A Thousand Pieces of Gold: A Memoir of China’s Past Through its Proverbs

I, too, have dared to venture forth and commit myself to writing. I have collected all the ancient customs that were dispersed or discarded. I have investigated the affairs of the past and probed the reasons for their buoyancy or decay. I would like to discern the patterns leading from the past to the present, proffering my views as one method of interpretation.

When I read these words, it almost seemed as if Sima Qian himself had stepped out of the pages of his book and was speaking to me personally, urging me to be strong and not falter in my resolve to become a full-time writer. Although we were separated by more than two thousand years, at that moment I understood him completely. He was telling me that there were many who had suffered unjustly in the past. A few, like himself, were able to transcend their hurt through literature. Was I prepared to follow in his footsteps and do the same?

As I turned eagerly to the next page, I came across these lines:

The reason I have borne this anguish and refused to die, living in shame without protest, is because I cannot bear the thought of leaving my work unfinished. I am still burdened with things in my heart that I have not had a chance to express…

I placed my father’s two books with the old photographs in the large bag I had brought and prepared to leave. There appeared to be no other items worth taking. Niang’s flat was scheduled to be refurbished and everything was to be thrown away. Looking through her closets for the very last time I suddenly saw another item abandoned by my siblings. Quickly, I retrieved it from a pile of yellowed newspaper cuttings. It was a large, framed photo of our grandfather Ye Ye, taken a few months before his death at the age of seventy-four.

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Precious Treasure Worth Cherishing (#ulink_382a3a84-c396-5e04-afe4-819e0baa4a99)

QI HUO KE JU

ALTHOUGH MY GRANDFATHER used to be a businessman before his retirement, he was always more interested in books than money. When the Communists were taking over China in 1949, my family fled from Shanghai to Hong Kong. My stepmother Niang placed me in a boarding school where I stayed for the next three years. On the rare occasions when I was allowed to go home during the holidays, Niang told me to sleep on a cot in Ye Ye’s room.

Ye Ye and I never discussed it, but I knew in my heart that we were both happy about this arrangement. Although I was young and he was old, we shared a special rapport and I loved being with him. He would ask me to read the Chinese newspapers aloud to teach me new characters, or show me the proper way of writing calligraphy with a brush. Sometimes we played Chinese chess but what I liked best of all were the stories he told about legendary figures from Chinese history.

Once 1 asked him what sort of businesses my father was involved with.

‘Your father is very talented,’ Ye Ye answered. ‘He has import/export, manufacturing and real estate businesses.’

‘What is the most profitable business, Ye Ye?’

‘It all depends on your definition of “profit”,’ he answered. ‘If your chief consideration is money, then the best investment is probably real estate. Houses and apartments in good locations will always go up in value if they are well managed. Keep that in mind.’

‘Is there any other consideration more important than money?’

‘Of course!’ Ye Ye answered. ‘Relationships, morality and education are all much more important than money. Many people make the mistake of thinking that cash, material goods and real estate are the only precious things in life. They forget about education and knowledge. To me, a sharp, ethical and cultivated mind is a much worthier asset than anything else, and is truly a qi huo ke ju (precious treasure worth cherishing). Let the proverbs I’ve taught you and the stories behind these proverbs be your most precious commodity. Treasure them and carry them with you wherever you go.’

Because of their influence on Chinese history, many Chinese regard Confucius, the First Emperor of China, and Mao Zedong to have been the three most influential figures who ever lived. Confucius moulded Chinese thinking and his teachings still affect Chinese life on every level. The First Emperor unified China, abolished feudalism and established a form of government that remained virtually unchanged until the twentieth century. Mao Zedong ended the civil war, unleashed the Cultural Revolution, and radically altered China’s political system and ideology. Whereas the lives of Confucius and Mao Zedong have both been very well documented, that of the First Emperor remains relatively unknown to western readers.

In Shiji, Sima Qian wrote extensively about that period of history when a divided China was united by the First Emperor, as well as the tumultuous years immediately following his death. Many of the phrases used by the Grand Historian to describe the intrigues and conflicts of that time have come down to us as proverbs. They have survived for over two thousand years and are still frequently quoted in everyday conversation.

During that restless era of strife and constant warfare, the population of China already numbered over 40 million. However, battlefield casualties were enormous. According to Shiji, 1,500,000 soldiers were slaughtered in fifteen major military campaigns waged by the state of Qin between 363–234 BC. The average peasant led a life of misery and uncertainty. Armed soldiers would arbitrarily march across his fields, appropriate his crops, draft his sons or rape his women while the seven states fought for supremacy. Between wars, there were diplomatic manoeuvres, accords, intrigues and treaties. Women had no rights and were used as pawns to secure strategic marriage alliances and sexual favours. The life of an average woman was at the complete mercy of her husband or father.

But it was not only peasants who suffered. Royal princes too were sometimes used as pawns. At the conclusion of a peace treaty between two states, it was customary to exchange hostages as a guarantee of good faith. These hostages were usually princes of royal birth.

In 265 BC, a merchant named Lü Buwei travelled to Handan, the capital city of Zhao, in search of fresh business opportunities. Of the seven states that remained, Zhao was the most cultured and sophisticated, Chu had the largest land area and Qin the greatest military power.

There were two main reasons for Qin’s military might. First and foremost was the hardiness of its people. Living in the far west corner of ancient China, the people of Qin had been responsible for centuries for the defence of their western frontier against the fierce nomadic Xiongnu or Huns who roamed the adjacent desert wastelands. In time, they adopted many of the savage fighting methods of their enemy and developed military practices more ruthless than that of any other state. Their children were taught to ride from a young age, given bows and arrows and shown how to shoot birds and animals from the saddle. When a war was declared, every citizen was conscripted. The Qin army seldom used chariots but would swoop down upon their enemies on fast horses, moving like a swarm of locusts across the plains and destroying all in their path with their spears, halberds, dagger axes, crossbows and arrows. Flight or surrender was considered cowardly and desertion was punishable by death. Qin soldiers were promoted according to the number of heads of enemy troops they brought back to their officers. All military personnel were expected to fight to the death.

According to Shiji, there was a second reason for Qin’s strength. Sima Qian wrote:

The country of Qin was so situated that its geographical position almost guaranteed its military might. Access was irksome because the state was surrounded by a girdle consisting of the Yellow River and the mountains. Suspended 1000 feet above the neighbouring states, its lofty location was so advantageous that a million attackers could be held off with fewer than 20,000 men. When a Qin general sent his troops to descend on the enemy, it was like a giant emptying a pail of water from the pinnacle of a tall building.

Merchant Lü Buwei was born in the state of Wei but lived and prospered in the state of Haan for a few years before moving to Zhao. Like many traders, he travelled frequently from state to state, buying cheap and selling dear. By the year 265 BC he had already made a fortune and was known to be a very wealthy man.

At that time Qin was governed by King Zao, whose reign was to last for fifty-five years. Between 275 and 270 BC, Qin defeated the armies of both Wei and Chu so convincingly that both states were forced to deed over large tracts of land during the peace negotiations. Flushed with victory, King Zao turned his attention north and attacked Zhao in 270 BC. This time, the Qin troops were defeated by the well-disciplined Zhao army. Qin sued for peace and the two states exchanged royal princes to act as hostages.

Instead of sending his oldest son, the crown prince, as a hostage, King Zao dispatched one of his grandsons, Prince Zi Chu, the son of his second son, Prince An Guo. Like many princes of royal blood, Prince An Guo had a favourite wife and many concubines. His favourite wife was barren but he had more than twenty sons by his other wives. When Prince An Guo was commanded by his father to send one of his sons to the state of Zhao, it was easy for him to dispatch Prince Zi Chu because Zi Chu’s mother was one of his least favourite concubines.

Life as a hostage in an alien state was a precarious affair much dreaded by the royal princes. Should hostilities resume between the two states, the hostage prince would be an easy and convenient target on which the populace could vent its anger. There was even the likelihood of being murdered or executed.

After his arrival in Zhao, Prince Zi Chu was neglected by his royal family back home. He was a middle son, his mother was only a minor concubine, and his father Prince An Guo was not even the Crown Prince. He was provided with a very modest residence in the guest house district of Handan, capital city of Zhao. The other aristocrats in the city held him in contempt, noting that he lived shabbily under straitened circumstances, without even a decent carriage.

As time went by, the relationship between the two states of Qin and Zhao gradually worsened. There were frequent skirmishes and aggressive posturing on both sides. After each dispute, Zi Chu’s privileges would be further curtailed. He had no choice but to endure in silence the mounting insults, deplorable living conditions, diminished rations, reduced allowance and other forms of abuse. Ignored by his own family and ostracised by the people of Zhao, Prince Zi Chu was destitute when Merchant Lü Buwei came into his life.

After migrating from the state of Haan to Zhao, Merchant Lü prospered even further. Now immensely wealthy, he decided to settle down in Handan, which at that time enjoyed the reputation of being the most cultured and sophisticated capital city of the seven states. ‘Handan’s women are beautiful, its music superb, and youths everywhere try to simulate the elegance of the natives. They imitate even the way people walk in Handan.’

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By sheer chance, Merchant Lü overheard that Prince Zi Chu was being held hostage in the same city and was living in difficult circumstances. More importantly, he learned that Zi Chu’s father, Prince An Guo, had recently been proclaimed Crown Prince of Qin following the death of his older brother the year before (266 BC). It dawned on the merchant that Prince Zi Chu now stood a chance of becoming heir to the throne of the most powerful state under Heaven.

Merchant Lü asked his own father, ‘What is the rate of return if one invests in farming?’

‘The return can be as high as ten times your investment.’

‘How about the buying and selling of jewellery and pearls?’

‘Much more profitable. A hundred times your capital.’

‘How about helping to place a king on the throne?’

‘Oh!’ his father exclaimed. ‘That can lead to the sort of wealth that is incalculable.’

Merchant Lü laughed. ‘In that case, Prince Zi Chu should be regarded as qi huo ke ju (a precious treasure worth cherishing)! If we invest in him, we might reap enormous riches one day. Father, you have made up my mind for me.’

After this conversation, Merchant Lü set about making a business plan. First he paid a visit to Prince Zi Chu and was shocked at his modest surroundings and poverty-stricken appearance. Moved to pity, he said to the prince, ‘I know how to open the gate of your house wider for you.’

Prince Zi Chu laughed and said, ‘Why don’t you open your own gate wider before worrying about mine?’

Lü replied, ‘You don’t understand. The width of my opening depends on the width of yours.’

Xin zhi suo wei (grasping the essence of what he was alluding to), the prince led the merchant to a mat in an inner room. They sat opposite each other and were soon deep in conversation.

Lü said, ‘Your grandfather, King Zao, is getting on in years. Although your father Prince An Guo is now Crown Prince and next in line to the throne, he has not yet designated his own successor. Your chances of being your father’s heir are not great because not only are you a middle son, you also have more than twenty brothers. What do you say if the two of us put our heads together and come up with a plan to seat you on the throne one day?’

Prince Zi Chu could hardly believe his ears. ‘My mother and I have never been favoured by my father. Besides, I have been a hostage and away from home for a long time. At present, I have no chance of competing with my brothers who are there in person, waiting upon my father day and night. If you can accomplish this miracle, I will make you my guardian and share everything with you. In addition, I’ll remain grateful to you for the rest of my life. But the real question is, how do we achieve this?’

‘I have made some enquiries and thought it out very carefully,’ the wily merchant replied. ‘You are poor and living in a foreign state. You have no money to buy gifts for members of your family or to cultivate people here in Handan. I too am poor but I’m willing to take out a thousand pieces of gold and use them on your behalf. As everyone knows, your father is very much in love with his favourite wife, Princess Hua Yang, who happens to be barren and has no son of her own. I think that is the reason your father has not yet named his successor. Princess Hua Yang’s influence on your father is enormous and it would help greatly if she were to adopt you as her son.

‘I hear that Princess Hua Yang is fond of jewellery. Tomorrow let us go and purchase for her the rarest gems and brightest jade. I shall travel to Xianyang, the capital of Qin, next month and give them to her as a special gift from you. Hopefully, she will be persuaded to put in a good word for you to your father.’

‘But you don’t even know Princess Hua Yang. How will you make her acquaintance?’

Lü laughed, ‘That is no problem at all! I have contacts who know Princess Hua Yang’s older sister and brother. I hear that the princess and her siblings are very close and see each other regularly. In any case, leave all that to me and don’t worry. First let me present you with five hundred pieces of gold for living expenses and for entertaining the noble lords here at Handan. Make some good contacts. I’ll be back soon and everything will be arranged for you.’