How did Duke Wei Yi lose his country in history due to his addiction to playing birds

Do you know how Duke Wei Yi lost his country in history due to his addiction to playing birds? Next, the History Encyclopedia editor will explain to you
We all understand the principle that playing with things can lead to losing one’s ambition. Not only in history, but also in daily life, we can see many vivid “negative examples”. It’s not a big deal to have something you like or love, and it’s understandable to enjoy fun and comfort. However, there must be limits to everything. Once you don’t control your desires, there will be serious consequences. At that time, the loss of “playthings” is not just about “aspirations”. The Duke Wei Yi of the Spring and Autumn Period is a good example. He was addicted to playing with birds and lost not only his aspirations, but also his own life and even the fate of the country.
Duke Yi of Wei, surnamed Ji and surnamed Chi, was the son of Duke Hui of Wei and the 18th ruler of the state of Wei during the Spring and Autumn Period. When he ascended the throne, although the entire state of Wei could not be described as a dominant power, it was still relatively stable, and the people could live and work in peace and contentment. According to this situation, as long as he did not do anything out of line, being a good or bad monarch would also be good for the state of Wei. But the problem is that this Duke Wei Yi is not only restless, but also very absurd and unreliable. Duke Wei Yi was arrogant, extravagant, and spendthrift. In addition, he particularly enjoyed raising cranes.
Cranes have a graceful body shape, with white feathers and three long beaks, necks, and legs. Just standing there is a beautiful scenery. In history, cranes were often associated with immortals, so they are also called “immortal cranes”. Such birds are naturally beloved, and in the eyes of ancient people, cranes also symbolized the spirit of a gentleman, because cranes always “walk with men and women, follow the rules, and have a deep affection without being lascivious”. Analogous to humans, cranes have extremely high character. However, although Duke Wei Yi liked cranes, he did not learn any of their character traits.
His love for cranes is almost crazy, not to mention his own country, even other countries know that Duke Wei Yi is an extremely fond person of cranes. Many people with ulterior motives have set their sights and gone to great lengths to catch cranes. Many powerful people do not go by themselves, but force the people to do it. The good ones caught were sent to Duke Wei Yi, who was overjoyed and raised many cranes in the palace. Later, there was really no place left in the palace, and Duke Yi watched as the cranes were constantly being sent up and made a decision to expand the palace garden! Over time, there were more and more cranes in the palace, and the palace gardens grew bigger and bigger. The people suffered unbearable hardships, and catching cranes and building gardens left them with no time to engage in production, living a life of hunger, clothing, and warmth. However, the monarch showed no remorse, and they could only survive in dire straits.
Wei Yigong looked at these cranes and had a sudden inspiration to start acting like demons again. He conferred different official ranks on the cranes based on their quality and physical posture, and also gave them salaries. Even when traveling, one must bring cranes and create magnificent frames of different grades, dividing cranes into different levels and finding someone to pull them with a “luxury car”. There were many officials in the state of Wei who were not even human. They do not govern, but enjoy treatment that is difficult for ordinary people to enjoy, including salaries, residences, carriages and horses, and many servants to serve.
Money was spent like flowing water, and soon the national treasury was empty. Seeing this situation, Duke Yi showed no remorse and instead ordered the imposition of taxes on the people. This has caused even more pain to the already struggling people, leading to widespread complaints and extreme disgust towards Duke Wei Yi in the country. This situation quickly spread, and Beidi had already been restless. There was no better opportunity for them than this. So, Beidi Wang led his cavalry to quickly move south and attacked the border of the Wei Kingdom, burning, killing, plundering, and entering a deserted area.
When the news reached the capital of Wei, Duke Yi of Wei was greatly shocked and quickly ordered conscription. But who would be willing to respond at this time? How could the people listen to him before they even have time to hate him? They shouted loudly, “Crane, the crane really has a noble position, how can anyone else fight!” Wei Yigong had no choice but to seek out those courtiers who were usually very attentive to him. However, these courtiers changed their tone and said, “You are good at the valley, and the valley can be ordered to attack Zhai.” This “valley” is the crane.
Wei Yigong could only force him to do so. He handed over the jade pendant to Shi Qizi and the arrows to Ning Zhuangzi, asking them to lead their army to defend, saying, “This is to praise the country and choose benefits for it.” In addition, he gave the embroidered clothes to his wife and told her to listen to Shi Qizi and Ning Zhuangzi. He put on his own armor and personally led the army to resist the Di people. Qu Kong drove the chariot for him, Zi Bo made the chariot on the right, Huang Yi charged forward, and Kong Yingqi commanded the rear army. It looks relatively orderly, but in fact, it’s just a pile of scattered sand after rushing ducks onto the shelves.
The two sides were at war in Yingze, and Duke Wei Yi was still stubbornly refusing to remove his own flag, which led to the failure of the original plan. The Wei army was discovered, and the Di people rushed forward to kill them, resulting in a major defeat for the entire Wei army. Duke Wei Yi himself was also surrounded by enemy forces in the chaos and later killed by the chaotic knives. After he was chopped to death, the meat on his body was eaten by the Di people, leaving only his liver. The scene is unbearable to look at.
After the Di people’s great victory, they captured a large number of accompanying ministers, and then they took the prisoners to the capital of the Wei Kingdom to shout and demand their surrender. The people of Wei did not obey, so the Di army invaded the city and killed all the people who did not have time to escape in the future. In an instant, the capital of Wei became a human hell with corpses scattered everywhere and rivers of blood flowing.
Originally, the Minister of the State of Wei, Hongyan, who was on a mission to another country, rushed back upon hearing the news. However, upon his return, he only saw his home in ruins, piles of corpses of civilians, and the broken body of Duke Wei Yi. Hongyan was in unbearable pain. After crying beside the body of Duke Wei Yi, he said, “Let me make your clothes!” Then he cut open his stomach, took out his own organs, put Duke Yi’s inside, and died.
Duke Wei Yi is both pitiful and hateful, and he can be considered deserving of his punishment. It is truly heartbreaking that those innocent civilians, after enduring hardships, still died. In his position of seeking governance, Duke Yi, as the ruler of a country, did not take responsibility and ultimately caused harm to others and himself, bearing an eternal reputation.