The Spring and Autumn Warring States (770 BC - 221 BC) was a turbulent era in Chinese history, in which various princely states annexed and encroached on each other, and each country faced the danger of national subjugation every day.
It is often said that heroes emerge from the chaotic world, and many famous generals emerged in the Spring and Autumn Warring States, such as Bai Qi, Wu Qi, Sun Bing, etc., of which Wang Qi, Bai Qi, Li Mu and Lian Po became the "four famous generals of the Warring States", and their military ability far exceeded that of their peers.
With their outstanding military talents, these four people established immortal deeds in the Warring States, and then left their names in history. After Qin Shi Huang succeeded to the throne, he would destroy the Six Kingdoms and complete the unification. Yin Zheng sent the general Wang Qi to send troops to conquer the Six Kingdoms of the East, but he was a fierce general who destroyed the Three Kingdoms of Han, Zhao, and Wei in one fell swoop.
In the twenty-third year of Qin Shi Huang (224 BC), Ying Zheng discussed a grand plan to destroy Chu. The State of Chu is different from the Three Kingdoms of Han, Zhao, and Wei, it is a big country and a powerful country, although the State of Chu has declined, but the camels that are thin and dead are bigger than horses, and the strength of the State of Chu is still not to be underestimated.
Qin Shi Huang asked the Qunchen, how to destroy the Chu State? Wang Qi thought that it would take 600,000 Qin troops to destroy the Chu state, and Li Xin laughed when he heard it, and he threatened that it would only take 200,000 people to destroy the Chu state. In order to reduce expenses and save costs, Yin Zheng listened to Li Xin's words and asked him to lead 200,000 troops to attack the Chu state.
When Li Xin attacked the Chu state, he was caught in the plot and fell back defeated. Seeing that Li Xin had been defeated, Yin Zheng hurriedly asked Wang Qi to come out of the mountain and let him take 600,000 people to destroy the Chu state. According to the "Records of History", Wang Qi asked Qin Shi Huang for money for beautiful women, a mansion in a good field, and a beautiful mansion for Him before leaving.
When Wang Qi's soldiers saw that he was so greedy, lest they cause trouble, they asked him why he did this? Wang Qi said that he had an army of 600,000 in his hands, could Ying Zheng not be jealous?
Wang Qi asked for money and beauty, just to show that he was not interested in the rest except for this thing he liked, so that Yin Zheng could dispel his doubts about him and let Yin Zheng feel at ease. The emperor's suspicion of the minister was a very terrible thing, and if he was not careful, the minister's life would be gone.
In history, there is no shortage of emperors who were jealous of ministers and killed them, such as Liu Bang killing Han Xin, Zhao Zhuo killing Yue Fei, and Chongzhen killing Yuan Chonghuan. These ministers had made great achievements in battle and made the emperor feel afraid.
A man who makes the emperor afraid, do you think the emperor can keep him? Wang Qi had made great contributions to the Qin state and made great achievements in battle, and such a person had to make Qin Shi Huang feel jealous and afraid. Wang Qi was a very intelligent person, and he understood this, so he asked to resign his official post and go home, no longer leading the army, not asking about political affairs, and finally being able to die well.
Wang Qi's rapids retreated bravely, and only then was he truly wise! If Wang Qi continued to lead the army, then his fate would be like Wu'an Junbaiqi, who was killed by the monarch. In the last years of the Ming Dynasty, Yuan Chonghuan defended against Houjin in Liaodong, and his merits shocked the lord, so that Chongzhen had to be jealous of him, and eventually he was killed.
If Yuan Chonghuan learned from Wang Qi, understood the reasoning, and expressed his meaning, he would not be killed. If the throne wants to control the group of subjects, it must seize the handle of the group of subjects. If a minister does not even have a handle in the hands of the emperor, such a minister emperor is jealous, because he cannot control it.
The emperor could not control the minister, his throne would be unstable, and the emperor would find a way to kill him. The emperor likes ministers with shortcomings and faults, and jealous of ministers who have no shortcomings, no faults, because such ministers cannot be controlled!
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References: "History of the Ming Dynasty", "Northern Outline of the Ming Dynasty", "History of History", etc