Ji Man, king of Zhou Mu, was the son of King Zhao of Zhou and the fifth monarch of Western Zhou, known in history as Mu Tianzi.
King Mu was the most legendary tianzi of the Western Zhou Dynasty, and during his reign he traveled around to conquer, east to Jiujiang, west to Kunlun, north to quicksand, and south to Jingchu, and his footprints were far away, and no one in history was unparalleled.
The legend of King Mu also lies in the records of his high life expectancy in historical records.
The "History of Zhou Benji" states that "King Zhao did not return to the south and died on the river." ...... King Mu ascended the throne, and the Spring and Autumn Period was fifty years old. ...... King Mu lied for fifty-five years, collapsed, and the son of the king was established."
According to Sima Qian, King Mu ascended the throne at the age of fifty, reigned for fifty-five years, and lived for one hundred and five years. So, is this account credible? The author believes that it is not credible and cannot withstand scrutiny.
The study of the history of the Western Zhou Dynasty is inseparable from the Bronze Ware of the Western Zhou Dynasty with inscriptions. The author examines that the calendar of the Bronze Inscription of the Western Zhou Dynasty is all the use of the Zhou calendar (November is the beginning of the year), that is, Zhou Zheng. That is to say, Zhou Zheng is two months earlier than Xia Zheng, including leap months. For example, May in the weekly calendar corresponds to March in the summer calendar.
The inscription of the "Fifteen Years of Cao Ding" records that "The Falcon (Wei) was born in May of the tenth and fifth years of the reign of The Emperor, and Gong (Gong) Wang Cai (in) Zhou XinGong", indicating that this bronze is a typical standard instrument of the Gongwang period. Looking at the ancient calendar, the corresponding time of the year of the king, the phase of the moon, and the stem branch recorded in the Fifteen Years of Cao Ding is the afternoon of the eighth noon of the first month of March in 902 BC. From this, it can be deduced that the first year of the king is 916 BC, and King Mu should die in 917 BC.
In addition, through the inscription in the "Twelve Years of the Great Gui gai" of the standard instrument of the Zhaowang period, "Wei Ten and Two Years, Born in March and Born ba Dinghai", it can be deduced that the first year of King Zhaowang's father, King Zhao, is 981 BC, and the time period from the first year of King Zhao to the end of King Mu is sixty-five years, that is to say, King Zhao and King Mu reigned for a total of sixty-five years.
According to the ancient "Bamboo Book Chronicle", it can be recorded that there are "nineteen years of King Zhao" and "the last year of King Zhao", then King Zhao reigned for at least nineteen years, then the first year of King Mu could never have been earlier than 963 BC. From 963 BC to 917 BC, less than fifty years, it can be seen that King Mu reigned for no more than fifty years.
The inscription of the Changqi (長甶盉) records that "The Falcon (Wei) was in jidinghai at the beginning of March, and Mu Wangcai (in) was living under the sun", indicating that this bronze was the standard instrument of the Mu King's period. The first auspiciousness, that is, the new moon has just appeared. Looking at the ancient calendar, the corresponding time of the moon phase and stem branch recorded in the Changqi Cup is the third dinghai of the first month of the first month in 945 BC. It can be seen that King Mu was already in the position of Heavenly Son before 945 BC, but the first year is unknown.
The inscription of the "Thirty Years of Wu Xuan" records that "in April of the 3rd year of the Falcon (Wei) was born in the afternoon of the reign of The King of Mu, the king was in...", judging from its form and content, it should be the standard instrument of the Mu King's period. Looking at the ancient calendar, the corresponding time of the year of the king, the phase of the moon, and the stem branch recorded in the 3000 years of Wu Xuan is the seventh noon of the first month of February in 928 BC. From this, it can be deduced that the first year of King Mu is 957 BC.
The Biography of Mu Tianzi, Volume III, says, "Ji Ri Jia Zi, The Queen Mother of Tianzi Bin Yu Xi". The ancient book "Bamboo Book Chronicle" says, "In the seventeenth year of King Mu, he marched west to Kunlun Qiu, saw the Queen Mother of the West, and saw him in his years, bin yu Zhao Palace." It can be seen that in the seventeenth year of King Mu, the Queen Mother of the West came to visit and received a grand reception, and the reception time was the "auspicious day" of that year. Auspicious day, that is, the first auspicious of the western Zhou moon phase, that is, the second or third day of the first year. After investigation, only the third day of the first month of February in the summer calendar of 941 BC coincided with it, which can be reversed to the first year of King Mu to 957 BC.
In addition, the Book of Zhou's Strange Records says: "Twenty-four years of King Zhou Zhao... On April 8, the sun river overflowed, the mountains and rivers shook, and there were five colors of light running through the Taiwei Palace", which is the same as the ancient "Bamboo Book Chronicle" contained in the "Last Year of King Zhou Zhao, there were five colors of light through the purple micro at night." In his year, Wang Nan toured and did not return" coincided, and it can be known that King Zhao collapsed in the twenty-fourth year. The first year of King Zhao's reign is 981 BC, and the twenty-fourth year is 958 BC, that is, the year in which King Mu, the Son of Heaven, ascended the throne.
That is to say, King Mu ascended the throne in 958 BC, changed his name in 957 BC, and died in 917 BC, reigning for a total of forty-one years, rather than the "fifty-five years" mentioned in the historical records.
The ancient book "Bamboo Book Chronicle" is a recognized history of letters in the field of historiography, which contains "from the zhou to the hundred years of king Mu". The author has verified that the first year of King Wen's appointment was 1057 BC, and the year of King Mu's ascension to the throne was exactly one hundred years.
So, how old did King Mu live? Not a hundred years old. In the early years of the Western Zhou Dynasty, the throne was passed down from father to son, followed by King Wu, King Cheng, King Kang, King Zhao, King Mu, and King Gong. According to the author's research, after the establishment of the Zhou Dynasty, King Wu reigned for two and a half years, King Cheng reigned for thirty years, King Kang reigned for twenty-six years, and King Zhao reigned for twenty-four years.
When he ascended the throne, he was about fourteen or fifteen years old, and after the change of yuan, he was regent by the Duke of Zhou for seven years, a total of thirty years on the throne, and his life expectancy was about forty-five or six years. When King Cheng was dying, he appointed a minister of honor, and it was known that King Kang was less than twenty years old when he ascended the throne, king Kang did not live to be more than forty-six years old, and King Kang's son King Zhao was not more than thirty years old when he ascended the throne. King Zhao's life expectancy does not exceed fifty-four years, so why say that "King Mu is on the throne, and the Spring and Autumn Period is already fifty years old".
According to the author's analysis, King Mu was about thirty-five years old when he ascended the throne, changed his name the following year, reigned for forty-one years, and lived for about seventy-six years, only in this way can it be reasonable and in line with the historical facts of his life's personal parade and conquest. (Liu Bingguang)
