The story of "two peaches killing three soldiers" is recorded in the "Yanzi Spring and Autumn".
The reason why Yan Nian wanted to design to get rid of the three warriors of Gongsun Jie, Tian Kaijiang, and Gu Yezi, is that the "Yanzi Spring and Autumn" records a passage that Yan Nian said to Jing Gong. Yan Bao said, "The brave soldier of the present king also has no righteousness of the king, no long-term leader, no prohibition of violence on the inside, and no threat to the enemy outside, and this instrument of danger to the country is not to be removed." ”
The first thing to say in this passage is that the three warriors are disloyal to the monarch and "have no righteousness of the monarch", which will threaten the security of the country. This is also the fundamental reason why Qi Jinggong agreed to Yan Bao's design to kill the three warriors.
(Yan Baby Stills)
So, are these three warriors loyal to the monarch?
In addition to the "Yanzi Spring and Autumn", there is no more record of these three warriors in the historical records, only that they are mentioned in this story. Therefore, we have to judge whether they are loyal or not, and we can only see it from this story.
First of all, when the three brave men heard that Qi Jinggong wanted to reward them and rushed to them, they found that Qi Jinggong had given them only two ordinary peaches. If the three brave men didn't care about Qi Jinggong and didn't take Qi Jinggong in their eyes, they would definitely be angry at that time, and wouldn't you humiliate us? However, the three brave men did not get angry, but instead discussed their own merits in accordance with Qi Jinggong's request. From here, we cannot see their so-called "righteousness without kings", but rather that they are loyal to the monarch and obey their orders.
Second, when the three of them are saying their credit. Gongsun then said that he fought the tiger and leopard and fought the bear, Tian Kaijiang said that he led the army to resist the attack of foreigners, and Gu Yezi said that he killed the big turtle in the river to protect the king.
(Two Peach Kill Three Soldiers)
In these three things, Gongsun took over to protect the people. Because in those days, tigers and bears on the mountain, they often killed people, killing them, is to protect the lives of ordinary people. Tian Kaijiang is to protect the country and resist the enemy's aggression, that is, to ensure the safety of jiangshan and social society. Gu Yezi is to protect the life of the king.
At first, all three of them were saying that they had done a great job. However, in the end, when the three people all put the credit out, everyone agreed that Gu Yezi had the greatest credit. And the credit for agreeing with Gu Yezi is the greatest, that is, the three of them, in their hearts, put the life and safety of the king first, the king is greater than the country, and the country is greater than the people. This view is completely contrary to Mencius's ranking of "the people are precious, the king is light, and the society is secondary". Since these three people put the king first, why did Yan Bao still say that they were disloyal and "had no righteousness of the king"?
Third, when three people die, "the funeral is to be dressed, and the burial is to be ceremonial." That is to say, Qi Jinggong also felt unbearable in his heart, and felt as if he had killed the wrong person and buried them thickly. Qi Jinggong's practice in turn shows that in fact, these three warriors are relatively loyal.
From this, it can be seen that Yan Bao must have killed the wrong person.
(Yan Baby see Qi Jinggong)
According to the historical facts of the last Tian Qi Dynasty jiang qi in the state of Qi, some people believe that Yan Bao did not kill the wrong person. However, was Tian Kaijiang the ancestor of the later Tian Qi? There is no evidence. If it is, then it means that it is useless for Yan Infant to kill Tian Kaijiang, because after killing, Tian Qi is still acting for Jiang Qi. If not, what Yan Bao did was infer guilt. It is because he subjectively thinks that they are "dangerous weapons of the country" and kills people.
So, if Yan Infant killed the wrong one, why did he do it? The reason is already clear in "Yanzi Spring and Autumn": "Yanzi tends to pass by, and the three sons can't afford it." This means that when Yan Bao passed by these three warriors, he took small steps to show respect, but these three people did not get up, which was very rude to Yan Bao. Obviously, yan baby did this, and it was inevitable to suspect a "communiqué of personal vendetta".
(Reference: Yanzi Spring and Autumn)