Chapter 8 Chapter Five: The Competition of the Spring and Autumn and Warring States Periods and the Unification of the Qin State

Culture develops gradually from a central point to all aspects.What was handed down before the Western Zhou Dynasty was only the history of a country that later generations believed to be a common master, and the situation in other aspects was very ambiguous.Of course, there is a shortage of books, and we cannot assert that they do not exist because we have not seen them. However, if there are places where culture is very developed, the facts will never be completely lost. From this, it can be seen that the civilization at that time was still limited to a small area.This was not the case after the Eastern Zhou Dynasty. What was passed down in Sri Lanka was mainly about the deeds of various powerful countries and places with relatively developed culture.It turns out that the so-called Central Plains in ancient times is only from the west of Taidai, east of Huayue, south of Taihang, north of Huai and Han, most of today's Henan and Shandong, and a small part of Hebei and Shanxi.The development of the Weishui River Basin is probably a matter of hundreds of years since the rise of the Western Zhou Dynasty.In the Spring and Autumn Period, the situation was very different.At that time, Jin, Chu, Qi, and Qin were known as great powers, and Wu and Yue, which rose later, were located in the southwest of Shanxi, northeast of Shandong, central Shaanxi, eastern Gansu, and Jiangsu, The territory of Zhejiang and Anhui.In Lu, Wei, Song, Zheng, Chen, Cai, Cao, Xu, etc., which have always been called the Central Plains, they were turned into second- and third-class countries.This is truly an amazing cultural expansion.What is the reason?The country living in the frontier, because of its closeness to other races, is strengthened by competition, and its territory is easy to expand, which should be the most important.

"Zhou Zhi moved to the east, Jin and Zheng Yanyi." (see "Zuo Zhuan" Yin Gong six years) This shows the weakness of the royal family at that time.The territory of the ancient great powers was about a hundred miles square, but in the Spring and Autumn Period it was reduced to a third-class country, the second-class country was about 500 miles square, and the first-class country must be more than a thousand miles square. Please refer to Chapter 39.In the Western Zhou Dynasty, the combined land of East and West was more than enough to be a big country in the Spring and Autumn Period. After moving to the east, Xiji could not be restored, and Dongji was exploited by other countries. Lu and Wei.As the old saying goes, "There are no two suns in the sky, and there are no two kings in the people", this was just a hope at that time.In fact, the so-called king is only limited to a certain area, and not everyone in the world obeys him.In the Spring and Autumn Period, about the areas where Wu, Chu and other countries ruled were not within the jurisdiction of the Zhou Dynasty, so they each ruled as kings.In the area under the jurisdiction of the Son of Heaven, there is more than one powerful country, and no country can subdue all other countries. Therefore, he dare not claim the title of king, and can only claim to be the leader of the princes, that is, the so-called hegemony. This has also been said in the thirty-ninth chapter Pass.Therefore, in the Spring and Autumn Period, the changes in the overall situation were tied to the hands of several overlords.In the Spring and Autumn Period, Duke Huan of Qi was the first to dominate.At that time, there were quite a lot of different nationalities living in the interior, and there were also quite powerful, small countries of the same clan, which were quite oppressed by them. (1) Originally, among the ancient nations, there were many relations of the same surname or marriage. (2) Otherwise, the big country has received tribute from the small country and has the obligation to protect it. (3) At this time, countries with the same culture are oppressed by countries with different cultures, and they rescue each other, which even includes a faint nationalism that has just sprouted.Therefore, the act of expelling barbarians and Di was quite praised by the people at that time.In this regard, Duke Huan of Qi has made great achievements.He once killed Di to save Xing and Wei, and tried to cut down the mountain to save Yan (this Yan should be Nan Yan, located in Fengqiu County, Henan today. "Historical Records" says that it was the Northern Yan in the Warring States Period, located in Ji County, Hebei today , I’m afraid I made a mistake, because in the Spring and Autumn Period, those who were only called Yan were all Nan Yan. That is, the Northern Yan was first granted, and I suspect that it was not far from Fengqiu, and it was later migrated to today’s Ji County, but nothing happened. can test).And he has conquered a wide range of countries.He once attacked Chu in the south, intervened in the civil strife in Jin in the west, and conquered the eastern barbarians in his later years.The ancients said that "the five tyrants, Duke Huan, are prosperous", and they believed it.Duke Huan of Qi reigned from 685 to 643 BC.After the death of Duke Huan, there was turmoil in Qi, and the hegemony declined.Song Xianggong wanted to succeed him and seek hegemony.However, the state of Song was relatively small and lacking in strength. In 638 BC, it was defeated by the people of Chu, Duke Xiang was injured and died, and there was no overlord in the north.In 632 BC, Duke Wen of Jin defeated Chu in Chengpu (now Pu County, Shandong), and the momentum of Chu was defeated.At this time, the Qin State had also taken all the old lands of the Western Zhou Dynasty, and reached the river in the east. It was a powerful country in the West, but it had not yet been able to interfere in the affairs of the Central Plains.At the beginning of Qin Mugong's competition with the Jin State was invincible. In 624 BC, the soldiers who defeated the Jin State only dominated Xirong.The land of the Central Plains became a battle between Jin and Chu for hegemony.In 597 BC, King Zhuang of Chu defeated Jin in Bi (now Zheng County, Henan Province) and became the hegemony.He died in 591 BC.At this time, Qi Qinggong also wanted to compete with Jin for hegemony.In 589 BC, it was defeated by Jin.In 575 BC, Duke Li of Jin defeated Chu again in Yanling (now Yan County, Henan).However, Chu was still fighting with Jin soldiers.It was not until 561 BC that Chu State gave up the struggle for Zheng, and Jin Daogong claimed the hegemony again.In 546 BC, Xiang Xu, a doctor of the Song Dynasty, was good at governing Jin and Chu, and came out to unite the two countries, forming a meeting to eliminate soldiers. The military struggle between Jin and Chu came to a rest.It has been eighty-seven years since the Battle of Chengpu.After the military alliance was eliminated, King Ling of Chu became strong, and many northern princes rushed to meet with him.However, King Ling was extravagant and fond of fighting, disregarding the power of the people, and was killed because of civil strife.At this time, the state of Wu was growing stronger and stronger, while the state of Chu was politically corrupt. In 506 BC, the capital of the state of Chu was destroyed by Wu Helu. Crescendo, rise and ride after Wu.In 496 BC, Helu attacked Yue and died of injuries.In 494 BC, Heluzi Fucha broke through Yue.Since then, Fu Chai has been arrogant and extravagant. He has conquered Qi and Lu in the north, and competed with Jin to grow in Huangchi (now Fengqiu County, Henan). Zhucheng County, Shandong), known as Overlord.However, the foundation was not solid because of this, and it was destroyed by Chu in 333 BC.

At this time, we have entered the age of the Warring States (the Spring and Autumn Period, which began in the forty-ninth year of King Ping of Zhou, that is, the first year of Lu Yin, was 722 BC and ended in 481 BC, a total of 242 years. The next year will be the beginning of the Warring States period. Calculated until the year before Qin destroyed the six kingdoms in 222 BC, a total of 259 years).In the Spring and Autumn Period, the princes only wanted to fight for hegemony, that is, to win the obedience of the second- and third-class countries. There were few direct military battles between the first-class countries, and some of them were only small and not very intense.By the time of the Warring States period, (1) the northern princes no longer regarded the emperor of Zhou in their eyes, and became kings one after another. (2) Second- and third-class countries are completely insignificant, weakened day by day, and finally wiped out, and there is no buffer country between the first-class countries. (3) As the land becomes more extensive, the people become more numerous, and the armies become stronger, the wars become more intense.At the beginning, it is necessary to surpass the kings and proclaim the emperor, and further, it is necessary to seek annexation and realize the desire for unification.In the Spring and Autumn Period, the first-class states developed too rapidly and their internal organization was not perfect. In the Warring States Period, the ministers were stronger than the emperor. For example, the Tian family of Qi State abolished the emperor and replaced it. ; If the situation is divided, such as the three families of Zhao, Han, and Wei in Jin, they simply divide into Jin and become independent.It seems that the strength is divided and weak, but its strength is actually more substantial.The development trend of the frontier countries is still going on, and the one that succeeds later is Beiyan.The world was then divided into seven kingdoms: Yan, Qi, Zhao, Han, Wei, Qin, and Chu.The six countries were all merged by Qin. People who read history often think that Qin was the strongest once it entered the Warring States period. This is wrong.The strength of the Qin State began with Duke Xian and became Duke Xiao. The establishment of Duke Xian was in 385 BC, ninety-six years after entering the Warring States period. years.First, Marquis Wen of Wei appointed Wu Qi and other virtuous ministers to invade the Hexi area of ​​Qin State.Later, King Mourning of Chu used Wu Qi to conquer Baiyue in the south, join Chen and Cai in the north, but conquered the Qin Dynasty in the three Jins and conquered Qin in the west.King Mourning of Chu died in 381 BC, exactly one hundred years after entering the Warring States Period, so Chu declined and King Hui Hui of Wei rose up, and once attacked Handan of Zhao State (now Handan County, Hebei).Later, they attacked Zhao and were defeated by Qi Jibing. The Qin people took the opportunity to restore Hexi, and Wei abandoned Anyi and moved his capital to Daliang (now Kaifeng County, Henan).The Qin people's road to the east of Pujin was opened.However, in 342 BC, Wei was the meeting of Fengze (in Kaifeng). "Warring States · Qin Ce" said that he "rides the Xia chariot, calls Xia Wang (the word Xia should mean the big character), becomes the son of heaven, and everyone in the world obeys", so he is still in the overlord position.Next year, it will be defeated by Qi again.So the Wei Dynasty declined and the Qi Dynasty rose. The two generations of King Xuan and King Min seemed to dominate the East, and the time of King Min was especially prosperous.According to legend, Su and Qin made an appointment with six countries, and they joined forces to drive away Qin, that is, at the time of King Min.Of the seven heroes of the Warring States Period, Han and Wei are small and close to Qin, so their situation is urgent, while Yan and Zhao are relatively remote. The most powerful countries are naturally Qi, Qin, and Chu.Chu's momentum since its attack on the Spring and Autumn Period, and its position in the middle, it seems that the sound and light are higher than Qi and Qin, so at this time, Qi and Qin seem to be working together to seek Chu. "Warring States Policy" said that Zhang Yi went to lie to King Huai of Chu on behalf of Qin State: if he was willing to kill Qi, he would send him six hundred miles to the place of Shangyu (that is, the land of Shang County).King Huai of Chu listened to him, but Zhang Yi regretted the agreement, saying that the place he sent was only six miles away.King Huai was furious and sent troops to attack Qin.Two big defeats, losing Hanzhong.Later, the Qin State went to lure him to make peace. In 299 BC, King Huai went to meet King Qin Zhao, and was seduced by the Qin people.This kind of flat story is not credible at all. In fact, Qi and Qin should work together to seek Chu.However, the next year when King Huai of Chu entered Qin, the people of Qi joined Han and Wei to attack Qin, and defeated them in Hangu (in the southwest of Lingbao County, Henan today, this is the east entrance of the pass from Henan to Shaanxi, today Tongguan is its west entrance).In 296 BC, King Huai died in Qin, and Qi joined forces with the princes to attack Qin; then King Min of Qi seemed to join Qin to seek Chu, and then attacked it as a crime against Qin, and his methods can be described as cunning.First, in 314 BC, Qi State took advantage of Yan's civil strife to break through Yan State.Song Wangyan called Qiang Dongfang, and it was destroyed by Qi, Chu and Wei in 286 BC.This move is called the partition of the Three Kingdoms, but it is actually based on Qi, and more land is also in Qi.At this time, King Qi Min was at his peak.However, those who are too rigid must break.In 284 BC, King Yanzhao united the princes and used Le Yi as his general to break Qi. Jimo, present-day Pingdu County, Shandong).Later, although Tian Dan was able to restore the country with the help of Tian Dan, he lost his qualification to dominate the East.Among the eastern countries, King Zhao Wuling is quite talented.He did not compete with the countries in the Central Plains, but concentrated on developing the border areas.First destroy Zhongshan (now Ding County, Hebei), and then develop to the present-day Datong area, intending to attack Qin through Hetao.In 295 BC, he died again due to civil strife.The Seven Kingdoms were only strong in Qin Dynasty.The Qin people then launched a fierce attack on the princes.In 279 BC, Qin Bai attacked Chu and took Yan, Deng, and Xiling.Next year, Ying, the capital of Chu, was broken, and the capital of Chu northeast moved to Chen, and then moved to Shouchun (Yan, that is, Yanling. Deng, now Deng County, Henan. Xiling, now Yichang County, Hubei. Ying, now Northwest of Jiangling County, Hubei. Wuhelu The Ying I entered was not yet in Jiangling, but its location cannot be tested. At this time, the Ying must be in Jiangling (as Qian Mu and Tong Shuye say today), and he fled to the territory of Anhui today.For Han and Wei, we also attack from time to time.In 260 BC, Qin soldiers attacked Han and took Yewang. Shangdang was cut off, and Zhao was surrendered. Qin defeated Zhao soldiers in Changping and sent 400,000 soldiers (Yewang, now Qinyang County, Henan. Shangdang, now Jincheng, Shanxi County. Changping, now Changping County, Shanxi), then took Shangdang and set Taiyuan in the north.Entering and besieging Handan, he was defeated by the soldiers of Wei Gongzi Wuji and other countries.In 256 BC, King Nan, the last ruler of the Zhou Dynasty, was destroyed by Qin.In 249 BC, the Eastern Zhou Dynasty that he enfeoffed was destroyed.In 246 BC, Qin Shihuang was established. "Historical Records Qin Benji" said that at this time, Lu Buwei was the prime minister of the country, attracting guests and tourists, and wanted to annex the world.Probably the plan of annexation has a lot to do with Lu Buwei.Later, although Lu Buwei was abolished and died in Shu, the people of Qin still kept his policy unchanged.In 230 BC, Korea was destroyed, and in 228 BC, Zhao was destroyed.Crown Prince Dan of Yan sent Jing Ke to assassinate the King of Qin, but he failed, so Qin sent troops to attack Yan.In 226 BC, the King of Yan seized Liaodong.In 225 BC, the people of Qin destroyed Wei.In 223 BC, Chu was destroyed.In 222 BC, troops were sent to attack Liaodong and destroy Yan.In 221 BC, Qi was destroyed in the south with the soldiers who destroyed Yan, and the world was unified.

The unification of the Qin Dynasty was by no means all about military strength.We must pay attention: At this time, the convenience of transportation, the internal development of various countries, the destruction of small countries, and the gradual establishment of prefectures and counties all tended to be unified politically, economically, and culturally. Receive it successfully.The reason why the Qin people were able to reap the benefits of success is that (1) it is located in Xichui, it was civilized late, and its atmosphere is relatively simple. (2) The land of the Three Jins was narrow and densely populated, while the land of Qin was vast and sparsely populated. The people of Qin recruited the people of the Three Jins and made them farm, and made their own people fight. (3) It can also pursue the policy of the Legalists, reduce the power of the aristocracy, and give the people who can do their best in farming and warfare a chance to invite rewards.This is its most important reason.