"Reading Notes" Episode 11: Zhang Yi Breaks the "Bureau"

Zhou Jisan (320-298 BC)

Zhang Yi broke the "bureau"

Su Qin layout, Zhang Yi broke it.

In 317 BC, Qi Guofu competed with Su Qin for power and sent someone to assassinate Su Qin. As a result, Zhang Yi's agreement that "when Su used things, he would never talk about the Lianheng Plan again" was lifted, and lian heng broke the situation and joined the situation.

Lobbying King Xiang of Wei. Zhang Yi lobbied King Xiang of Wei: "The land of the State of Wei is less than a thousand miles, the number of soldiers is less than 300,000, the territory is flat on all sides, there is no barrier of high mountains and rivers, and no more than 100,000 people are guarding the borders of the four kingdoms of Chu, Han, Qi, and Zhao and defending the pavilion barriers, and the terrain of the State of Wei is a natural battlefield. In the past, the princes and countries joined hands and forged covenants on the waters of the river to become brotherly states to consolidate their relations with each other. But now even if they are like parents and brothers, they will still kill each other for money. If this is the plan to overthrow Su Qin, it is clear that the combination will never succeed. If the great king does not belong to the state of Qin, and the state of Qin sends troops to attack Hewai, occupy the scrolls and sour dates, invade the Wei country, and occupy Jinyang, then the state of Zhao cannot go south, and if the state of Zhao cannot go south, then the state of Wei cannot go north; if the state of Wei cannot go north, the traffic between the north and the south is cut off; if the traffic between the north and the south is cut off, then it is impossible for the king to hope that the country will not be in danger. Therefore, may the king decide carefully on the countermeasures. Give me the opportunity to die for the King. Therefore, the King of Wei reneged on the covenant of concordance and took advantage of Zhang Yi's relationship to ask Qin for peace. Zhang Yi took full advantage of the human weaknesses of King Wei's suspiciousness, greed, and insecurity, and tore a rift in the Alliance. Therefore, Zhang Yi returned to the Qin state and restored the position of prime minister.

Lobbying the King of Chuhuai. King Huai of Chu was the son of King Wei, greedy and aggressive and lacking in wisdom. The King of Qin wanted to send troops to attack the State of Qi, but was worried that the two countries of Qi and Chu would be close to each other, so he sent Zhang Yi to persuade the King of Chu: "If the Great King can make good relations with the State of Qin, break off diplomatic relations with the State of Qi, and withdraw from the Agreement on Friendship, the King of Qin is willing to offer the land of Shang in six hundred miles and the beautiful women of the State of Qin to thank you, and the two kingdoms will always be brotherly states." The King of Chu was very happy and agreed. All the courtiers came to congratulate him, but Only Chen Yi was sad. The King of Chu was very angry and said, "The widow got six hundred miles of land and Meiji without spending a single soldier, why are you not happy?" Chen Yi said, "I'm afraid that the Great King was fooled by Zhang Yi." The reason why the State of Qin attaches importance to the State of Chu is precisely because of the State of Qi. Severing diplomatic relations with the State of Qi would trap the State of Chu in isolation. At that time, the State of Qin will not only not give land, but will also attack the State of Chu. According to my suggestion, it is better to pretend to break diplomatic relations with the State of Qi and still cooperate with the State of Qi behind the scenes, until the State of Qin really honors the land and the beauty of the country. The King of Chu was not happy and said to Chen, "Sir, shut up, the widow is a reader of countless people, and Zhang Yi's words will not be false." So he gave Zhang Yi the Great Seal of the Prime Minister and rewarded him heavily. He closed the pass, severed diplomatic relations with the State of Qi and withdrew from the treaty, and also sent a general to the State of Qin to receive gifts.

Zhang Yi pretended to be injured in a car accident and did not see general Chu for three months. When the King of Chu heard about this, he thought privately: "Could it be that Zhang Yi thinks that I have not done enough to break off diplomatic relations with the State of Qi?" So he sent the warrior Song Yi to borrow the rune letter of the Song Kingdom, go north to the Qi Realm, and scold the King of Qi. The King of Qi was very angry and turned to the State of Qin.

At this time, Zhang Yicai met with the general of the Chu state and said, "Why don't you go and receive the land?" From there to there, the size is a total of six miles. The envoys of the State of Chu were furious and returned to report to the King of Chu. The king of Chu was furious and sent an army to attack the Qin state, which was not good, and was defeated. He was also robbed by Han and Wei. In the end, he had to cut off the two cities and ask the Qin state for peace.

King Hui of Qin sent someone to inform King Huai of Chu that he wanted to exchange land outside Wuguan for Qianzhong with him. The King of Chu said, "I am not willing to exchange land, as long as I get Zhang Yi, I will sacrifice Qianzhong." After Zhang Yi heard about this, he asked the King of Qin to send him. The King of Qin said, "The King of Chu will definitely kill you to relieve your hatred, how can he send you to death?" Zhang Yi said: "The State of Qin is strong, the State of Chu is weak, as long as the King of Chu is in one day, the King of Chu will not dare to kill me." Moreover, I was friendly with King Chu's favorite minister, Jin Shang, who served King Chu's concubine Zheng Gui, and King Chu did everything to Zheng Gui. (There is a feeling of fighting beasts, rats eat elephants, elephants eat tigers, and one thing drops one thing.) ）

So Zhang Yi went to the Chu kingdom, where the King of Chu imprisoned Zhang Yi, and Jin Shang made Ji ji and Zheng Gui persuade the King of Chu to reuse Zhang Yi. Zhang Yi then persuaded the King of Chu to say, "Carrying out the conspiracy is tantamount to driving the sheep to attack the tiger, and the failure is obvious." Now that the great king is not subject to the State of Qin, and the State of Qin is persecuting Korea and driving the State of Wei to attack the State of Chu, then the State of Chu is in danger. In the west of Qin, there were Ba and Shu, building ships, storing grain, and going down the Min River to the east, which could travel more than five hundred miles a day, not ten days, and could reach the Pass, and the Pass was disturbed, and from the east of this place, it was completely put on guard, and in the end even Qianzhong and Wu County would not be owned by the king. If the State of Qin sends troops out of Wuguan again, then the State of Chu will lose all the land in the north. The State of Qin attacked the State of Chu, and the danger of its demise was only within three months, and the State of Chu waited for the rescue of the princes, but it took more than half a year, waiting for the rescue of the weak country like this, and forgetting the disaster of the State of Qin was something I was worried about for the king. If the Great King is really willing to listen to me, I can make the two kingdoms of Qin and Chu forever brotherly and not attack each other. "The king of Chu had already obtained Zhang Yi, and it was difficult to give up the land in Qianzhong, so he agreed to him."

Zhang Yi's superb acting skills, reasonableness in laying out facts, and sincerity in attitude made the King of Chu completely lack the power to "fight". In the mental contest, the two are separated by multiple positions. Future generations can use this dialogue as a classic teaching material for the study of the art of negotiation and persuasion.

Lobbying King Han. After getting the King of Chu, Zhang Yi went to Korea and lobbied the King of Han: "South Korea has a treacherous terrain, many people live in the mountains, the five grains planted, not the wheat, the country does not have two years of grain storage; the existing soldiers are only 200,000 people." Qin Phi Armor's men are more than a million. The soldiers of the countries east of the Taihang Mountains fought in armor, and the Qin people stripped their armor and red arms to drive away the enemy, carrying the decapitated heads on the left and the captured prisoners alive on the right. Attacking a small country that refuses to submit with a warrior like Meng Ben and Wu Yu is tantamount to pressing the weight of 30,000 kilograms on the bird's egg, and it will certainly not be able to get away with it. The great king refused to submit to the state of Qin, and Qin sent troops to occupy Yiyang and cut off Chenggao, which would split the great king's country into two. At that time, the Palace of Hongtai and the Garden of Sanglin will no longer belong to the king. If you plan for the king, it is best to submit to the State of Qin, attack the State of Chu, and please the State of Qin, there is no more perfect plan. Zhang Yi skillfully used rhetorical methods such as metaphor, exaggeration, and example to intimidate the King of Han, which magnified the inner fear of the King of Han for the Qin State to the greatest extent, and the King of Han had collapsed. Zhang Yi was also given the title of Wuxin Jun by the King of Qin.

Lobbying the King of Qi. Zhang Yi said to the king: "Those who lobby the great king to join the king must say: 'The State of Qi is under the cover of the Three Jins, the land is vast, the population is large, the soldiers are strong and brave, even if there are a hundred Qin States, there is no way to align.'" The king thought he was right, but did not consider in detail the correctness of these statements. Now the two kingdoms of Qin and Chu were marrying women and becoming brotherly states; Korea offered Yiyang; the State of Wei offered hewai; and the State of Zhao also entered the Jin Dynasty and ceded hejian to serve the State of Qin. If the great king did not submit to the state of Qin, Qin would drive the two kingdoms of Han and Wei to attack the southern part of the state of Qi, pour out the troops of the state of Zhao, send them across the Qing River, and point directly to Boguan, and at that time, Linzi and Jimo would no longer belong to the great king! As long as the State of Qi was attacked, even if he wanted to submit to the State of Qin again, it would be impossible. The King of Qi agreed to Zhang Yi. Previously, Su Qin and the King of Qi cited the various advantages of the State of Qi, and Zhang Yi took advantage of the asymmetry of information and mutual distrust between the countries to easily break through the Defense Line of the King of Qi.

Lobbying King Zhao. Zhang Yi left the State of Qi and lobbied west to the King of Zhao, saying: "The Great King led the world to be an enemy of the State of Qin, so that the Qin soldiers did not dare to go out of Jiayu Pass for fifteen years. In order to defeat your Zhao Kingdom, the State of Qin has worked hard to govern and developed steadily for more than ten years, and now I am afraid that it has the ability to compete with you. Now the King of Qin sent me here, first, to form a brotherly state with you Zhao Guoyong; second, to share information with you. At present, Chu and Qin have become brotherly states, while Han and Wei have claimed vassals in the east, and the State of Qi has dedicated the land of fish and salt, which is enough to cut off zhao Guo's right arm. Is it possible to cut off your right arm like this, to wrestle with people, to lose your henchmen, and to live alone and not to be in danger? Now the State of Qin launched three armies, sent one of them to block the noon road, and ordered the State of Qi to send an army across the Qing River and stationed in the east of Handan; the first army was stationed in Chenggao, driving the han and Wei armies to garrison the outside of the river, and the first army was stationed in Shichi, uniting the four kingdoms into one, to attack the State of Zhao, as long as the State of Zhao surrendered, it would certainly divide the land of the State of Zhao. Therefore, I privately envisioned for the great king that it would be better to ally with the Qin state. Zhang Yi used the technique of first raising and then suppressing, forcing King Zhao to obey.

Lobbying the Yan King. Zhang Yi went north to the State of Yan and said to the King of Yan, "Now King Zhao has come to see the King of Qin, sacrificed the river, and submitted to the State of Qin. If the great king did not submit to the state of Qin, and the state of Qin sent troops to Yunzhong and Jiuyuan, and then drove the state of Zhao to attack Yan, then Yishui and the Great Wall would no longer be owned by the great king! Moreover, now Qi and Zhao were like counties to the Qin state, and they did not dare to easily send troops to attack other countries. If the great king could serve the Qin state, he would never have the worries of the two kingdoms of Qi and Zhao. So the King of Yan offered the five cities at the end of Hengshan Mountain to invite peace.

Lobbying King Wu of Qin. Because Zhang Yi wants to solve the problem of "trust". At that time, Zhang Yi was still on his way back to Xianyang, and before he could reach Xianyang, King Hui of Qin, who trusted him, died. King Hui's son King Wu succeeded to the throne. When King Wu was crown prince, he did not like Zhang Yi, and when he took the throne, most of the courtiers said bad things about Zhang Yi. When the princes learned of the grudge between Zhang Yi and King Wu, they all betrayed Lian Heng and once again practiced conspiracy.

Zhang Yi said to King Wu, "I envision for the king that as long as there is chaos in the east, then the king can take a lot of land. I heard that the King of Qi was very disgusted with me, and wherever I went, the State of Qi would certainly attack me. I hope that the king will allow me to go to the state of Wei, Qi will definitely attack, Qi and Wei will exchange troops, and they will fight each other's troops, and they will not be able to rest, so the king can take advantage of the gap to attack Korea, enter Sanchuan, hold the Son of Heaven hostage, and check the map, this is the great cause of the Xingwang world! As soon as King Wu heard that this suggestion was beneficial to the country and could still support Zhang Yi, there was no reason not to disagree.

Later, the King of Qi did indeed attack the State of Wei, and the King of Wei was afraid. Zhang Yi said, "The king doesn't have to worry, I can make the State of Qi strike." So he sent his servants to the State of Chu, borrowed envoys from the State of Chu, and told the King of Qi, "It's too bad, the king has strengthened the trust of the State of Qin in Zhang Yi." King Qi asked, "Why?" The envoy of the State of Chu said: "Before Zhang Yi left the State of Qin, he had originally planned with the King of Qin to make the two kingdoms of Qi and Wei attack each other and let Qin take the opportunity to take Sanchuan. Now that Wang had indeed attacked the State of Wei, in this way, the King had exhausted the whole country internally, attacked his friends externally, and strengthened the King of Qin's trust in Zhang Yi. Only then did the King of Qi truce and return to China.

Zhang Yi died after serving as chancellor of the State of Wei for a year. Zhang Yi should be tired, and from the end, it is better than Su Qin, after all, it is a good ending.

So how to evaluate Su Qin and Zhang Yi?

If the two were to go it alone, Su Qin should be more intelligent and city-bound than Zhang Yi, because he could control Zhang Yi; from the perspective of the art of the two people lobbying the kings, Su Qin paid more attention to "qiao", while Zhang Yi emphasized "potential". Judging from their contributions to society, one was to create such a consulting industry as a lobbyist; the other was that after all, with the power of a "tongue", they spared many soldiers and killed and destroyed lives, which made China at that time stable for more than ten years.

Of course, Su and Zhang could not yet meet mencius's standards of "big husband", and mighty, rich, and poor were the measures by which they measured their social value.

In this game of power, Su and Zhang are skilled gamers, and what they do is nothing more than to cater to and satisfy the greed and fantasies of the kings. If they are not "big husbands", they should at least be "craftsmen" who adapt to the big times and are very grounded.

Their methods still guide the "actors" on the stage of international political relations.

In a word, laugh.