Story of Wan Bi Gui Zhao (完璧归赵)

During the Warring States Period, the king of Zhao acquired a very valuable piece of jade. Once the emperor of Qin heard of this, he wanted the jade too and sent an envoy wishing to trade 15 cities for the gem. The king of Zhao felt doubtful of the Qin emperor’s promise but if he didn’t accept the deal, he was afraid that the Qin empire would invade his country. The Qin empire was the most powerful empire at that time, meaning the Zhao country would not stand a chance against them. The Zhao king was very unsure of what he should do, so he called over his officials for any ideas. During the midst of chattering, one person suggested asking a person named “Lin XiangRu” of what to do because he was said to be brave and had wit. Lin XiangRu said that he would go and bring over the jade to the Qin emperor, and he would find a way to bring the jade back safely if the Qin emperor didn’t keep his promises.

On the day Lin XiangRu arrived at the Xian Yang Gong (Qin palace), he gave the jade to the Qin emperor. The Qin emperor kept emphasizing compliments on how good the jade was, but avoided mentioning trading the 15 cities for it. Seeing that the Qin emperor didn’t intend on upholding his promise, Lin XiangRu told the Qin emperor there were some problems with the jade, and he would point them out for him. After the Qin emperor handed back the jade, Lin XiangRu took a few steps back to a nearby column saying “It seems you don’t intend on keeping your promise with trading the jade for 15 cities, so I will be sending this back to the Zhao King. If you try pressuring me, then I will crush both my head and the jade on the column.”

The Qin emperor being flustered and afraid of the jade being broken, he brought out the map and pointed out which 15 cities he would give to the Zhao country. Lin XiangRu, still being cautious, secretly sent an assistant to take the jade back to the Zhao country. Lin XiangRu had arranged a formal event to trade the jade. He wanted to make sure that the Qin emperor would actually hand over the 15 cities before he got the jade. Lin XiangRu told the emperor that he had sent the jade back to the Zhao country, and would have it delivered if he gave them the 15 cities. Hearing this, the Qin emperor had no choice but to give up on taking the jade. The jade was returned to the Zhao country. And this is how the story of “完璧归赵” was made.