Duke Dao of Jin's efforts to seek hegemony reached its peak at the Xingqiu Alliance, marking the Jin Kingdom's heyday thanks to the efforts of its monarchs and ministers.
Xingqiu is located in the east of Wen County in present-day Henan Province. In the eighth year of Lu Xianggong (565 BC), in the fifth month of summer, Duke Ao of Jin summoned Lu Ji Sunsu, Zheng Jianggong, Qi doctor Gao Hou, Song generals Xiangxu, Weiningzhi, and Zhu. The officials and others met at Xingqiu to form an alliance. Before that, Duke Ai had just summoned the Marquis of Lu, Duke of Song, Chen Huan, Marquis of Wei, Cao Bo, Ju Zi, Zhu Zi and others to form an alliance to discuss rescuing Chen.
The relationship between Chen Guo and Zheng Guo is similar. In the early Spring and Autumn Period, the State of Chen was attached to the State of Zheng, and the State of Zheng even influenced the abolition and establishment of the monarch of the Chen State. After the death of Duke Zhuang of Zheng, the State of Zheng declined, the State of Chu gradually became stronger, and the State of Chen began to rely on the State of Chu again. After the Battle of Chengpu, the Jin State defeated the Chu State, and Jin Wengong became one of the Five Hegemons of the Spring and Autumn Period. The Chen State, which was originally pro-Chu, gradually turned to the Jin State. However, Chen's behavior of pro-Jin and betraying Chu was retaliated by Chu. Under Chu's military attack, Chen had to rely on Chu again. However, Chen Guo's behavior aroused dissatisfaction and attack from Jin State. As a result, Chen Guo could only waver between the two great powers like Zheng Guo, and therefore was constantly attacked by the two countries.
In the third year of Duke Xianggong of Lu (570 BC), Duke Dao of Jin invited the princes to gather for an alliance in Jize. The State of Chen, who was not originally included in the alliance, could not stand the extreme oppression of Chu State, so he took the initiative to send envoys to Jize to meet the Marquis of Jin. Ask for peace. After Chu State learned of this, on the one hand it sent troops to attack Chen State, and on the other hand it also instructed its allies to attack Chen State from the flanks. In order to save Chen, Duke Dao of Jin called the princes to make alliances many times.
Two years later, the Chu State once again attacked the disloyal Chen State. The Duke invited Lu, Song, Wei, and others to form an alliance with the Wu State in Qi, and sent the princes to send troops to join forces to defend the Chen State.
It was also when the Jin and Chu countries were in a stalemate over Chen that the Shanrong Wujing Kingdom in the north (today's east of Taiyuan, Shanxi) sent envoys to the Jin Kingdom and presented tiger and leopard skins to the Jin Marquis, hoping to negotiate with the Jin Kingdom. and. The Duke of Jin Dynasty believed that the people of Rong and Di were disrespectful and greedy, and wanted to reject their request for peace and launch a crusade against them. However, Wei Jiang, who served under Duke Ai, had great political foresight. He used the example of Hou Yi's demise in the Xia Dynasty as a lesson, warned Duke Ao not to indulge in field hunting, and listed in detail the five benefits of making peace with Rong Di. Duke Mou was deeply convinced and sent Wei Jiang as an envoy to discuss peace with the Rong and Di tribes. In this way, the Jin State was relieved of its worries when it went south to compete with the Chu State for supremacy.
In addition to Chen Guo, Zheng Guo was also vacillating between Jin and Chu. Duke Ao of Jin has always regarded Zheng Guo as one of his important goals in reviving Jin's hegemony.
The Zheng State was held hostage between the two great powers in the Spring and Autumn Period. When it fell to the Chu State, it was attacked by the Jin State, and when it fell to the Jin State, it was attacked by the Chu State. It wanted to be neutral, but neither country agreed, so it suffered deeply from the war. Later, the king of Zheng followed the advice of his ministers and simply based on the strength of the two countries, whichever country was stronger would fall to whichever side.
In the eighth year of Lu Xianggong (565 BC), in order to anger Chu, Zheng sent troops to attack Cai, which had surrendered to Chu, and captured its Sima Gongzi Xie. This year happened to be the year when Duke Dao of Jin presided over the Xingqiu Conference. Duke Dao convened the conferences of Zheng, Qi, Song, Wei, Zhu, etc., and put forward the requirement to unify the standards of gifts for pilgrims and betrothals in various countries. The officials of the princes obeyed the orders. In order to show his loyalty to Jin, Duke Jiang of Zheng, who participated in the alliance, presented Cai's captives to Duke Mourning in public, and personally stated that he would only follow Jin from now on. Xingqiu formed an alliance and obeyed Zheng Guo, which became a symbol of Jin Aogong's hegemony.
However, in the winter of this year, the State of Chu sent troops to attack the State of Zheng in order to retaliate against the State of Zheng for violating Cai Guijin. With Chu's army pressing down on the territory, disagreements arose within the rulers of Zheng: Zisi (Gongzi Qian), Ziguo (Gongzifa), and Zi'er (Gongsun Zhui) demanded submission to Chu, while Zi Kong (Gongzijia) demanded , Ziqiu (Gongsun Yu), and Zizhan (Gongsun Shezhi) suggested waiting for reinforcements from Jin, but still insisted on surrendering to Jin. In the end, the Chu faction within Zheng gained the upper hand, and Zheng finally converted to Chu.
So in the next year, Duke Dao of Jin prepared to attack Zheng, and summoned Song, Wei, Cao, Ju, Zhu Qi and other countries to jointly send troops. Soon, the allied forces of the princes surrounded the capital of Zheng State. Zheng State was very frightened, so he sent people to ask for peace. At this time, the opinions of the Jin monarchs and ministers also had differences. Xunyan advocated encircling Zheng and fighting a decisive battle with Chu, believing that only by completely defeating Chu could Zheng be able to sincerely surrender; Zhifeng believed that the fight between the two powers was extremely It is possible that both sides have been weakened, so they do not advocate fighting against the Chu State, and formulated the method of "tiring Chu" for Duke Mourning, withdrawing troops from the Zheng State, and inducing the Chu State to attack the Jin State, while the Jin State will move the upper and middle states. The Chu, Xia, and New Fourth armies were divided into three parts. Together with the armies of the princes, they took turns attacking the Chu army. The Chu army came from afar and was exhausted. The food and baggage could not be replenished in time. In addition, with the three armies of Jin and the princes The army is fighting in turns, and it will definitely be difficult to sustain it for a long time.
Duke Ao of Jin listened to Zhifeng's advice and withdrew his troops from Zheng. Later, he made an alliance with the princes and Zheng in Xi. However, at this alliance meeting, Zheng Jiangong did not agree to all Jin's requests, so Jin led the princes' troops to besiege Zheng soon after. Because Zheng Guo participated in Jin's alliance, Chu State thought that Zheng Guo was in alliance with Jin, so it also sent troops to attack Zheng Guo. The state of Zheng was under attack from the two great powers and was in a state of embarrassment. Finally, it sued for peace from Chu, and both sides swore to stop fighting in the capital of Zheng.
After Jin Gaogong failed in the battle with Chu for Zheng State, he ordered a temporary suspension of troops and returned to the country to implement a policy of recuperation. He followed the advice of Minister Wei Jiang and sold all the grain and cloth accumulated in the treasury for many years to the people. Soon he ordered the noble officials to lend the goods and grain they had accumulated to the people. At the same time, he took the lead in promoting frugality and reducing public taxes. Room expenses. A year later, Jin's national strength increased significantly and its domestic economic situation was greatly improved.
At this time, Zheng Guo was exhausted because he had been ordered by Chu and had served as Chu's vanguard in continuous foreign wars for many years, which led to the people eventually rioting. The rioting people killed Gongzi Fei, Gongzi Fa and Gongsun Yu, and the king Zheng Jiangong was also kidnapped. Later, the official Zichan managed to put down the rebellion, and Gongzijia took charge of the state affairs.
Duke Ao of Jin took advantage of the chaos in Zheng State and once again summoned the troops of the princes to besiege Zheng State. Duke Mourning listened to the advice of Zhongsun Mi of Lu State and built fortifications in Hulao, Wu and Zhi of Zheng to deter him. Soon, Zheng wanted to attack Jin's ally Song Dynasty, so Jin ordered the princes to besiege Zheng from all sides. Duke Dao of Jin and his minister Han Jue paraded troops outside the south gate of Zheng and continued to send more troops to Zheng. The Zheng people finally surrendered to Jin.
In the autumn of 562 BC, Jin held an alliance with Zheng and other princes in Bo (now Zhengzhou, Henan). Duke Ao of Jin stipulated that those who participate in the alliance need to support and relieve each other, and are not allowed to shelter sinners or harbor traitors. They must share their needs with each other. , we cannot monopolize the benefits of rivers and lakes, we must share the same hatred with the enemy and do our best to assist the royal family.
But not long after, the state of Chu received assistance from Jin's enemy Qin, and with its support, he sent troops to attack the state of Zheng. Zheng Guo could not resist, so he had to violate the Jin alliance and surrender to Chu.
So, in September, Jin Aogong once again led the allied forces to attack Zheng Guo. Under the danger of pressure from Jin's allies, Zheng still obeyed Jin. Later, the Jin State hosted an alliance in Xiaoyu (now Xuchang, Henan). This time, Zizhan of Zheng sent generous gifts to Duke Ao of Jin, including hundreds of military chariots and sixteen beauties. Therefore, Duke Ao of Jin allowed Zheng to ally with him again.
At this point, the state of Zheng, which had been wavering between Jin and Chu for many years, basically determined its tendency to rely on the state of Jin. Jin Aogong finally won the battle with Chu to compete for the state of Zheng. The king of Wu in the south, Shoumeng, also took the initiative to join the Jin alliance. As a result, the Chu State was restrained on the eastern border and was even more afraid to act rashly. The Jin State basically gained the initiative in the century-long tug-of-war for hegemony between Jin and Chu.
It can be said that Jin Aogong was indeed a talented and skillful monarch. He won successive victories in the struggle against Chu, and formed alliances with Rong and Di in the north, making the surrounding small countries sincerely surrender, and led Jin to regain its hegemony. Road, reaching another peak in history.
It's a pity that God is jealous of talents. In the fifteenth year of Lu Xianggong (558 BC), the young Jin Duke suddenly fell ill and died suddenly. On the day of his death, Duke Duke was not yet thirty years old. Jin State's return to hegemony The road ends here.
After the death of Duke Ao of Jin, Duke Ping of Jin came to the throne. In the second year, Duke Ping of Jin took advantage of the remaining power of the Jin hegemony established by Duke Ao to gather the princes in Jianliang (now north of Jiyuan, Shanxi), including Duke Xiang of Lu, Duke Ping of Song, and Duke Jiang of Zheng. All the kings of the country attended the meeting, but Qi State appointed Gao Hou, a high official, to attend the meeting. Duke Ping of Jin first asked all countries to return the land they had invaded from each other, and then hosted a banquet for the princes of each country in Wendi.
During the banquet, the officials from various countries presented music and dance according to the etiquette, and each recited poems to express their approval of the alliance. However, Gao Hou, a senior official of the Qi State, expressed his dissatisfaction with the Jin State in his poems. Xun Yan, a senior official of the Jin State, saw the clues and knew that the Qi State was dissatisfied with the Jin State, and even mentioned the matter to others. Gao Hou heard about it and was worried that the Jin Congress would be detrimental to him. He did not dare to wait until the end of the alliance and fled in a hurry. After the banquet, the officials from all the vassal states swore together that they would unite to attack those who disobey the king's orders. After this alliance, the Jin State did not achieve the expected goal of uniting the princes of various countries, including the Qi State, and the Qi State continued to invade the Lu State, which greatly reduced the Jin State's influence among the princes. reduce.
In the same year of this alliance, Jin sent troops to attack Chu in retaliation for Chu's attack on Song. The Jin army and the Chu army fought in Zhanban. The Chu army led by Chu Gong Zige was defeated and was chased by the Jin army all the way to Fangcheng of Chu State (now northeast of Nancheng, Henan Province). Jin once again showed its extraordinary strength.
Because of the previous rude remarks made by the officials of the State of Qi to the State of Jin in the Jianliang League and the subsequent behavior of the State of Qi in attacking Lu, in the eighteenth year of Lu Xianggong (555 BC), Jin, Lu, Song, Wei and other countries The army united and began to attack Qi, and Qi Linggong organized the Qi army to stop the attack in Pingyin (now northeast of Pingyin, Shandong). Since there was no danger to defend this place, the Qi army was defeated and suffered many casualties.
Marshal Fan Gai of the Jin army used the trick of suspecting the troops of Qi Linggong. After Qi Linggong heard the news that the Jin army was approaching the border and went to the city to see the "power" of the Jin people, he was very frightened and led the Qi army to flee Pingyin at night. The Jin army took advantage of the victory and pursued it, successively capturing Jingzi and Yiyi (today's west of Pingyin, Shandong) of Qi State, and surrounded Luyi (today's southwest of Changqing, Shandong). Subsequently, the Jin army and the Lu army turned to attack Linyi and surrounded Linyi. Duke Linggong of Qi was worried about the loss of Linzi, the capital of Qi, and planned to flee to Youtang, but was eventually stopped by Prince Guang and doctor Guo Rong. After that, the Jin army returned home after plundering the territory of Qi State.
In the spring of the next year, the Jin State organized princes from all over the world to form an alliance in Zhuke (now northeast of Changqing, Shandong). The oath of the alliance was "big countries should not invade small countries", especially referring to Qi's invasion of Lu. At this meeting, the Jin people also punished the Zhu people and gave the land north of the Miao River in the Zhu state to the Lu state. The reason was that the Zhu people were accomplices in Qi's attack on Lu. When the Jin army passed by the state of Lu on its way back to the country, Duke Xiang of Lu specially hosted a banquet for the six ministers of the state of Jin. In the 20th year of Lu Xianggong (553 BC), thirteen vassal states including Jin, Qi, and Lu held an alliance in Chanyuan of Wei (now northwest of Puyang, Henan). Only then did Qi and Jin finally reconcile. , the struggle between the two sides has temporarily come to an end.
In the early days of Jin Pinggong's reign, Jin still had considerable strength and was still able to dominate among the princes. However, after Jin's victory over Qi, the situation of Jin's hegemony gradually changed. Jin's domestic struggles made Jin no longer have the ambition to conduct large-scale external conquests. This was already evident in the later period of Jin Ping Gong. . At the same time, some unpopular things done by Duke Ping of Jin accelerated the decline of Jin.
The mother of Duke Ping of Jin was from the State of Qi, so Duke Ping took advantage of the dominance of the State of Jin to often take care of the State of Qi, and even called on the princes to build walls for the State of Qi. In the 29th year of Duke Xiang of Lu (544 BC), Duke Ping of Jin asked the official Xun Ying, also known as Zhiyaozi, to convene the officials of various princes to discuss building a city wall for Qi State. However, Qi State was a small country and no one from other princely states wanted to do it. This kind of thing is a waste of manpower and material resources without getting anything in return.
As a result, the princes and officials strongly criticized Jin Pinggong's behavior of pretending to be a public servant for personal gain. Zheng Zishu also gave a high-sounding reason for rejection: Now that the Zhou royal family is declining, the Jin Kingdom has princes surnamed Ji, but instead they protect the descendants of the Xia Dynasty. Qi State, and asked the Jin State: "It is known that it has abandoned the concubines. If the concubines are abandoned, who will return them?" After that, the prestige of the Jin State among the vassal states was greatly reduced, and Jin Pinggong surrendered to the Lu State. The return of Qi's land further aroused Lu's dissatisfaction with Jin.
A few years later, Duke Ping of Jin married Shaojiang, a woman from the State of Qi, as his concubine. Chen Wuyu, a doctor of the State of Qi, escorted Shaojiang to the State of Jin. After Shaojiang arrived in Jin, he was favored by Duke Ping of Jin. However, since Chen Wuyu was not a minister, it was not in line with etiquette for him to send the bride off, so Duke Ping of Jin censured Chen Wuyu and had him arrested. Shaojiang begged Duke Ping of Jin for mercy on behalf of Chen Wuyu, but Duke Ping of Jin ignored him and did not let him go. It wasn't until Shu Xiang persuaded him, "You've done a good job, why should I be the leader of the alliance?" Duke Ping of Jin restrained himself a little and let Chen Wuyu go. After Shaojiang's death, princes from all over the world sent envoys to bury Duke Ping of Jin's beloved concubine. The officials of Jin felt that this was going too far.
In the second year after Shaojiang's death, the State of Qi sent Yan Ying to the State of Jin to request that another daughter be sent to Duke Ping of Jin to make up for Shaojiang's vacancy. After Yan Ying came to Jin to handle the betrothal gift, he was given a banquet by Shu Xiang, the minister of Jin. During the banquet, the two talked about the national conditions of the two countries. Yan Ying said that the state of Qi was now: "The public abandoned its people and returned to the Chen family." Shu Xiang said that the state of Jin was now: "The government is at home, and the people have nothing to do." According to this, the emperor will not be timid, but will be happy and worried. When will the humbleness of the public office exist?" Yan Ying told the story of the rise of the Tian family in Qi, and that the country would soon belong to the Tian family; Shu Xiang told the story of the corruption of Duke Ping of Jin. Due to the corruption and the power of the Qing officials, the Jin Dynasty's officialdom has tended to decline. Later, Xun Ying, the senior official of the Jin State, passed away, and Duke Ping of Jin only drank and had fun, pretending not to know. Although Duke Ping of Jin wanted to take this opportunity to establish another confidant, he was forced to accept Xun Ying's son Xun Shu as Qing due to the strong power of the officials of the Qing clan.
At this time, the Jin monarchs could no longer control major domestic affairs, and they began to be unable to deal with the affairs among the princes. In the eleventh year of Lu Zhaogong (531 BC), King Chu Ling killed Cai Linghou and sent troops to surround Cai. The State of Jin invited the princes and officials from various countries to meet together to plan a strategy to save Cai, but they never dared to send troops to fight against Chu. In the end, the State of Jin only sent envoys to the State of Chu to ask for mercy from the State of Cai. However, King Ling of Chu did not agree and captured the State of Cai and killed Prince Yin.
In the same year, Duke Ping of Jin died and Duke Zhao of Jin came to the throne. The Jin State was on the verge of disintegration, and its hegemony was declining day by day.
