Chapter 5: Breaking Xu Chang, Chu's Army Establishes Military Prestige, Meeting with Vassals in Xuzhou to Compete for Hegemony

  In 336 BC, the fourth year of King Wu of Chu and the third year of Duke Huiwen of Qin, King Wu of Chu ordered General Qu Wuzi to lead an army of one hundred thousand men from Chu to defeat the Wei army at Yuzhou and Gucheng, expanding their territory to Xian Mountain. Then, General Qu Wuzi also defeated the Han army at Pingdingshan, Ruyang, and Ruizhou, expanding their territory by over three hundred miles.

  In 335 BC, King Wu of Chu led a large army northward to attack Wei, ordering thirty thousand men from Zhoukou, Luhe, Fang, and Ye to converge on Xuchang and defeat the Wei army. The king of Wei asked for help, and ordered ten thousand men from Yangdi and Gongyi and another ten thousand men from Daliang to go south and rescue Xuchang. The Marquis of Han also sent ten thousand men from Zhengzhou and Xinzheng to go south and support the Wei army in rescuing Xuchang.

  In August, the Wei army that marched south from Yangdi and Gongyi was defeated by General Qu Wuzi at Xian Mountain and Yuzhou, and retreated back to Yangdi. The Wei army that marched south from Daliang was intercepted by the Chu army marching north from Zhoukou, while the ten thousand Han soldiers who marched south were defeated by the Chu army marching north from Fang and Ye.

  In September, King Wu of Chu led the main force of the Chu army to defeat the main force of the Wei army at Xuchang and the Daliang Wei army east of Taikang. In October, the Chu army captured Xuchang, and the remaining Wei soldiers retreated hastily back to Daliang.

  In this year's Battle of Xuchang, the Chu army killed nineteen thousand Wei soldiers and over five thousand Han soldiers, capturing the city of Xuchang from Wei and approaching the capital of Han. The king of Han was already frightened.

  In 334 BC, Duke Huiwen of Qin saw that the Chu army had defeated the armies of Wei and Han at Xuchang, expanding their territory by five hundred miles, and that the state of Wei had been greatly weakened. He ordered Sima Cuo and Xiang Shou to lead an army of two hundred thousand men, divided into two routes, to march east from Xianyang.

  Xiang Shou defeated the Wei army at Hancheng, while Sima Cuo fought a great battle against the famous Wei general Wei Jia at Tongguan but was unable to win. He retreated back to Huayin and faced off against the Wei army at Tongguan.

  Wei Huaiwang, the king of Wei, retreated back to his capital after being defeated at Xuchang. He knew that the Chu army was much stronger than the Wei army and that they couldn't match them one-on-one. After the defeat at Xuchang, the Qi army took advantage of the situation and attacked the Wei army's PuYang, while the Zhao army attacked the Wei city of Hebi, and the Qin army pressed in from the west. The Wei kingdom was surrounded on all sides and was struggling to respond.

  In 334 BC, Chu Wuwang gathered an army of 400,000 at Xuchang and marched towards the Wei capital of Daliang. Wei Huaiwang was terrified and offered to give up the city of PuYang and its surrounding areas to the Qi kingdom, as well as promising to hand over the title of Hegemon to the Qi king. He also asked the Qi king to withdraw his troops.

  Wei Huaiwang then gave up the city of Hebi and its surrounding areas to the Zhao kingdom, and several cities in the west to the Qin army. The Zhao and Qin kingdoms withdrew their troops.

  The next year, Wei Huaiwang announced that he would be passing on the title of Hegemon to another king at a meeting in Xuzhou. The Chu Wuwang was invited to attend, but instead of giving him the title, Wei Huaiwang said: "I admit defeat and acknowledge that the Chu army is the strongest in the land. I wanted to give you the title of Hegemon, but the Qi king has been pressuring me relentlessly. If you want it, come take it from me next year at Xuzhou, in front of all the other kings. But even if you capture my capital city of Daliang, the Qi king won't let you have the title, and the other kings won't recognize you as the new Hegemon. And when your army is tired from the battle, the Qi king will lead a coalition of armies to attack you, and you'll lose the title again."

  The Chu Wuwang thought this made sense and withdrew his troops, saving the Wei capital city of Daliang.

  In the spring of 333 BC, in the seventh year of King Wei of Chu, King Huiwen of Wei held a grand ceremony at Xuzhou to confer the title of "Hegemon" on himself. He said: "The Hegemon's crown is for those who have the ability and virtue to wear it. Today, facing the turmoil of the world, the state of Wei has no more power to shake the four directions, so I will present the Hegemon's crown to the most powerful and virtuous ruler in the world, to lead the vassals and bring blessings to the world. If anyone thinks they are worthy, they can come up and take the Hegemon's crown from my hands." After finishing speaking, he took off his crown with tears streaming down his face. The vassals looked at each other, whispering to each other, but no one dared to come forward to take the crown.

  The states of Qin, Zhao, Yue, and Song had always been eyeing the Hegemon's crown, but they knew that only Qi and Chu were qualified to take it. King Wei of Chu was a wise man, and he saw that the armies of Qi, Qin, Zhao, Yue, Han, Yan, and Song were all surrounding Xuzhou, so he ordered his troops to stand down and observe from the sidelines.

  King Huiwen of Wei said: "Gentlemen, you are too modest! Alas, I am no longer worthy of wearing the Hegemon's crown. Today, King Wei of Qi is virtuous and powerful, and his army is invincible. I recommend him as the Hegemon of the world. If anyone disagrees, they can come forward and compete with the Qi army." He then presented the crown to King Wei of Qi, who came forward to accept it.

  However, just as King Wei of Qi was about to take the crown, King Wu of Chu stepped forward and said: "Wait! In the Battle of Maling, the Qi army was defeated by the Wei army. How can they be considered the strongest in the world?" King Huiwen of Wei hastily said: "King Wu of Chu is right! The true strongest army in the world is indeed the Chu army!"

  King Wei of Qi's face turned green with rage, and he shouted: "How dare you, King Wu of Chu! Are you saying that my Qi army is afraid of your Chu army?" King Wu of Chu replied: "Not at all! Let us settle this through a one-on-one battle. If your Qi army can defeat my Chu army, then you can take the crown and go."

  The states of Qin and Zhao cheered in agreement, with their rulers saying: "That's right! The strong should be the Hegemon. One on one!"