Chapter 18 Musical Diplomacy of Gentile Friends

The father dies and the son replaces the son, and the brother ends up with the younger brother, which is the basic system of power transfer in feudal society.To the great relief of the ancestors who invented this system, in the 21st century, some countries still use this system.For example, North Korea’s Kim Il Sung was passed on to Kim Jong Il, and Kim Jong Il was passed on to Kim Jong Un. , This is "brother end brother and brother"; and in China, the "second generation of officials" and even "third generation of officials" are growing up vigorously, always ready to be the successors of the cause of socialism.All of this fully demonstrates that this system is viable, can stand the test of time and is applicable to various social forms.

However, this system is not perfect, logically speaking, there is a contradiction between the father dies and the son replaces the brother and the brother ends up - when a man has sons and brothers, should he give priority to A son, or a brother? We can only guess that the ancestor who invented this system lived in a time when productivity was still underdeveloped and life expectancy was short.When a man dies, he may not have a son, or the son may be too young to take on great responsibilities, so it is often passed on to his brothers to maintain the continuation of the family.However, with the passage of time and the progress of society, people's life expectancy began to increase, and their selfishness became narrow. Men are more and more willing to hand over the family business and the country to their sons instead of their brothers.Over time, the death of father and son became the norm, and it became more and more rare for brothers to die.

As mentioned earlier, long before the establishment of the Zhou Dynasty, Zhou Taiwang, the ancestor of the Zhou royal family, liked his talented young son Ji Li (that is, the father of Zhou Wenwang), and wanted to make Ji Li the heir apparent.Wu Taibo, the eldest son of King Tai of Zhou, knew his father's intentions and fled far away to the land of Jingman in the south to show his filial piety and to let the virtuous.The barbarians were moved by his righteous deeds and actively followed him, thus establishing the state of Wu. Perhaps because of its long-term isolation from the world, when the princes and nobles of the Central Plains countries were all fighting for the right to inherit, Wu still retained some ancient customs of its ancestors.In 561 BC, King Shoumeng of Wu died.According to "Historical Records", Shoumeng had four sons, the eldest was Zhufan, the second was Yuji, the third was Yimei, and the fourth was Jizha.Ji Zha was very smart and read poetry since he was a child. He was deeply loved by Shou Meng, and his three older brothers also loved him very much.After Shoumeng's death, Zhufan came to the throne. After only three years as the king, he proposed to give up the throne to Jizha.From Zhu Fan's point of view, the old man liked Ji Zha, so the throne should be passed on to Ji Zha. He was just a transition, and if he stood for the old man's funeral for three years, the task would be considered complete!

Ji Zha firmly disagreed, saying: "You are the eldest son, and the throne should be inherited by you. Who dares to disagree with this? Besides, it is not my wish to be the king of a country, but let me live freely. Bar!" Zhu Fan insisted on abdicating, so Ji Zha simply left the capital and moved to the countryside to farm. Zhu Fan had no choice but to give up. In the winter of 548 B.C., Zhufan personally led a large army to crusade against Chu, and died in the battle in Chaocheng. Yu Ji ascended the throne.According to "Zuo Zhuan", the one who killed Zhu Fan was Niu Chen, the guard of Chao City in Chu State.However, according to an unofficial history book titled "Wuyue Spring and Autumn", Zhu Fan "scorned ghosts and gods and begged for death by looking up to the sky" in order to pass on the legend to Ji Zha. accidents like that.This is also a conceited disease of boring literati. If you must give way to Ji Zha, you can just leave by yourself. Why do you have to be so sad?

Sima Qian didn't stop. He wrote in "Historical Records" that when Zhu Fan was dying, he gave Yu Ji a secret order, asking Yu Ji to pass on the throne in turn until Ji Zha became the king naturally, "to call The meaning of the former king's longevity dream".What does this command mean?It means that Yu Ji and Yi Mo must die early, otherwise, when Yi Mo dies, Ji Zha will almost die, or even die first. In 544 B.C., King Yu Ji of Wu led troops to invade Yue and brought back a group of prisoners of war.One of them was executed by cutting (knocking out his knees) and sent to guard the ship.Not long after, Yu Ji suddenly proposed to see the boat.This is quite strange, think about it, Yu Ji grew up in a water town in the south of the Yangtze River, boats are like carriages in the north to him, they are very common, why did he make a special trip to see the boats?Considering that the guards of the boat all had sharp self-defense blades, later generations would inevitably think that Yu Ji was impatient.

That's exactly what happened.When Yu Ji was watching the boat by the river without any precautions, the Yue prisoner watched him approaching, suddenly pulled out a short knife from his waist, and stabbed him accurately in the chest.This year, seventeen years have passed since Shou Meng passed away. Next, Yi Mei inherited the throne, and after three throne changes, Jizha finally stood at the starting line. In May of the same year, Yi Mei sent an envoy to Ji Zha, asking him to visit various countries in the Central Plains to express the new regime's good intentions for all countries.No one expected that Jizha's visit this time caused a sensation in the countries of the Central Plains, and produced a good story in the history of Chinese culture.

Jizha set off from Juwu, the capital of Wu State (now around Wuxi, Jiangsu Province), and went north all the way, first passing through Xu State. The history of Xu State can be traced back to before the Xia Dynasty was established.It is said that his ancestor Boyi assisted Dayu in water control, and Boyi's son Ruomu was entrusted to today's Tancheng area of ​​Shandong (called Xudi at that time), and Xu State was established.During the period of King Mu of Zhou, Xu State moved to today's Xuzhou area, mixed with the Dongyi tribe, and became the largest country among the Dongyi kingdoms.

Ji Zha was warmly received in Xu State.The monarch of Xu State and Jizha hit it off right away, entertained Jizha many times, and kept him staying for a few more days.It is said that Ji Zha has a sword that he always wears by his side. Xu Jun likes this sword very much, but he has never dared to say it.Ji Zha saw it in his eyes and knew it well, but considering that he was going to be an envoy to various countries in the Central Plains, he must have a sword that fit his status, so he pretended not to know, and planned to give it to Xu Jun when he returned home. The first stop of Ji Zha's official visit was the State of Lu.

Wu Guo and Lu Guo are both descendants of the surname Ji.The State of Lu is located in the Central Plains and was a great cultural country during the Spring and Autumn Period; the State of Wu lived in seclusion in the south of the Yangtze River, isolated from the world, and did not communicate with the Central Plains until the Shoumeng era.In the eyes of the proud Lu people, Wu is a more barbaric country than Chu. Wu people came to Lu to learn culture and receive re-education. Shu Sunbao received Ji Zha on behalf of Duke Xiang of Lu. The two chatted for a whole morning. Shu Sunbao was pleasantly surprised to find that this young man from a barbarian land was not only knowledgeable and quick-witted, but also possessed a kind of personality that is extremely rare among Lu people. vitality.

"Is there a sentence that I don't know if I should say it or not?" When the two of them talked deeply, and it was so late to see each other, Ji Zha suddenly said such a sentence. "But it doesn't matter." "Then I'll just say it straight." Ji Zha sat up straight, "I'm afraid you won't end well! Because you are kind-hearted, but you are not good at knowing people, and you can't see through the good and evil in the world. I heard that a gentleman must be good at choosing people , you are in charge of state affairs in the capacity of Lu Guozongqing, and you are not careful in selecting talents, how can you fulfill your duties? I am worried that you will suffer disaster because of the problem of employing people. "

Hearing Ji Zha's criticism of Shusun Bao, everyone present was shocked.Shu Sunbao's face also changed, but he quickly covered it up and said to Jizha, "You are very reasonable, I will pay attention." Uncle Sunbao behaved very gracefully, but he didn't know that Ji Zha's criticism was not just from the bottom of his heart, but also based on facts.I will talk about this matter later, so I won’t mention it here. Ji Zha visited Lu State and made a request to the Lu State government: he wanted to watch Lu State Zhou Yue.This request is quite right.If a smart person visits North Korea and asks his master to see "Arirang", the master will definitely be very happy and praise him for his knowledge of the goods; An important part, as soon as Ji Zha made this request, the Lu people were overjoyed, and without a word, they held a report performance for him. At the beginning, the two chapters "Zhou Nan" and "Zhao Nan" were sung. This is also the opening remark of "Zhou Nan", which has been listed first since ancient times.Judging from the titles, "Zhou Nan" and "Zhao Nan" praise the literary and martial arts of Zhou Gongdan and Zhao Gongshi in the early years of the Zhou Dynasty. They say that they spread the culture of the Zhou Dynasty from north to south. established a firm rule. Jizha was fascinated by what he heard, sometimes he lowered his brows in thought, and sometimes he struck softly.Yes, that was the era when the descendants of the surname Ji were proud. With the assistance of Zhou Gongdan, Zhao Gongshi and others, King Wu of Zhou shattered the seemingly invincible Shang Dynasty with a wave of his spear.With the establishment of the Zhou Dynasty, the descendants of the surname Ji were entrusted to various places to establish the country. With the painstaking efforts of Zhou Gongdan and Zhao Gongshi, Zhou culture spread rapidly in the Central Plains and even the barren land. firmly established in the hearts of the people... At the end of the song, Jizha seemed to be still immersed in the wonderful artistic conception of the music. It took a long time before he opened his eyes and sighed: "It's so beautiful! The foundation of the dynasty has been laid. Although there are still imperfections, the subjects are willing Serve him with no complaints." The Lu people who accompanied the performance were all thinking: Hey, I can't see that this barbarian from the south is proficient in rhythm, and his comments are very good!Their contempt for Wu Guo began to restrain from this time. The next ones are "Bei Feng", "Gu Feng" and "Wei Feng".Bei, Wei, and Wei are all countries with the Ji surname established in the original Shang Dynasty Wang Ji in the early years of the Zhou Dynasty. They are called "Three Supervisors" and are used to monitor the old nobles of the Shang Dynasty.Later, Bei and Wei rebelled, and Zhou Gongdan put down the rebellion and merged the territories of the two countries into the Wei State. Therefore, "Bei Feng" and "Gu Feng" can be regarded as part of "Wei Feng" in a sense. After listening to this passage, Ji Zha commented again: "Beautiful and deep, although there are worries, but not embarrassing, I heard that the character of Wei Kangshu and Wei Wugong is like this, if I guessed correctly, just played It’s "Wei Feng"!" Wei Kangshu was the first monarch of the Wei State, and Wei Wugong was a figure in the early Spring and Autumn Period, and he contributed a lot in the process of quelling the Quan Rong Rebellion and Zhou Ping Wang's eastward migration.As soon as Ji Zha said this, the Lu people not only didn't dare to despise him, but they looked at him with admiration. Next, "Wang Feng" was sung, which was a piece of music in the Luoyi area of ​​Wangcheng after Zhou Ping Wang moved to the east.Ji Zha commented again: "It's so beautiful! Although I am a little worried, I still have the legacy of the previous kings, and I am fearless. I am afraid this is the music after the royal family moved east!" After listening to "Zheng Feng", Ji Zha said: "Not bad! But it is too trivial, and the common people may not accept it. This is probably the music that the country will perish first!" Listening to "Qi Feng" again, Ji Zha praised: "Beautiful and grand, this is the music of a great country! The only country that can serve as an example for the countries in the East China Sea must be the country established by Jiang Taigong! The future of this country is limitless! " Then listen to "Bin (bin) Wind".Bin is a country established by the Zhou nationality in the early days.According to "Historical Records", during the Xia Dynasty, Gong Liu, the ancestor of the Zhou people, fled to the Rongdi tribe, where he lived together and vigorously developed agricultural production. He was supported by the people and established the Kingdom of Bin. "Bin Wind" is a piece of music composed by later generations in memory of Gong Liu's merits and virtues after the establishment of the Zhou Dynasty.Ji Zha sighed: "It's beautiful! It's broad! It's fun but not lewd. This should be the work of Duke Zhou's Eastern Expedition!" Next is "Qin Feng".Ji Zha said: "This is the so-called sound of Xia. Xia is big, and it is extremely big. This is probably the old music of our Zhou Dynasty." The ancients regarded the west as summer.For example, Gongsun Xia of Zheng State, with the word Zixi, can be a proof; during the Eastern Jin Dynasty, He Lianbo occupied today’s Inner Mongolia and Shaanxi and other places, and the country name was Daxia; during the Song Dynasty, Yuan Hao established in Ningxia today. Daxia Kingdom, known as Xixia in history, can also be proved.In the Spring and Autumn Period, in the languages ​​of Henan and Shaanxi, "Xia" and "Da" were synonymous.The state of Qin was in the west, and the land it occupied at that time was the old land of the Zhou people before the establishment of the Zhou Dynasty, so Ji Zha said this. Hearing "Wei Feng", Ji Zha commented: "This rough music is unexpectedly gentle, and even difficult things can be easily solved. If it is accompanied by good moral character, this is the so-called Mingzhu." Hearing "Tang Feng", Ji Zha commented: "Thinking very deeply! This is probably Yao's descendant. Otherwise, why do you have such distant worries? If it is not for the good character of the ancestors, who can be like Yao? so?" Hearing "Chen Feng", a smile appeared on the corner of Ji Zha's mouth, and he said: "This country has no backbone, how can it last?" Unfortunately, according to Ji Zha's words, sixty-five years later, Chen State was destroyed by Chu State. . After listening to the music of Huaguo and Caoguo, Jizha stopped commenting, maybe because these two countries were too insignificant, and he didn't bother to waste his saliva.Later, the Lu people sang "Xiaoya". After listening to it, Ji Zha said, "That's great. Although I was worried, I didn't half-heartedly. Resentment was not expressed in words. I am afraid this is the movement of the decline of my Zhou Dynasty. Alas, there are still people in this world who firmly remember that they are the remnants of the former king!" Next is Daya. "Daya" and "Xiaoya" are both court music. Ji Zha said: "It's really broad and beautiful music! It sounds ups and downs, but still vigorous. This is the character of our ancestor King Wen of Zhou!" Hearing the "Ode" again, Ji Zha said: "This has reached its peak, being upright but not arrogant, tactful but not humble, close but not aggressive, distant without being dissident, even exiled without being chaotic, repeating and Not tired, sad but not sad, happy but not indulgent. This beautiful character, practiced without lack, magnanimous without boasting, benefiting the people without loss, reaping without greed, standing still without stagnation, moving without wandering The five tones are harmonious, the eight winds are harmonious, the rhythm is measured, and the arrangement is orderly, all of which are reflected in Shanda's moral character!" Hearing this comment, all the Lu people present paid attention to Ji Zha.Because "Ode" includes "Zhou Song", "Shang Song" and "Lu Song", which are all music used in the ancestral temple, Ji Zha compared the ancestral temple music of Lu State with the ancestral temple music of Shang and Zhou, and praised the grandeur of Lu State. Morality naturally makes Lu people feel grateful. This concert lasted a long time.After the singing, dance was performed.The first ones are "Xiang箾" and "Nanzhu", which are dances performed while holding musical instruments and feathers, and are used to praise the merits of King Wen of Zhou.After seeing it, Ji Zha said: "It is indeed beautiful! But there are some shortcomings." King Wen of Zhou laid the foundation for the establishment of the Zhou Dynasty, but he himself did not live to that day, so there are some shortcomings. Then performed "Da Wu", which is a dance in praise of King Wu of Zhou.Ji Zha commented: "Great, it probably looked like this when the Zhou Dynasty flourished!" Next is "Shao Wei", a dance commemorating Shang Tang.Ji Zha said: "It's ashamed to be as grand as a saint, which shows that it's not easy to be a saint!" Shang Tang's elimination of Xia Jie, although it was said to be "doing justice for the sky", was actually a crime of the following, so Ji Zha had this one. Say. When seeing the "Great Summer" in praise of Dayu, Ji Zha said: "It's so beautiful, hardworking and not self-conceited, who else can do it except Yu?" Next is "Shao Ge", which praises Shun.After reading it attentively, Ji Zha stood up and said: "The merit has reached its peak, it's so great! It's like the boundless coverage of the sky, and it's like the omnipotence of the earth. Even if there are any grand and beautiful virtues, it is impossible. If you exceed it, stop here (watch it)! If there are other music, I won't appreciate it any more!" There was no sound at the scene.This was originally the last program arranged by the Lu people, and it was the climax of the performance that day, just like the final chorus of Beethoven's ninth movement, which cannot be added.With his rich knowledge and precise comments, Ji Zha conquered the proud Lu people, and left behind a vocabulary that has been used for thousands of years-amazing. So far, satisfied, don't let your desires never end. Ji Zha finished his visit to the State of Lu and then went to the State of Qi.He met Yan Ying in Qi State, and the two cherished each other and established a deep friendship. "Hurry up and return the fief and power to the monarch. If there is no land and no power, there will be no disaster." Ji Zha said to Yan Ying. "Oh?" "In my opinion, the current political situation in Qi State is not clear. Before the dust settles, the turmoil will probably not stop." The so-called bystanders are clear, while the authorities are confused.Yan Ying went back and thought about it carefully, and felt that what Ji Zha said made sense, and not long after, he returned the fief and power to the office through Chen Wuyu.Twelve years later, the "Luan-Gao Rebellion" broke out in Qi State, and Yan Ying was able to stay out of the matter because he had no power and land, and survived.Of course, this is also a story. After leaving Qi State, Jizha came to Zheng State, and hit it off with Zichan.As a meeting gift, Ji Zha gave Zichan a large white silk belt, and Zichan gave him a linen dress in return.Silk is a special product of Wu State, and linen is a special product of Zheng State. They are not expensive items. The ancients valued affection and despised things. Gongsun Shezhi, the chief executive officer of the State of Zheng, passed away not long ago. His son Hanhu took over as the chief executive officer and became the first among the officials of the State of Zheng. Liang Xiao ranked second, and Zichan ranked third.Ji Zha once again showed his keen political insight, and said to Zichan: "Liang Xiao is extravagant and behaves indiscreetly. Disaster is about to strike soon. At that time, the power of Zheng State will be handed over to you." .If you are in power, you must be cautious and act according to the etiquette, otherwise Zheng Guo will be defeated." Then Ji Zha went to the state of Wei, and had a fierce fight with Yun Yuan, Shi Gou, Shi Yu, Gongzi Jing, Gongshufa, Gongzi Chao and others. About Qu Yuan, who has been introduced before, is a person whom Confucius admired very much, so I won’t go into details here. Shi Yu is famous for his outspokenness. Confucius commented on him that "a state has its way as an arrow, and a state without its way as an arrow", which means that regardless of whether the country's politics is clear or not, Shi Yu can be as upright as an arrow. Prince Jing is regarded as a model of contentment and happiness. Confucius talked about him and said that he was good at living at home. When he had a little family property, he said "almost enough", and when it increased a little, he said "almost complete". , quite rich, he said, "This is really magnificent!". Gongshufa also has some relationship with Confucius.Once Confucius asked others about Uncle Fa: "I heard that the old man is not talkative, laughing, or greedy. Is this true?" The man replied: "This is a misinformation! He should have said Say it when you should, laugh when you should laugh, and take it when you should take it, and no one will find it annoying." "There are many gentlemen in Weiguo, so there shouldn't be any trouble." Jizha came to a conclusion after dealing with these people. Jizha traveled from Wei to Jin, the last stop of his trip to the Central Plains.When passing through Qidi, he planned to stay overnight in Qidi.Qidi was originally the hereditary territory of Sun Lin's father in the state of Wei. In 547 BC, Sun Lin's father defected to Jin, and Qi was merged into Jin.When Ji Zha was about to stay, he suddenly heard the sound of bells and drums.He said in amazement: "I heard that those who launched a rebellion without virtue must be killed. This old gentleman offended his own monarch here. He should have been afraid before it was too late. Why is he still in the mood to have fun? ?” Sun Lin's father heard this from others, and he dared not listen to music until he died. After arriving in the state of Jin, Ji Zha visited the ministers of the state of Jin, and he had a special impression of Zhao Wu, Han Qi, and Wei Shu, and said: "The power of the state of Jin may soon fall into the hands of these three families!" The fact is indeed true. In this way, the three families of Zhao, Wei, and Han were the ones who later divided up the state of Jin. Jizha travels all the way, commenting on the politics and figures of various countries, predicting what will happen in the future, and providing reference opinions for the ministers and doctors. He has become a political McKinsey in the Spring and Autumn Period①, and it is free.When he left the state of Jin, he also said to Uncle Xiang: "Please work hard! Your monarch is extravagant, but your courtiers are excellent, and the doctors are also very rich. If things go on like this, the government will be transferred from the public to the family of the officials. You like to be outspoken, so you must think twice before speaking in the future, so as not to get into trouble!" Jizha came back and passed Xu Guo again, but he didn't expect that Xu Jun had passed away.He ran to Xu Jun's cemetery to worship, and took off his saber and hung it on the tree in front of the tomb. The subordinates said: "Xu Jun is already dead, is there still a need to do this?" Ji Zha said sadly: "That's not what I said. I thought about giving it to him from the beginning. How can I change my mind just because he died?"