In the sixteenth year of Lu Zhaogong, the people of Qi turned their attention to Xu Guo this year.

The surname of Xu Guo is Ying, which was founded in the early Xia Dynasty, probably in the area of Tancheng, Shandong, and then gradually moved to the Sihong area of Jiangsu, and the founding monarch was the son of Boyi.

The state of Xu has always belonged to the eastern Yi power in the Xia, Shang and Western Zhou dynasties, and often fought with the Lu state during the Western Zhou Dynasty. During the reign of King Mu of Zhou, King Xu Yan, the monarch of the Xu State, became the overlord of Huaiyi, and he gathered the army of Eastern Huaiyi to march westward in an attempt to overthrow the Western Zhou Dynasty. King Mu of Zhou quelled the rebellion with the help of another figure, the Father. The vitality of the Huaiyi Group was greatly damaged, and Xu Guo also weakened from then on.

During the reign of Duke Huan of Qi, the state of Xu has always been the target of competition between Qi and Chu, and the two countries have fought several times around the state of Xu. After the decline of the Qi state, Jin and Chu began to compete for hegemony in the Central Plains. Due to its geographical location, Xu lost its strategic value, and the Chinese people enjoyed more than 80 years of peace.

Later, the state of Wu began to rise, and the state of Xu was located on the thoroughfare of the three kingdoms of Qi, Chu, and Wu, and Wu and Chu expanded to northern Jiangsu and northern Anhui respectively, as a result, the state of Xu began to be threatened and co-opted by Wu and Chu.

After Qi Jinggong issued a bold statement to Jin Zhaogong to "prosper with the king", he decided to put the language into action. As mentioned earlier, Xu Zi's mother was a native of Wu, and King Chu Ling once detained Xu Zi at the League (in the fourth year of Lu Zhaogong), and later detained Xu envoys, and went out to besiege Xu before being ousted from the throne.

All indications indicate that the state of Chu has put the annexation of Xu on the agenda, and it is only because of the sudden overthrow of the regime of King Ling of Chu that the plan to destroy Xu has been temporarily shelved.

After King Chuping came to power, he recuperated the people internally and coexisted peacefully externally. However, the people of Qi believed that once the time was ripe, the state of Chu would inevitably start the heart of exterminating Xu again. Wu Ziyi died last year, and a new monarch ascended the throne; The royal wing was too busy killing competitors to have the energy to look to the north. Therefore, now is the best time to pull Xu Guo into his arms.

In February, the Duke of Qi Jing led a large army south to attack Xu. Xu Zi had already been overwhelmed by the repeated invasions of the enemy countries, and the doctors advised him to adopt the Zheng people's approach to the Jin and Chu - be prepared to accept the invaders with bribes and alliances, and greet the invaders with respect. Xu Zi agreed, but decided that just doing it was not enough. He also sent envoys to the kingdoms of Ju and Tan (both of which had a marital relationship with the kingdom of Xu) and asked the sovereigns of the two countries to mediate.

When the Qi ** team arrived at the Pu Tunnel (now southwest of Suining, Jiangsu), the envoy of Xu came to the army with a thick gift list, and respectfully presented it to Qi Jinggong, expressing his hope for peace with the great powers; There were also Tan Zi and Ju Zi, and the two gentlemen kept blowing the wind on the side, persuading Qi Jinggong to accept the request.

Qi Jinggong was satisfied with Xu Guoren's attitude, and he pretended to say that he came here to continue the old name of Qi Huan Gong and Xu Zi. He readily agreed to the request and invited Xu Zi to meet here.

On 14 February, Xu Zi arrived at the Po Tunnel, where the monarchs performed a bloody ceremony, and the four kingdoms formed a small military alliance.

Qi Jinggong returned satisfied, but Yan Zi said to Bao Guo: "Xu Guo was forced to give in due to the threat of war, will Xu Zi keep the covenant?" I don't think so. Xu will eventually be annexed by Wu, right? Xu Guo was not afraid of Wu State, and it was impossible to marry Wu State. ”

And when Shusun Wan commented on this incident, he said: "The loss of power of the alliance leader is really a disaster for a small country!" Qi Hou Xingshi's expedition achieved its goal again, and no country could stop it during the period, which was the evil result of the alliance leader's loss of power. "Poems" said: "Once the Zong Zhou is destroyed, the evil will stop." Doctor Zheng left home, I don't know what I want. That's what you mean, right? ”

In March, Han Qi paid a state visit to Zheng Guo. Zheng Dinggong is about to hold a big gift for Han Qi and has set a time. The child then admonished the doctors present: "When the ceremony is held, you must be punctual and must not behave disrespectfully!" ”

The next morning, when the feast was about to begin, Dr. Zheng Kong Shen (Gongzi Jia's grandson Zhang) was late. The host's line was already lined up, and the line of guests blocked the passage, and Kong Shen had no choice but to stand in the line of guests. The official Fuzi shouted loudly and ordered him to come out of the ranks, and Kong Shen retreated to the back of the line; Seeing that he didn't understand what he meant, Tomiko continued to ask him to leave the guest's ranks. Kong Shen was at a loss, and retreated in a panic to the place where the bell chime was hung. The guests all laughed at his embarrassed appearance, and Tomiko had to invite him out of the venue in order to avoid further disorder.

After the feast, Tomiko said to the child: "You must not be careless in dealing with people from large countries. The Jin people make fun of us and despise us; To despise us is to oppress us. We are polite, and the Jin people still look down on us; If you are rude, how will you be dignified? Zizhang lost his position, which was also a shame for the master. ”

This rich man originally belonged to the kind of sanctimonious hypocrite, and his ability to pat sycophants and sing high-pitched words was unmatched. The child was annoyed by his boastful face, and said angrily, "What is my shame? It should be that the order is improper, the order is not trusted, the punishment is not the same as the crime, the criminals are indulged in murder, the doctor is disrespectful to the monarch, the officials desecrate their duties, the country is abused by the great powers, the people are worked for no benefit, and the guilty are not known, these are my shame!

"Kong Zhang is the great-grandson of Mu Gong, the descendant of the consul Zikong, and the doctor of the office; His appointment has been announced to the princes, and he is also respected by the people, standing on the court and presiding over family sacrifices. His identity is the same as you and me, such a character forgets his place and makes others laugh, why should he put shame on me? The court was full of depraved people, and it was the result of the monarch's inability to impose criminal punishment on villains. Master, I should have tried to persuade me for other reasons! ”

Tomiko knew that the "villain" in his words was referring to people like himself, so he blushed and immediately left.

Once upon a time, an outstanding jade craftsman in the state of Chu made a beautiful jade jue (a ring composed of two pieces); Han Qi has the upper film in his hand, and he has always hoped to get the next film. Later, he found out that the next piece was in the hands of a certain Zheng Guo merchant, so he asked Zheng Dinggong (in fact, it was to ask) for the piece of jade, and Zheng Dinggong immediately ordered Zi Shan to be responsible for handling the matter.

Zichan has always hated the evil deeds of the powerful to seize other people's property, and he will never carry out orders. He went to see Han Qi empty-handed and said, "I have checked the register, and the utensils requested by the master are not in the public treasury, and the widow does not know where they are. ”

Han Qi felt quite unhappy, because his request could not be smaller than the blackmail of the Sheep's Tongue Carp and Shi Marting. This mere request can't be satisfied, and Han Qi really doesn't know what is in the child's brain.

After Zi Chuan withdrew, Uncle Zi and Gongsun Hui complained and said: "Han Zi is already very incorruptible, he doesn't ask for much, and the Jin Kingdom can't be scorned." Although Yujue is small, if there are treacherous people who are separated from it, and there are ghosts and gods to help the Jin people; Once the Jin people get angry and go out to attack our country, is it too late to regret it? Why did the master offend the secretary of the great country because of one ring, and why didn't he give it to Han Zi? ”