Section 8.1
The reason why the marquis of Ji was destroyed was [due to] nine generations of revenge. Words spoken one morning [by a former marquis of Ji] endangered one hundred generations of [his] descendants. Thus [the
Spring and Autumn] states: “[The marquis of Ji] made a grand exodus [from his state].”
1“A man from Wey invaded Sheng.”
2“[A man] Zheng entered Sheng.”
3“Qi troops besieged Sheng.”
4Three times [the state of Sheng] was attacked by powerful armies. In the end, [the state] was destroyed, and no one attempted to rescue it. Where were those on whom the state relied?
Duke Huan of Qi wanted to implement the Hegemonic Way. When Tan proceeded to defy his orders, [the Qi army] destroyed [Tan], and [the viscount of Tan] fled to Ju.
5 [The viscount of Tan] would not serve a great state, so [he ended up] serving a small one.
The reason why the earl of Cao battled to the death to defend his throne was that none of the Lords of the Land relieved his distress.
6 [This was because] on the numerous occasions when Duke Huan of Qi summoned the Lords of the Land together at You, although Cao was a small state, it did not once attend.
Lu was a large state, but Duke Zhuang did not attend the meeting at You. Consequently, men of the Rong [people] attacked to the west of the Ji River.
7 From this incident, one can see that Lu was isolated and alone and no one came to its rescue. At this time, the great officers [of Lu] disregarded the orders of their lord and took it upon themselves to rescue other states in danger.
In the twenty-seventh year of Duke Zhuang’s reign, Duke Huan of Qi called a meeting at You, and the ruler of Wey did not attend.
8 The following year Duke Huan grew angry and soundly defeated Wey.
9 When he attacked the Mountain Rong [people], Duke Huan displayed the Rong banners and spoils of war to boast to the Lords of the Land.
10 Meanwhile, [Duke Zhuang] of Lu constructed three earthen platforms in the space of a single year.
11Rebellious ministers rose up three times within the state
12while the Yi and Di armies destroyed [Wey] from without.
The sprouts of Wey’s destruction lay in their missing the meeting at You, and the source of the chaos [in Lu] lay in relatives deceiving one another.
[The ruler of] Xing never met with Duke Huan of Qi.
13 He also had a clandestine attachment to Jin. But when the duke of Jin was captured at Hann, the ruler of Xing turned his back on Jin and attended the interstate meeting in Huai.
14 When Duke Huan of Qi died, Shu Diao and Yi Ya rose up in rebellion. The ruler of Xing joined forces with the Di people to attack [Wey], whose ruler shared the same clan name, and annexed [part of] it. Given that the ruler of Xing conducted himself in this manner, even if other states wanted to draw near to him, how could they? In the end, this ruler was destroyed by a member of the same surname group. [This is what the
Spring and Autumn records as] “Marquis Hui of Wey destroyed the state of Xing.”
15When Duke Huan of Qi called the meeting at You, the duke of Wey did not attend. This angered Duke Huan, and he attacked Wey. However, when the Di people destroyed Wey, Duke Huan of Qi was sorrowful and [re]established the Duke of Wey. In the covenant of Ge, Duke Zhuang of Lu threatened [Duke Huan regarding] the lands of Wenyang.
16 However, when [Duke Zhuang of Lu] died, Duke Huan [helped] establish [his rightful heir].
17 The rulers of Xing and Ji never paid a courtesy call on Duke Huan of Qi, but when their states suffered destruction, he sent Lords of the Land [to their assistance] and reestablished them. Because Duke Huan of Qi cared for others in this way, how could he not be considered a true hegemon!
18 Therefore the
Spring and Autumn praised him for shouldering the anxieties of the world. [8/19/21–8/20/1]