During the Warring States period, the various heroes rose up together. In 361 BC, Duke Xiao of Qin ascended the throne. At that time, the State of Qin was isolated in Yongzhou, and was treated as a barbarian by the Six Kingdoms of Shandong, and was not allowed to participate in the Central Plains Alliance and the Conference of Great Powers. Previously, Qin had experienced several generations of turmoil in the throne, the country was weak and the people were poor, the army was scattered and undisciplined, and the people were fighting privately, and the neighboring state of Wei seized the opportunity to seize the land of hexi; the people were ignorant, fathers and sons lived together, and there was no difference between men and women. The country was worried about internal and external troubles, and Qin Xiaogong was disgraced, so at the beginning of his reign, he issued an edict to seek meritocracy and asked for strong Qin people. At that time, Wei Martin ,later Shang Martin), who was in the State of Wei at the time, heard of this order, entered the Qin State in the west, and through the Filial Duke Jingjian jingjian saw the Filial Duke four times, saying that the imperial way, the royal way, the hegemony and the art of power. Xiao Gong adopted the latter, appointed Shang Martingale, and initiated the change. The next thing everyone knows, the Shang martingale transformation method conforms to the trend of the times, making the Qin state rich and strong, changing customs and customs.
However, with regard to Shang Martin's comments, later generations of literati and scholars are inconsistent, praising and disparaging each other's own opinions, and now there are two factions of "Shang Fan" and "Shang Black", and the criticism of Shang Martingale is particularly strong in this. The Shang martingale transformation method not only promoted the development of history and laid the foundation for the unification of the qin world, but also built the prototype of the state apparatus, legal system and economic structure of later generations. That being the case, why is the martingale still tragically split by the car, "two thousand years in the slander"?
Are Wei Martingale, Gongsun Martingale, and Shang Martingale the same person?
Shang Martin was originally a descendant of the Wei monarch and was originally named Wei Martingale. Ji surname, surname Gongsun, so also known as Gongsun Martingale. Later, because of his meritorious service in the Battle of Qinwei Hexi, he was awarded the title of Shang In The Fifteen Yis and was called Shang Jun, and later known as Shang Martingale. Before Shang Martin entered Qin, he was the middle son of the Duke of Wei. The Chronicle of the Shang Dynasty records that Gong Shuzuo recommended Wei Martin to King Hui of Wei (later King Hui of Liang, who later consulted Mencius) before his death, and hoped that King Hui of Wei would "listen to the whole country". King Wei Hui was silent. Because in that era of looking at identity, an obscure and low-status middle-aged man could not be reused, let alone serve as the minister of state above ten thousand people under one person. Gong Shu knew that Wei Martin was a great talent, so he said that if he did not use Wei Martingale, he must be killed and not let him go abroad, so that he would not help the enemy country. King Hui of Wei agreed to leave, and then said to the attendants around him: Gong Shu wanted me to appoint Wei Martin, and he was really very ill. After the king left, Uncle Gong hurriedly summoned Wei Martin, told him about the incident and advised him to leave, otherwise he would be killed. Wei Martin said, "King Pi can't use the words of the king to serve as a subject, and can he use the words of the king to kill his subjects?" He did not leave the State of Wei after all. It can be seen from here that Wei Martin is a person with keen insight, accurate judgment and meticulous logical reasoning ability, and to a certain extent, his gambler personality can also be seen.
Wei Martin saw filial piety in the fourth place
After Wei Martin came to the Qin Kingdom, he was only rewarded after seeing the Filial Duke of Filial Piety. The author believes that this is because Filial Piety and Wei Martingale are two-way interviews, Filial Piety is examining Wei Martingale, and Wei Martingale is also testing Filial Piety. If Xiao Gong was moved by the way of the emperor as soon as he came up, Wei Martin was likely to leave the Qin State and find the Ming Lord in his heart. Because Wei Martin grew up liking the study of criminal names, it was the true color of the lawyer, which was different from the general strategists who catered to the tastes of the monarch. In the commentary of the "Biography of Shang Jun", Sima Qian said that Shang Martin was a mean person in his bones, saying that he used the way of the emperor to lobby filial piety, which was nothing more than a false and exaggerated statement, pretending. This is a loophole in Tai Shi Gong. The main text of the biography records that after The Duke of Filial Piety chose "skill", Shang Martin lamented that "it is difficult to compare virtue with Yin Zhou", that is, it is difficult to compare with the virtues of Yin and Zhou, how can it be "hostage-grabbing floating theory"? The contradiction between the appraisal and the main text is understandable, because the main text of the "History" is an objective narrative of history, and "Taishi Gongyue" is Sima Qian's "family words". However, anyone who has read the original text of the "Biography of the Shang Jun" knows that Sima Qian is too excited here to control himself.
As the lyricist and father of history, Sima Qian's views on history and the evaluation of characters are of great importance. In the Taishi Gongjue praise of the "Biography of the Shang Emperor", Sima Qian labeled Shang Martin as "mean and young". He listed various "crimes" of Shang Martin, in addition to the "hijacking floating theory" mentioned above, there were also "because of the courtiers", "the criminal prince pious", "the deception of wei generals", and "the words of zhao liang".
Execution
Some people ridicule Sima Qian as shangmartin's biggest black powder. This sentence is not false. But if we combine Sima Qian's life and thoughts, we can understand why he hated Shang Martin so much. Mr. Han Zhaoqi said: "Out of his personal tragic experience, the author (Sima Qian) is disgusted by Shang Martin, a figure of the Fa, which is the same kind of bias as his treatment of Wu Qi and Chao. Sima Qian's tragic experience of being tortured by the palace and his adherence to Confucianism made him grit his teeth in hatred for Shang Martin, a cruel official of the Dharma. Of course, misunderstandings also come from the limitations of the times. Judging from the Qin Jian unearthed in Today's Yunmeng Sleeping Tiger Land in Hubei Province, "the Qin Law is actually not as harsh as the Historical Records and the Book of Han and other historical books say, and the degree of completeness of the crime law is comparable to the Tang Law" (Hori Yi's "Examination of the History of the Qin and Han Legal System"). Sima Qian said that he had read the Book of Shangjun, "Kaisai" and "Cultivation War", and its content was similar to that of Shang Martin itself (presumably referring to cruelty and meanness). The "Outline of the Four Libraries", Mr. Qian Mu and Mr. Hu Shi examined that the "Book of Shangjun" was a fake book (see Qian Mu's "Pre-Qin Descendants Annual Examination and Shang Martingale Examination", Hu Shi's "Outline of the History of Chinese Philosophy") was already modern. Sima Qian did not come into contact with the correct historical materials, resulting in a wrong understanding, and later generations have mastered some historical facts, based on which the prejudice against Shang Martin must be corrected.
Justify the name of the martingale
The interpretation of historical events and historical figures must be placed in the environment of the time, which is a correct methodology for understanding history. During the Warring States period, a hundred schools of thought contended, "Confucianism advocated the happiness of the people, Taoism emphasized the freedom of the people, and the Legalists pursued the strength of the country" (Bao Pengshan). Benevolence will never become obsolete, but it is a goal, an ideal, not a means. Technique is the means. Therefore, the Ming Emperor expanded the land and strengthened the country, and the wise king obeyed the ceremonies and the people, which was said to be the first king and then the saint. Moreover, in the world of great strife, the law of the jungle is pursued, the weak eat the strong, and the legalists emphasize judging the hour and sizing up the situation, and are keen on reform, so they are most suitable for the Warring States. As for some people who say that measures such as the shang martingale changing the law and severe punishment led to the fall of Qin II, they did not realize that shang martingale opened up a "wartime rule of law society". The fundamental purpose of the Shang Martingale Transformation Law is to solve the current practical contradictions of the Qin State, and its measures can only be used when the Qin unifies the world. It was the rulers of later generations who were immersed in the pleasure of enjoying the despotic power and could not extricate themselves, and did not make timely adjustments to the policies to adapt to the times, which eventually led to the rapid demise of the Qin Empire.
The most crucial point, and the one that is easy to overlook, is that the decree of the Martingale is a full implementation of the monarch's will, and behind him stands the supreme king. He is the king's "dry city", "good enemy", "heart", and the fighter who braved the thorns and the waves in front of the chariot of reform. After King Huiwen of Qin ascended the throne, the car split the Shang martingale, on the one hand, perhaps because the Shang martingale had high power and high merit, and the new monarch was on the throne, and it was urgent to improve his prestige and maintain his power. Moreover, the Shang martingale has completed the transformation of the law, and it has lost its value for the Qin State. Or take advantage of Shang Martin's death to further suppress the restoration forces, or balance the contradictions between them and the reformers, so as to protect the new law and stabilize the rule. This can't help but make people sigh that "every law changer is destroying himself while creating history." A reformer like Shang Martin, who has a sense of the overall situation, is sincere and enthusiastic, and is extremely indispensable, deserves the respect and praise he deserves.