After King Ji of Wu had established the Zhou Dynasty, he divided the princes and distributed the land under the heavens to the princes, allowing them to govern the country in their own fiefs. During the Western Zhou Dynasty, Zhou Tianzi still had the right to rule over the princes of the world.
Since King Ping of Zhou moved east to establish Eastern Zhou, the power of Zhou Tianzi gradually weakened, and the various princely states began to become stronger. Zhou Tianzi was powerful, and all the princes submitted to him, so he was the "co-leader" of the princes, the eldest brother of the dragon head, and everyone listened to him.
But suddenly one day, Zheng Zhuanggong wanted to try Zhou Tianzi's level? So he led his troops to attack Zhou Tianzi, and as a result, he defeated Zhou Tianzi. The news that the dragon head brother was defeated by his younger brother shocked the others.
The princely states saw the true strength of Zhou Tianzi, it turned out that he was a paper tiger, and on the surface he still admired him as a big brother, but his heart was already unconvinced. In order to compete for the position of the boss, the younger brothers fought hard, some single-handedly, some group beatings, this is the Spring and Autumn Warring States.
During the Chaos of the Central Plains, the Chu people in the south began to rise, and the Chu people worked hard under the leadership of Xiong Xuan to start a business, and eventually established the Chu State. The State of Chu was different from the princely states in the north, the princely states in the north were sealed by Zhou Tianzi and were justified in name, while the State of Chu was established by itself, so the northern princely states never recognized the State of Chu.
The Chu state did not lose its temper because others did not recognize it, and the Chu people still struggled hard to build their homeland. After the Chu state became strong, Xiong Tong asked Zhou Tianzi for a knighthood, but Zhou Tianzi looked down on him and did not agree. Xiong Tong saw that Zhou Tianzi had rejected him, so he proclaimed himself king, which was the first man to be crowned king during the Spring and Autumn Period.
The Chu people have the qualities of hard struggle, bravery and strength, heroic and belligerent, and at the same time do not play cards according to the routine, which is very elusive. Although the northern princely states looked down on them, the Chu people still lived strongly.
The State of Chu had a vast territory and strong military strength, making it the most difficult country to attack in the Eastern Crusade of the Qin State.
In 223 BC, Wang Qi led an army to attack the State of Chu, Xiong Qi was killed, and the State of Chu perished. Although the Chu state perished, the Chu people did not perish, and the Chu people will destroy the Qin state in the future.
According to the "Records of History", "Fu Qin destroyed the Six Kingdoms, and Chu was the most innocent. Since the king of Huai entered Qin, the Chu people have taken pity on him so far, so Chu Nan Gong said that 'although Chu has three households, qin will die in Chu' also. This sentence mentions "although Chu has three households, the dead Qin will be Chu", what does the "three households" here mean? Historians have three interpretations of the "three households":
The first: three households are one place
According to the "Records of History", Xiang Yudu Sanhujin defeated Zhang Handan, crushed the pillars of the Qin state, and caused the demise of the Qin state. If the three households refer to one place, then there is no connection with the previous Chu state, and the Chu state has three households in this place, which can destroy the Qin state, which is unreasonable.
The second type: three households are three surnames
The Chu state has three major surnames, namely Qu, Jing, and Zhao.
However, it was not these three surnames that destroyed the Qin state, but Xiang Yu, so the three households were not them.
The third type: three households
Three households do not refer to three people, but by extension a small number of people and a small amount of strength. Although the three households of Chu mean that the Chu state, despite its small population, can destroy the qin state, it describes the unity, strength and determination of the Chu people.
Xiang Yu originally led eight thousand disciples out of Jiangdong, and finally struggled hard to overthrow the Qin Dynasty, which just confirmed the saying that "although Chu has three households, qin will die in Chu". Although the Chu state was small, it was able to overthrow the Qin Dynasty.
Therefore, the "three households" in "Chu although there are three households, the death of Qin will be Chu" does not refer to a place, nor is it the three surnames, but alludes to the fact that the Chu state has few people and can do great things.
References: "History", "Zizhi Tongjian", "General History of China", etc