Yuejiao was the son of
Dou Ziliang () and the nephew of
Dou Gouwutu (). His family was a cadet branch of Chu's ruling house
Mi-
Xiong. The Ruo'ao clan consisted of Dou and Cheng, descended from viscount
Ruo'ao of Chu. When Yuejiao was young, he was said to be resented by his uncle Gouwutu. Gouwutu, according to the
Zuo Zhuan, described him as a "wolf poppy with a savage heart"() and believed that Yuejiao would bring disaster to the Ruo'ao clan.
Viscount Xuan of Zhao, a retainer of
Jin, also had a negative view on the Ruo'ao clan led by Yuejiao. King Zhuang of Chu succeeded Chu's throne at a young age;
Cheng Jia () of the Ruo'ao clan was the
Lingyin of Chu. The king found himself devoid of any real political influence over his state. After Cheng Jia's death, King Zhuang promoted
Wei Jia () to the post of Lingyin, weakening Ruo'ao power. Wei Jia was explicitly hostile to the Ruo'ao clan. Under his advice, the King executed prime minister
Dou Ban. Although King Zhuang soon appointed Yuejiao as the successor of Ban, Wei Jia was given the post of Sima, the supreme military commander of Chu. This arrangement of power intensified the hostilities between the Ruo'ao and Wei clan. Even long after the death of Dou Yuejiao, the remaining members of the Ruo'ao clan were severely discriminated against in Chu. In 530 BCE, more than seventy years after the Ruo'ao Rebellion,
King Ling of Chu executed Cheng Hu () due to the fact that he was a Ruo'ao. Yuejiao's son
Dou Benhuang () fled to the
state of Jin and would later avenge his father's death in the
Battle of Yanling. == References ==