In the Spring and Autumn Period, Bian He, a Chu man, was in Chu Mountain. He said that he saw a phoenix perched on a bluestone slab in Jingshan Mountain (now Nanzhang County, Hubei Province). " said, he believed that there was a treasure on the mountain. After careful search, he finally found a piece of jade in the mountain.
Bian He dedicated this Pu to King Li of Chu. However, after being identified by jade workers, Pu was judged to be a stone. King Li thought that Bian He was deceiving the king, so he ordered Bian He's left foot to be cut off and expelled from the capital.
When King Wu came to the throne, Bian He presented the jade again, but the jade workers still thought it was a stone. Unfortunately, Bian He had his right foot chopped off for the crime of deceiving the emperor.
When King Chu Wen came to the throne, Bian He cried bitterly for three days and three nights at the foot of Chu Mountain with the jade in his arms, until his eyes were filled with blood. King Wen was very surprised and sent someone to ask him: "There are many people in the world who have their feet cut off. Why are you the only one who is so sad?" Bian He sighed: "I am not sad because my feet were cut off, but because gems are regarded as stones. It hurts that a loyal person is treated as a deceitful minister. This time, King Wen directly ordered someone to dissect the raw material, and he got a flawless piece of jade.
In order to reward Bian He for his loyalty, the beautiful jade was named "He's Bi", which is the legendary He's Bi in later generations.
The King of Chu cherished this beautiful jade very much and was reluctant to carve it into a vessel, so he kept it as a treasure. More than 400 years later, in order to commend his meritorious and loyal ministers, King Wei of Chu specially gave the Heshi Bi to Prime Minister Zhaoyang. When Zhaoyang led his guests to visit Chishan, he brought out a jade jade for people to admire. Unexpectedly, after everyone dispersed, He's jade disappeared.
More than 50 years later, Miao Xian, a native of Zhao, bought a piece of jade at the market for five hundred gold. What is unexpected is that after identification by jade workers, this jade is the He's jade that has been missing for many years. King Zhao Huiwen heard that He's Bi appeared in Zhao State, so he took it for himself.
After King Zhao of Qin learned of this, he wrote to King Zhao saying that he was willing to exchange fifteen cities of Qin for the jade. The King of Yue was frightened by the power of Qin and sent Lin Xiangru as an envoy to Qin with a jade. Lin Xiangru, who was extremely resourceful, fulfilled his mission and designed to retrieve the jade and send it back to Zhao.
In 228 BC, Qin destroyed Zhao, and He's Bi eventually fell into the hands of Qin. Unfortunately, He's Bi disappeared from historical records. Legend has it that after Qin Shihuang unified the six kingdoms, he made the Heshi Bi into the national jade seal.
The ups and downs of the Chuan Guo Jade Seal
Regardless of whether the Chuan Guo Jade Seal was made of Heshi jade, after Qin Shihuang unified China, he indeed ordered jade workers to carve an emperor's jade seal, which was called It's called the "Emperor's Seal". According to historical records, this seal was carved from white jade from Lantian, Shaanxi Province, with a tiger button. It is said that the inscription on the jade seal with a dragon, fish, phoenix and bird button was the eight characters "Ordered by Heaven, and you will live forever" written in large seal script by Prime Minister Li Si.
Since the advent of the Imperial Seal, it has embarked on a legendary experience. Legend has it that in 219 BC, when Qin Shihuang was patrolling south to Dongting Lake, a sudden storm arose and the boat he was riding was about to sink. The First Emperor threw the imperial seal into the lake to worship the gods and calm the waves, so that he could cross the lake safely. Eight years later, when he was traveling to Pingshu Road in Huayin, someone stood in the road holding a jade seal and said to the attendants of the First Emperor: "Please return this seal to Zulong (Qin Shihuang's generational name)." After saying this, he disappeared. The jade seal passed down to the state returned to Qin.
During the war at the end of Qin Dynasty, Liu Bang led his troops into Xianyang first. The ruler of the Qin Dynasty, Ziying, dedicated the "Emperor's Seal" to Liu Bang. When Liu Bang established the Han Dynasty and ascended the throne, he wore this imperial seal, known as the "Han Imperial Seal". Since then, the jade seal has been kept in Changle Palace and became a symbol of imperial power. At the end of the Western Han Dynasty, Wang Mang usurped power. Emperor Liu Ying was only two years old, and the jade seal was controlled by Empress Dowager Xiaoyuan. Wang Mang ordered Wang Shun, the Marquis of Anyang, to force the Queen Mother to hand over the jade seal, but the Queen Mother angrily rebuked him. When the Queen Mother threw the jade seal to the ground in anger, a corner of the jade seal was thrown off. Later, it was repaired with gold, leaving a flaw from then on.
After Wang Mang's defeat, the jade seal changed hands several times, and finally fell into the hands of Emperor Guangwu of the Han Dynasty Liu Xiu, and was passed on to the emperors of the Eastern Han Dynasty. At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Shi Changshi made a rebellion, and the young emperor fled in a hurry. He had no time to take away the jade seal. When he returned to the palace, he found that the jade seal was missing. During the "Eighteen Route Princes' Attack on Dong Zhuo", Sun Jian's men salvaged the body of a palace maid from the Zhen Palace Well in the south of Luoyang City, and found the "Jade Seal of the Kingdom" from the brocade pouch under her neck. Sun Jian regarded it as a good omen, so he started to do it. The emperor's dream. Unexpectedly, someone in Sun Jian's army informed Yuan Shao of the incident. Yuan Shao heard about it and immediately detained Sun Jian's wife and forced Sun Jian to hand over the jade seal. Later, the Yuan Shao brothers were defeated and died, and the "Jade Seal of the State" was returned to Emperor Xian of the Han Dynasty.
When the Three Kingdoms came into being, the Jade Seal belonged to Wei. When the Three Kingdoms were unified, the Jade Seal belonged to Jin. At the end of the Western Jin Dynasty, the north fell into an era of frequent dynasty changes and turmoil. The "Jade Seal of the Kingdom" was constantly fought over. In the fifth year of Yongjia reign of Emperor Huai of Jin Dynasty (AD 311), the jade seal returned to former Zhao Liu Cong. In the fourth year of Xianhe in the Eastern Jin Dynasty (AD 329), Later Zhao Shile destroyed the former Zhao and obtained the jade seal; Later Zhao general Ran Min killed Shi Jian and established himself, regaining the jade seal. At this stage, several "privately carved" jade seals also appeared, including the self-engraved seals of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, Murong Yong's carved seals of the Western Yan Dynasty, Yao Qin's seals, etc. During the reign of Emperor Wu of Liang Dynasty in the Southern Dynasties, the surrendered general Hou Jing rebelled and robbed the jade seal passed down to the country. Soon after Hou Jing was defeated and died, the jade seal was thrown into the well of Qixia Temple. The monks of the temple fished it out and kept it, and later presented it to Emperor Chen Wu.
During the Sui and Tang Dynasties, the "Jade Seal of the State" was still the most precious treasure of the rulers. After Zhu Wen of the Five Dynasties usurped the Tang Dynasty, the Yuxi suffered another misfortune. Li Congke, the deposed emperor of the later Tang Dynasty, was defeated by the Khitan and climbed the tower with the Yuxi to burn himself. The whereabouts of the Yuxi are still unknown.
True and false jade seals passed down to the country
Since the rulers of the past dynasties have vigorously promoted that obtaining the jade seal passed down to the country is "mandated by destiny" and "an auspicious sign", since the Song Dynasty, true and false jade seals passed down to the country have been Seals have been discovered many times.
For example, in the third year of Shaosheng's reign in the Song Dynasty (AD 1096), Duan Yi, a native of Xianyang, said that he dug out a jade seal from the ground when he was building a house, which was "green as blue, warm and lustrous" and had "five plates of chi buttons on the back". Waiting for 13 officials to "research", they determined that it was the jade seal of the "genuine imperial seal made by the Qin Dynasty". However, according to later generations' research, this was a trick played by Cai Jing and others to deceive the emperor. In the 13th year of Hongzhi's reign in the Ming Dynasty (AD 1500), Mao Zhixue of Huxian County obtained the jade seal in Nihe, and Xiong Yuzhong, the governor of Shaanxi Province, presented it to Emperor Xiaozong. According to legend, the imperial seal brought into the desert by Emperor Yuan Shun at the end of the Yuan Dynasty was visited by Huang Taiji, Emperor Taizong of the Later Jin Dynasty. Huang Taiji therefore changed the country's name from "Jin" to "Qing". However, there were 39 jade seals in the Forbidden City in the early Qing Dynasty. Among them, the one known as the Chuan Guo Xi was regarded as a fake by Emperor Qianlong. This shows that it is difficult to determine the authenticity of the Chuan Guo Xi. It is said that the real national seal was brought to Mobei by Yuan generals when the Ming Dynasty destroyed the Yuan Dynasty. Was the true imperial seal made by He Shibi? Where does it flow to? So far, there are divergent opinions and no consensus.
The attitude of people in the Ming and Qing dynasties towards "the imperial seal" was different from that in the past. According to the "History of the Ming Dynasty? Yufu Zhi? Emperor's Treasure Seal", Fu Han, the Minister of Rites, commented on the imperial seal sent from the local area: "Since the first emperor of Qin Dynasty, he obtained the Lantian jade as the seal, and it was passed down and used after the Han Dynasty. It is a clever competition. If you get it, you will be satisfied with it, but you don't know how to use it as a seal, so if you don't get it, you will fake it to deceive others. If you get it, you will be happy and show it to the world." The "Guochao Chuan Bao Ji" compiled by Emperor Gaozong of the Qing Dynasty also said: "What is not recorded in the Huidian is a seal of 'Ordered by Heaven, and longevity and longevity'. I don't know when it was attached to the palace and placed in the middle. According to it, Although the poem is similar to the ancient Qin seal, the seal script is clumsy and vulgar, and it is not the old Ming Dynasty of Li Si Chongniao... When it comes to treasures, it is nothing but Qin's seal. If it is a real Qin seal, it is not valuable! The jade seal obtained by Jun Baoyinghe, a member of the Jin Dynasty, is very cute in ancient times, and it is very consistent with Cai Zhongping's version in "Zhuogeng Lu". I think this kind of person imitated it and stored it in a separate hall, just as he was playing with the old utensils. The ancients discussed the burning of Qin's seal in detail. Even if it still exists, how can it be stored together with the treasures passed down from this dynasty? p>
In 689 BC, an old man named Bian He was crying at the foot of Jingshan Mountain (now west of Nanzhang, Hubei). Officials came to inquire, and Bian He said that there was a treasure in the big bluestone he was holding. However, he was accused of cheating twice when he offered it to the king of Chu, and he was cut off and lost his legs one after another. The officials were suspicious and transported the large bluestone to the capital. When the jade craftsman cut it open, a strange crystal stone appeared. King Wen of Chu, who had just ascended the throne, looked at the jade carved from it and liked it very much, so he named it "He's Bi". From then on, "He's Bi" has been kept in the Chu Palace.
After more than three hundred years, "He's Bi" became widely known and fell into the hands of King Zhao Huiwen. After hearing the news, King Zhaoxiang of Qin expressed his willingness to exchange fifteen cities. When Lin Xiangru sent the bi to the Qin Palace, King Qin Zhaoxiang reneged on his promise; he wisely took the bi back and brought it back to Zhao. This is the origin of the idioms "priceless" and "the perfect jade returns to Zhao".
Qin King Yingzheng destroyed the State of Zhao in 222 BC and obtained the "Heshi Bi". The following year, he established the first feudal dynasty in Chinese history and used "He's Bi" to make his imperial seal. This imperial seal, which symbolizes power, is "four inches square". The text of the seal was written by Prime Minister Li Si and engraved by the famous jade craftsman Sun Shou. According to the records of "Old Yi of the Han Dynasty", the seal text contains eight characters: "If you are ordered by heaven, you will live forever and prosper."
In the Western Han Dynasty, "He's Bi" became the national seal. In 1 BC, Emperor Ai of the Han Dynasty Liu Xin died of illness and the young emperor ascended the throne. "He's Bi" was managed by the emperor's mother. Before Wang Mang usurped the throne and established himself, he sent his cousin to force the Queen Mother to hand over the "Heshi Bi". She was so angry that she threw it to the ground and said, "You brothers are disobeying the laws of nature and will not end well!" When Wang Mang took the "Heshi Bi" "Bi", found that a corner of it was smashed off, and quickly ordered the jade craftsman to inlay it with gold. When the Xinmang regime collapsed, "Heshi Bi" was once hung on the head and neck of the leader of the Red Eyebrow Rebel Army. In the early years of the Eastern Han Dynasty, "He's Bi" returned to the palace.
The last emperor to master the "He's Bi" was Li Congke, the late Emperor of the Tang Dynasty after the Five Dynasties. Before Shi Jingtang of the Jin Dynasty captured Luoyang in 936 AD, he and his concubines burned themselves in the palace, and all the royal belongings were thrown into the fire at the same time. . Since then, "He's Bi" has mysteriously disappeared, and there are different opinions about its whereabouts.
"He's Bi" has been handed down for more than 1,600 years, which is really rare in the world. Many scholars throughout the ages have wanted to find out its true identity and have made arduous explorations. In 1921, geologist Zhang Hongzhao analyzed in "Shi Ya" that it should be a rare labradorite with green and white glitter. In 2001, at the "China Ornamental Stone Expo", the "He's Bi" replicated with color-changing labradorite by Yuan Kuirong, a geologist, gemstone and ornamental stone expert, was exhibited
Note: I am in People Magazine I have seen a 30-year-old geologist test "He's Bi" as a moonstone.