Bo Pi (; died 473 BC) was an official in the state of Wu in the

Spring and Autumn period The Spring and Autumn period was a period in Chinese history from approximately 770 to 476 BC (or according to some authorities until 403 BC) which corresponds roughly to the first half of the Eastern Zhou period. The period's name derives fr ...

of ancient China. His grandfather, Bo Zhouli, who was an official in the state of Chu, was executed, and Bo Pi fled to Wu, where he served as an adviser to the king of Wu. During a war with the state of Yue, in which Wu had the upper hand, Bo Pi was bribed with lavish gifts from King

Goujian Goujian () (reigned 496–465 BC) was the king of the Kingdom of Yue (越國, present-day northern Zhejiang) near the end of the Spring and Autumn period (春秋). He was the son of Marquis Yunchang. Goujian's reign coincided with arguably th ...

of Yue. Bo Pi then influenced King

Fuchai Fuchai (reigned 495–473BC), sometimes also written Fucha, was the last king of the state of Wu during the Spring and Autumn Period of Chinese history. His armies constructed important canals linking the Yellow, Ji, and Huai River systems of th ...

of Wu to make peace with the state of Yue despite objections from another advisor of King Fuchai,

Wu Zixu :''Note: names are in simplified characters followed by traditional and Pinyin transliteration.'' Wu Yun (died 484 BC), better known by his courtesy name Zixu, was a Chinese military general and politician of the Wu kingdom in the Spring and Aut ...

, who warned of a possible future attack by Yue. During Goujian's captivity in the state of Wu as a slave, he continued to bribe Bo Pi. This contributed to Goujian's return to Yue after three years. Meanwhile, the two advisers competed for the king's trust, until Bo Pi convinced Fuchai to execute Wu Zixu for treason. With Wu Zixu's death, Wu weakened as Fuchai refused to listen to good counsel. In contrast, Yue was growing stronger, with

Wen Zhong Wen Zhong () (died 472 BC) was an advisor in the state of Yue in the Spring and Autumn period. He was a native of Ying in the State of Chu. After Yue was defeated by the state of Wu in 494 BC, Wen Zhong bribed Bo Pi, the advisor to the lead ...

and

Fan Li Fan Li () from the Spring and Autumn period, was an ancient Chinese military strategist, politician, and businessman. Fàn Li was an important political and military advisor to Goujian, the king of Yue. He later was known as Tao Zhu Gong (陶� ...

as Goujian's advisors. Ten years after Goujian was allowed to return to Yue, while King Fuchai waged another campaign in the state of Qi, King Goujian made a backstabbing attack on Wu. Due to years of neglect, Wu fell easily, just as Wu Zixu had warned. Bo Pi was executed by King Goujian for disloyalty to the former King Fuchai and, ironically, for accepting gifts from foreign rulers.

External links

* ''

Records of the Grand Historian ''Records of the Grand Historian'', also known by its Chinese name ''Shiji'', is a monumental history of China that is the first of China's 24 dynastic histories. The ''Records'' was written in the early 1st century by the ancient Chinese hist ...

'', volume 31, volume 41 473 BC deaths Year of birth unknown Chu state people Wu (state) 5th-century BC Chinese people {{China-bio-stub