In the Spring and Autumn Period, there was no end to the struggle for hegemony, and all countries were constantly fighting for survival resources and power. The Seven Kingdoms are a brief history of the Warring States in which a hundred houses compete for supremacy after hundreds of years of fierce competition, leaving only seven powerful states, plus a small central government of the Zhou Empire.
During this period, whoever was powerful had more power and land, and all the lords of the country declared themselves kings, and their goal was to destroy the other kingdoms and unify the entire country. During the Warring States period, the seven major powers were: Qi, Chu, Yan, Han, Zhao, Wei, and Qin. Because there are fewer hierarchical restrictions and exchanges between the kingdoms, there are friendships and frictions between the seven countries, and of course, in the reform and development of the countries, there are also "resentments and hatreds".
The "Hundred Schools of Thought" in the Warring States Period
1. Are the seven kingdoms all right? How is that possible!
During the Warring States period, each country had its own language, character, currency, and so on. These tyrants will not easily satisfy their own development, after all, now there is not only yourself on the map, you are willing to guard your own acres and three points of land, does not mean that there will be no black boats driving in.
So all seven countries are trying to reform. If you want to reform, you must first introduce talent, and the implementation of reform, unbalanced wars and competition require each kingdom to do its best to attract talent. Only by implementing reforms and taking advantage of constant competition can excellent leaders achieve the effect of doubling the results of reform with half the effort.
From 356 BC to 350 BC, the Shang martingale underwent major changes, and civilians could obtain noble titles based on their military achievements, providing the Qin with the most advanced system and aggressive army.
In addition, King Wuling of Zhao also carried out far-reaching reforms. At that time, the ethnic minority nomads were also known as Hu people, and the Zhao state not only had to guard against the remaining six countries, but also defended against the attack of the Hu people. With several battles with the Hu people, King Wuling of Zhao found that the weapons and equipment of the Hu people were very different, but the combat effectiveness was very high.
Their cavalry archery skills are first-class, coupled with narrow sleeved short coats, under the barrel pants, pedal leather boots, compared with the central plains robes and coats and chariots, the Hu people are very agile in combat, the explosive power is very strong, this is the Zhao State's famous "Hu costume riding shooting" reform. In addition to Shang Martin, there were also other excellent reformers, and great generals, such as the reformist Wu Qi, who prospered all the kingdoms he served.
With the change of power, the Warring States Seven Heroes also made efforts to expand their territory and defend against foreign invasion. Victory or defeat is a common affair of soldiers, and if there is an opponent, there will be helpers, just take the allusion of "encircling Wei and saving Zhao". The State of Wei attacked the State of Zhao, and the State of Zhao could not resist and could only look for foreign aid. The State of Qi was a relatively strong country in the Spring and Autumn Period, and it was also possible to rescue small followers. The State of Qi did not take the usual path, attacking from the rear and attacking the State of Wei! The State of Wei was too busy to take care of itself, because its own base camp was more important, so it had to withdraw its troops from the State of Zhao.
Not only that, but do you think there will be true friendship among the Seven Kingdoms? If there is anything to be relied upon, even if it is an in-law, it is not. The once thrilling Candle Martial Retreat Qin Division is the story of the temporary defection of my partners, when Jin and Qin Wei Zheng, Zheng was already a fish on the board, only to be slaughtered, but how did Zheng Guo solve it?
King Zheng used the Candle Martial Arts, which was already in his twilight years, and played dangerous moves, and the Candle Martial Arts were also not much cruel, and he saw the King of Qin overnight. Qin and Jin were indeed closer than ordinary partners, after all, Qin and Jin were good, so Qin was also willing to help Jin attack Zheng. But candle wu quickly pointed out the question of Qin's concerns, after Zheng Guo was destroyed, who would get the most benefits? The State of Qin was also the party that sent troops, and it must have wanted to get benefits, but Jin did not promise benefits, but felt that we should be right together.
However, at this time, some people analyzed that Qin's war was not beneficial, not only could not control it himself, but also increased the strength of the Jin state in vain. In the end, there is only one co-lord in the world, and now Jin and Qin can cooperate, but after the destruction of Zheng, who has the greatest vested interests?
Under the premise of no interest protection, Zheng Guo handed out an olive branch, if the Qin State let Zheng Guo go once, Zheng Guo was willing to wait for the envoys of the Qin State to pass by, which was also a disguised act of loyalty, but in fact, what about the Qin State without this move? He would still withdraw his troops. After all, Candle Wu explained the interests he cared about most, and the back was just the icing on the cake. The most critical thing is still the country's own interests.
The Qin kingdom that dressed up as a pig and ate a tiger
Wars of this era, designed to destroy other nations, were fraught with death and intrigue, and thousands of people were involved. According to statistics, about two million people died in the war at that time, and general Bai Qi of the Qin State was responsible for killing prisoners of war after the war.
There is no reason for the origin of war, every war is in the name of ending the war to achieve reunification, but every war fight is not only as it appears on the surface, nor can it predict the direction of the war, it seems that the result is not only victory or defeat, but completion or destruction.
At first, Qin was only a marginal weak country, and after experiencing the Shang Martingale Transformation Law, its national strength was significantly improved, and it also attracted the envy of the other six countries, and when it saw that the Qin state was getting stronger and stronger, the other six countries united against the Qin state. Later, an excellent strategist named Fan Sui proposed a strategy of long-distance and close-range attack, which easily disintegrated the Six-Nation Alliance.
General Bai Qi led the Qin army to seriously weaken the strength of the other six countries, and finally the Qin state defeated the other six countries and established a unified Qin Dynasty, and the history of the vigorous Warring States ended, and the Qin state became the most powerful empire. Even if the other six countries allied again, they would not be able to defeat the Qin state. After Yingzheng ascended the throne, he accelerated the pace of reunification. The long-stalemated situation of the Warring States Seven Heroes has also come to an end, but what has not ended is still the pursuit of power and living space.
summary
All in all, around the Warring States Seven Xiong is always the word of the throne, everyone wants to replace the Zhou regime as the next unified regime, the throne represents power, represents the co-lord of the world, every feudal country has been the ruler for a long time, in the system of "family world", the fate of the world is all maintained on the throne. In the logic of kings governing the country, the first priority is to sit firmly on the throne, and then consider social stability, so that the people can live under their own gifts and be ruled by him. Therefore, even if the Seven Kingdoms deceive each other again and experience love and hatred, it is only for the throne.
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1. Archaeological Observations on the Development Process of the State of Wei in the Warring States Period
2. "Research on the Geographical Environment of the Rich and Strong Qin Kingdoms and the Six Eastern And Eastern Kingdoms"
3. The Birth and Loss of Talents in the Warring States Period
4. "Four Ancient Reforms with Far-reaching Influence"