The yue ax, which is from the ax, fu, has some different names including the more popular terms, ci and yang. The head of the yue ax is about one third bigger than that of the ax, and its shaft is also longer.

       In the 5000 year old relics of Liangzhu, there are yue axes made of jade for decoration purposes. According to studies, the jade yue ax is a symbol of glory. An event recorded in the Shih Ji by Sihma Cian says that King Tang of the Shang held his yue and announced a punitive expedition on the ruthless King Jie of the Sia Dynasty. King Wu of the Jhou also held the yue, when he gathered his allies in Muye and proclaimed the start of the military operation to attack the brutal King Jhou of the Shang Dynasty. When Wang Mang usurped the Han Dynasty, opponents around the country rioted against him. Wang Mang sent General Wang Syun to be in charge of the defense force of one hundred thousand soldiers in Luoyang. Syun lost his yue, so a fortuneteller warned Syun to watch out. Before long Syun was killed in battle. All the accounts show that yue is a symbol of authority.

       Apart from being the symbol of authority as well as the changing of authority, yue is also used as a weapon on the battlefield. A nine-kilogram bronze head of a yue ax comes from the relics of the Shang Dynasty located in Erligang in Jhengjhou. When a shaft is put on, it is the exact weapon used by the female General Fu Hao of the Shang. A cavalry soldier holding a yue and with a cut head hung on his saddle can be seen on a fresco painted in the Han Dynasty. So the yue also impresses people for being used as an instrument to perform “capital?punishment. It was also used to execute a very horrifying punishment, yaojhao, to kill a criminal by cutting on the waist. It is said that there were five ways to execute a criminal in the Huangdi period, and one of them was called fuyue, which is probably the punishment of yaojhan.