The emperor did not give chopsticks to the banquet, and the ministers also left their arms. Celebrities and gentlemen must also go, and their minds will will not be good
Emperor Jing of the Western Han Dynasty held a banquet to entertain Prime Minister Zhou Yafu, but deliberately did not give him chopsticks and vegetables, so Zhou Yafu had to leave the table. Soon, Emperor Jing of the Western Han Dynasty executed Zhou Yafu for the crime of treason. Why is this famous minister's fate so bumpy?
The son of a famous general who established the Western Han Dynasty.
Zhou Bo's broken arm of Duke Huan is certainly commendable, but his proposal to Liu Bang, the ancestor of the Han Dynasty, to move the capital to Chang'an is also valuable. Zhou Bo's son, Zhou Yafu, inherited his father's legacy of serving the motherland and soon achieved success in the Western Han Dynasty.
Zhou Yafu has been talented and bold since he was a child. According to the memories of children in the neighborhood, Zhou Yafu was very smart when he was a child, did not like to play with others, and liked to read books or quietly look at the stars. His father, Zhou Bo, had a great influence on him, and he was determined to serve the Han family and be loyal to the country since he was a child. When he was young, he was put in charge of Hanoi County, and he won the hearts of the people. The locals say that Zhou Lang is young and promising, and he will become a great tool.
One day, Zhou Yafu invited the famous face artist Xu Naiji to his home and asked him to show him his face. Xu Naiji said after seeing Zhou Yafu's face"Your life is very noble, you can be a prince in three years, you can be a great official in eight years, and you will starve to death in nine years. "Zhou Yafu smiled and said that it was impossible. Zhou Yafu smiled, feeling that this was impossible, such a prophecy was too ridiculous. He had witnessed his father's exploits since he was a child, how could he believe that his father would have such an unfortunate fate?
Three years later, Zhou Yafu's younger brother was stripped of his marquis for breaking the law, and Zhou Yafu was unanimously elected by the people as his father's heir. At that time, Emperor Wen of Han had just died, and his son Emperor Jing of Han had just ascended the throne. Emperor Jing of the Han Dynasty kept in mind his father's last wish and believed that Zhou Yafu was a loyal minister who could be reused. After Zhou Yafu learned the news of his marquis, he remembered Xu Naiji's prophecy. Although he did not believe in prophecy, he understood that behind it all was human power. Therefore, he secretly wants to work hard and prove his strength.
Soon, the princes of Wu and Chu rebelled, and Emperor Jing resolutely promoted Zhou Yafu to lieutenant in order to quell the rebellion. At this time, Zhou Yafu was already a marquis and a lieutenant. But he is not arrogant or impatient, he just wants to serve the Han family and the world. In this expedition, Zhou Yafu perfectly fulfilled the emperor's will and quelled the turmoil. His strategy and courage were appreciated by Emperor Jing of the Han Dynasty and his reputation grew.
Eight years later, Prime Minister Tao Qing died, and Emperor Jing followed his father's orders and appointed Zhou Yafu, who was 30 years old at the time, as prime minister. Xu Cheng's prophecy came true twice, and Zhou Yafu had to admire Xu Cheng's ability, but he was still skeptical, worried that he would starve to death. He reminded himself to be cautious and try to preserve his innocence.
Loyal advisors. Zhou Yafu has a straightforward personality and dares to give direct advice. Once, Emperor Jing of the Han Dynasty wanted to get rid of the crown prince Liu Rong and make the son born to his favorite nobleman the crown prince. When Emperor Jing of the Han Dynasty discussed this matter, Zhou Yafu was resolutely opposed. He told Emperor Jing that the abolition of Chang Liyu would cause turmoil in the clan and would not be conducive to the long-term peace and stability of the country. Emperor Jing was angry, but had to give in.
Another time, Emperor Jing of the Han Dynasty wanted to make his wife's uncle Wang Xin a marquis in order to increase the power of his relatives, but Zhou Yafu did"There is no Liu as the king, and there is no merit for the marquis"The ancestral teachings dissuaded him. Zhou Yafu believed that Wang Xin had no merit, and that making him a marquis violated the system of not indiscriminately sealing foreign relatives in the early Han Dynasty, for fear of causing dissatisfaction among hundreds of officials. Emperor Jing therefore gave up on this idea.
When Emperor Jing of the Han Dynasty wanted to make the loyal ministers of the Xiongnu and encourage them to return to the Han Dynasty, Zhou Yafu learned from the pain and pointed out that this move violated the ancestral system of not being a marquis in the early Han Dynasty. He pointed out that the reason why the early Han dynasty was able to rise and overthrow the Qin Dynasty was because the early Han dynasty insisted on only giving himself the title of marquis. If the Han people are given the title of Xiongnu now, they will be unhappy. Emperor Jing of Han didn't listen this time, and continued to seal the marquis as he pleased. Zhou Yafu saw that the dissuasion was ineffective, so he wrote a letter asking to abdicate as prime minister.
A feast, a pair of chopsticks.
Although Emperor Jing of Han was impatient with Zhou Yafu's outspoken advice, he also recognized Zhou Yafu's talent and didn't want to force him too hard. One day, Emperor Jing of Han arranged a banquet for Zhou Yafu, which seemed to be pushing the boat down the river, but in fact he wanted to test whether he would change his temper. Zhou Yafu was a little hesitant, but finally went to the banquet.
During the banquet, Zhou Yafu found that he had no chopsticks in front of him. He believed that he had always been loyal to his country and had never disobeyed the emperor's orders, but he was treated like this, which made him very angry. Zhou Yafu is a strict person who has always attached importance to decency, which is tantamount to humiliation. He couldn't bear it anymore, so he asked the waiter for dishes and chopsticks and ate alone.
Seeing this, Emperor Jing immediately realized that Zhou Yafu was still arrogant and unforgiving. He immediately ridiculed Zhou Yafu"Narrow-mindedness", Zhou Yafu knelt down angrily to apologize. Just when Emperor Jing was about to forgive him, Zhou Yafu ignored the etiquette of the ministers and left the table without authorization. Emperor Jing saw Zhou Yafu's emotions and knew that he was not a minister who could be reused, so he decided to get rid of him immediately.
Rumors, experiments.
Soon, the sneaky scoundrel told Emperor Jing that Zhou Yafu had bought 500 large cowhide shields to deal with him. Emperor Jing was furious and immediately ordered an investigation. Zhou Yafu was summoned to the palace without knowing it, and he could only apologize again and again. He complained that his loyalty was being vilified. Emperor Jing thought that Zhou Yafu was still worried about the banquet and refused to surrender, so he handed him over to the palace lieutenant for detailed examination, and no longer gave him a chance to apologize.
Under the repeated interrogation of ***, Zhou Yafu did not eat for a whole day, and starved to death in less than ten days in prison. At that time, Zhou Yafu was in his ninth year as prime minister. Xu Cheng's prophecy came true, and people couldn't help but tremble. People lamented that Zhou Yafu died unjustly, which shows that Jun killed a generation of famous ministers, which is very undeserved. Some people think that Zhou Yafu's death is innocent, and it is a tragedy caused by his unsuitable king.
Why did he kill Zhou Yafu?
Looking back on this period of history, we can't help but ask, why did a Ming monarch like Emperor Jing of the Han Dynasty kill Zhou Yafu? The reason is not hard to find. Although Zhou Yafu was talented, he was too harsh, and his outspoken advice upset the balance of the royal family. The banquet stick incident was the last straw that crushed Emperor Jing of the Han Dynasty.
It is certainly the glory of a courtier to be loyal to the monarch and serve the country, but he cannot ignore the overall situation and rest on his laurels. Zhou Yafu failed to use his wisdom to resolve the king's dissatisfaction, but instead intensified the conflict, causing the relationship between the two sides to deteriorate. According to Confucianism"Benevolence"The idea that the relationship between the monarch and the minister should be established in"Benevolence"with"Letters"on the basis of. If this is not the case, it will be difficult to maintain this relationship, even with more talent.
The king's loyalty is valuable, but the etiquette of respecting the king and his ministers cannot be ignored. Lao Tzu said:"Those who know others are wise, and those who know themselves are clear. The winner is powerful, and the self-winner is strong. Although Zhou Yafu is dedicated to the country, he does not know how to treat others, does not know how to learn, does not know how to live in the world, and finally seeks his own death. The rule of thousands of generations has an eternal characteristic, that is, the will of the people. Only by treating the people well can we win the hearts and minds of the people.
In ancient times, Ming Jun not only reused talents, but also paid more attention to character and ethics. Today's people should learn from the past, take the essence of it, discard its dross, and avoid the recurrence of tragedy. If you are not careful, you will sink like a stone in the sea, and all your achievements will be wasted. Learning talents know how to advance and retreat in a certain way, in order to turn the crisis into safety, carry forward the past and forge ahead into the future, self-cultivation and far-reaching!