The "Four Princes of the Warring States" was a very famous group during the Warring States period in China, they were The Xinling Jun Wei Wuji, the Plain Jun Zhao Sheng, the Chunshen Jun Huang Xie, and the Meng Yu Juntian Wen.
These four princes are in high positions in their respective countries because of their blood and other relations, and with their good reputation and attention to talents, they have received the help of many sages, and gradually formed a force that cannot be underestimated, and also has a certain influence on the situation of the Warring States.
For example, in the fifty-sixth year of king Zhao of Zhou (259 BC), the State of Qin sent troops to attack the capital of the State of Zhao, Handan, and the Pingyuan Jun of the State of Zhao invited Chun Shenjun and Lingjun to send a letter.
In the end, the State of Chu and the State of Wei sent troops to support the State of Zhao, which dealt a blow to the invincible Qin army, and also caused the State of Qin to have to rest and recuperate, and the hegemony of unifying the Central Plains could only be temporarily shelved.
The above-mentioned Pingyuan Jun, Xin Ling Jun, and Chun Shen Jun can all have a certain impact on the monarch of their own country. But Meng Yijun, who did not appear in this battle, was actually the most special one, he could not only not be attached to the royal power, but also independent of the royal power.
Meng Yujun's name was Tian Wen, and he was born in Linzi, the capital of the State of Qi, and from this surname and place of birth, it can be seen that he belonged to the aristocratic class of the State of Qi.
Meng Tianjun's grandfather was famous for appointing Tian Ji and Sun Zhen to found the Jixia Xuegong, and his father was Jingguo Juntian Baby.
Meng Yujun was born to one of Tian Bao's concubines, so Tian Bao did not even want him to live, so he ordered his mother to dispose of him, but his mother could not bear it and secretly raised him.
Meng Tianjun was able to meet his father when he grew up, but Tian Bao was very dissatisfied with the concubine's behavior of deceiving him, and his attitude towards Meng Tianjun was also very bad. The young Meng Tianjun won the unanimous respect of Tian Bao's guests with his own talents.
Over time, even people in other countries have called on Tian Bao to make him the son of the world. Forced by external pressure, and indeed admiring the ability of this son, Meng Tianjun naturally got the position of shizi.
After Tian Bao's death, Meng Yijun inherited his title in Xuedi, so he was also known as "Xue Gong". Relying on his accumulated fame and Xue Di's money and grain, Meng Yijun recruited sages everywhere, whether it was guests from other places or people who had committed crimes and were on the run, as long as they were capable, he tried his best to attract his subordinates.
According to the "Records of History", "Meng tasted the king's good fortune and gave him a good treatment, so that he fell for the world." Thousands of diners, no nobles and lowly ones and wen, etc... Meng Taste Junke has no choice, and they are all good to meet. Everyone thinks that Meng Yujun is close to himself. "
In this way, Meng Yijun, who had thousands of talents of all kinds and was deeply rooted in Xue Di, became a force that the princes were concerned about and feared at that time.
When King Zhaoxiang of the State of Qin heard that Meng had tasted the merits of Jun, he wanted to make him a minister. However, after paying homage to him, some courtiers believed that Meng Yijun, as a Qi person, would not help the Qin state with his heart, so King Zhaoxiang took him into custody and prepared to be executed.
At a critical moment, Meng Tianjun helped him escape by imitating chicken songs and stealing, which is also the source of the idiom "chicken song dog theft".
After fleeing back to the State of Qi, The King of Qi, who had previously sent Meng Yujun to the State of Qin, was very guilty, so he made him a minister.
After becoming Qi Xiang, Meng Yijun always remembered the humiliation he had suffered. Soon after, they joined forces with Korea and the State of Wei to jointly cut down Qin, and all the way to the strategic hangu pass.
With the improvement of his reputation, Meng Tianjun's prestige in the world gradually overwhelmed that of King Qi Tang, who was the monarch but did nothing, plus after the latter defeated the Song Kingdom, he thought that he no longer needed meng Tianjun's assistance, and the contradiction between the two finally broke out.
In order to protect himself, Meng Yijun turned to the State of Wei and was worshipped by King Wei Zhao as xiangguo.
Previously, after Meng Tianjun was humiliated in the Qin State, he quickly sent troops to attack the Qin State; now, Meng Tianjun was framed by the King of Qi, and naturally he would not let the Qi State go.
In the thirty-first year of the Reign of Zhou (284 BC), Meng Yijun instigated the States of Wei, Qin, and Zhao to assist the Yan army led by the famous general Le Yi in conquest of the State of Qi, forcing the King of Qi to flee to Jucheng, and was eventually killed by the Chu general HuanYa.
Meng's vengeful personality made the new king of the State of Qi, King Xiang of Qi, very jealous, and he took the initiative to overture in order to repair the relationship between the two.
However, this so-called friendship only lasted until Meng Tianjun's death, and when he was buried, his sons soon fought for power and profit, while the States of Qi and Wei took the opportunity to occupy Xue Di and eliminate his remnants.
According to the Wu Lu, "Han Zu fixed the world, crossed the Qi, and after asking Meng to taste it, he got his grandson Ling and Guo, and wanted to restore his seal." The brothers of Ling and Guo pushed each other, mo shi accepted, but went to the bamboo yi, because of the family, so Sui shi Xue. It can be seen that the descendants of Meng Yujun took the ancestral fiefdom as their surname after Han Gaozu pacified the world, and changed his surname to Xue.
Meng Yijun is the most special among the "Four Princes of the Warring States", and an important reason is that he has always maintained a relatively independent posture.
He did not propose the monarch to advise and serve a fixed country like other princes, but was independent and autonomous. Relying on his protégés and superb negotiation skills, he detoured between countries, and at the beginning of king Qiwei's succession, all countries paid tribute to Meng Tianjun, and it can be said that he was completely independent of the royal power.