In "Historical Records", why did Sima Qian list Song Xianggong as one of the Five Hegemons of the Spring and Autumn Period?

If you ask: Why did Sima Qian list Song Xianggong as one of the five hegemons of the Spring and Autumn Period? There is no way to answer this question, because Sima Qian did not do this, so how could there be a reason? The person who listed Song Xianggong among the "Five Hegemons of the Spring and Autumn Period" was Sima Zhen of the Tang Dynasty. When writing "Historical Records Suoyin", he extensively researched the names, historical facts, Sima Qian's life, etc. in "Historical Records". The Five Hegemons of the Spring and Autumn Period is just a "historical term" that he verified.

If you ask: Is Song Xianggong qualified to be included as one of the Five Hegemons? Personally I think it is not qualified. Here we can discuss by the way why Sima Zhen included Song Xianggong as one of the Five Hegemons? At that time, it was because Sima Zhen saw Song Xianggong's "benevolence and righteousness". The so-called "unrighteous wars in the Spring and Autumn Period" mean that Duke Xianggang of the Song Dynasty perished because he strictly abided by the war rituals of the Zhou Dynasty and because of his benevolence and righteousness. In an era when hegemony was emphasized but not benevolence and righteousness, Song Xianggong was synonymous with stupidity. In an era when benevolence and righteousness were emphasized regardless of hegemony, Song Xiang was synonymous with noble personality. The concept of "Five Hegemons" focuses on kingship and hegemony, rather than benevolence, justice and morality. Song Xianggong has nothing to do with this.

The Five Hegemons of the Spring and Autumn Period is a changing concept and was not determined from the beginning. Mencius first proposed the theory of "Five Hegemons". Shizi discussed four people: Qi Huan, Jin Wen, Qin Mu, and Yue Goujian. A complete statement was formed during the Xunzi period: Duke Huan of Qi, Duke Wen of Jin, King Zhuang of Chu, King Helu of Wu, and King Goujian of Yue. At this time, there was no Song Xianggong, and it was not until Tang Dynasty historians interpreted ancient history that he was included among the Five Hegemons of the Spring and Autumn Period.

The reason why Song Xianggong was later included among the "Five Hegemons" was not only due to Song Xianggong's historical merits, but also due to social changes and historical progress, and the basic concepts of later generations of scholars. A lot has changed.

The main achievement of Song Xianggong was to ally with the princes and lead the troops of Song, Wei, Cao and Zhu to quell the civil strife in Qi and support Qi Xiaogong to ascend the throne. As a result, he became famous, and later participated in the struggle for the hegemony of the Central Plains, and was defeated by the Chu State in the Battle of Hongshui.

Like Song Xianggong, he clung to his reputation as a benevolent and righteous soldier and refused to attack halfway across the river. He had to wait for all the Chu troops to land before engaging in a decisive battle. During the Warring States Period, countries were still preying on the weak. Scholars at that time all laughed at Song Xianggong, and no one praised him. But in later generations, after the country was unified and cultural cohesion formed, Song Xianggong's behavior was labeled "benevolence and righteousness".

One thing that needs to be revised is that it was not Sima Qian of the Western Han Dynasty who included Song Xianggong among the five hegemons, but Sima Zhen and Yan Shigu of the Tang Dynasty. Sima Zhen is listed in "Historical Records Suoyin": Duke Huan of Qi, Duke Wen of Jin, King Zhuang of Chu, Duke Mu of Qin, and Duke Xiang of Song. Yan Shigu listed them in "Notes on the Book of Han": Duke Huan of Qi, Duke Wen of Jin, Duke Xiang of Song, Duke Mu of Qin, and King Wu Fuchai. The two of them still have different opinions.

Huang Zhongyuan of the Song Dynasty wanted to solve this problem by comparing the length of "Historical Records" to determine whether the previous opinions were right or wrong. He came to the conclusion that when Tai Shigong recorded Qi Huan, Jin Wen, Qin Mu, and Chu Zhuang, the materials were all very solid, but when it came to Song Xianggong, the descriptions were pitiful. This is Tai Shigong's usual writing style. Important things should be written in more words, and less important things should be concise and comprehensive. Therefore, Huang Zhongyuan believes that the real five hegemons of the Spring and Autumn Period should be: Duke Huan of Qi, Duke Wen of Jin, Duke Mu of Qin, King Zhuang of Chu, and King Fuchai of Wu. There should not be what people in the Tang Dynasty called Song Xianggong.

When people read history today, they need to get out of this box. During the Spring and Autumn Period, there were far more than five monarchs competing for hegemony. At that time, the Confucian scholars of the Song Dynasty had already concluded the "Thirteen Hegemons of the Spring and Autumn Period" based on the distinction between Hua and Yi, which meant that in addition to Qin, Chu, Wu, and Yue outside the "Zhou Cultural Circle", there were thirteen hegemons in the Central Plains alone. . Later generations thought that the list by Song Confucianists was too narrow, and they re-summarized the view of "Nineteen Hegemons in the Spring and Autumn Period". The number "three or five" is the theory of Zisi, Mencius and others who "reconstruct cases from the past". Xunzi has already criticized them. They always believe that things in the world must conform to magic. But in fact, the Three Emperors are not three, and the Five Emperors are not five, let alone the Five Hegemons of the Spring and Autumn Period? When reading history, we must be guided by historical truth and cannot be bound by concepts.

For details, please refer to: Historical data review: Eight theories about the "Five Hegemons of the Spring and Autumn Period"