User:Yeu Ninje/Sandbox

Duke Xiao of Qin depended upon the strong fortifications of Yaohan and held the lands of Yongzhou. Sovereign and subject, firmly entrenched in defence, eyed the House of Zhou, with thoughts of rolling up the empire like a mat, enveloping all in the universe, pocketing everything within the four seas, and swallowing all in the eight directions. At the time, with the counsel of Lord Shang, within the state laws and regulations were established, farming and weaving developed, and weapons of defence and war prepared. Outside the state, alliances were made across the lands to pit the feudal lords against one another. Then the men of Qin, with cupped hands effortlessly took the lands beyond the western reaches of the He.

When Duke Xiao passed away, Wenhui, Wu and Zhaoxiang succeeded to his enterprise and continued the policies left to them. They took Hanzhong in the south, occupied Ba and Shu in the west, annexed fertile lands in the east, and acquired strategic areas in the north. Growing alarmed, the feudal lords met and made covenants seeking to weaken Qin. To summon the nobles of the empire, they did not begrudge precious vessels or fertile lands. They joined forces, concluded alliances, and became united as one. At the time, Qi had the Lord of Mengshang, Zhao had the Lord of Pingyuan, Chu had the Lord of Chunshen, and Wei had the Lord of Xinling. These four lords were all brilliant and wise, loyal and trustworthy. They were generous and loved others, respected men of worth and valued nobles. They arranged for a merging of forces to dismantle Qin's alliances, amalgamating the forces of Han, Wei, Yan, Zhao, Song, Wei, and Zhongshan. Of the nobles in the six states at the time, there were men like Ning Yue, Xu Shang, Su Qin, and Du He to make plans. There were men like Qi Ming, Zhou Zui, Chen Zhen, Zhao Hua, Luo Sui, Zhai Jing, Su Li, Le Yi to communicate the wishes of the rulers. There were men like Wu Qi, Sun Bin, Dai Tuo, Er Liang, Wang Liao, Tian Ji, Lian Po, Zhao She to administer their troops. On one occasion, with their lands ten times that of Qin, and forces numbering in the millions, they knocked upon the passes to attack Qin. The men of Qin opened the passes to engage their enemies, but the regiments of the nine states wavered and fell back, daring not to advance. Qin did not lose a single arrow to put the feudal lords of the empire in difficulty. Then the forces disbanded and the agreements unravelled. States contested with each other to cede territory to Qin. With its spare power, Qin corrected its weaknesses and went in pursuit of its defeated enemies. Millions of corpses lay by the roadside, shields floated with the rivers of blood. Taking advantage of the situation, Qin annexed the lands of the empire, and carved up the mountains and rivers for itself. The strong states submitted, and the weak states came to its court as vassals. Up to the time of King Xiaowen and Zhuangxiang, they did not enjoy rule for long, but there was not any major troubles with the state.