Guiguzi, whose name is unknown, lived in seclusion in Yunmeng Mountain all his life, studied astronomy and geography, had wonderful ideas and predictions, and was proficient in the "Guiguzi" strategy that integrates politics, military, and power. He became a military, The originator of Zonghengxue.
Guiguzi’s real name
It has always been difficult to verify, and even whether this person actually exists is still controversial. Before the Jin Dynasty, it was said that this person was named after the place where he lived in seclusion, so he was called Guiguzi. From the Jin Dynasty to the Song Dynasty, documents recording Guiguzi's name gradually appeared. It was said that Guiguzi's surname was Wang, his name was Xun, Xun, Xu, etc. However, most of these ancient books recording Guiguzi's name are fantasy novels such as "The Legend of Immortals" and "Taiping Guangji", which are not trustworthy.
Disciples of Guiguzi
The four most familiar people in the world are Pang Juan, Sun Bin, Zhang Yi and Su Qin. But only two people, Zhang Yi and Su Qin, were explicitly mentioned in historical records as studying under Guiguzi, "I learned from Qi in the east, and learned from Mr. Guigu" (see Su Qin's biographies) and "I started to study with Su Qin under Mr. Guigu." (See Zhang Yi’s biography). However, regarding these two sentences in historical records, historians' research is often ambiguous, because there is a lack of records about Guiguzi's life and studies in ancient pre-Qin books and "Hanshu Yiwenzhi".
Many ancient books of the Pre-Qin Dynasty have been lost due to natural and man-made disasters over the ages. The lack of sufficient documentary records does not mean that the records in the historical records must be wrong. After all, Sima Qian was closer to the Pre-Qin Dynasty, and we can learn from the Pre-Qin Dynasty. Ancient books are more informative and reliable than our modern ones.
Rumors about Mr. Guigu’s secluded place
There have always been different opinions about Mr. Guigu’s secluded place, Guigu. Right and wrong add a touch of mystery to Guigu. "Suoyin" written by Sima Zhen of the Tang Dynasty for "Historical Records" believes: "Guigu is also a place name. Fufeng Chiyang, Yingchuan Yangcheng has Guigu Ruins. Gai is where the people lived. Because of the name." Here Sima Zhen is right. The exact location of Ghost Valley is not determined, but two places are listed. And there is a word "cover", that is, Mr. Guigu's seclusion is probably in these two places.
In addition to this statement, some people also believe that Guigu is located in Dangyang, Hubei Province. For example, "Yudi Jisheng" says that Dangyang Guigu Cave is the "Hidden Place of Guiguzi". Others believe that it is different in today's Qixian County, Henan Province. In short, there are many names for "Ghost Valley"!
First
In terms of the geographical location at that time. What we cannot ignore is that transportation was extremely inconvenient in ancient times, let alone the Warring States Period more than 2,000 years ago.
"The Biography of Su Qin" says: "Su Qin was a native of Luoyang in the Eastern Zhou Dynasty."
"Biography of Zhang Yi": "Zhang Yi is from the Wei Dynasty."
"Historical Records Suoyin" said: "The Jin doctor Zhang Lao, and there is Zhangcheng in Hedong, the Zhang family must be a Wei person."
It can be said with certainty that Zhang Yi is from Hedong ( Today's Shanxi) people. At that time, Luoyang was the political, economic, and cultural center of the country, so Su and Zhang could only come to Ruyang Yunmeng Guigu, a secluded place of Guiguzi that was close to Luoyang but far away from the hustle and bustle of the city, to learn from his master.
Second
According to written historical records, Guiguzi lived in seclusion in Yunmeng Guigu, Ruyang.
"The Chronicles of the States of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty" states that "Gui Guzi, a native of Jin Ping Gong, collected herbs and practiced Taoism together with Mo Di, a Song Dynasty man, in Yunmeng Mountain."
"The Chronicles of the Seven Kingdoms" by Sun Bin When he left his father to study, he said: "My son heard people say that there is a Mr. Guigu in Shuiliandong, Yunmeng Mountain, Ruzhou, Henan. He knows everything about military strategies and clever strategies, so I want to ask him to be his teacher." A poem by Guo Pu of the Jin Dynasty said: "There are more than a thousand people in the Qingxi River, and there is a Taoist priest. If I ask who this is, it is said to be Guiguzi." Seven miles south of Yiyang County, it is said that Guiguzi practiced Taoism." "Gui Guzi, a native of the Spring and Autumn Period of Jin Ping Gong, went to Yunmeng Mountain to collect herbs. He was as handsome as a young boy and lived in Gui Valley in Qingxi. Su Qin and Zhang Yi resigned three years ago."
"Yiyang County Chronicles" written by Shunzhi of the Qing Dynasty records: "Yunmeng Mountain, five miles southeast, is the hiding place of Guiguzi, and Su and Zhang conferred letters here." Now Ruyang is the original Yiyang County, in the Republic of China. Two years ago, it was under the jurisdiction of Ruzhou.
Yunmeng Mountain is located one kilometer south of Ruyang County. There is a village called Guigu Village at the foot of the mountain. The Qingxi (Malan) River runs north along the mountain and joins the Ru River and flows into the Jianghuai River. There is a famous saying that goes down to this day: "The shadows of Zhangzhou fall down the wall, and the clear stream moves the clouds on the mountains."
Third
According to the existing historical relics, there are Shuilian Cave (i.e. Guigu Cave), Yunmeng Cave (Guigu Cave) and Yunmeng Cave (Guigu Cave) in today’s Ruyang Yunmeng Mountain. Also known as Sun Bin Cave), Sun Bin Tomb, Guigu Tomb, Stone Formation, Shuowei Well, Sword Testing Stone, Yanyue Cliff and other relics marked with Mr. Guigu and his disciples. Today, Shuiliandong is where Mr. Guigu lives and lectures.
"Guangyu Ji" records: "Guiguzi tried to hide it here, and it is said that the place where Su Qin and Zhang Yi taught books was named Wang Chandong."
"Henan Tongzhi" also said that "Gui Guzi, a native of Chu, eight miles southeast of Yiyang County today, there is a stone cave." Another example is the well of tears, which is a well pit in Guigu Village at the foot of Yunmeng Mountain. It was dug by Guiguzi to test the speaking ability of Su Qin and Zhang Yi.
"The land of the king," said Su Qinxia, ??Mr. Guigu cried with tears in his eyes, Zhang Yi was not as good as him."
Another example is the Stone Formation. According to legend, Sun Bin used this place to practice military formations. Research has proved that it was moved manually. The stone array is not a natural rock.
In addition, the cultural relics unearthed in Guigu Cave, Sunbin Cave and Guigu Village in Yunmeng Mountain in recent years have been preliminarily identified. Among them, the earlier ones include Shang and Zhou stone chimes, Eastern Zhou bronzes, and bronze Ges. There are also relics from the Han and Song dynasties. All these prove from the side that Ruyang Yunmeng Ghost Valley existed as early as the Shang and Zhou Dynasties, and provide strong circumstantial evidence for the existence of the Ghost Valley.
Fourth
Local folklore can also prove that there is indeed a ghost valley here. The touching story of Mr. Guigu and his disciples is still circulating in Guigu Village, Yunmeng, Ruyang.
We can get a glimpse of this from some nearby place names:
For example, in Manliu Village in the east of Baishu Township in Ruyang today, it is said that Guiguzi was trying to test the intelligence of two disciples, Sun Bin and Pang Juan. A man can chop back more than a hundred loads of firewood in one day. After the two arrived at Cypress Valley, the clever Sun Bin understood his master's intention, cut down a cypress tree, carried back two bundles of firewood, and quickly completed the task. And Pang Juan tried his best to chop for one day, but it was not enough. In desperation, he put the firewood in the river and carried it away. Encountering a rapid flow on the way, Pang Juan was so busy that he shouted: "Manliu! Manliu!" This is how Manliu River and Manliu Village got their names.