Research On The Relationship Between The Wu State And The Chu State In The Spring And Autumn Period

The relation between Wu and Chu is crucial among kingdoms ruled by Princes during the Spring and Autumn Period.The history of mutual exchanges between Wu and Chu roughly went through several stages,namely,from the parallel development since foundation,Wu's obedience to the Chu,the intervention of Jin,the long-term confrontation and swing after the second peace-pursuing Alliance to the competition for Cai and Chen.As was illustrated by relevant records from the eighteenth chapter of Tsinghua bamboo slips,the state of Wu also participated in Jin's attack on Chu in the fourth year under the administration of the Duke Ding of Lu,which further shed light on probing the international situation when the armies of Wu invaded Chu.Compared with the literature handed on from ancient times,the historical materials of Wu's rescue on Chen in the "Wu Ming"(??)of Shanghai Museum bamboo slips significantly revealed the intention of Wu's move was honoring the King.In addition,the interactions between Wu and Chu were mainly in the middle and later stages of the Spring and Autumn Period when social structures and ideologies had undergone profound transformations.Wars were the manifestation of the bilateral relation between Wu and Chu,and their contests for the hegemony had not only continued the traditional replacement of hegemony during the Spring and Autumn Period,but also demonstrated the characteristics of the Warring States Period.Apart from the long war,the sporadic diplomatic activities between Wu and Chu under the new pattern were in accordance with the backdrop of the second peace-pursuing Alliance.Served as the microscopic content,"Wu used talents from Chu"(????)had provided us with a perspective from which the flows of talents in the middle and late Spring and Autumn Period could be understood.