Huan Wen, minister of Jin Dynasty, killed people in broad daylight. Why can he enter the official career without being sentenced?

In ancient times, there was a tradition of "killing people politely, revenge without guilt". Huan Wen avenged his father's death. According to this tradition, he is innocent.

This tradition has a long history. In Zhou Li, it is said that "whoever kills a man bravely should be ordered not to take revenge, and the enemy will die." It means that if the deceased is to be punished, the relatives of the deceased shall not retaliate, and those who retaliate shall be put to death. The subtext of this sentence is that if the deceased is innocent, then the relatives of the deceased have the right to revenge.

Since then, Confucianism has commented on revenge. For example, the Book of Rites says, "The son of the father, Fu and * * * wear heaven; Brothers don't fight back; Friends, different countries. " Translated into vernacular Chinese, that is to say: the revenge of killing my father is not * * *; Once you meet the enemy who killed your brother, no matter whether he has weapons or not, you should take revenge immediately; As for the enemy who killed his friend, he can't live in the same city with him.

Confucius, a Confucian sage, also encouraged revenge, leaving such a record.

"Xia Zi asked Confucius,' What if you are the enemy of your parents?' Confucius said:' Sleep, pillow is not official, and share happiness with the world. When you meet the city, don't fight with the soldiers. "Say,' What's the enemy of Brother Jukun?'

He said:' The division government and the * * * countries, under your orders, will not fight when they meet.' You said,' What's your enmity in living with my father, Kundi?' Said,' Not the first one. If the master can, he will accompany the soldiers. ""This paragraph is a dialogue between Confucius' Gao Zuzi Xia and his teacher, which is translated into vernacular as follows:

Xia Zi asked, "What should I do with the enemy who killed my parents?"

Confucius said, "Sleeping on a straw mat, using a shield as a pillow, not being an official, not sharing the world with your enemies. No matter in the market or in court, as long as you meet an enemy, you should kill him immediately-if you are unarmed, you can't go home to get it, you must go with your bare hands! "

Xia Zi then asked, "What about killing his brother's enemies?"

Confucius said, "Don't be an official with the enemy. If you go to a foreign country on the orders of the monarch and meet an enemy there, you can't fight him. You should put business first. "

Xia Zi asked again, "So, what about the enemy who killed the uncles and brothers?"

Confucius replied: "I don't take the lead in revenge." If the deceased's own son or brother finds the enemy, then take the guy and cheer behind. "

This is a classic quotation of Confucian classics, and it is the words of Confucius, which clearly explains the revenge method of killing parents, brothers and uncles.

Confucius said so, explaining all kinds of revenge methods clearly. It is really outrageous for later scholars not to retaliate.

It can be seen that ancient cultural traditions encourage revenge, especially blood revenge. If a person doesn't even avenge his parents, others will look down on you and think you are unfilial and have no courage. If you retaliate, you will be praised by others and even promoted to intercede for you.

Therefore, Huan Wen's "killing Jiang Biao to avenge his father, not ashamed of filial piety" is not only innocent, but also praised by Shilin.