In the early morning of the eighth day of the Wuxu Lunar New Year in February 57 AD, the bell of grief echoed in the front hall of the South Palace, and Liu Xiu, the founding emperor of the Eastern Han Dynasty, completed his sixty-two years of life journey and closed his eyes forever. This great emperor, in the last moments of his life, still adhered to his duty and mission.
After the death of Emperor Guangwu, the court fell into great grief. At this critical moment, Taiwei Zhao Xi Zhao Xi showed firm determination and extraordinary wisdom. With a solemn expression, he stood on the steps of the temple with a long sword in his hand, and personally helped the princes down from their seats to show dignity and order.
He decisively went to the imperial court, asked to send an envoy to lead the feudal state ** to live in other counties, and asked the princes to return to their own mansions and only come to the palace to mourn at the specified morning and evening hours. This move effectively maintained the dignity and order of the court.
Zhao Xi also set out to rectify court etiquette, strengthen the access control system, and ensure the safety inside and outside the court. Under his careful organization, the order inside and outside the palace was orderly, creating a solemn and solemn atmosphere for Emperor Guangwu's funeral.
Soon after, the crown prince Liu Zhuang successfully ascended to the throne and became Emperor Ming of the Han Dynasty. He honored his mother, Yin, as the empress dowager to show his respect and gratitude to her.
Liu Xiu's death was undoubtedly a huge shock to the Eastern Han Dynasty. This is not only because of the loss of a wise monarch, but also because the incident has caused a series of political turmoil. The behavior of Liu Jing, the king of Shanyang, is a typical example in this turmoil.
At Liu Xiu's funeral, Liu Jing did not show real grief like other princes. Instead, he secretly wrote a secret letter in an attempt to incite Liu Xiu's eldest son, Liu Qiang, the king of the East China Sea, to rebel and seize the world.
After Liu Qiang received this secret letter, he did not believe Liu Jing's demagoguery. Knowing the seriousness of this act, he immediately arrested the messenger and handed the original letter to Emperor Liu Zhuang along with the messenger.
After Liu Zhuang learned the news, considering that Liu Jing was his half-brother, Liu Zhuang did not make the matter public, but chose to keep it secret. He ordered Liu Jing to leave the capital and go to live in Henan Palace, effectively placing him under house arrest. This treatment not only protects the royal face, but also effectively curbs possible political turmoil.
In March, Liu Xiu was buried in the original mausoleum.
Subsequently, Liu Zhuang began to rectify the affairs inside and outside the imperial court. He appointed Deng Yu as Taifu and Liu Cang as a hussar general and a series of personnel adjustments, aimed at strengthening the centralization of power and stabilizing the political situation. The implementation of these measures laid a solid foundation for the development of the Eastern Han Dynasty.
In autumn, the tranquility of the North-Western Frontier was shattered. The Qiang leader Dian Wu and his younger brother Dian An led their troops to invade the Longxi region rapidly. They attacked Yun Street like a storm, and Liu Xu's army was defeated under their onslaught.
This victory was like a fuse, igniting the fire of rebellion among other Qiang tribes who had originally belonged to the Han Dynasty and were stationed in the border area. They betrayed one after another and stood on the same front as Dian Wu and Dian An, which made the situation in Longxi more and more tense.
When the news reached the imperial court, Emperor Liu Zhuang was furious. He quickly issued an edict and ordered the confessor Zhang Hong to lead the county soldiers of each county to quell the rebellion. However, the development of the battle situation exceeded everyone's expectations, and Zhang Hong's army suffered a crushing defeat and was completely annihilated.
This defeat was undoubtedly a heavy blow to the Eastern Han court. However, Liu Zhuang was not discouraged by this, and in November, Liu Zhuang again sent Zhonglang general Dou Gu and other generals to lead an army of 40,000 to the northwest frontier. The scale and momentum of this counterinsurgency operation showed the firm determination and strong strength of the Eastern Han Dynasty court to maintain stability in the frontier.
Under the leadership of Dou Gu, an army of 40,000 swept away like a torrent, vowing to completely extinguish the fire of the Qiang rebellion. Their arrival has undoubtedly brought new hope and a dawn of tranquility to the Longxi region.