Whenever Qi Weiwang is mentioned, he always thinks of the one on TV, so I have to give you a detailed explanation.
King Wei of Qi is fortunate, as his father, Duke Huan of Qi, has already accumulated a huge family fortune for him. However, after ascending to the throne, King Wei of Qi did not go to court for nine consecutive years, entrusting political affairs to officials and allowing corrupt officials to take power, causing the country to be in chaos. Perhaps King Wei of Qi was tired of playing, but after nine years, he finally staged a stunning performance and returned to politics.
Seeing that the survival of the country was at stake, the people around the King of Qi dared not offer advice. Chunyu Kun whispered to the King of Qi, “There is a big bird in the country that has been stationed in the king’s courtyard for three years without flying or singing. Does the king know why this bird is?” The King of Qi replied, “It’s just that this bird doesn’t fly, it flies straight into the sky; it’s just that it doesn’t sing, it’s just that it shakes the people of the country
Sure enough, after regaining power, King Wei of Qi implemented three policies, which truly revived the state of Qi and propelled it to great heights.
Step 1: Identify loyalty and treachery. King Wei of Qi secretly investigated his ministers and decided to start by rectifying the literati. King Qi Wei selected two doctors to enter the palace for questioning, and the first one to arrive was Doctor Jimo. King Qi Wei said, “Since you were transferred to office, I have often heard others speak ill of you. I sent someone to investigate in Jimo and found that your territory is rich and peaceful, and the people are living a good life. Officials dare not be greedy and abuse the law. You never know how to flatter and flatter, but I know you are a loyal and patriotic person
Subsequently, King Wei of Qi promoted Jimo Dafu to Wanhu. At this moment, when A Dafu entered the palace, King Qi Wei spoke sternly, “Since you were appointed, I have often heard people speak well of you. I sent someone to investigate your territory and found that it was barren and dangerous, and the people were unable to afford food and clothing. The land was abandoned. I know you have bribed the people around me, and I will not be soft on you, such a treacherous person!” After speaking, I ordered someone to throw A Dafu into a pot and boil him to death as a warning to others.
Through this incident, King Wei of Qi gained great fame in China, and the common people said, “Our king is really going to make a splash
Step 2: Only the wise are selected. The King of Qi and the King of Wei held a diplomatic event and had friendly exchanges on development issues. At the end of the meeting, the King of Wei suddenly asked King Xuan of Qi, “Do you have any treasures in your country?” King Wei replied, “I don’t know
The King of Qi smiled and replied, “It seems that the treasures we are talking about are not the same thing. The rare treasures I understand are talents. Look at my minister Tanzi guarding the south, leaving Chu with no opportunity to act rashly, and other small states bowing down to our country. My minister Panzi guarding Gaotang scared the people of Zhao not to fish in the Jiehe River. My minister Qianfu guards Xuzhou, and there are often ordinary people from Yan and Zhao who flee to Xuzhou to settle down and live a prosperous life. My minister Zhongshou is responsible for maintaining the security of Qi. Under his control, Qi The country never closes its doors at night and leaves no trace on the road.
So, I believe that only these people can be called rare treasures, their influence spans thousands of miles, and how much land can the pearl of your country illuminate? ”The words made the King of Wei blush. The governance policy of “putting people first” adopted by King Wei of Qi has indeed achieved results. Under the management of the four “national treasures” of Tanzi, Panzi, Qianfu, and Zongshou, the state of Qi has become increasingly powerful. King Qi Wei knows these talents very well, they have outstanding abilities in a certain field, and King Qi Wei knows them like a treasure.
It can be seen that these talents have all been screened by King Wei of Qi, and must have undergone the examination of “identifying loyalty and treachery” mentioned earlier. Everyone has shown their sincerity, and the state of Qi has achieved great governance.
Step three: Establish credibility. For feudal states, internal affairs are only the foundation, and how to step outward is the key to dominating the Central Plains. Due to the different diplomatic policies implemented by King Wei of Qi compared to Duke Huan of Qi, the tactic of “pretending to be the emperor to command the lords” used by Duke Huan of Qi in the early years was not applicable to the state of Qi at this time. So, how can we not command the heroes one by one?
That is: to enhance one’s own prestige and convince the lords of the world.
In the Battle of Wei Zhao, the state of Zhao was defeated, and the Wei army besieged Handan. The King of Zhao sought help from the King of Qi Wei. King Qi Wei summoned his ministers to brainstorm, with half of them adopting a conservative attitude and the other half advocating for rescue. King Wei of Qi asked Duan Ganpeng, who advocated for rescue, “Why do we need to rescue Zhao
Duan Ganpeng said, “We are all vassal states. Since Zhao seeks help from us, it shows that Zhao recognizes the strength of Qi. We must lend a helping hand to Zhao in the spirit of morality. If we choose to watch the fire from afar and eliminate Wei, which is Zhao, it will definitely develop into a strong country and pose a threat to us. We can send troops to intimidate the Wei army near Handan. If the Wei army dare not act rashly, we will not take the initiative to attack. Once the Wei army continues to attack Handan, they will lose their morality, and we have every reason to attack Xiangling
King Wei of Qi felt that this statement was reasonable, so he sent troops to the state of Zhao.
As expected, the Wei army insisted on attacking Handan and fell into a moral passive. Qi general Tian Ji immediately sent troops to capture Xiangling and defeated the main force of the Wei army. At this point, the power of King Wei of Qi greatly increased, and the state of Qi once again became the hegemon of the Spring and Autumn period, commanding the feudal lords. Unlike his father, Duke Huan of Qi, King Wei of Qi relied on the soft power of Xinyi to become the hegemon, while King Wei of Qi relied entirely on hard power to become the hegemon.
The tomb of King Qi Wei, located in Qiling Street, Linzi District, is the first of the “Four Kings’ Tombs” to the west. The other three are the tombs of King Xuan of Qi, King Min of Qi, and King Xiang of Qi. The four tombs are arranged in order from west to east, with the tomb of King Wei of Qi located at the westernmost point, 30 meters high.
