Chapter 17 Nine Heroes: The United Front Work of Duke Huan of Qi

For a long time, the residents of the Central Plains have regarded themselves as descendants of the Yellow Emperor tribe, calling themselves the "Huaxia Clan", and the countries in the Central Plains therefore called themselves "Zhuxia" or "China".The ethnic minorities scattered around the Central Plains are all called "Siyi", and according to their location, they are divided into Dongyi, Xirong, Nanman, and Beidi. This is of course a general term.Just like we used to call all people with high noses and sunken eyes "Westerners", this term contains complex emotions such as surprise, fear, contempt, and an arrogance that does not know much about foreign cultures.

In the eyes of the Central Plains people, the four barbarians are uncivilized savages, not of our own race, and do not conspire with each other.Even a country like Chu, which was once entrusted to the Zhou royal family, was regarded as a barbarian country because it lived in a barbarian land for a long time. In the early records of "Spring and Autumn", it was never called "Chu" but called it It is a disrespect for the Japanese not to call China China but insist on calling it China. show of respect). However, it is these neglected Dongyi, Xirong, Nanman, and Beidi that have caused the Central Plains to tremble and shake again and again.The most serious one was the Dog Rong Rebellion in the reign of King You of Zhou. Minorities from the West captured Haojing, the capital of the Zhou Dynasty, which caused the Zhou royal family to move eastward to Luoyi, which opened the prelude to the Spring and Autumn Period.

According to the regulations of Zhou Li, ritual and music conquests are the exclusive rights of the emperor.Even if the vassal states used troops against the barbarians, they had to report to the royal family, and if they captured prisoners, they would sacrifice them to the emperor, and the emperor would warn against foreign invaders.This regulation, with the decline of the Zhou royal family, gradually became a dead letter.As mentioned earlier, in 663 BC, Duke Huan of Qi offered captives to Duke Zhuang of Lu.No one could say that Zuo Qiuming's criticism was wrong.However, in the face of foreign invasion, the royal family of Zhou could not protect themselves. After they settled down in Luoyi, they had no thought and ability to lead everyone to conquer the Sibari, so they could only let the Sibari wreak havoc on the Central Plains.Since Duke Huan of Qi regarded himself as the leader of the Central Plains countries, he took the initiative to take the responsibility of conquering the barbarians, and objectively defended the civilization of the Central Plains, which is a great merit.As for such trivial matters as presenting captives to the state of Lu, what about etiquette, and what about indecency?Presumably Zhou Tianzi is too embarrassed to raise any opinions, why bother you Zuo Qiuming to tell lies?

How pedantic! In 661 BC, the Di people in the north aggressively attacked the Xing State in the Central Plains.According to the historical records of the Spring and Autumn Period, the Di people mainly include the Baidi, Chidi, and Changdi tribes, which are distributed in a wide area. Guan Zhong analyzed Duke Huan of Qi and said: "Rong and Di are both jackals and wolves, and their greed can't be satisfied. Most of the countries in the Central Plains are close relatives, of the same root and the same species, and they can't see death without saving them. Banquets and entertainment are like poisonous poisons, and they should not be nostalgic. The Book of Songs says, 'Don't you want to return home, and you are afraid of this brief book.' Please respond to the brief book immediately and send troops to rescue Xing Guo."

The so-called Jianshu is an emergency document for conveying information of foreign invasion among the vassal states.Due to the emergency of the military, the letter asking for help was written very sloppy, and it was sent out before the bamboo slips were tied up with a rope, so it was called Jianshu. Whether Xing State sent a bamboo slip to Qi State is not recorded in historical materials.But Duke Huan of Qi followed Guan Zhong's advice and immediately mobilized troops to rescue Xing Guo. The Di people came and went quickly. Before the Qi army arrived, they had already plundered the Xing country and turned to attack the Wei country.This is a typical fleeing crime, which is extremely destructive and difficult to deal with.

At that time, the monarch of Wei State was Duke Wei Yi. A brief review is necessary here: Wei Huigong, the father of Wei Yigong, was ousted from power in 696 BC for the crime of murdering his elder brother Jizi Heshou, and fled to Qi to join his uncle Qi Xianggong.Seven years later, Qi Xianggong united with Lu, Song, Chen, Cai and other countries to send troops to crusade against Wei, and helped Wei Huigong regain power.However, this restoration regime, which came to power with the support of the bayonets of the great powers, has not been truly accepted psychologically by the people of the Wei country.According to "Historical Records", until the death of Wei Huigong and Wei Yigong came to the throne, the ministers and people of Weiguo still didn't catch this family, and "often wanted to defeat it".

However, this Wei Yigong who was not supported by the people of the country was a very caring person.His love is not dedicated to the people of Weiguo, but to his pet, the crane. The crane is a lovely animal with an elegant demeanor, singing and dancing.Throughout the ages, many literati and scholars have written beautiful chapters about cranes, and the longevity of Songhe and Crane is an enduring theme in Chinese ink painting.In the Song Dynasty, there was a man named Lin Bu who even regarded Crane as his son and Meihua as his wife. Therefore, there is a saying of "plum wife and crane son", which has been passed down through the ages.

It's normal for a monarch to like cranes, but most people say he's arty. It is normal for a king to like cranes, to provide them with good food and drink every day, and to build buildings and halls for them to live in. People say that he is extravagant and wasteful at most. A king likes cranes, feeds them with good food and drinks every day, builds buildings and halls for them to live in, and puts all his energy on the cause of raising cranes, so he ignores the government, and there is a problem. People will say that he is not doing his job properly. The terrible thing is that this Wei Yigong not only provides the cranes with delicious food and drink every day, but also builds buildings and halls for the cranes to live in. Cranes are confused with government affairs, and cranes are assigned ranks and official positions.The person with the highest status enjoys the treatment of a doctor, and can ride in Xuan (a car dedicated to doctors) to show off in the market. The guards nicknamed it "General Crane".

At that time, Duke Yi of Wei was very nervous when he heard that the Di people had invaded.He himself is also wearing a helmet, holding an ancestral sword, and leading several doctors to stand on the reviewing platform of the school grounds.Unexpectedly, after standing all morning, the prepared speeches rotted several times in the stomach, and less than one-tenth of the troops came here sparsely. ——What about people? ——Report to the lord, everyone heard that Di Ren was calling, and they all ran to the woods on the mountain outside the city. — Cough, what's wrong with this?Foreign enemies invaded, and the soldiers did not fight, but went to the mountains to become bandits?

—Tell my lord, they say, it's not up to them to fight. —If you don’t rely on them, then who do you rely on? ——Everyone said, don't you have General Crane, please ask General Crane to meet the enemy!We grassroots dare not compete with General He. "This..." Wei Yigong squeezed out a little smile from left to right in embarrassment, "These people are really, I only have that little hobby, besides, my hobby doesn't hinder others, it doesn't hinder others..." His hobbies really didn't get in the way of others.However, since you are a king, you should know that being a king is a very boring thing.Even if you have some legitimate personal hobbies, it's best to hide them and not let others see them. Don't you see, when Lu Yingong went to Tangdi to watch fish, Zang Xibo made a lot of noise?How could there be someone who blatantly challenged the state organs like him?

Wei Yigong stood on the reviewing platform in a daze for a long time, and finally realized the seriousness of the problem.In the distance, there were bursts of cranes in the palace, and those delicate and beautiful creatures of the feather clan must be dancing to the cheerful music.With a long sigh, he called the doctors Shi Qizi and Ning Zhuangzi to his side: "I will leave the important task of staying in the capital to you two." He handed over the jade ring he was wearing to Shi Qizi, meaning to let Shi Qizi make a decision in the face of danger; he also handed an arrow to Ning Zhuangzi, meaning to ask him to defend the capital like a sharp arrow.The two silently accepted the task. Wei Yigong personally led a small number of troops out of the city to meet the Di people.According to "Zuo Zhuan", Wei Yigong's lineup is: Qu Kong drives the military chariot, Zibo stands on the right side of the chariot as the guard, Huang Yi is the front, and Kong Ying is the rear.This is a suicide attack.There is no doubt that Wei Yigong is a fatuous monarch, but his behavior at this moment has somewhat washed away his shame.Those young men of Wei who are hiding in the mountains and forests, even if they have ten thousand reasons not to fight for Wei Yigong, how can they bear to let their homeland be looted by Di people? The army of the defending country and Di Jun met in Yingze, and the defending army suffered a disastrous defeat.Qu Kong and Zibo asked Wei Yigong to pull down the banner on the army chariot, and fled in disguise. The disheartened Duke Wei Yi sighed: "Even if I escape back, how can I see the people?" Wei Yigong didn't listen to them. He used himself as a living target to attract Di Jun's attention, and the monarch and his subjects were all killed in battle. Hua Longhua and Li Kong, historians of the Wei state, became captives of the Di people.When Di Ren saw these two old men, they were thin and thin. If they brought them back, they could neither plow the fields nor raise horses, but could only eat. They would kill them on the spot.The two old fellows didn't panic, and when the machete reached their necks, they said slowly, "We can't kill you." According to the two old guys, they are not ordinary people, but the "big history" of Weiguo.At that time, Dashi not only wrote history, but also was responsible for the sacrificial work of the country. "If we don't pray to God, God won't bless you. You won't get Weiguo either." The two old fellows said solemnly. In this way, Di Ren sent the two of them back, and asked them to pray to God quickly, and bless Di Ren to get the Weiguo, and promised that they would be rewarded with rewards when things were done. Hua Longhua and Li Kong returned to the city, saw Shi Qizi and Ning Zhuangzi who were guarding the city, and said two words: "Let's go." Judging from the comparison of the combat effectiveness of the two sides, the Di Ren completely had the advantage, and the guards abandoned the city and died. Going away is a way of self-preservation. At night, the Wei people secretly opened the city gate, and all the soldiers and people poured out of the city. The Di people got an empty city.For them, it was obvious that they did not achieve their intended purpose.What they need is food, women, strong men, gold and silver treasures, not cities.If not enough captives and property were captured, the trip would be in vain. Therefore, Di Ren followed up and killed the people of Weiguo by the Yellow River for a while, and then returned with a rewarding experience. The Di people's invasion of Weiguo triggered humanitarian relief from other countries.Song Guo first sent troops across the Yellow River to meet the surviving Wei people in the dark.At this time, the survivors were counted, and there were only 730 people left.Under the auspices of Duke Huan of Qi and Duke Huan of Song, more than 4,000 residents were transferred from the two towns of Gong and Teng, and the number of 5,000 people was gathered together with the survivors of the Wei State, and the plan to rebuild the Wei State was quickly started. As mentioned earlier, Xuan Jiang, the daughter of Duke Xi of Qi and sister of Duke Huan of Qi, was going to marry Ji Zi, the son of Duke Wei Xuan, but was preempted by the old bastard Wei Xuangong and became the wife of Duke Wei Xuan.Xuan Jiang gave birth to two sons, and the eldest son Shou was killed by an assassin.After the death of Wei Xuangong, the youngest son Shuo became the king, that is, Wei Huigong.Later Wei Huigong was kicked out and fled to Qi State for seven years.During this period, Xuan Jiang committed adultery with another son of Wei Xuangong, Gongzi, and gave birth to a bunch of children. Although the relationship is messy, the bunch of children they gave birth to can come in handy now. The eldest is a daughter who married her uncle Qi Huangong as a concubine. She was called Qi Zi, that is, the chief Wei Ji of Qi State, and was deeply loved by Qi Huan Gong.Duke Huan of Qi helped the state of Wei rebuild so generously, it is hard to say whether he has been blown by the pillow. The second eldest son, Shen, was appointed as the new monarch of the Wei State, that is, Duke Dai, in the plan for the reconstruction of the Wei State.Under the auspices of Duke Huan of Qi, the vassal states contributed money and efforts to build palaces and cities for Duke Dai on the territory of Cao State.It's a pity that Dai Gong had no luck and passed away soon. The third child inherited the throne of the second child, Duke Dai, who was the Duke of Wei Wen in history. The fourth child was a daughter who married Song Huangong and became Song Huangong's wife, also known as Song Xianggong's mother.Song Huangong actively sent troops to meet the Wei people and participated in the reconstruction of the Wei country, most of which were related to this lady. The fifth child is also a daughter, married to Xu Mugong, and is called Mrs. Xu Mu in "Zuo Zhuan".While Qi State and Song State were in full swing to help Wei State rebuild, Xu State had been standing by, without any expression.Mrs. Xu Mu was very depressed about this, and composed a song "Zai Chi": The meaning in the poem is not only saddened by the crisis of the Wei State, but also complaining that her husband Xu Mugong is indifferent to the major events of rebuilding the Wei State, which makes him very embarrassed in front of the two sisters. Compared with the magnanimity of Duke Huan of Qi and Duke Huan of Song, this Xu Mugong is really a bit shabby, no wonder his wife complained.However, if you consider the actual situation of Xu State, it is reasonable for him not to participate in the reconstruction of the Wei State: Xu State is small, with few people, and has been ruled by Zheng State for a while (after the death of Zheng Zhuanggong, Zheng State’s army withdrew from Xu State as promised. country, restored the independence of Xu country), and his own life is very tight, how can there be silver to support the construction of the Wei country? This incident teaches men a lesson. If you are not strong enough, you’d better see if your wife’s sisters are well married before marrying your wife. He raised his head in front of him. Duke Huan of Qi sent his son Wu Kui to lead three hundred chariots and three thousand soldiers to protect the new imperial court of Weiguo. He presented three hundred cows, sheep, pigs, chickens, and dogs each, as well as a batch of building materials. The clothes, fabrics, and even the chariots and horses for the female relatives were all presented as gifts to the monarch's family. The third brother-in-law Wei Wengong is very worthy of the care of his two brothers-in-law. He wears a coarse cloth jacket and shares joys and sorrows with five thousand people; vigorously develops agriculture, industry, and commerce, provides preferential policies, and invigorates the economy; Improve the quality of the people; boldly appoint talented people, work together to build the future of defending the country.In just two or three years, the strength of Weiguo has increased greatly, from 30 leather chariots at the beginning of the reconstruction to 300 by leaps and bounds. The Di people tasted the sweetness in Weiguo, and they were unwilling to return to the severe cold in the north. After a short rest, they invaded Xingguo again in 659 BC. The troops of Qi, Song, and Cao marched to Niebei of Xing State, on the one hand to cheer for Xing State, and on the other hand to assess the situation and wait for the opportunity.But unexpectedly, the Xing people were vulnerable to the Di people, and the troops quickly collapsed, and the Xing people ran to Nie Bei to join the coalition forces. It is not difficult to find that Duke Huan of Qi, as the overlord of the world at that time, took active countermeasures in the face of the Di people's invasion, but from the beginning to the end, Qi's army never had the experience of confronting the Di people head-on.In 661 BC, when Xing was rescued, the people of Qi were slow, and the people of Di had already swept away; in 660 BC, the rescue of Wei was still a little slow, Duke Yi of Wei died in battle, and the capital of Wei fell; Watching from the sidelines, it was not until Xing State collapsed and the Di people looted it that they chased after it symbolically for a while. Why is Duke Huan of Qi still unwilling to confront the Di people?The author makes a bold guess here, there may be two reasons: First, the fighting power of the ethnic minorities in the north is extremely strong. If large forces confront each other, the Central Plains army has little chance of winning.Looking back, when the Northern Rong invaded the Qi State, Duke Xi of Qi also asked for help from the State of Zheng, which was far away in Henan. It was obvious that he feared the enemy deeply; and Duke Zhuang of Zheng sent his son to lead his troops there, beheading 300 people, which was considered quite remarkable. The results of the battle.A year ago, the Di people invaded Weiguo, not only broke into the capital of Weiguo, but also killed its citizens to only 730 people.Song Huangong sent troops across the river to meet the survivors of the Wei state, but he only dared to move secretly at night, for fear that the people of Di would find out.With the current strength of Qi's army, it is not afraid to fight the Di people, but there is no certainty of victory. Qi Huangong and Guan Zhong did not want to fight an uncertain battle, so they adopted a relatively cautious strategy. Second, the Di people came and went like the wind, and their purpose was not to capture the city, but to plunder people and property.Even if the Central Plains allied forces led by Duke Huan of Qi are sure to fight, they may not be able to win the battle. The Di people are likely to avoid their edge and make a comeback after the allied forces retreat.Going back and forth several times, the Central Plains will be exhausted, but Di's troubles will still exist.Therefore, Duke Huan of Qi organized the Central Plains countries to rescue Xing State, more to show a gesture of unity and resistance, which not only improved the prestige of Qi State, but also deterred the Di people to a certain extent. Of course, watching from the sidelines does not mean standing idly by. After Di Ren's mopping up, the capital of Xing Guoguo was in ruins, which was terrible.Duke Huan of Qi once again played the role of the post-war rebuilder, coordinating the contributions of various vassal states to build a new city for Xing State in Yiyi. At the same time, Chuqiu, the new capital of the princes for the state of Wei, was also nearing completion.In 658 BC, Wei Wengong led his people to move to Chuqiu and ended his exile. According to Feng Menglong, Duke Wen of Wei re-established the country, and he was very grateful to Duke Huan of Qi, his uncle and brother-in-law (whatever this has to do with him), and wrote a poem "Papaya" as a gift: If I am not mistaken, this "Papaya" is about the beginning of love between a man and a woman. If it is used to describe the relationship between the two countries, it would be too fleshy.It's still the same sentence, whether there is such a thing, let's just listen to it. "Zuo Zhuan" records that Duke Huan of Qi helped Xing and Wei to restore the country: "Xing moved as if he had returned home, and the country of Wei forgot to perish." It means that the people of Xing country moved to Yiyi, as happy as returning to their own home; The people of the country entered Chuqiu, as if they had never experienced the crisis of national subjugation and genocide. Helping people for this sake is worthy of praise anyway.