Brief introduction of Qu Yuan: Qu Yuan (about 304 BC ~ about 278 BC), whose real name is Ping, is a descendant of Qu Xian, the son of Xiong Tong. At the end of the Warring States Period, the State of Chu (now Zigui, Hubei) was from Danyang. Poet, politician, founder and representative author of Songs of the South. In the 20th century, he was elected as one of the four cultural celebrities in the world (Copernicus in Poland, Shakespeare in Britain, Dante in Italy) and was widely commemorated. Qu Yuan is a great patriotic poet, who initiated a new era of poetry from collective singing to individual independent writing, and was the founder of China's positive romantic poetry tradition. Now let's tell a story about Qu Yuan.
When he was very young, Chu Huaiwang discovered his talent and was highly valued. He was appointed as a leftist, participated in discussing political affairs, drafted the work of the Council, and was in charge of foreign affairs. In the face of the political situation of the hegemony of the seven countries, the upper nobility of Chu produced two routes: one was the surrender route headed by official doctors and Shanxi merchants; The other faction is an anti-capitulation faction headed by Qu Yuan and some other military strategists, and advocates that Chu and Qi unite with Wei, Zhao, Han and Yan to form a "combined vertical" camp to resist. These two routes are diametrically opposed. However, due to Chu Huaiwang's shortsightedness and incompetence, the pro-Qin faction gained the upper hand. The king of Chu, Shanxi merchants and other supreme ruling groups imposed exorbitant taxes and levies, corrupt officials and class contradictions became increasingly acute.
In 3 13 BC (16th year of Chu Huaiwang), shortly after Qu Yuan was sent to Qi, King Huiwen of Qin planned to attack Qi first in order to destroy the six-nation alliance. At that time, Qi and Chu were friendly and closely related. King Huiwen of Qin was worried that once the State of Qi was captured, the State of Chu would help. In order to persuade Chu to remain neutral when invading Qi, he sent Zhang Yi to lobby the nobles of Chu with generous gifts and promised to give them 600 Li of land invested by businessmen. The news of Qi Lianqin's farewell soon spread to Qi. Qu Yuan, who was in Qi State, felt very painful and worried. He hurried back to Chu, but was left out in the cold by Wang Huai. As Qu Yuan expected, Chu Huaiwang sent envoys to the State of Qin to accept 600 Li of land, but Yi Cheung refused to admit it and became angry from embarrassment. Qu Yuan suggested making peace with Qi again and attacking Qin together later. Chu Huaiwang and Qin fought and lost, and the defeat was like a mountain. Chu Huaiwang felt weak.
When the country was in crisis, Qu Yuan, who was alienated and indifferent, once again suggested uniting with Qi to resist Qin. Although Chu Huaiwang didn't want to, he had to agree because of the situation. So he sent Qu Yuan to Qi for the second time to mend fences. At that time, Qu Yuan was a famous scholar. His mission caused great repercussions in various countries, especially in Qin. In 3 1 1 BC, Qin was forced to return the land of Hanzhong for peace. Chu Huaiwang thinks that he was fooled by Zhang Yi. He demanded that Zhang Yi be handed over. After Zhang Yi arrived in the State of Qin, ministers who accepted bribes, such as You Zheng, Shanxi Merchants and Zijiao, tried their best to put in a good word for Zhang Yi. Confused Chu Huaiwang listened to their words and sent Yi Cheung back to the State of Qin. When Qu Yuan came back from the mission to Qi State, he heard that Zhang Yi was going to be released and immediately remonstrated. Wang Huai realized that he wanted to send someone to kill Yi Cheung at once, but Yi Cheung had been gone for a long time, and it was too late to chase him.
This year, Qin Huiwen and Zhang Yi, two main figures who actively promoted the Lian Heng policy, passed away one after another, which is obviously a good opportunity for the six countries to unite. However, Chu Huaiwang lacks the foresight of a politician and cannot assess the situation. In 239 BC (the 30th year of King Huai), Zhao Haoqi, king of Qin, wanted to betrothed his daughter to Chu Huaiwang's son, so he invited King Huai to meet him in Wuguan. Qu Yuan was shocked to hear the news and advised Chu Huaiwang never to agree to the invitation of Qin. Chu Huaiwang didn't listen to Qu Yuan's advice and went to Wuguan for an appointment, but as Qu Yuan expected, as soon as Chu Huaiwang entered Wuguan, Qin Jun cut off the back road and asked Chu Huaiwang to cede territory. Chu Huaiwang refused, and secretly ran to find Zhao. Zhao was afraid of Qin's influence and sent him back to Qin as a prisoner. Three years later, Chu Huaiwang was imprisoned in the State of Qin and died. Chu had to make Xiang Wang, the eldest son of Huai Wang, king.
Qu Yuan felt that his monarch had been cheated by Qin and died in a foreign country, which was a great shame for the country. He hates those traitors and hates himself for not doing more for his country. The incomparable pain and anger made Qu Yuan's peace of mind quiet for a moment. He wrote poems to expose the greed and ugliness of treacherous court officials. These poems spread quickly. When Shanxi merchants and Zilan heard Qu Yuan scold themselves, they were very angry. They immediately went to see Xiang Wang of the Qing Dynasty, falsely accusing Qu Yuan of being very dissatisfied with the newly enthroned monarch and encouraging the masses to oppose the imperial court. Qing Xiang drove Qu Yuan out of Yingdu and exiled him to a desolate place in the south of the Yangtze River. Although Qu Yuan was in adversity, he refused to give up his motherland and people. He hopes that one day, he can show his great ambition, save the country from danger and let the people live a better life. So during his exile, he was very concerned about the affairs of the court. As long as there are Du Ying people, he will carefully inquire about military and political news.
In 278 BC, Qu Yuan heard that Qin sent troops to invade Chu again. When he got the news of Du Ying, "the leitian of Qin invaded our Du Ying!" What goes around comes around, and he is extremely indignant. He heard that Dongting, Wuhu and Jiangnan fell one after another, and Xiang Wang fled hastily and had to take refuge in Chen (now Suiyang, Henan Province), almost desperate. He hoped that the great rivers and mountains would be occupied by Qiang Qin and the people of Chu would be enslaved. His mind is full of ideas. After writing the last immortal poems such as Mourning and Huai Sha, he jumped into the Miluo River firmly and naturally on the night of the fifth day of the fifth lunar month in 278 BC, ending his great and glorious life. He was 62 years old that year. In memory of this great patriotic poet, later generations designated the fifth day of the fifth lunar month as the Dragon Boat Festival.