Tang Xiaoxian: The legend of Wang Qiqin beheading his son to rectify the law

Tang Xiaoxian: The legend of Wang Qiqin beheading his son to rectify the law Phoenix City Tang Xiaoxian Wang Qiqin, courtesy name Shimin, nickname Shaoyue, was born in Songzi, Hubei, in the 10th year of Jiajing in the Ming Dynasty (153...

Tang Xiaoxian: The legend of Wang Qiqin beheading his son to rectify the law Phoenix City Tang Xiaoxian Wang Qiqin, courtesy name Shimin, nickname Shaoyue, was born in Songzi, Hubei Province. He was born in the 10th year of Jiajing in the Ming Dynasty (1531). He was a Jinshi in Guichou Division in the 32nd year of Xijing (1553) and was awarded the magistrate of Wuxin County in Jiangsu Province. He was twenty and three years old. At that time, Japanese pirates invaded the southeastern coastal areas of China, raped, plundered, and committed all kinds of evil. However, the ancient city wall of Wuxi has been in disrepair for a long time, corroded by wind and rain, collapsed and dilapidated, and is not enough to defend against enemies. Wen Peng, the eldest son of Wen Zhengming, has a poem to prove it: "I once passed this place, and the weeds covered the ruins. When the crazy bandits come, the danger to the city will be over." On the third day after Wang Qiqin arrived in Wuxi and took office, he discussed with the gentry about building the city wall. After about a year of planning and overcoming various difficulties, the bricks and stones for the city were ready. From the 33rd year of Jiajing reign (from February 9th to April 20th, 1554), it took seventy days to rebuild the original Wuxi city wall into a masonry city wall with a circumference of 1,783 feet and 6 feet and 1 inch (about 12 miles), a height of 2 feet and a foot, and a width of more than 10 feet. Two days after the city wall was built, the Japanese pirates arrived in Wuxi, but were unable to get in. Wang Qiqin led his troops to attack and won, and the Japanese pirates were defeated. In neighboring cities, such as Zhenjiang and Suzhou, Japanese pirates invaded the city and harassed the people. In order to commemorate Wang Qiqin, the magistrate of Wuxi, and praise his great achievements, in the 22nd year of Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty (1683), the Songzi Wanghou Temple was built in the Nanshuixian Temple outside the south gate of Wuxi. Wuxi's city wall and city gates were completely demolished in 1951. When the city wall was demolished, an insightful person wrote a big-character poster in a newspaper and posted it on the city wall, calling for the preservation of historical buildings and an end to the demolition of the city wall. However, the trend was irreversible. My uncle, Tang Wenming, a businessman in the silk industry, and Huang Zhuoru, a local gentry, jointly requested the Chairman of the National Government Lin Sen to inscribe the plaque "The Great Spirit Will Live Forever", which still hangs high above the main hall of the Songzi Wanghou Temple for people at home and abroad to admire. There are various folk legends about Wang Qiqin, one of which is the tragic story of his execution. It is said that Wang Qiqin ordered his only son Wang Kebao (someone said he was an adopted son, another said he was a distant nephew) to supervise the construction of the city. It was completed within a seventy-day deadline, and a military order was issued. The soldiers and civilians worked hard for three days and three nights, and they were exhausted. Wang Kebao took pity on them and allowed them to rest for a while. Unexpectedly, after the rest, the soldiers and civilians fell asleep. Late that night, Wang Qiqin led his men. He inspected the construction progress all the way from the west gate and south gate, and when he reached the east gate, he found that the area was deserted and no one was doing any work. Wang Qiqin was very surprised when he learned about the situation. He scolded his son for dereliction of duty, contempt for military orders, and ordered execution on the spot. After being frightened, the soldiers and civilians all cried out, but Wang Qiqin was unmoved and still beheaded Wang Kebao. Wang Qiqin's righteous deeds of exterminating relatives and enforcing the law shocked and inspired the entire city's soldiers and civilians. As a result, everyone worked hard day and night to build the Wuxi city wall as solid as possible, saving the lives and properties of more than 100,000 people in the city. The people of Wuxi built the Kebao Bridge at the Sujia Nong entrance of the east gate where Wang Qiqin beheaded his son, in memory of Wang Kebao, who died out of compassion for the soldiers and civilians. However, there are authoritative historical records, inscriptions, and documents, such as the "Wuxi County Chronicle" printed in the second year of Wanli in the Ming Dynasty (1574), and the "Nan Shuixian Temple Free of Essence Monument" erected by Xu Yongyan, the Marquis of the Qing Emperor Kangxi in the 24th year of the Qing Dynasty (1685). "Record", printed by Xue Yutang during the Daoguang period of the Qing Dynasty, re-engraved by Gao Songtao in the twelfth year of Tongzhi (1873), printed in the twenty-third year of the Republic of China (1934), and combined with large characters in the thirty-seventh year of the Republic of China (1948) There are four versions of "The Records of Prince Songzi's Visit to the Temple", "Jinkui County Chronicle of Wuxi" published in the seventh year of Guangxu's reign in the Qing Dynasty (1881), and the directors of Nanshuixian Temple, Qiu Lude, Huang Zhuoru, Tang Wenming and Yin Geng during the Republic of China. There is no record of Wang Qiqin's execution of his son Zhengfa in the "Inscription of the Loyalty of General Yin Ma" written by the emperor and Jiang Hou, nor does it mention the execution of any supervising officials. This shows that this legend is purely a folk fabrication and has no basis in historical facts.