Since Zheng Zhuang was a small hegemon, the State of Zheng had hovered left and right between various great powers, sometimes dependent on the State of Chu, and sometimes dependent on the State of Jin. The Jin-Chu struggle for hegemony became the main line in the middle of the Spring and Autumn Period, and Zheng Guo became the most important supporting role on the stage of the Jin-Chu struggle, and also the fish meat on the knife trick. Zheng Guojun has always missed the weather of Zhuang Gong Xiaoba, but this seems to have become a distant history. Unless there are wise men and women who will revolutionize the past and forge Zheng Guo's super national strength, Zheng Guo, who is located in the cracks between the big powers, will never be able to get rid of the embarrassing situation at both ends of the first rat.
After King Chumu usurped the throne, he wanted to establish a meritorious deed. After the defeat of the Chu state in chengpu, it lived between the Jiang and Han dynasties and ceded the hegemony of the Central Plains to the Jin state. King Chu Mu dreamed of a decisive battle, taking the power of the hegemony, and taking the Jin dynasty and replacing it. So he actively planned to invade the Central Plains. King Chu Mu heard that the Duke of Jinling had been killed and That Zhao Dun was in charge of the imperial government, and there was chaos in the dynasty, so he summoned his ministers to discuss the strategy of the Northern Expedition. The courtiers were all shaking their fists and eager to try. Therefore, King Chu Mu ordered Dou Yuejiao to be a general and Jia to be a deputy general, and led an army to attack Zheng Guo. When Zheng Mugong heard that the army was pressing on the territory, he ordered Gongzi Jian, Gongzi Pet, and Le Er to lead an army to defend against the Chu army' invasion, and on the other hand, he sent people to the Jin state for help.
The enemy was strong and we were weak, and Gongzijian and others held high walls and deep ditches, held the city gates, refused to fight, and the two sides confronted each other for several days, and the war was in a state of stalemate. The Chu state came for victory, and naturally could not tolerate this state of confrontation. In order to make Jia zhi superior, when he was young, he foresaw that Ziyu would be defeated and committed suicide. This expedition as a staff officer of Douyue Pepper, there will be strange moves in the chest. Wei Jia said to Dou Yuejiao: "Since the defeat of Chengpu, the Chu army has stayed away from the State of Zheng, and now the State of Zheng relies on the protection of the State of Jin to confront the State of Chu. The most urgent task at the moment was to take advantage of the arrival of the Reinforcements of the Jin Dynasty, lure the Zheng Army into battle, annihilate the main force of the Zheng Army in one fell swoop, and lay the foundation for victory. Dou YueJiao saw that Jia was already in his chest, so he said, "There must already be a good strategy for victory, and I am willing to listen to it." For Jia to Dou Yue Pepper whispered a bit, Dou Yue Pepper clapped his hands and praised, so he followed the plan. Dou Yuejiao ordered the soldiers to look for grain everywhere, creating the illusion that the Chu army was short of logistical supplies. Douyue Pepper is drunk as a fate, and has long been famous. Dou Yuejiao drank wine in the Chinese military tent at night, and the sound of drunken insults crossed the night, and the officers and men of the Zheng Army on the opposite side could also hear it clearly.
Zheng Jun's spies returned to report that the Chu army was short of food and grass, the soldiers went out to find supplies for themselves, and the commander Dou Yuejiao ignored military affairs and drank heavily in the Chinese army tent all day long. Gongzi resolutely took the initiative to attack, crushing the Chu army in one fell swoop and relieving the Chu army of its threat to Zheng Guo. Late at night, Gongzijian and three other generals led an army to sneak into the Chu army camp. All the way to cover up the past, there was no resistance, the Chinese army tent was brightly lit, and when Gongzi Jian broke into the tent, he found that DouYue Pepper was not in the tent, and sitting in the middle was a scarecrow. Gongzi Jian shouted that he was deceived, but he was already surrounded by the Chu army. Gongzi Jian and others led the army to break through, but the strength of the troops was weak, and it was difficult to break out of the siege, and all three of them were reduced to prisoners.
Zheng Mugong was shocked to hear the news, the reinforcements of the Jin state were delayed, and the main force of the Zheng army was destroyed by the Chu army, and the lord would be taken prisoner. The government and the opposition were shaken, and the courtiers advised Mu Gong to beg for peace with the Chu army, otherwise once the Chu army came in and attacked the city, the people of Zheng Guo and Li min would be once again devastated.
In desperation, Zheng Mugong could only ask the Chu army for peace, redeem gongzijian and three other generals with heavy money, and Douyue pepper obtained the consent of king Chu Mu and released Gongzijian and the other three. After Zhao Dun heard that the Chu army was besieging Zheng, he asked song, Lu, Wei, and Xu to jointly rescue Zheng Guo, and before the coalition army arrived at Zheng Guo, he heard that Zheng Guo had surrendered to the Chu state, and the five-nation alliance disbanded itself and returned without success.
The humiliation of the Battle of Chengpu by King Mu of Chu not only brought the State of Zheng back into the State of Chu, but also re-pocketed small states such as Chen and Cai, and the next target of the State of Chu was the State of Song. In the face of the strong pressure of the Chu state, zheng, Chen, and Cai competed to bow down in front of the chu state and offer flattery and favor.
The national strength of the Song State is not what it used to be, several times turmoil, the decline of national strength, the surrounding countries have rebelled against the Jin Dynasty and annexed Chu, and it is difficult for the Song State to stand alone. Under the strong pressure of the State of Chu, the State of Song had to seek perfection. King Chu Mu went out hunting, and the position was unprecedented, with Chen Hou as his front, Song Gong as the right wing, Zheng Bo as the left wing, and Cai Hou as the rear. All four countries had higher titles than the Chu state, but they all had to submit to the chu state, and king Chu Mu also had a hegemonic addiction.
In his later years, Duke Mu of Qin abandoned his plan to leave the Central Plains in the east, and the successor Duke Kang of Qin was unwilling to go to war with the Jin state in the east. Zhao Dun helped Jin Linggong to take charge of the imperial government and rectify the imperial program, and the Jin state restored the atmosphere of dominating the world. As a result, the two countries stopped fighting, and the Qin-Jin border maintained peace for decades.
The war between Qin and Jin was happy, and the Jin state focused its attention on the east. The hegemony openly created by Jin Wengong and Jin Xiang was damaged at this time, and the central plains countries began to submit to the Chu state. Zheng Guo, a geographically important country, became a vassal of the State of Chu, which was a great impact on the hegemony of the Jin State. So Zhao Dun decided to restore the prestige of the Jin State in the central plains countries. At the right time, King Chu Mu fell ill and died, King Zhuang of Chu took the throne, and the State of Chu had just established a new monarch, and the political situation was unstable, and there was no time to take care of him. Zhao Dun took this opportunity to gather the countries of the Central Plains to participate in the alliance and revitalize the strength of the Jin Dynasty.
In the thirteenth year of the Reign of Lu Wen (614 BC), Duke Lu Wen went to the Jin State to meet him, passing through the Wei and Zheng Kingdoms, and the monarchs of the two countries took the opportunity to hold an alliance with the Duke of Lu Wen and expressed their willingness to submit to the Jin State. After Lu Wengong arrived in the Jin Dynasty, he conveyed the meaning of Zheng and Wei to Zhao Dun. Therefore, Zhao Dun took the opportunity to invite the countries to hold a meeting in Xincheng (新城, southwest of present-day Shangqiu, Henan). Lu, Song, Wei, Zheng, Chen, Xu, Cao and other countries have taken the initiative to participate in the New City Alliance. Zhao Dun presided over the meeting, marking the beginning of the "international stage" of the secretaries, and Song, Zheng, Chen and other states apologized to the Jin state for their previous rebellion against the Jin dynasty. The State of Jin naturally forgave these countries for their former disloyalty, and the State of Cai was tough on the State of Jin because it had long been attached to the State of Chu, and Zhao Dun ordered Hao Que to lead an army to besiege the State of Cai, and the Jin army invaded the capital of the State of Cai, forcing Cai Hou to sign an alliance under the city.
On the balance of the hegemony between Jin and Chu, Zheng Guo has the role of four or two thousand pounds, and every time the Jin and Chu wars for hegemony, Zheng Guo will inevitably bear the brunt of it, and it is difficult for Zheng Guo to maintain a balance between the two major powers. Whether annexed to the Jin or Chu states, zheng was only for the survival of the country, because small states had no right to choose, only the obligation to obey.
After the New City Alliance, the State of Zheng returned to the State of Jin, and the position of the State of Jin as the overlord of the Central Plains was consolidated. After that, the usurpation of the throne between Qi and Song occurred, and the Jin state united various princely states to intervene, but the result disappointed Zheng Guo, who began to yearn for the Chu state again, and secretly allied with the Chu state. Zheng Guo's center of gravity was once again close to the State of Chu.
After the death of Duke Zhaogong Qi, Shizishe was a mediocre man with low prestige. Gongzi merchants' intentions to usurp the throne have long been accumulated in their hearts, and soon after Shizi She ascended the throne, he murdered the Gongzi merchants, and the Gongzi merchants replaced them, that is, the Duke of Qi Yi.
In order to usurp the throne, the merchants of the Duke of Qi Yi did not hesitate to buy people's hearts and minds at great expense. In the face of famine years, gongzi merchants will help the poor, so Gongzi merchants are deeply popular with the people. When he usurped the throne, the people did not object. The Song Dynasty's Gongzi Bao's method of looking at the Gongzi merchants was very effective, and he began to imitate it. In order to buy people's hearts, Gongzi Bao scattered his furniture, even at the expense of debt. After Song Zhaogong was killed, the people did not oppose it, but cheered enthusiastically. During the Spring and Autumn Period, countries learned from each other's experience in governing the country, while conspirators learned from each other's tricks of usurping the throne.
Shizi She's mother, Zi Shu Ji, was a princess of the State of Lu, and Zi Shu Ji washed her face with tears all day long, and Qi Yigong, instead of having compassion, imprisoned Zi Shu Ji. Later, Zi Shu Ji sent someone to send a letter to Lu Wengong, hoping to rescue him. Lu Wengong was afraid of the power of the State of Qi and did not dare to send troops, so he sent people to Zhou Tianzi to complain, and Zhou Tianzi sent Shan Bo to the State of Qi to mediate. Qi Yigong did not buy Zhou Tianzi's face at all, and imprisoned Shan Bo.
In desperation, Duke Wen of Lu sent people to the State of Jin for help, and Zhao Dun invited the states of Song, Wei, Cai, Chen, Zheng, Cao, and Xu to form an alliance at Hu (扈, in present-day northwestern Wu, Henan) and discuss the matter of the rebellion against the State of Qi. Qi Yigong was afraid that the Jin army would suppress the territory, so he released Shan Bo. The State of Qi sent people to pay heavy sums to the Jin army, and the Jin army class division that received bribes returned to the dynasty. After the Jin army retreated, Duke Yi of Qi repeatedly sent troops to punish the State of Lu and invade the western border of the State of Lu. In desperation, Duke Lu Wen could only ask For peace with Qi Guona. The State of Jin coveted bribes from the State of Qi without punishing those who killed the king, and Zheng Mugong was greatly dissatisfied with this.
Two years later, the Song state also had an incident of usurpation of the throne, and Lady Xiang sent someone to kill Song Zhaogong, that is, Song Wengong. The State of Jin heard of the rebellion in the State of Song and ordered Father Xun Lin to lead the armies of Wei, Chen, and Zheng to kill the State of Song with great fanfare. Before the army reached the Song kingdom, Song Wengong sent someone to bribe Xun Lin's father with heavy gold. Xun Lin's father wanted to accept bribes, but Zheng Mugong objected: "I am waiting to calm the chaos, not to accept bribes." In the long run, the assassination of kings in various countries is bound to occur frequently. Xun Lin's father did not listen to Zheng Mugong's advice, accepted bribes from the Song State, and returned to the dynasty.
Subsequently, the State of Jin reconvened the alliance of princes at Hu, and the Duke of Jinling suspected that Zheng Guo still had two hearts for the State of Jin, and refused to receive Zheng Mugong at the alliance meeting. Zheng Mugong's doctor, Zheng Zijia, wrote a letter to Zhao Dun with euphemistic words but a tough attitude. The letter describes Zheng Guo's loyalty to the Jin State, and more of an indictment of the Jin State: "Our country is a small country, but it has done its best to treat the Jin state, and even so, the Jin state still says, 'You have not fulfilled my wishes', if so, then our country can only perish, because it cannot meet your requirements." ”
The State of Jin had to apologize to Zheng Guo, and on the surface the two countries were reconciled, but Zheng Guo had already disappointed the State of Jin and returned to the State of Chu. Acting unfairly and disrespectfully, the internal affairs were absurd, and the hegemonic authority of the Jin state gradually declined, eventually disappearing, and Qing Dafu also began to embark on the stage of history.