In 515 B.C., an assassination incident occurred in the state of Wu that shocked history.
In the state of Wu, the king of Wu was invited by his cousin Ji Guangzhi to a banquet. Although Ji Guang trusted Ji Guang, he was not negligent in his security work, and Ji Guang specially brought a group of cronies to guard the house tightly.
These armorers were well-trained and always followed the Ji Wing. Under normal circumstances, even if someone attempted to assassinate, it would not be successful. However, to everyone's surprise, during the banquet, Ji Guang offered to ask a cook recently, and the fish was well cooked, and suggested that the cook serve the dishes himself.
Ji Feng didn't think much about it, and out of curiosity about the fish, he agreed to his cousin's proposal.
After the cook respectfully presented the fish to King Wu, a cook named Zhuan Zhu drew a short sword from the belly of the fish and stabbed it directly at King Wu's concubine. At that time, everyone's attention was focused on the fish, including Wu Wang Ji, who did not expect that someone would poison him.
Therefore, Zhuanzhu's sword stabbed directly into King Wu's chest and took his life. It wasn't until after King Wu was killed that the armor soldiers around him realized that an assassination had just occurred, and immediately surrounded and killed Zhuanzhu.
But their reaction was still slow, and King Wu had already died.
After the assassination of King Ji of Wu, his cousin Ji Guang quickly took control of the entire capital of Wu, forcibly inherited the throne by virtue of his power, and became the new King of Wu, that is, the historical King of Wu.
Wu Wangfucha, the king of Wu who competed for hegemony with Goujian, the king of Yue, was his son. This assassination incident is known in history as the "Zhuzhu Assassination of the Prince", and the sword used by Zhuan Zhu is the famous fish intestine sword in history.
In the entire history of the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, this assassination case is undoubtedly the most famous. From the perspective of the overall historical background, this assassination case had a far-reaching impact, not only directly affecting the succession to the throne within the Wu State, but also determining the outcome of the struggle for hegemony between Wu and Yue to a certain extent, and then affecting the overall historical trend in the late Spring and Autumn Period.
This famous historical event, known as the Assassin of the Imperial Bureaucracy, is believed to be familiar to everyone. In particular, the name of the fish intestine sword is known to everyone. However, there are many people who do not know the story behind this assassination.
Why did Ji Guang choose to fight for the throne by assassination? Why did Ji Guang succeed in taking over the throne instead of being punished after assassinating Queen Wu?
What other far-reaching impact did this assassination case have on the succession to the throne within the Wu Kingdom? To tell the story behind the assassination of the king, we must start with the history of the state of Wu.
The history of the state of Wu can be traced back to the early Western Zhou Dynasty, and it is said that the first monarch of the state of Wu was the uncle of King Wen of Zhou. Back then, King Wen of Zhou's grandfather wanted to pass the throne to King Wen of Zhou, but since King Wen of Zhou was the child of his third son, according to the primogeniture inheritance system, it was impossible for him to inherit the throne directly.
So, after discussing with the second uncle, King Wen of Zhou left the state of Zhou and gave up the inheritance to King Wen of Zhou's father. In this way, the throne can be passed to King Wen of Zhou.
The historical "Taibo Ben Wu" incident tells the story of King Wen of Zhou's uncle who left the Zhou State and went to the southeast region to establish a new country. When King Wu of Zhou overthrew the Shang Dynasty and expanded into the southeast, he discovered that there was already a state in the area.
Therefore, it was only natural that the Zhou royal family gave the descendants of Tai Bo an official canonization and allowed them to settle in the region. This is the origin of the state of Wu. However, for about three or four hundred years, the exchanges between Wu and the Central Plains were not frequent.
This was because the transportation was too underdeveloped at that time, and it took a lot of time and effort to get from the southeast coastal area to Shaanxi. Therefore, for a long time, there was little interaction between the state of Wu and the vassal states of the Central Plains.
In the middle of the Spring and Autumn Period, the two great powers in the Central Plains, the Jin State and the Chu State, continued to compete for hegemony. In order to consume the energy of the Chu State, the Jin State began to look for a country that could contain the Chu State.
Therefore, the Jin State chose the Wu State and provided the Wu State with the advanced production technology of the Central Plains, helping the Wu State to quickly improve its national strength and combat effectiveness, making it a major problem for the Chu State.
This was probably the earliest large-scale military aid in human history.
In the torrent of history, interesting things happened inside the state of Wu. When the Jin State began to aid the Wu State on a large scale, the monarch of the Wu State, Ji Shoumeng, reigned. Ji Shoumeng was an excellent leader, and without him, Wu would not have been able to win the support of the Jin State.
However, as Ji Shoumeng gets older, he begins to worry about the problem of his heir. The challenges he faced were similar to those of his ancestors. Ji Shoumeng had four sons: the eldest son Ji Zhufan, the second son Ji Yusai, the third Ji Yu and the fourth Ji Jiza.
All four princes were talented, but the most outstanding of them was the fourth eldest Ji Jiza.
Historically, Ji Jizha has been known and respected for his outstanding scholarship and outstanding diplomatic talents. His humility and reputation even surpassed that of the Central Plains vassal states, and won widespread admiration.
If Ji Jizha takes over the future Wu State, it will undoubtedly make it develop better. However, it is a pity that although Ji Jiza has a good name, he was born relatively late, and he has three older brothers in front of him.
According to the normal primogeniture system, he seems to be difficult to **.
Hundreds of years ago, the ancestors of the Ji family faced the problem of ** people, and chose the eldest and second to give up the inheritance and leave the country. However, times have changed, and this is no longer the case.
In order to make the fourth child go smoothly, but not let the eldest child, the second child and the third child leave Wu Country and go to a more desolate place, this is obviously unrealistic. Therefore, on the occasion of Ji Shoumeng's death, he made an agreement with his four sons.
According to this agreement, after the death of his father Ji Shoumeng, the boss will take his place. However, when the eldest dies, he cannot pass the seat to his son, but needs to pass it on to the second child, and then from the second to the third, and finally from the third to the fourth.
The brothers of Wu Guo did not have to stay away from their homeland, but also conformed to the primogeniture inheritance system, which solved this problem. While Ji Shoumeng may have foreseen that the four brothers might fight for power after his death, judging by the close relationship between the four brothers, this is unlikely to happen.
In fact, the boss, the old.
The second and third children have agreed to pass the throne directly to the fourth, but the fourth child is unwilling to accept it. However, what Ji Shoumeng may not have expected is that the son's generation may be able to stick to the brotherhood and not turn against him because of power, but when it comes to the grandchildren's generation, the situation may change.
Due to a momentary mistake, which led to the famous assassination case later, after the death of Ji Shoumeng, the eldest Ji Zhufan successfully inherited the throne. He originally planned to give up the throne directly to the fourth brother, but the fourth brother resolutely refused to accept it, and even threatened to be a farmer rather than inherit the throne if he forcibly abdicated.
Therefore, the boss can only temporarily serve as the king of Wu. In the following decades, the state of Wu experienced the process of brothers working together, developing together, and fighting against the state of Chu. In the era of Ji Shoumeng, the state of Wu received large-scale assistance from the state of Jin, and its national strength was rapidly improved.
However, if a country wants to become truly strong, it can never rely solely on foreign aid, but also needs to rely on its own efforts and struggles.
When the four brothers were in power in the state of Wu, facing the dual pressure of the suppression and expansion of the state of Chu, they united and actively responded, making the state of Wu increasingly powerful.
However, the state of Chu also realized the threat of the state of Wu and supported the state of Yue to fight against the state of Wu, which began the process of hegemony between the two countries. Although the state of Wu paid a terrible price in the war, including the sacrifice of many soldiers and the misfortune of the king of Wu himself, they still resolutely rose to the occasion and became stronger the more they fought.
Ji Zhufan, the leader of the Wu State, in 13 years, as the eldest brother, he united his brothers, led the Wu State to advance steadily, and showed a strong and unyielding image of the monarch to the outside world.
Faced with the threat of the Chu State, he resolutely stepped forward and personally charged into battle. Thirteen years later, when Wu attacked Chao, a vassal state of Chu, he died heroically on the battlefield, becoming the first head of the kingdom in Chinese history to die on the battlefield.
After him, the second eldest Ji Yu Sai took over, but his fate seems to be similar to that of his elder brother. In the Wu-Vietnam War, he died after only four years in power, as if the boss's script was repeating itself on him.
In order to balance the state of Wu, the state of Chu began to vigorously support the state of Yue. However, after the Yue country became strong, the conflict between Wu and Vietnam was inevitable. In a war, Wu defeated the Yue and captured many Yue soldiers.
However, while examining the captives, the second child was assassinated by a Vietnamese soldier. To be honest, the second child's death was a bit wrongful, and he could have survived. After the death of the second child, the third Ji Yu succeeded to the throne.
For the next seventeen years, the third child ruled the state of Wu, during which time the state of Wu was further strengthened and became the leader of the southeastern region. At the same time, in the past ten years, the fourth child has not been idle, he has traveled to many countries, established friendly relations with many countries on behalf of Wu, and has been admired by many princes and monarchs.
These countries also knew the story of Wu, and almost all of them believed that after the death of the third child, the fourth child would definitely succeed to the throne and would become a better monarch.
Many years later, when the third child was seriously ill, the fourth child again refused to become the monarch. Although from the perspective of legal theory and public opinion, the fourth child is the best candidate for the throne of Wu, he had already agreed with his brothers decades ago to implement the system of brother to brother.
In addition, the fourth child's reputation is excellent, and the people at home and abroad support him to ascend the throne, expecting him to lead the state of Wu to new heights. However, at this time, the fourth child firmly rejected this opportunity.
Later historians have different opinions on the reasons for the fourth refusal to take the throne, and no one can give a definite answer. When the throne is within reach, why does the fourth child repeatedly refuse?
Even when it was his turn in the end, he chose to give up. Regardless of the fourth child's true thoughts, his refusal raises serious ** questions. According to the normal patriarchal inheritance system, the son of the third child should be **.
However, in the official history, the high-level officials of the State of Wu made a different decision, and the son of the third child succeeded ** and became the king of Wu who was later assassinated.
New Copywriting: However, new problems have arisen as things evolve. The eldest son's son was upset about this. According to the traditional rule of brother to brother, after the death of the eldest son, his son should inherit the throne.
However, because of this agreement, the throne was taken away by the son of the third child. This makes the eldest son feel very unfair. Once this discontent is generated, it can lead to a series of tragedies.
Unless the third son is able to get rid of all his uncles and brothers, he will face competition from other cousins. Because de jure, they also have the right to inherit, and their father was also the king of Wu.
For the next decade, the ruler of Wu was Ji Yi, who led Wu to prosperity and strength, becoming a serious contender for Chu. However, with the rise of Wu, friction and conflict with Chu increased day by day, and wars were fought almost every year.
During this period, Ji Feng, as an excellent leader, successfully fought against the state of Chu and maintained an undefeated record. At the same time, however, forces against Ji were gradually forming within the state of Wu, represented by Ji Guang, Ji's rival.
Although Ji Guang failed to inherit the throne, he excelled in battle and gradually became the military leader of the state of Wu, with a heavy army in his hands.
Although he failed to inherit the throne, it has always been a pain point in Ji Guang's heart, but now he has become a general with heavy troops, and within the Wu State, the power is second only to the king of Wu, which can be said to be smooth sailing.
However, the long period of calm was broken by a key person, and this person was Wu Zixu. Wu Zixu was originally a minister of the Chu State, and his ancestors served the Chu State for generations.
However, his father and elder brother were killed by the king of Chu because of the power struggle within the Chu state, and only Wu Zixu escaped. This experience gave him a deeper understanding and pursuit of power.
He decides to take action and reclaim power that belongs to his family. Therefore, although Ji Guang did not think of assassinating his cousin at first, let alone seizing the throne in this way, the appearance of Wu Zixu changed all that.
His appearance gave Ji Guang a new motivation and goal, and his determination and courage also made him the leader of the assassination operation.
After Wu Zixu left the Chu State, his heart was full of desire for revenge against the Chu State. However, he found that the state of Chu was in a period of strength at that time, and the entire Central Plains region revered the two countries of Jin and Chu.
Wu Zixu had thought of taking revenge on the state of Chu through the state of Jin, but since the two countries of Jin and Chu had already signed an armistice agreement and did not go to war again, this idea could not be realized.
With nothing to do, Wu Zixu thought of the state of Wu in the southeast. Although Wu had just risen, it had become a formidable opponent of Chu and was growing stronger.
For Wu Zixu, Wu was his only hope for revenge.
After Wu Zixu left the state of Chu, he found that the situation in the state of Wu was slightly different from what he expected. Wu Wang Ji showed toughness in the war against Chu, but he had no intention of completely destroying Chu, which was not enough for Wu Zixu.
What he really longs for is revenge, to completely defeat the state of Chu to achieve his goal. Therefore, Wu Zixu turned his attention to Ji Guang, the general who led the army, and he believed that Ji Guang's attitude towards Chu was more resolute, and if he became the king of Wu, it would be more beneficial to Wu Zixu's revenge plan.
So, Wu Zixu secretly took refuge in Ji Guang and planned a strategy for him to compete for the throne.
With Wu Zixu's assistance, Ji Guang's inner reluctance gradually swelled, and he began to accept Wu Zixu's strategy and prepare a detailed plan to seize the throne. Under Wu Zixu's careful design, an extremely tight plan for seizing power gradually took shape.
First, Wu Zixu helped Ji Guang find the assassin Zhuzhu and formulated a detailed assassination plan. Then, Wu Zixu silently waited for the opportunity until he found a suitable time to assassinate.
It wasn't long before the opportunity finally came. At that time, the monarch of Chu died, and Wu took advantage of the national mourning of Chu to send troops to attack Chu. However, when Wu's ** team attacked the Chu State, they were cut off by the Chu State and temporarily fell into a predicament.
Later historians have speculated that this may have been part of Wu Zixu's plan, because only when the main force of Wu was pinned down would the power of Wu's capital decline.
Although this speculation was not confirmed, the defeat of the battle on the front line of the Wu State was undoubtedly good news for Wu Zixu and Ji Guang, because in this way the power of the capital was greatly reduced.
At that time, Ji Guang's two brothers were both commanding the army at the front, and Ji Guang, as the general who led the army and the son of the former monarch, had been operating in the capital for many years and had his own contacts and henchmen.
Thus, in the context of this situation, the opportunity for a successful coup d'état arises.
Wu Zixu's plan was successfully implemented, and Ji Guang, as a cousin, invited Wu Wang Ji to dine in the mansion, during which he had the Assassins hide the dagger in the fish. When Zhuan Zhu approached Ji Yuan, he suddenly attacked and stabbed Ji Fang with his sword.
The crux of the whole plan lies in this sudden attack. As long as Zhuzhu succeeds in killing Ji Wing, then Ji Wing's forces will be leaderless in the capital, and Ji Guang can use his connections to quickly ascend to the throne.
A successful sword killed Wu Wangji, and the result of failure may make all the people involved in the case face accountability and joint sitting. Thankfully, Zhuan Zhu succeeded. No one could prove that he was sent by Ji Guang, so those armor soldiers did not dare to do anything to Ji Guang after killing Zhuanzhu.
On the contrary, Ji Guang acted quickly after confirming that Wu Wang Ji had been killed. In the capital of Wu at that time, Ji Guang's strength was the strongest, and de jure he was indeed the legitimate heir to the throne of Wu.
As a result, he quickly took control of the entire capital and eventually became the new King of Wu.
By the time the news of Wu's capital reached the front, Ji Guang had already grasped the situation. Although there were still some troops on the front line loyal to the former Wu Wangji, they were unable to change the status quo because they were besieged by the Chu state and lost their rear support.
In the end, this Wu ** team could only surrender to the state of Chu. After a successful assassination, Ji Guang became the new generation of King Wu, because of his name, so later generations called him Wu Wang Lu.
This is the whole process of assassinating the royal bureaucracy. It is worth mentioning that after the successful assassination, although Zhuan Zhu was killed by the armor, after Wu Wang Lu ascended the throne, he repaid his family and directly appointed the son of Zhuan Zhu as the guest secretary of Wu State, and enjoyed the wealth of Wu for generations.
In addition, at the time of this assassination, the fourth Ji Jizha was actually alive, but he did not show strong opposition to this assassination, but only went to his grave to cry after Wu Wang Ji was assassinated.
The support of the fourth Ji Jizha had a crucial impact on the ascension of King Wu Lu. In the state of Wu at that time, the fourth child's prestige was extremely high, and if he did not support King Wu, even if He Lu successfully assassinated his cousin, he would not be able to secure his position.
As for why the fourth child supported He Lu, history did not leave a clear answer, but only knew that he was saddened by the murder between his brothers. In addition, it is recorded in "The Legend of the Spring and Autumn Ram" that after Ji Guang assassinated Ji Zhi, he actively promoted the fourth uncle Ji Jizha to the throne, but the fourth child declined this proposal.
In the end, Ji Guang was able to ascend the throne and became the king of Wu.
Although there are few historical records of this assassination, we know that this successful operation had a profound impact on the history of the state of Wu and the entire Spring and Autumn period.
From a domestic point of view, after the assassination, the throne of Wu returned to the line of the boss, and the internal line of the top management also changed from the original warm vein to the unscrupulous struggle for power.
From the perspective of the general background, after King Wu Lu ascended the throne, he intensified his conquest of Chu, and finally under the leadership of Sun Wu, the soldier saint, almost destroyed the Chu State, and it was only because of the intervention of Qin and Yue that Chu avoided the fate of the country.
The real assassination of the royal bureaucrats in history, the seemingly simple assassination case, is actually far-reaching. From this story, we can see the great influence of the background of the Spring and Autumn period on historical events.