Chapter 37 Zhang Yi made a move, and the joint vertical broke

Zhang Yi's counterattack came quickly and accurately, hitting the weakest link in the alliance. In 328 BC, King Hui of Qin ordered Zhang Yi and his son Hua to lead an army to besiege Puyang (now Xi County, Shanxi Province) of Wei State.The Qin army attacked fiercely and forced the defenders to surrender in less than half a month. However, if one thinks that Zhang Yi's means are limited to this, it would be a big mistake. After the fall of Puyang, King Wei Hui was very nervous, so he quickly sent envoys to Xianyang to plead guilty.Zhang Yi received the envoy on behalf of King Hui of Qin.The two exchanged pleasantries for a while, and the envoy of the State of Wei said, "You shouldn't have listened to Su Qin's slander, joined a vertical alliance, and made an enemy of the big country. Now that the big country is furious and sent troops to attack the State of Wei, the widow has nothing to say. I sent my servants here, firstly to plead guilty, and secondly, for the sake of the elders in your hometown, please speak kind words in front of Uncle Qin and forgive the widow's mistakes."

Originally thought that Zhang Yi would push back and forth, but unexpectedly Zhang Yi said straightforwardly: "This matter is on me." The next day, Zhang Yi went into the palace to report to King Qin Hui.After returning, he said to the envoy: "I have exhausted my words and finally fulfilled my mission. Please go back and report to the king of Wei, and say that Uncle Qin has forgiven his mistakes, and will not pursue Wei's responsibility for joining the alliance." The messenger was overjoyed. Zhang Yi went on to say: "In order to show goodwill and friendship, Uncle Qin also decided to return Puyang to the State of Wei. In addition...Uncle Qin is also planning to send his son Yao to the State of Wei as a hostage to strengthen the trust between the two countries."

Young Master Yao is Ying Yao, the son of King Hui of Qin.The envoy was stunned and could hardly believe his ears.Since ancient times, it has been common for the defeated to send their sons as hostages, but this is the first time that the victors took the initiative to send their sons as hostages. "Uncle Qin, did Uncle Qin really say that?" the envoy stammered and asked. "It's absolutely true." Zhang Yi patted the envoy's shoulder, "As a member of Wei, that's all I can do for Wei. But I ask you to remind King Wei in private that Uncle Qin is so generous to Wei. The country cannot say nothing."

"Of course." The envoy nodded quickly, "After the minister returns, he will report to King Wei immediately, and he will prepare a gift to thank Uncle Qin." "Financial gift?" Zhang Yi was stunned for a moment, then burst out laughing, "How could Uncle Qin accept the financial gift from King Wei? Isn't this a joke for the world to see!" "Then what do you mean?" "Reciprocity is a matter of courtesy. Since Uncle Qin returned Puyang to the State of Wei, please ask the King of Wei to dedicate Shangjun to the State of Qin." Zhang Yi said lightly.

As mentioned earlier, Shangjun is the place name of Wei State.During the period of Marquis Wen of Wei, Li Kui once served as the governor of Shangjun. His jurisdiction was equivalent to the east of Luohe River in Shaanxi today, the north of Huangliang River, and the northeast to Zichang and Yan'an, covering a total of fifteen counties. The envoy brought Zhang Yi's words to King Wei Hui anxiously. King Wei Hui was sullen for a while.At this time, the State of Qin aggressively attacked the State of Zhao, defeated the army led by Zhao General Zhao Zhen, and captured the two cities of Lin and Lishi (both in Lishi, Shanxi Province).Zhao Suhou, the initiator of the alliance, was helpless, and all the countries in the alliance were silent, and they had long forgotten the bold words written when signing the alliance.King Hui Hui of Wei considered again and again, finally agreed to Zhang Yi's request, handed over Shangjun to Qin State, and expressed that he would voluntarily withdraw from the joint vertical alliance and be willing to be a subject of Qin State.

In the first round of the vertical and horizontal confrontation, they won all the games.Qin Huiwang was very satisfied with this result, so he appointed Zhang Yi as Xiangguo. In the bureaucratic system of the Qin State, there was no position of prime minister, and Daliang made it equivalent to the prime minister of other countries.However, Gongsun Yan was already in charge of Daliangzao at that time. In order to balance the relationship, King Qin Hui specially set up the post of Prime Minister, which was at the same level as Daliangzao.It can be said that this is not only an affirmation of Zhang Yi, but also an emphasis on Gongsun Yan.However, Gongsun Yan was obviously dissatisfied with this arrangement, and quietly left Qin and returned to Wei.

In 327 BC, Zhang Yi persuaded King Hui of Qin to return Jiao, Quwo, and Pi to Wei State. King Wei Hui was flattered and admired Zhang Yi so much.Of course, he has also strengthened his determination to be a vassal of Qin. In 326 BC, under the leadership of Zhang Yi, the State of Qin held the La Festival in Longmen (now Hancheng, Shaanxi Province). The so-called La Festival is a sacrifice to celebrate the harvest in winter and reward ghosts and gods.Different from the solemn temple sacrifices, the La Festival has the meaning of folk carnival. People of all ages, men, women and children can participate. During the event, there are singing and dancing, which is very lively.

Longmen is on the upper reaches of the Yellow River, with cliffs facing each other on both sides. It is said that it was dug by Xia Yu when he was controlling the water. It is a holy place in the legend of the Chinese nation.More importantly, the Longmen area is exactly the land of Hexi and Shangjun newly acquired by the Qin State. It is unprecedented for King Hui of Qin to go to Longmen to participate in folk carnivals as a king. Therefore, it is recorded as "Chula" in history books, and its purpose can be imagined. All that Zhang Yi did, reaped the results in 325 BC. In April of this year, King Wei Hui and King Han Xuan led some heads of small countries to Xianyang for a pilgrimage, and they jointly elected King Hui of Qin as king.King Hui of Wei and King Xuan of Han personally drove for King Qin Hui as a show of honor.In return, Qin Huiwang also recognized Wei Huiwang's king title, and also gave Han Xuan Wang a king title.

Counting it, this is already the third time that King Wei Hui has become king. So far, in addition to the old Chu, Wei, Qi, Qin, and Han have successively become kings among the princes of the world.And Qin's claiming the king this time obviously played a role in consolidating Qin, Wei, and Han Lianheng. The vertical alliance that Su Qin painstakingly established has actually broken down.