"Soldiers die for confidants, women for those who please themselves" is a phrase that everyone is very familiar with, which means that men will sacrifice for those who know and appreciate themselves; women will dress up carefully for those who like themselves or like themselves. However, most people may not think that this ancient song actually came from an assassin more than two thousand years ago, whose name was Yu Rang.
Yu Rang lived in the Jin Dynasty about 2500 years ago. At that time, the Jin state was controlled by six major families, namely: the Fan clan, the Zhongxing clan, the Zhi clan, the Han clan, the Zhao clan, and the Wei clan, collectively known as the "Six Secretaries of the Jin Dynasty". Yu Rang was originally a vassal of the Fan clan.
Yu Rang has ambitions and ambitions, and is bent on using what he has learned in his life to serve the Lord, but Fan Shi does not value Yu Rang's ability, although Yu Rang has been under his command for many years, but has not been able to enter Fan's core team. Yu Rang thought that it would be no longer interesting for him to continue to stay in the Fan family, so he switched to the Zhonghang clan, which was related to fan by marriage.
Originally, Yu Rang thought that there might be new opportunities to change the court, but in the camp of the Zhonghang clan, he felt more difficult. In addition to not being reused by the lord Zhongxingyin, the other courtiers of the Zhongxing clan were also jealous of Yu Rang's talents and expelled him from the circle. In desperation, Yu Rang had to find a new master again and jumped to the Zhi family.
In the first period of the Zhi family, Yu Rang was as obscure as before, and he originally thought that he would waste his time in this life until he was old. However, just when Yu Rang was almost desperate, fate opened a window for him. After the third Zhengqing of the Zhi family, Zhi Bo, took power, he attached great importance to Yu Rang's talents, and he arranged for Yu Rang to be his confidant and important staff, and whenever he encountered a hesitant problem, he had to consult with Yu Rang first. Yu Rang finally felt that his hero had a place to play.
At that time, the Zhi family had monopolized power, and several other Qing Dafu families did not dare to confront the Zhi family. Zhi Bo was also satisfied with this, and every day he thought about how to annex the power of several other major families.
It is reasonable to say that Yu Rang should have a bright future in the camp of the strong side. However, in the war against the Zhao family, Zhi Bo was suddenly attacked by the Han, Zhao, and Wei families. As a result, the Zhi clan army turned from victory to defeat, and was completely defeated overnight, and Zhi Bo himself was killed in the rebellion, and the Zhi clan was destroyed. Afterwards, Zhao Xiangzi, the leader of the Zhao clan who hated Zhibo so much, also made his head into a drinking utensil.
After the demise of the Zhi family, the courtiers and disciples were all scattered as birds and beasts. However, after escaping into the mountains, Yu Rang did not intend to live in seclusion, and he always felt the grace of Zhi Bo's knowledge, and also regretted that he had not been able to make effective suggestions in time to prevent this disaster. At present, the Zhi family is completely destroyed, and it is impossible to make any redemption with Yu Rang's own strength, but Yu Rang is not willing to spend the rest of his life in a muddled nightmare. After some deliberation, he decided to assassinate Zhao Xiangzi, who had made Zhi Bo's head into a wine vessel, in order to repay the favor of the lord.
Yu Rang changed his name and surname, disguised himself as a tortured slave, and mixed into Zhao Xiang's womb to repair the toilet. After several days of waiting, Yu Rang finally caught the opportunity for Zhao Xiangzi to enter the toilet alone. However, Zhao Xiangzi was also an old man who had been in the battlefield for a long time, and he saw that the person who was repairing the toilet in front of him looked like a slave who had been severely tortured, so he gathered his guards to surround Yu Rang and ordered a body search. As a result, the guards found a sharp dagger on Yu Rang's body. Zhao Xiangzi fixed his eyes on it and found that the person in front of him was Yu Rang. Zhao Xiangzi asked Yu Rang what he wanted, and Yu Rang replied without fear: "I want to avenge Zhi Bo!" The guards drew their swords one after another and planned to let Yu zhengyi on the spot, but unexpectedly Zhao Xiangzi said, "This person is a righteous soldier who wants to avenge his former lord, it is a pity to kill him, or I should be more careful." So he let go of Yu Rang.
Supposedly, the assassination failed and almost lost his life, Yu Rang can also be regarded as worthy of Zhi Bo's understanding of the grace, but he himself thinks that it is far from enough. He repeatedly summed up the experience of the last failure, and finally concluded that the main reason why he would be recognized by Zhao Xiangzi at a glance was that the disguise was not similar. Zhao Xiangzi is a personal spirit, and it is very difficult to get through the pass under his eyes. Therefore, Yu Rang decided that if he wanted not to be recognized, the only way was to fake the drama and do it. Yu Rang painted himself, causing his skin to fester and covered with sores, and swallowed charcoal to make his voice hoarse. After some self-destruction, even his wife could not recognize his appearance, and Yu Rang felt that he was foolproof. So he transformed into a beggar and squatted on a bridge outside the door of Zhao Xiang's womb for a long time.
One day, Zhao Xiangzi went out. As he passed the bridge deck, Zhao Xiangzi's horse suddenly roared in fright. Zhao Xiangzi felt that something was abnormal, so he asked his men to search the vicinity, only to catch Yu Rang, who was preparing to assassinate him, under the bridge. After only a few months of not seeing, Yu Rang's change of appearance surprised Zhao Xiangzi, and he asked with a reproachful tone, "You served the Fan clan and the Zhongxing clan, and later they were all destroyed by Zhi Bo." You don't avenge the Fan clan and the Zhongxing clan, why did I destroy Zhi Bo, but you have to be so persistent in seeking revenge? Yu Rang replied, "The Fan clan and the Zhonghang clan treat me no differently from other courtiers, so I return them the same as other courtiers." Zhi Bo treated me like a soldier, so I will repay him like a soldier. After listening to Yu Rang's words, Zhao Xiangzi was very moved, but he was worried that Yu Rang would continue to carry out the assassination.
Just when Zhao Xiangzi hesitated, Yu Rang spoke again: "The Ming Lord does not hide the beauty of people, and loyal subjects have the righteousness of death." Today's assassination failed, and I am willing to ambush. But before I die, I have a request that you give me my clothes. I pierced my garment with my sword, as if I had already done so, though I had no regrets in my death. Zhao Xiangzi agreed to Yu Rang's request. Yu Rang drew his sword and slashed at Zhao Xiangzi's clothes three times, and then said, "A soldier dies for a confidant, and a woman is a person who pleases herself, and now I can repay Zhi Bo's kindness!" As soon as the words fell, he committed suicide with his sword.
Everyone in the world likes to talk about heroes with success or failure, but Yu Rang, as a failed assassin, has used his righteous name to go down in history, and has been praised by posterity as a national soldier, and has left behind the saying "Soldier dies for the confidant, and the woman is pleasing to herself" This ancient song.
References: "History", "Warring States Policy"