Chapter 179 Spring and Autumn Five Hegemons, the Resurreation of the Warring States

However, it was said that Zhou Shi lost morality, and the princes of the world supported the army and became independent. Among them, Duke Huan of Qi used Guan Zhong, which quickly established the hegemony of the State of Qi and opened the Spring and Autumn Period.

In the 41st year of Duke Huan, Guan Zhong was seriously ill. Duke Huan asked him who could replace him. He also cited three people, Yi Tooth, Kaifang and Shu Diao, but Guan Zhong refuted one by one by one, and told Duke Huan not to be close to the three people. Unfortunately, after Guan Zhong's death, Duke Huan did not listen to Guan Zhong's words and reused the three people, which made the three people's dictatorship and cut off the good situation of the State of Qi. Soon after, Duke Huan was seriously ill, and the five princes (the prince did not lose, the prince Zhao, the prince Pan, the prince Yuan, and the prince merchant) each led the party and the feathers to compete for the position.

On the 7th day of October in winter, Duke Huan died of illness. The five sons attacked each other, and the State of Qi was in chaos. After the body of Duke Huan stayed in ** for sixty-seven days, the new king of Qi restrained Duke Huan without any loss. But at this time, the State of Qi was not as good as before, and it could no longer command the world.

However, it is said that the State of Jin in the north has a vast territory and is located at the top of the Central Plains. The national strength is extremely strong. Unfortunately, the king was mediocre and failed to do anything. At the time of the Duke, the State of Jin was even more in decline. The public favor made the country's government chaotic. Many people in the country fled, and even his son Chong'er was in exile.

However, this heavy ear has always been benevolent and loved by the people. In the end, with the help of Duke Mu of Qin, he inherited the throne of the State of Jin for Duke Wen of Jin. After Wen Gong succeeded to the throne, he reformed politics and developed the economy. The whole army is armed and trusted by the people. He settled the royal family, was friendly to the State of Qin, and had a high prestige among the princes. Later, the State of Chu attacked the State of Song, and the Chu army surrounded Shangqiu, the capital of the State of Song. At the beginning of the next year, Duke Wen of Jin led troops to save Song. He defeated the Chu army in the Battle of Cheng Pu and became the second hegemon in the Spring and Autumn Period.

Besides, Duke Mu of Qin, who helped Duke Wen become the hegemon, also had great ambitions. However, the State of Qin was located in the west and had no sages to assist him. Duke Mu of Qin was very worried about this. For this reason, Duke Qin Mu specially ordered the ministers to be virtuous, but it was a pity that all the people who got it were not satisfactory. Until someone recommended Mu Ji's Bai Lixi to Mu Gong, saying that he was a rare talent, and those who knew Bai Lixi's talent also echoed.

When Mu Gong saw so many people recommended him, he couldn't help but look forward to it. He hurriedly ordered someone to invite him, but he learned that Bai Lixi had fled to the State of Chu. Duke Mu of Qin wanted to redeem Bai Lixi with a lot of money, but he was afraid that the people of Chu would not be with him. So he sent a messenger to Chu to redeem it with five ram skins. The people of Chu did not know Bai Lixi's talent. They thought that Bai Lixi had offended Mu Gong, and even agreed. When Bai Lixi, who was more than 70 years old, was escorted back to the State of Qin, Duke Mu of Qin personally opened the shackles for him and made him the prime minister. Bai Lixi also recommended his good friend uncle, and Duke Mu readily agreed to invite his uncle to the State of Qin and let him be the doctor.

In this way, the State of Qin gradually became stronger under the governance of Bai Li Xi.

It is said that the State of Qin has helped the State of Jin many times, but the State of Jin has never been rewarded. The State of Qin is indignant. In the winter of the thirty-second year of Duke Mu of Qin, Duke Mu of Jin was affected by the epidemic. When Duke Mu saw this, he sent Meng Mingshi, the son of Bai Lixi, Xi Qishu, the son of his uncle, and Bai Qibing three generals to lead troops to attack Jin, but in the end, he was defeated in Laoshan, and all three generals were captured. Two years later, Duke Mu of Qin sent Meng Mingshi and others to lead troops to the east and fight with the Jin army in Peng Ya. The Qin army was defeated again. Qin's road to the east was firmly strangled by Jin, and he had to turn to the west.

In the 36th year of Duke Mu, Duke Mu of Qin personally led a large army to fight against the State of Jin. After crossing the Yellow River, he burned all the ferries to show his determination to defeat the enemy. After several major wars, the Qin army captured the royal officials and the suburbs. The Jin army did not dare to fight. The Qin army crossed the Yellow River from Maojin. Go to the south bank, set up a mark for the soldiers who died in the war on the battlefield of that year, and then returned to China. In the thirty-seventh year, the Qin army went on an expedition to Xirong. With lightning speed, they successively subdued more than 20 small countries of Rongdi and dominated Xirong.

Since then, Duke Mu of Qin has become the third hegemony in the Spring and Autumn Period.

Besides, not long after the Battle of Cheng Pu, the State of Chu worshipped the State of Jin, Zi Shangchen succeeded him as the king of the state, and he was the king of Chu Mu. Unfortunately, something unexpected was unexpected. King Mu of Chu died of illness soon after his reign, and his son's brigade ascended to the throne. This brigade was the famous King of Chuzhuang.

After the king of Chuzhuang ascended the throne, he hunted and drank all the time, ignored political affairs, and ordered people to hang a big sign at the gate of the palace, saying, "Those who enter the advice, kill without forgiveness." The ministers all sighed secretly. But everyone did not expect that the King of Chu Zhuang did it on purpose this time in order to distinguish the loyalty among the ministers of the dynasty.

After three years, the king of Chu Zhuang finally identified loyalty and annihi, and then began to rectify the internal affairs and use talented people to promote Wu Ju and Su to key positions. At that time, Ling Yin and Dou Yuejiao of the State of Chu were ambitious and wanted to usurp the throne. The king of Chu Zhuang appointed three ministers to share Ling Yin's work, which weakened his power and prevented the chaos of Douyue peppers.

After the state of Chu stabilized, the king of Chu Zhuang began to use troops to the outside world. First, he destroyed the mediocre country, and then defeated the Song state. Even Lu Hun's Rong clan was also defeated by the Chu army. After these battles, the strength of the State of Chu suddenly increased sharply. Seeing this situation, the king of Chu Zhuang couldn't help but imagine that Qi Huan, Jin Wen and Qin Mu were recognized by the princes of the Central Plains. Therefore, the king of Chu Zhuang and thousands of Chen soldiers in the surrounding world paraded and demonstrated in the army, which scared the king of Zhou to send ministers to comfort him.

But even so, the princes of the Central Plains still didn't care much about the State of Chu. After all, the Battle of Cheng Pu was vivid in their mind, and everyone still looked at the strength of the State of Chu. When the king of Chu Zhuang learned about this, he was helpless. In addition, after several years of war, the national strength was greatly consumed, so he had to develop Chu's national life at ease.

After the king of Chu Zhuang gave up the war, he invited Sun Shu'ao, a famous hermit of the State of Chu, to use him as Ling Yin. After Sun Shu'ao succeeded Ling Yin, he ordered people to reclaim wasteland, dig rivers, and reward production. In order to avoid floods and droughts, he also organized the people of Chu to guide rivers to irrigate millions of mu of crops and harvest a lot of grain every year. In such a few years, the state of Chu became stronger. It calmed down the two civil strife of the State of Zheng and the State of Chen, and finally clashed with the hegemon of the Central Plains, the State of Jin.

King Zhuang of Chu took advantage of the chaos in Chen's country and sent troops to subdue Chen. The following year, King Zhuang of Chu personally led the army to attack the State of Zheng. However, the State of Chen and the State of Zheng are all subordinates of the State of Jin. The State of Chu sent troops to the State of Chen and the State of Zheng to challenge the State of Jin and do not recognize the hegemony of the State of Jin. Therefore, the State of Jin did not think much about it and directly sent a large army to fight against the Chu army.

The two armies fought in Qiucheng on the bank of the Yellow River. In this great war, the people of the State of Jin were almost completely destroyed in the First World War. After this battle, the State of Chu finally washed away the humiliation of the city and gradually began to admit it to the princes of the Central Plains. After that, the king of Chu Zhuang successively spread the return of Lu, Song, Zheng, Chen and other countries. Since then, King Zhuang of Chu has become another hegemon after Duke Huan of Qi, Duke Wen of Jin and Duke Mu of Qin.

Later, two wars broke out again between Jin and Chu. Although they both ended with the victory of Jin, Chu still maintained a close match with Jin in the Central Plains. The continuous war has brought a huge burden to the people of the two countries, and the small countries around them are also disgusted by this. In addition, the two major countries of Jin and Chu are evenly matched, and no one can eat each other. Therefore, it was initiated by Song and held two alliances. Since then, there have been few wars between the two sides.

At the end of the battle for hegemony among the princes, Wu and Yue, located in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, also began to develop. The king of Wu made heavy use of Sun Wu, Wu Zixu and others. The State of Wu developed rapidly, especially the strength of the army was extremely strong. Later, the king of Wu took Wu Zixu as a general and commanded troops to attack Chu. The Wu army attacked Chu Duying. Wu Zixu avenged his father and brother, dug the tomb of King Chu Ping, and lashed 300 corpses. The king of Chu had no choice but to go into exile and then get the help of the State of Qin to enrich the country.

After the Great Victory of the State of Wu over the State of Chu, the King of Wu was very satisfied, so he did not listen to Wu Zixu's words and marched south to fight against the State of Yue. Gou Jian, the king of Yue, led his troops to fight and defeated the State of Wu. Even the king of Wu was seriously injured. When he was dying, the king of Wu told his son to avenge him, otherwise he would not be a son. The husband remembered his father's words, worshipped Wu Zixu as his teacher, and ordered him to step up training at night to prepare to attack Yue.

Two years later, Fucha led his soldiers to defeat Gou Jian. Gou Jian was surrounded and had no way to go. He was ready to commit suicide. At this time, the counselor Wenzhong hurriedly persuaded him, and then offered a plan to send someone to bribe Bo Xi, the minister of the State of Wu, in order to spare his life. At this time, Gou Jian was helpless. After listening to the literary discussion, he hurriedly agreed. Then he sent Wenzhong to take the beautiful woman Xi Shi and the treasure to bribe Bo Xi, who was greedy for wealth. As soon as he saw Wen Zhong, he promised to take Xi Shi and Wen Zhong to see the King of Wu.

Wenzhong met the king of Wu and presented Xi Shi. Bo Xi was also beside him to help Wenzhong speak. At this time, Wu Zixu stood up and objected loudly. Unfortunately, at this time, his husband thought that the State of Yue was no longer a problem, and he fell in love with the beauty of Xishi, so he did not listen to Wu Zixu's advice and agreed to the surrender of the State of Yue and withdrew the army to the State of Wu. After the withdrawal of troops from the State of Wu, Gou Jian took his wife and doctor Fan Li to serve the King of Wu in the State of Wu, herding cattle and sheep, and finally won the favor and trust of the King of Wu. Three years later, they were released back to China.

After Gou Jian returned to China, he was determined to be angry and ready for revenge. But he was afraid that he was greedy for pleasure and lost his ambition to revenge, so he slept on a pile of straw at night, and hung a bitter gall in the house. Every morning after getting up, he had to taste the bitter gall, so as to remind himself not to forget the national shame. Moreover, the soldiers outside the door asked after a while, "Has the king ever forgotten the humiliation of three years?"

With such continuous encouragement, Gou Jian worked hard. He ordered Wenzhong to manage the state's political affairs, Fan Li managed the military, and he personally went to the field to work with the farmer, and even his wife was spinning and weaving. Gou Jian's behavior moved the people of Yue. After ten years of hard work, Yue finally became weak and strong.

Besides, since Wu Wangfu defeated the State of Vietnam, he thought that he had no worries. From then on, he was addicted to the beauty of Xishi and lived an arrogant and luxurious life. He is also arrogant, regardless of the hardships of the people, and often send troops to fight against other countries. He also heard the bad words of Bo Xifu and killed the loyal minister Wu Zixu. Before his death, Wu Zixu said, "You must plant an zi tree on my grave so that it can grow up to be a coffin. Dig out my eyes and hang them on the east gate of the capital of the State of Wu to see how Yue Kou entered the capital and destroyed the State of Wu.

At this time, the State of Wu seemed to be powerful, but in fact it was already going downhill. A few years later, Fucha personally led the army to the north to compete with the State of Jin for the leader of the princes. Goujian, the king of Yue, took advantage of the elite soldiers of the State of Wu to suddenly attack, defeated Wu soldiers in one fell swoop, and killed the prince's friend. After hearing the news, Fucha hurriedly led the troops back to China and sent someone to make peace with Gou Jian. Gou Jian estimated that he could not destroy the State of Wu at once, so he agreed. Two years later, Gou Jian personally led troops to attack the State of Wu for the second time. At this time, the State of Wu was already at the end of the crossbow. It couldn't resist the Yue [***] team at all, and was repeatedly defeated. Finally, the husband sent someone to Goujian for peace, and Fan Li firmly advocated the destruction of the State of Wu. When the husband saw that he could not make peace, he remembered Wu Zixu's advice. He was very ashamed and drew his sword and committed suicide. Gou Jian went north and allied with Qi Jin and became the last hegemon.

However, it is said that when Duke Wen of Jin returned to the throne, many people in exile with him also returned to China. After that, these people gradually became nobles in the State of Jin, and the state affairs of Jin also fell into the hands of these nobles (Zhi, Zhao, Han, Wei, Fan, Zhongshan). The nobles also fought with each other, and the nobles of the State of Jin only had the four families of Zhi, Zhao, Han and Wei. Zhi sent troops to attack Zhao and coerced Wei Han to send troops. The war lasted for two years, and the Zhao family lobbied the Wei and Han families to defect, destroy the Zhi family, divide the wisdom and control the state government of the State of Jin.

A few years later, the three families of Han, Zhao and Wei were divided into Jin, and the Duke of Jin was only Yu Jiang and Qu Wo. The emperor of the Zhou Dynasty was unable to uphold justice, so he could only add three families as marquises.

From then on, the Spring and Autumn Period began with the Warring States Period.

(to be continued)