Wen Gu chat.
The king of Shang was obedient to his concubine Daji, and played tricks to make Daji happy all day long.
If you eat too much meat, it won't be fragrant, and after a long time, Daji has lost interest in this wine pool and meat forest, and she doesn't smile all day long. This is sad for the king.
On this day, Daji and the king were eating. A small ant climbed on top of the copper pot. As soon as the copper pot was served, it was still steaming, and I saw that the little ants were so hot that they couldn't move on the wall of the pot, and they were scorched after a while. Sister Ji laughed.
Seeing that his beloved concubine was so happy, the king immediately asked what had happened, and Daji told him what he had just seen.
When the king heard this, he immediately ordered a copper pillar to be prepared, and charcoal fire was burned underneath, and the copper pillar was anointed with oil, so that the criminals could walk on it. The copper pillars were so hot and slippery that the prisoners had not taken a few steps on them before they fell and were charred on the charcoal fire.
Daji listened to the screams of pain from the prisoners and looked at their charred bodies, and was very happy. The king used this method to make Daji laugh every day, and named it "cannon branding".
When the ministers heard about this, they discussed the collective advice. When the king saw that his ministers were coming, he ordered them to watch them together.
The ministers saw the tragic situation of the criminals, and also saw the cruelty of the king and Daji, and they were all dissatisfied with the debauchery of the king. Collectively, they persuaded the king to abolish this cruel punishment. When the king heard this, he was upset, so he sent these ministers back.
At night, the king was still upset about the things of the day, and sighed. When Daji saw this, he said to the king, "My lord, I think those people need to be strictly managed, otherwise they will all fall into trouble." In the future, if there is anyone who nagged like this, let him taste the punishment of this cannon branding. When the king heard this, he immediately smiled.
The next day, several ministers came to admonish again. The king was furious and ordered one of his ministers to be tied to a bronze pillar to burn him alive. Although the minister was tied to the bronze pillar, his mouth kept persuading the king, and finally he was scorched alive on the bronze pillar. When the other ministers saw this, they didn't dare to speak anymore.
When the king saw that this cannon was so effective that it could seal the mouths of the ministers, he ordered four copper pipes to be placed in the main hall, and red coals were burned under each copper pipe. The ministers were afraid of this punishment, and they did not dare to speak any more.
From then on, the king and Daji could have fun without any scruples. Drinking and dancing in the palace every day, all night long. King Su never imagined that the people of the world were living in dire straits, and the flames of the people's anger would eventually burn the rotten Shang Dynasty.