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During the Warring States period, the State of Zhao had two renowned ministers: Lian Po and Lin Xiangru. Lian Po was a brave and skilled general who had achieved many military victories. Lin Xiangru was originally just an ordinary official, but because he successfully brought the He Shi Bi back to Zhao intact (the ‘Return…
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The Dream of the Yellow Millet is a famous Chinese fable from the novel “The Story of the Pillow’ by the Tang Dynasty writer Shen Jiji. A poor scholar surnamed Lu chanced upon an old Taoist priest surnamed Lü at an inn in Handan, whilst on his way to sit the imperial examinations. Lu lamented…
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Tian Heng (250BC–202BC) was a member of the former royal house of Qi during the late Qin dynasty. After Chen Sheng and Wu Guang rose in revolt against the Qin, heroes from all quarters responded in succession. The Tian Heng family was also among the anti-Qin forces, and later Tian Heng declared himself King of…
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The “Thousand Character Classic” is one of the most widely circulated and most influential early educational texts in pre-modern era China. Together with the “Three Character Classic,” the “Hundred Family Surnames,” and the “Poems of a Thousand Masters” it is collectively known as the “Three, Hundred, Thousand, Thousand” (三百千千). Using one thousand different, non-repeating Chinese…
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Feng Yan of Tang Dynasty came from humble origins, he was a man of generous spirit who placed great importance on loyalty and righteousness. On one occasion, whilst standing up for someone who had been wronged, he killed a man; to evade the authorities, he fled to Huazhou, where he went into hiding amongst the…
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King Xuan of Qi asked Mencius, “Is it true that (Zhou dynasty) King Wen’s park was thirty five kilometre in circumference?” Mencius replied, “It is so written in the historical records.” The king asked, “Was it really that large?” Mencius said, “And yet the people still found it too small.” The king said, “My park…