King Huiwen of Qin

Biography

Family Background and Early Life

King Huiwen of Qin, Ying Si, was born in 356 BCE, the twelfth year of Duke Xiao of Qin. Qin was then at a crucial stage in its efforts to strengthen the state through the reforms carried out by Duke Xiao and Shang Yang. Ying Si was born in the palace at Yueyang, the capital during the early phase of Duke Xiao's reforms. After Duke Xiao moved the capital to Xianyang, Ying Si was made crown prince.

While crown prince, Ying Si once violated the new laws. At the time, Shang Yang's reforms were meeting resistance. Shang Yang told Duke Xiao that the laws could not be implemented because the ruler's relatives obstructed them, and that if the ruler truly wished to enforce the law, it had to begin with the crown prince. Since the crown prince himself could not be subjected to tattooing, his tutors were punished instead. Prince Qian had his nose cut off, while Gongsun Jia was tattooed on the face. The incident helped the new laws take effect and brought order to Qin, but it also offended Crown Prince Ying Si and laid the groundwork for Shang Yang's later death.

Succession and the Execution of Shang Yang

In 338 BCE, the twenty-fourth year of Duke Xiao of Qin, Duke Xiao died and Crown Prince Ying Si succeeded him. Shang Yang's prestige was then extremely high, while many members of the Qin royal clan resented him. Prince Qian and others took the opportunity to accuse Shang Yang of rebellion. Shang Yang fled toward the frontier and tried to stay at an inn, but was refused because he lacked the required identification. He lamented that the harmful consequences of his own laws had come to this, and fled to Wei. Wei refused to receive him because he had previously deceived Prince Ang of Wei, forcing him to return to his fief at Shang. He raised troops and attacked Zheng County, but was defeated and killed. King Huiwen had Shang Yang's corpse torn apart by chariots and exterminated his family.

Although King Huiwen executed Shang Yang himself, he did not abolish Shang Yang's laws. The achievements of Shang Yang's Reforms were retained intact, and Qin's legal order was not interrupted. This course of action showed Ying Si's political maturity: he removed the threat posed by Shang Yang's personal power to royal authority rather than overturning the reforms themselves.

Advancing East through Hangu Pass and Encroaching on Wei Territory

After consolidating his rule, King Huiwen inherited Duke Xiao's ambitions and turned his attention toward Wei. Wei had seized the Hexi region from Qin early in the Warring States period, and King Huiwen's first objective was to recover the lost territory.

In 333 BCE, the fifth year of King Huiwen of Qin, he appointed the Wei native Gongsun Yan as Daliangzao. In the seventh year (331 BCE), Prince Ang fought Wei, captured the Wei general Long Jia, and beheaded eighty thousand men. In the eighth year (330 BCE), Gongsun Yan decisively defeated the Wei army at Diaoyin, south of present-day Ganquan County in Shaanxi, forcing Wei to return the Hexi region to Qin. In the ninth year (329 BCE), the Qin army crossed the Yellow River, seized Fenyin and Pishi, then besieged and forced Jiao to surrender. In the tenth year (328 BCE), Zhang Yi became Qin's Grand Councilor, and Wei was forced to cede another fifteen counties in Shang Commandery. Qin had now recovered all of the lost Hexi territory and established forward positions east of the Yellow River, gaining the initiative for further eastward expansion.

Assuming the Title of King and Using Horizontal Alliances to Break the Vertical Coalition

In 324 BCE, the fourteenth year of King Huiwen of Qin, Ying Si followed the example of the six eastern states and formally assumed the title of king, beginning a new regnal count with the first year of Gengyuan. The Qin ruler's adoption of the royal title began with Ying Si and marked Qin's formal equality in rank with the six states.

Around the time he became king, Qin faced a severe diplomatic situation. After leaving Qin, Gongsun Yan, known as Xishou, actively promoted a vertical alliance among the eastern states against Qin. In 318 BCE, the seventh year of the Gengyuan era, Han, Zhao, Wei, Yan, and Chu jointly attacked Qin, while Yiqu in the west took advantage of the situation and defeated a Qin force at Libo. Facing pressure from both east and west, King Huiwen sent the Shuzhang Chuliji against the coalition. At Xiuyu, Chuliji decisively defeated the troops of Wei, Zhao, and Han, beheading eighty-two thousand men and temporarily relieving the crisis on Qin's eastern front.

King Huiwen then adopted Zhang Yi's policy of horizontal alliances to divide and dismantle the vertical coalition. Zhang Yi traveled among the states using intimidating arguments and persuasion, causing Qi, Chu, Wei, and other states to become suspicious of one another, and the vertical alliance gradually fell apart. In 312 BCE, the thirteenth year of the Gengyuan era, Zhang Yi went to Chu and promised six hundred li of Shangyu territory to induce King Huai of Chu to break relations with Qi. After Chu did so, Zhang Yi reneged. King Huai angrily sent troops to attack Qin. The Qin army decisively defeated the Chu army at Danyang, north of the Dan River in the Shaanxi-Henan region, captured the Chu general Qu Gai, beheaded eighty thousand men, and then seized Hanzhong from Chu and established Hanzhong Commandery. Chu never recovered from the blow, while Qin now linked Guanzhong, Hanzhong, Ba, and Shu, gaining a commanding geographical advantage over the six states.

Pacifying Ba and Shu in the West and Attacking Yiqu in the North

In 316 BCE, the ninth year of the Gengyuan era, a fierce debate arose within Qin over whether to attack Shu. Zhang Yi advocated an eastward attack on Han, whereas Sima Cuo urged that Shu be conquered first. Sima Cuo argued that Shu was the leading state among the Rong and Di peoples and was then suffering internal disorder; conquering it would provide land to expand the state and wealth to enrich the people, while bringing no bad reputation. An attack on Han, by contrast, could carry the stigma of threatening the Son of Heaven and might yield little benefit. King Huiwen ultimately accepted Sima Cuo's proposal and sent Sima Cuo, Zhang Yi, and others to attack Shu. They decisively defeated the Shu army at Jiameng Pass and destroyed the state of Shu, and then destroyed Ba. The wealth of Ba and Shu supplied Qin with a strong material foundation. As later summarized, after Shu came under Qin, Qin became still stronger, wealthy enough to make light of the other states.

Yiqu was the strongest Rong polity northwest of Qin, occupying parts of what are now northern Shaanxi, north-central Gansu, and Ningxia. Its mobile cavalry frequently raided Qin's borders. In 331 BCE, the seventh year of King Huiwen of Qin, civil disorder broke out in Yiqu, and Qin sent Shuzhang Cao to take advantage of the situation and pacify it. In the eleventh year (327 BCE), Qin established a county in Yiqu, and the ruler of Yiqu acknowledged Qin's suzerainty. In 315 BCE, the tenth year of Gengyuan, Qin again attacked Yiqu and seized twenty-five cities, gaining extensive pasturelands in the northwest and reducing the threat to Qin's rear.

Final Years and Death

In 311 BCE, the fourteenth year of the Gengyuan era, Qin attacked Chu and captured Zhaoling. In the same year, Dan and Li submitted to Qin, while Chen Zhuang, the chancellor of Shu, killed the ruler of Shu and surrendered. King Huiwen died that same year at the age of forty-six and was buried at Gongling, on the northern plateau of present-day Xianyang, Shaanxi. Crown Prince Ying Dang succeeded him as King Wu of Qin.

Major Activities

Executing Shang Yang without Abolishing His Laws

After succeeding to the throne, King Huiwen had Shang Yang executed for rebellion because of old grievances dating from his years as crown prince and pressure from the royal clan. Shang Yang's body was torn apart by chariots and his family exterminated. King Huiwen nevertheless did not abolish Shang Yang's laws and continued to enforce the new system. This removed the threat of Shang Yang's personal authority to royal power while preserving the achievements of reform and allowing Qin's legal order to continue. Later commentators often regarded this as evidence of King Huiwen's political sophistication.

Employing Zhang Yi and Using Horizontal Alliances to Break the Vertical Coalition

In 328 BCE, the tenth year of King Huiwen of Qin, Zhang Yi became Qin's Grand Councilor. He thereafter traveled among the states using the strategy of horizontal alliances to divide and dismantle the vertical coalition, one of the major features of King Huiwen's reign. Zhang Yi went to Chu and used the promise of Shangyu territory to induce King Huai of Chu to break with Qi. After Chu severed relations with Qi, Qin defeated Chu at Danyang and seized Hanzhong. Zhang Yi also served as Grand Councilor in Wei and used indirect tactics to bring Wei closer to Qin. In Qin's complex diplomatic struggles with the other states, Zhang Yi repeatedly reversed dangerous situations and helped break attacks by coalitions of states. King Huiwen sought him out, tested him, appointed him, and trusted him, and their ruler-minister cooperation was later regarded as exemplary.

Conquering Ba and Shu

In 316 BCE, the ninth year of the Gengyuan era, King Huiwen rejected Zhang Yi's proposal and accepted Sima Cuo's strategic argument that acquiring Shu would provide leverage against Chu. He sent Sima Cuo, Zhang Yi, and others to attack Shu, destroying the state and then Ba. The lands of Ba and Shu were fertile and rich in products and thereafter became Qin's rear base, supplying a continuous stream of grain and other resources. According to the Huayang Guozhi, Sima Cuo and others also used routes through Shu and moved downstream along the river, creating strategic pressure on Chu.

The Battle of Danyang and the Seizure of Hanzhong

In 312 BCE, the thirteenth year of Gengyuan, Zhang Yi's mission to Chu successfully induced King Huai of Chu to break with Qi and attack Qin. The Qin army decisively defeated Chu at Danyang, captured the Chu general Qu Gai, beheaded eighty thousand men, seized Hanzhong territory, and established Hanzhong Commandery. Acquisition of Hanzhong linked Guanzhong, Hanzhong, Ba, and Shu, placing the six states under strong geographical pressure from Qin. Chu suffered a severe loss of strength and could no longer compete with Qin on equal terms.

Attacking Yiqu and Securing the Northwest

Yiqu was a formidable enemy on Qin's northwestern frontier. In 331 BCE, the seventh year of King Huiwen of Qin, Qin exploited internal disorder in Yiqu and sent troops to pacify it. In the eleventh year (327 BCE), Qin established Yiqu County and the ruler of Yiqu submitted. In 315 BCE, the tenth year of Gengyuan, Qin attacked again and seized twenty-five cities. After repeated blows, the threat from Yiqu was largely reduced, allowing Qin to concentrate on eastward expansion.

Employing Talented Outsiders without Regard to Origin

King Huiwen did not limit appointments to Qin natives. Many capable outsiders were entrusted with important duties: the Wei native Gongsun Yan served as Daliangzao, the Wei native Zhang Yi as Grand Councilor, and the Wei native Wei Zhang as a general. He also relied on members of the royal clan, such as his half-brother Chuliji (Ying Ji), who served as Shuzhang and repeatedly distinguished himself in war. This broad approach to recruitment gave Qin a large pool of talent during King Huiwen's reign and contributed to the foundations for the eventual unification of the realm.

Personal Relations

• Father: Duke Xiao of Qin, Ying Quliang
• Brothers: Chuliji (Ying Ji), Prince Hua (Ying Hua)
• Queen: Queen Huiwen (née Wei)
• Consort: Mi Bazi (Queen Dowager Xuan)
• Sons: King Wu of Qin, Ying Dang (son of Queen Huiwen); King Zhaoxiang of Qin, Ying Ji (son of Mi Bazi); Prince Zhuang; Prince Yong; Prince Tong (ruler of Shu); Prince Yun (Ruler Yun of Shu); Ying Kui, Lord of Gaoling; Ying Fu, Lord of Jingyang
• Daughter: Queen of King Yi of Yan
• Shang Yang: Leading reform official under Duke Xiao; had an old grievance with Ying Si and was executed by him.
• Zhang Yi: Qin Grand Councilor, architect of the horizontal-alliance strategy and King Huiwen's most trusted strategist.
• Gongsun Yan (Xishou): Formerly Daliangzao of Qin; later left Qin and promoted the vertical coalition against it.
• Sima Cuo: Qin general and commander in the conquest of Ba and Shu.
• Chuliji: Half-brother and Qin general who decisively defeated the coalition at Xiuyu.
• King Huai of Chu: Defeated by Qin at Danyang and deceived by Zhang Yi.
• King Hui of Wei: Rival in the struggle over the Hexi region.
• Ruler of Yiqu: Leader of the northwestern Rong polity conquered by Qin.

Historical Assessment

Warring States and Qin Periods

• The Strategies of the Warring States states that under King Huiwen, Qin possessed “half the realm,” with abundant stores and advantageous terrain, and had become much stronger than the six states.
• The strategist Su Qin described Qin under King Huiwen as having fertile fields, prosperous people, ten thousand war chariots, a million fighting men, a thousand li of rich land, and abundant stores, calling it a “land of natural abundance.”
• The Qin general Bai Qi, active under King Zhaoxiang, is recorded as saying: “Qin's strength began with King Hui.”

Han Period

• Sima Qian's Records of the Grand Historian, in the “Basic Annals of Qin,” records King Huiwen's achievements in detail. It offers no direct judgment on his execution of Shang Yang but recounts his attacks on Wei, conquest of Ba and Shu, and victory over Chu at Danyang in substantial detail, implicitly praising his accomplishments.
• Jia Yi's “Disquisition on the Faults of Qin” states that from Duke Xiao onward, Qin established laws internally, promoted farming and weaving, prepared for defense and warfare, and externally used horizontal alliances to set the other states against one another. King Huiwen was a key executor of this course.
• Liu Xiang's New Sequences praised King Huiwen for employing Zhang Yi's horizontal-alliance policy to break the six states' vertical coalition, regarding this diplomacy as giving Qin the initiative in interstate competition.

Tang and Song Periods

• The Tang scholar Sima Zhen, in the Shiji Suoyin, discussed King Huiwen's assumption of the royal title, employment of Zhang Yi, and related matters in detail. He did not make a direct moral judgment but acknowledged the ruler's achievements.
• The Song scholar Su Zhe, in Ancient History, commented that King Huiwen “executed Shang Yang but did not abolish his laws,” regarding it as a prudent recognition of relative priorities.
• The Song historian Lü Zuqian, in the Chronicle of Great Events, treated King Huiwen as a key figure in Qin's rise to hegemony, stating that he “inherited Duke Xiao's foundations and opened the way for King Zhaoxiang's achievements.”

Modern Period

• Qian Mu, in Outline of National History, regarded King Huiwen's reign as a crucial turning point in Qin's transition “from hegemon to king,” describing his rule as one of sound domestic administration and active external expansion and saying that Qin's strength began in this period.
• Lü Simian, in History of the Pre-Qin Period, interpreted King Huiwen's execution of Shang Yang as a conflict between royal and ministerial power and argued that retaining the new laws showed political judgment.
• Ma Feibai, in Collected History of Qin, examined King Huiwen's children in detail and argued that his large family helped lay foundations for the development of the Qin royal-clan system.