King Shang, whose real name was Di Xin, was the last monarch of the Shang Dynasty. During his reign, he was greedy for pleasure and practiced brutal rule, which led to the gradual decline of the Shang Dynasty. Some of the stories about King Shang are derived from myths and legends.
It is said that after Di Xin ascended the throne, he heard that there was a miraculous god that could make people immortal, so he sent people to look around. Finally, his men found the god, but the medicine in the ding had been eaten. In order to obtain the divine ding, Di Xin ordered all the stones in the ding to be dug up, which caused the ding to break and he died.
Di Xin's tyranny made life very difficult, and people fled the Shang Dynasty and defected to the Zhou Dynasty. It is said that in order to show off his power, Di Xin once held a grand banquet in the palace and ordered the head of a sheep to be cut off for the guests to pass to each other. The sheep's head eventually passed into the hands of a man named Jiang Ziya, who was so angry that he decided to help the people overthrow the tyranny of Tisin.
Di Xin was also bewitched by Daji because he was addicted to women, and he created the "Wine Pool Meat Forest" to drink and have fun with Daji. Even in order to make Boda laugh, he abused the "cannon burning punishment" and tortured prisoners. These actions caused social turmoil in the Shang Dynasty and misery for the people.
In the mythological novel "List of Gods", Daji is depicted as a fox spirit sent by Nuwa Niangniang to confuse the Shang Dynasty. Although this story is not a historical fact, it also reflects the image of Dixin in people's hearts. History has been viewed primarily negatively by the fact that he pursued many brutal policies that led to the decline of the Shang Dynasty.
However, some historians believe that Tisin was not exactly a mediocre monarch and that he achieved certain achievements in some areas. Here are some of the great aspects that might be considered Tysin:
Reform policy: During Di Xin's reign, he carried out some reform measures, such as promoting and reusing lower-class civilians, appointing Fei Zhong to govern the dynasty, and developing nongsang. These measures played a certain role in promoting the development of the Shang Dynasty.
Military Talent: During Di Xin's reign, the Shang Dynasty was relatively strong in military power, and he scored some victories in wars against surrounding tribes. These victories may have been one of the reasons why the Shang Dynasty remained stable for a while.
Culture development: During the reign of Di Xin, the culture of the Shang Dynasty developed to a certain extent. For example, the crafts such as bronze, jade, and pottery of the Shang Dynasty have a high status in history, and the production technology of these crafts has also been improved to a certain extent.
It should be noted that these achievements did not offset Tisin's brutal policies and hedonistic behavior, so history still evaluates him negatively.