Chu Wen was able to avoid impulsivity and mistakes when making decisions and lead the Chu State on the right track.
Wan Quan is a descendant of the Chu clan and served as an official under King Chu Wen. He was loyal and upright, dedicated to the country, and followed King Chu Wen until his death. What he did as a human being was very similar to the famous Qu Yuan. In his life, there were two things that reflected his integrity as a man and his integrity as a minister.
First, it was during the period when the King of Chu conquered Cai. King Wen of Chu used the pretext that Cai State sent troops to rescue Chu and attacked Cai State, and captured Cai Aihou Xianwu and returned to his country. Aihou Xianwu became aware of the plots of Chu and Xi. He became furious and cursed the king of Xi for being vicious and King Wen of Chu for being unethical. King Wen of Chu could not bear such an insult, so he decided to cook Cai Aihou in a large pot to sacrifice to the Ancestral Temple.
Wan Quan assessed the situation and felt something was wrong, so he went to remonstrate with King Wen of Chu. He stated his point of view to the King of Chu, believing that Marquis Cai could not be executed in such a brutal way because of his rudeness, because the Chu State was about to enter the Central Plains, and in addition to military expeditions, it also needed to win the support of many small countries in the Central Plains. . Therefore, the king of Cai should be spared and become an ally with him. This would not only strengthen his own strength, but also leave a generous and open-minded image of King Chu Wen, laying a good foundation for Chu's future diplomacy.
Huanquan's analysis is reasonable. As a latecomer to the Central Plains, Chu State's conditions in all aspects were not as favorable as those of its biggest potential rival, Qi State. Qi State has been operating for many years, laying a deep foundation in the Central Plains, communicating with other countries, and forming military alliances. The Chu State was in a state of having one enemy and many enemies. In the future struggle for hegemony, it was necessary to divide the Qi State's camp and form its own alliance to compete with it. However, before King Chu Wen officially entered the Central Plains, he left behind a reputation for cruelty and cruelty, which would make the vassal states shun Chu and even join the Qi camp, strengthening the enemy's power and posing endless threats to Chu's expansion. It was really unwise for King Chu Wen to resolve his temporary hatred but leave such a big trouble behind.
King Chu Wen may not be aware of this, but his majesty as a king is inviolable. If Marquis Cai Ai, who was already a prisoner of his rank, dared to be so wanton and wanton, then who else would take King Wen seriously in the future? So King Wen ignored Wan Quan's hard advice and insisted on ordering Cai Aihou to be taken out and thrown into the boiling oil cauldron.
When Huan Quan saw that King Wen was going his own way, he couldn't help but get angry. There was a sharp conflict between the interests of the country and the king's personal will. As a minister, he must not lose his principles and must make a decision that is beneficial to the king and the country. Wan Quan had no choice but to make this move. He went to the palace with a sword and placed the blade across King Chu Wen's neck. With his eyes wide open, he threatened that he would rather the monarch and his ministers go to hell together than do such an unjust thing. If the prince breaks his promise, the country will be humiliated.
King Wen was shocked and frightened when he saw that Wan Quan was so persistent, so he had no choice but to withdraw his order and spare Cai Aihou. Immediately, Huanquan abandoned his sword and knelt before King Wen to beg for death. He said that King Wen's willingness to listen to his advice was a blessing to the country. It was disrespectful for a minister to threaten the king with a sword, so he asked to be punished. King Wen had just recovered from the shock, but he did not feel dissatisfied. He said that Wanquan was loyal and that there was a reason for such a radical move, so his sin could be forgiven.
However, Huanquan insisted on his opinion and cut off his knees with an ax in front of everyone. He also said that he would never dare to forgive his sins, and shouted that if any minister ignores the etiquette of a monarch and his ministers, this can be a lesson. King Chu Wen was shocked and rushed to rescue him. He later enshrined the legs that had been severed by the Vian Fist in the Imperial Ancestral Temple for self-examination. Huan Quan is already a disabled person, and he is appointed to guard the city gate. For Huan Quan, this can be said to be a supreme honor.
Another incident occurred when King Wen led his army to quell the joint rebellion of the Ba Kingdom and the Yan Ao people. Ba and Chu were once allies, but they were always inseparable, and their conflicts became public when the two armies jointly conquered Shen. From then on, the rift grew wider and wider. Finally, in the seventeenth year of Duke Zhuang of Lu (677 BC), the Ba people rebelled and attacked Yan Ao's territory. Yan Ao fled back to the capital in panic, but was sentenced to death by King Wen. The Yan Ao people were frightened and angry, so they united with the Ba army to resist the Chu state with great momentum.
King Wen of Chu led his army to quell the chaos. He did not want to suffer a tragic defeat due to his arrogance and underestimation of the enemy. He was even wounded by an arrow, so he had to fight and retreat, intending to retreat to the capital and regroup. Unexpectedly, King Wen went through hardships and came to the city, but was turned away by the gatekeeper Wan Quan. Wan Quan thought that the Chu army had been invincible and conquered everything since King Wen took the throne, but he suffered a big loss in front of the weak Ba Kingdom. It's really disgraceful. However, King Wen failed in the battle and the army returned in disgrace. Instead of thinking about turning defeat into victory, they rushed into the city and tried to avoid it. They were so weak, where was the face of Chu State? So Huan Quan refused to open the door, and asked King Chu Wen to lead troops to attack the weak Huang State. At least he won a victory and returned home.
Even though King Chu Wen was furious, he had no choice but to turn his horse around and lead the army to attack Huang Guo. Although the Chu army was newly defeated, its power still remained. He won the battle steadily, restored the decline, and returned to the country with his head held high. within. However, God's will is unpredictable. Unfortunately, King Wen fell ill and died in the army. The victory over Huang State brought a successful conclusion to his numerous achievements.
The bad news soon spread to the country, and Wan Quan fell into self-blame. He shut out King Wen and forced him to work hard in the war. He was undoubtedly responsible for King Wen's death. Wan Quan buried King Wen in his mausoleum and then committed suicide to show his loyalty.
Throughout Wan Quan's life, he lived up to his duty as a minister and lived up to his inner nature as a minister. It can be said that he had no regrets. The direct admonishment of Huquan, with its fierce form and resolute intention, is rare throughout Chinese history. It not only reflects the loyalty of a minister, but also reflects the difficulty of being a minister. The loyal ministers of ancient times often fell into the situation of being trustworthy but doubtful, loyal and being slandered. The reason was that they often wandered between "loyalty to the king" and "loyalty to the country." Once the king becomes incompetent, there will be sharp opposition between the "king" and the "country", and the ministers will be in a dilemma at this time, which often leads to tragedy. Not only was Geng Lie not abandoned by King Wen because of his Feng Quan, but he was able to die with a great reputation. This can not but be said to be a kind of luck, and it also reflects the sagacity of King Wen of Chu.
After the death of King Chu Wen, his son Xiong Yun ascended the throne as King Chu Cheng. Under his rule, Chu State annexed many small countries in the Jianghan Basin and became a large country in the south. Later, Duke Mu of Chu came to the throne, further annexed the small southern countries, and extended his power to the Central Plains. Mu Gongyin came to the throne after killing his father, so during his reign, the Chu State suffered serious internal divisions. After the death of Duke Mu of Chu, King Zhuang of Chu came to the throne. He was a new overlord after Duke Huan of Qi and Duke Wen of Jin during the Spring and Autumn Period.
When King Zhuang of Chu came to the throne, the Jin State took advantage of the mourning of the Chu people to enter into alliances with seven countries including Song, Lu, Chen, and Cai, and regained its position as the leader of the alliance. Faced with this situation, King Zhuang of Chu did not compete with the State of Jin. Instead, he lived a life of arrogance and luxury. He ignored political affairs and gave no orders for three consecutive years, and spent all his time having fun. He disliked ministers admonishing him very much, and ordered: "Anyone who dares to come to admonish him will die!"
Later, a doctor named Wu Ju couldn't stand what the king was doing, and risked his own life to come to dissuade him. According to "Historical Records", when Wu Ju came to remonstrate, King Zhuang of Chu was holding Zheng Ji on his left and Yue Nu on his right. In front of him, the palace band was playing and singers and dancers were surrounding him. When Wu Ju saw this scene, although he was dissatisfied, he did not get angry directly. He calmed down and asked King Zhuang: "There is a bird in Fu. It has not flown or chirped for three years. What kind of bird is it?" King Zhuang realized that he was here to remonstrate, but did not get angry. He just told him: "It has not flown for three years." Fly, it will soar into the sky, it will not sing for three years, but it will sing astonishingly."
However, unexpectedly, in the next few months, King Chuzhuang remained the same, without making the slightest change, and even indulged in pleasure more excessively. At this time, another doctor, Su Cong, could not help but come to advise him. He was prepared to be executed, and only wanted to "kill himself to bring justice to the king." Unexpectedly, King Chuzhuang listened to his advice this time and immediately began to rectify the internal affairs. He dismissed a group of incompetent selfish people and promoted a group of officials who were loyal to the emperor and loved the people. Wu Ju and Su Cong were also promoted.
At the beginning of his accession to the throne, the reason why King Zhuang of Chu did not care about political affairs and indulged in wine and sex was not just for sexual pleasure, but to disguise himself under the cloak of wine and sex, observing everything around him in silence. When the emperor is fatuous, the villain's ugly face is more easily exposed. He used sexual pleasure to distinguish between loyal and traitorous people, and was fully prepared for his "soaring into the sky". Then, this ambitious king began his journey to dominate foreign countries. Chu soon became a country that could rival big countries like Jin.
After the rebellion of the Ruo'ao tribe was put down, the Chu State's order Yin Ziyuejiao was killed. Sun Shuao entered the political stage of Chu State at this time. He is a very talented and courageous man. His grandfather, Jiang Luchen, was once the commander of King Cheng of Chu, and his father, Jiang Jia, was once the Sima of the Chu Kingdom. He was killed by Zi Yuejiao. After his father was killed, he fled with his tribe to Qi Si. According to "Huainanzi: Renjianxun", he once "resolved the water of longing and poured it into the wilderness of clouds and cunts". There are many rumors about how Sun Shuao became Ling Yin. "Lu's Spring and Autumn Annals" believed that he had a good relationship with Shen Yinzhi. The King of Chu wanted to make Shen Yinzhu his minister, and Shen Yinzhi recommended Sun Shu'ao to him. The "Historical Records" records that Sun Shuao was recommended by Yu Qiuzi. Yu Qiuzi resigned from the position and let Sun Shuao replace him.
During Sun Shu'ao's governance of the Chu State, on the one hand, he implemented a governance model that focused on education and supplemented by punishment, "teaching the people, and harmonizing the top and bottom"; on the other hand, he "followed the edict and followed the principles, and was considerate of the country." Sima Qian said in "Historical Records" that laws are used to guide the people, and punishments are used to prohibit treacherous people. He believed that "serving one's duties and following the principles is the first in politics; caring for the country and the country is the best way to describe good history", and he called Sun Shu'ao the first among "biographies of officials". There is a record in "Lu Shi Chun Qiu" that "King Jing sent people to welcome Shu Ao with Wang Yu and thought he was Ling Yin. In the twelfth year, he became the king of Zhuang." This fully shows Sun Shu Ao's outstanding ability in governing the country.
Sun Shuao formulated sound rules, regulations, laws and regulations for the Chu State, but he did not blindly impose heavy punishments and despise moral education. When Sun Shuao was the prime minister of the Chu State, he "choose the order code of the Chu State, the army marches, the right column, the left pursuit, the front is unconcerned, the middle power is strong, the stamina is strong, the officials move like things, the military and political affairs are not alert, and can be used It’s a classic.” A sound legal system enables the entire Chu State, including the military, civilians, farmers, and merchants, to follow the law and perform their respective duties. Under his governance, the people of Chu State lived a stable life, and the country became more and more powerful. King Zhuang of Chu gradually became the overlord of the generation. After Sun Shu'ao became the prime minister, he "loved the beauty of heaven and earth, harvested the benefits of Jiuze, and used it to enrich the country, make his family rich, people happy, and enjoy the entertainment industry."
Sun Shuao made great contributions to King Chuzhuang's hegemony. In addition to his achievements in governing the country, he also made remarkable achievements in other aspects. In the Battle of Jin-Chu-Bi, when King Chuzhuang went to meet the enemy and was leaderless, he ordered the Chu army to attack the Jin army, thus winning this extremely important battle in King Chuzhuang's struggle for hegemony. In addition, he also built water conservancy projects. In addition to the early irrigation projects built in Qisi, he also built many large reservoirs in Jiangling.
He also sent people to build Yicheng. Yicheng was the base for the Chu State to advance northward. The construction of Yicheng enhanced the Chu State's strength in fighting against the Jin State, and prepared the conditions for the Chu State to compete with the Jin State. It is said that King Zhuang of Chu once thought that the coins of Chu were too light, so he asked for larger and heavier coins to be minted. However, the people did not use such a large amount of money in their lives, so they found it very inconvenient and seriously affected the socioeconomic life.
So Sun Shuao remonstrated with King Zhuang of Chu and asked him to remove the heavy coins. King Zhuang of Chu accepted his advice and restored the coins to their original shape. People's lives soon returned to normal. King Zhuang of Chu prepared to raise his army to attack the Jin Dynasty, saying that anyone who remonstrated would be killed without mercy. Sun Shuao risked his life to remonstrate, and in the end "Chu was not in danger, but Jin was in peace." Under the governance of Sun Shuao, the national power of the Chu State developed rapidly. King Chuzhuang, who "doesn't make a sound, but makes a blockbuster" soon became the overlord.
