After Gou Jian, the king of Yue, destroyed the state of Wu, he prepared a banquet on the literary platform and held a banquet for all the ministers to celebrate the victory of defeating Wu. The musicians also composed music and sang songs to praise Gou Jian's merits in destroying Wu. However, in the happy atmosphere, Gou Jian was not happy at all. Fan Li knew Gou Jian well. He only loved land and property and did not care about the life and death of his subjects. Even if the hatred of the country's subjugation has been avenged and the country is prosperous and stable, he will still not be satisfied.
Sure enough, King Gou Jian of Yue killed Wu's treacherous official Bo Pi, and after stabilizing the political situation of Yue, he asked Fan Li and Wen Zhong to continue to help him complete his great cause of dominating the Central Plains. Fan Li had long seen that Gou Jian, the king of Yue, could share adversity but not happiness, so he wrote a letter to Gou Jian saying: "I heard that the Lord is worried, and the ministers should share the worries with the Lord; if the Lord is humiliated, the ministers should die." . In the past, when he was in Kuaiji, the king was humiliated, but the reason why the minister did not die was to avenge his lord. Now that the king has avenged his humiliation, I ask that the ministers be punished so that the king can be punished for the humiliation he suffered in Kuaiji."
After King Gou Jian of Yue saw Fan Li's letter, he immediately summoned him and asked: "Now that you have achieved high status and have nothing to worry about, it is the time to enjoy wealth and honor, why do you give up so easily?" Fan Li prevaricated and refused. Answer positively. Gou Jian first cried and tried to persuade him to stay, but when he failed, he threatened him and said, "If you really leave, I will kill your wife!" Fan Li had already firmly left the Yue King's heart and would not accept soft or hard advice, so he said to Gou Jian: "Gentleman You should adapt to the situation, have a plan and not be eager to succeed, die without fear of others' suspicion, and don't feel self-deception in your heart. If I quit my job and leave, what crime will my wife have?" So Fan Li left resolutely and went boating on Sanjiang. Above the five lakes. It is said that King Gou Jian of Yue granted Fan Li land to his wife after he left. He also cast a golden statue of him to the right of the throne to show that he did not forget the old friendship and discussed politics with him morning and night.
Fan Li only told his family the real reason for leaving the King of Yue. He said: "A great reputation cannot last forever. If people don't know how to stop it, disaster will happen. Gou Jian can share the joys and sorrows with each other. How can such a monarch be credulous?" Because his family did not want to give up the glory in front of them, they decided to He said: "Wealth is hard to come by. Now is the time to take another step forward. This opportunity is not to be missed."
Fan Li sighed and said: "The difference in one's thoughts often determines life and death. If it is driven by greed, it will be too late to regret it." He fled with his family by sea to Qi State, changed his name, and started a family business. Fan Li was extremely smart and managed things well. In a short time, he became rich. The King of Qi heard about his talent and appointed him as prime minister. Fan Li's idea was beyond everyone's expectations. He said worriedly: "Managing a family can accumulate a lot of gold, and holding an official position can be promoted to the rank of general. If you don't think about retreating, danger will come soon."
Fan Li returned the seal and decided to scatter all his wealth and leave. His family members kept trying to persuade him, so they said, "This is what we have earned through hard work. If we are not greedy or possessive, why should we give it to others for free?" Fan Li said, "I am rich when I am poor, and I am rich when others don't have it. If I just take it, I won't get it." Giving, relying on wealth is unkind, why not give up?" He distributed his family wealth to his friends and came to Taoyi to live a secluded life.
When he first arrived in Taoyi, Fan Li felt extremely happy despite his family's complaints. As time passed, Fan Li began to think about the business plan again. His family members said with resentment: "Everyone wants to be rich, and everyone seeks money. You don't cherish your wealth, and you talk about the uselessness of money. Why bother talking about it today? Is money so easy to make?"
Fan Li smiled easily and said: "The difference between rich and poor depends on the heart. As long as you have the heart, how difficult is it to get money?" Fan Li believed that Taoyi was located in the center of the world and connected in all directions, so it was a good place for transactions, so he made business a career. Seek profit. Fan Li's business strategy was also outstanding. It didn't take long for him to accumulate huge wealth and became the richest man in the area, known as "Tao Zhugong".
Before Fan Li was about to leave Yue, he once looked for Wen Zhong. Fan Li said to Wen Zhong: "The King of Yue will kill you in the future. You should follow me and retire in time." But Wen Zhong disagreed and did not believe that the King of Yue would kill him. Later, Fan Li wrote to Wen Zhong, telling him: "After the birds have been shot, the good bows will be put away; after all the cunning rabbits have been hunted, the hunting dogs will also be cooked. The king of Yue has a very long neck. , The mouth is as sharp as a bird's beak. With such a look, we can only share the joys and sorrows, but not the joys. Why don't you leave?" But no matter how sincere and heartfelt his words were, Fan Li's words were ultimately unfounded, and Wen Zhong didn't believe him no matter what he said. .
Since Fan Li left without saying goodbye, a group of former Yue officials also left the court one after another, and most of those who stayed gradually alienated Gou Jian. Seeing that the situation was not good, Wen Zhong often complained of illness and neglected government affairs. Sure enough, someone slandered Gou Jianjin and said that the doctor had great literary achievements, was arrogant and rude, and secretly formed a party for personal gain and intended to rebel.
Although Wen Zhong explained to Gou Jian in every possible way, Gou Jian never trusted Wen Zhong. Finally one day, King Gou Jian of Yue gave Wen Zhong a sword and ordered: "You once taught me seven strategies to defeat Wu. We only used three of them to capture the Kingdom of Wu, so you can take the remaining four strategies to advise the dead king." Only then did Wen Zhong wake up to Fan Li's advice, but it was too late. Wen Zhong could only lament to the sky: "As the prime minister of Nanyang of the Chu Kingdom, I will eventually be the prisoner of the Yue King. Later generations of loyal and good people must learn from me!" After saying this, he angrily committed suicide with his sword.
Fan Li was well aware of the principle that "when the birds are gone, a good bow is hidden; when a cunning rabbit dies, the lackeys are cooked", so when he sought fame and fame, he was able to retreat bravely and resolutely give up those things outside of him that he could not keep for a long time, thus saving his own life. Living a leisurely life is probably Fan Li's strategy to be superior to others. However, the doctor Wen Zhong did not listen to Fan Li's advice and was greedy for power. He did not have enough understanding of the cruelty and ambition of King Gou Jian of Yue, and finally ended up committing suicide with a sword. The two endings of Fan Li and Wen Zhong also always remind people to adapt to current events, retreat bravely from the rapids, and make correct judgments and choices.
The last overlord of the Spring and Autumn Period——Gou Jian
After the State of Yue annexed the State of Wu, its territory doubled than before, occupying a large area of today's Jianghuai and Qiantang River areas, and its national power also suddenly increased. After King Gou Jian of Yue avenged his country's subjugation and eliminated the Kingdom of Wu, he also began to actively seek hegemony and went north to strive for power like King Wu Fu Chai.
In his interactions with the princes of the Central Plains, King Gou Jian of Yue officially invited Lu and intervened in the struggle for the throne of the Zhu Kingdom, which shows the strong position of the Yue Kingdom among the princes. At the same time, King Gou Jian of Yue also presided over the Xuzhou League and became the new overlord. There is a record in "Historical Records: The Family of King Gou Jian of Yue" that King Gou Jian of Yue "crossed the Yangtze and Huaihe Rivers with his troops, met with the princes of Qi and Jin in Xuzhou, and paid tribute to King Zhou Yuan. The king sent people to give Gou Jian the title of uncle. Gou Jian returned To the south of the Yangtze River, the land on the Huai River is connected to the Chu State, and the territory of the Song Dynasty invaded by the Wu Dynasty is in the Song Dynasty, and it is hundreds of miles east of Lu Si." It can be seen that at this time, the Yue State was on an equal footing with large countries such as Qi and Jin, demonstrating its demeanor as a great country. The military strength of the Yue Kingdom also dominated the Jianghuai River, and the princes from the east came to congratulate the Yue Kingdom. Gou Jian, the king of Yue, built a congratulatory platform, and Gou Jian became the overlord.
Although "Zuo Zhuan", an important historical material of the Spring and Autumn Period, does not record the Xuzhou Alliance of the Yue State, several other earlier documents still mention the Yue State's hegemony. According to records in "Guoyu", "Yue destroyed Wu and conquered Shangguo. The kings of Song, Zheng, Lu, Wei, Chen, and Cai Zhiyu all entered the dynasty." According to another record in "Huainanzi·Qi Suxun": "King Goujian of Yue...shengfu was worse than the five lakes, and he dominated the world from the south. The twelve princes of Sishang all led the nine barbarians to the dynasty." And "The Spring and Autumn Period of Wuyue·Goujian's Conquest" "Wu Waizhuan" also clearly stated that the Yue Kingdom ordered the princes of various countries to participate in the alliance, "Gou Jian sent envoys to order Qi, Chu, Qin, and Jin to assist the Zhou Dynasty and leave in a blood alliance." From these documents, it can be seen that The State of Yue was already on an equal footing with great powers such as Qi, Chu, Qin, and Jin, and even had the upper hand in interactions. The State of Yue's domineering power naturally emerged.
It should be noted that King Gou Jian of Yue demonstrated his ambition to dominate before he was about to destroy Wu. According to the records in "Zuo Zhuan", in the 21st year of Duke Ai of Lu (474 BC), "in the fifth month of summer, the Yue people began to arrive." Du Yu, a native of the Jin Dynasty, believed in his commentary on "Zuo Zhuan": "Since Yue defeated Wu and wanted to dominate China, it first sent envoys to Lu." According to Du Yu's view, the Yue State was about to defeat the Wu State. He actively prepared a plan to dominate the Central Plains, so he sent envoys to the State of Lu to strengthen exchanges. The State of Lu has always followed Zhou rites, so it has an important position among the countries of the Spring and Autumn Period. The strengthening of exchanges between the State of Yue and the State of Lu is also an effort to get rid of its own cultural situation similar to that of the Wu State, hoping to be recognized by the princes of the Central Plains.
After the Xuzhou alliance, King Gou Jian of Yue once again showed his determination to dominate and the super strength of Yue. Because Duke Li of Qin did not obey Gou Jian's order to join the alliance, Gou Jian decided to lead his troops to attack Qin. "The Spring and Autumn Period of Wu and Yue: Gou Jian's Conquest of Wu" records this incident: Duke Li of Qin "was not as good as the king of Yue. So Gou Jian chose soldiers from Wu and Yue to cross the river west to attack Qin. The soldiers suffered. He was afraid of Qin and rebelled against him. , Yue then returned to the army. The soldiers were so happy that they wrote a poem about Heliang. He said: "Crossing the river, crossing the river and Liang, I raised my troops to attack the king of Qin. There was much snow and frost in Mengdong in October, and the road was really difficult to deal with in the cold weather. The troops did not help Qin." The army surrendered, and all the princes were frightened. The sound spread throughout the country that he was powerful in distant states, and Mu Huan dominated Qi Chu Village. The world is peaceful and has a long life, and it is sad to go home without a beam. 'Since Yue destroyed Wu, all China has been in awe."
From this narrative in "The Spring and Autumn Period of Wu and Yue: Gou Jian's Conquest of Wu", we can know that King Gou Jian of Yue once led his troops to prepare to attack Qin. It may be that Qin was afraid of Yue's military strength and blamed itself on the King of Yue, so the Yue army did not fight Qin. It can also be seen from the ballads of the Yue army that the soldiers of the Yue Kingdom have been fighting for a long time and are unwilling to invade Qin for a long time. This may be the reason why the King of Yue decided to withdraw his troops and return to the country. But no matter what, after the Yue State destroyed the Wu State, its strength increased greatly and it was already powerful and powerful among the princes of all countries.
After that, in order to consolidate the hegemony he had gained, King Gou Jian of Yue moved the capital from Kuaiji to Langya, Shandong, in an attempt to command the heroes as a prince in the Central Plains. At this time, it was the late Spring and Autumn Period and the early Warring States Period, and Yue became the last overlord in the Spring and Autumn Period.
The Yue Kingdom destroyed Wu, and the end of Wu and Yue's struggle for hegemony had heralded the end of the great powers' struggle for hegemony in the Spring and Autumn Period, and the history of China's Spring and Autumn Period also came to an end. The strength, prosperity and hegemony of the Yue Kingdom can be seen as the last roar of the Spring and Autumn Period, while its decline, division and demise can be seen as a lament for the advent and rise of the Warring States Period. The country of Yue stood at a turning point of the times, and the great achievements of King Gou Jian of Yue have always been remembered.
