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During the Warring States Period, China was torn into seven main states battling among themselves with unprecedented heights of military intrigue. The author Sun Tzu wrote the famous The Art of War during this period, for example.

According to one legend, Qu Yuan was a minister in the government of the state of Chu, a champion of political loyalty and truth eager to maintain the Chu state's sovereignty. The Chu king, however, fell under the influence of other corrupt, jealous ministers who slandered Qu Yuan as 'a sting in flesh', and banished his most loyal counselor. In his exile, so the legend goes, Qu Yuan produced some of the greatest poetry in Chinese literature expressing his fervent love for his state and his deepest concern for its future.

In the year 278 BC, learning of the upcoming devastation of his country from invasion by a neighbouring warring state, he is said to have waded into the Miluo river in today's Hunan Province holding a great rock in order to commit ritual suicideRitual suicide is the act of suicide motivated by a religious, spiritual, or traditional ritual. To be added: Sections by religion with their positions on ritual suicides Related links Seppuku (Hara-kiri) suicide bomber Martyrdom Cleopatra VII David Kores as a form of protest against the corruptionThis article is about political corruption. For other uses, see Corruption (disambiguation In broad terms, political corruption is the misuse of public office for private gain. All forms of government are susceptible in practice to political corruption. of the era.

The common people, learning of his suicide, rushed out in their fishing boats to the middle of the river and tried desperatedly to save him. They beat drumFor other kinds of drums, see drum (disambiguation). A drum is a musical percussion instrument, consisting of a membrane which is usually stretched taut over a cylindrical tube that is open at the other end. The membrane is struck, either with the hand ors and splashed water with their paddles in order to keep the fish and evil spirits from his body, and later on, they scattered riceRice Rice fields on Java Scientific classification Kingdom: Plantae Division: Magnoliophyta Class: Liliopsida Order: Poales Family: Poaceae Genus: Oryza Species Oryza barthii ''Oryza glaberrima ''Oryza latifolia ''Oryza longistaminata ''Oryza punctata ''O into the water to prevent him from suffering hunger - alternatively in order to feed the fishes in the river so that they would not eat his body up. However, late one night, the spirit of Qu Yuan appeared before his friends and told them that the rice meant for him was being intercepted by a huge river dragonThe Chinese dragon (; pinyin: long2; Cantonese: loong; Hokkien: leng) is a mythical creature. Long a potent symbol of auspicious power in Chinese folklore and art, it is the embodiment of the concept of yang and associated with the weather and water as th. He asked his friends to wrap their rice into three-cornered silk packages to ward off the dragon. This has been a traditional food ever since known as Zhongzi, although the rice dumplingWrapped Rice Dumpling The rice dumpling ( or , pinyin: zongzi, WG: tsung-tzu) is a traditional Chinese food. The origins of rice dumplings are traced to the legend of Qu Yuan, a well-loved poet who drowned himself in a river. To stop the fish from eatings are wrapped in bambooMany, see text Bamboos are a group of woody perennial evergreen plants in the grass family Poaceae subfamily Bambusoideae . Some of its members are giants, forming by far the largest members of the grass family. Bamboos are found in diverse climates, from leaves instead of silkSilk (SERICVS / Gr. sigma;ηρικoς ("silken") SERES / Gr. Sigma;ηρες ("Chinese") or alternatively < Ch. or ( pronounced "si") meaning "silk", the pictogram representing two strands of silk. is a natural fiber. In order to commemorate him, people held a Dragon boat race every year on the day of his suicide.

Up till today people still eat rice dumplings to commemorate him on the Duan Wu festival, the fifth day of the fifth month of the Chinese calendar.