Opinion | Could the start of China’s Warring States Period have lessons for the present day?
The downfall of Zhi Bo in the ancient state of Jin is a study in the abuse of power and hubris that still echoes through history
Chinese strategists love to draw lessons from the country’s rich history, just as Cesare Borgia inspired Niccolo Machiavelli in Renaissance Italy.
The downfall of Viscount Xiang of Zhi (Zhi Bo) in the fourth century BC was often told as a cautionary tale and an example of diplomacy over force.
Such a dramatic story bears retelling, and 2,473 years later, we can still learn a thing or two from it.
The powerful central kingdom of Jin, one of the hegemonic powers in the late Zhou dynasty, was on the brink of collapse. The ruler was a mere figurehead, with the kingdom in the hands of six powerful houses, or the Group of 6 of Jin if you like.
The House of Zhi was the most prominent among them. The young Viscount Zhi Bo was as dashing, charismatic and decisive as he was greedy, arrogant and forceful.
He coerced the other three houses to gang up on the two weakest ones, gobbling up their land and wealth.