For example, coriander, some people think it is delicious in the world, but some people think it is as difficult to swallow as eating grass. Such a completely opposing view can be said to be very appropriate for this Song Xianggong.
Chairman Mao said in "On Protracted War": "We are not Song Xianggong, and we do not want that kind of stupid pig-like benevolence and morality!" However, Sima Qian believed: "When XiangGong was in power, practicing benevolence and righteousness could be one of the five hegemons of the Spring and Autumn Period."
Sima Qian - stills
So who is this Song Xianggong? What did he do to polarize the views of future generations on him? Today we will talk about his story
<h1>1. The noble and noble State of Song</h1>
To analyze the Song Xianggong and his people, we must first have a basic understanding of the history of the Song Dynasty. The State of Song has always been at the top of the princely states of the Spring and Autumn Period, and the monarch of the State of Song is also known as the "Shanggong". Why? In ancient times, titles were divided into dukes, marquises, uncles, sons, and men, and at the beginning of the Song dynasty, they were made dukes.
All this comes from the founding monarch of the Song Dynasty, Wei Zi qi. Wei Zi Qi was the elder brother of the King of Shang, and when the King of Wu was cutting down the King of Shang, Wei Zi Qi offended the King of Shang because of his outspoken advice, so he fled. After the fall of the Shang Dynasty, because the strength of the Yin Shang nobles was still very strong, King Wu had to divide the son of King Wu Geng in the old land of the Shang Dynasty (present-day Anyang, Henan).
The Rebellion of the Three Prisons
After the death of King Wu, Wu Geng rebelled and launched the Rebellion of the Three Prisons, and it took the Duke of Zhou three years to quell it. Subsequently, in order to appease the remnants of Yin Shang, the Duke of Zhou sealed the Weizi Qi in Shangqiu and established the State of Song, and was revered by Zhou Tianzi as one of the "Three Ke". Therefore, the status of the Song State is very special, neither a descendant of the Zhou royal family nor a hero of the Zhou Dynasty, but a descendant of Yin Shang. With this relationship, the Song Kingdom was also clamped down by many parties. Knowing this, we may be able to have a certain understanding of what Song Xianggong did.
<h1>2. Song Xianggong appeared</h1>
Duke Xiang of Song (宋襄公), courtesy name Zifu (字甫), was the concubine of Duke Huan of Song, and his brother was named Gongzi Muyi (公子目夷), who was also known as Gongzi (公子目夷). In 651 BC, when Duke Huan of Song fell seriously ill, Zifu said to Duke Huan of Song: "Muyi is old and benevolent, and he should be made king." But Mu Yi insisted on not accepting it, because he believed that his younger brother Zifu's virtue of letting go of the country was the greatest benevolence, and he was inferior to him.
After the death of Duke Huan of Song, Zifu succeeded to the throne as Duke Xiang of Song and appointed Muyi as a chancellor to assist him in handling state affairs. At this time, it coincided with the organization of the princes' alliance in Kuiqiu, and Song Xianggong went to the meeting because of this. Qi Huan believed that Song Xianggong had the beauty of letting go of the country, and he was also a talent, and when he talked with him, the style between the answers was outstanding. Because the Song Kingdom had been honored since ancient times, he entrusted his son Gongzi Zhao to the Duke of Xiang and instructed him to support Gongzi Zhao to succeed him in the future. Can be favored by the overlord of the hall, Xianggong can be described as a moment of unlimited scenery.
Song Xianggong - stills
In 642 BC, Duke Huan of Qi died of illness, and the five sons of the State of Qi competed for the throne, and there was great domestic turmoil. Qin and Jin were suffering from famine, fighting you to the death, flawless, Lu Wei Chen Cai was a small country, and the Spring and Autumn princes were suddenly leaderless. At this time, Rong Di in the north was eager to move, and the Chu state in the south had always coveted the Central Plains. At this time, Gongzi Zhao fled to the Song Kingdom, coupled with the name of Duke Huan of Qi, all of which undoubtedly gave Xianggong an excellent opportunity, so Song Xianggong officially appeared and began his road to hegemony.
<h1>Third, replace Zun Zhou Yi with benevolence and righteousness</h1>
However, although the Song Kingdom was a noble prince, it was not a big country. Therefore, even if Xianggong issued a call, only a few small states obeyed his orders, and then they joined forces to fight against the State of Qi, and jointly established Gongzi Zhao as the king, for the sake of Duke Xiao of Qi. After establishing Qi Jun, Song Xianggong's prestige reached its peak, and as a result, his ambitions began to slowly be exposed.
But is his ambition really just hegemony? This is worth discussing. First of all, what is the concept of hegemony?
Overlord, long also. Words are the chiefs of the princes. - "Mencius Li Lou Ding Yin"
The so-called overlord is nothing more than an ally of the princes. When the world was at peace, he honored the King of Zhou with everyone, and led everyone to resist foreign enemies when there was a foreign invasion. It was precisely because Duke Huan of Qi adopted the strategy of "honoring Zhou Shuyi" that King Hui of Zhou made him Fang Bo and commanded the princes.
The slogan of Xianggong's struggle for hegemony - benevolence
But as we said earlier, Xianggong is a descendant of Yin Shang, and on their shoulders, it is estimated that they have never forgotten the heavy responsibility of resuming business. From the words spoken by Ziyu before Xianggong rebelled against Zheng Guo in the back, it can be seen that the hint can be seen. "The heavens have abandoned the merchant for a long time, the king will rejoice, and the forgiveness will be forgiven." This means that the king will prosper the merchants, nakedly revealing the ambitions of Xianggong. Therefore, the banner of "Zun Zhou" must not be able to fight, so he took out the only "benevolence" he could take as a slogan.
Because of this thought, Song Xianggong became very impatient, and after establishing Qi Jun, he did a series of stupid things. The first step of Xianggong first dated Teng, Cao, Yi, and other small countries to form an alliance, and because the king of the State of Xiang was two days late, Xianggong directly killed him to sacrifice the river god Liwei. Later, he also made an alliance between the two kingdoms of Qi and Chu at Qidi Deer, trying to use the power of the big country to intimidate the small country, and at this time, the monarch of the Chu state was the king of Chu Cheng, but he became the one who defeated XiangGong in the future.
Before that, it is necessary to first understand what the Chu State is.
<h1>Fourth, the origin of the chu throne, barbarians are not blown out</h1>
In fact, there is a question, that is, only the Zhou royal family can be king of the Zhou Dynasty, but why can this Chu state also be called king? That's because the so-called throne of the Chu state was sealed by the people themselves.
Since the Zhou Youwang Beacon Drama Princes, western Zhou has perished. King Ping of Zhou established the Eastern Zhou Dynasty, the royal family declined, the princes rose up together, it was not uncommon for kings to usurp the throne, and the world was in chaos. Such a situation gave the Chu state the opportunity to enter the Central Plains. The first to break this situation was Xiong Tong, the king of Chu Wu. In 706 BC, Chu Fa followed.
Thirty-five years, Chu Fa followed. "I am not guilty." Chu Yue: "I am a barbarian also." Now all the princes are treasonous or murderous. I have a nail, I want to look at the government of China, please ask the royal family to honor me. "Follow the people for the week, please respect Chu, the royal family does not listen, but also reports Chu." Thirty-seven years later, Chu Xiongtong was furious: "I first bear, the master of King Wen, the end of the flea." The king raised up my first duke, but the son of the male Tian Lingju Chu, the barbarians all obeyed, and the king did not add the throne, I had self-esteem. "He established himself as the King of Wu and went with the people. So it began to open up and there was it.
King Wu of Chu - Xiong Tong stills
This means that King Wu of Chu asked Suiguo to ask king Of Zhou for a title. The King of Zhou did not give, Xiong Tong was very angry, since you do not give it, I will call myself king. Therefore, it is estimated that the "hegemony" of Hunan people is now inherited, just kidding.
Then again, the Xiang Convention would make an alliance with Qi Chu on the deer, but in disregard of Qi Chu's opinion, he took the initiative to pretend to be the main alliance, holding the bull's ear first, and did not give in at all. He also privately decided to meet the alliance in Ludi in August this year, and not allow the armor to be brought, such a wayward approach directly angered the Qi and Chu countries. And the next alliance also opened the countdown to Xianggong's death.
Because Chu was a big country, its reputation was not very good at the same time. Before Xianggong left, his brother Muyi persuaded him to bring some military vehicles.
Mu Yi said, "Chu, barbarian Yi, his heart is unpredictable." The king has his mouth, but he has not won his heart, and the subject is afraid of the king's view and deceives. ”
But Xiang Gong thought: I am talking about benevolence and righteousness, how can I bring a military vehicle to the meeting? You can't punch yourself in the face.
But this Chu state had long been ill-intentioned. In 639 BC, Xianggong went to the alliance of Ludi, and the Chu state ambushed the soldiers and kidnapped Xianggong. He also used this to fight against the Song State, and later released him after reconciling with the State of Lu at the insistence of Mu Yi.
<h1>V. The Battle of Hongshui is right and wrong for posterity to comment on</h1>
It is said that after Xianggong returned to China, he was ridiculed by the world. The more he thought about it, the more angry he became, and he began to attack Zheng Guo, a vassal state of the Chu state, and before he cut down Zheng, Song Xianggong swore to his master: "If the heavens do not kill me, The shang can flourish." This further exposes Xianggong's ambition to resume business.
Hearing that the Song state was fighting Zheng, King Cheng of Chu, at the suggestion of the general Cheng Dechen, led his troops directly to Suiyang, the capital of the Song state. So is song guo so easy to fight? If we analyze the geographical location of the Song Dynasty, we will find the answer - it is really easy to fight.
Song Kingdom is located in the middle of henan, the land is dominated by plains, and is the transportation hub of the Central Plains, the Song people opened up rivers and built roads inwards, making boats and cars developed, while the descendants of Yin Merchants were very good at doing business since ancient times, so they traded frequently with surrounding countries, and commerce was very developed, from this point of view, the Song Kingdom should be a very rich country since ancient times.
Map of the Spring and Autumn Song Dynasty
But we said earlier that the Song were descendants of Yin Shang, and if you think that the Zhou Dynasty was so kind to the descendants of the enemy, then you are wrong.
Carefully analyzed, from the map, the Song Kingdom, located in the southwest of the Lu State, the north of Chen Cai, and the east of Wei Zheng, in military affairs, called the place where the soldiers wanted to rush and fight four wars, and Lu Chen Cai Wei Zheng were all countries surnamed Zhou Mu Ji, and once the Song State wanted to engage in any moth, it was enemies on all sides. Don't even think about it, this must be a good thing for Zhou Gong. At the same time, since the Song kingdom was all flat land, there was basically no danger to defend, and the enemy army could drive straight in. Therefore, the Song Kingdom is actually a target.
For this reason, when Song Xianggong heard that the State of Chu was attacking his country, he immediately led his division to return to help, and the two armies confronted each other on both sides of the Hongshui River. The famous Battle of Hongshui broke out in history.
"In winter, in November, Xianggong fought with King Cheng of Chu at Yuhong. The Chu people did not help, and Mu Yi knew: "The other is many and I am widowed, and they have not been attacked." "The public does not listen. Having already been exhausted, he also said: "Can be attacked." "Wait for it to be ready." "Formation, Song people strike." The Song division was defeated, and Xianggong was injured. Everyone in the country complains about justice. Gong Yue: "A gentleman does not trap people in the gong, and does not drum or rank." Ziyu Yue: "Soldiers take victory as merit, what a common saying!" What shall be the name of the ear of a slave, as it is said, and what shall it be? ”
This means that during the Battle of Hongshui, the Chu army had not yet crossed the river, and Ziyu persuaded Xianggong to attack them while the other side was crossing the river, but Xianggong thought it was unkind, and when the Chu army crossed the river, Ziyu advised him to attack them before the Chu army was not in a good position, and Xianggong thought that this was also unkind. Thus perfectly missing two chances to win.
Cartoon - Song Guojun Chentu
Therefore, the result of this battle was that Xianggong was defeated and returned, and he died of his wounds the following year. This battle shook the foundation of the Song State, and in the subsequent Spring and Autumn history, the Song State became a battlefield for various princes to compete for hegemony, and the lives were ruined, all of which were inseparable from Song Xianggong.
<h1>Wang Xiaomeow said</h1>
Throughout Xianggong's life, Xiao Meow thought that he was a benevolent elder, but a naïve politician.
Some people say that Xianggong is a false benevolence and false righteousness, and this view is problematic. Xiang Gong's offer to give the state to Muyi was not unkind; he kept his promise to Duke Huan of Qi and sent troops twice to help Gongzi Zhao inherit the throne of the State of Qi, which was not unjust.
Before the Ludi Alliance, Ziyu believed that the Chu state was a barbarian and could not be trusted, Xianggong said: "The widow treats others with integrity, and people tolerate and deceive the widows", and after the Battle of Hongshui, Xianggong still firmly believes that "no serious injuries, no capture of ermao" is right, that is, the Spring and Autumn War does not allow the harm to those who have been injured again, nor will it arrest the old man with gray hair.
Even to his death, he firmly believed that "although the widows have perished in the country, they will not be able to form a line", that is to say, although I am a descendant of yin shang and the fall of the country, I will never attack the enemy who has not been lined up in a formation, all this shows that the benevolence and righteousness of Xianggong is engraved in his bones. If someone has to say that Xianggong's emphasis on benevolence and righteousness is purposeful, it is not true benevolence. But who does things without purpose? Wouldn't it be ridiculous to deny the process of doing something because he had a purpose?
However, no matter what you do, you must grasp the degree of goodness, and the biggest problem of Xianggong is that this person is too stubborn, keeps the principle of death, does not know how to be flexible, even for the Chu state, it is necessary to pay attention to benevolence and righteousness.
On the one hand, who were the Chu people at that time? King Chu Wu said very directly: I am a barbarian also. At the time of the Odi Alliance, King Chu Cheng also said unceremoniously: On the title, I am the king, so I am the lord of the alliance. Xiang Gong could only say with hatred: The title of king of Chu is self-proclaimed, so why should he use a false king to suppress the real gonghu? King Chu Cheng's answer was also absolutely perfect: Since I am a false king, who let you invite me to come? To reason with a rogue is to find death.
On the other hand, how strong is the national strength of the Chu State? At that time, Qi Huangong led the armies of qi, Lu, Song, Chen, Wei, Zheng, Xu, and Cao to force the Chu state, and only dared to turn around on the edge of the Chu state, but did not dare to take the initiative to attack, and finally hastily signed an alliance to summon the tomb and it was over. In the face of the chu army, the weak Song state actually did not seize the opportunity, but stubbornly stuck in his own ideas, and Mao Zedong did not overstate him as "stupid pig-like benevolence" at all.
Mao Zedong in Yan'an
Regarding Song Xianggong, after reading this article, what do you readers think? Welcome to leave a message. Original article, please indicate the source when reprinting.
At the same time, after writing about the Spring and Autumn Period for so long, I have not yet mentioned the two brightest stars in the history of the Spring and Autumn Period, the Qin State and the Jin State, what are they doing now? Pay attention to Xiao Meow, next, let's tell the story of Qin Jin.
bibliography:
"Ancient Literature and GuanZhi"
Chronicles of the States of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty
"The Left Handbook"
Historia