Throughout Chinese history, aside from the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms, although any dynasty in Chinese history could not jump out of the cycle of rise and fall, it always had high military force and political vitality at the beginning of the founding of the People's Republic of China. Even the three shortest-lived dynasties, the Qin Dynasty, the Sui Dynasty, and the Yuan Dynasty, all possessed incomparable force in the early days of the founding of the People's Republic of China (the political vitality of the Yuan Dynasty was almost there). Even in the Southern Song Dynasty, there was Yue Fei carrying a banner of resistance to gold.

The Eastern Zhou Dynasty was the opposite. From beginning to end, the Eastern Zhou Dynasty was very weak, both by force and political vitality.

The founding of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty was forced to take refuge in desperation, and the armed forces were basically wiped out, covering an area of only 600 miles, and Luoyi was still a "flat terrain and a place where enemies were attacked on all sides", to put it bluntly, it was a place that was "easy to attack and difficult to defend". Such a geographical location is difficult to develop the armed forces.

The political vitality of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty was also weak. At the beginning of the Western Zhou Dynasty, King Wen of Zhou and King Wu of Zhou won the support of the princes by virtue of the Jingtian system and benevolent government, but by the end of the Western Zhou Dynasty, the Jingtian system had been seriously eroded (refer to the mess left by King Xuan), and the political vitality of the Western Zhou Dynasty had fallen into a trough. There is a cloud in the Book of Changes: "If you are poor, you will change, and if you change, you will be able to do it for a long time." The Eastern Zhou Dynasty faced this situation, and if it wanted to develop, it was necessary to continue to seek change, but none of the kings of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty innovated.

Therefore, the Eastern Zhou Dynasty only survived in the name of the co-lord of the world.

The following is an example to confirm the weakness of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty

After King Ping moved east to Luoyi, the princes patted their horses and gave gifts in accordance with the spirit of waiting for the co-lord of the world, and they were all happy. However, the state of Chu did not show a little. King Ping was not happy and was ready to teach the state of Chu a lesson. The ministers persuaded: The state of Chu is all barbarians (barbarian Jing is outside the Hua), and it was defeated by your grandfather (King Xuan), so this is the annual tribute of grass (Jing Mao, two kinds of grass names), meaning. We have just moved the capital now, and we are waiting to be rebuilt, so we will not levy them for now.

The ministers are speaking tactfully, and the implication is: Let's just order our belongings, don't fight, and then toss in, it will be troublesome.

The ministers coaxed and persuaded again, and King Ping decided not to fight. Otherwise, with the momentum of Yijiu and the spirit of the Shen family's struggle, there will definitely be an egg hitting the stone.

From this example, it can be seen that the Eastern Zhou Dynasty was very weak, but the princes still treated this co-lord of the world according to etiquette out of political needs. And the state of Chu, which was an alternative in the Zhou Dynasty era (including the Western Zhou and Eastern Zhou), was unwilling to give the Eastern Zhou a little more face.

With the further deterioration of the situation, the princes no longer gave face to the "co-lord of the world", so King Zhou Ping wanted to divide the power of Zheng Zhuanggong, and Zheng Zhuanggong dared to cross-examine Zhou and Zheng. King Huan of Zhou wanted to conquer Duke Zheng Zhuang, but Duke Zheng Zhuanggong dared to confront the two armies and shoot him with an arrow.

Later, the Xiong of Chu was known as the king, and the political influence of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty basically ended. The Eastern Zhou Dynasty was left with an empty shell of the co-lord of the world. If the princes want to use it, they will use it. If you don't want to use it, just kick it aside.

Sometimes, I am also thinking about a question: if there are several generations of wise monarchs in Zhou Tianzi, can they achieve revival in the name of the co-lord of the world?

After thinking about it for a long time, my answer is no.

There are three reasons for this: First, the talents of the princes are very strong. The Zhou Dynasty adopted the system of vassals, and the Zhou Dynasty had more than 100 vassal states, that is, more than 100 political forces. In the Eastern Zhou Dynasty, Zhou Tianzi lost his authority, and the world was in chaos. The vassal states survived in intrigues, and the weaker ones were annexed. In this case, the kings and ministers of the vassal states have all developed their skills. No matter how wise King Zhou is, there will be no qualitative gap. Second, the problem of talent is difficult to solve. Luoyi covers an area of 600 li, and talents withered, and the Eastern Zhou Dynasty did not yet have the Confucian idea of "loyalty to the monarch", so the talents of the vassal states will only be loyal to their own monarchs, or loyal to the monarchs of more powerful countries, to realize their self-worth, and it is impossible to throw themselves into the weak Zhou kings to help the revival of the "central power". Third, the geographical advantage of Luoyi. Luoyi is "easy to attack and difficult to defend", it is not a place to use, and it is impossible to resist the invasion of strong enemies. If Zhou Tianzi behaved too wisely, it would easily arouse the vigilance of the princes and hasten the demise of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty.

Without talent and military support, it was difficult for the Eastern Zhou to achieve revival. Of course, if a great man like Mao Zedong appeared in Zhou Tianzi, and first made a "spark that can start a prairie fire", and then a "land revolution" and "guerrilla warfare", then the answer would not be accurate. However, after all, there is only one eloquent talent like Mao Dong in hundreds of years.

rise

King Ping moved his capital to Luoyi, the Western Zhou Dynasty ended, and the Eastern Zhou Dynasty began. The Eastern Zhou Dynasty was congenitally deficient and had lost the ability to control the world. Zhou Tianzi fell from the throne of the referee, and the tragic thing is that he couldn't even be an athlete, so he could only be a spectator, watching the world rise together.

A shining era is beginning. This era is full of wisdom, conspiracy, justice, and selflessness; In this era, there are even horizontal and vertical, and there are hundreds of schools of thought; In this era, there are "Lisao", "Nine Songs", and "The Art of War"; In this era, there is a person who wants to leave Jing Ke, and there is also Guan Zhong Leyi... It's a golden age, a chaotic time, but it's fascinating.

Triumphant in troubled times, how delicate the country is, how many heroes there are at one time!

Before starting to write about the heroes of the troubled times of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty, I would like to state a few points of view:

1. The characters are simple. With the main characters and main events as the main line, promote the development of the plot and explain the problem. For example, in addition to the main line, there are more touching or inspiring characters and events, which will be explained in a separate article. Aim to be concise and to the point, not lengthy. Otherwise, if you write a person or a thing, even if it is tens of millions of words, it is just enough to lay the foundation.

2. Appropriate comments. Historians are very rigorous, and the time, place, and people are all complete. The author is not a historian, but I am just here to tell the general outline, which can resonate with people's hearts and make people understand. Therefore, the author will appropriately comment and discuss personal feelings.

Good father

Zheng Wugong is majestic and strategic, and he is a martial artist. The emancipation of merchant slaves prospered the economy of Zheng and won the support of merchants. Opened up the territory and expanded the territory, annexed the two countries of Yu and Yi, and expanded ten cities. Build village schools to educate the people. The establishment of the Guan system strengthened the national defense of Zheng State. In short, Zheng Wugong's life is a great life, an enviable and jealous life.

Zheng Wugong reigned for twenty-seven years, leaving a good foundation for his son Zheng Zhuanggong.

Such records abound in historical sources.

But I would like to focus on Zheng Wugong's character: greedy, cunning and forbearing.

At the beginning, Zheng Boyou was killed for protecting King You, Shenhou asked for help from the four countries, and Zheng Wugong was the first to lead troops to Haojing. When Zheng Wugong arrived in Hojing, the other three vassal states did not come, so Zheng Wugong decided to attack Hojing. Zheng Wugong's younger brother Gongzi Cheng admonished: The sergeant is advancing at the same time, and the fatigue has not stopped, so he should stick to the reinforcements and not attack. However, Zheng Wugong thought that the level of the master was sparse and he would definitely be able to win, so he insisted on fighting. In the end, Zheng Wugong attacked the city, but was defeated, but was chased out for thirty miles by the men of the sparse Rong Lord.

In terms of Zheng Wugong's life's military exploits, Zheng Wugong is by no means a reckless man who does not understand the art of war. If it is a reckless person, it is impossible to annex the two countries and expand the land of ten cities.

I believe that at the moment when he decided to attack the capital of Ho, Zheng Wugong's eyes must have radiated a greedy light. Hokyung is in front of you, King Youwang is killed, and the soldiers are in rebellion, which is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. An opportunity coveted by a courtier: to enjoy the great work of quelling the chaos alone! Achievement of Yi Yin and Zhou Gong's career.

Therefore, Zheng Wugong risked the taboo of the art of war and resolutely decided to attack Hojing.

Besides, Zheng Wugong is cunning.

Zheng Wugong wanted to cut down Hu, but he was afraid that Hu Jun would take precautions and would not succeed. So, Zheng Wugong married his daughter to Hu Jun to show that the two countries were on good terms. After Zheng Wugong did this, he asked the minister: I want to fight now, and I should fight that country. The courtier Guan Qisi said: I think Hu Guo should be beaten. Zheng Wugong was furious and immediately killed the minister. Zheng Wugong said: Hu Guo and we are brothers, Hu Jun is still my son-in-law, how can I attack him. After Hu Jun heard about this, he no longer guarded against Zheng Wugong. As a result, Zheng Wugong sent troops and destroyed the state of Hu.

Zheng Wugong's cunning methods can be glimpsed. Later generations Cao Cao was no more than that.

Guan Qisi is a smart person who can deduce Zheng Wugong's mind from Zheng Wugong's methods, but he lost his life. Why? It can only be said that Guan Qisi is smart, but not sophisticated enough. The so-called emperor's mental technique, ghosts and gods do not speak. As a courtier, if you can see through all the thoughts of the monarch, then the courtier itself becomes a threat to the monarch.

In the sixth year of King Ping, Duke Zheng Wu, who continued to expand his territory, made King Ping feel threatened, and King Ping wanted to recover the land east of Zheng Guohu's prison. Can you be satisfied with Zheng Wugong's character? No way. However, Zheng Wugong still needed the identity of the secretary of the Zhou Dynasty at that time, so he couldn't bear it and moved the capital to relieve his doubts. But this anger was held in his heart, and it was not until the period of Zheng Zhuang Gong that his son finally repaid his grievances.

Zheng Zhuanggong grew up under the aura of such a father, learned and surpassed his father's methods, and finally laid the foundation for Zheng Zhuanggong to become the overlord of the Spring and Autumn Period.

This leads to the current education problem: the most important thing is how much inheritance the child will be, but what kind of character will be left to the child. Character determines destiny.

Wonderful mother

Shenhou's mission has ended, but by chance, Shenhou reappears. The reason why Shenhou was able to appear was because of Shenhou's daughter.

During Zheng Wugong's rescue of Hojing, Shenhou found that Zheng Wugong's young man was very handsome and neat, and his brain was hot, so he decided to marry his daughter to Zheng Wugong.

Zheng Wugong agreed. Although Shenhou is not a good person, Shenhou's daughter is the queen mother, and his grandson is the king of Ping, and it is very beneficial to Zheng Wugong's future development to be able to climb this relationship. As a result, Zheng Wugong's mind was also hot, ignoring the stunned spirit of the Shen family, and promised to marry the daughter of Shenhou.

If Zheng Wugong knew what would happen later, I believe that Zheng Wugong would definitely not marry Shenhou's daughter, even if Shenhou himself was the queen mother.

In any case, Shenhou's daughter (Jiang) still married into the Zheng family.

After Jiang married Zheng Guo, he gave birth to two children to Zheng Wugong. The eldest is Zheng Zhuanggong, and the second is Gongzi Duan. Jiang didn't like Zheng Zhuanggong because Zheng Zhuanggong was a difficult birth. Jiang likes Gongzi Duan because Gongzi Duan is handsome. "The face is like Fu powder, the lips are like Dan, and he is good at shooting, and his martial arts are strong."

Favoring children is normal, and even today it cannot be avoided. The elder brother eats too much, the younger brother doesn't catch it, the elder brother's clothes are new, the younger brother's clothes are torn, and the parents are short, which is normal. After all, they are all their own children, even if they prefer it, there is always a scale.

According to the tradition of the eldest son succeeding to the throne, the Duke of Zheng Zhuang will inherit the title of prince sooner or later. According to normal people's thinking, when it's okay on a rainy day, shouldn't we educate the two sons to get along well, brothers are of the same heart, and their benefits are broken. If you can't do it again, you have to take out a pair of chopsticks and ask your two sons: one is easy to break, or the other is easy to break. Etcetera.

However, Jiang is just different.

When Jiang was fine, he thought about letting Gongzi Duan replace Zheng Zhuanggong. Jiang first went to lobby Zheng Wugong and blew the wind on the pillow. Zheng Wu Gongwen Tao Wu was strategic, so he naturally ignored it. Although the Jiang family was mixed, they didn't dare to take Zheng Wugong anything. I didn't dare to mention it again.

After the death of Zheng Wugong, Zheng Zhuang Gong succeeded to the throne, and it stands to reason that the Jiang family should also die.

However, the Jiang family is worthy of the Shen family, and they are full of stupidity. The pillow wind didn't work, and now that her husband is gone, Jiang is thinking about playing a coup d'état. The Jiang clan fooled Gongzi Duan to overthrow the dark rule of Zheng Zhuanggong by force, and the power came out of the barrel of a gun.

This is something I have never been able to understand, how to say, both sons are biological. Just because one has a difficult birth, and one is handsome, you have to put one to death? As the saying goes, tiger poison doesn't eat children. Jiang, as a mother, would have such a strange idea?

can only say: During the Zhou Dynasty, the Shen family was not easy to mess with.