Su Wu
Su Wu Tends Sheep 
Su Wu (苏武 ) was the prefect of Tai Commandery in the Han Dynasty (206 BC-220AD). He was ahigh-minded gentleman of ancient China.In100 BC he was promoted to Zhonglangjiang (a senior officer in the early Han Dynasty). In the same year, a new khan of the Xiongnu came to power, and Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, eager to show friendship to the new khan, sent Su Wu as his envoy leading a retinue of over 100 persons, to escort some detained Xiongnu envoys back to their country. But just as Su Wu was preparing to return home at the end of his mission, turmoil broke out among the upper ranks of the Xiongnu. The Han envoys somehow became implicated, and were arrested as hostages in an attempt to subvert Han.
At first, the khan sent Wei Lü to persuade Su Wu to cooperate with him, even offering him a senior post with a high salary, but Su Wu adamantly refused. Seeing that persuasion didn’t work, the khan decided to try punishment. He ordered that Su Wu be confined in an
open pit in the cold, snowy winter, without food or water. The khan thought that this treatment would make Su Wu submit. But as the days went by Su Wu endured by drinking snow he melted on his own body and chewing on his sheepskin robe when he was hungry. When he was cold he huddled in the warmest corner of the pit. After some time, the khan realized that Su Wu, despite being reduced to skin and bones wrapped in rags, showed not the slightest sign of submitting.
The khan’s respect for Su Wu increased. He didn’t have the heart to put him to death, nor was he willing to send him back to his own country. So he said to Su Wu, “Since you refuse to submit, I’m going to send you to tend sheep. When those sheep – all rams – give birth to lambs, then I will send you back to Han.”
Su Wu was banished to the shore of Lake Baikal, in what is now Siberia. The area was sparsely inhabited and bone-piercingly cold. For companions, Su Wu had only his token staff as a Han Dynasty envoy and a flock of rams. Every day Su Wu used his token staff to marshal the rams, and thought constantly of his native land. When he was thirsty he ch
ewed a handful of snow, when he was hungry he dug up wild roots from the ground, and when he was cold he huddled next to the sheep. In this way, day after day, and year after year he tended the sheep until the ox tail on his token staff had completely fallen off and his beard and hair had turned white. By this time, both the khan who had exiled Su Wu and Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty had died. Emperor Wu had been succeeded by Emperor Zhao.
In 85 BC, internal strife broke out among the Xiongnu, and the new khan did not have enough troops to ward off Han incursions. So he dispatched an envoy to seek peace. At the same time, Emperor Zhao sent an envoy to the Xiongnu to demand the return of Su Wu, Chang Hui and the other members of his entourage. The khan, however, claimed that Su Wu had died. submitting
When another Han envoy arrived, Chang Hui bribed some of the khan’s underlings, and got to meet him. Learning the truth, the envoy was incensed at the khan, and said the following to him: “Out hunting one day, our emperor brought down a large goose. Tied aro
und one of its legs was a scrap of silk with a message in Su Wu’s own hand. He said that he was tending sheep by Lake Baikal. How dare you try to deceive our emperor?”
The khan turned pale, and exclaimed, “Su Wu’s loyalty and righteousness moved even a wild bird!” He immediately apologized to the emperor, and promised to send Su Wu back to Han.
When Su Wu set out on his mission he had over one hundred envoy members with him, but only a few survived to accompany him on his homeward journey. In 81 BC Su Wu finally arrived back in Chang’an. The local people poured into the streets to welcome him back, praising him as an incorruptible official.
Cherished in Su Wu’s heart was the following sentiment: “Since we only have one life, naturally we want to live it in comfort and undisturbed. However, the commission I bore was a command to me not to surrender.” The commission represented his reverence for the emperor, as well as his own duty – both of which he steadfastly guarded.
The Moral of This Story
Su Wu spent nineteen years tending sheep in the far north, because from the beginning to the very end he refused to submit to the Xiongnu. His love for his country has been lauded throughout the ages. Su Wu personifies patriotic loyalty and devotion to duty.
 
苏武牧羊
    苏武曾任汉朝的代郡太守，华夏志士。天汉元年（公元前 100年）拜中郎将。这一年匈奴新单于即位，汉武帝为了表示友好，派遣苏武率领一百多人出使匈奴，护送被扣留在汉的匈奴使者回国。不料，就在苏武完成了出使任务，准备返回自己的国家时，匈奴上层发生内乱，苏武一行受到牵连，被扣留下来，被要求背叛汉朝，臣服单于。
    最初，单于派卫律向苏武游说，许以高官厚禄，被苏武严词拒绝了。单于见劝说没有用，就决定动用酷刑。正值严冬，天上下着鹅毛大雪，单于命人把苏武关进一个露天的大地穴，断绝粮食和水，以为这样可以迫使苏武投降。一天天过去，苏武在地窖里受尽了折磨。渴了，他就吃一把身边的冰雪；饿了，就嚼食身上的羊皮袄；冷了，就蜷缩在一角取暖。过了好几天，单于见苏武虽然形销骨立、衣着褴褛，依旧没有丝毫屈服的迹象。
    单于于是越发敬重苏武的气节，不忍心杀苏武，但又不想让他返回自己的国家。于是单于召见苏武说：“既然你不投降，那我就让你去放羊，什么时候这些羊生了羊羔，我就让你回到你的大汉去。”
    与他的同伴分开后，苏武被流放到北海（今贝加尔湖）边，那里人迹罕至，寒冷刺骨。与苏武做伴的，是那根代表汉朝的旄（máo）节和一公羊。苏武每天拿着这根旄节放羊，思念远方的祖国。渴了，他就吃一把雪；饿了，就挖野果充饥；冷了，就依偎着羊取暖。这样日复一日，年复一年，使节上挂着的旄牛尾装饰物都掉光了，苏武的头发和胡须也完全花白。当初下了命令囚禁他的匈奴单于去世了，汉武帝去世，汉昭帝继任皇位。
    公元前 85年，匈奴起了内乱，单于没有实力跟汉朝抗争，便打发使者要求和好。汉昭帝派出使者来到匈奴，要求放回苏武、常惠等人。匈奴却骗使者说苏武已经死了。
    汉朝又派遣使者到匈奴时，常惠买通了单于的手下人，私底下跟使者见面。使者明白了实情，严厉地责备单于说：“我们皇上在打猎时射下了一只大雁，大雁的脚上拴着一条绸子，是苏武亲笔写的一封信。他说他在北海放羊。您怎么可以骗人呢？”单于听了大惊失，说：“苏武的忠义感动飞鸟了！”他连忙向使者道歉，答应一定送回苏武。

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