Chapter 36 Chapter Thirty-Fifth: Brilliant in Life, Sad in Death

As mentioned earlier, Duke Huan of Qi had three favorite ministers, Kai Fang, Yi Ya, and Shu Diao.We have introduced the prescription. He was originally the son of Wei, but he gave up the opportunity to become the king and came to serve Duke Huan of Qi, which moved Duke Huan of Qi very much. Yi Ya is an excellent cook, and Duke Huan of Qi was full of praise for the dishes he cooked.One day, when Duke Huan of Qi was chatting with Yi Ya, he joked, "I have eaten delicious food all over the world, but I have never eaten human flesh." Yi Ya remembered it in his heart. One day, Yi Ya made a plate of steamed meat for Duke Huan of Qi. Duke Huan ate it and found it very delicious, so he asked Yi Ya what kind of meat it was.Yi Ya said, Monarch, didn't you say that you have never eaten human flesh?I slaughtered my three-year-old son and made this plate of meat for you to eat.

Duke Huan of Qi was shocked and wanted to reprimand Yi Ya for being inhumane, but he smacked the taste in his mouth and said to Yi Ya, how could you do such a cruel thing, don't make an example!In my heart, I was a little more moved by Yi Ya. The third person who moved Qihou was Shu Diao.Duke Huan of Qi was lustful, so the harem was overcrowded.Duke Huan of Qi needed someone to manage the harem for him, but he instinctively couldn't trust ordinary men.So Shu Diao castrated himself and became an eunuch to help Duke Huan of Qi manage the harem. To be able to swing the sword from the palace so willingly, apart from Shu Diao, I am afraid that Dongfang Invincible is the only one.

So Duke Huan of Qi trusted Shu Diao very much.It seems that Qi Huangong is not confident enough in his masculinity.Every man of this kind wishes in his heart that all men in the world besides him are eunuchs. Kai Fang, Yi Ya, and Shu Diao surrounded Duke Huan of Qi, and they were deeply favored by Duke Huan of Qi, and they were called "Three Nobles". However, the advantage of Duke Huan of Qi is that he has a clear distinction between public and private.Although in terms of private life, Duke Huan of Qi favored the three nobles and was extremely dissolute, but he would never let these three people get involved in state affairs.In terms of major policies, the person Qi Huangong really trusted was Guan Zhong.

But it is impossible for Guan Zhong to stay with Duke Huan of Qi forever.Soon after Guan Zhong came back from Zhou Tianzi, he fell ill.Guan Zhong, the number one minister in the Spring and Autumn Period who assisted Duke Huan of Qi to achieve great achievements, finally came to the end of his life. Duke Huan of Qi went to visit Guan Zhong, and when he saw Zhong's father on the sick bed, his heart ached.He was worried about Guan Zhong's condition, and of course he was also worried about his career.Without Guan Zhong, who can assist him in his hegemony?Duke Huan of Qi asked: "Father Zhong, after you leave, who shall I hand over state affairs to?" Guan Zhong said: "The one who understands his subjects best is the monarch." That means, you can choose for yourself.Duke Huan of Qi thought of his teacher Bao Shuya, and asked, "I want Bao Shuya to be my prime minister, do you think it's okay?"

Guan Zhong said: "I know my old friend best. He has a strong sense of justice and hates evil. As a person, this is a very good character, but he is not suitable for being a prime minister. A prime minister must be able to tolerate many things. .” Duke Huan of Qi pondered for a while, and his teacher had this characteristic.But besides Bao Shuya, who else can be prime minister?The heroes of Duke Huan of Qi's hegemony, such as Ning Qi and others, are long gone.After much deliberation, Duke Huan of Qi felt that Xi Peng was the only candidate.Duke Huan of Qi asked, "What do you think of letting Xi Peng be in power?" Guan Zhong sighed and said, "Xi Peng is a suitable candidate for prime minister, but I don't think his life span is long. After I die, I'm afraid he will live too." It won't be long." Speaking of this, Duke Huan of Qi thought of the arrival of his most beloved Sangui, and asked, "What do you think of Yi Ya?" Guan Zhong said, "Is there anything more cruel than killing your own son to please the king?" How about treating your own flesh and blood like this, let alone others?" Duke Huan of Qi asked again, "What about Kaifang?" Guan Zhong said, "Kaifang gave up his status as a monarch of a great country to serve you. This is too inappropriate. It's a favor. I don't think this person is trustworthy." Duke Huan of Qi had no choice but to ask again: "What about the vertical sable?"

Guan Zhong said: "Doing harm to one's own body to gain the trust of the ruler is not in accordance with human nature. It is not something normal people can do, so it cannot be trusted." Duke Huan of Qi thought to himself, I have trusted these three people for a long time, why didn't I hear you mention it before, so I asked: "Since Father Zhong knows that these three people are so miserable, why don't you usually say it?" Guan Zhong said: "My lord, you are ambitious and diligent in state affairs. You have worked very hard at ordinary times. How can I stop you from having hobbies? Fortunately, with me, these three people can't do anything extraordinary. But I die No, these three people are not restrained, and they are going to make waves. So I advise the monarch, after I die, you must stay away from these three villains, otherwise Qi will be in great trouble."

Duke Huan of Qi nodded in agreement, expressing that he would obey Zhongfu's arrangement and manage Qi well.In this way, Guan Zhong did not arrange his successor in the end, so he passed away.In 645 BC, a generation of virtuous ministers passed away, heralding that the glorious era of Duke Huan of Qi's hegemony was gone forever.Duke Huan of Qi referred to Guan Zhong's entrustment before his death, and wanted to make Xi Peng his prime minister.But as Guan Zhong predicted, Xi Peng also passed away soon.So Duke Huan of Qi appointed Bao Shuya as his prime minister. Bao Shuya said embarrassingly: "I have known my own shortcomings for a long time. I am too principled, and I don't see evil people in my eyes, so I am not suitable to be a prime minister. If you insist on making me a prime minister, then make Yi Ya, Kaifang, and Shu Diao, these three villains, will be driven away from you and will never be used again."

Duke Huan of Qi was able to be the overlord for so many years, after all, he was not a fool.In order to continue his career, he reluctantly gave up his love and drove these three villains away.So Bao Shuya became the prime minister, and the political stability of Qi State continued to maintain its hegemony. However, human preferences are not so easily overcome.Sangui left Duke Huan of Qi. When Duke Huan of Qi was bored, he felt that no one could think of interesting games better than Kaifang; , he was tired of the harem. In this way, Duke Huan of Qi couldn't play well, eat well, and sleep well. After suffering for several months, he finally couldn't bear it and called back all the three nobles.After Sangui came back, he also knew that Duke Huan of Qi could not do without them, so he became even more unscrupulous.They began to intervene in the government, leaving Bao Shuya helpless.Soon, Bao Shuya also died of anger.This time, Sangui completely lost his restraint.They began to cultivate party members everywhere and establish their own forces.Soon, Duke Huan of Qi could no longer control these three people.

Sangui had always had a good relationship with Duke Huan's eldest son, Wukui, and several of them formed a clique to form a small group.Shu Diao, Yi Ya and others often spoke good things about Wu Kui in front of Duke Huan of Qi, and Duke Huan of Qi promised them that Wu Kui could be made king. However, Duke Huan of Qi has made his son Zhao the crown prince, which made Wu Kui's group very jealous.He conspired to contact the other sons of Duke Huan of Qi in order to seize the seat of Prince Zhao. Duke Huan of Qi had six sons in total, none of whom were good stubble.In fact, Duke Huan of Qi could have properly arranged his affairs before his death, such as weakening the party members of the princes, finding suitable domestic and foreign aid for Prince Zhao, and so on.However, the old and dizzy Duke Huan of Qi had been coaxed into a daze by the three nobles, and he did not take any measures except entrusting Prince Zhao to Song Xianggong.

In 644 BC, Chonger, the son of the Jin State who was in exile, came to the State of Qi.Duke Huan of Qi had always heard that Chong'er was virtuous, so he treated Chong'er with the utmost courtesy.He not only gave Chong'er 20 carriages, but also married his daughter to Chong'er. The reason why I insert this seemingly irrelevant content in this chapter is to tell everyone that neither Duke Huan of Qi nor Chonger himself would have thought that this was the only meeting between the two heroes during the Spring and Autumn Period.In the future, the one who can inherit Duke Huan of Qi's hegemony will be precisely the future Duke Wen of Jin and the current exiled son Chong'er of the Jin Kingdom.

Regarding Jin Wengong, there will be a special introduction later, so I won’t go into details here. In 643 BC, Duke Huan of Qi was seriously ill, and he seemed to be dying.At this time, Sangui, who usually surrounded Duke Huan of Qi and couldn't drive him away, no longer bothered to serve Duke Huan of Qi.They are busy teaming up with Young Master Wu Kui to grab Prince Zhao's seat. Duke Huan of Qi became seriously ill and fell into a coma. Yi Ya and Shu Diao mobilized troops to lock Duke Huan of Qi in the palace and refused anyone to visit him.And these two people conspired to kill Prince Zhao, and made Prince Wukui the king.According to historical records, Yi Ya and Shu Diao supported each other without loss, while Kai Fang had a close relationship with another son, Pan.These three people who were originally a group couldn't agree, so one can imagine what kind of chaos the state of Qi will be in.Several sons heard that the monarch was ill, and they all pulled up their teams one after another, preparing to fight hard.They were tossing and turning upside down outside, but Duke Huan of Qi was lonely here, no one cared about him. Under such tragic circumstances, even if Duke Huan of Qi did not die of illness, he would starve to death.It is said that when Duke Huan of Qi was critically ill, a maid secretly sneaked into the palace, visited Duke Huan of Qi, and reported the chaos outside to Duke Huan of Qi.Duke Huan of Qi lamented that Guan Zhong knew things like a god, he was ashamed of his stupidity, angry and hated, and died.The maid also committed suicide and was buried for Duke Huan of Qi. The novelist said, whether it is true or not, the reader can judge for himself. Prince Zhao heard that the monarch's bedroom had been sealed off, and knew that the situation was not good.Since Duke Huan of Qi had entrusted him to Duke Xiang of Song before his death, Prince Zhao went to the State of Song for political asylum. Prince Zhao has already fled, Yi Ya and Shu Diao are going to make Prince Wu Kui the king.Some upright ministers expressed their opposition.Yi Ya and Shu Diao relied on their own army and killed a few doctors to suppress the opposition. In December 642 BC, son Wu Kui was established as the king, and the other sons scattered and fled.After the dust settled, people in the state of Qi remembered that the body of Duke Huan of Qi was still standing there. When I opened the door of the bedroom, my good fellow, the corpse of Duke Huan of Qi was rotten, and the worms on the corpse were crawling everywhere, and the stench was pungent.According to historical records, Duke Huan of Qi died on the seventh day of October of this year, and was not buried until the fourteenth day of December.The corpse lay in the bedroom for 67 days, and there was no refrigerator at that time, so it's no wonder it didn't rot! The poor generation of heroes unexpectedly ended up like this.When Duke Huan of Qi met with the princes several times, he must have never imagined that this was his final destination. Received the rotten corpse of Duke Huan of Qi, and officially ascended the throne as the king without loss.However, Prince Zhao, who fled in Song State, still had to rely on the power of Song State to fight back.The turmoil in Qi State did not end when he ascended the throne without any loss, but it was just the beginning. The heroic life of Duke Huan of Qi ended in tragedy, which is indeed embarrassing.However, as the first of the Five Overlords in the Spring and Autumn Period, Duke Huan of Qi's influence on that era was still extremely far-reaching. Before Duke Huan of Qi, Duke Zhuang Zheng also fought among the princes, which made Zheng Guo prosperous for a period of time.However, in the final analysis, Zheng Zhuanggong can only be called Xiaoba. Although he has a certain appeal, he has not officially become the leader of the princes. And Duke Huan of Qi explained the meaning of overlord to the world.It can be said that Duke Huan of Qi set the tone for the feudal hegemony in the Spring and Autumn Period, that is, whoever can convene a meeting of princes and obtain the status of "the main alliance (leading the alliance, also known as the leader)" at the meeting will be the overlord.After Duke Huan of Qi, whether it was Duke Xiang of Song, Duke Wen of Jin or King Zhuang of Chu, they all imitated Duke Huan of Qi. The old man Confucius said in the late Spring and Autumn Period that Duke Huan of Qi "joined the nine princes without using military chariots" and "dominant the princes, ruled the world, and the people are now receiving their gifts." (Please note that this is a few passages in the book, the main object of praise is Guan Zhong, and the author quotes it here just to show the attitude of later generations on Duke Huan's dominance.) It can be seen that the sage of Confucius highly admires Duke Huan.Confucius' praise is not without reason. We can summarize Qi Huan Gong’s contribution to the Central Plains in this way: During the decades of Qi Huan’s hegemony, the prestige of Zhou Tianzi has been enhanced, and the tradition of Zhou rituals has been maintained; among the vassal states of the Central Plains, peace and friendship have basically been maintained. The situation; the harassment and invasion of the Central Plains by the surrounding ethnic minorities have been contained to a certain extent.In general, Duke Huan of Qi brought stability to the Central Plains for decades. Compared with the later overlords, Duke Huan of Qi was able to win the support of the princes of the world more because of morality than force.We rarely see Duke Huan of Qi bullying the weak, but we often see him helping those in need, such as saving Yan, Xing and Wei.Duke Huan of Qi can be said to be the only overlord who "served the people wholeheartedly" in the Spring and Autumn Period. So Confucius said: "Qi Huan is fair but not treacherous, and Jin Wengong is treacherous but not upright." When we talk about the story of Jin Wengong later, we can see that Jin Wengong is far from Qi Huan's kindness and character.For example, Duke Huan of Qi was magnanimous and magnanimous, regardless of old enmity, while Duke Wen of Jin was vindictive. Of course, Duke Huan of Qi is also a person with a distinct personality and obvious advantages and disadvantages.He has many weaknesses in human character, such as liking to have fun, being overjoyed, and vain.But he grasped the measure very well, so it did not affect his career of dominating the princes. Of course, the hegemony of Duke Huan of Qi is at least the credit of Guan Zhong.Qi Huangong can give Guan Zhong enough trust, which is rare among the monarchs of all dynasties.The so-called "employing people without suspicion, doubting people without using them" is easy to say, but too difficult to do.Duke Huan of Qi and Guan Zhong can also be regarded as a model of the relationship between monarchs and ministers in ancient times. There are still many topics to discuss about Duke Huan of Qi, but with his death, the era that belonged to him has passed.After the death of Duke Huan of Qi, the internal turmoil in Qi continued, and it was obvious that he could not inherit the cause of the overlord.But the princes need a leader to lead everyone to respect the royal family and resist the barbarians.Who can take up such a heavy responsibility? There are many people who want to be the successor of Duke Huan of Qi, and the most enthusiastic one is Duke Xiang of Song, who was entrusted by Duke Huan of Qi to his son. Qi internal turmoil, Prince Zhao fled to Song, which gave Song Xianggong an opportunity to dominate.If you take the opportunity of quelling the civil strife in Qi to convene the princes and hold an alliance, won't you be able to taste the taste of being the overlord?Besides, Duke Huan of Qi did the same thing back then. With Song Xianggong's ambition sprouting, the Spring and Autumn War will open a new page.The second of the Five Heroes, the weakest and least recognized, is about to make his debut.