This is a time of great change. The history of this long-standing country is full of exclamation points.
In the late Xia Dynasty, China's first dynasty, the prince Shang Tang personally led an army to defeat Xia Jie at Mingtiao, and established China's second dynasty, the Great Shang Dynasty. Legend has it that there was a lively and charming daughter of the Rong family, who swallowed The descendants of the legendary figure Qi who were born after laying the eggs of the destiny black bird, Shangtang, a prince of the Xia Dynasty, was one of them. Shang Tang established the Great Shang Dynasty and finally enjoyed unlimited power and supreme honor.
But dynasties all rise and fall. Six hundred years later, the throne of the Great Shang passed to the hands of Emperor Xin, King of Zhou of Shang. He was extravagant and tyrannical, and was spurned by the people of the world, so he was dubbed "Zhou" by future generations. "The word is used as a posthumous title. King Wen of Zhou can be said to be a saint and wise master comparable to Shang Tang. In the Battle of Muye, King Wu of Zhou, the son of King Wen of Zhou, defeated King Zhou of Shang, a descendant of Shang Tang, and founded the Great Zhou Dynasty. The Zhou Dynasty went through two dynasties, the Western Zhou Dynasty and the Eastern Zhou Dynasty. During the Western Zhou Dynasty, the Zhou Dynasty began to weaken because of an incident.
In the eleventh year of King Zhou You, that is, one day in 771 BC. Haojing, the capital of the Western Zhou Dynasty, a place of joy and peace in the eyes of the world, is now plunged into war. Men, women, old and young are crying loudly, and the confused and panicked people are trying to escape from the iron hoof of the Rong tribe to save their lives. The beacon tower on the mountain outside Haojing City was burning brightly, and the thick smoke slowly drifted into the distance, but there was no sign of King Qin's army of princes who were supposed to see the beacon. There are only a few beacon towers, helplessly isolated in the cold wind, so lonely and vicissitudes of life. Why don't the princes come to serve the king? That's all because King You of Zhou smiled for the beautiful woman and played with the princes with a beacon fire. This beauty is Baosi. This is how the custom of "playing beacon fire on princes" comes from. The joke played by King Zhou You on the princes later became true. The Rong invaded Haojing, and the emperor was in trouble. When Zheng Wugong assisted King Ping of Zhou to move eastward to Luoyang, the history books turned a new page, and the Eastern Zhou Dynasty began. From then on, the conquest of rituals and music came from the princes. Although the Emperor of Zhou was still the nominal ruler of the world, China had entered a new era of war.
This is an era of constant killing. It was also an era when heroes emerged in large numbers. The first of the Five Hegemons of the Spring and Autumn Period was Duke Huan of Qi, who dominated the princes, followed by King Zhuang of Chu, Duke Mu of Qin, Duke Wen of Jin, and Duke Xianggang of Song. These wise and ambitious monarchs all longed for the rise of their countries. As a result, so many allusions appeared, such as those about Guan Bao's friendship, aspiration to conquer the Central Plains, riding and shooting in Hu clothes, and recruiting talents from a golden platform.
At the same time, many talented generals also appeared, such as Shang Yang and Bai Qi of Qin.
There are also Li Mu, Guan Zhong, Fan Li, Mengchang Jun, Pingyuan Jun from other countries, especially Zhang Yi and Su Qin, two political strategists who came from the same school but went their separate ways.
How many outstanding people were born in this era. Take Qu Yuan, who lamented on the banks of the Miluo River, "The whole world is turbid, but I alone am pure, and everyone is drunk, but I alone am sober." The greatest tragedy in his life was that he was born at the wrong time and his ambition was hard to achieve.
Looking back at the history of the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, someone once said this: There was a period when the Chinese people were full of blood, unscrupulous, living and progressing wonderfully.
This book, written by me after consulting many books, will open a door for you to understand the history of the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. Let you better understand the national history of your country.
