During the Spring and Autumn period, a high-ranking official of the Zheng state named Wei Zhi, dissatisfied with the powerful minister Zi Si, gathered his clan and launched a rebellion. Wei Zhi led his troops into the palace, killing Zi Si and Zi Guo, then seized Duke Jian of Zheng and held him captive at Beixia Gate.
When Zisi's son heard about Wei Zhi's rebellion, he rushed off to attack without making any preparations at home, leading a few trusted followers. As a result, the household slaves and servants seized the chance to flee, and much of the family's valuables were looted.
Zichan, the son of Ziguo, remained calm in the face of danger. He first sent men to secure the entire estate, sealed the treasuries, and posted guards. Then, he gathered all the household servants, explained the situation, and urged them to unite with him to quell the rebellion. Finally, he led his forces to attack the rebel Wei Zhi.
Meanwhile, another high minister of Zheng, Zikong, had gotten wind of the plot and was absent from the palace that day. Upon hearing that Zichan had raised troops to suppress the rebellion, he immediately mobilized his forces to assist. Together, they killed Weizhi and quelled the uprising.
After the rebellion was quelled, Zikong became the chief minister of the Zheng state.
To secure his power, Zikong drafted a covenant decreeing that all officials must remain in their posts and obey his commands. When several ministers and generals voiced discontent, he prepared to execute them as a warning.
Zi Chan advised him to burn the covenant, but Zi Kong disagreed, saying, "I did this to stabilize the state. If some oppose it and I burn it, let them rage as they will!"
Zichan urged him further, "Popular anger is hard to defy! Monopolizing power rarely succeeds. Combining these two difficult things—defying public anger and seizing sole authority—to try to stabilize the state is even more dangerous. Better to burn the covenant and calm everyone's hearts. That way, you still hold power in the court, your word is law, and the people are at peace. Isn't that ideal? Otherwise, if you stir up public wrath, the state will fall into chaos. Wouldn't that be disastrous?"
Zikong found Zichan's reasoning sound, so he followed his advice and publicly burned the covenant, which brought stability back to the state of Zheng.
Later, the idiom "public wrath is hard to defy" came to describe that the anger of the masses should not be provoked.
Source: *Zuo Zhuan*, "Duke Xiang, Tenth Year"
Meaning of the Idiom: Later, the Chinese idiom "众怒难犯" came to describe how the anger of the masses should not be provoked.