Kuaijie Sinology: Deciphering the Spring and Autumn Inter-State System through the Idiom "Horses and Oxen Unrelated"

【Abstract】 Building upon traditional scholarship, and grounded in the "Three-Dual Paradigm & Four-Coherence Criteria" of Kuaijie Sinology, this study supplements multi-dimensional evidence—including physical and socio-environmental contexts—to repair broken logical links, complete the entire closed loop, and achieve an iterative upgrade in the interpretation of classics. It provides an advanced understanding that is verifiable, reproducible, and aligned with real-world environments. The idiom "horses and oxen unrelated" originates from the Zuo Zhuan. For millennia, it has been superficially interpreted as "having no connection," with traditional exegesis reducing the characters to mere animal behaviors (such as mating or grazing). By revising the punctuation and analyzing the socio-environmental logic of the Spring and Autumn period, this paper restores the original semantic meaning of the text. It clarifies that "feng" (wind) represents a state's ethos and political discourse, "ma" (horse) represents military defense, and "niu" (ox) represents agricultural livelihood. This paper demonstrates that the idiom is not a geographical description, but a solemn diplomatic declaration of national sovereignty and border boundaries. It reconstructs the first recorded, highly advanced diplomatic negotiation in Chinese history based on the tripartite foundation of the state. Furthermore, it argues that while ancient city-state sovereignty differed from modern nation-states, the foundational logic of sovereign borders and diplomatic non-interference was deeply rooted in Chinese civilization over 2,600 years ago, proving the continuity and unbroken nature of Chinese cultural lineage. 【摘要】 本文在传统基础上,依托蒯解汉学“三双四通”研究范式,补足阐释物理、社会环境场景等多维度证据,补齐原有断裂的逻辑环节,完成整链闭环,实现对经典阐释的迭代升级,并提供一套可核验、可复现、贴合实景环境的进阶理解版本。“风马牛不相及”语出《左传・僖公四年》,是春秋外交场景中的经典名句。后世演化为通用成语,仅以“彼此毫无关联”为表层释义流传至今。历代解读多拘泥于字面物象,将其释为牲畜发情或放牧不遇,未能结合当时的社会架构、邦国运行逻辑深究本源。今以典籍原貌与时代背景为依据,重勘句读、诠解字义,将此语还原为春秋时期外交层面上的国家主权边界宣言,借此剖析春秋诸侯邦国的核心体系。