Introduction: What did Yu Lie, the sixth emperor of the Qin kingdom, bring to the qin state? Qin Xiaogong's Shang martingale transformation method, King Huiwen of Qin's Zhang Yi lianheng policy, Sima mistakenly seized the grain power of Bashu, and King Zhaoxiang of Qin used Baiqi to open up territory
The Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period were a very chaotic era, but it was also a treasure in the development of ancient Chinese history; many historical phenomena of this era were talked about by later generations, and in the more than two thousand years since then, many literati or historians have expressed their views on some historical conditions of that era. For example, Su Xun's "Theory of the Six Kingdoms", Du Mu's "Afang Gongfu", and Liu Zongyuan's "Feudal Theory" all expressed their own views on the historical phenomena at that time. Their insights can also be described as very unique, not only analyzing the historical phenomena of the time, but also having the role of advising the monarchs of their time.
The "Theory of Passing qin" that we are going to talk about today is actually such an article that analyzes the historical state at that time, but the analysis of objective factors in the "Theory of Passing Qin" is relatively in-depth, and Jia Yi once wrote in the "Theory of Passing Qin" that yu Lie, the sixth generation of the Qin Kingdom, zhen chang strategy and the imperial court, is talking about the history of Qin Shi Huang Yingzheng who was the king of Qin before he succeeded to the throne. After becoming the master of the Qin state, Yin Zheng used the foundation left by the six generations of monarchs of the previous Qin state, and carried out more long-term development on top of it, and eventually swept through the six kingdoms to unify the world, becoming the first emperor in ancient Chinese history and becoming the creator of the imperial system.
Although the Qin Dynasty was a relatively short-lived dynasty, its position in Chinese history cannot be ignored, and it can be said that it was the founder of China's feudal society, and such historical achievements cannot be compared with any dynasty in later generations. Although after the fall of the Qin Dynasty, other dynasties were only cyclically changing in a circle, making up for the fatal defects of the imperial system itself in the process of dynastic change, only the Qin State was the first dynasty to break new ground, but the reason why the Qin State was able to achieve such achievements was not the credit of Qin Shi Huang (Yingzheng) alone.
As Jia Yi said, the reason why Yingzheng became the first emperor and was able to carry out the first great unification of feudal society was to rely on the efforts of his six generations of ancestors in addition to his own great talent and the civil servants and military generals above the Qin state at that time. What contributions did they all make to the Qin state? What is the status and role of these contributions in the history of the development of the Qin State?
1. Qin Xiaogong
Before The Duke of Qin Xiaogong, the State of Qin was fragmented and relied on the policy of raising war with war to develop its economy and military
The first monarch was Duke Xiao of Qin. Qin Xiaogong can be said to be the monarch of the transitional stage of the Qin state from weak to strong, in other words, it is from qin xiaogong that the Qin state embarked on the road of rapid development, and the Qin state officially began to rise. In fact, before Qin Xiaogong, the contradictions within the Qin state were very sharp, and the Qin state only relied on the policy of raising war with war to develop its own domestic economy and military, but under the historical background at that time, the policy of raising war with war could no longer support the development cycle of the Qin state.
Moreover, in addition to its own sharp internal contradictions, the State of Qin also had strong pressure from external forces, especially its neighboring State of Wei. After the establishment of the State of Wei, it rose rapidly and relied on its strong military strength to launch two battles in Hexi, in which the Qin state was forced back to the west of Hangu Pass, and even led to several generations of monarchs of the Qin state under such a high-pressure state, and the idea of returning to the Longxi region to continue to be a half-peasant and half-herding tribe.
At that time, the State of Qin could be said to be fragmented, and after Qin Xiaogong succeeded to the throne, he was committed to changing the status quo of the State of Qin and making the State of Qin great. In order to be able to change the status quo in the Qin state, Qin Xiaogong asked the entire Central Plains region for talents, and Shang Martin was moved by Qin Xiaogong's sincerity to enter the Qin State, after which Qin Xiaogong and Shang Martin held three talks to determine the development path after the Qin State.
Qin Xiaogong supported the Shang Martingale Transformation Law, and the Qin State embarked on a stable development path
Since then, Qin Xiaogong has become a staunch supporter of the Shang martingale reform law; with the support of Qin Xiaogong, Shang Martin has carried out drastic reforms in the Qin State, allowing the Qin State to get rid of the royal style left over from Qin Mugong, and also improving the development policy of the Qin State to raise wars with war, allowing the Qin State to embark on a path of rule of law, and basically removing the aristocratic obstacles to the development of the Qin State, and during the reign of Qin Xiaogong, the Qin State even repelled the Wei State several times in a row to reclaim Hangu Pass, so that the Qin State regained the natural danger of Hangu Pass. It is possible to develop more safely in the area west of Hangu Pass. At this time, the Qin state finally embarked on a stable and normal development path, no longer living according to the deformed development path of the Qin state before.
Therefore, in fact, Qin Xiaogong made great contributions in the history of the Qin State, and it was precisely this decision he decided to carry out the Shang Martingale Transformation Law, which made the Qin State turn from weak to strong, gave the Qin State the opportunity to go out of the world in the east, and enabled the Qin State to have strong economic and military strength.
Therefore, if you want to find a monarch with the highest status or the greatest contribution among the monarchs of the Qin Dynasty, then Qin Xiaogong has this qualification. After all, all the monarchs of future generations have developed on the basis of the foundation he laid, on the blueprint he planned. Without Qin Xiaogong's original plan for the Qin state, it is difficult to say that the Qin state was able to shock the world in the later historical period, and it is difficult to say that it could sweep through the six kingdoms and unify the world.
Although Qin Xianggong did not wait for the day when the Qin State would unify the Central Plains, qin Xiaogong's contribution to the historical event of the Qin State being able to unify it could not be ignored.
2. King Huiwen of Qin
The first king, King Huiwen of Qin, executed Shang Martin, but continued to change the law and implement reforms
The second monarch was King Huiwen of Qin. King Huiwen of Qin took over the cause of Duke Xiao of Qin and claimed to be the first king of the Qin state, which also marked that the qin state was no longer the weak and small country it had before, but already had the strength to compete with the major princely states. When King Qin Huiwen succeeded to the throne, the State of Wei had already fallen from the status of a superpower, and the major princely states in the entire Central Plains had entered a situation of chasing deer, at this time King Qin Huiwen was actually facing a cruel situation.
After the death of Duke Xiao of Qin, Shang Martin lost support, and the nobles had the danger and possibility of restoration, although King Huiwen of Qin chose to execute Shang Martin at this time, but this was also so that the change of law could continue, in order to stabilize his position and not give the nobles an opportunity. After Shang Martin's death, King Huiwen of Qin continued his reform of the law and continued to carry out legal reforms in the country, putting the Qin state on a more prosperous path.
King Huiwen of Qin adopted Zhang Yi's policy of continuing to cross the border, breaking the six kingdoms of Su and Qin to jointly resist Qin, and surrendering the army without a fight
In addition to internal struggles, the external pressure of the Qin state was also great. At that time, Su Qin put forward the policy of combining the six kingdoms and became the minister of the six countries, and the policy of the six kingdoms gave the Qin state a lot of pressure for development, in this period of time, Qin Huiwen Wang Li appointed Zhang Yi as the minister of the Qin state, and adopted Zhang Yi's policy of continuous horizontal to break the six kingdoms, and achieved great success.
Under the role of good policies, the cooperation of the six countries has basically become an empty phrase, and the Qin state has embarked on a better development path. Under Zhang Yi's planning and support, the Qin state basically achieved the goal of surrendering without a fight, and Zhang Yi planned many practical interests for the Qin state, and most of them were land interests. He broadened the land area of the Qin State, and the emphasis was that the Qin State did not move a single soldier before the benefits of these lands were obtained, so Zhang Yi can be said to have made great contributions to the development of the Qin State.
King Huiwen of Qin appointed Sima Que to take the Bashu region, laying a solid logistical foundation for winning the Battle of Changping
In addition to Zhang Yi, King Huiwen of Qin also appointed Sima Wei as a general to lay the bashu region. At that time, the intersection of the Bashu region and the Central Plains was not very much, because the geographical factors at that time affected the traffic was very closed, and the Bashu region was an easy to defend and difficult to attack place, which led to many countries coveting the Bashu region for a long time, but they could not take a substantial step.
The agricultural development of the Prachuap Khiri Khan region at that time was very rapid, and it can be said that it was a natural granary. After taking the Bashu region, the agricultural economy of the Qin state became even stronger, which also catered to the policy of emphasizing agriculture and suppressing commerce in the Shang Martingale. More importantly, after the Bashu region was incorporated into the Qin state, the grain and grass resources needed for the military operations of the Qin state were no longer a worrying thing, which could be reflected in the later Battle of Changping.
In the Battle of Changping, the Qin state was able to support a three-year long-distance raid by transporting grain from the Bashu region. Without the supply of grain and grass in the Bashu region, the Qin state may have been defeated by the Zhao state at the time of the Battle of Changping. Therefore, King Huiwen of Qin was still a very far-sighted monarch and made major historical contributions to the development of the Qin State.
3. King Zhaoxiang of Qin
During the 50-year reign of King Zhaoxiang of Qin, the State of Qin developed into the most powerful state in the Warring States Period
The third monarch was King Zhaoxiang of Qin. King Zhaoxiang of Qin was the longest reigning monarch of the State of Qin, for fifty years, King Zhaoxiang of Qin can also be said to be a generation of heroes of the State of Qin, and it was during the historical period of king Qin Zhaoxiang's reign that it became the most powerful state in the Warring States Era, making all countries fear this princely state.
During this historical period, King Zhaoxiang of Qin showed a strong enough ability to rule. In terms of civil rule, Fan Ju was appointed to treat the six kingdoms of Shandong with the policy of long-distance and close-range attack, and under such a policy, it not only befriended the distant Yan and Qi states, but also stabilized the uncertainties in the military strength of the Qin state, so that the Qin state could more smoothly launch war against the surrounding areas.
Stabilizing the State of Yan and the State of Qi, the State of Qin adopted an offensive policy toward the surrounding areas, annexed most of the territory of the State of Zhao and the State of Wei and Korea, greatly expanded the land area of the country, increased the number of permanent residents, and laid a solid foundation for the development of the agricultural economy.
The use of Bai qi was invincible, and the territorial expansion of the Qin state was the largest period
In terms of military affairs, Bai Qi, a famous god killer in history, was appointed as the leading general of the Qin State, Bai Qi was an invincible and invincible general, and in the stage of Bai Qi's ruling the army, it can be said that it is the golden stage in the military history of the Qin State, and it is also the historical stage of the largest territorial area obtained by the Qin State in its outward expansion. Under the leadership of Bai Qi, the State of Qin struck at other princely states to a large extent, establishing the status of the strongest state in the Warring States Era, and making the development of the State of Qin embark on another peak.
In fact, in the Warring States period, several of the larger battles were fought by Bai Qi, such as the Battle of Changping and the Battle of Yiling. These two wars, one against the State of Zhao and one against the State of Chu. The Battle of Changping weakened the military strength of the Zhao state to a large extent, so that the Qin state had no more opponents militarily, the Battle of Yiling struck the arrogance of the Chu state, and the chu state in the south no longer dared to easily provoke the qin state, so that the qin state could better develop.
Even if the external environment is stabilized, an invisible pressure has been formed on the inside, so that all policies have embarked on a set track. Therefore, King Zhaoxiang of Qin also occupies an important historical position in the history of the Qin State, and led the Qin State to the peak state of the strongest country during the historical period of his reign.
4. King Xiaowen of Qin and King Xiang of Qin zhuang reigned for a short time, and the State of Qin continued to develop
This was followed by King Xiaowen of Qin and King Xiang of Qinzhuang. Both monarchs reigned for a short time and did not have any significant historical impact on the Qin state. In particular, King Xiaowen of Qin, whose cause of death has not been able to give a clear conclusion until now, he died after only three days on the throne, there is a lot of speculation. Today, more than two thousand years later, we cannot give a clear conclusion. During the reign of King Xiang of QinZhuang, Lü Buwei promoted Lü Zheng in the Qin State, which made the development of the Qin State take another step forward.
Qin Xiangong laid the foundation for Qin Xiaogong
The above has said five monarchs, and another should be said to be the father of Qin Xiaogong, Qin Xiangong, Qin Xiangong is actually a very strong monarch, although in the historical period of his reign, the Qin state did not complete the historical transition from weak to strong, but Qin Xiangong laid a solid foundation for the development of the Qin Xiaogong era.
At that time, during the historical period of Qin Xiangong's reign, the contradictions within the Qin state were temporarily alleviated, and he resolutely rejected the idea of letting the Qin state give up its status as a vassal state and return to the Longxi region, and launched many wars against Wei in an attempt to recover Hangu Pass and seal the pass to recuperate. In these wars, the State of Qin basically won the Wei State, which was said to be the most powerful military force at that time. Because of this, the State of Wei did not dare to easily launch a war against the State of Qin, which provided the basis for the later Qin Xiaogong to carry out the Shang Martingale Transformation Law. Therefore, Qin Xiangong also made great contributions in the history of the Qin state.
Review
The author believes that the above six monarchs have made their own contributions to the development of the Qin state, especially the first four monarchs have all drawn a strong mark in the history of the Qin state, the Shang martingale transformation method promoted by Qin Xiaogong; King Huiwen of Qin adopted the policy of Zhang Yilianheng and Sima mistakenly seized the grain power of Bashu; King Zhaoxiang of Qin enabled the killing of gods to open up the territory and expand the territory, making the Qin state the strongest country in the Warring States.
Without their efforts, it would have been absolutely impossible for the Qin state to unify the Central Plains later, nor would it have embarked on the road of feudal society in 221 BC, the imperial system could not have emerged so early, and Chinese history could not have entered a stage of development of a feudal society so quickly.
Then, the development of Chinese culture will be delayed for decades or even hundreds of years, which will be an unbearable weight for the Central Plains civilization and a historical phenomenon that the descendants of Yanhuang cannot accept. Therefore, today, more than two thousand years later, we should not forget their contribution.
References: Warring States Policy, Zuo Zhuan, Shi Ji, Theory of Passing Qin, Zizhi Tongjian, etc