In 227 BC, not long before the Qin unification of China, a famous assassination attempt on the ruler of Qin and later First Emperor of China was made by Jing Ke, whose story is recorded in chapter 86 of the Historical Records , which is a collective biography of assassins. It reads as follows:
JING KE was a man of Wey.* His forebears were in fact people from Qi, but they had migrated to Wey, and the Wey people called him ‘the noble Qing’. But he went to Yan and the Yan people called him ‘the noble Jing’.
The noble Jing was fond of reading and swordsmanship, and he spoke about his skills to Lord Yuan of Wey, but Lord Yuan did not employ him. After this, when Qin attacked Wei and established the Dong Province, Lord Yuan’s relatives were removed to Yewang.
Jing Ke once visited Yuci on his travels, and he discussed swordsmanship with Ge Nie, but Ge Nie grew angry and glared at him. When Jing Ke left, someone suggested calling him back. ‘When I was discussing swordsmanship with him just now,’ said Ge Nie, ‘something disagreeable happened, so I glared at him; if he is endeavouring to go on his journey, it is right that he should leave, and I shall not presume to detain him.’ A messenger was sent to the traveller’s host, but Jing Ke had already harnessed his horse to his carriage and left Yuci. When the messenger returned and made his report, Ge Nie said: ‘To be sure, he has gone, for just now I put him right with a glare.’
When Jing Ke was in Handan on his travels, Lu Goujian was playing bo* with him. They fell out and Lu Goujian grew angry and shouted at him. Jing Ke made off in silence, and after that they did not meet again.
When Jing Ke reached Yan, he became fond of a dog-butcher from Yan and also Gao Jianli who was a skilled lute-player. Jing Ke was addicted to wine, and every day he had a drink in the market-place at the Yan capital with the dog-butcher and Gao Jianli. After they got drunk, Gao Jianli played the lute and Jing Ke sang in harmony with him in the market-place; and as they had taken their pleasures together, so when they finished they wept together as if there were nobody else about. Although Jing Ke frequented the company of winebibbers, nevertheless he was a man who was serious-minded and fond of reading; and in all the states to which he travelled, he and all the men of quality, enterprise, and seniority in those places became involved with each other. And when he went to Yan, a public servant living in retirement called Master Tian Guang also treated him well because he appreciated that he was not an ordinary person.
After a while it so happened that Crown Prince Dan of Yan, who had been held hostage in Qin, escaped and returned to Yan. Crown Prince Dan of Yan had once in the past been held hostage by Zhao and, as King Zheng of Qin was born in Zhao,* he had got on well with Dan when they were young. But when Zheng was set up as King of Qin, Dan was made hostage by Qin. And when the King of Qin’s treatment of Crown Prince Dan of Yan deteriorated, Dan, becoming resentful in consequence, fled back home. After his return he sought someone who would take vengeance on the King of Qin for him, for the state was small and did not have the strength to be able to do so. Later on Qin daily sent out soldiers east of the mountains to attack Qi, Chu, and the three successor states of Jin,* and gradually nibbled away at the feudal states. When they were just about to reach Yan, both the ruler of Yan and his ministers were afraid that disaster would befall. Crown Prince Dan was worried about this and consulted his tutor, Ju Wu. ‘The territory of Qin spreads throughout all under Heaven,’* Wu replied, ‘and it is menacing Hann, Wei, and Zhao. In the north it has gained possession of the strongholds of Ganquan and Gukou, and in the south it has gained possession of the fertile lands beside the Jing and the Wei. It exploits the abundance of Ba and Han. To the west it has the mountains of Long and Shu, and to the east it has the difficult terrain of the pass and of Xiao. Its people are multitudinous, its officers well disciplined, and it has a superabundance of weapons and armour. As far as he has revealed his intentions, there is nothing yet settled about the area south of the Great Wall and north of the River Yi.* Why do you want to raise her hackles because of resentment at having been insulted?’ ‘In that case, what course shall I follow?’ said Dan. ‘I beg to go inside and ponder this,’ he replied.
After a while the Qin general Fan Yuqi gave offence to the King of Qin, so he fled and went to Yan, where the Crown Prince received him and provided him with somewhere to stay. ‘It should not be done,’ remonstrated Ju Wu. ‘If anger is concentrated on Yan because of the bad temper of the King of Qin, that is enough to turn one’s heart cold, so how much the more will this be so if he hears where General Fan is? This is what is meant by “casting meat in the path of a hungry tiger”, for disaster will certainly become inescapable. Even if Guan and Yan* were alive, they could not make plans to deal with this. I wish that Your Highness would quickly dispatch General Fan to the Xiongnu* in order that he may be silenced. I respectfully suggest that in the west you reach an agreement with the three successor states of Jin, and in the south you link up with Qi and Chu, and in the north you get on terms with the Khan, and after this plans can indeed be made.’
‘Your scheme, Grand Tutor, is time-consuming,’ said the Crown Prince. ‘It will take ages. But I am rather stupid, and I am afraid I cannot wait a moment. Moreover it is not only to do with this. That General Fan, at large in the world in a desperate situation, put himself into my care, and I certainly will not, just because I am persecuted by a powerful Qin, abandon a relationship with someone I have taken pity on and hand him over to the Xiongnu. This is an absolutely crucial time for me. I would like you, Grand Tutor, to think about it again.’
Ju Wu said: ‘Intending to seek peace while one does dangerous things, seeking good fortune while one is constructing disaster, feeling deep resentment while one is making shallow plans, binding oneself to future association with a single person and not concerning oneself with the great harm which will befall the state, this is what is meant by “assisting disaster by building up a stock of resentment”. If wild swan’s feathers are burnt on the charcoal in a stove, there is certainly nothing to be done about it. Similarly if cruel anger is brought into action by a hawk-like Qin, the consequences are surely not worth talking about. In Yan there is Mr Tian Guang, who is a man of profound wisdom and steeped in courage. You should make plans with him.’ ‘I should like to avail myself of your assistance, Grand Tutor, to make the acquaintance of Mr Tian,’ said the Crown Prince. ‘Would that be possible?’ ‘With respect, I promise to arrange this,’ said Ju Wu. He left and went to see Mr Tian, and said: ‘The Crown Prince wishes advice on affairs of state to be given by you, sir.’ ‘I respectfully accept these instructions,’ said Tian Guang. Accordingly he went to see him.
When receiving him the Crown Prince stood to one side to conduct him in, knelt down, and dusted the mat.* When Tian Guang was settled in his place and there was nobody else present, the Crown Prince left his mat and requested: ‘Yan and Qin will not stand as two, and I would like you, sir, to let your thoughts dwell on this.’ ‘Your servant has heard’, said Tian Guang, ‘that when a fine horse is in its prime, it gallops 1,000 li in one day; but when it grows old and feeble, a wornout nag gets ahead of it. Now Your Highness has heard about me as I was when I was in my prime, and he is not aware that my skill has already melted away. Nevertheless, although I do not venture to use it to give advice on affairs of state, Jing Ke, of whom I think highly, should be used for this mission.’ ‘I should like to avail myself of your assistance, sir, to get acquainted with Jing Ke,’ said the Crown Prince. ‘Is that possible?’ ‘With respect, I promise to arrange this,’ said Tian Guang.
Straightway he rose and hurried out. The Crown Prince saw him off and, when they reached the gate, he warned: ‘What I have reported and what you have said are important matters of state, so I would like you, sir, not to let them leak out.’ ‘I promise,’ said Tian Guang, bowing and smiling. Walking quickly, he went to see Jing Ke. ‘You and I think well of each other,’ he said, ‘as everyone in Yan knows. Now the Crown Prince has heard of me as I was in my prime and is not aware that physically I am no longer up to it, so he has done me the honour of instructing me: “Yan and Qin will not stand as two, and I would like you, sir, to let your thoughts dwell on this.” Despite my humility I did not rule myself out completely, but mentioned you, sir, to the Crown Prince. I would like you, sir, to call on the Crown Prince at the palace.’ ‘I shall respectfully accept your instructions,’ said Jing Ke. ‘I have heard’, said Tian Guang, ‘that when a venerable person undertakes some action, he does not cause others to be suspicious of him. Now when the Crown Prince told me, “What we talked about were important matters of state, and I would like you, sir, not to let them leak out,” this was due to the fact that the Crown Prince was suspicious of me. Now if one undertakes some action but causes other people to be suspicious of one, this is neither moral nor brave.’ Intending to kill himself so as to inspire Jing Ke, he said: ‘I would like you, sir, to go urgently and call on the Crown Prince, and mention that Guang is already dead, to make it clear that he will not talk.’ Accordingly he cut his throat and died.*
Jing Ke then went to see the Crown Prince, mentioned that Tian Guang had died, and passed on what he had said. The Crown Prince bowed twice and knelt down, and wept as he crawled along. After a moment he said: ‘The reason why I warned Master Tian not to say anything was because I wished by doing so to bring to completion the planning of a great enterprise. That Master Tian should now make it clear that he would not talk by dying, was surely not my intention!’
When Jing Ke’s place had been arranged, the Crown Prince left his mat and bowed. ‘Mr Tian was not aware that I am unworthy,’ he said, ‘so he made it possible for you to come into my presence so that I could venture to have something to say. This is how Heaven shows pity for Yan and will not discard me when I succeed to the throne. Now Qin has a heart which is greedy for profit, and its desires are insatiable. If it does not absorb all the land under Heaven, and make all the kings within the seas its subjects, its ambitions will not be satisfied. At the present time Qin has already taken captive the King of Hann, and has annexed all his territories. It has also raised troops to attack Chu in the south and threatens Zhao in the north. Wang Jian is leading a host of several hundred thousand to confront Zhang and Ye, and Li Xin has sallied forth towards Taiyuan and Yunzhong. Zhao cannot withstand Qin, and is bound to submit and become its vassal, and if it does so then calamity will befall Yan. Yan is small and weak and has frequently been harassed by soldiers, so now I reckon that the whole state would be an inadequate match for Qin. If the feudal states are submitting to Qin, nobody will dare to form a north–south alliance.* As for my own secret plan, I foolishly consider that, if we can really get hold of the bravest man of action* under Heaven and send him on a mission to Qin to provide a glimpse of substantial profit, the King of Qin will be greedy for it, and with his power he makes a point of getting whatever he wants. If we really succeed in putting pressure on the King of Qin to make him restore all the territory of the feudal states he has usurped, as in the case of Cao Mo* and Duke Huan of Qi, then it will be splendid. But if this is impossible, he shall consequently be stabbed to death. Those important generals of Qin have full responsibility for troops deployed in the field, so when there is chaos in the capital there will be mutual suspicion between ruler and ruled; and through the opportunity provided by this the feudal states will be able to form north–south alliances, and it will become inevitable that they defeat Qin. This is my supreme desire, but I do not know to whom to entrust our fate. It is up to you, Jing Ke, to let your thoughts dwell on this.’
‘This is an important affair of state,’ said Jing Ke after a long time, ‘and I am a jaded creature. I am afraid I am not fit to be entrusted with the mission.’ Only after the Crown Prince had bowed before him and earnestly begged him not to hold back did he agree. Then Jing Ke was honoured as a senior minister and lodged in superior accommodation. The Crown Prince went daily to his gate and provided him with the paraphernalia of the grand sacrifice, and unusual objects were handed in at intervals, and carriages, horsemen, and beautiful women were provided to satisfy Jing Ke’s desires, so as to smooth the path of his intentions.
For a long time Jing Ke never had the intention of making the journey. The Qin general Wang Jian defeated Zhao and captured the King of Zhao, and annexed the whole of its territory. He advanced his troops to capture territory to the north and arrived at the southern borders of Yan. Crown Prince Dan was terrified and so he implored Jing Ke. ‘Since any moment now the Qin troops will cross the River Yi,’ he said, ‘even if I wished to go on supporting you, sir, surely that could not be done!’ ‘Even if Your Highness had not spoken,’ said Jing Ke, ‘your servant wanted to pay you a visit. If I make the journey now but do not have evidence of good faith, the King of Qin will be quite unapproachable. But as for General Fan, the King of Qin has offered 1,000 catties of gold and a city of 10,000 households for him. If I were actually to get hold of General Fan’s head together with a map of Dukang* in Yan, and took them and presented them to the King of Qin, the King of Qin would certainly be pleased to grant me audience, and I would indeed be able to have something to report.’ ‘General Fan came and took refuge with me when he was in dire distress,’ said the Crown Prince, ‘and although I cannot bear to harm the purposes of a venerable person such as yourself because of a private matter of my own, I would like you, sir, to reflect on this again!’
Knowing that the Crown Prince could not bear to go along with this, he then went and saw Fan Yuqi in private. ‘The way Qin has treated you, general, may be described as atrocious,’ he said. ‘Your father and mother and your kinsmen were all put to death because of you. Now I hear that a price of 1,000 catties of gold and a city of 10,000 households has been put on your head. What will you do about it?’ Yuqi gazed up to Heaven, sighed heavily, and wept. ‘Every time I remember this,’ he said, ‘I always suffer pain to the very marrow of my bones; but when I make plans, I do not know what to come up with, and that is all there is to it.’ ‘If I have a single utterance which may relieve the state of Yan from distress and take vengeance on your enemies, general, what about it?’ said Jing Ke. ‘What is to be done about it then?’ said Yuqi coming forward. ‘I would like to get hold of your head, general, so as to present it to the King of Qin,’ said Jing Ke. The King of Qin is bound to be pleased and grant me an audience, and I will grab his sleeve with my left hand and stab him in the chest with my right hand. In that case vengeance will be wreaked on your enemy, and Yan’s shame at having been insulted will be removed. But you would surely not be willing?’
Fan Yuqi strode forward, baring one shoulder and clasping his wrist.* ‘This is what I have been grinding my teeth and wearying my heart over with rage day and night,’ he said. ‘And now I have actually been able to hear some advice!’ Then he slit his throat. When the Crown Prince heard about it, he went over quickly, prostrated himself in front of the corpse and wept, and felt extremely remorseful. But since in the event there was nothing else that could be done, he then put Fan Yuqi’s head in a casket and sealed it.
Thereupon the Crown Prince, in preparation for the mission, sought the sharpest dagger in the world and obtained one from Xu Furen, a man of Zhao, who took 100 jin for it. He made a craftsman coat it with poison so as to try it out on other people, and although the blood drawn only caused a slight stain, all the people died instantaneously. Accordingly it was packed in the luggage being got ready for Jing Ke’s journey. In the state of Yan there was a bold fellow named Qin Wuyang, who had committed murder although he was only 13 years old, and people did not dare look him in the eye. So Qin Wuyang was ordered to become his assistant.
But there was someone else Jing Ke was waiting for, since he intended to take him along with him. The person in question lived at a distance and had not yet come, so he made preparations for the journey on his behalf. After a while, since he had not yet set out, the Crown Prince thought that he was procrastinating and suspected that he had changed his mind and was feeling regretful, so he put a further request: ‘The days are already getting used up,’ he said, ‘and surely you have no intention of going. I beg to be able to send Qin Wuyang ahead.’ Jing Ke was furious. ‘Why should you send him?’ he shouted at the Crown Prince. ‘That silly fellow would be the one who would set out and not return. What is more, I shall be entering Qin, which is immeasurably powerful, having picked up a single dagger, and the reason for my delay is that I am waiting for my friend to come with me. If Your Highness thinks I am procrastinating, I beg to take my leave this instant.’ And so he set out.
The Crown Prince and those of his visitors who were aware of what was going on all put on white mourning clothes* and cap to see him off. When he reached the banks of the River Yi, he set out on his way after they had sacrificed to the Spirit of the Road. Gao Jianli played the lute, and Jing Ke sang in harmony. They made a mournful sound and the gentlemen present all shed tears. Then he stepped forward and performed a song which went
The wind sighs and the River Yi is cold.
Once the brave fellow leaves,
He will not return again.
Afterwards they performed a stirring tune,* and the gentlemen present all wore looks of anger, and their hair all bristled up, pushing at their caps. Then Jing Ke went over to the carriage and set off, and he did not look back at all.
Next they reached Qin and, taking gifts worth 1,000 jin, made a generous present to Meng Jia, a palace cadet who was a favourite official of the King of Qin. Jia first spoke to the King of Qin on his behalf. ‘The King of Yan is truly alarmed at the Great King’s awesomeness,’ he said, ‘and does not dare to raise troops in order to resist the officers of your army. He wishes the whole state to become a vassal and join the ranks of the other states in presenting tribute and acting like provinces and districts, so as to be able to have the honour to protect the ancestral temples of the previous kings. In his terror he does not dare to present himself, but he has respectfully cut off Fan Yuqi’s head and with it presents a map of Dukang in Yan, put in a casket and sealed up. With his salutations, the King of Yan dispatched these things from the audience chamber and has sent an emissary to report to the Great King. It is for the Great King to give him instructions about this.’
When the King of Qin heard this, he was highly delighted and, putting on court dress, arranged a grand levee, and gave audience to the Yan emissary in the palace at Xianyang. Jing Ke offered the casket containing Fan Yuqi’s head and Qin Wuyang offered the map-case, going forward one after the other. When they reached the steps, Qin Wuyang changed colour and trembled with fear, and all the officials were surprised at him. Jing Ke turned and laughed at Wuyang. He went forward and apologized. ‘He is a rustic fellow from the barbarians of the northern frontier,’ he said, ‘and he has never once set eyes on the Son of Heaven,* so he is trembling with fear. I would like the Great King to be a little lenient with him, to enable us to complete our mission in his presence.’
‘Get hold of the map which Wuyang is carrying,’ said the King of Qin. When Jing Ke had got hold of the map and offered it to him, the King of Qin unrolled the map. And when the map was completely unrolled, the dagger was revealed. Using his left hand, he grabbed the King of Qin’s sleeve, and with his right hand he held the dagger to stab him. But before it reached his body the King of Qin drew back in alarm and rose to his feet, and the sleeve tore off. He tried to draw his sword, but his sword was long and got stuck in the scabbard. At the time he was agitated and so, as the sword was rigid, it could not be drawn immediately.
Jing Ke pursued the King of Qin, but the King of Qin fled round a pillar. The officials were all startled and suddenly rose to their feet in the face of the unexpected, and became completely disorganized. Moreover, according to Qin law, all the officials who served at the top of the hall could not carry even the tiniest weapon, and all the palace gentlemen bearing weapons were paraded at the foot of the hall, and except when there was a summons by imperial edict, they could not come up to the top of the hall. So just at the moment of emergency, he did not get around to summoning the soldiers down below, and that was why Jing Ke actually pursued the King of Qin. And he in his sudden agitation, having nothing else with which to strike Ke, thrust at him with hands joined together.
At this time the attendant physician, Xia Wuju, warded off Jing Ke with the bag in which he carried drugs. The King of Qin had just fled round the pillar and in his sudden agitation he did not know what he was doing, so his courtiers said: ‘Put the sword behind you, Your Majesty.’ When the sword had been put behind him, he then drew it and struck Jing Ke with it, and he cut his left thigh. Jing Ke was finished, but he drew back his dagger to hurl it at the King of Qin. However, he missed and hit the bronze pillar. The King of Qin again struck at Jing Ke and Ke suffered eight wounds. Ke himself realized that the enterprise had failed, so he leant on the pillar and laughed. He cursed as he sprawled with his legs spread out. ‘The reason why the job is unfinished’, he said, ‘is because I intended to take him by force while he was still alive, and insist on getting the compact in order to repay the Crown Prince.’ Thereupon, when the courtiers had come forward to kill Ke, the King of Qin remained embarrassed for a good long while. Eventually, when he discussed achievements there were discrepancies in both the rewarding of the various officials and in the question of those who ought to be tried, but he bestowed 200 yi* of gold on Xia Wuju. ‘Wuju loves me,’ he said, ‘so he warded Jing Ke off with his bag of drugs.’
Thereupon the King of Qin in his great rage sent forth more and more soldiers to go to Zhao and decreed that Wang Jian’s army should attack Yan. In ten months they took the city of Ji.* Xi King of Yan, Crown Prince Dan, and the rest, at the head of all their élite troops, went eastwards to find security in Liaodong.* General Li Xin of Qin pursued and smote them and the King of Yan was hard-pressed, and Jia King of Dai then sent Xi King of Yan a letter. ‘The reason why Qin is pursuing Yan all the more relentlessly is because of Crown Prince Dan,’ it said. ‘Now if the King were really to kill Dan and present him to the King of Qin, the King of Qin would be bound to break off, and your altars of land and grain would fortunately be able to receive their sacrifices.’ After this Li Xin pursued Dan and Dan went into hiding in the area of the River Yan.* The King of Yan accordingly sent messengers to cut off Crown Prince Dan’s head, intending to present it to Qin. But Qin again made soldiers advance and attack them. Five years later Qin troops wiped out Yan and took Xi King of Yan prisoner.
The following year Qin unified all under Heaven and the title of August Emperor* was immediately adopted. Then Qin pursued the friends of Crown Prince Dan and Jing Ke and they all vanished. Gao Jianli changed his name and became a hired servant, and hid himself away in Songzi. After a long time, having lived a hard life, he heard a guest playing the lute in the hall of the house where he was a servant, so he hung about and could not go away. Every time he blurted out the remark that ‘There is good and bad in that,’ the attendants reported this to their master. ‘That hireling really does understand music,’ they said. ‘On the quiet he is saying what is right and wrong.’ The head of the household summoned him into his presence to play the lute, and the whole assembled company praised his skill and bestowed wine upon him. But Gao Jianli, reflecting on the fact that he had long been in hiding and had spent an endless period of fear and hardship, accordingly withdrew and got out his lute and his best clothes from his luggage, and came into their presence again with his appearance transformed. The assembled guests were all astonished and, ignoring the requirements of ceremony, they subordinated themselves to him and treated him as the guest of honour. They got him to play the lute and sing, and all the guests were in tears when they left. The story of his being treated as a guest was passed on in Songzi, and was heard by the First Emperor of Qin. When the First Emperor summoned him to audience, someone recognized him, and so he said: ‘It is Gao Jianli.’ The August Emperor of Qin was so moved by his excellent lute-playing that he gave him a special pardon and merely put out his eyes. When he got him to play the lute he always praised his skill. Gradually he let him come closer, so Gao Jianli weighted the lute with lead, and when he next came in and got close, he raised the lute to strike the August Emperor of Qin, but missed. Thereupon he had Gao Jianli put to death, and for the rest of his life he did not again allow anyone from the feudal states to come close to him.
When Lu Goujian heard that Jing Ke had tried to stab the King of Qin, he said in private: ‘Alas, what a pity he did not make a proper study of the art of swordsmanship! How thoroughly I misunderstand people! Once upon a time I shouted at him, but he has indeed made me into a nonentity.’
The Grand Historiographer said: ‘Contemporary accounts of the Jing Ke story, which refer to Crown Prince Dan’s command that “Heaven should rain grain and horses should grow horns”,* are grossly misleading. To say that Jing Ke wounded the King of Qin is also quite wrong. Right at the start Gongsun Jigong and Master Dong used to enjoy spending their spare time with Xia Wuju, and they became aware of everything that happened, and they told it to me* just like this.
‘From Cao Mo to Jing Ke* some of these five men fulfilled their duty and some did not, but it is quite clear that they had made up their minds. They did not betray their purposes, so surely it is not absurd that their names should be handed down to posterity.’