Classical Prose
唐雎不辱使命
《战国策》
秦王使人谓安陵君曰:“寡人欲以五百里之地易安陵,安陵君其许寡人!”
安陵君曰:“大王加惠,以大易小,甚善;虽然,受地于先王,愿终守之,弗敢易!”
秦王不悦。安陵君因使唐雎使于秦。
秦王谓唐雎曰:“寡人以五百里之地易安陵,安陵君不听寡人,何也?且秦灭韩亡魏,而君以五十里之地存者,以君为长者,故不错意也。今吾以十倍之地,请广于君,而君逆寡人者,轻寡人与?”
唐雎对曰:“否,非若是也。安陵君受地于先王而守之,虽千里不敢易也,岂直五百里哉?”
秦王怫然怒,谓唐雎曰:“公亦尝闻天子之怒乎?”
唐雎对曰:“臣未尝闻也。”
秦王曰:“天子之怒,伏尸百万,流血千里。”
唐雎曰:“大王尝闻布衣之怒乎?”
秦王曰:“布衣之怒,亦免冠徒跣,以头抢地耳。”
唐雎曰:“此庸夫之怒也,非士之怒也。夫专诸之刺王僚也,彗星袭月;聂政之刺韩傀也,白虹贯日;要离之刺庆忌也,仓鹰击于殿上。此三子者,皆布衣之士也,怀怒未发,休祲降于天。与臣而将四矣。若士必怒,伏尸二人,流血五步,天下缟素,今日是也。”
挺剑而起。
秦王色挠,长跪而谢之曰:“先生坐!何至于此!寡人谕矣。夫韩、魏灭亡,而安陵以五十里之地存者,徒以有先生也。”
Translation
The King of Qin sent a messenger to Lord Anling, saying, “I wish to exchange five hundred li of land for Anling. Let Lord Anling grant this request.” Lord Anling replied, “Your Majesty is showing favor by offering a large territory in exchange for a small one. That is generous indeed. Yet this land was received from my former kings; I wish to guard it to the end and dare not exchange it.” The King of Qin was displeased, so Lord Anling sent Tang Ju as envoy to Qin. The King of Qin questioned Tang Ju, accusing Anling of refusing a generous offer and implying contempt for Qin. Tang Ju answered that Lord Anling guarded ancestral land entrusted by former rulers; even for a thousand li he would not dare exchange it, let alone for five hundred. Angered, the King of Qin threatened him with “the wrath of the Son of Heaven,” saying that such anger would leave a million corpses and blood flowing for a thousand li. Tang Ju replied by asking whether the king had heard of “the anger of a commoner.” Ordinary rage might be nothing more than throwing off one’s cap, going barefoot, and striking one’s head against the ground; but the anger of a true man of honor could bring down two bodies, spill blood within five paces, and put the realm into mourning. With that, he drew his sword and stood. The King of Qin’s expression changed; he knelt upright and apologized, admitting that Anling survived among destroyed states only because it had a man such as Tang Ju.
Analysis
“Tang Ju Does Not Disgrace His Mission” is a compact diplomatic drama about dignity under pressure. The King of Qin frames conquest as exchange and domination as generosity. His proposal is not a fair bargain but a political threat disguised as favor. Against this pressure stands Tang Ju, an envoy from a small state, whose only real weapons are reason, courage, and moral resolve. The structure of the piece is built through escalation. Qin first invokes power: it has destroyed Han and Wei, and Anling survives only by Qin’s tolerance. Tang Ju answers by invoking legitimacy: Anling’s land was entrusted by former rulers and cannot be traded. Qin then invokes terror, speaking of the wrath of a Son of Heaven. Tang Ju counters with the wrath of a commoner—not the anger of the vulgar, but the rage of a man of honor who is prepared to die rather than submit to insult. His allusions to Zhuan Zhu, Nie Zheng, and Yao Li transform the scene from political negotiation into a confrontation over moral limits. The final gesture—Tang Ju drawing his sword—is less a military act than an ethical declaration. Qin’s king yields not because Anling is strong, but because Tang Ju reveals the cost of contempt. The essay praises the envoy who preserves his mission by preserving his dignity. Its force lies in the spare dialogue, the tension between power and honor, and the sudden reversal by which a small state’s envoy makes an emperor-like ruler retreat.
About the Author
The Strategies of the Warring States, or Zhanguo ce, is a major historical and rhetorical text preserving political speeches, diplomatic encounters, and strategic anecdotes from the Warring States period. Later arranged and titled by Liu Xiang of the Western Han, it is organized by state and is especially known for vivid persuasion, sharp dialogue, and dramatic characterization. “Tang Ju Does Not Disgrace His Mission” exemplifies its style: a tense diplomatic scene, forceful rhetoric, and a protagonist whose moral courage emerges through speech.