Chapter 18 Chapter 17

The Qi State, which dominates the east, has maintained its influence over the Central Plains since Qi Xi publicly created the "little bully" situation.As we said before, Duke Xi of Qi followed Zheng Zhuanggong to meddle in his business almost all his life. Although he also earned the title of "little bully", from outsiders' eyes, he always looks like a follower.Moreover, Qi Xigong had been out for a long time, and he was a little bit neglected about family affairs, and the direct consequence was that he didn't educate his prince enough. The legal heir of Duke Xi of Qi was named Zhu'er, who later became Duke Xiang of Qi.When Zhu'er was the prince, he had a good relationship with his younger sister (or older sister) Wen Jiang.When Qi Zheng Shimen met the alliance, Duke Xi of Qi tried to marry Wen Jiang to Prince Zheng Hu, but the prince resigned.The daughter of the monarch's family did not worry about getting married. Later, Qi Hou married Wen Jiang to Duke Huan of Lu and became Duke Huan of Lu's wife.

At that time, the marriage was still mainly arranged by the parents, without much consideration for the personal feelings of the parties.Especially in political marriages, girls are almost victims, and the possibility of free love is very small (of course, women in this era still have some autonomy, which is better than some later dynasties).Under such circumstances, it is normal for men and women to have some problems because they cannot combine with the person they like. I don't know if it's because of her dissatisfaction with the arranged marriage, Wen Jiang doesn't like her husband Lu Huan so much. The person she really likes is her brother Zhu'er.This is more troublesome.Even if we stand from the perspective of modern people, we can only call this kind of thing "incest", which is difficult for Wen Jiang to excuse.But thinking about the environment at that time, as the daughter of the monarch, Wen Jiang must have never left the door before getting married. Apart from his father and brothers, where has he seen other men?Therefore, it is reasonable to have feelings for Zhu'er.Looking at Zhu'er's situation, I'm afraid it's not much worse.Under the long-term depression of love, the two came together.

This kind of love that was not accepted by the society at that time (I am afraid that the modern society cannot accept it) is naturally difficult to bear fruit.In 708 BC, Duke Xi of Qi personally married Wen Jiang to the state of Lu.At this time, Zhu'er and Wen Jiang's mood must be very bleak.Seeing that he and his lover are separated, and they are separated from each other, who can not be sad and cry? The two people's old relationship is not extinguished, and they are always thinking about finding a chance to meet again.According to many legends, after Wen Jiang got married, whenever he went home to visit his relatives, he would go to Zhu'er (who later became the king of the country, Qi Xianggong) to reminisce about the past.However, in ancient times, there were regulations on the frequency of women returning to their natal family to visit relatives. Qi Xianggong and Wen Jiang couldn't let go of each other, so they always wanted to create more opportunities to meet.

In 694 BC, Duke Huan of Lu and Qi Xiang agreed to meet in Li (now northwest of Jinan, Shandong).Wen Jiang begged Duke Huan of Lu to take her with him.At that time, some ministers saw that the relationship between Wen Jiang and Duke Xiang of Qi was unusual, so they came out to dissuade Duke Huan of Lu: "Women have husbands, men have wives, and you should not neglect each other. This is etiquette. If you violate the etiquette, you will be in trouble." The words are more metaphorical, in fact, it is to remind Duke Huan of Lu to pay attention to the relationship between Wen Jiang and Marquis Qi.It's a pity that Duke Huan of Lu didn't know if he didn't understand or what, he still took Wen Jiang to meet Qihou.

This meeting was originally nothing serious, so it ended soon.Duke Huan of Lu and Wen Jiang arrived at the capital of Qi State at the kind invitation of Marquis Qi.After Qihou settled down to Duke Huan of Lu, he and Wen Jiang couldn't wait to be in the same room, and recount their old feelings. Duke Huan of Lu was not a fool either. When he arrived in Qi State, he saw that after his wife entered the palace, she didn't come out every day, and the Marquis of Qi disappeared, so he guessed that it was almost inseparable.When he saw Wen Jiang and questioned him, Wen Jiang faltered in his answer, and Duke Huan of Lu realized that the rumors outside these years were all true.Duke Huan of Lu was so angry that he scolded Wen Jiang, but after all, he was still in Qi State's territory, so he didn't dare to get angry, so he had to wait until he returned home.

Someone had told Qi Hou about the quarrel between Lu Hou and his wife, and Qi Xianggong also understood that it must be the exposure of his adultery with his sister.If Luhou was just let back like this, then his sister would definitely end badly.So, Duke Xiang of Qi moved his mind. Duke Huan of Lu came to bid farewell to Duke Xiang of Qi and was going to take Wen Jiang back.How can Qi Xianggong agree?With a shameless face, he insisted on entertaining Marquis Lu again.Duke Huan of Lu had no choice but to obey the arrangement of Marquis Qi. On the tenth day of April of this year, he had a drink with Duke Xiang of Qi.

Duke Huan of Lu had something on his mind, so he had no intention of drinking too much during the banquet.Finally, when the banquet was over, Duke Huan of Lu hurried into his car to leave.Duke Xiang of Qi ordered the young master Peng Sheng who was present: "Go and help Marquis Lu, really, I don't have any vision." Peng Sheng went over to help Lu Hou get into the car.What happened next, the "Zuo Zhuan" records are very simple: "The Duke died in the chariot." When the princes died, they were called "薨", which means that Duke Huan of Lu died in the chariot. "Historical Records" records that it was Peng Sheng who broke the ribs of Duke Huan of Lu with force, resulting in the death of Duke Huan of Lu.

It was easy to kill Lu Hou, but how to deal with the aftermath was troublesome.Knowing the news of the king's death, the state of Lu sent an envoy to Qihou and said, "Our king is afraid of your majesty, so he came to your country to restore the old relationship. But now the king has never returned, and we can't find the murderer. Pursuant to responsibility, if this matter gets out, I am afraid it will cause very bad influence? So please get rid of Peng Sheng so as to eliminate this influence." The words of the envoy of the State of Lu are reasonable, and they have given the State of Qi a step up.Also, although the death of the monarch is a great hatred, if the two countries fight because of this matter, let alone who wins and who loses, just the news of the country's mother's adultery is enough to embarrass the two countries.

Qi Xianggong also went down the steps and killed Peng Sheng, which was regarded as an account to the State of Lu.The people of Lu brought the body of the monarch back and hurried to bury it.The unlucky Peng Sheng had no choice but to go underground and curse Duke Xiang of Qi. Duke Huan of Lu died, and Duke Zhuang of Lu was succeeded by Wen Jiang's son.In this way, Qi Xianggong and Wen Jiang became more and more unscrupulous.In 692 BC, the second year after Lu Zhuanggong succeeded to the throne, Qihou and Wen Jiang met again.After that, for the convenience of meeting Wen Jiang, Qi Xianggong simply took Wen Jiang to the territory of Qi State, and often had sex together.

As a son, Lu Zhuanggong was also very embarrassed to deal with such a matter.Although Qi Xianggong hated his father's killing, but he was afraid that his mother's reputation would be damaged after this incident was exposed, which was really difficult.So I had no choice but to pretend to be a filial son and pretend that there was no such thing.Every time Marquis Qi and Duke Zhuang of Lu met, there were rumors outside that Marquis Qi was the stepfather of Duke Zhuang of Lu.Rumors like this also made Lu Zhuanggong very upset.But in all fairness, Lord Lu Zhuang really has no better way to deal with this kind of thing.

The love between Qi Xianggong and Wen Jiang can be described as vigorous.For their love, a monarch and a son died, and almost lost the diplomatic relations between the two countries.In the history books, Qi Xianggong's behavior was naturally lashed out without mercy.From our modern point of view, there is nothing wrong with pursuing love, but such serious consequences are indeed embarrassing.Even if the incest between brothers and sisters is not involved here, it is difficult for us to recognize Qi Xianggong's actions.Of course, readers have their own perspectives, right and wrong, let others comment. The ancients were more superstitious and believed in karma and so on.Qi Xianggong killed Duke Huan of Lu in order to cover up his adultery, and Peng Sheng in order to cover up his guilt, which made Qi Xianggong feel a little uneasy in his heart.Especially Peng Sheng, probably scolded Duke Xiang of Qi a lot before he died, and he must have said something like "If you become a ghost, you will be killed".In terms of the background of Qi Xianggong's era, it is impossible for him not to be afraid at all. As he grew older, Qi Xianggong became more and more suspicious, and he treated his subjects more and more cruelly.In 687 B.C., Duke Xiang of Qi ordered the senior officials Lian Cheng and Guan Zhifu to station at Kuiqiu (now west of Linzi County, Shandong). They were sent there when the melons were ripe in July, saying that they would wait until the next year when the melons were ripe.But when the next year comes, there will be no news from the capital.Lian Cheng and Guan Zhifu thought together, maybe the king forgot about it, let's send someone over to ask. The people sent out went to the capital and asked Qi Xianggong to change his shift.Qi Xianggong didn't know what happened, so he didn't agree.What, the melons in your place are already ripe?My melon is not ripe yet.What kind of melon am I in?Then there is no need to ask, of course it is in a flower pot.The person who sent the letter took the words back, and Lian Cheng and Guan Zhifu were really angry.Thinking of following such an absurd monarch, sooner or later there will be unlucky times, so he plots to plan a rebellion. And it is really difficult for us to verify which kind of melon the fuse of this incident-that poor little melon is.At that time, watermelon had not yet been introduced, and of course there was no cantaloupe, so it could only be winter melon or pumpkin. However, if the two doctors wanted to make trouble, their strength was still a bit weak, so the two found Gongsun Wuzhi of the Qi State Office.Gongsun Wuzhi's father was Yi Zhongnian, the younger brother of Duke Xi of Qi.Qi Xigong likes Gongsun Wuzhi very much, and treats him like his own son.But the relationship between Gongsun Wuzhi and Qi Xianggong, the cousins, is very bad.When Qi Xianggong was still the prince, he often fought with Wuzhi, and the two of them refused to accept the other.When Qi Xianggong succeeded to the throne, he lowered the treatment of Gongsun Wuzhi. Can a dignified monarch not deal with you?Gongsun Wuzhi naturally had no place to vent his anger, but he hated Duke Xiang of Qi in his heart. Lian Cheng and Guan Zhifu planned to launch a palace coup, kill Qi Xianggong, and then make Gongsun Wuzhi the king. Gongsun Wuzhi planned with them.Lian Cheng has a cousin who is not favored in Qi Xianggong's harem. Lian Cheng asked her to be an internal response to scout Qi Xianggong's situation, and Gongsun Wuzhi also promised to let her be his wife after the matter was completed. In the winter of this year, Duke Xiang of Qi went to Gufen (near Boxing County, Shandong Province) to play and hunt there.Suddenly a big wild boar jumped out, Qi Xianggong's followers didn't know whether they were deliberately scaring the monarch or their eyes were blurred, and shouted: "This is Mr. Peng Sheng!" Qi Xianggong stared: "Nonsense! Even if it is Peng Sheng! , How dare he do anything to me?" He shot an arrow.The wild boar, hit by an arrow, stood up and howled like a man.Hunters know that although wild boars are vegetarians, they have a very violent temper. Once they are provoked, they will kill you.At that time, the strength of the bow and arrow was not enough, so this arrow probably angered the wild boar. Qi Xianggong saw that the wild boar was in a hurry, and he was also afraid. He panicked and fell off the car.I also hurt my feet and lost my shoes, so I was in a mess. After returning, Duke Xiang of Qi ordered his servant Fei to find shoes.Finding a shoe in the vast forest is no less difficult than finding a needle in a haystack.Fei couldn't find it, so Qi Xianggong whipped him with a whip. He whipped him hundreds of times in a row, until Fei was torn to pieces.This Qi Xianggong is really immeasurable, a king still cares about which shoe? Feeling wronged, Fei planned to go home to recuperate.As soon as he reached the palace gate, he encountered Gongsun Wuzhi's rebels.The rebels saw that this was someone close to the monarch, so they quickly arrested Fei.Fei said: "Distinguish between friend and foe. I am not your enemy. Take a look and see how I was beaten by that stupid king! I am wronged." As he spoke, he took off his clothes and let the rebels Look at the whips on him.The rebels saw it, yo, it turned out that you were also the one who was bullied by that stupid king. Well, all the suffering people in the world are good brothers, so you can go and kill the stupid king with us. Fei said, well, I am familiar with the terrain in the palace, so you can let me be the vanguard, and you will definitely not let that stupid king get away.So Fei was the first to rush into the palace and rushed to Qi Xianggong's residence. Duke Xiang of Qi saw that the little official whom he had beaten just now had returned, and was about to get angry, Fei pulled Duke Xiang of Qi over and said, "My lord, something is wrong, Gongsun Wuzhi made a rebellion, and the rebels have already entered the palace. Hurry up and hide, I will deal with the rebels." Qi Xianggong was frightened, and quickly hid in the inner room. Fei hid Duke Xiang of Qi well, and let Meng Yang, a petty official who looked somewhat similar to Duke Xiang of Qi, lie on the bed and pretend to be Duke Xiang of Qi, and then went out to fight the rebels with his life.The rebels were numerous and quickly killed Fei. The rebels rushed into the palace, arrived at Qi Xianggong's bedroom, and killed Meng Yang, a small official who was lying on the bed.Looking at it after killing it, I think there is a problem: why does this person not look like a king?Just keep searching in the palace.It was also Qi Xianggong who deserved to die here. When the rebels saw a foot protruding from under the door, they pushed open the door and captured Qi Xianggong.Without further ado, Gongsun Wuzhi killed Duke Xiang of Qi and made himself king. Qi Xianggong died in a palace coup for no apparent reason.Looking at his life, there are really many stories.Falling in love with a girl, killing the king of another country, being vicious and daring, no matter what, he is more eye-catching than his father Qi Xigong.However, to be fair, although Duke Xiang of Qi did many mindless things, under his rule, the State of Qi still continued the development momentum of Duke Xi's era.He eliminated Ji State, a vassal of Lu State, exerted great pressure on Lu State, and expanded Qi State's territory.The era of Duke Xiang of Qi was the transition period of Qi State from a "little tyrant" to a real overlord.After that, the state of Qi exploded on the stage of the Spring and Autumn Period, which brought about earth-shaking changes in the political structure of the states of the Zhou Dynasty.