Chengjiao (prince)

Chengjiao
Lord Chang'an[1]
Born256 BC
Died239 BC
Names
Ancestral name: Ying (嬴)
Clan name: Zhao (趙)
Given name: Chengjiao (成蟜)
FatherKing Zhuangxiang of Qin

Chengjiao (Chinese: 成蟜; pinyin: Chéngjiǎo; 256–239 BC), titled Lord of Chang'an (長安君; Cháng'ān Jūn),[1] was the son of King Zhuangxiang of Qin and the paternal younger half-brother of Qin Shi Huang. After Ying Zheng inherited the title of King of Qin from his father King Zhuangxiang, Chengjiao rebelled at Tunliu and surrendered to the State of Zhao.[2] King Daoxiang of Zhao granted him the territory of Rao (; modern Raoyang County, Hebei). In 239 BC, Qin forces occupied Rao and he was killed.

Potential betrayal

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There are disputes on whether he actually betrayed Qin for such a small land as Rao, as indicated that he did not suffer the punishment of dismemberment as Pu He (蒲鶮), a captain of sorts of the traitors in Tunliu.[3]

Family

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Some historians, including Li Kaiyuan and Ma Feibai, hypothesize that Ziying, the last king of Qin, may be his son.

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In Kingdom, he (referred to as his onyomi reading, Seikyō) launched a coup that tried to kill Qin Shi Huang alongside his own faction. He was later overthrown by Lord Changwen [zh] (Shōbun Kun), Xin (Shin), loyalists and the mountain tribes. He was later pardoned and allowed leadership during Qin Shi Huang's campaigns. He was also appointed leader during a border war, but torn when the city he expected to be defended, rebelled. He was later killed by a rebel commander after being cornered, using him as an excuse to foment distrust to his brother.

He also appeared as an enemy of Qin Shi Huang and the protagonist Xiang Shaolong (項少龍) in Huang Yi's novel Record of the Search for Qin [zh] and its live action TV series (2001 and 2018 [zh]), game and comics adaptations.

References

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  1. ^ a b 司馬遷 (Sima Qian). 《史記》 [Records of the Grand Historian], 卷043 [Vol. 43], 趙世家. "(赵悼襄王)六年,封长安君以饶。" (in Chinese)
  2. ^ Sima Qian. Records of the Grand Historian, 秦始皇. "八年,王弟长安君成蟜将军击赵,反,死屯留,军吏皆斩死,迁其 民於临洮。将军壁死,卒屯留、蒲鶮反,戮其尸。河鱼大上,轻车重马东就食。" (in Chinese)
  3. ^ 《史记·秦始皇本纪》:将军壁死,卒屯留蒲鶮反,戮其尸。