Chapter 45 44 Jing Ke Assassinates King Qin

Qin Wangzheng reused Wei Liao, bent on unifying the Central Plains, and continued to attack other countries.He dismantled the alliance between Yan State and Zhao State, causing Yan State to lose several cities. Crown Prince Dan of Yan State was originally staying in Qin State as a hostage. Seeing that Qin Wangzheng was determined to annex other countries and took away the land of Yan State, he secretly fled back to Yan State.He hated Qin State to the core and wanted to avenge Yan State.But he neither practiced soldiers and horses, nor planned to contact the princes to fight against Qin, but pinned the fate of Yan on the assassins.He took out all his family property and looked for someone who could assassinate Qin Wangzheng.

Later, Prince Dan found a very capable warrior named Jing Ke.He took Jing Ke under his door as a guest of honor, gave Jing Ke his own carriage and horses, and let Jing Ke share his meals and clothes.Of course Jing Ke is very grateful to Prince Pill. In 230 BC, the state of Qin destroyed South Korea; two years later, General Wang Jian (sound jian) of the state of Qin occupied Handan, the capital of the state of Zhao, and marched northward, approaching the state of Yan. Prince Dan of Yan was very anxious, so he went to Jing Ke.Prince Dan said: "Using troops to deal with Qin is like throwing an egg at a rock. It seems that it is impossible to unite all countries to fight against Qin. I think it is impossible to send a warrior dressed as an envoy to meet the king of Qin. Get close to the king of Qin and force him to return the land of the princes. It is best if the king of Qin agrees, but if he does not agree, stab him to death. Do you think it will work?"

Jing Ke said: "Yes, yes, but if you want to get close to the King of Qin, you must first convince him that we are asking him for peace. I heard that the King of Qin had long wanted to get Dukang, the most fertile land in the Kingdom of Yan (in Zhuo County, Hebei). There is also General Fan Yuqi of the State of Qin, who is now in exile in the State of Yan, and the King of Qin is offering a reward for his arrest. If I can present General Fan’s head and Du Kang’s map to the King of Qin, he will definitely meet me. In this way, I will We can deal with him." Prince Dan felt embarrassed and said: "Dukang's map is easy to handle; General Fan was persecuted by Qin and came to join me. How can I have the heart to hurt him?"

Jing Ke knew that Prince Dan couldn't bear it, so he went to Fan Yuqi privately and said to Fan Yuqi, "I have an idea, which can help the country of Yan get rid of the disaster and avenge the general, but I just can't say it." Fan Yuqi hurriedly said, "What idea, tell me quickly!" Jing Ke said: "I decided to go for the assassination. What I'm afraid of is that I won't see the face of the King of Qin. Now the King of Qin is offering a reward for you. If I can bring your head to offer him, he will definitely receive me." Fan Yuqi said: "Okay, take it!" Then he drew his sword, wiped his neck and committed suicide.

Prince Dan prepared a sharp dagger in advance and asked the craftsman to boil it with poison.Anyone who is stabbed with a drop of blood by this dagger will die instantly.He gave this dagger to Jing Ke as an assassination weapon, and sent a thirteen-year-old warrior, Qin Wuyang, as Jing Ke's deputy. In 227 BC, Jing Ke set out from Yan State to Xianyang.Prince Dan and a few guests put on white clothes and hats and went to Yishui (in today's Yi County, Hebei) to see off.Before leaving, Jing Ke sang a song for everyone: "The wind is blowing and the water is cold. Once a strong man is gone, he will never return."

After hearing his tragic singing, everyone was so sad that they shed tears.Jing Ke pulled Qin Wuyang into the car and left without looking back. Jing Ke arrived in Xianyang.Qin Wangzheng was very happy when he heard that Yan sent envoys to send Fan Yuqi's head and Dukang's map, so he ordered to meet Jing Ke in Xianyang Palace. The ceremony of the audience began.Jing Ke held the box containing Fan Yuqi's head, Qin Wuyang held Du Kang's map, and walked up the steps of the Qin Dynasty Hall step by step. When Qin Wuyang saw the majestic appearance of Qin Guochaotang, he couldn't help but trembled with fear.

When the guards around Qin Wangzheng saw it, they yelled and said, "Why did the envoy change his face?" Jing Ke turned his head and saw that Qin Wuyang's face was green and white, so he apologized and said to the king of Qin: "The rough people have never seen the majesty of the king, so they are inevitably a little scared. Please forgive me." After all, Qin Wangzheng was a little skeptical, and said to Jing Ke: "Ask Qin Wuyang to give you the map, and you can come up alone." Jing Ke took the map from Qin Wuyang, carried the wooden box up, and presented it to Qin Wangzheng.Qin Wangzheng opened the wooden box, and it turned out to be Fan Yuqi's head.Qin Wangzheng also asked Jing Ke to bring the map.Jing Ke slowly opened a roll of maps, and when all the maps were opened, a dagger that Jing Ke had rolled in the map in advance was revealed.

When Qin Wangzheng saw it, he jumped up in shock. Jing Ke quickly grabbed the dagger, grabbed Qin Wangzheng's sleeve with his left hand, and stabbed the dagger straight at Qin Wangzheng's chest with his right hand. Qin Wangzheng turned back vigorously and broke the sleeve.He jumped over the screen next to him and was about to run outside.Jing Ke chased after him with a dagger, and Qin Wangzheng ran around the big copper pillar on the court hall when he saw that he could not escape.Jing Ke pressed tightly. The two people circled around like a revolving lantern. Although there were many officials nearby, they were all unarmed. According to the rules of the Qin State, the warriors under the steps were not allowed to go to the hall without the order of the King of Qin.

Among the officials, there was a doctor who was serving Qin Wangzheng. He took the medicine bag in his hand and threw it at Jing Ke.Jing Ke raised his hand, and the medicine bag flew aside. In the blink of an eye, Qin Wangzheng took a step forward, drew out his sword, and cut off Jing Ke's left leg. Jing Ke couldn't stand upright and fell to the ground.He took the dagger and threw it straight at Qin Wangzheng.Qin Wangzheng flicked to the right, and the dagger flew past his ear, hit the copper pillar, and burst into sparks with a "boom". Qin Wangzheng saw that Jing Ke had no weapon in his hand, so he stepped forward and slashed several swords at Jing Ke.Jing Ke suffered eight sword wounds. He knew he had failed, so he smiled wryly and said, "I didn't strike sooner. I wanted to force you to return the land of Yan Kingdom first."

At this time, the warriors who followed him rushed to the palace together, and Jing Ke died.The Qin Wuyang under the steps had already been killed by the warriors.