Thousand-year-old family: its rise began with Shang Yang’s reforms

Chapter 397: Politics is the art of compromise (end)

The autumn of the second year of Zhengtong.

Many things happened this autumn, but they are basically not recorded in history books.

After the Emperor of Cao Wei ascended the throne, Wei became even more unbridled in its indulgence of the aristocratic families. Most of the officials in the court were from aristocratic families, while those from poor families, even those with some talent, were squeezed into positions that were not valued, or were important but had no power.

But it must be said that at certain times, in certain places, and to certain extents, the influence of aristocratic families on the progress of the imperial court was still very powerful.

After the implementation of the Nine-Rank System, the Emperor of Cao Wei received help from the aristocratic families and was able to control most of the territory, and even conquered some barbarian lands on the border of Youzhou.

The reason they attacked these barbarian lands was not because they wanted to occupy these places, they just wanted to get more "labor force".

It would be a waste if you don't use the barbarians, and it would be useless if you use them.

If one uses one's own people as corvée labor, one would feel sad if too many of them died. After all, these people represent a stable source of tax revenue as well as a stable source of land and food.

But the barbarians did not have such a reaction. After all, they were just consumables.

Cao Wei entered a period of rapid development.

Almost surpassed the development of the Han Dynasty.

The second year of Zhengtong, autumn, September 18th.

The autumn wind blew and the city of Chang'an fell into a state of silence.

On the evening of September 18th, a "coup d'état" took place in the city of Chang'an. This is the only "description" of this event in Chen's history book, which records it as a "coup d'état."

Because this coup took place in the second year of the Zhengtong era, it is also called the Zhengtong Incident.

The history books did not record this brutal night of the coup, but they did record the consequences of the coup.

"Night of September 18, the second year of Zhengtong"

"The shocking incident in Chang'an."

"The emperor abdicates to the wise king Liu Bei."

"On the 19th day of the twelfth lunar month, the emperor died, childless."

Yes.

After searching through all the history books, whether official or unofficial, you can only find these three simple lines of words.

No cause, no process.

There were only a few simple but frightening characters: "incident", "emperor's death", and "abdication to the wise king".

There are many different views and discussions about this incident in later generations, but before the unearthed "Zhuge's Last Letter", historians generally believed that the Zhengtong Incident was a coup launched by Liu Bei, whose purpose was to ascend the throne and sit on the emperor's throne.

It is precisely because of this cognition that Liu Bei and Liu Xuande’s reputation in later generations is not very good, and it can even be said to be relatively poor, even worse than Cao Cao.

Members of the Cao family have always said that Cao Cao himself did not become emperor, but Liu Bei did. What does this mean?

This shows that Liu Bei, who has always said that Cao Cao is ambitious, is the most ambitious.

He also lamented that among the three old friends in the childhood plum garden, Cao Cao was the only one who did not rebel in the end.

This situation continued until the unearthed "Zhuge's Last Letter".

Zhuge Liang's suicide note recorded the true situation of the incident, and this situation made everyone silent.

"The First Lord wanted to clear the court and restore peace to the Han Dynasty, but the noble families in the Han Dynasty used this as an excuse to attack Liu Han and cause chaos among the people. The First Lord accepted the coercion for the suffering of the people of the world."

"The first lord said frankly that the people of the world in the past are now only selfish."

"If the prejudices of factions cannot be overcome, the Han Dynasty will not be able to continue."

These are the most important passages in Zhuge's suicide note. Zhuge Liang has always been regarded as the most steadfast representative of supporting the Han Dynasty. Even after Liu Bei became emperor, he continued to assist Liu Bei, and even Liu Bei's children, the last descendants of the Liu Han royal family.

He fought for the Han Dynasty for many years, and finally chose to end it all for the sake of the people of the world.

In later generations, Zhuge Liang was also called "the second best prime minister of all time."

Why is he the second best prime minister in history?

Because the greatest prime minister of all time was also born in this era.

He was an enemy of Zhuge Liang for many years, and finally even helped the person he assisted to unify the world and become the ruler of the world.

Prime Minister of Dayu, "Ancestor Heavenly Master".

People in later generations who extracted important information from Zhuge Liang's posthumous writings finally guessed this piece of history.

They believe that on the night of September 18, the second year of Zhengtong, Liu Bei might have been preparing to clean up and reorganize the court, and purge those "people" and "aristocratic families" who had forgotten about the common people and only wanted to enjoy themselves and become "friends" of the privileged class. At that time, those "people" and "aristocratic families" united together, using the chaos in the world as a "handle" to threaten Liu Bei, and finally prompted Liu Bei to ascend the throne.

In that incident, the deceased "Lin Zeyuan" who was called a traitor was standing on Liu Bei's side and helping Liu Bei to rectify the government.

Only this kind of person died in the entire Zhengtong Incident. He was the "personal attendant" who had followed Liu Bei since childhood. Although he was called an attendant, he was actually more like a disciple.

Many years ago, he was already one of the "Eight Commanders of Xiyuan" and also the "Principal Guards".

Whatever these events were, the Zhengtong Incident ended on the nineteenth day of the twelfth lunar month in the second year of the Zhengtong reign.

September 20th, the second year of Zhengtong.

The Emperor of the Han Dynasty, "Liu Min", issued an edict stating that since he ascended the throne, he had acted absurdly and tyrannically, causing the Han Dynasty to become what it is today. In addition, he had no offspring and could not allow the Han Dynasty to continue, so he wanted to abdicate.

He abdicated to his great-uncle, the wise king "Liu Bei".

Unlike the regular procedure, when Liu Bei took over the position of emperor, he did not go through the process of three requests and three declines. Instead, he accepted the position when the emperor's edict was issued.

Liu Bei became the emperor of the Han Dynasty.

Weiyang Palace
September 20th, the second year of Zhengtong.

Liu Bei sat there, looking at Liu Min in front of him, with a bit of melancholy and fatigue in his eyes. After the Zhengtong incident, his body suddenly aged, even older than before.

Liu Min just smiled and said, "Uncle, you are old."

He waved his hand and asked Liu Bei to sit down, his face full of emotion.

"Back then I always thought that you were the one who wanted to take my position, but later I finally understood that it was not you who wanted this position, but you had to sit in this position."

Liu Min seemed to be relieved at this moment. He just smiled and said easily: "Now that my uncle has finally taken this position, perhaps those people can finally rest assured."

Liu Bei just continued to remain silent.

Liu Min didn't care at all and continued, "This great man's kingdom is also handed over to you."

He said meaningfully: "I failed to protect this country, but I hope you can protect it. If you really can't protect it..."

Liu Min suddenly smiled and looked at Liu Bei: "If you really can't hold it, make some preparations in advance."

Liu Bei remained silent, while Liu Min stood up and staggered towards the harem.

The 19th day of the twelfth lunar month, the second year of Zhengtong.

Emperor died. On the 25th day of the twelfth lunar month in the second year of Zhengtong, which was the last year in history when the Han Dynasty still used the reign title of Chengtai, Emperor Liu Bei ascended the throne in a hurry.

The next year the reign was changed
"Violent".

In the Book of Han, this year is called the first year of Fenlie.

This year was the first year of Fenlie, the third year of Zhengtong, and the first year of Yankang.

Politics is the art of compromise.

Dayu
When he learned that Liu Bei, the new emperor of the Han Dynasty, had ascended the throne, Zu Tianshi took leave and returned home, sitting in the backyard all night.

The old friends of those days are no longer the same as they used to be.

It is so ironic and sad that they have all embarked on a path they did not want to take.

After learning that the Heavenly Master was at home, the Emperor of Dayu also came to the Prime Minister's Mansion to comfort the Heavenly Master.

backyard
As the autumn wind blew, Emperor Zhang Cheng just smiled and asked, "Sir, do you think Liu Xuande was forced to ascend the throne?"

There was some disbelief in his eyes.

In Zhang Cheng's opinion, no one in this world should be able to refuse to become an emperor, the supreme "master". Once you have tasted the power, how could you possibly let it go?

However, Zu Tianshi knew his "friend" very well, so he concluded that Liu Bei became the emperor because he was "forced" to do so.

"Everyone in the world may indulge in the vortex of power, but Xuande will not do that."

"The positions of emperor and prime minister are no different to him. His ultimate goal is only to support the Han Dynasty."

"but."

Master Zu Tian sighed: "For those people under him, and for those families and forces that support him, the difference is much greater."

"When Xuande ascends the throne, they will be loyal ministers and founding heroes, and each of them can be granted a title of nobility and appointed as prime minister."

"If Xuande doesn't ascend the throne, they will never be able to cross that level in their lifetime."

Zu Tianshi sneered: "So, even if they have to force them, they must want Xuande to become the emperor."

He sighed: "Although Xuande's ascension to the throne is not a good thing, it is not a bad thing after all."

"After Xuande ascended the throne, many things that could not be done in the past could now be done."

"Moreover, when Xuande becomes the emperor of the Han Dynasty, many people who still have hope for the Han Dynasty will also go there. With the help of these people, Xuande may be able to continue to fulfill his wish."

Zhang Cheng was not dissatisfied with what Zu Tianshi said. After all, he knew Zu Tianshi's identity.

He just said jokingly: "Prime Minister, what you said almost made me think that you gave up on me and were going to join Liu Xuande."

Zu Tianshi just smiled faintly: "Xuan De's ascension to the throne is also a good thing for Your Majesty."

There was a gleam in his eyes: "After this incident, the fate of the Han Dynasty is truly over."

"Whether it's the Han Dynasty or the Wei Kingdom, they all have a "stubborn disease", that is, aristocratic families."

"The big man has not yet escaped from the flames, and the "rottenness" attached to his body can take this opportunity to escape, and these rotten flesh will tightly drag the big man to destruction."

"And what about Da Wei?"

The ancestor Tianshi laughed loudly and said, "The little emperor of Wei State is too clever for his own good."

"He used the aristocratic families to gain the position of the emperor. When the aristocratic families use the Nine-Rank System to develop to the point where he can no longer control it, will the Wei Kingdom still belong to the Cao family?"

Zhang Cheng smacked his lips and said, "After hearing what the Heavenly Master said, I am more confident about the prospect of unifying the world."

Zu Tianshi just sighed and said, "Just wait."

"The time will come."

In the third year of Zhengtong, after the great changes in the world, the whole world fell into a very peaceful state again. The three forces were developing on their own. For a while, the land of Kyushu seemed to be unified.

Some people who have been living in Kyoto have even forgotten about the war. The threat of war has shifted from the open to the covert.

People's lives tend to be peaceful.

The seven years from the third year of Zhengtong to the tenth year of Zhengtong are a very memorable time for Dayu, the Han Dynasty, and the Wei Dynasty.

But some things will eventually change with the passage of time.

In the fourth year of Zhengtong, General Dong Zhongying, also known as "Dong Zhuo" of Dayu, died of illness in Liangzhou. Dong Zhongying's life can be said to be very mythical, and he also avoided the fate of becoming the "Dong Zhuo" in history.

When Liangzhou died of illness, Liangzhou had already become one of the most important prefectures in Dayu.

When people mention Liangzhou, they no longer think of the sky filled with yellow sand or barbarians, but rather "heroic" and "heroic".

Xiliang, General's Mansion

After Dong Zhuo closed his eyes, there was a faint smile on the corner of his mouth. He was very satisfied with his life.

Dong Zhongying's death seemed to have marked the beginning of the sadness of this era.

During the seven years from the third year of Zhengtong to the tenth year of Zhengtong, heroes died of illness one after another.

The fourth year of Zhengtong, July of summer.

Huang Zhong, the great general of the Han Dynasty, died of illness. In the twelfth month of the same year, Wei Yan and Wei Wenhe, who were close friends with Huang Zhong but were still very young, fell seriously ill and ultimately could not survive the winter.

Just as the spring of the fifth year of Zhengtong arrived, the Han Dynasty witnessed the death of another important figure.

The second in command of the Han Dynasty's strategists, Fa Zheng, who was known as a genius, died of illness.

Also in this spring, the counselors of the Wei Dynasty began to die one after another.

In the fifth year of Zhengtong, March of spring.

Guo Jia, Xi Zhicai and Xun Yu, three great talents from Yingchuan, fell ill one after another. Guo Jia was the first to fall ill. This did not surprise others. After all, Guo Jia had always liked to drink, and it would be strange if he had a good body. It was unexpected that he could live to this day.

However, after Guo Jia fell ill, Xi Zhicai and Xun Yu also fell ill.

In April of the same year, three old friends and great talents died of illness in the mansion almost on the same day.

Old friends are dying one after another.

Like leaves falling in the wind.

They are a touch of brilliance in this brilliant era.

The tenth year of Zhengtong, winter.

Langya
Weiyang Palace
Emperor Cao Pi looked tired and haggard. He looked at the old but very healthy Sima Yi with a look of helplessness on his face.

"Zhongda, you are older than me, but I will go first in the end."

(End of this chapter)