The King of Qi dispatched an envoy to convey his regards to Queen Dowager Zhao. Before the letter had even been unsealed, the Queen Dowager asked the envoy, "How has the harvest been in Qi this year? How are the common people? And how is the King of Qi himself?" The envoy, displeased, replied, "I have come on the King of Qi's orders to pay my respects to you. Yet you do not first ask after the King, but instead inquire about the harvest and the people—surely this is to place the lowly before the noble?" The Queen Dowager said, "Not so. Without a good harvest, how could there be people? Without people, how could there be a sovereign? Thus in my questioning, how could I set aside the root and attend to the branch?" She then pressed further, saying, "There is a recluse in Qi called Zhongli Zi—is he well? This man feeds those who have grain and also those who have none; he clothes those who have garments and also those who have none. In this, he aids the sovereign in nurturing the people—why has he not yet been given office? And is Ye Yang Zi well? He shows compassion to widowers and widows, cares for orphans and the aged, relieves the destitute, and supplements those in need. In this, he aids the sovereign in bringing peace to the people—why has he not yet been given office? And the daughter of the Bei Gong family, Ying Er Zi—is she well? She has set aside her ornaments and refused to marry even in old age, in order to serve her parents. In this, she guides the people toward filial piety—why has she not yet been granted an audience at court? These two worthy men remain unappointed, and this filial daughter remains unrecognized—by what means does the King of Qi govern his state and cherish his myriad people? And is Zi Zhong of Yuling still alive? This man neither serves his sovereign above, nor governs his own household below, nor befriends the feudal lords in between. He is one who leads the people toward uselessness—why has he not yet been put to death?"
💡 商战启示录
Queen Zhao Wei's order of inquiry reveals the "customer-first" principle in modern business strategy. By asking first about the harvest and the people, and only later about the king, she essentially placed the "root" (people's livelihood) above the "branch" (the sovereign). In business, this corresponds to the value of "customers first." For instance, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos insisted that "the customer is God," ensuring an excellent user experience even at the cost of short-term shareholder interests, ultimately building a commercial empire. Conversely, if a company focuses only on shareholder returns or management interests while neglecting consumer needs, it resembles the King of Qi who failed to care for his people—it will eventually lose its market foundation. Queen Zhao further promoted the worthy and condemned the unworthy, emphasizing the art of "employing people": talents like Zhonglizi and Yeyangzi, who could "nurture the people" and "give the people rest," must be given important roles. This corresponds to enterprises promoting employees who genuinely create customer value and solve real problems, rather than mere "mediocrities" who only excel at flattering superiors. As for the "useless" like Zizhong—those who consume resources without contributing value and undermine team collaboration, the "negative energy" elements—they must be decisively removed, just as modern enterprises eliminate the "rotten apples" that hinder transformation. Queen Zhao's strategy reminds us: the priority of strategy, the evaluation of talent, and the purification mechanism of an organization should all be benchmarked against the "root"—customer value and long-term competitiveness—rather than short-term power or vanity metrics. This "root-and-branch thinking" is timeless wisdom for commercial warfare.