Ancient China · Merchant

Bai Gui 白圭

Attested BC 400 - BC 300

Passages: 6
Chapters: 3
Histories: 3

Overview

Bai Gui was a Merchant.

Life and dates

Attested activity

BC 400 當魏文侯時
Dated from the passage context · Book of Han 103, passage 50
BC 370 to BC 300 白
Directly stated · Book of Liang 14, passage 225
BC 400 白圭為魏取中山
Directly stated · Records of the Grand Historian 83, passages 175, 179

Key source chapters

Career and standing

merchant timing markets 樂觀時變
Directly stated · Book of Han 103, passage 50

Places and affiliations

At Zhou 周
Directly stated · Book of Han 103, passage 49

Works and attributed material

Speech · Speaker · Speaker Bai Gui (白圭)
Directly stated · Book of Han 103, passages 52-53

References in the histories

Book of Han, Chapter 103Volume 91: Usurers · 3 passages

白圭，周人也。 Bai Gui came from the Zhou heartland.

當魏文侯時，李克務盡地力，而白圭樂觀時變，故人棄我取，人取我予。 Under Marquis Wen of Wei, Li Ke worked every field for its utmost yield, while Bai Gui thrived on contrarian timing—buying what the market dumped and selling into every rush.

蓋天下言治生者祖白圭。 Small wonder later ages treated Bai Gui as the patron saint of every fortune-hunter.

Book of Liang, Chapter 14Volume 14: Jiang Yan; Ren Fang · 1 passage

富埒陶、白，貲巨程、羅，山擅銅陵，家藏金穴，出平原而聯騎，居里閈而鳴鐘。 Wealth rivals Tao Zhugong and Bai Gui, assets exceed Cheng and Luo; mountains hold copper mines, houses hide gold pits; leaving the plain they link horses, in the lane they ring bells.

Records of the Grand Historian, Chapter 83Biographies of Lu Zhonglian and Zou Yang · 2 passages

白圭戰亡六城，為魏取中山。 And Bai Gui, though he lost six cities in battle, went on to capture the state of Zhongshan for Wei.

白圭顯於中山，中山人惡之魏文侯，文侯投之以夜光之璧。 When Bai Gui made a name for himself in Zhongshan, people of Zhongshan slandered him to Marquis Wen of Wei. The marquis responded by presenting Bai Gui with a luminous jade disc.