Han Feizi tells Duke Ping’s tale: obsessed with decadent music, he ignored warnings, bringing drought and ruin.
Shi Kuang was a renowned court musician of the Jin state during the Spring and Autumn period (approximately 770–476 BCE). His courtesy name was Ziye. Although blind, he was exceptionally skilled at playing the qin (a seven-stringed zither) and possessed extraordinarily acute hearing, enabling him to discern and judge musical pitches with remarkable precision.
This article recounts the fall of the Chen Dynasty. Emperor Wen of Sui rose after Northern Zhou’s decline, while Chen Houzhu indulged in wine, women, and decadent songs like Jade Tree Behind the Palace Garden. Ignoring warnings, he was captured in a well. In 589, Sui conquered Chen, reunifying China after centuries of division.