After the death of King Xiao of Zhou, the vassals restored the system of the son inheriting after the death of the father. They supported the crown prince of King Yi of Zhou, Xie, as the emperor of Zhou. This was King Yi of Zhou.
When King Yi of Zhou received the vassals, he did not sit on the throne to receive worship. Instead, he stood at the door to welcome the vassals and ran down the steps to help them up. He thought that by expressing his gratitude to the vassals, the vassals would support him even more, but he did not know that it violated the Zhou ceremony.
The dukes were flattered at first, but later on, they thought it was normal, and some people began to be rude. In the second year of King Yi of Zhou, the State of Shu and the State of Lu sent emissaries to pay tribute to the Zhou Dynasty and presented Qiongyu to King Yi of Zhou. King Yi of Zhou received them by the Yellow River with the courtesy of guests. However, some vassals did not come to pay tribute, and the vassals attacked each other and did not listen to the orders of King Yi of Zhou.
King Yi of Zhou realized that a soft hand could not influence the princes, so he wanted to use a hard hand to subdue the princes.
There was a small country called the Ji Kingdom next to the Qi Kingdom. They were afraid of being annexed by the powerful Qi Kingdom and always wanted to destroy the Qi Kingdom. Marquis Ji Yang spoke ill of Duke Ai of Qi to King Yi of Zhou and advised King Yi of Zhou to kill Duke Ai of Qi. Duke Ai of Qi was arrogant and rude because of his powerful fief. King Yi of Zhou also disliked Duke Ai of Qi.
In the third year of King Yi of Zhou, King Yi of Zhou decided to hold a Vassal Meeting to establish the prestige of the Zhou Emperor. Duke Ai of Qi was used to being arrogant and did not put King Yi of Zhou in his eyes. King Yi of Zhou asked him why he was late, but not only did Duke Ai not admit his mistake, he was even arrogant. Therefore, King Yi of Zhou ordered the soldiers to capture Duke Ai of Qi, set up a large cauldron in front of the vassals, and threw Duke Ai of Qi into the oil cauldron to be cooked alive.
After the death of Duke Ai of Qi, King Yi of Zhou made Duke Ai's half-brother, Lu Jing, the Marquis of Qi. This was Duke Hu of Qi. In order to prevent the Ji Kingdom from persecuting them, Duke Hu of Qi moved the capital from Ying Qiu to Bo Gu, which was further away, to show his concession. This move was opposed by the Qi Kingdom. Gongzi Shan launched a rebellion and killed Duke Hu of Qi, making himself the ruler. This was for Duke Xian of Qi. He moved the capital back to Yingqiu and renamed it Linzi.
The Rong of Taiyuan and the Yong Country in the south were frightened by the terrifying act of King Zhou Yi cooking Duke Ai of Qi. They did not come to pay homage to King Zhou Yi and rebelled.
In the seventh year of King Yi of Zhou, King Yi of Zhou sent the monarch of Guo State to lead six armies to attack the Rong people of Taiyuan who refused to obey the king's orders. They fought all the way to Yuquan and obtained 1,000 horses.
King Yi of Zhou thought that by killing Duke Ai of Qi, he could make an example out of the rest of the vassals. However, he did not have the strength to subdue the vassals, so the vassals still did not pay tribute or obey orders. Instead, they attacked each other. Xiong Qu, the monarch of Chu State, overstepped the system and imitated the emperor of Zhou Dynasty to enfeoffment. His eldest son Xiong Wukang was granted the title of King Goudan, his second son Xiong Zhihong was granted the title of King E, and his youngest son Xiong Zhichu was granted the title of King Yuezhang. He guarded three important places in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River, which became a sensational event.
The vassals did whatever they wanted, and King Yi of Zhou was deeply worried. In the 15th year of his reign, King Yi of Zhou fell ill. In 880 B.C., he passed away and reigned for 15 years.
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