From the beginning of the turmoil in the Yongjia period of the Western Jin Dynasty to the era of Emperor Wen of Sui, it took more than 270 years to end the ** situation. The chaotic situation of the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties lasted for a long time, involved many ethnic groups, and affected a wide range of regions, comparable to the "barbarian invasion" faced by Europe during the same period. However, Emperor Wen of Sui inherited the legacy of the Northern Zhou Dynasty, went south to destroy Chen, and unified the whole country.
When Emperor Wen of Sui Emperor Yang Jian usurped the throne, the Northern Zhou had already unified the north, and only the Chen Dynasty and the Western Liang were left in the south.
It can be said that Yang Jian's luck is so good, it is difficult to find the right person in history, and it is no wonder that Fang Xuanling later said, "The Lord has no merit, so he deceives the world", revealing a vinegar meaning between the lines, but in fact, it is also a conscience, because things are not as simple as imagined.
Clause.
1. Luck gave Yang Jian the throne and gave him the opportunity to unify China.
Yang Jian is the father-in-law of Emperor Xuan of the Northern Zhou Dynasty Yu Wenyun and the father of Empress Yang Lihua of the Northern Zhou Dynasty. However, history is such a coincidence, Yang Jian's in-laws Emperor Wu of Zhou and son-in-law Emperor Xuan of Zhou were both emperors, and they both died short-lived and died early, so the throne finally fell into Yang Jian's hands.
Yang Jian's in-laws are the famous "male lord" in the history of the Northern and Southern Dynasties, Emperor Wu of the Northern Zhou Dynasty, Yuwen Yong, who led the Northern Zhou to defeat the Northern Qi Dynasty and unify northern China. However, in 578 AD, the 35-year-old Emperor Wu of Zhou suddenly died violently, passing the throne to Yang Jian's son-in-law Yu Wenyun (Emperor Xuan of Zhou), the eldest son of Emperor Wu of Zhou. Yu Wenyun is a mediocre and lascivious person, poor and extravagant, and during his reign, he built a lot of buildings, and even appeared in the harem "five queens stand side by side".
Due to excessive wine, Emperor Xuan of Zhou died violently after less than 3 years of reign. Emperor Wu of Zhou and Emperor Xuan of Zhou died violently one after another, and the young Emperor Jing of Northern Zhou ascended the throne as emperor, and the real power was in the hands of Yang Jian, the prince of the state and the prince of Sui. Zhao Wang Yu Wenzhao, Chen Wang Yu Wenchun, Yue Wang Yu Wensheng, Dai Wang Yu Wenda, and Teng Wang Yu Wenkui of the Northern Zhou Dynasty were all killed by Yang Jian, and all the powerful factions in the royal family were killed. After Yang Jian killed the Yuwen family, he monopolized the power and usurped the throne as emperor in 581 AD, replacing "Zhou" with "Sui", and was known as Emperor Wen of Sui in history. Emperor Wen of Sui had the intention of unifying China, and the throne came too easily.
Second, Yang Jian's in-law, Emperor Wu of Zhou, laid a good foundation for him, while the Chen Dynasty in the south itself was also decaying
When Yang Jian ascended the throne, the land of China was already a situation of "strong in the north and weak in the south". The Chen Dynasty in the south was supported by the Yangtze River moat, and its national strength was weak, and its last monarch was the famous Chen Shubao (Chen Houzhu) in history. During the reign of Empress Chen, the corruption in the Chen Dynasty intensified, and traitorous ministers were in power, and they could not stop the attack of the Sui army at all. In addition, the small court of the "Later Liang" based in Jiangling was even more vulnerable and was not at all an opponent of the Sui Dynasty. After Emperor Wen of Sui usurped the throne, the Sui dynasty inherited the territory and power of the Northern Zhou, first abolishing the small court of Later Liang (Xiao clan) in Jiangling in late 588, and then launching a plan to attack Chen (Chen) on a three-way route. By February of the following year, the Sui army pacified Jiangnan and captured Chen Shubao, the last emperor of the Chen Dynasty, which took only 4 months.
During the reign of Yang Jian's in-laws, Emperor Wu of Zhou, Yuwen Yong, the Northern Zhou Dynasty already had the strength to unify China, and far surpassed the southern dynasties in terms of economy, population, and territory. It's just that Emperor Wu of Zhou died violently at the age of 35, and Emperor Xuan of Zhou, who succeeded him, died after less than 3 years of reign. Therefore, when the Northern Zhou Dynasty "unified but not unified", Yang Jian used the Sui Dynasty to replace the Zhou Dynasty and achieved the fruits of victory in unifying the world.
3. After the establishment of the Sui Dynasty, the Turkic relations with the north were properly handled, so that the imperial court had the opportunity to march south
When the Sui Dynasty was established, the greatest threat was not the Chen Dynasty in the south, but the "Turkic Khanate" in the north. The Turks in the north were strong in their heyday, with hundreds of thousands of troops, and they were nomadic from northeast China to distant Central Asia, and also posed a great threat to the Sui Dynasty in the Central Plains.
Therefore, after his accession to the throne in 581, Emperor Wen of Sui Yang Jian did not rush to the south, but dealt with the relations between the Sui dynasty and the Turks. Emperor Wen of Sui used a counter-plot to divide the Turkic Khanate into Eastern Turks and Western Turks, which seriously weakened the strength of the Turks. Otherwise, the Sui Dynasty did not dare to attack the Chen Dynasty with all its strength, because the Turks in the rear were a huge threat. Due to the civil strife between the Eastern and Western Turks, the Sui Dynasty could go all out to the south without worries about the north. By the end of 588, the time, place, and people were all on the side of the Sui Dynasty, and Emperor Wen of Sui also completed a series of preparations such as the construction of warships, the deployment of generals, and the assembly of troops, so he was able to quickly eliminate the Chen Dynasty within 4 months and unify ancient China.
To sum up: But it can be seen from Yang Jian's process of unifying the world that it is not an easy task to unify the world. Although Yang Jian has a good life, there is Yuwentai, and even Emperor Wu of Zhou has laid a good foundation for him. In this way, Yang Jian still spent nearly ten years.
This also includes Yang Jian's political and military talents. Yang Jian's "rule of the emperor" is comparable to "the rule of Zhenguan". Under the governance of Yang Jian, the wealth of the Great Sui made future generations yearn for it. The grain stored in the Yang Jian era was still there after the fall of Emperor Yang of Sui. It can be seen how strong Yang Jian's ability to govern the country is. But it's a pity that Yang Jian made the same mistake as Emperor Wu of Zhou and didn't choose an heir. So much so that the mighty Sui Dynasty was wiped out after only 28 years, which is a pity!
Emperor Wen of Sui Emperor Yang Jian was a very mature politician who understood China's internal and external troubles at that time, and was an excellent and great statesman in China. Without him, the Chinese would have been ruled by the Xianbei people for a long time. And it was he who completely solved the military threat of the powerful Northern Turks. This is a rare great emperor's cause since the Han and Tang dynasties, and it is not inferior to the historical achievements of opening up the territory. Then the unification of the whole country will naturally be a special book on the official history of the nation.