Qin
(221 BC – 206 BC)
Qin was an extremely important dynasty in the history of the mainland, which ended the situation of division and division and built the first unified, multi-ethnic, centralized feudal state in the history of the mainland; This gave China the title of emperor for the first time.
The first emperor wins the government
In 221 BC, Qin annexed the Six Kingdoms of Shandong, and King Huanzheng of Qin (259-210 BC) became the supreme monarch who ruled the world, holding a grand and solemn court meeting in the Qin capital Xianyang. In the face of the brand-new political situation, Ying Zheng felt that the meaning of "king" was too narrow to be recorded in the annals of history, and he had to update his name to recognize his immeasurable merit and embody the supreme authority of the human prince, so he instructed the ministers to raise the honorific title. After solemn discussion, Qunchen and the doctor believed that the king of Qin pacified the world, Hainai was a county, the decree was unified, and the merits were unprecedented, far surpassing the five emperors, in view of the ancient legend that there were three emperors and the emperor of Thailand was the most noble, it was suggested that the honorific title be more "Emperor Thai", the order was "System", the order was "Zhao", and he called himself "Shu". King Huanzheng of Qin felt that he was both three emperors and five emperors, and although the Thai emperor was expensive, it was difficult to boast of the merits of the three emperors and five emperors, so he decided to take one character from each of the "three emperors" and "five emperors", named "emperor", and approved "system", "edict", and "朕" as special terms for emperors, and did not allow others to interfere with them. He also said, "He became the first emperor." Later generations are counted, and the second and third generations are passed on to all generations. "Although the second emperor of the Qin Dynasty died and the emperor's throne was not passed down among the descendants of the surname Huan according to Qin Shi Huang's design, the subsequent monarchs with the surname Yi, except for a few ethnic minorities, all followed the title of "emperor" and its related systems set by Qin Shi Huang, until the Xinhai Revolution in 1911 knocked Aixin Jue Luo Shi Puyi from power; It took more than 2,100 years for China's emperors and imperial power to come to an end. Qin Shi Huang began the history of Chinese emperors and imperial power, and he himself became a crucial and influential historical figure.
1. Lü Buwei's political investment and the accession of Qin Shi Huang to the throne
The era of Qin Shi Huang's birth was an era of great change and great turmoil. Fierce wars between countries were a distinctive feature of this era, so history is called the Warring States Period. At that time, the seven great powers of Qin, Qi, Chu, Yan, Han, Zhao and Wei in the Central Plains were known as the "Seven Warring States Seven Heroes". Qin ruled in the west, with the capital Xianyang (present-day Shaanxi); Qi was based in the east, with the capital Linzi (present-day Shandong); Chu was located in the south, Duchen (present-day Huaiyang, Henan), Yanju in the north, and Duji (present-day Beijing); The three kingdoms of Han, Zhao, and Wei were located in central China, with the Han capital Yangzhai (present-day Yu County, Henan), the Zhao capital Handan (present-day Hebei), and the Wei capital Daliang (present-day Kaifeng, Henan). Countries have been fighting for years, victory will expand territory, defeat will reduce territory, divide the situation, and change. In order to avoid annexation and annexation of other countries, all seven countries have done everything in their power. Among them is the political strategy of using diplomacy to contact allies.
On the eve of the birth of Qin Shi Huang, it coincided with the reign of his great-grandfather King Qin Zhao. King Zhao of Qin adopted the annexation policy of "distant friendship and close attack", and vigorously attacked the Han and Wei kingdoms adjacent to Qin territory, and his territory continued to expand. In order to avoid the union of the three Jin Dynasties, King Zhao made an alliance with Zhao. According to the practice of the time, after the conclusion of the contract, it was often necessary to send hostages to the country to show trust. "Hostage" means mortgage, and "hostage" is the collateral of a living person, often served by the son or grandson of the monarch, so it is also called "proton". After the two states of Qin and Zhao formed an alliance, Qin Shi Huang's father Zi Chu was sent to the State of Zhao as a proton.
Zichu was the grandson of King Zhao of Qin and the son of Prince An Guojun. An Guojun is a famous pillar, has many wives and concubines, has more than 20 sons, and Zichu ranks in the middle. Zichu's mother is named Xia Ji, and An Guojun does not love her. Among the many concubines, one was deeply favored by An Guojun, who made her Lady Zheng, named Lady Huayang. Although this Lady Huayang was favored by the prince, she had no son. Zichu's mother was not loved, and she was not the eldest son, so she was sent to Zhao Guo Handan as a proton. After Zichu arrived in the State of Zhao, no one cared about the State of Qin, and the State of Zhao did not pay attention to it, his life was poor, he was blinded, and he completely became a shabby son in a foreign country.
At this time, a big businessman named Lu Buwei came to Handan. Lü Buwei was a native of Puyang (present-day southeast of Puyang, Henan), who made a fortune doing business in Yangzhai, the capital of South Korea, and was known as "Yangzhai Dajia". Lu Buwei has been engaged in speculative business for many years, selling cheap and expensive goods to and fro; The family accumulated a lot of money, and he became a famous rich businessman during the Warring States period. Lu Buwei saw Zi Chu, who was embarrassed to drink, in Handan, and his eyes immediately lit up, thinking that Zi Chu was a rare commodity, "a strange commodity to live in", and planned to get him to make a fortune. It turned out that Lu Buwei traveled to various cities and was familiar with the political situation of various countries, and he knew the inside story of the Qin State Tai Womb very well, and after he saw Zi Chu, he wanted to shift from commercial operation to political investment, and from the perspective of a businessman, Zi Chu naturally became a "strange product". Lu Buwei had this plan, so he went to discuss it with his father. Lu Buwei asked his father, "How much profit can be made from cultivating the field?"
"Profit tenfold." The father replied.
"What if you invest in jewelry?"
"Profit a hundredfold."
"If you invest in politics, establish a monarchy, and set up a country, how much profit can you make?"
"Then it can't be calculated."
Lu Buwei told his father about his plans, saying, "Dingguojun is extremely beneficial, and it can be passed on to future generations." I am determined to befriend Zi Chu and seek the throne of the Qin Kingdom for him. ”
Therefore, Lu Buwei made a door to visit Zichu and said to him straight to the point: "I can make Gongzi's door bright." ”
Zichu knew that Lu Buwei was a businessman, and laughed loudly: "Haha! Brighten my door? Let's make your own door! ”
Lu Buwei said solemnly: "Gongzi doesn't know something, my court depends on your court to be bright. ”
As soon as Zi Chu heard this, he suddenly realized, so he invited him to sit down and have a deep conversation. Lü Buwei said: "King Qin Zhao is already old, and An Guojun is the crown prince of Qin. I heard that An Guojun favored Lady Huayang, and Lady Huayang had no son, but only she could establish An Guojun's heir. Now there are more than 20 brothers of Gongzi, and Gongzi is in the middle, not favored, and has been in foreign countries for a long time, once King Zhao dies and An Guojun is established as the king of Qin State, then Gongzi has no hope of competing with his eldest son and the brothers who accompany An Guojun day and night. ”
So Lü Buwei gave 500 gold to Zichu to let him improve his situation and make friends with guests; At the same time, he took out another 500 gold to buy rare playthings, and brought them to the west to travel to the Qin Kingdom.
Lü Buwei came to the Qin State and did not directly ask An Guojun and Lady Huayang, but visited Lady Huayang's sister. Lü Buwei's mouth hung like a river, and he told her endlessly about Zi Chu's virtuousness and cleverness, saying that Zi Chu befriended princes and guests, friends were all over the world, he was a young man with great ambitions, he lived in a foreign country, he missed An Guojun and Lady Huayang day and night, and often said that "Madame is Zi Chu's heaven", often crying late at night and unable to sleep. Finally, Lü Buwei asked Lady Huayang's sister to forward Zichu's gifts and greetings to Lady Huayang. Mrs. Huayang listened to her sister personally recount Zi Chu's situation, and saw the generous gift Zi Chu gave herself, and she couldn't help but feel furious, and she had a deep affection for Zi Chu. Then, Lu Buwei planned for Lady Huayang's sister to lobby Lady Huayang, and she said to her sister:
"I heard. A woman who serves men with beauty, once her appearance ages, the man's love for her is also relaxed. Now Madame serves the Crown Prince, and although she is deeply loved, she has no son. It should be decided at this time that a virtuous filial piety should be chosen as his son among the princes of the group, and he should be officially made the heir. In this way, the husband enjoys double respect when he is alive, and the son is king after the husband's death, and he will never lose power. This is the so-called 'one word for the benefit of the world'. Don't take advantage of your own flourishing to establish a foundation, wait until the color is old and love is slack. If you want to say a word, can you still do it? Today, the son of the son, Chu, is the most virtuous and filial, he knows that he is in the middle, he cannot be the heir in order, and his mother is not loved by An Guojun, he voluntarily attaches himself to his wife, and if her wife can support him as an heir at this critical moment, he can be favored in the Qin state for life. ”
Mrs. Huayang was distressed by childlessness, and her sister's heartfelt words skillfully solved the crux in her heart. Since then, Lady Huayang has blown the pillow wind to An Guojun, and words such as "Zi Chu who is superior to Zhao Guo is incomparably capable", "People who come and go to Zhao State are all honorable Zi Chu" filled An Guojun's ears. Mrs. Huayang took out the favored woman's sobbing trick again. He said to An Guojun: "It is a great honor that a concubine can fill the harem, unfortunately did not give birth to a son, and I wish to have a son Chu as a son and be established as an heir." A hundred years later, the concubine body can also be relied on. Under the double attack of pillow wind and tear rain, An Guojun agreed to Lady Huayang's request, and engraved a letter with Lady Huayang, agreeing that Lizi Chu would be the legitimate heir.
Then, An Guojun and Lady Huayang sent a large amount of money to Zi Chu, and asked Lü Buwei as a division commander to help Zi Chu. Since then, Zichu's reputation has grown day by day, and his reputation has been full of princes.
After Lü Buwei obtained the right to inherit the throne for Zi Chu, he returned to Handan, drank and had fun with Zi Chu all day long, and made extensive friends with the world's heroes, waiting for Zi Chu's turn to sit on the Qin throne, so as to show his grand plans.
At this time, the relationship between Qin and Zhao suddenly changed. The state of Qin attacked Han for several years, and in the forty-fifth year of King Zhao's reign (262 BC), the general Bai Qi captured Han's Yewang (present-day Qinyang, Henan), cutting off Shangdang County from Han itself. Shangdang County was adjacent to the state of Zhao, and Shangdang vowed not to surrender Qin to Feng Ting, so he led the county to Zhao. The following year, Zhao sent the general Lian Po out of the town of Changping (present-day Gaoping, Shanxi) to resist the Qin army. Lianpo was deep in the ditch and high stronghold, unable to hold out, the Qin army could not enter, and the troops of the two countries were in a long-term stalemate. Although the change in Qin-Zhao relations did not endanger Zi Chu as a hostage for a while, its confrontational trend posed a direct threat to Zi Chu's life safety and Lu Buwei's political investment.
Lü Buwei befriended wealthy gentry and chose a girl from Handan who could sing and dance well and had a beautiful appearance to live with. This girl was born in Handan and was known as Zhao Ji in history. child
Chu went to Lu Buwei to drink, fell in love with Zhao Ji at first sight, and asked Lu Buwei for it on the spot. Lu Buwei was worried about the situation, and knowing that Zhao Ji had just become pregnant, he was immediately annoyed when he saw Zichu so rude. But after thinking about it, he has gambled all his family property on Zi Chu, and offending Zi Chu for a woman will be a failure; Besides, if Zhao Ji was a man in her belly, she might be able to catch a big fish, so she saw the wind and sailed and readily agreed to give Zhao Ji to Zichu. Zhao Ji concealed her pregnancy and moved to live with Zichu.
At this time, the Changping deadlock was also clear. In July of the 47th year of King Zhao of Qin (260 BC), Qin used a counter-plot to make King Zhao remove Lianpo, and replaced Zhao Kuo who was "talking on paper" to lead Changping's army, Zhao Kuo rushed forward, and the grain road was extinguished, and by September, Zhao soldiers fasted for 46 days, failed to break through the siege, and all surrendered to the Qin army, as a result, more than 400,000 Zhao troops were killed in vain, and when the news came, the Zhao people were shocked. In October (4), the Qin army stabilized the situation in the upper party, and the army divided into two routes, one capturing Taiyuan and the other capturing Wu'an (southwest of present-day Wu'an, Hebei), trying to surround Handan and swallow the state of Zhao, and the state of Zhao sent Su Dai to lobby Qin Xiangfan to cut land and seek peace, which temporarily stopped the advance of the Qin army. In the blink of an eye, in the forty-eighth year of King Zhao of Qin (259 BC), in the first month, Zhao Ji gave birth to a son, who was Huan Zheng. Because he was born in Handan, the capital of Zhao, he took the Zhao family name as his surname; And because he was born in the first month, he was named Masaku, a government. Later, Zhao Zheng returned to Qin, and only then did he change from the surname Qin. After Zhao Ji gave birth, Zichu made her his wife.
Ying Zheng was born between the two great wars of Qin and Zhao, the Battle of Changping had passed, and the Siege of Handan had not yet arrived. However, peaceful relations lasted only a few months, and in September of the same year, Qin troops attacked Handan, and in September of the following year, they surrounded Handan, and in the third year, the fiftyth year of King Zhao of Qin (257 BC), the Qin general Wang Yi commanded a heavy army to launch a strong attack, and Handan was in danger. In a hurry, Zhao Guo planned to kill Zi Chu and talk about his hatred of Qin. Zi Chu received the news, discussed countermeasures with Lü Buwei, paid a bribe of 600 gold to the target officials, escaped from Handan City, fled to the besieged Qin army, and returned to the Qin state. Zhao Guo also planned to kill Zhao Ji's mother and son, because Zhao Ji was the daughter of a rich man in Handan, and the mother and son escaped the killing disaster and survived under the deep cover of her mother's family. In the same year, Jin, Chu, Wei and other states sent troops to rescue Zhao, and the Qin soldiers retreated, and the battle of Handan was heart-building and strong.
In the fifty-sixth year of King Zhao of Qin (215 BC), King Zhao died, and the crown prince An Guojun succeeded him as King Xiaowen of Qin. Hua, everyone is the queen, and Zichu is the prince. At this time, the relationship between Qin and Zhao had eased, and Zhao Guo sent Zhao Ji's mother and son back to Qin State. Huan Zheng spent most of his childhood in Handan, where he was born, and only came to the Qin Kingdom when he was 9 years old.
King Xiaowen of Qin reigned for a short time, he first served a year of mourning, then formally ascended the throne, and died after three days on the throne. Zi Chu then succeeded to the throne as King Xiang of Qin Zhuang. As soon as King Zhuangxiang ascended the throne, he made Lü Buwei the state of Xiang, made him the Marquis of Wenxin, and rewarded Luoyang with 100,000 households as his food.
King Zhuangxiang also reigned for a short time, dying in 3 years. History seems to have deliberately set up the timetable, and within a few years vacated the throne of the Qin state. In the third year of King Xiang of Qin Zhuang (247 BC), the 13-year-old boy Huan Zheng ascended the throne of the Qin state. The 13-year-old children were not yet able to handle state affairs, so the Qin state was run by Qin Shi Huang's mother, Empress Dowager Zhao, and Xiangguo Lü Buwei.