Romance of the Three Kingdoms (vol. 1)

by Luo Guanzhong

  5.5.d. Age of Darkness: It must be borne in mind that the states through which Confucius traveled were shrouded in ignorance. The moral standard of the people was low: Between the states there were intrigues of all kinds. Polygamy among the nobles gave rise to endless trouble. Monarchs often lost their lives at the hands of their own children, and murder was frequently resorted to by an ambitious prince to put his brothers or half-brothers out of the way. A famous cook, in order to obtain favor with his sovereign, killed his own son and prepared his flesh as food. It was not uncommon for the ruler of a stronger state to wage war against a weaker one for the purpose of capturing a beautiful queen. If any reform was needed in a world of disorder and crimes of this kind, it certainly was in the matter of morality.

  5.5.e. Confucianism: Confucius never sought to explain anything new, but to reinstate the old in a pure form. "He sought to guide his fellows by holding up to them the wisdom and virtue of the ancients. His teaching was purely ethical and practical, confined to the daily life of humans as members of the state and of their family. He spoke little of God, and he avoided talking about the supernatural. For this reason it is often said that he cannot be called a religious teacher, but only a moral philosopher, and that Confucianism is rather a system of morality than religion."

  5.5.f. Influence of Confucianism: "Among the virtues demanded by the Confucian ethics, propriety, reverence for tradition, and filial piety are the most important." The last especially is the foundation upon which have stood the social life and security of the Chinese structure. Filial piety not only means dutiful behavior of children towards parents, but it also includes loyalty to the government and respect for authority. Again, "lack of bravery in battle is no true filialty."

  "These precepts have molded Chinese society for more than two thousand years. No other reformer has held such absolute sway over a great part of humanity for such a long period." Unfortunately, Confucianism has been corrupted to a great extent by the commentaries and interpretations of Zhu Xi and his school. These commentaries and interpretations are dark clouds in a beautiful summer sky.

  5.5.g. Mencius: "Mencius was also born in the feudal state of Lu (372 BC). While Confucius did not claim to be an originator but only a transmitter, Mencius was an independent and original thinker. He expounded the teachings of his Master, and also added his own reflections on the nature of human. He held an extremely optimistic view as to the original goodness of human nature, and believed that it was possible for humans by their own efforts to reach the state of perfection. He is regarded by the Chinese as being second to Confucius." (Pott's "A Sketch of Chinese History.")

  5.5.h. Sinzi: Sinzi was also a follower of Confucius, but held a view entirely different from that of Mencius as regards the nature of human. According to him, human nature is bad, and it is only by living in accordance with the requirements of righteousness and politeness that human can become good.

  5.5.i. Mozi: This teacher was a native of the feudal state of Song but the dates of his birth and death are not known. He is said to have been one of the disciples of the Great Sage. His teaching is entirely antagonistic to Confucianism. The main point of contention was on the Funeral Rites. Confucianism is silent respecting the immortality of the soul, and considers death as the end of a person, and funeral rites as the last honor one can do to his parents or sovereign. But according to Mozi there is something immortal after death, and funeral rites are a waste of money. Perhaps he was right.

  He, however, mentioned no recompense for the good, or punishment for the bad. In other respects his system is a close approximation at Christianity. He taught self-sacrifice for the good of humankind and sanctioned the "destruction of one's self from head to foot for the benefit of the world." His system gained many adherents at one time, but received a fatal blow at the hands of Mencius. His philosophical writings have been preserved to the present day.

  5.6. Ancient Society, Laws, and Customs

  5.6.a. Divisions: Four classes of people were recognized in the days of the Zhou rulers, viz., scholars, husbandmen, mechanics, and merchants. A son necessarily followed the calling of his father. Only the scholars were eligible to government offices which were more or less hereditary. Thus the office holders and the educated formed the noble class and the rest were commoners. The saying of the time was "no penal code was ever above a noble while no ritual was below a commoner." It appears from the Spring and Autumn Classic that the only punishments which were received by nobles of those days, according to the nature of their crimes, were death, imprisonment, and banishment.

  5.6.b. Eunuchs and their origin: The Zhou Dynasty is commonly credited with having introduced the custom of keeping eunuchs. The fact is, eunuchs had existed for centuries before the family became supreme in China.

  "This class of men seems to have originated with the law's severity rather than from the callous desire on the part of any reigning house to secure a craven and helpless medium and means for pandering to, and enjoying the pleasures of the harem without fear of sexual intrigue. Criminals whose feet were cut off were usually employed as park-keepers, simply because there could be no inclination on their part to gad about and chase the game. Those who lost their noses were employed as isolated frontier pickets where no children could jeer at them, and where they could better survive their misfortune in quiet resignation. Those branded in the face were made gate-keepers, so that their livelihood was perpetually marked out for them. It is sufficiently obvious why the castrated were specially charged with the duty of serving females in a menial capacity. Eunuchs were so employed because they were already eunuchs by law."

  Since the abolition of the law, 197 BC, however, men have been purposely made eunuchs in order that their services as menials could be conveniently rendered.

  5.6.c. Publication of written laws: While various forms of punishment had been provided for, there had been no written laws published for the information of the public. The "Son of Heaven" (emperor) was the law giver and executive; and this sacred authority he could bestow on any one of his ministers.

  The first publication of laws was made in the year 536 BC in the feudal state of Cheng. Zi Zhan, who thought it advisable to cast the laws in metal for the information of his people, was a good friend of Confucius.

  In the latter part of the Zhou Dynasty, there had grown up a party who advocated the enforcement of severe laws as the only means of securing peace in an empire. This party is known as "Legalists," among whom Wei Yang was preeminent. He was a native of Wei, but was obliged to enter the service of Qin, and tradition makes him author of many cruel forms of punishment provided for in the penal code of the latter state.

  5.6.d. Polygamy: Polygamy has not only existed in China, but has been legalized by Confucianism. During the fifth and sixth centuries BC, it was customary for a feudal chief to marry his daughter to another chief with many of her cousins or other relatives as maids (the number went up as high as nineteen), so that in case she should die one of them would succeed her at the head of the harem.

  The practice of making concubines wives was almost universal among the states. For over two thousand years no one seems to have regarded this evil as sin, and much less, as a crime, until one Li Kui, a legalist and statesman of Wei in the time of the Seven States, saw fit to declare polygamy a crime punishable by death. While this has been the basis of later legislation, law had never been stronger than Confucianism. The reason why Confucianism sanctions polygamy lies in a belief that death without an heir is a sin unpardonable.

  5.6.e. Divorce: The ancients sanctioned seven reasons why a husband could divorce his wife, including inability to bear a child. How far divorce was actually effected on this ground, we are not informed. It must not be understood that divorce in those days required legal proceedings as it now does. All the husband had to do to get rid of an undesirable wife was to expel her by force. On the other hand, no ground ever existed in law for a wife to break away from a wretch!

  5.6.f. Respect for the ol
d: The government of the Zhou Dynasty may be described as follows: a father was supreme in a family, a king in a state, and old age in a village. Every three years the people of each village met, when a banquet was given, presided over by a representative of the Crown and with guests of honor seated according to their ages. This was one of the most solemn occasions and detailed rituals were prescribed and followed.

  5.6.g. Religion: Before the introduction of Buddhism into China (65 AD) no religion in the true sense of the word was in existence among the ancients. As already stated, Confucianism is not a religion but a system of morality. "No word for religion was known to the language; the notion of church or temple served by a priestly caste had not entered human's mind." (Parker's "Ancient China Simplified.")

  That the ancients had some knowledge of God, history abundantly attests. His worship, however, was one of the prerogatives of the reigning house or family; and, as "Son of Heaven," the king alone could offer sacrifice to the Highest Divinity on behalf of his nation. Lesser ranks worshipped lesser divinities, such as the elements of nature, mountains, and streams. The worship of the common people was confined to their own ancestors. It must be noted also that what the ancients did in the way of worship was nothing more than the performance of prescribed rituals, such as that of sacrifices and prayers.

  5.6.h. Burial of companions to the dead: This evil custom was almost universal during the sixth and seventh centuries BC. In the Book of Odes, we read an account of the funeral of Duke Mu of Qin. Before his death, he had decreed that three of the ablest ministers of the time (brothers) should be interred with him. Although the nation did not approve of the choice thus made, yet the decree was faithfully carried out, and the three "good men of Qin" accompanied the remains of Duke Mu to their last resting place.

  5.6.i. Education and literature: There was a very good educational system with schools for the nobles as well as for the common people. There was a primary school for every 25 families; a higher school for every 500 families; and a college for every 12,500 families. Children were of school age when they reached their eighth years. The higher branches of learning consisted of (1) rituals, (2) music, (3) archery, (4) horsemanship, (5) literature, and (6) mathematics. In other words, education embraced moral, military, and intellectual training.

  "It is the father's fault if at the binding of the hair (eight years of age) children (mostly boys) do not go to the teacher; it is their own fault if after having gone to the teacher they make no progress; it is their friends' fault if they make progress but get no repute for it; it is the executives' fault if they obtain repute but no recommendation to office; it is the prince's fault if they are recommended for office but not appointed."

  In the pre-Confucian period, books were comparatively few. The best known are the Book of Record, Book of Odes, Book of Change, Rites of Zhou, and Guanzi (or Kuan Tze) or Political Economy. Books were made of bamboo slips and the characters were painted on them. Interstate correspondence was confined to a small area in the north, but the dialectical barrier was gradually overcome, and by the time of Mencius, even Chu could boast of its literary renown. The State of Qin never produced any famous literary person. In fact, those who did anything for her were all aliens. The period of the Seven States was a golden time in Chinese literature. The influence of the Perpendicular and Horizontal diplomats upon Chinese literature has been permanent and beneficial.

  5.6.j. Astronomy and calendar: From the earliest times, the Chinese month has been lunar, that is, the days of the month are so arranged as to begin each new month with a new moon. The ancients had learned to divide the heavenly bodies into constellations and to observe the zodiacal signs.

  5.6.k. Science and arts: The science of medicine and surgery were developed to a considerable extent under the Zhous. It was the first dynasty that had official doctors and surgeons. During the feudal period, however, Qin surpassed the rest of China in the number of able physicians it possessed.

  During the days of Yao, the ranks of officials were denoted by the objects painted on their official costumes; such as the sun, moon, stars, constellations, dragons, and other animals. Among the Zhou officials, we find people whose function was to paint official garments. The three dynasties of Xia, Shang, and Zhou had all made use of jade or malachite rings, tablets, scepters, and so on as marks of official rank.

  Silk was universally known. That the women were mostly engaged in rearing silkworms, the Book of Odes abundantly testifies. Even the queen had to set an example in this industry at appointed times each year if she did not have to do the actual work. No cotton was known, so the poorer classes wore garments of hempen materials. In the cold weather, furs were used. Dyeing too was largely practiced.

  The Zhou Dynasty had regularly appointed officials whose business was to teach the people how to take ores out of the mines and to manure their land; but as to how far this useful knowledge had been acquired, we have very little information.

  Historians agree that the Shang mechanics were the best. This belief seems to have been based upon a statement of Confucius that he preferred the state carriage of the Shang Dynasty because of its workmanship.

  6. The Qin Dynasty (221-206 BC)

  6.a. General statement: We have seen that the Chinese established themselves first in tribal groups here and there along the course of the Yellow River at a remote period. In course of time the tribal government developed into a feudal system with hundreds of petty states scattered throughout the land which they called the Middle Kingdom. The next movement was towards consolidation which reduced the number of states to seven. The union of the Seven States into one homogeneous whole was inevitable, and finally came in 221 BC as the result of the statesmanship of Prince Zheng of Qin. While his dynasty lasted only fifteen years, still he left many permanent traces of his rule.

  6.b. His early life: Very little is known of his early life, save that he inherited his father's princely throne at a very tender age. Tradition says that Prince Zheng was not the son of Zhuang Xiang Wang, his reputed father. The latter, as the story goes, had been held as a hostage in the state of Zhao. While there he met a wealthy merchant named Lu Puwei, who, pretending to show his devotion to the young prince, made him take to wife a beautiful woman, already pregnant.

  It seems that this story was of later invention, and the work of personal prejudice. At any rate the son to whom Zhuang Xiang Wang's wife gave birth was one of the greatest empire builders of antiquity. During his minority, Lu Puwei was his first prime minister and in that capacity exercised much of the royal power.

  6.c. Conquest of the six states: The Zhou Dynasty with its eight-hundred years of power was already a thing of the past when Prince Zheng became king of the state of Qin. The last representative of the family of Zhou had already been made away with by one of his predecessors. The work that was left for him to accomplish, therefore, was not the overthrow of the ruling house but the conquest of the six sister states.

  The policy pursued by Prince Zheng, or rather by his statesmen and generals, is best summed up in a statement of Xu Dai, a contemporary politician. "This morning," said he, "when crossing the river, I saw a mussel open its shell to sun itself. Immediately an oyster catcher thrust its bill in to eat the mussel; but the latter closed its shell and held the bird fast. 'If it doesn't rain today or tomorrow,' cried the oyster catcher, 'there will be a dead mussel.' 'And if you don't get out of this by today or tomorrow, there will be a dead oyster catcher,' retorted the mussel. Meanwhile up came a fisherman and carried off both of them. I fear that the state of Qin will some day be our fisherman."

  In other words, Qin played off one state against another till they were all exhausted and then conquered them one by one. Han, the smallest of the states, was annexed first and the rest were added in the following order: Wei, Chu, Zhao, Yan, and Qi, the last being the easternmost state.

  6.d. Shi Huangdi, or the First Emperor: Prince Zheng made a new title for himself. This title, Huangdi, signifies in his own words, that "
the holder is equal to the Three Divine Rulers in virtue and the Five Emperors in achievements." It was retained by his successors down to the last of the Manchus, and has been rendered "emperor" in English. He also discontinued the practice of giving a deceased ruler a posthumous name. He decreed that thenceforth he was to be known as Shi Huangdi, or First Emperor, his immediate successor, Er Shi, or Second Emperor, and so on even down to the ten-thousandth generation.

  As regards the name of his dynasty, he let it be known under the old name of his state. "It is interesting to note," says the author of "A Sketch of Chinese History," "that the name China is probably derived from this name, Qin (pronounced Ch'in), for the first westerners who knew anything about the Chinese, spoke of them as the people of the land of Ch'in, which afterwards became the word 'China.'"

  6.e. End of feudalism: Having built an empire on the ruins of the old feudal system, the question arose as to how this huge territory should be governed. The majority of the statesmen, the slaves of tradition, would have partitioned it out among a number of feudal lords as had been the custom with the Zhous. Such an idea, of course, was offensive to a man who wanted history to begin anew with himself. Divided it must be, but there must be no feudal lords.

  Accordingly, Shi Huangdi divided it into thirty-six provinces, each of which was subdivided into districts, governed by agents directly responsible to him. One agent looked after civil matters, another after military affairs, and a third acted as a sort of inspector or intelligence officer of the Throne. Such was the form of government he introduced, and such has been the form of government that has come down to modern times, although in two thousand years, it has undergone many changes in name and detail. All ownership of land and its inhabitants was vested in Shi Huangdi.