bribery

  • “Heaven Knows, Earth Knows”: Integrity and Downfall in the Court [Eastern Han]

    Brief: This article tells Eastern Han’s tragic tale of integrity amid decline. It features Ban Chao’s frontier service, Cai Lun’s paper invention, and Yang Zhen’s famous “Heaven knows, earth knows” stand against bribery. After Empress Deng’s death, corrupt eunuchs and clans seized power, executing upright officials and dooming the dynasty.

  • The Stone Hut and the Horse Keeper [Spring & Autumn]

    Introduction: This article narrates King Goujian of Yue’s harrowing years of captivity in the State of Wu. Following his defeat at Lake Tai, Goujian was forced to live in a stone hut near King Helü’s tomb, enduring the humiliating role of a horse keeper. It details his strategy of deception, where he served King…

  • Unveiling political corruption with two cases of bribery [Three Kingdoms]

    In a previous article, we discussed how the author of Romance of the Three Kingdoms was unfair in his evaluation of the Yellow Turban Uprising. Writing from the standpoint of the landlord class, his perspective on the peasant uprising was inevitably biased.

  • Sequel to a Dream

    After winning the title of jinshi, (Tran. Note: Jinshi was a successful candidate in the highest imperial examination; juren was a successful candidate at the provincial level) Juren Zeng and several others who had passed the examination went for an excursion in the suburbs of the provincial capital.

  • Rotten Sleeve

    A corrupt official wanted to show that he was pure and honest. So, before assuming office, he took an oath in public, saying, “If my right hand accepts bribes, let it fester; if my left hand accepts bribes, let it fester, too.”