Talk:赤幟

Historical significance

(moved from entry)

• In a historical sense, it also referred to the red banners used by Emperor Gaozu of Han, during his overthrow of the Qin. It symbolized the fact that once, the future emperor was put in charge of escorting some convicts to Mount Li to build the Mausoleum of Qin Shi Huang. During the journey, many prisoners fled and the future emperor feared for his life, because allowing convicts to escape was a capital crime at that time. The future emperor then released the remaining prisoners and became a fugitive, with some of the men he released voluntarily agreeing to follow him. In legend, they encountered a gigantic white serpent that killed some people with its poisonous breath. The future emperor slew the serpent that night and encountered an old woman weeping by the road the next morning. When the future emperor's men asked her why she was crying, she replied, "My child, the son of the White Emperor (one of the five legendary Emperors, the Emperor of the West), has been slain by the son of the Red Emperor (another of the five legendary Emperors, the Emperor of the South).", and disappeared mysteriously. After hearing the old woman's strange words, the future emperor's men believed that he was destined to become a ruler in the future and became more impressed with him. Following that episode, the future emperor and his followers sought refuge on Mount Mangdang near Pei County and lived in an outlaw stronghold there. It was from here that they eventually launched their campaign to unify the country.

Wyang (talk) 23:37, 15 September 2016 (UTC)