The Regional State of Xue 薛

The small state of Xue 薛, also written 辥, was a regional state of the Zhou period 周 (11th cent.-221 BCE). It was located in the western parts of the Shandong peninsula, close to the modern city of Tengzhou 滕州. The state was ruled by a family called Ren 任 who saw themselves as descendants of the Yellow Emperor 黃帝. The foundner of the house was called Yu Yang 禺陽 (or Yu Hao 禺䝞) and dwelled in Ren 任 (today's Jining 濟寧, Shandong, or Renqiu 任丘, Hebei). His descendant Xi Zhong 奚仲 lived during the Xia period 夏 (21th-17th cent. BCE) and served as "rectifier of carts" (chezheng 車正). He first lived in Xue (Zaozhuang 棗莊,Shandong ), then in Pi 邳 (Weishan 微山, Shandong). His seventh-generation offspring Zu Ji 祖己 ruled in the state of Zhi 摯 (Pingyu 平輿, Henan). The mother of Ji Chang 姬昌, the Viscount of the West 西伯 and eventual King Wen of Zhou 周文王, was a daughter of Zhi. For this reason, Zhi was appointed lord of Xue, when King Wu founded the Zhou dynasty.

The history of Xue during the Western Zhou 西周 (11th cent.-770 BCE) and Spring and Autumn 春秋 (770-5th cent. BCE) periods is not well known, and the value of the transmitted lists of rulers is doubtful.

In 418, the settlement of Xue was devastated by the state of Qi 齊, and their lords moved to Xiapi 下邳 (today's Pixian 邳縣, Jiangsu). During the Warring States period 戰國 (5th cent.-221 BCE), Prince Gongzi Deng 公子登 served King Huai of Chu 楚懷王 (r. 329-299). He was given the territory of Pei 沛 and granted the surname Xue. In 351, the ancient place of Xue was given into the hands of Tian Ying 田嬰, Lord Jingguo 靖郭君, who was called Duke of Xue 薛公. Tian Ying's son was Lord Mengchang 孟嘗君, one of the famous nobles of the late Warring States period.