Friday, June 22, 2012

"when men shall hate you" - Mysterious Agent Jing Ke


 Oh-arai Port in Northeast of Tokyo

Mysterious Agent Jing Ke

Jing Ke ("Keika" in Japanese; ? - 227 BC) was the most respected terrorist in ancient China.

But he was sent by the crown prince Dan of Yan to the court of Qin for the purpose to assassinate King Zheng of Qin state who was to become the First Emperor of China after he unified all the warring states through fierce battles and wars.
In 228 BC, the Qin army was already at the Zhao capital, Handan, and was waiting to approach the state of Yan. Jing Ke agreed to go to Qin state and pretend to be a nobleman begging for mercy.[2] According to events at the time, Dukang (in present day Hebei) was the first part of the Yan state that the Qin wanted, by reason of its fertile farmland.[2] The plan was to present a gift of the map of Dukang [2] and the severed head of the traitorous Qin general Fan Wuji [2] to the king of Qin, in order to approach him.

At the time, General Fan Wuji had lost favor with Qin and wanted revenge against it [4]; whereas the Qin state put a bounty on capturing him of 1,000 gold pieces.[5] Jing Ke went to Fan himself to discuss the assassination plan. Fan Wuji believed that the plan would work, and agreed to commit suicide, so that his head could be collected.  
Prince Dan then obtained the sharpest possible bishou, refined it with poison, and gave it to Jing Ke.[4] To accompany him, Prince Dan assigned Qin Wuyang as assistant. Qin Wuyang was known to have successfully committed murder at age 13.

In 227 BC, Prince Dan and other guests wore white clothing and white hats at Ji river to send the pair of assassins off.[4] Jing Ke reportedly sang a song "Piercing wind, freezing river of Yi. The hero fords, and he never returns!". The King of Qin received the message of visitors presenting a gift to him, and was willing to accept at the city. 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jing_Ke
Jing Ke eventually failed to take on King Zheng while his assistant Qin Wuyang felt so intimidated as the two assassins approached to the throne of Zheng in the Qin's royal court. Qin Wuyang crouched down to shiver from fear when Jing Ke started to attack the king with the knife hidden in the map. Qin Wuyang was of no help to Jing Ke who also failed to stab King Zheng by a hair's breadth. 

If Qin Wuyang could have helped Jing Ke chase the king and held him before the dagger Jing Ke wielded, their mission could have been successful. But, King Zheng could narrowly escape the knife blade with help from a court physician who threw a medicine case at Jing Ke. The king, though in a panic, could draw his long sword from the sheath after a struggle. He cut a thigh of Jing Ke. Jin Ke, while falling down, pelted his knife at the king only to miss the aim. Then King Zheng put the assassin to the sword eight times.
So, Jing Ke failed, though he became one of the greatest hero in the Chinese history for his courage and nerve.

But, it is said that Jing Ke did not want to take Qin Wuyang as his party or an assistant for the planned assassination. Jing Ke was waiting for somebody to come to him while he was prepared for the cruel mission. Historian Si-ma Qian who reported this failed assassination of the future First Emperor of China did not mention who Jing Ke was waiting for till he was pushed so urgently to start the one-way journey to Qin by the crown prince Dan of Yan. And there are some theories about who Jing Ke was waiting for.

Nonetheless, if somebody should accompany Jing Ke to the throne of King Zheng, it must have been Crown Prince Dan. As Dan's hatred of his old friend King Zheng was so strong, he must have surely helped Jing Ke take on King Zheng by any means.

So, Jing Ke might have been waiting for Crown Prince Dan to volunteer to follow him to the royal court of Qin and the audience room where they would be received by the future First Emperor of China. Then, the future First Emperor of China must have been surely taken on by his old friend Crown Prince Dan of the state of Yan and the very sophisticated and courageous terrorist 2239 years ago.   

http://4travel.jp/overseas/area/asia/china-zhejiang_province/travelogue/10362671/


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Luk 6:22 Blessed are ye, when men shall hate you, and when they shall separate you from their company, and shall reproach you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of man's sake.
Luk 6:23 Rejoice ye in that day, and leap for joy: for, behold, your reward is great in heaven: for in the like manner did their fathers unto the prophets.