Note 19 — Chapter XV · Mythical and Legendary Kings

Before Wu became Emperor, a red man came out of the river to secure the support of allies, and phœnixes brought messages to the effect that the reigning dynasty was doomed. The empire could not be enjoyed by the Shang King; “the powerful spirits of the earth have left it; all the spirits are whisked away; the conjunction of the five planets in Fang brightens all within the four seas”.19 King Wen, the father of Wu, to whom this revelation had been made, was a ruler in the west, and knew that his son’s mission in life was the regeneration of the empire.