During the Spring and Autumn Period, the state of Chu left behind many allusions, the most famous one being the story of Bian He’s offering of precious jade. After three generations of kings of Chu, the jade was finally accepted by the king’s palace and carved into a valuable piece of jade. -The jade was finally accepted by the king’s palace and carved into the valuable Heshibi. In addition, there is a story about King Wen of Chu, who was taught a severe lesson before he transformed from a playboy to a wise ruler.
One year, King Xiong Ming of Chu got a good hunting dog and a bow and arrow, so he took them to Yunmengze to hunt. The hunting dog was named “Ru Huang”, which was very fierce; the bow and arrows were made of bamboo called “Wan Lu”. King Wen of Chu went away and did not return for three months. He also got a beauty in Dandi and indulged in sex for a while, and did not go to court for a year.
Bao Shen, who assisted King Wen, said, “The previous king made me a tai po through divination, and the trigrams indicated good fortune. Now, you, my lord king, have been given the hounds of Ruhuang and the arrows of Wanlu, and you go hunting and do not return for three months. You were given a beautiful girl from Dandi, and you indulged in sex and did not attend the court for a year. The king is guilty and should be flogged.”
Taibao, the same as Tai Bao, was the name of the official position, which was set up from the Zhou Dynasty, responsible for guarding and educating the young princes. The original meaning of Bao Bao was to guarantee the prince and the son of heaven to further their virtue and righteousness. When King Wen of Chu was young, his father, King Wu of Chu, hired him from the state of Shen to educate the princes of Chu.
King Wen of Chu, who had always respected Bao, said, “I have been a vassal since I left my infancy. I hope you will please change the punishment and not whip me.”
Bao Shen said, “I am under the command of the previous king and dare not abandon it. If the king does not accept the flogging, he is disregarding the order of the previous king. I would rather be sinned against by the king than by the previous king.” King Wen of Chu had no choice but to accept the punishment.
Bao Shen spread out a mat and asked King Wen to lie down on it. Bao Shen tied fifty thin thorns together, placed them on King Wen’s back on his knees, picked them up again, did this twice, and said to King Wen of Chu, “Great King, please get up!”
King Wen of Chu said, “Receiving a whipping should be worthy of the name, so please simply beat me!”
Bao Shen said, “I have heard that when a gentleman is chastised, he feels shame; when a villain is beaten and punished, he only feels the pain of flesh and blood. If he has a sense of shame and still cannot correct himself, what is the point of making him suffer the pain of flesh and blood?”
When Bao Shen finished speaking, he left at a brisk pace, believing that he had offended the king and was already guilty of a capital offense, so he banished himself to the water’s edge and asked King Wen to punish him to death. King Wen of Chu said, “This is my fault, what is the crime of Bao Shen?”
So King Wen of Chu recalled Bao Shen, killed Ru Huang’s hunting dog, broke Wan Lu’s arrows, and sent all the beauties away, and from then on, he encouraged his rule.
After the death of King Wu, King Wen was in charge of the army. After the death of King Wu, King Wen was in charge of the army. King Wen opened up the territory and conquered for a long Time, but the government of Chu was handled by the minister who stayed behind.
King Wen of Chu annexed thirty-nine small vassal states, created the county system, moved the capital to Ying, and became a great master of his generation. The Lü’s Spring and Autumn Annals attribute the expansion of Chu’s territory to the power of Bao Shen’s advice, who advised King Wen of Chu and laid the foundation for the strength of Chu.
Source: Lu Shi Chun Qiu – Gui Zhi Lun, Volume 23
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