Ancient China · Zhao aristocrat, chancellor, and Lord Pingyuan

Lord of Pingyuan 平原君

Píngyuán Jūn

First attested BC 298; died BC 251

Passages: 40
Chapters: 2
Histories: 2

Overview

Lord of Pingyuan was a Zhao aristocrat, chancellor, and Lord Pingyuan.

Other names

Type	English	Chinese	Pinyin
Personal name	Zhao Sheng	趙勝	Zhào Shèng

Life and dates

Death

BC 251 趙孝成王十五年
Directly stated · Records of the Grand Historian 76, passage 94

Attested activity

BC 298 to BC 251 平原一使，援至從成。
Directly stated · Book of Jin 128, passage 196
BC 251 趙孝成王十五年卒
Directly stated · Records of the Grand Historian 76, passage 94

Family

Immediate relationships attested in the translated histories.

Spouse of Concubine who laughed (笑躄者美人)
concubine 美人
Directly stated · Records of the Grand Historian 76, passage 6
Kin of King Xiaocheng of Zhao (趙孝成王)
kinsman 親戚
Directly stated · Records of the Grand Historian 76, passage 86
Spouse of Wife of Lord Pingyuan (夫人)
lady/wife 夫人
Strongly inferred · Records of the Grand Historian 76, passage 76
Kin of King Huiwen of Zhao (趙惠文)
royal kinsman 趙之諸公子
one of Zhao's noble scions 趙之諸公子
Strongly inferred · Records of the Grand Historian 76, passages 1, 3

Kinship Role descendants who succeeded him · Quantity successive generations
Directly stated · Records of the Grand Historian 76, passage 95
Kinship Role women of the rear palace · Quantity hundreds
Directly stated · Records of the Grand Historian 76, passage 72

Key source chapters

Career and standing

Chancellor of Zhao 相趙
Held repeatedly
Directly stated · Records of the Grand Historian 76, passage 3
Received
At Dongwu City 東武城
Directly stated · Records of the Grand Historian 76, passage 3

Places and affiliations

Polity Zhao · Relation Served
Directly stated · Records of the Grand Historian 76, passage 3

Works and attributed material

Assessment speech · Speaker · With Mao Sui (毛遂)
Directly stated · Records of the Grand Historian 76, passages 62-66
Speech · Speaker
Directly stated · Records of the Grand Historian 76, passages 9-10, 13, 19-21, 25, 27-29

Events and relationships

Executed concubine and apologized to commoner
Social · Patron · With Crippled man (躄者)
Directly stated · Records of the Grand Historian 76, passages 14-15
One mission brought aid
Diplomatic · Envoy · Date Calendar: western · Year Start: 298 · Year End: 251 · Era: BC · Precision: range · Basis: lord-of-pingyuan-era
Directly stated · Book of Jin 128, passage 196

Assessments and attributes

Assessment graceful-nobleman-who-failed-to-grasp-larger-design · Mode historian-judgment Speaker Sima Qian (司馬遷)
Directly stated · Records of the Grand Historian 76, passage 221
Assessment profit-darkened-judgment-leading-to-Changping-catastrophe · Mode historian-judgment Speaker Sima Qian (司馬遷)
Directly stated · Records of the Grand Historian 76, passage 222

References in the histories

Search passages

History

40 passages

Book of Jin, Chapter 128Volume 128 Records 28: Murong Chao · 1 passage

平原一使，援至從成。 one mission from Pingyuan and aid arrived and success followed.

Records of the Grand Historian, Chapter 76Biographies of Lord Pingyuan and Yu Qing · 39 passages

平原君趙勝者，趙之諸公子也。 Lord Pingyuan, whose name was Zhao Sheng, was one of the noble princes of Zhao.

諸子中勝最賢，喜賓客，賓客蓋至者數千人。 Among the princes, Sheng was considered the most worthy. He delighted in hospitality, and the guests who flocked to him numbered in the thousands.

平原君相趙惠文王及孝成王，三去相，三復位，封於東武城。 Lord Pingyuan served as Chancellor to Kings Huiwen and Xiaocheng of Zhao. Three times he stepped down from the chancellorship, and three times he was restored to his post. He was eventually enfeoffed at Dongwu City.

平原君家樓臨民家。 Lord Pingyuan’s residence featured a tower that overlooked the homes of commoners.

平原君美人居樓上，臨見，大笑之。 One of Lord Pingyuan’s concubines, looking down from the tower, saw him and burst into laughter.

明日，躄者至平原君門，請曰：「臣聞君之喜士，士不遠千里而至者，以君能貴士而賤妾也。 The next day, the crippled man came to Lord Pingyuan's gate and made this request: "I have heard that Your Lordship delights in worthy men. Worthy men travel thousands of li without hesitation to reach you, because you honor the worthy and humble the unworthy.

平原君笑應曰：「諾。」 Lord Pingyuan laughed and replied, "Very well."

躄者去，平原君笑曰：「觀此豎子，乃欲以一笑之故殺吾美人，不亦甚乎！」 The crippled man departed, and Lord Pingyuan laughed, saying: "Look at this wretch! He wants to kill my beautiful concubine just because of a single laugh. Is this not going too far!"

平原君怪之，曰：「勝所以待諸君者未嘗敢失禮，而去者何多也？」 Lord Pingyuan was puzzled and said: "I, Sheng, have never dared to treat you gentlemen discourteously. Why have so many departed?"

於是平原君乃斬笑躄者美人頭，自造門進躄者，因謝焉。 Thereupon, Lord Pingyuan had the concubine who had laughed at the cripple beheaded. He personally went to the man's door to present the head and offer his apologies.

秦之圍邯鄲，趙使平原君求救，合從於楚，約與食客門下有勇力文武備具者二十人偕。 When Qin besieged Handan, Zhao sent Lord Pingyuan to seek aid and form an alliance with Chu. He planned to take twenty of his retainers who were accomplished in both civil and military arts.

平原君曰：「使文能取勝，則善矣。 Lord Pingyuan said: "If diplomacy can secure victory, that would be excellent.

門下有毛遂者，前，自贊於平原君曰：「遂聞君將合從於楚，約與食客門下二十人偕，不外索。 Among his retainers was a man named Mao Sui. He stepped forward and recommended himself to Lord Pingyuan, saying: "I, Sui, have heard that Your Lordship will establish a vertical alliance with Chu, bringing along twenty of your retainers and seeking none from outside.

平原君曰：「先生處勝之門下幾年於此矣？」 Lord Pingyuan said: "Sir, how many years have you been dwelling in my household?"

平原君曰：「夫賢士之處世也，譬若錐之處囊中，其末立見。 Lord Pingyuan said: "Truly, when a worthy man dwells in the world, it is like an awl placed in a bag—its point immediately becomes visible.

今先生處勝之門下三年於此矣，左右未有所稱誦，勝未有所聞，是先生無所有也。 You have been in my household for three years now, yet I have never heard any of my attendants praise you, nor have I seen any proof of your ability. This suggests you have no particular talent.

平原君竟與毛遂偕。 In the end, Lord Pingyuan allowed Mao Sui to accompany him.

平原君與楚合從，言其利害，日出而言之，日中不決。 Lord Pingyuan discussed the merits and risks of the alliance with the King of Chu; though they began their talks at sunrise, by noon they had still reached no decision.

毛遂按劍歷階而上，謂平原君曰：「從之利害，兩言而決耳。 Mao Sui, gripping his sword, ascended the steps one by one and said to Lord Pingyuan: "The advantages and disadvantages of this alliance can be decided in two sentences.

楚王謂平原君曰：「客何為者也？」 The King of Chu said to Lord Pingyuan: "Who is this guest?"

平原君曰：「是勝之舍人也。」 Lord Pingyuan replied: "He is one of my retainers."

平原君已定從而歸，歸至於趙，曰：「勝不敢復相士。 Lord Pingyuan had already settled the alliance and returned. When he reached Zhao, he said: "Sheng dares no longer judge the worth of men.

勝相士多者千人，寡者百數，自以為不失天下之士，今乃於毛先生而失之也。 I have judged many men—thousands at most, hundreds at least—and I believed I had never failed to recognize a man of worth. Yet today, in the case of Master Mao, I failed.

勝不敢復相士。」 I will never again dare to judge men by appearances."

平原君既返趙，楚使春申君將兵赴救趙，魏信陵君亦矯奪晉鄙軍往救趙，皆未至。 After Lord Pingyuan returned to Zhao, Chu dispatched Lord Chunshen with troops to relieve Zhao, and Lord Xinling of Wei seized Jin Bi’s army by forged order and marched to Zhao’s rescue, but neither force had yet arrived.

秦急圍邯鄲，邯鄲急，且降，平原君甚患之。 Qin tightened its siege of Handan until the city was desperate and nearly ready to surrender, leaving Lord Pingyuan deeply troubled.

邯鄲傳舍吏子李同說平原君曰：「君不憂趙亡邪？」 Li Tong, the son of a relay-station officer in Handan, advised Lord Pingyuan, saying: "My lord, do you not worry that Zhao will perish?"

平原君曰：「趙亡則勝為虜，何為不憂乎？」 Lord Pingyuan said: "If Zhao perishes, then Sheng will become a captive—how could I not worry?"

於是平原君從之，得敢死之士三千人。 Lord Pingyuan accepted the advice and found three thousand men willing to risk death.

虞卿欲以信陵君之存邯鄲為平原君請封。 Yu Qing wished to use the fact that Lord Xinling had saved Handan as a reason to request a further enfeoffment for Lord Pingyuan.

公孫龍聞之，夜駕見平原君曰：「龍聞虞卿欲以信陵君之存邯鄲為君請封，有之乎？」 When Gongsun Long heard this, he drove through the night to see Lord Pingyuan and said: "Long has heard that Yu Qing wishes to use Lord Xinling's saving of Handan to request an enfeoffment for Your Lordship—is this so?"

平原君曰：「然。」 Lord Pingyuan said: "It is so."

平原君遂不聽虞卿。 Lord Pingyuan therefore disregarded Yu Qing’s advice.

平原君以趙孝成王十五年卒。 Lord Pingyuan died in the fifteenth year of the reign of King Xiaocheng of Zhao.

平原君厚待公孫龍。 Lord Pingyuan received Gongsun Long with generous favor.

公孫龍善為堅白之辯，及鄒衍過趙言至道，乃絀公孫龍。 Gongsun Long was skilled in the sophistry of 'the hard and the white,' but when Zou Yan passed through Zhao and spoke of the Great Way, Lord Pingyuan dismissed Gongsun Long.

過平原君，平原君曰：「願卿之論從也。」 Passing by Lord Pingyuan's residence, Lord Pingyuan said: "I hope you will argue in favor of the alliance."

太史公曰：平原君，翩翩濁世之佳公子也，然未睹大體。 The Grand Historian says: Lord Pingyuan was a graceful nobleman in a muddy age, but he failed to grasp the larger design of affairs.

鄙語曰「利令智昏」，平原君貪馮亭邪說，使趙陷長平兵四十餘萬眾，邯鄲幾亡。 The common saying has it, “Profit darkens wisdom.” Lord Pingyuan, tempted by Feng Ting’s crooked argument, led Zhao into the loss of more than four hundred thousand soldiers at Changping and nearly brought Handan to ruin.