Let’s dive into an age-old historical puzzle: Goujian had already been utterly defeated. Why didn’t King Fuchai just execute him with a single stroke to eliminate the future threat once and for all?
If we follow the melodramatic scripts of unofficial folklore, it’s certainly because Goujian was too good at acting. He played the part of a subservient servant to the extreme, and on top of that, he sent a super “sugar-coated shell” – the legendary beauty Xi Shi – which completely bewitched Fuchai. This supposedly caused Fuchai to lose his mind and let the tiger back into the mountain.
However, in the logic of official history, Fuchai didn’t spare Goujian because he was stupid or blinded by lust. To put it plainly, under the “workplace environment” and moral system of that time, he simply couldn’t kill Goujian. Capturing the boss of a rival state and turning him into a slave was already the extreme limit of what Fuchai could do! As for the “thick black theory” (Machiavellianism) of “cutting the weeds and digging up the roots” (eradicating all future trouble) that came in later generations, people back then really didn’t have that concept in their heads.
The “Dark Forest” of International Politics
To understand Fuchai’s move, we first need to review the “Dark Forest” like international situation of that era.
Many people reading this history wonder: During the early and middle Spring and Autumn Period, why were the states of Wu and Yue like invisible men? Weren’t the main characters the “big corporations” like Qin, Qi, Jin, and Chu? How did these two “little brothers” suddenly usurp the spotlight later on?
Actually, both Wu and Yue were old-timers. Yue could trace its lineage back to the Xia Dynasty, and Wu to the Shang Dynasty. But unfortunately, located in the Taihu Lake basin of the southeast, they were in the “remote mountainous areas” of that time and had basically no business dealings with the vassal states in the Central Plains core.
In the middle of the Spring and Autumn Period, the “big corporations” of the Central Plains began a brutal elimination round. Qi had just become the hegemon but fell behind due to internal strife. In the end, only two super giants, Jin and Chu, were left fighting each other. Other small and medium-sized vassal states were forced to pick a side; even big players like Qin and Qi sometimes had to watch their expressions.
However, Jin and Chu were too massive, and neither could destroy the other, leading to a stalemate. At this point, King Shoumeng of Wu (Fuchai’s great-grandfather) went to the Central Plains to “find relatives and recognize ancestors,” which directly changed the course of history.
Jin looked at Wu’s location and their eyes lit up instantly: Isn’t this the perfect “spoiler”? To bring down Chu, they needed to support a lackey right behind Chu’s back. So, Jin started a crazy “blood transfusion” mode, sending not only technology and culture but also directly dispatching instructors to train Wu’s troops.
Angel Investment and Proxy Wars
Under the “angel investment” from Jin, Wu rapidly rose to become a hegemon in the southeast. Chu saw that this script was wrong and immediately copied the homework, starting to support Yue behind Wu’s back and pouring money into Yue.
So you see, the essence of the Wu-Yue hegemony was actually an “outsourced project” of the Jin-Chu struggle.
After Wu rose, the first thing it did was swallow Yue’s Taihu Lake plain. Later, taking advantage of Chu being half-crippled, Wu almost did a one-push run to Chu’s home base. As a result, Yue launched a sneak attack from behind, and with Qin coming to the rescue, Wu had to retreat. This messy account was thoroughly noted by Yue.
In 497 BC, the old King of Yue, Yunchang (Goujian’s father), died. King Helü of Wu (Fuchai’s father) felt this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and directly led troops to steal the base.
Unexpectedly, Goujian was a ruthless character. He played a psychological warfare move of “death squad suicide,” which stunned the Wu army. Taking the opportunity to counter-push, he even shot and wounded Helü. Helü died shortly after returning, leaving Fuchai with the KPI of “must avenge this hatred” before he passed.
The Soul Question: To Kill or Not to Kill?
After taking the throne, Fuchai practiced hard for two years and finally led the Wu army to rub Goujian on the ground, chasing him all the way to Mount Kuaiji and besieging him tightly.
At this moment, Fuchai faced a soul-searching question: to kill or not to kill?
From a modern God’s-eye view, “cutting the weeds and digging up the roots” is definitely the optimal solution. But let’s put ourselves in Fuchai’s shoes. In his era, where was the precedent for a victor directly beheading the monarch of a previous dynasty? When Tang of Shang destroyed Xia, and King Wu conquered Zhou, they ultimately exiled the former monarchs or gave them fiefdoms, treating them well with good food and drink.
If Fuchai really dared to kill Goujian, he would be breaking the “rules of the industry” or social code of the time. Other vassal states were just worrying about having no excuse to deal with the powerful Wu. Once Fuchai started this, everyone would definitely come to gang up on Wu under the banner of “enforcing justice on behalf of Heaven.”
What’s more fatal is that if Goujian were killed, the nobles and people of Yue would definitely fight to the death and go crazy with rebellion. If Wu got stuck in the quagmire of Yue, and Chu took the opportunity to stab them in the back, Wu would truly become a sucker – they won the battle, didn’t get any benefits, but got a body full of trouble.
Therefore, Fuchai not only couldn’t kill Goujian but also had to keep Goujian as a signboard to appease the hearts of the Yue people and reduce the cost of rule. This wasn’t “benevolence” at all, but the optimal solution based on the “international law” and realistic interests of that time.
Although Wu Zixu shouted every day to kill Goujian, he was standing from the perspective of an avenger and didn’t calculate this economic account for his boss.
The Tears of the Era
Fuchai never expected that Goujian was a “ruthless character” who could risk everything to make a comeback, eventually outlasting Fuchai through sheer endurance. But conversely, when Goujian later destroyed Wu, even though he hated Fuchai to the bone, he didn’t dare to kill him in the end either. He could only exile him to a deserted island and send one hundred households to serve him. However, Fuchai did not accept this kindness. He felt he was too old to serve a new king and regretted not listening to Wu Zixu. Ashamed to see anyone, he resolutely refused and committed suicide. After Fuchai’s death, Goujian still buried him with the etiquette of a vassal lord on Yang Mountain, and then executed the treacherous minister Bo Pi, giving this old rival his final dignity.
You see, this is called the “tears of the era.” If this matter were placed in the Warring States Period or later generations, the moment Goujian was captured, he would have likely been chopped into meat puree eight hundred times over.
Note
- Spring and Autumn Period: A period in Chinese history (approx. 770–476 BC) characterized by warfare between feudal states and the decline of the Zhou Dynasty’s central authority.
- Jin and Chu: Two of the most powerful states during this period, constantly vying for hegemony.
- Goujian: The King of Yue, famous for his incredible endurance and patience. After his defeat, he slept on brushwood and tasted gall every day to remind himself of the humiliation, eventually rebuilding his state to destroy Wu.
- King Fuchai: The King of Wu who defeated Yue but ultimately fell due to his arrogance and Goujian’s revenge.
- Xi Shi: One of the Four Beauties of ancient China. She was sent by Goujian to Fuchai as a “honey trap” to distract him from state affairs.
- Wu Zixu: A wise and loyal minister of Wu who repeatedly warned Fuchai to kill Goujian to prevent future disaster, but was ignored and eventually forced to commit suicide.
Leave a Reply