Ministers › Remonstrators
Chunyu Kun
Warring States scholar of Qi at the Jixia Academy, of humble origin as a live-in son-in-law, famed for his wit and eloquence, who admonished King Wei of Qi to reform and fetched Zhao troops to relieve the state.
At dawn in a palace courtyard, a large drum hangs in a small roofed frame beside a red pillar, with a bound bundle of scrolls on a low stand in front; a stone balustrade leads toward a large hall in the mist, and a row of tiny people stands far away.
Also known as Chunyu Kun, Master of the Jixia Academy
Chunyu Kun was a man of Qi in the Warring States period, born around 386 BCE and dying around 310 BCE; he began as a live-in son-in-law and became one of the scholars of the Jixia Academy. The Shiji's Biographies of the Humorists presents him as a ready wit and persuasive speaker. He moved King Wei of Qi to reform with his parable of the great bird that does not sing; when Chu attacked Qi he was sent to Zhao and returned with a hundred thousand elite troops, and Chu's army withdrew overnight. He also debated with Mencius and once recommended seven men to King Xuan in a single day. King Hui of Wei offered him a ministerial rank, which he declined.
Life and times
Dates c. 386–c. 310 BCE