The Mouth of the People is Better than the Defense of Sichuan: Who were the Gravediggers of the Western Zhou Dynasty?

What is history: it is the echo of the past to the future, the reflection of the future on the past. - Hugo

During the Western Zhou Dynasty, there was a very famous figure named King Li of Zhou. He is famous for three reasons:

First, it is precisely because of him that there was a "rebellion of the people" and a "Zhou Zhao Republic", so that the history of our country has an exact chronology, the first year of the republic (841 BC). Since then, China's historical calendar has not been interrupted.

Second, it was precisely because of him that Sima Qian's "Summoning the Duke of Li Wang's Slander" (see "History. Zhou Benji IV "Temptation, Stop Slander"), only then did he have the age-old saying that "the mouth of the people is better than the defense of Sichuan", and the pre-Qin materialist thought collection of Xun Zi's "Jun's Boat Also, Shu Ren Shui Ye" has been established. Water carries boats, and water covers boats" (see Xunzi. Wang Zhi"), The Tang Dynasty Wei Zheng's "Grievances are not great, but fearful of people, carrying boats and overturning boats, it is advisable to be cautious" (see Wei Zheng Gong anthology. Emperor Taizong's Ten Thoughts on Liu"), who can say that it is not a kind of evolution of the historical lesson of "Li Wang's slander"?

Third, it was precisely because of him that he led to the decline of Western Zhou. "Xuanwang Zhongxing" is just a return to the light, and the King of Zhou You, "the princes of the Beacon Theatre", burned the foundation of Western Zhou. King Li of Zhou was the ninth (tenth) king of Western Zhou, hence the name: "Nine generations and decline".

During the "reign of Cheng Kang", the political situation of the Zhou Dynasty was relatively stable. Later, due to the increased exploitation of the slave owners and nobles, coupled with years of conquest, the discontent of the commoners and slaves intensified, and the people rose up to resist. Therefore, in order to suppress the people's resistance, the rulers of the Zhou Dynasty adopted harsh punishments. During the reign of King Mu of Zhou, he formulated three thousand criminal laws, and those who broke the law were subjected to five kinds of punishments, called "five punishments". Historia. The Fourth Book of the Zhou Dynasty records: "Ink punishment belongs to a thousand (ink: a punishment marked with ink on the face or forehead, also called silence), the punishment of the sword belongs to a thousand (the torture of cutting off the nose), the punishment of the stomach belongs to five hundred (the torture of cutting off the knee), the punishment of the palace belongs to three hundred 'palace punishment, that is, the palace punishment, the cruel corporal punishment of castrating genitals), and the punishment of the great punishment is two hundred (death penalty): the punishment of five punishments belongs to three thousand." However, no matter how severe the punishment, it will not stop the people from resisting.

After King Li of Zhou ascended the throne, the rulers' oppression of the people became more severe. King Li of Zhou had a favorite courtier named Rong yigong, and under his plot, King Li treated the 'people of the country' ("people" as opposed to "savages". "Chinese people" and "wild people" were two kinds of people in Western Zhou society. The slave-owning nobles, commoners, small industrialists and merchants living in the cities and suburbs are called "nationals", most of them are exploited laborers, and the peasants living in the wild are called "savages") wanton expropriation, aggravation of exploitation, and the practice of "patents", that is, the occupation of all the mountains, forests, lakes and rivers on which the "people" depend. In this way, the "people of the country" were angry, and they rose up one after another to condemn King Zhou Li, "The king is tyrannical and arrogant, and the people of the country slander the king." (See Historia. Zhou Benji IV)." The chancellor Zhao Gong (minghu, a descendant of Zhao Gongyi in the early years of the Western Zhou Dynasty) heard more and more discussion among the people of the country, so he went into the palace to advise King Li, saying, "The people are overwhelmed." It means "the people can't stand it, and if they go on like this, I'm afraid there will be chaos."

Instead of listening to advice, King Li of Zhou sent the wizards who defended the country to monitor the work of the people, forbade them to talk about state affairs, and encouraged informants, and all those who were accused were put to death." Historia. The Fourth Book of the Zhou Dynasty records: "To defend the witches, to make the slanderers, to sue them, then kill them." Under this reign of terror, "the people of the country do not dare to speak, and the road is blind." Although the "chinese people" did not dare to speak, they used angry eyes to express the resentment in their hearts.

King Zhou Li thought that his policy of terror had finally suppressed the public opinion of the people of his country, and he was very happy. Therefore, he triumphantly said to zhao gong, "I can slander him, but I dare not speak." After hearing this, zhao gong reminded him, "It is Yan Zhiye. The mouth of the people is better than waterproof. When the waters are destroyed, many will be hurt, and so will the people. It is for this reason that those who are water are determined to guide, and those who are for the people are proclaimed. ...... The husband and wife are worried about the heart and proclaim it in the mouth, and they do it. If yongqi mouth, its and energy geometry?" (See Historia. Zhou Benji IV)."

This means that governing the country by shutting the mouths of the people is worse than by blocking the water. Water can only be allowed to flow unimpeded, and the people can only be opened up to the people, and through various means, people of different identities can speak all kinds of words. Not allowing the people to speak will not last long. King Li turned a deaf ear to Zhao Gong's heartfelt and loyal words, so "the country does not dare to speak out," and no one in the whole country raised any more opinions.

It wasn't long before what the summoner was worried about finally happened. One day, many slaves and commoners suddenly united, the momentum was very large, they rushed into the palace, looking around for King Li of Zhou, the guards around King Li had long hated this king, so there were not many people fighting for him, and finally, the king was frightened and ran out with a few cronies.

The people did not find the king, so they decided to kill his son, at that time his son had been made the prince, everyone heard that he was hiding in the house of the summoning prince, so they asked the summoning duke to hand over the prince, the summoning duke had no choice, had to impersonate his son as the prince, handed over, the false prince was beaten by the people on the spot, and finally lost his life.

When the people drove out the king, the two Xiangguo of Zhao Mu and Zhou Dinggong jointly managed the government, known as the "republic", and the history called the republican administration.