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A ruler faces two disasters. If he appoints worthy men, ministers will exploit the reputation of worthiness to coerce him. If he promotes men arbitrarily, state affairs will collapse and fail.
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What an enlightened ruler uses to guide and control his ministers consists of only two handles: punishment and reward. What are punishment and reward? Killing and penalizing mean punishment; praise and granting mean reward.
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Brief: This article details the Tian Clan’s usurpation of the Qi state, a pivotal event marking the transition from the Spring and Autumn period to the Warring States era. It traces the Tian clan’s origins from Prince Chen Wan of Chen to their rise in Qi, where they gained immense popularity by lending grain…