After Chong'er arrived in Qin, Duke Mu of Qin treated him with great courtesy and gave five clan girls to Chong'er, including Huaiying who had been married to Duke Huai of Jin. Chong'er was over sixty years old at this time, the same age as Qin Mugong, and was ashamed to marry his daughter. What's more, Huaiying was the wife of Chong'er's nephew. If he married her, his uncle would seize his nephew's wife, which was even more inconsistent with etiquette. Therefore, he is unwilling to accept this marriage.
The doctor Xu Chen advised him: "You came to Qin with the intention of seeking Qin's help and going back to take Jin back from Yu. What scruples do you have if you take his wife away today? Besides, we came to Qin today to return home. He is already very shameless, why should he give up his goal just because of trivial matters?" So Chong'er married Huaiying.
Once, Duke Mu of Qin hosted a banquet in honor of Chong'er. Hu Yan said, "I am not as agile as Zhao Shuai in speaking. Please take Zhao Shuai to the banquet." During the dinner, Chong'er recited the poem "The river is oceanful, and the north flows lively" in the Book of Songs. The poem expresses one's admiration for Duke Mu of Qin. Duke Mu of Qin recited the poem "The Book of Songs in June" which recounted King Xuan of Zhou's Northern Expedition in June, implying that he was willing to support Chong'er in returning to the country and ascending the throne, so that he could have the opportunity to assist the emperor and support the royal family. Zhao Shui heard the implication of Qin Mugong's words, and immediately said in Chong'er's tone: "Chong'er, thank you!" Chong'er also lowered his rank to express his thanks. Qin Mugong also lowered his rank to return the gift. Zhao Shui said on behalf of Chong'er: "Your Majesty. Encourage Chong'er with the great responsibility of assisting the emperor, how dare Chong'er not worship him!"
Seeing that Chong'er was so respectful and grateful to him, Duke Mu of Qin would not be as ungrateful as Duke Hui of Jin and his son, so he decided to send Chong'er back to his country. Moreover, after Duke Huai of Jin came to the throne, he was very unpopular in the Jin state. He was worried that Chong'er's absence would threaten his status, so he ordered the families of the ministers who followed Chong'er to call them back, otherwise his whole family would be killed. Chong'er's maternal grandfather, Hu Tu, was unwilling to recall his two sons, Hu Mao and Hu Yan, and said: "If a son is capable of serving as an official, he will be loyal to his father's teachings; if his father taught his son, how can he serve the emperor?" He insisted on recalling his two sons, so he was dismissed by Duke Huai of Jin Dynasty. Killed.
Hutu was a veteran minister with a high status in the Jin Kingdom. Princes Shen Sheng, Chong'er and Yiwu were all his grandsons. Moreover, Hutu died for righteousness. All the ministers were very sad and angry. They were even more alienated from Duke Huai of Jin and hoped that Chonger could return to the country. . When officials Luan, Que and others heard that Chong'er had arrived in Qin, they secretly sent people to persuade Chong'er to take Zhao Shui and others back to the country, and promised to serve as internal correspondents in Jin.
In the twenty-fourth year of Duke Xi of Lu (636 BC), Duke Mu of Qin personally led an army to escort Chong'er back to his country. When they arrived at the bank of the Yellow River, Duke Mu of Qin gave half of his men and horses to Chong'er, while he left half of his men and horses on the west bank of the Yellow River to support him. When they boarded the ship, Prince Chong'er's entourage carried all the belongings used in the exile to the ship, and they were reluctant to throw away any of them. When Chong'er saw it, he said, "I will be a king when I go back. I will have whatever I want. Why do I need these rags?" Then he ordered people to throw all the old things on the shore.
Chong'er's uncle Hu Yan saw all this and felt very sad. He thought, if a young master forgets his poverty before he gains wealth and honor, how can he be a good monarch in the future? So he held up his jade and said to Chong'er: "Now that you are crossing the river, the other side is the Kingdom of Jin. You have ministers inside and Qin outside. I will stay here."
When Chong'er heard this, he was very surprised and said: "I relied on your help to be where I am today. We have endured nineteen years of hardship outside. Now we go back and enjoy the blessings together. How can you not go back? How can I repay you?" Woolen cloth?"
Hu Yan said: "I have followed you around the world for so many years, and I have made countless mistakes. I know it myself, and you have seen it. In the past, I was of some use to you when you were in trouble. Now you have returned to be the king. , naturally there is a group of new people to help. We are like these old things. Not only are they worn out and unusable, but they also remind you of the hard days in the past. What are you going to do with them?"
After hearing this, Chong'er knew that Hu Yan and others had done a lot of things over the years, such as forcing themselves to leave Qi State, in order to urge them to ask for help. They were worried that they would retaliate against him for the old things after he ascended the throne. So Chong'er said sincerely: "Anyone who is not of the same mind as my uncle is like white water!" Then he threw the jade into the Yellow River, and Hu Yan followed Chong'er across the river with confidence.
After Chong'er led Qin's army into Jin's territory, Duke Huai of Jin also hurriedly sent out troops to resist. However, everyone knew that this was Prince Chong'er returning to the country, and no one really resisted. As a result, the army approached the capital like a broken bamboo. Seeing that the situation was over, Duke Huai of Jin fled and was later killed by people sent by Chong'er.
After the death of Duke Huai of Jin, Chong'er legitimately ascended the throne and was known as Duke Wen of Jin in history. At this time, Chong'er was already sixty-two years old. He fled Jin at the age of forty-three. After nineteen years of arduous exile, he finally succeeded. Once again, I set foot on the land of my motherland openly and honestly.
Although Duke Wen of Jin has ascended the throne, there are still some forces loyal to Duke Hui of Jin and Duke Huai of Jin left behind, including Lu's nephew and Qerui, who were the favorites of Duke Hui and Duke Huai of Jin. They were worried that the Jin Wen Gong would liquidate these old ministers, so they decided to take advantage of the situation and set fire to Jin Wen Gong's palace, and then took advantage of the chaos to kill Jin Wen Gong. In order to increase their chances of success, they also invited eunuch Pi, an assassin sent by Jin Xiangong to assassinate Chong'er, to discuss the matter. Unexpectedly, the eunuch Pi was not optimistic about their plan, so he immediately went to see Duke Wen of Jin to report the matter.
This eunuch Pi was ordered to assassinate Chong'er. Duke Xian of Jin ordered him to arrive in three days, and he arrived in two days. As a result, Chong'er had no time to escape, and he caught up with him and cut off one of his sleeves, almost killing him. Duke Wen of Jin still remembered this grudge, so he didn't want to see him, and even sent someone to scold him: "Back then, Duke Xian ordered you to kill me, and he gave you three days, but you arrived in two days, even though it was the king's order. But are you too impatient? The sleeves you cut off are still there, so you'd better leave quickly."
The eunuch laughed and said: "Obiding the king's orders is a system that has existed since ancient times. As a minister, you have to do your best to get rid of the people the king hates. Guan Zhong originally assisted Prince Jiu and Duke Huan of Qi to compete for the position of king. He also shot Duke Huan of Qi with an arrow, but Duke Huan of Qi still ignored the past grievances and appointed Guan Zhong as his prime minister. Now that you have ascended the throne as the king, I should serve you wholeheartedly. If you blindly pursue the past, then there will be too many ministers who have wronged you, and Am I the only one?"
Duke Wen of Jin heard what the eunuch Pi said was very reasonable, so he summoned him. So the eunuch Pi informed Duke Wen of Jin of the plot of Lu's nephew and Qerui. Duke Wen of Jin quietly went to Duke Mu of Qin to discuss the matter. The two had decided on a plan and acted accordingly. On the day that eunuch Pi said, a fire broke out in the palace of Duke Wen of Jin. Lu's nephew and Qi Rui took advantage of the chaos and entered the palace to look for Duke Wen of Jin, but they could not find them. They traced all the way to the bank of the Yellow River. Qin Duke Mu had already laid an ambush and captured and killed them all.
In this battle, Jin Wen Gong wiped out the remaining forces of Jin Hui Gong and his son, also frightened the ministers with evil intentions, and consolidated his position. Afterwards, Duke Wen of Jin welcomed the five wives of the Ying family back to the country. Duke Mu of Qin also left three thousand guards to Duke Wen of Jin to help him stabilize the domestic situation.
During Jin Wengong's nineteen years of exile, he was followed by not only Hu Yan, Zhao Shui and other very famous capable ministers in history, but also a wise minister named Jiezi who was famous in history because he was loyal to his master and did not envy glory and wealth. push.
Since Chong'er left Jin and embarked on the road of exile, he has lived a life of precarity and worry. First, his father, Duke Xiang of Jin, believed Li Ji's slander and sent assassins to hunt him down one after another. After the death of Duke Xian of Jin, Duke Hui of Jin returned to his country and ascended the throne. In order to eliminate the hidden danger of Chong'er competing for the throne of the king, he continued to send people to hunt down Chong'er. However, because there were many virtuous ministers following Chong'er, and Chong'er's mother country Di was very close to Jin, Chong'er lived a stable life after arriving in Di.
However, Di State was not a place to stay for a long time after all. After deliberation, Chong'er led a group of ministers, took the wealth accumulated in Di State for twelve years, and left Di State to continue visiting various countries to seek support. His wealth was kept by a courtier named Touxu, who unexpectedly escaped with the money and stole all Chong'er's property. At that time, Chong'er and his party were walking to the state of Wei. The impoverished Chong'er went to Duke Wen of Wei for help. However, Duke Wen of Wei remembered that Jin had offended the state of Wei and turned Chong'er away.
Chong'er and others lost all their property and could not even find food. They were driven out of the capital of Weiguo hungry. Later, Chong'er and his party could not find food and almost starved to death in Weiguo. In order to save Chong'er's life, Jie Zitui resolutely cut off the meat from his own thighs and cooked it into broth for Chong'er to eat. Only then did Chong'er survive and have the opportunity to return to the Kingdom of Jin to ascend the throne as king in the future and achieve great success. This is the famous story of "cutting off the king's stock and eating the king" in history.
Although Jie Zitui was loyal to Chong'er, he was not a vain person who pursued power. He was aloof and arrogant, and his behavior was not very harmonious. He was not outstanding among the ministers who followed Chong'er. After years of travel and twists and turns, Chong'er finally got the help of Duke Mu of Qin, who was willing to send troops to escort him back to Jin to seize the throne. When they arrived at the bank of the Yellow River, they followed Chong'er's favored ministers all the way. Chong'er's uncle Hu Yan was worried about his fate after returning home, so he asked Chong'er to offer a bib to test Chong'er's attitude.
When Jie Zitui saw this, he was filled with contempt and said with a sneer: "God protects the young master, so the young master is what he is today. However, Hu Yan thinks this is his own contribution, and uses the jade to threaten the young master. This is really a shameless act. I don't want to continue working with you people." So he left Chong'er and others and lived in seclusion.
After Chong'er became the king, in order to appease people's hearts and stabilize the situation, he adopted a series of policies that benefited the people. At the same time, he generously rewarded the ministers who followed him in exile and the meritorious ministers who helped him return to the country. The rewards of the city were rewarded, and those with small merits also received noble titles. However, this reward did not extend to all meritorious officials. Soon after, King Zhou Xiang was forced to flee to Zheng State because of his brother Duan's rebellion, and asked Jin State for help. Duke Wen of Jin wanted to send troops to rescue him, but he was worried that the situation would be unstable soon after he took the throne. Once he personally led his troops to leave the Jin State to quell the rebellion, civil strife would break out again in the Jin State.
So Jin Wengong once again rewarded the ministers who followed him in exile and asked them to protect the Jin Kingdom for him. Seeing that all the officials who had followed him had received rewards and enjoyed the glory and wealth, Touxu, who had once been a thief and had stolen all the property of Duke Wen of Jin and escaped, came back to see Duke Wen of Jin to ask for an official position. Duke Wen of Jin remembered that his betrayal had caused him to almost starve to death in the suburbs of Weiguo, so he was very reluctant to see him, but if he refused rashly, he was worried that the matter would spread out and chill the hearts of all his ministers. So Jin Wengong sent someone to tell him that he was washing his hair and it was inconvenient to wear a crown to receive him.
After hearing this, Touxu had an idea and asked someone to report back to Duke Wen of Jin: "When you wash your hair, your head is down and your heart is turned around. It is natural that you should not see me. At the beginning, the king was in exile, and the ministers who stayed in Jin were to protect the king. In Sheji, the people who follow the king outside are servants leading horses and riding the pedals. Why should the king only blame the people who stayed behind? As a king, you hate me, an ordinary person, and I am afraid that there will be many people who are worried."
When Duke Wen of Jin heard that Touxu secretly accused himself of being ungrateful, he even escalated his personal dislike of him to a group antagonism such as the monarch's hatred of all the ministers who did not follow him in exile. He was worried that such remarks would shake people's hearts if spread, so he had no choice but to receive him. Head whiskers. After meeting Jin Wengong, Touxu told Jin Wengong that when he left with all his property, he was not betraying him, but used the money to go to various countries to recruit powerful people and seek assistance for him. Although Duke Wen of Jin was still very dissatisfied with Touxu after hearing this, he had to take advantage of the situation and reward Touxu.
Later, Uncle Hu, a servant who followed Duke Wen of Jin, heard that Touxu betrayed his master in danger and pushed Chong'er into a desperate situation. He was actually rewarded, but he never received the reward, so he felt indignant. He went to Duke Wen of Jin and asked, "You have rewarded the ministers three times since you returned home, but you have never rewarded me. Is there anything wrong with me?"
Duke Wen of Jin was already very dissatisfied with the reward of the head and beard. Now he saw a mere servant coming to ask for a reward, so he said coldly: "Those ministers who guide me with benevolence and righteousness and advise me with kindness, I will reward them with high rewards; Those ministers who have worked hard to assist me and used their actions to help me return home and take the throne, I will reward them with second-class rewards; those ministers who risked their lives and fought for me, I will reward them with third-class rewards; if you just work hard, I reward the ministers who serve me but do nothing to help me correct their shortcomings. Therefore, although I have rewarded the ministers three times, I have not rewarded you yet."
Since Jie Zitui had retired, he had not received any awards from previous officials, and he himself did not bother to beg for rewards like Uncle Hu and Touxu did. Jie Zitui said to his mother: "At that time, Duke Xian of Jin had nine sons, and only the current king is alive today. Duke Hui and Duke Huai could not appease people's hearts, and were despised by all the ministers and princes in the country. They accepted the destiny of God to preside over the Jin Dynasty. Who else can be the leader of the country besides the king? The king's accession to the throne is really a blessing from God, but these people think it is their own merit. If you steal other people's money, you will be accused of being a thief, let alone appropriating the merits of God. What about your own? The officials regard their crimes as righteous deeds, and the king rewards them for their treacherous deeds. It is really difficult to live in a country like this."
Jie Zitui's mother said, "Why don't you go and see the king? Otherwise, after you die, who will be able to understand you?" Jie Zitui said, "Knowing that it is wrong and trying to imitate it is even more wrong. I You can't go along with that kind of people." His mother said again: "Then at least let the king understand your thoughts." Jie Zitui said: "To express your feelings is like painting patterns on your body. I want to live in seclusion, so why bother? What about painting patterns on the body? That is the way to pursue prominence." So Jie Zitui took his mother to live in seclusion and never came out to serve as an official again.
Later, someone sympathized with Jie Zitui's plight and admired his nobility, so he wrote a letter and hung it on the palace gate: "The dragon wants to ascend to the sky, and five snakes are assisting him. The dragon has ascended to the clouds, and each of the four snakes has entered its own space; one snake I only complained that I couldn't see the place." After Jin Wengong saw it, he said: "This is saying that Jie Zitui was pushed. I was worried about the royal family and did not have time to reward him." So he ordered someone to summon Jie Zitui, but Jie Zitui pushed him. At this time, he had already lived in seclusion in Mianshang Mountain, so Jin Wengong assigned Mianshang Mountain to Jie Zitui as a fiefdom, named it Jieshan, and said: "To remember my mistakes and pay tribute to good people."
There is also a theory that after Jie Zitui went into seclusion, Duke Wen of Jin personally went to Mianshang Mountain to ask him to come out of the mountain, but Jie Zitui refused. So someone suggested that Duke Wen of Jin set fire to Mianshang Mountain and use the fire to push Jie out. For some reason, Duke Wen of Jin actually agreed to the idea of using fire to "invite" people to come out of the mountain, and he sent people to set fire to the mountain. The fire burned for three days and three nights, but the stubborn Jie Zitui still did not come out. Later it was discovered that the mother and son had been burned to death in the mountain.
Duke Wen of Jin felt very regretful that his stupid behavior had killed Jie Zitui, so he buried Jie Zitui's mother and son lavishly, and ordered that every year in the future, on the anniversary of Jie Zitui's death, people would not be allowed to live, and people could only eat cold food. This custom was passed down, and later Cold Food Festival.
