Wenjiang
Wenjiang, accompanied by Lu Huangong, came to Qi State to return to his parents' home. They stayed there for several months, during which time Lu Huangong died again. For Wen Jiang, such an incident was like being held on fire. It would inevitably be focused and magnified, and would become the target of ridicule by moralists of later generations.
However, Wen Jiang has too many puzzles! As a woman, from the third year of Duke Huan of Lu to the twenty-second year of Duke Zhuang of Lu, during this period of thirty-seven years, Wen Jiang appeared in the records of "Spring and Autumn" and "Zuo Zhuan" eighteen times. Such times and frequency far exceeded that of many politicians of the same period. It can even be said that Wen Jiang's deeds recorded in official history between Qi and Lu were unique among women of her time. But just for this reason, Wen Jiang is a "mysterious" existence.
The mystery of Wen Jiang is certainly not limited to her frequent appearance on the stage of Spring and Autumn history. For example, what kind of woman is Wen Jiang? What is his relationship with Duke Huan of Lu? Does she have an affair with Qi Xianggong? How is her relationship with her son Lu Zhuanggong? What happened to her after the death of Duke Huan of Lu? How do the people of Lu evaluate her? etc.
First of all, let’s take a look at Wen Jiang’s name. As a princess of Qi, her surname is naturally Jiang, while Wen is a posthumous title. Wen Jiang died in the Kingdom of Ju in the 21st year of Duke Zhuang of Lu, and was taken back to the Kingdom of Lu in by his son for burial. Therefore, this posthumous title must have been given by the State of Lu. "Wen" as a posthumous title should be a beautiful posthumous title. Although the posthumous titles in the Spring and Autumn Period were not as complicated and rigorous as those in later generations, this tradition still had continuity. The so-called posthumous title refers to the evaluation of the deceased by the ministers and their descendants. According to the standards after the Han Dynasty, the meaning of the posthumous title "Wen" includes the talent and character of the world, broad morals, diligent learning and inquisitiveness. When Wen Jiang passed away, the funeral was very grand. Counting from July of the 21st year of Duke Zhuang of Lu, he was buried for half a year in the first month of the following year, with the same rites as the emperor. You can imagine how grand the funeral was!
Let’s look at how important Wen Jiang is to her father Mr. Qi Xi as a daughter! As the daughter of Duke Xi of Qi, Wen Jiang must be the apple of his eye. Before Wen Jiang married Duke Huan of Lu, the son-in-law that Duke Xi of Qi was interested in was the prince of Zheng Guo, Ji Hu, but it was a pity that the prince suddenly missed this marriage. In the third year of Duke Huan of Lu, Wen Jiang got married. At that time, Duke Huan of Lu was probably just over twenty years old, and Wen Jiang was probably about the same age, or slightly younger. From Qi Xigong's point of view, when Wen Jiang chooses a son-in-law, he must choose a son who is very outstanding in character and appearance, and who is the future heir to a great country. Therefore, the prince suddenly becomes the target of Qi Xigong's choice of son-in-law.
Wen Jiang later married Duke Huan of Lu. For Wen Jiang, it may have been a kind of humiliation, otherwise Duke Xi of Qi would not have spared no effort in sending his daughter off again and again with his old age, until she was sent to the happy place. The land of joy was in the present-day Ningyang area of Shandong Province and belonged to the state of Lu at that time. This shows how much the father loved his daughter! From Linzi to Huandi, it is a distance of 170 kilometers. To the people of Lu, it was unreasonable to send their daughter away like this! Not only that, a few months after Wen Jiang married to the State of Lu, Duke Xi of Qi was still worried and sent his younger brother Qi Zhongnian to the State of Lu for a special visit. This shows how much this daughter worried his father!
Will Wen Jiang be happy if she marries the State of Lu? Is the relationship between her and Duke Huan of Lu harmonious? Probably not! The most obvious example is that Wen Jiang returned to Linzi and stayed there for several months without returning, which shows that there is not much nostalgia for her in the State of Lu. Secondly, Wen Jiang married Lu State in the third year of Duke Huan of Lu, and Duke Zhuang of Lu was born in the sixth year of Duke Huan of Lu. Later, in the tenth year of Duke Huan of Lu, Duke Xi of Qi, together with Duke Zhuang and Duke Xuan of Wei, came to attack Duke Huan of Lu and fought against Yu Lang. This war should be the beginning of the breakdown of the relationship between Qi and Lu. The reason given by the State of Lu for this crusade was that the State of Qi was trying to save face for the prince. But the military, a major national event, could make Duke Xi of Qi turn against him and attack him, which shows that there are more shocking things happening in Lu State, but they are just "kept in silence" by the people of Lu State. The deterioration of the relationship between Qi and Lu will definitely have an impact on Wen Jiang in Lu. Of course, both of Lu Huan Gong's parents died when he was young, so he was like an orphan. He also grew up in the hands of women since he was a child. In addition, he participated in the murder of his brother Lu Yin Gong , so it was inevitable that he had character problems.These may lead to a bad relationship between the two.
Then there is a saying in " Gongyang Zhuan" that Wen Jiang told Qi Xianggong that Lu Huangong once said bad things about Qi Xianggong: "Ji Tong is not my son, but the son of Qi Xianggong!" When Duke Xianggang of Qi heard this, he was very angry, so he became murderous towards Duke Huan of Lu. However, in this case, there are obvious loopholes. Wen Jiang said bad things about Duke Huan of Lu, how could he talk nonsense about his own son? Moreover, Wen Jiang had never been to Qi before he gave birth to Ji Tong. Wen Jiang had a son in Lu for three years, which was very normal. How could he use such a thing to slander Duke Huan of Lu? Especially, if this really happened, why would Duke Xianggang of Qi be angry? You should feel guilty. Therefore, what is stated in "The Legend of Gongyang" is unbelievable! But it can reflect from another aspect that the relationship between Wen Jiang and Lu Huan Gong is not good. Maybe this is the truth.
In turn, let’s take a look at the relationship between Wen Jiang and Qi Xianggong. These two are brother and sister, that's for sure. But it's hard to say that there will definitely be personal relationships between brothers and sisters that go beyond human relations. As previously estimated, Duke Xi of Qi was already very old when he died, at least over seventy years old, because Duke Xi of Qi's father reigned for sixty-four years, and Duke Xi of Qi reigned for another thirty-two years. , so Qi Xianggong was already quite old when he succeeded to the throne. Secondly, if Qi Xianggong is really good with Wen Jiang, Wen Jiang should be kept in Linzi for a long time. However, according to the "Spring and Autumn", after the death of Lu Huan Gong, Wen Jiang and Qi Xianggong met five times, respectively in Zhu and Zhu. Qiu, Fang, Gu, Fang, and the time is scattered in the second, fourth and seventh years of Duke Zhuang of Lu. This is nothing like a special relationship between lovers!
Some of the above-mentioned places are on the border between Qi and Shandong, such as Yu, which is in the northwest of Changqing County, Shandong. Zhuqiu belongs to Lu, southeast of Linyi, Shandong. Fang, Lu Di, is also in the area of Linyi . Valley belongs to Lu, near Pingyin County, Shandong. These places, whether north or south, have very large geographical spans. Why is this happening? Especially when Wen Jiang went to Ju State and died there, it was really surprising! Various circumstances show that Wen Jiang seems to be in a long-term state of flight, which shows that Qufu cannot tolerate Wen Jiang, but because of the face of his son Lu Zhuang Gong, he has no choice but to live outside, just like Zheng Zhuang Gong's mother Wu Jiang is average and cannot make it live in Qufu. In this case, Wen Jiang seemed more like seeking some kind of safety protection from Qi Xianggong. It can even be said that Wen Jiang's meeting with Qi Xianggong was some kind of diplomatic support for his son Lu Zhuanggong. Especially in the sixth year of Duke Zhuang of Lu, Qi and Lu attacked the Wei, and Qi sent a large amount of treasures from the Wei Kingdom. The reason for this, "Zuo Zhuan" clearly stated, was that at the request of Wen Jiang, Qi Xianggong sent people Sent.
From the perspective of Qi Xianggong, although there are many beauties in the harem, it is normal to love and protect your sisters! To describe this relationship as an incestuous affair is inevitably based on the subjective imagination of the Lu people, and it is possible to deliberately slander the brother and sister, or to exaggerate it as a gossip story. In particular, the affair between a man and a woman is extremely secretive. Why did Guild Lu Huan know about it? He is the one who should be blocked from information the most! This is indeed abnormal! Unless the people of Qi do not regard the relationship between men and women as a problem at all and are more open-minded than people today, can you believe this? Books such as "Zuo Zhuan" and "Gongyang Zhuan" were written more than 200 years after Wen Jiang's death. Ancient information transmission is very primitive. It is really suspicious to be able to speak conclusively about the privacy of such a long-standing monarch!
Take another look at the relationship between Wen Jiang and his son. When Wen Jiang left his son Ji Tong, who was Duke Zhuang of Lu, he was about thirty-five years old, and Duke Zhuang of Lu was only twelve years old. Wen Jiang sent the coffin of Duke Huan of Lu back to Lu. After the burial, Wen Jiang fled to Qi and never returned to Qufu again. Wen Jiang was still very young at the time and could have remarried, which was very common in ancient times. For example, they were both sisters who married Xuanjiang of the Wei Kingdom. They remarried three times, one of which was forcibly arranged by Qi Xianggong in order to protect his sister. But Wen Jiang was different. He insisted not to remarry, insisted on staying in the State of Lu, and insisted on watching his son's growth from afar! Wen Jiang and Lu Huan Gong, the mother and son should still have the opportunity to meet, and more than once, but Lu Shi concealed that they did not meet in the book.Wen Jiang left his son and sometimes went to Qi State, but generally he was in Lu State. Judging from the records in "Spring and Autumn", Wen Jiang should be out with a large number of people and a complete team. How can
be seen? Because Wen Jiang outside Qufu behaved like a king. For example, in the spring of the fourth year of Duke Zhuang of Lu, "Mrs. Jiang enjoyed the Marquis of Qi in Zhuqiu." It is said that the word "Xiang" means that the ceremony is too grand and the ceremony is quite grand. Secondly, he met with Qi Xianggong one after another, and all of them were written in the "Spring and Autumn Annals", which shows that he was served by historians. Isn't this just the show of a king? Such a scene would have been unimaginable if Duke Zhuang of Lu had not provided a large amount of material and personnel guarantees, and even had cities as fiefs. Therefore, although Wen Jiang was away from home, he had been receiving support from his son and enjoying the treatment of a king. At the same time, Wen Jiang has been thinking about his son and fighting for the interests of the Lu State for his son internationally.
Wen Jiang died in Ju State when he was fifty-six or seventeen years old. Why did he die in Ju? Could it be a diplomatic event approved by Duke Zhuang of Lu? If this is the case, then Wen Jiang is really an impressive female hero! A lady from the State of Lu, whose son was the king of the country, was living abroad, yet she endured the humiliation and did not remarry. She devoted herself to guarding her son's country and worrying about her son. This is very respectable! Please see the record of Wen Jiang's death in "Spring and Autumn":
In the 21st year of Duke Zhuang of Lu, in the autumn of the seventh month of the Wuxu period, Mrs. Jiang passed away.
In the 22nd year of Duke Zhuang of Lu: In the spring, in the first month of the lunar month, Guichou buried my little king Wen Jiang.
records this, how sad! How full of respect! Shouldn't such a Wen Jiang be evaluated as "Wen"? This kind of Wen Jiang may be the Wen Jiang who has been recorded most frequently in the official history of "Spring and Autumn". It is even possible that Wen Jiang once made a significant contribution to the governance of the country during the period of Duke Zhuang of Lu! Of course, this is already dusty history, but as one of the ancestors of the Chinese nation, her descendants have the right and the responsibility to wash away all the mud and mud poured on her by the past generations, including the writers of "Zuo Zhuan", so as to restore her as a great person. The brilliance that a woman and a great mother should have!
would like to use this as Wen Jiang’s farewell biography!
