To act in a perverse and outrageous manner; to go against the normal course of things or accepted principles; to adopt perverse measures, often implying actions that run counter to the trend of the times or public sentiment.
Era:
Ancient
Frequency:
Story:
During the Spring and Autumn Period, Wu Zixu, a minister of the State of Chu, had his father and elder brother killed by King Ping of Chu. Wu Zixu fled to the State of Wu, vowing to avenge his family.
Later, Wu Zixu led the Wu army to conquer Ying, the capital of Chu. By then, King Ping of Chu had already died, but Wu Zixu was still not appeased. He exhumed King Ping's corpse and flogged it mercilessly three hundred times, finally assuaging his deep-seated hatred.
His close friend, Shen Baoxu, seeing Wu Zixu destroy his own homeland for personal revenge and even vent his anger on a dead man, sent a messenger to him, saying: "How can you, a man of Chu, be so excessive!" Wu Zixu replied to the messenger: "I am already old, and my days are numbered. I am eager for revenge and have no other choice but to resort to such perverse and outrageous actions!"