 Prince Ying Ji was born in 325 BC to one of King Huiwen's more lower-ranked concubines, Lady Mi (羋八子).As a "shu" child, Prince Ji was given low priority in the royal line of succession, and as an underage child was not granted a fief because the state of Qin employed a system of meritocracy that demanded that even princes earn their own lands through national service.He was dispatched to the state of Yan at a young age to serve as a political hostage, a common diplomatic practice among vassal states throughout Zhou Dynasty.