The "Chronicle of History" records that Song Xianggong led the soldiers to send Prince Zhao of Qi and Qi.
Song Xianggong (宋襄公), one of the Five Lords of spring and autumn, and the five hegemons of spring and autumn refers to the chief of the five princes in the Spring and Autumn period. During the Spring and Autumn Period, the Heavenly Sons declined and the princes prospered: the power of the Zhou royal family declined, the authority was no longer there, and it was no longer able to effectively control the princes of the world. In order to compete for the world, some powerful princely states have launched fierce wars for hegemony, and they have joined forces with each other and conquered the east and the west, and a total of several princes have become hegemons in turn. The "Spring and Autumn Five Hegemons" are the historical products of a specific stage in the Spring and Autumn Period, when the princes competed for hegemony wars, which made preliminary preparations for the annexation and unification wars in the Warring States period.
There have been many theories about the history of the "Spring and Autumn Five Powers", and the middle school history textbook mainly introduces the two most representative versions of the "History of Suoyin" or "Xunzi". The "History of Suoyin" says: Duke Huan of Qi, Duke Xiang of Song, Duke Wen of Jin, Duke Mu of Qin, and King Zhuang of Chu. The "Xunzi Wang Ba" says: Duke Huan of Qi, Duke Wen of Jin, King Zhuang of Chu, King Lu of Wu, and King Of Yue, and middle school history textbooks take into account both theories. The Spring and Autumn Five Hegemons generally refer to the five most representative people who participated in the struggle for hegemony in the Spring and Autumn Period, and the views of various historians and scholars are different. The "Spring and Autumn Five Hegemons" are not five people with completely equal power and status, and there are many versions, which will not be listed one by one, Qi Huan Gong and Jin Wen Gong are the two most standard overlords in the Spring and Autumn Period, which is deserved, and the history is called "Qi Huan Jin Wen". Therefore, all historical books were unanimously approved without controversy. Although Qin and Chu are not respected by the Central Plains countries, but Qin Mugong and Chu Zhuang Wang are very remarkable in their talents and merits, and cannot be buried, especially from today's point of view, these two have a fairly high recognition rate, so in the historical books, Qin Mu Gong won more than half of the votes, and the King of Chu Zhuang was also widely recognized, many people think that Song Xianggong is not worthy of the name of the Five Hegemons, but there are also some people who do not have a low evaluation of Song Xianggong. It can only be said that the benevolent see the wise and the wise see the wise.
Song Xianggong's name was Song Zifu (?) –637 BC), courtesy name Song, was the 20th monarch of the Song state during the Spring and Autumn period. One of the Five Lords of spring and autumn, the concubine of Duke Huan of Song and the father of Duke Cheng of Song. Reigned from 650 BC to 637 BC, reigned for 14 years.
After the death of Duke Huan of Qi, the position of overlord of the princes became vacant, and Song Xianggong wanted to emulate duke Huan of Qi and join the princes to establish a hegemonic position. Mu Yi (Brother of Song Xianggong) advised him: "It is a curse to join the princes with the strength of a small country. Xianggong did not listen. In the eleventh year of King Xiang of Zhou (641 BC), Song Xianggong detained Teng Xuangong and invited Cao and Yi to make an alliance in Caonan, and then ordered Duke Wen to send the king of The State of Yan as a sacrifice to the outskirts of Suishui for sacrifice, hoping to threaten Dongyi's submission. In the autumn of the same year, Song Xianggong again sent troops to surround Cao Guo because Cao Guo was dissatisfied. In the winter of the same year, Chen Mu invited the princes to restore the good of the Duke of Qi Huan, so Chen, Cai, Chu, and Zheng formed an alliance in the State of Qi. In this way, two major cliques were formed among the princes, with the states of Chu, Qi, Zheng, Chen, and Cai as one large clique, while the song Xianggong party, which was plotting to dominate, only had a few small states, such as Wei, Qi, Cao, and Shui.
In the spring of the thirteenth year of King Xiang of Zhou (639 BC), the Duke of Song Xiang met for the first time in Ludi, the State of Qi, and the King of the State of Chu, and the Duke of Xiang presented himself as the lord of the alliance, causing dissatisfaction among the Kings of Qi and the King of Chu, and Song Xianggong made his own claims, and without the consent of the State of Qi, the Consent of the State of Chu agreed to meet the princes again in Ludi in the autumn of that year. Duke Xianggong of Song's brother Gongzi Muyi persuaded him that Song was a small country, and that a small country would bring disaster if it wanted to become the hegemon, but Xianggong did not listen. Before arriving at the Land of Lu, Gongzi Muyi again advised him to bring an army in case there was a change, and the Chu people were not trustworthy. Song Xianggong said, "I proposed it myself without an army, and I have made an appointment with the Chu people, so how can I not keep my word?" Therefore, Song Xianggong did not bring troops to the meeting. On the appointed day, the kings of the six kingdoms of Chu, Chen, Cai, Xu, Cao, and Zheng all came, and the Chu state had already ambushed the army. Song Xianggong and King Chu Cheng had a dispute over their struggle to become the overlord of the princes, and King Chu Cheng suddenly ordered someone to capture Song Xianggong and take him back to the Chu state and imprison him, hoping to capture the Song state, until the winter of the same year, when the princes met in Bodi, at the mediation of Duke Lu, Xianggong was released.
In the early winter of the fourteenth year of King Xiang of Zhou (638 BC), Song Xianggong led an army to attack the State of Zheng, and the State of Zheng asked the State of Chu for help. The State of Chu sent the general Cheng Dechen to lead an army to attack the capital of the Song State. Fearing a domestic loss, Song Xianggong had to retreat from ZhengGuo, and the armies of the two sides met at Hongshui (洪水, the name of the ancient river, so the road was about northwest of present-day Zhecheng County, Henan Province).
The Chu army began to cross the Hongshui River and rushed to the Song army. Mu Yi said, "There are many Chu soldiers and few our army, so take advantage of their crossing of the river to eliminate them." Song Xianggong said, "We are known as the master of benevolence and righteousness, how can we take advantage of the fact that others cross the river to attack?" The Chu army crossed the river and began to deploy on the shore, and Mu Yi said: It is time to attack. Song Xianggong said, "Wait until they have lined up their positions." When the Chu army was ready, the Chu soldiers rushed forward and defeated the Song army, and Song Xianggong was also shot in the thigh by the Chu soldiers.
The Song army suffered defeat and heavy losses, and all complained that Song Xianggong did not listen to the advice of Gongzi Muyi, but Song Xianggong taught: "A gentleman with a benevolent heart does not attack the enemy who has been injured in battle, nor does he attack the elderly whose hair is gray." In particular, whenever the ancients fought, they did not rely on the barriers to win, and although the widowed Song Kingdom was about to perish, it still could not bear to attack the enemy who did not have a good position. But the fish said, "The purpose of fighting a war is to win, and what is the way of a gentleman!" If you really do what Xianggong said, go and serve as a slave, so why fight a war? ”
In the summer of the fifteenth year of King Xiang of Zhou (637 BC), Song Xianggong suffered a wound and died, and was buried in the northeast palace of Xiangyi (襄邑, in present-day Sui County, Henan Province).
When Qi Huan was hegemonic, Song Xianggong followed Qi Huan closely, and was regarded as a qualified younger brother who actively maintained the hegemony of the State of Qi. After the death of Duke Huan of Qi, Duke Xiang of Song helped the State of Qi to quell civil unrest, supported the Duke of Qi, and fulfilled the instructions of the Duke of Qi Huan; Song Xianggong tried to unite with the State of Chu, using the power of the State of Chu to dominate, and implemented the diplomatic strategy of emphasizing Chu and light Qi, so he held the Alliance of Lushang, and the lord of the alliance did not become a prisoner, but became a prisoner of King Cheng of Chu in the Meeting of Lu. Before Song Xianggong died in his later years, he treated the Prince of Jin with kindness to the wandering nations, and his ear was the Jin Wengong that we will talk about later.
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