At the end of the Warring States period, the Qin state became more and more powerful, and the nobles of various countries also recruited sages to seek self-improvement, and the wind of "raising soldiers" prevailed. Among them, the most famous are the "Four Princes of the Warring States", they are The Plain Jun Zhao Sheng, the Xinling Jun Wei Wujie, the Meng Tian Wen and the Chunshen Jun Huang Xie.
When it comes to "Gongzi", many people may think of the beautiful description of "strangers like jade, and Gongzi is unparalleled in the world", so is the four princes of the Warring States really the dusty and unstainable Gongzi in everyone's mind? Let's take a look at their experiences and then make up our minds.
The Xinling Emperor Wei Wuji was the younger son of King Zhao of Wei, and he was born at a time when the State of Qin was strong and the State of Wei was in decline. During the reign of King Zhao of Wei, the State of Qin sent troops to the State of Wei many times, conquering dozens of cities and pools of the State of Wei, and even once hit the capital of the State of Wei. During the reign of King An of Wei, Fan Ju fled from the State of Wei to the State of Qin and served as the Minister of State of Qin, and therefore held a grudge against the State of Wei. With his support, the State of Qin sent an army to besiege the State of Wei and ended in a complete victory, and the General of the State of Wei, Mangji, fled in defeat.
Fan Sui
At this time, the young Xin Lingjun became an important pillar of the Wei state. According to the Chronicle of History, Xin Lingjun was a benevolent and generous corporal, and regardless of the identity and talent of others, he was able to treat them with humility and courtesy, and many people were attached to him. Thus, "When it was, the princes, with their sons and sons, did not dare to increase their troops to wei for more than ten years."
But on the other hand, Xin Lingjun's life experience was quite bumpy. "Xin Lingjun stealing the charm to save Zhao" is a familiar story that everyone knows, which made him famous, but this is also the beginning of the tragedy of his life.
After Qin defeated the State of Zhao at the Battle of Changping, and then entered the army to besiege Handan, the King of Wei, fearing for Qin's might, did not dare to send troops to rescue Zhao, so the State of Zhao asked for help from Xin lingjun. Xin Lingjun successfully stole the soldier's charm by relying on his usual connections and loyal disciples, and led the army to save the Zhao state, although he gained the reputation of "Gaoyi", but he was also resented by the King of Wei.
Great Qin Fu Xin Lingjun
Xin Lingjun knew that he was not tolerated by the King of Wei, and after relieving the siege of the Zhao state, he asked the general to lead the army back to the wei state, and he stayed in the Zhao state for ten years. During this period, the state of Qin knew that Xin Lingjun had left the state of Wei, so he took the opportunity to invade the state of Wei, and the state of Wei was invincible and was defeated and retreated, and the king of Wei, in desperation, hurriedly sent someone to invite back Xin Lingjun and grant him the official position of general. After receiving the trust, the countries supported Xin Lingjun, and the armies of the five countries under his leadership joined forces to defeat the Qin army, and the Qin general Meng Yuan fled south of the Yellow River.
After the fiasco of the Qin state, he was greatly frightened and realized the pivotal position of Xin Lingjun in the battle situation, so the Qin state sent people to alienate the King of Wei, pretending that Xin Lingjun had the intention of replacing the King of Wei. The King of Wei did indeed begin to suspect Xin Lingjun again, and withdrew his seal from the general, Xin Lingjun was disheartened, saying that he was no longer ill and died of illness due to excessive drinking. (One said to have been killed by the King of Wei)
Duke of Wei, Xin Lingjun
Zhao Sheng, the Prince of Pingyuan, was a nobleman of the State of Zhao and the brother-in-law of The Prince of Wei. He served as the prime minister of the Zhao Dynasty for two generations, and was deposed three times and reinstated three times.
At first, the State of Qin attacked Korea, and the Korean Shangdang Junshou wanted to dedicate Shangdang to the Zhao State, and after fierce discussions in the Zhao State, finally agreed to the proposal of the Shangdang Junshou. However, this act annoyed the Qin state, and eventually the Battle of Qin Zhao Changping broke out. After the defeat of the State of Zhao, the Qin army attacked all the way to the capital of the State of Zhao, Handan, and Pingyuan Jun led the Menke to the Chu State, successfully persuaded the King of Chu to make a covenant of alliance, and under the advice of the Gatekeeper, he organized his concubines and servants into an army and repelled the Qin army with reinforcements.
Although Pingyuan Jun was a corporal of Lixian and was like a stream of advice, he lacked the concept of the overall situation, and rushed to accept The Shangdang County of Korea to cause the Qin State to react to the Battle of Changping, during which the Qin State alienated the Zhao State Junchen, and the King of Zhao replaced the veteran general Lian Po with the young general Zhao Kuo, and this series of changes, the Pingyuan Jun, as the Minister of State, did not make any move, which showed its shortcomings. After the death of Pingyuan Jun, his descendants inherited his title, which can be regarded as a good death.
Great Qin Fu Pingyuan Jun
Chunshen Jun Huang Xie was a native of the Chu state and the only non-royal nobleman among the four princes of the Warring States.
Huang Xie was knowledgeable and good at debate, and wrote to King Zhao of Qin to successfully prevent the State of Qin from sending troops to attack Chu and promote an alliance between Qin and Chu.
Huang Xie and the Prince of Chu were taken hostage in the State of Qin together, and after the King of Chu fell ill, Huang Xie found the corresponding Marquis of the State of Qin and used the favor of the future monarch of the State of Chu as bait to persuade the King of Qin to let the Prince return to Chu, and when the King of Qin hesitated, Huang Xie persuaded the Prince to design a secret return to the State of Chu, and the Prince returned to china and inherited the throne, that is, King Chu Kaolie.
Chun Shen Jun
King Chu Kaolie was therefore greatly grateful to Huang Xie and made him minister of state, giving him a large fief. During Chun Shenjun's tenure as minister of state, he led troops to rescue the siege of Handan and destroyed the state of Lu to the north, appointing Xunzi, and the state of Chu gradually became stronger. In the 22nd year of Chun Shenjun's tenure as chancellor, the Six Kingdoms Alliance army of chu as the leader of the qin was defeated, and the king of Chu became angry with Chun Shenjun, who was in charge of the army, and gradually alienated him.
Since King Chu Kao Lie had no sons, Chun Shenjun was worried about this matter and searched for women who could be concubines to continue the imperial heir, but there was no result. Li Yuan, a member of the Zhao state, had a sister, and he started this idea, wanting to send his sister to the palace, and when he learned that the King of Chu could not have children due to physical reasons, he instead gave his sister to Chun Shenjun, and later his sister became pregnant, at which time Li Yuan again offered a plan to Chun Shenjun and asked him to sacrifice his sister to the King of Chu. When Li Yuan's sister gave birth to a son, the next king of Chu would be the son of Chun Shenjun, so that he could get long-term wealth.
Chun Shen Junzhen dedicated Li Yuan's sister to the King of Chu, and Li Yuan's sister also quarreled, and indeed gave birth to a son, the only son naturally became the heir of the Chu State, and Li Yuan was thus favored by the King of Chu, participated in the government, and secretly moved, planning to kill Chun Shen Jun. Chun Shenjun's doorman told him to be wary of Li Yuan, but he didn't think so. Soon after, the King of Chu died, and Li Yuan entered the palace to set up an ambush and assassinated Chun Shenjun.
Meng Tasted Juntian Wen, his father Tian Bao was the Emperor of the State of Qi, tian Bao participated in the imperial government when he was king of Qi Wei, and lived in the position of Xiangguo of the State of Qi for more than 10 years.
Tian Wen was born as a concubine and was born on the fifth day of the first month of May, tian bao felt unlucky and told his mother not to support him. But Tian Wen's mother still secretly raised him, and Tian Bao was furious when she found out. Tian Wen asked him why he hated himself so much, and Tian Bao replied to him: A child born in May will grow up to be as tall as the portal, which is not good for his parents. Tian Wen asked rhetorically, "Life is entrusted to Heaven?" Will you be ordained by the household evil? That is to say, is the fate of man determined by Heaven or by the portal? Tian Bao couldn't answer. Tian Wen said: If it is up to heaven to decide, what are you worried about? If it is up to the portal to decide, it is good to make the portal high. Well said with a reasonable look.
After that, Tian Wen gradually received the weight of Tian Bao, Tian Bao began to let him participate in some important family affairs, and his fame also grew, and after Tian Bao's death, Tian Wen inherited his title, known as Meng Yujun.
Meng tasted Juntian Wen
Meng Tianjun was courteous and courteous to others, and many people attached themselves to him. In 299 BC, Meng Tianjun sent an envoy to the Qin Kingdom, and the King of Qin was jealous of his virtuous ability to detain him, and two of Meng Tianjun's disciples escaped danger by stealing fur and learning chicken barking, which is also the origin of the idiom "chicken singing dog thief".
Meng Tianjun's fame and fame aroused the suspicion of the King of Qi, who planned to get rid of him, and Meng Tianjun fled to the State of Wei. In the State of Wei, he was reused for his talents and took charge of the Xiangyin of the State of Wei. Later, under his impetus, the State of Wei, together with Qin and Zhao, defeated the State of Qi, and king Qi Tang fled and died of illness. After King Xiang of Qi ascended the throne, fearing the ability of Meng Yujun, the State of Qi made peace with the State of Wei.
Tian Wen was rejected by his father when he was born, and stood out among many brothers by virtue of his own ability, which benefited from the social atmosphere of Li Xian at that time, but also was inseparable from his intelligence and strategy.
The four sons of the Warring States are synonymous with an era, they were born in a chaotic world, grew up in a chaotic world, and became famous in a chaotic world. It was the era when a hundred schools of thought competed for fame and meritocracy gave them the opportunity to make meritorious achievements. They are not just short-lived classics in history, nor are they the illusions of the best princes in our minds, but flesh-and-blood people who worked hard for the interests of their families and kingdoms in that era of strife. They can be heroes, one person goes out to save a country, one person takes over the army; they can also be ordinary people, depressed because they are jealous, and they will yearn for it when they see interests; they may even have human weaknesses, coveting wealth and wealth, and not seeing the big picture. But what cannot be avoided is that they are indeed a strong stroke of the Warring States era.
History, Zhonghua Bookstore, 2013 edition.
Zhao Jin: "Research on the Four Princes of the Warring States", Heilongjiang University, 2016 Master's Thesis.
Shi Xiaobo and Yang Meixi, "The Style of the Four Princes of the Warring States and Their Personality Exploration", Tangdu Academic Journal, No. 5, 2014.
(Author: Haoran Wenshi Henan Normal University Spring and Autumn Society)
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