Descendants of Qin Hui demand the removal of their ancestor's kneeling statue!But experts say the removal is not allowed.

Should the kneeling statue of Qin Hui be removed? Qin Hui's descendants: It's been over a thousand years, what sins can't be atoned for?

Yue Fei is a renowned national hero who bravely led his troops in resisting foreign invasion during the Southern Song Dynasty, earning him lasting fame. However, when we think of Yue Fei, we naturally think of Qin Hui. Because of Qin Hui's malicious schemes and framing of loyal officials, General Yue Fei died with resentment. After Yue Fei's death, the Jin army, unstoppable, swept south, forcing the already impoverished and weak Southern Song Dynasty to cede territory.

Kneeling statues of Qin Hui and his wife

Later, Emperor Ningzong of Song ascended the throne and began to restore Yue Fei's reputation, erecting kneeling statues of Qin Hui and his wife at Yue Fei's tomb for the first time. This event aroused a strong reaction from the people, who flocked to pay homage to the hero and curse the villains, with some even striking the kneeling statues.

Soon, as people's enthusiasm grew, such kneeling statues were distributed throughout the country. In this way, almost every Yue Fei tomb had a kneeling "Qin Hui" statue. The kneeling Qin Hui statue became an indispensable part of Yue Fei's tomb. When people worshipped Yue Fei, they couldn't help but think of the despised Qin Hui, forming a contrast between good and evil in people's minds.

The kneeling statues of Qin Hui have been preserved to this day, and people's hatred for Qin Hui's evil deeds has continued. The most famous are the kneeling statues of Qin Hui and his wife in front of Yue Fei's tomb, which have been restored many times over the past few hundred years. Because the kneeling statues of Qin Hui across the country have been despised by the public since their construction and placement, almost all of them are unrecognizable from their original appearance.

The proposal of Qin Hui's descendants

Because of Qin Hui's deeds, his descendants felt deeply ashamed. To live a normal life, they had to hide, constantly living in fear, and dared not tell others they were Qin Hui's descendants. For example, during the Qing Dynasty, Qin Hui's descendant, Qin Dashi, visited Yue Fei's tomb and wrote with immense remorse, "People since the Song Dynasty are ashamed to be named Hui; I stand before his grave, ashamed to bear the surname Qin." This shows that even as Qin Hui's descendants, they felt ashamed to have such a wicked ancestor.

As time goes by, people still remember the evil deeds Qin Hui committed. But now, someone has stepped forward and put forward an idea that differs from the general consensus. This idea comes from one of Qin Hui's descendants.

The person who made this suggestion is Qin Liang, a teacher. Mentioning his ancestor Qin Hui makes Qin Liang unable to control his emotions. As a descendant of Qin Hui, he feels ashamed. He doesn't usually mention his lineage, but he feels that in this day and age, his ancestor's kneeling statue has been there for so long and should be forgiven. He hopes that relevant departments can remove the kneeling statue and preserve some dignity for his family.

The proposal of Qin Hui's descendants

Qin Liang stated that it was actually Zhao Gou, not his ancestor, who killed Yue Fei. Without the emperor's order, who could have killed Yue Fei, who was then a great general? Furthermore, while the presence of a kneeling statue of Qin Hui at Yue Fei's tomb might be considered deserved, a similar kneeling statue of Qin Hui has been erected at the tomb of Yue Fei's mother in Jiujiang, Jiangxi. Qin Liang said he doesn't understand the rationale behind this. His mother had already passed away before Yue Fei's death, which had absolutely nothing to do with Qin Hui. For this reason, Qin Liang believes the relevant departments should remove the kneeling statue of Qin Hui in front of Yue Fei's mother's tomb.

His application immediately attracted attention and discussion. A minority supported his argument, believing it made sense—that after kneeling for so long, it was time to stand up. However, the majority disagreed with the proposal. While Qin Liang's words held some merit, experts believed that the existence of the Qin Hui statue had, to some extent, transcended the significance of a kneeling figure.