Ministers › Diplomat / Envoy
Tang Ju
Late Warring States strategist of Wei who, by the Zhan guo ce, faced down the king of Qin as envoy of Lord Anling.
On a road beside a desert gateway, a camel train carries a lidded chest and rolled bundles while travellers walk along the path; a large sailing ship lies in the harbour at the right, a stone waymark stands by the road, and dunes and mountains fill the distance.
Also known as Tang Qie
- Roles
- Diplomat / Envoy
Tang Ju was a late Warring States strategist of Wei. The Shiji says that under King Anxi of Wei a Tang Ju then over ninety persuaded King Zhao of Qin to rescue Wei, and the Zhan guo ce has him advising Lord Xinling not to dwell on his own good deeds. According to the Zhan guo ce, after Qin destroyed Wei and demanded Anling in exchange for five hundred li of land, Lord Anling sent Tang Ju to Qin, where he answered the wrath of the Son of Heaven with the wrath of a commoner, rose with his sword and made the king kneel in apology. If both episodes concern one man he would have been over a hundred, so scholars suspect two namesakes or a strategist's embellishment. He is the hero of 'Tang Ju Fulfils His Mission'.
Life and times
Dates Dates unknown; late Warring States, with recorded episodes c. 266 BCE to after 225 BCE