Guiguzi. Hezong Lianheng

Author: Shi Shuying
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-04-01
Features: The immediate impact of The Guiguzi was to cultivate figures like Su Qin, Zhang Yi, and Pang Juan, who played significant roles on the stage of the Warring States period. At a critical juncture in the mid-to-late Warring States period, when "either the Heng alliance would make Qin the emperor or the Zong alliance would make Chu the king," the pair of classmates, Su Qin and Zhang Yi, who had trained under the same master, employed the flexible strategies and eloquence taught by The Guiguzi to outmaneuver each other, highlight their strengths, and expose the weaknesses of their opponents. Su Qin, who advocated the Zong alliance with Zhao as the leader, engaged in a verbal duel with Zhang Yi, who promoted the Heng alliance with Qin as the leader, in persuading the six states. They targeted different audiences, catering to their desires, pointing out the benefits and harms, reasoning with logic, and appealing to emotions to persuade the feudal lords. Through their diplomatic maneuvers, they demonstrated the power of life and the value of existence, staging a series of gripping historical dramas on the turbulent stage of the Warring States period. They became influential figures of the time, renowned and pivotal in the era.