Dahan first prince

Chapter 217 The basis for "The Son of Heaven cannot admit his mistakes"
Seeing that several book friends have doubts about this, let me talk about it a little bit.

What needs to be mentioned is that the ancient Chinese civilization developed from the abdication of the Yao and Shun era, which is commonly known as democratic election in modern times, to the hereditary feudal emperor system.

The abdication system, that is, the prevalence of the democratic election system, appeared during the tribal alliance leaders of Yao, Shun, and Yu, and gradually became a custom.

It was not until the Xia Dynasty that the Chinese civilization established the first hereditary dynasty.

The crux of the problem is precisely here.

The Xia Dynasty became a hereditary dynasty. It does not mean that once the Xia Dynasty was established, it completely overthrew the abdication system in the Yao and Shun periods, but made a tentative first change, that is: since it is abdication, when the king is dying, , Is it feasible to abdicate the throne Zen to one's own heir?
With this idea in mind, the rulers of the Xia Dynasty paid more and more attention to the cultivation of the crown prince—after all, this son is going to inherit the state through "abdication", even if he can't become the undoubted "most sage in the world" like Shun and Yu ', at least it makes sense.

After Xia, Shang, Zhou, and even Ying Qin after the establishment of the empire, they all advanced little by little on this basis, and gradually formed a system of succession to the throne that was 'apparently abdicated, but actually hereditary'.

It is also under this internal logic of the inheritance system of "appointing people with talents", after the death of Qin Shihuang, there will be public opinion in the world that "the second Hu Hai is cruel and should not be established, and the one who should be established is the prince Fusu".

--why?
Because according to the standard of "appointing people with talents" in the abdication system, the rumored Fusubi II Hu Hai is wise.

Even if Zhao Gao and Li Si did not correct the edict, and the first emperor Yingzheng really passed the throne to Hu Hai, judging from Hu Hai's performance after he succeeded to the throne, he still could not meet the standard of the abdication system of "appointing people with talents".

It’s just that thousands of years have passed since the era of Yao and Shun’s abdication. In the Qin Dynasty, although “abdication” was still the theoretical rule of emperor’s succession, in fact, the hereditary system had already gradually become an implicit and unspoken rule. rule;
In addition, Qin is not a new dynasty, but has transformed from the vassal states of Ji and Zhou to the unified regime of the dynasty, which makes the rule of "abdication" of the emperor's succession even more shaky - because abdication is only applicable to the "son of heaven" or "human emperor". ’, but it does not apply to the family inheritance of princes, lords, and even powerful and wealthy households and ordinary people.

Therefore, in order to plug the loophole of "Hu Hai's success was determined by the first emperor's edict", there was the commonly believed "Zhao Gao and Li Si's edict to kill the son and help Su".

In this way, Hu Hai's temper is tyrannical, and it is impossible for Hu Hai to obtain the throne through the abdication system of "appointing others to be worthy"; and Zhao Gao and Li Si are cowardly, so it is impossible for Hu Hai to obtain the throne through the hereditary system of "appointing others to be virtuous".

Combining the above two, we can naturally draw the conclusion that "Hu Hai's position is not right", which provides a crucial legal basis for the late Qin rebels to resist the rule of Ying Qin and even overthrow Ying Qin Sheji.

As for whether Zhao Gao and Li Si have corrected the edict, no one knows at all. They have never admitted it themselves, and no one has ever presented evidence.

Strictly speaking, the statement that "Zhao Gao, Li Sijiao ordered to kill Fusu, and helped establish the second generation Hu Hai" was only deduced by the world's abdication system of "appointing people to be worthy": Mr. Fusu is wise and righteous, while Hu Hai is cruel and tyrannical. The First Emperor Yingzheng would definitely not set up Huhai, let alone leave an edict to kill his son Fusu with poison, so this must be Zhao Gao and Li Si's coercive edict.

But in fact, if the impetus is reversed based on the premise that "the first emperor really wanted Hu Hai to inherit the state", it is logically reasonable for the first emperor to grant death and support the Soviet Union in the last edict of Yingzheng.

First of all, there was no queen in front of the first emperor; and the absence of a queen means that there is no legitimate son.

According to the inheritance rules of the hereditary system stipulated in the Rites of Zhou that "there is a descendant to establish a descendant, and no descendant to establish an elder", the first emperor Yingzheng who has no descendants should leave the throne to the oldest son.

According to contemporary historical data, this "eldest son of Dangli" is the son Fusu.

The second generation Hu Hai was not only younger than Fusu, he was even the youngest among the first emperor's sons, ranking No.18.

In this way, in order to remove obstacles for his son, Shihuang took away Fusu, the son who was theoretically most qualified to inherit the throne, at his deathbed, which was completely in line with common sense.

Starting from this logic, even Hu Hai's wanton mutilation of siblings after he ascended the throne makes perfect sense—as Ying Zheng's youngest son, Hu Hai really had to kill all his brothers if he wanted to secure a stable position in the country.

Maybe it's a bit strange to say this, but if you give a similar example, everyone may have a different opinion.

——Liu Che, the tenth son of Emperor Jing, after the death of Emperor Jing Liu Qi, also used various trumped-up charges to let his older brothers "die in bed"; among them, Liu De, the most typical king of Hejian, was even mentioned by Emperor Wu Liu Che "Tang used seventy miles, King Wen used a hundred miles, and Wang Zituzhi" was scared to death.

Emperor Shizong Xiaowu of the Han Dynasty, Liu Che, once mutilated his siblings because he was young and fearful of the theory of "not being a son or a son, and getting a wrong position". Hu Hai, who was also the youngest son of the first emperor, seemed to have no reason not to do so.

Back to the topic: After the death of the first emperor, Yingzheng, the world's "abdication system" has not been completely torn as a fig leaf, which triggered the "The one who stands is the son Fusu"" Zhao Gao Li Si Jiaozhao Fuli Huhai ', so what happened in the Han Dynasty?

From historical records, it is not difficult for us to send a letter: After Qin, Liu Han rose from the ruins waiting to be rebuilt;
One is the system of laws and regulations and rituals, which are summarized by contemporary historical researchers as: Han inherits the Qin system and Zhou rituals.

To put it more simply: Except for calling Qin "cruel and innocent", Liu Han's laws and regulations basically follow the previous dynasty, that is, Ying Qin.

Even the "Han Law" was modified and supplemented to a certain extent by Han Chancellor Xiao He on the basis of the "Qin Law", and it became the core judicial basis of the Han Dynasty intact.

Just from the extremely short time interval of "Han inherited the Qin system" and "Qin II died, and then Han was established", it is not difficult for us to draw a conclusion: In the Han Dynasty, at least in the early Han Dynasty, the succession system of the throne should be It is still a fig leaf covered with a layer of abdication on the surface, but in fact it is a fig leaf of abdication to the crown prince.

But compared to Qin, the rule of succession of the throne in Han Dynasty was a step closer to the direction of 'hereditary'.

We can see this from the historical records, when the great ancestor Liu Bang intended to abolish the elders and establish the younger ones, the public officials and officials mostly used the hereditary principle of "establishing the first son and establishing the elders" as admonishment.

Judging from the fact that all the officials did not forget to mention "the prince is benevolent, he can be the ancestral temple", the abdication system based on the principle of "appointing people on their merits" still exerted a certain influence in the early Han Dynasty.

So, when will this situation end?
Since when did the emperors of China begin to throw away the fig leaf of "I inherited the throne because of my virtuousness" and directly admit that "I inherited the throne because of my father"?
Regarding this point, I mentioned it in the main text: the system of "abdication" has completely withdrawn from the stage of history. In his later years, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, Liu Che, issued an edict of guilt when the people's livelihood was dying, the people were mourning, and there were even signs of peasant uprising. as a sign.

Emperor Wu's Edict of Guilt, in addition to immediately calming down the world that was about to turmoil at any time and may fall into troubled times at any time, has many important political significance.

First of all, it is "the son of heaven sinning himself", that is, the emperor's act of admitting his own mistakes completely tore up the fig leaf of "the son of heaven is established because of his virtuousness", thus indirectly proclaiming the abdication system of "appointing people with virtuousness" , completely withdraw from the stage of history; the inheritance of the Chinese feudal regime began to be based on heredity from the inside out, with no dead ends in all aspects.

In terms that are easier for everyone to understand, it is: during the time of Yao and Shun, everyone really gave in, so it doesn’t matter if you make a mistake, or admit it.

However, after Yao and Shun, and until the edict of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, everyone moved from the "true abdication" to the direction of "only hereditary, not abdication". After the edict, it officially arrived at the other side of "only hereditary, not abdication".

In the process of this gradual transformation, there are also several allusions that are very iconic and significant for the times, which have stepped on the gas pedal for this transformation process.

——Chengwangyou, Zhougong Jidan was regent, won the whole world, and still returned to power with Chengwang;

——Kang Wang was young, called Gong Jixi to help the government, and still had no evil thoughts, he taught Kang Wang to become an adult, and then returned to power.

With these two allusions of the sage who clearly could obtain the throne through abdication, but chose to maintain the hereditary and give up the throne, the abdication system was completely reduced to superficial work.

From a few other things, we can also see that even after Emperor Wu's sin against himself, the system of "abdication" still exerted its historical inertia for a period of time.

For example, at the end of the Western Han Dynasty, Wang Mang was able to establish a new dynasty on the basis of Liu Han through "abdication"; but in the end, he was overthrown by Liu Xiu who rejuvenated the Han Dynasty.

Another example is the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the Three Kingdoms period, after the death of Wei Wang Cao Cao, his son Cao Pi also took over the throne from Han Xiandi Liu Xie through the method of "abdication"; but in the end, the Sima family picked the peaches, Wei died and Jin prospered.

From these two incidents of "gaining the throne through abdication, and finally losing the throne", we can easily find that after Emperor Wu's sin against himself, although the abdication system still relied on huge historical inertia to exert its influence, it had long since It has lost the basis for practical implementation and has long been no longer recognized by universal values.

Finally, there is the last question raised by this reader: Since the emperor cannot admit his mistakes, shouldn't the Emperor Wu's prestige be greatly damaged by issuing an edict to sin against himself?

But in fact, isn't it something that people praise for Emperor Wu's promulgation of his own edict?
My answer to this question is: the reason why Emperor Wu committed a crime against himself, and the reason why he did not have a "great loss of dignity", can almost be completely explained as "the shadow of the clan".

It is true that, as the "Emperor Wu" with a long history, Sejong Liu Che's martial arts can be said to be rare in ancient history.

But as an objective historical researcher, or a fan, I have to admit that: Compared with martial arts, Wudi Liu Che's martial arts can almost be described as "unworthy of his father and ancestors".

In the period of Emperor Wen and Emperor Jing before Liu Che, the world was light and taxed, and the people lived in peace. The tax rate of the Han Dynasty was reduced from the [-]th tax in the time of Gaozu Liu Bang to the ultra-low tax rate of [-] to [-]st.

——Thirty tax one, that is [-]%, which is lower than modern savings interest, and it can be completely ignored.

But after Liu Che succeeded to the throne, in just 20 years, the treasury accumulated through the entire Wenjing rule was completely defeated by Emperor Wu Liu Che.

Could it be that all this money was used to conquer the Huns?

From the historical data, obviously not.

——The rule of Wenjing has been accumulated for nearly 70 years, and it was used for the decisive battle between the Han and the Hungarians. It was used by Emperor Wu Liu Che for large-scale construction, construction of palaces, and enshrining Zen, parade, and enjoyment.

The military expenses for the decisive battle with the Xiongnu were all in the form of exorbitant taxes and miscellaneous taxes, all of which were placed on the heads of the people of the world.

It is precisely because of this that after Wei and Huo, the two proud sons of heaven, passed away one after another, the people all over the world, who originally held a high degree of support for the Huns in the north, gradually changed from "rejoicing when they hear the war" to "annoyed when they hear the war." In the end, in order to continue to maintain foreign conquests, Emperor Wu Liu Che even had to introduce a patch system such as "Martial Merit" when he could not get enough troops.

The reason why Emperor Wu Liu Che still became Emperor Shizong Xiaowu of the Han Dynasty instead of Emperor Yangdi of the Han Dynasty after such tossing for most of his life was mainly due to the following two reasons.

[-]. Compared with Yang Guang, who has been defeated repeatedly, Emperor Wu Liu Che's conquest of the Huns has achieved considerable results.

[-]. Liu Che's grandfather is Liu Heng.

Even the latter point plays a more important role than the former point.

Some readers may not be clear: the prestige and popularity of Emperor Taizong Xiaowen Liu Heng during his reign can be said to be far superior to the great ancestor Liu Bang, and it is close to the mythical Three Emperors and Five Emperors.

Even at the end of the Western Han Dynasty, when the rebel army broke into Chang'an, they didn't dare to show any disrespect to the mausoleum of this 'living saint'.

Therefore, the reason why Emperor Wu Liu Che's sin against oneself did not cause too severe political turmoil is that, in the hearts of the people of the world, they are more or less thinking about Emperor Wu Liu Che's Northern Expedition to the Huns, which straightened the backbone of the Han people all over the world. Sheep, let the Han people all over the world live a good life of eating meat.

What's more, no matter how dissatisfied everyone was, they finally shook their heads helplessly in their hearts: After all, he is the grandson of Emperor Taizong Wen, so let it be because of Emperor Taizong's past.

After all, he is the son of heaven, and even apologized, what else can he do?

Anyway, it is the blood of Emperor Taizong, no matter how bad it is, how bad can it be?
It is different from the era background of Emperor Wu Liu Che: In the article, as the founding emperor, Liu Bang naturally shoulders the mission of 'establishing the foundation for the country', 'setting an example for future generations' and 'bringing infinite blessings to the legal system of Liu Han'.

Even after gaining the world, Liu Bang used the legend of the "Red Emperor" and his own way of mythology to strengthen Liu Han's legal system.

Under the background of many factors such as the identity of the founding emperor, the legal system blessed by mythology, and the background of the era in which the troubled times have come to an end, the son of the Red Emperor will never 'make mistakes', and he will never admit his mistakes.

Today's two updates, this one doesn't count, so don't be impatient everyone.

　Uh... This chapter should be free, and it will be a paid chapter...
　　The text of the next chapter will be released for free, as compensation to everyone, I hope everyone will take care of it

　　
　
(End of this chapter)