Feng Xuan Purchased Righteousness for the Prince 冯谖买义

The following story comes from ‘Stratagems of the Warring States’.

In the State of Qi, there was a certain Feng Xuan who was so poor that he could not support himself. He got someone to request for him to join the household the Prince Meng Chang, desiring to dwell and be fed in his household. The Prince said, ‘What is his hobby?’ He was answered, ‘The guest has no hobby.’ The Prince then asked, ‘What is his special ability?’ He was answered, ‘He has no special ability.’ The Prince laughed and accepted him into his household, saying, ‘So be it.’ His attendants, thinking that he Prince thought meanly of Feng, fed him on the coarsest food. After a while, he leaned against a post, tapping his sword, and sang, ‘Long sword, let us go back. I have no fish when I eat.’ The attendants reported it and the Prince said, ‘Let him be fed like other guests in my household.’ After a while he again tapped on his sword and sang, ‘Long sword, let us go back. I have no carriage when I go out.’ The attendants all laughed at him and reported it. The Prince said, ‘Make ready a carriage for him as for those guests in my household who ride in carriages.’ Thereupon, he rode in his carriage, carried proudly his sword, went over to his friend and said, ‘The Prince Meng Chang treats me like a guest.’ After a while, he again tapped on his sword and said, ‘Long sword, let us go back. I have nothing for my home.’ The attendants all disliked him as they felt that he was too greedy and did not know when he had enough. The Prince asked, ‘Are Mr. Feng’s parents still alive?’ They replied, ‘He has an aged mother.’ The Prince then sent a messenger to give her enough food and supplies so that she should not be in want. Thereupon, Feng did not sing again.

Afterwards, the Prince Meng Chang put up a notice in which he asked, ‘Who among the guests in my households is experienced in accounts and can collect debts for me in Xue?’ Feng Xuan responded that he could. The Prince Meng Chang was surprised and said, ‘Who is this man?’ The attendants said, ‘It is he who sang “Long sword, let us go home.”’ The Prince Meng Chang laughed and said, ‘This guest has some ability after all. I have wronged him. I have not seen him before.’ He invited him to come and see him, and said thankfully, ‘I have been busy with and worried about my works. Moreover, I am naturally a weak and dull man. Being immersed in the business of the State, I may have offended you. Sir, is it true that you do not feel disgraced but have it in your mind to collect my debts for me in Xue?’ Feng said, ‘I am willing to do it.’ There upon he yoked his carriage, arranged his luggage, took with him the tallies and bonds, and before setting off, he asked, ‘When all the debts have been collected, what shall I buy to bring back?’ The Prince said, ‘See what my household has least of.’ He drove off quickly and came to Xue. He ordered his officers to summon all those people who owed debts to come and compare their tallies. When the tallies had been thoroughly compared, he issued an unauthorised order that the debts were to be remitted to the people, and accordingly burnt their tallies. The people exclaimed, ‘Long live the Prince.’

Doing the long journey quickly he came to Qi and on the following morning asked to see the Prince. The Prince marvelled at his speed, put on his robe and cap and granted Feng an audience. He asked, ‘Are all the debts collected? You have done it in such a short time’ Feng said, ‘The debts are all collected.’ The Prince asked, ‘What have you bought to bring back?’ Feng said, ‘Your Highness wanted something that the household has least of. As your servant, I presumed in your household, there are stores of valuable treasures, many dogs and horses fill your stables outside, and many beautiful women are ranged below you. What Your Highness’ household has least of is righteousness. And so I have purchased righteousness for Your Highness.’ The Prince said, ‘What do you mean by purchasing righteousness?’ Feng said, ‘Now, Your Highness possesses the small and unimportant place of Xue. You do not comfort and love its people as if they were your children; instead you make profit from them. Your servant issued an order on your behalf to cancel their debts and accordingly burnt their tallies. The people shouted “Long live the Prince.” And that is how your servant purchased righteousness for Your Highness.’ The Prince Meng Chang was displeased and said, ‘So be it, sir. You may retire.’

At the end of the year the King of Qi said to Prince, ‘I do not dare to employ the ministers of my predecessor as my own ministers.’ The Prince Meng Chang went to his own fief in Xue. When he was still a hundred li (0.5 km) away, the people, supporting their aged and leading little ones, came to meet the Prince on the way. When the Prince saw them, he said to Feng, ‘I see today the righteousness which, sir, you purchased for me.’ Feng said, ‘A wily hare needs to have three burrows and with that, it may just be able to escape death when attached. Now your Highness has just one burrow. It is not yet possible for you to sleep soundly. Allow me to prepare two more burrows for you.’ The Prince gave him fifty carriages and five hundred kilograms of gold. He journeyed westward to Liang, and said to King Hui, ‘Qi has banished its great minister – Prince Meng Chang. The king (duke) who welcomes him first will become rich and his army will become powerful.’ The King of Liang ordered the Chief Minister to vacate his post to become Commander-in-Chief of the army, and sent messengers with a thousand kilograms of gold and a hundred carriages to invite Prince Meng Chang to be his Chief Minister. Feng Xuan hurried on in advance and warned Prince Meng Chang, saying, ‘A thousand kilograms of gold is a valuable present, a hundred carriages are a brilliant convey. Qi is sure to know about it.’ The envoy from Liang returned three times but the Prince Meng Chang firmly refused the gifts and would not take up the post in Liang.

When the King of Qi heard of it, both he and his ministers were afraid and sent the Chief Tutor to present a thousand kilograms of gold, two decorated carriages with a team of four horses each, the personal sword of the King, and a sealed document in which he said the Prince, ‘I have been unfortunate, under the evil influence of my ancestral temple, sunk in the flattery of my ministers, and have offended Your Highness. It’s my entire fault. I wish Your Highness would have regard for the temple of my royal predecessor, come back to the State, and take charge of its affairs.’

Feng Xuan warned the Prince Meng Chang, saying, ‘I wish you would ask for the former king’s sacrificial utensils and erected an ancestral temple in Xue.’ When the temple was completed, Feng reported it to the Prince Meng Chang and said, ‘The three burrows are now ready. Your Highness may sleep soundly and rejoice.’

That the Prince Meng Chang was Chief Minister for several tens of years without any misfortune was due to the good advices and strategies of Feng Xuan.

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冯谖买义的故事来自《战国策》。

齐人有冯谖者，贫乏不能自存，使人属孟尝君，愿寄食门下。孟尝君曰：“客何好？”曰：“客无好也。”曰：“客何能？”曰：“客无能也。”孟尝君笑而受之曰：“诺。”左右以君贱之也，食以草具。

居有顷，倚柱弹其剑，歌曰：“长铗归来乎！食无鱼。”左右以告。孟尝君曰：“食之，比门下之鱼客。”居有顷，复弹其铗，歌曰：“长铗归来乎！出无车。”左右皆笑之，以告。孟尝君曰：“为之驾，比门下之车客。”于是乘其车，揭其剑，过其友，曰：“孟尝君客我。”后有顷，复弹其剑铗，歌曰：“长铗归来乎！无以为家。”左右皆恶之，以为贪而不知足。孟尝君闻：“冯公有亲乎？”对曰：“有老母。”孟尝君使人给其食用，无使乏。于是冯谖不复歌。

后孟尝君出记，闻门下诸客：“谁习计会，能为文收责于薛乎？”冯谖署曰：“能。”孟尝君怪之，曰：“此谁也？”左右曰：“乃歌夫‘长铗归来’者也。”孟尝君笑曰：“客果有能也，吾负之，未尝见也。”请而见之谢曰：“文倦于事，愦于忧，而性愚，沉于国家之，开罪于先生。先生不羞，乃有意欲为收责于薛乎？”冯谖曰：“愿之。”于是约车治装，载券契而行，辞曰：“责毕收，以何市而反？”孟尝君曰：“视吾家所寡有者。”驱而之薛，使吏召诸民当偿者，悉来合券。券遍合，起，矫命以责赐诸民，因烧其券，民称万岁。

长驱到齐，晨而求见。孟尝君怪其疾也，衣冠而见之，曰：“责毕瓿乎？来何疾也！”曰：“收毕矣。”“以何市而反？”冯谖曰：“君云‘视吾家所寡有者，’臣窃计，君宫中积珍宝，狗马实外厩，美人充下陈。君家所寡有者，以义耳！窃以为君市义。”孟尝君曰：“市义奈何？”曰：“今君有区区之薛，不拊爱子其民，因而贾利之。臣窃矫君命，以责赐诸民，因烧其券，民称万岁。乃臣所以为君市义也”孟尝君不说，曰：“诺，先生休矣！”

后期年，有毁孟尝君于闵王，齐王谓孟尝君曰：“寡人不敢以先王之臣为臣。”孟尝君就国于薛，未至百里，民扶老携幼，迎君道中。孟尝君顾谓冯谖：“先生所为文市义者，乃今日见之。”冯谖曰：“狡兔有三窟，仅得免其死耳。今君有一窟，未得高枕而卧也。请为君复凿二窟。”孟尝君予车五十乘，金五百斤，西游于梁，谓惠王曰：“齐放其大臣孟尝君于诸侯，诸侯先迎之者，富而兵强。”于是，梁王虚上位，以故相为上将军，遣使者，黄金千斤，车百乘，往聘孟尝君。冯谖先驱，诫孟尝君曰：“千金，重币也；百乘，显使也。齐其闻之矣。”梁使三反，孟尝君固辞不往也。

齐王闻之，君臣恐惧，遣太傅赍黄金千斤，文车二驷，服剑，封书谢孟尝君曰：“寡人不祥，被于宗庙之祟，沉于谄谀之臣，开罪于君，寡人不足为也。愿君顾先王之宗庙，姑反国统万人乎？”冯谖诫孟尝君曰：“愿请先王之祭器，立宗庙于薛。”庙成，还报孟尝君曰：“三窟已就，君姑高枕为乐矣。”

孟尝君为相数十年，无纤介之祸者，冯谖之计也。

Zhou Chu Kills Three Terrors 周处除三害

The famous story of Zhou comes from the ‘A New Account of Tales of the World’ (Shi Shuo Xin Yu).

When he was a young man, Zhou Chu (240-299) was tough and fond of fighting. Residents of Yi Xing, his home town, both feared and hated him.

At that time there was in the district a terrible monster known as jiao (a kind of crocodile), that lived in the river, and a man-eating tiger that lived in the mountains. Together with Zhou Chu, they were known as the ‘three terrors’ plaguing the people. And Zhou Chu was considered to be the worst.

At one time somebody persuaded Zhou Chu to go and kill the other two monsters, in the hope that he might be killed in the struggle. He agreed to the request. After slaughtering the tiger in the mountains, he jumped into the river and launched an attack on the jiao. The jiao sometimes rose to the surface and sometime swam in the depth of the river, while Zhou Chu followed it for tens of miles all along. Three days and nights had passed, the residents decided that Zhou must have already been eaten by the jiao, and they had a celebration.

At this time, Zhou Chu succeeded in killing the jiao and re-emerged from the river. Knowing that the people were celebrating, he at last realised how deeply hated he had become. So he decided to start a new life, and went off in search of two scholars, known as the Lu brothers, for advice.

Lu Ji (261-301) was out at that time, but his younger brother, Lu Yun (262-303), was at home. Zhou Chu recounted the recent events ti him and said, ‘I wish to correct my behaviour, but I am no longer young, and change will not come easy.’

Lu Yun replied, ‘Confucius once said that if you found out the truth in the morning but died the same evening, you would feel no regret. You are still young and have a life of promise ahead of you. What you should feat is having no goal in your life. If you already bhave one, why worry that you will never come to fame?’

From then on Zhou Chu mad efforts to turn over a new leaf, and later was applauded as a loyal official and a loving son.’

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‘周处除三害’的故事记载于《世说新语》。

周处年少时，凶强侠气，为乡里所患。

又义兴水中有蛟，山中有邅迹虎，并皆暴犯百姓，义兴人谓为‘三横’，而处尤剧。

或说处杀虎斩蛟，实冀三横唯余其一。处即刺杀虎，又入水击蛟，蛟或浮或没，行数十里，处与之俱，经三日三夜，乡里皆谓已死，更相庆。

竟杀蛟而出。闻里人相庆，始知为人情所患，有自改意。

乃自吴寻二陆，平原不在，正见清河，具以情告，并云：‘欲自修改而年已蹉跎，终无所成。’

清河曰：‘古人贵朝闻夕死，况君前途尚可。且人患志之不立，亦何忧令名不彰邪？’

处遂改励，终为忠臣孝子。

Rousing Games in the Bridal Chambers 闹洞房

Ancient Chinese believed four occurrences were the happiest things in life and they are expressed in a poem: a good rain after a long drought, meeting an old friend in a distant land, the wedding night in a room lit with red candles and the moment that one's name appears on a public billboard as having passed a government examination.

In feudal society, the harvesting of crops, to be always closely related to one's hometown, to get married as a symbol of becoming an adult and to gain a position in the government were the most important things by which a man was judged as being a success.

Among them, the wedding night was the most unforgettable experience and over the years many folk customs have evolved to celebrate of this happy occasion. One of the special customs is called ‘nao dongfang’ (teasing the newlyweds, or rousing games in the bridal chambers) in which relatives and friends of the newlyweds made fun of them in their room on their wedding night, asking the couple to act out the suggestions contained in hints being made to them.

The custom originated during the Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 220), and it has continued up to today. It's said that long ago an Immortal found out that a devil had followed the wedding parade of a bride who was being carried in a sedan chair. The devil had then hidden in the couple's room and threatened their lives once all the guests had gone away. The Immortal said that the only way to drive the devil away was with people's laughter. So the couple had to bring a lot of friends into their room after the ‘baitang’ (the formal wedding ceremony) to produce noisy laughter.

The Chinese is not the only race that has a custom of ‘disturbing’ the newlyweds. In the west, chiverie is the wedding night prank to interrupt the wedding couple at night by a crowd clanging pots and pans, ringing bells and horns. Some even play around with the room where they will stay, like spread food all over the bed, put plenty of balloons and hide alarm clock everywhere, they make noise outside the place where the couple spends their first night together, just for fun. In the US, the ‘shivaree’, as it is called, was once very popular and often elaborated into a ritual humiliation of the bride and groom.

An article describes ‘nao dongfang’ in the Qing dynasty as follows:

Soon after the newlyweds have entered the nuptial chamber, all the wedding guests, male and female, follow. To win the smiles of the bride, people wilfully tease her with all kinds of ridicule and jokes. This practice of foolery and frivolity by adults in the nuptial chamber is intended to embarrass the bride and bridesmaid. The guests crack vulgar jokes in bawdy language and make flippant remarks the bride’s appearance. They go so far as to take the rouge and powder off the bride’s face and put it on one another. They do not stop until they have had their fill of wanton fun and foolery.

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中国古代认为人生有四大喜事，宋•洪迈在《容斋四笔》中以《得意失意诗》来说明：‘久旱逢甘雨，他乡遇故知；洞房花烛夜，金榜题名时。’

在封建社会里，谷物丰收、靠近亲友、年长成婚及一官半职，都是一个男人成功的标志。

其中，洞房花烛夜最为难忘，并形成不少风俗来庆祝这个快乐的时辰。一个特别的风俗就是‘闹洞房’；在新婚之夜，亲戚朋友在新娘房内，出题要新婚夫妇照做表演。

这个风俗起源于汉朝（公元前206年至公元220年），延续至今。据说，很久以前，一个神仙发现有一个恶魔跟随新娘轿车队伍，来到新娘房中，等到所有的人都离开后，威胁新娘新郎的生命。神仙说，驱魔的唯一的方法就是人们的笑声。所以这对夫妇在拜堂之后就邀请很多的朋友到他们的房间来发出笑声。

闹新人并不是只是华人才有的风俗。在西方，再新婚夜就有就有‘chiverie’的习俗来干扰新人，以壶及平锅发出声音，摇铃及吹喇叭。有些还在他们的房间里恶作剧，例如把食物在他们的床上散布，四处放气球，藏闹钟；并在洞房外嚷叫，就为了好玩。在美国叫做的‘shivaree’亦曾流行一时，时常成为对新娘新郎的例行羞辱。

一篇文章对闹洞房的描述如下：

‘新妇既入洞房，男妇宾咸入，以欲博新妇之笑，谑浪笑傲，无所不至。……成年者之闹房，其目的则在侮弄新娘及伴房之女，淫词戏语，信口而出，或评新娘头足，或以新娘脂粉涂饰他人之面，任意调笑，兴尽而止。’

Jingwei Fills the Sea 精卫填海

In modern languages the word tragedy is often used loosely to mean a disaster - particularly a seemingly undeserved disaster that strikes unexpectedly powerful people and happy families.

There are two possible outcomes of any tragedy – it is either an unhappy or a happy ending. One of the most widespread assumptions about a good tragedy is that the characters must be subjected constantly to the successive blows of hardship and misfortune and it must have an unhappy ending in order for it to be ‘most tragic’. It is possible for a tragedy to have happy ending for the good after he overcomes numerous difficulties and obstacles. However, some considered such is not a good tragedy.

Tragedy depicts men and women who, dissatisfied with the hand destiny has dealt them, challenge the rules of the game. Sometimes they win, sometimes they lose, but always they demonstrate the power of human spirit to stand against fate or the gods.

Tragedy also pushes the individual to the outer limits of existence where one must live or die by one's convictions. Facing the end of life, a person quickly recognizes life's ultimate values. All the trivial matters which occupy our daily routine suddenly vanish.

The Chinese myth on ‘Jingwei fills the sea’ is widely considered as a symbol of dogged determination and perseverance in the face of seemingly impossible odds.

The Fajiu Hill was two hundred li (a li is 0.5 km) away to the north. There was a lot of mulberry trees grew on it. Among them lived a bird which looked like a crow, but had a colourful head, a white bill and two red claws. Its call sounded like its name: Jingwei.

The bird was said to be Emperor Yandi's youngest daughter, Nuwa.

Nuwa, while playing on the East Sea, had been drowned and never returned. She had turned into Jingwei, and the bird would often carry bits of twigs and stones all the way from the West Mountains to the East Sea to fill it up.

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用现代话来说，悲剧一般指灾害，尤其是看来不应发生却出乎意料地发生在有权力的人的身上或快乐家庭里的灾难。

悲剧只有两种可能的后果，它的收场可以是不愉快的，也可以是愉快的。对于一个‘好’的悲剧来说，普遍的假设是其中的人物应经历连续不断的苦难与不幸事故；同时，为了要达到‘最惨’效果，其结果应该是不愉快的。但是，好人克服了无数困难与障碍之后，也可能会有好的结果。但一些人认为这不是‘好’的悲剧。

悲剧描述人们 – 男的或女的 – 不满命运给予他们的安排而向这些游戏规律挑战。有时候他们赢了，有时候输了，可是他们时时刻刻显示敢于向命运或神灵挑战的人类精神。

悲剧也把人类推向极限，人们必须为了他们的信念而面对生死的选择。面对生命的终结，一个人很快的就认识到生命的最终价值。占据了我们日常生活的琐琐碎碎事务，突然间都变得不重要。

中国神话《精卫填海》（来自《山海经》）被普遍认为是代表了面对看似没有成功的可能性时的坚定决心与坚持。

‘又北二百里，曰发鸠之山，其上多枯木。有鸟焉，其状如乌，文首，白喙，赤足，名曰“精卫”，其鸣自詨。

是炎帝之少女，名曰女娃。

女娃游于东海，溺而不返，故为精卫，常衔西山之木石，以堙于东海。’