Legends of Ancient China (Vol. 1) by Duan Wang
If you liked Judge Dee you might like this. There is also a Volume 2, not free
This volume contains seven carefully selected stories covering events from over two thousand years ago. Fan Sui, a prominent politician from an ordinary family, survived an unjust death penalty and pursued his legendary vengeance; Yan Ying, one of the smartest politicians in Chinese history, demonstrated his exceptional talents in both domestic and foreign affairs; Ximen Bao, a famous governor of the state of Wei, found an intelligent way to punish those who destroyed the lives of local families; Lin Xiang-ru, the Chief Chancellor of the state of Zhao, showed extraordinary bravery and endurance to the benefit of his country; Wu Yun, also known as Wu Zixu, a legend who survived from great challenges and eventually avenged his family after a long period of preparation; Sun Wu, the most famous military strategist from ancient China who wrote the book "The Art of War"; and Goujian, the young King of the State of Yue, went through a series of unthinkable humiliations and waited more than ten years before finally achieving his goals.
Some of the stories in this book present the readers with historical events from which a series of well-known Chinese idioms originated (many of which are still in use today). For example: "Perfect return of the Jade of Zhao", "Sleeping in hay stacks and tasting bile", "The hound is cooked when there is nothing to hunt for, the general is killed once the enemy is eliminated".
The stories happened in the historical periods of China called Spring and Autumn period and the Warring States period, spanning from 770 to 221 B.C.
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