Li Kui (legalist)

Said to have been a main influence on Shang Yang,[1] it served the basis for the codified laws of the Qin and Han dynasties.

His political agendas, as well as the Book of Law, had a deep influence on later thinkers such as Han Fei and Shang Yang, who would later develop the philosophy of Legalism based on Li Kui's reforms.

He was appointed as Chancellor of the Wei-controlled lands in 422 BC, in order to begin administrative and political reforms; Wei would therefore be the first of the Seven Warring States to embark on the creation of a bureaucratic, rather than a noble-dominated, form of government.

At the same time, the main tenets of Li Kui's reforms - supporting law over ritual, agrarian production, meritocratic and bureaucratic government and an active role of the state in economic and social affairs - proved an inspiration for later generations of reform-minded thinkers.

Along with his contemporary Ximen Bao, he was given oversight in construction of canal and irrigation projects in the State of Wei.