In the eleventh year of Gaozu of the Han Dynasty (196 BC), Zhao Tuo, the king of Nanyue, met Lu Jia in the palace, dressed in Yue costumes and arrogant attitude.
At that time, when the Han Dynasty was in full swing, Liu Bang advanced the great cause of unification to Lingnan and sent Lu Jia as an envoy to South Vietnam in an attempt to persuade South Vietnam to submit to the Han Dynasty.
1.In ancient times, Zhao Tuo was not a native of Nanyue, he was originally a native of Zhending, Hebei. However, when he had been in Vietnam for more than 20 years, Lu Jia's arrival changed his fate.
It all started during the reign of Qin Shi Huang, who was determined to build a legacy beyond the Three Emperors and Five Emperors, and to extend his power to a vast, distant region, including Baiyue in the south.
2.Baiyue, a backward slave-owned region located in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian, Liangguang and northern Vietnam, has always been shown as a tattooed body with a broken hair and a left arm.
These tribes often attack each other for territory and means of production. However, all this will change after Lu Jia's arrival.
This world-renowned debater finally persuaded Zhao Tuo to accept the rule of the Han Dynasty and made an indelible contribution to the unification of the Qin and Han dynasties.
Portrait of Qin Shi Huang. After pacifying the Six Kingdoms, Qin Shi Huang sent Tu Sui to lead an army of 500,000 to "conquer the king of Baiyue in the south". In Lingnan, the Qin army engaged in fierce battles with the local Yue tribes.
According to historical records, the battle was very tragic. The Qin army used the army of tigers and wolves to cut down the Yue in five ways, and did not dismantle the armor and crossbow for three years, coupled with the five ridges to block, the water and soil were not adapted, and they were stubbornly resisted by the Yue people.
However, Tu Sui overestimated his own strength, and he marched into Lingnan, blindly penetrating into Yuedi, and also adopted a high-pressure policy against the conquered tribes. After defeating Xi'ou, Tu Sui executed his leader, Yihu Song, and used the harsh punishment of the Qin Dynasty to suppress the Yue people.
The Yue people were angry, the tiger was not powerful, and when I was a sick cat, they hid in the mountains and jungles, even if they were mixed with birds and beasts, they did not want to be prisoners of the Qin army. One night, the powerful Yue people took advantage of the fatigue of the Qin army, attacked it by surprise, broke the Qin army, and killed Tu Sui.
The Qin army "ambushed corpses and shed hundreds of thousands of blood, but they sent a war to prepare for it". The Qin army suffered heavy losses and had to replenish its forces and adjust its strategy.
In 217 BC, Ren Yan and Zhao Tuo, who took over Tu Sui to command the Qin army, had the logistical support provided by Lingqu, and once again led the army into Vietnam, defeating the resistance of Baiyue within three years, and finally officially incorporated Lingnan into the territory of the Qin Dynasty, realizing the ideal of the first emperor "the emperor's land, the south ends in the north".
Image source: Picture Worm Creative. The Qin Dynasty set up three counties in Lingnan, Nanhai, Guilin and Xiangjun, and placed "a lieutenant in the southeast and a marquis in the northwest".
Nanhai County, the seat of Panyu, is now Guangzhou City, and its jurisdiction is equivalent to most of present-day Guangdong, east to the southern part of present-day Fujian and the Chaoshan region of Guangdong. Today, Hong Kong and Macao are all under the jurisdiction of Nanhai County, of which Hong Kong Qin Dynasty is under the jurisdiction of Panyu County, and Han Dynasty is under the jurisdiction of Nanhai County Boluo County.
Guilin County, whose jurisdiction is roughly equivalent to the east of present-day Duyang Mountain in Guangxi and south of Yuechengling, includes present-day Guilin, Liuzhou, Wuzhou and Zhaoqing and Maoming in Guangdong. The territory of Xiang County is said to include the areas of present-day Baise, Nanning, Pingxiang in Guangxi, and Zhanjiang City in Guangdong, and south to present-day north-central Vietnam.
Ren Huan learned the lesson of Tu Sui and adopted a lenient policy towards the Yue people, "Fu Sui has a way, and does not dare to use the power of Qin tigers and wolves to add desolate descendants", no longer killing innocents indiscriminately, but accepting the customs of South Vietnam and living in harmony with the Yue people.
He has served for several years, and everyone in Vietnam has sincerely attached himself. Ren Huan made great contributions to the great cause of unification, and the history books said that he and Meng Tian, who was defending against the Xiongnu in the north at that time: "There is Meng Tian in the north of Qin, and there is a threatening desert court, and there is Ren Huan in the south, and the first emperor is able to be at peace." ”
In addition to the 500,000 Qin troops who defended and settled in this place, the Qin Dynasty also pursued a consistent policy of immigration, and successively immigrated to Lingnan on a large scale in four organized ways: in the 33rd year of Qin Shi Huang, "the people who tried to die and the people who were killed and settled in the area of Lu Liang (Lingnan)" were slighted.
In the 34th year of Qin Shi Huang, "the prison officials and the people who are not upright should be treated, and the Great Wall and Nanyue should be built". In the thirty-fifth year of Qin Shi Huang, "more and more scornful of the border". The last time, Zhao Tuo wrote a letter requesting the repatriation of "30,000 young women from the deceased father's family, thinking that the soldiers would be clothed and the Qin Emperor could make up for 15,000 people."
The Qin soldiers were able to start families with these women, and many of the remaining men who remained in Lingnan also intermarried with the Yue women. Soldiers, peasants, handicraftsmen, merchants, and officials from the Central Plains brought advanced culture and production technology to the barbaric miasma of Lingnan.
3 The good times did not last long, and in the last years of the Qin Dynasty, the Central Plains was in turmoil, and the heroes were chasing each other. At this time, there were still hundreds of thousands of Qin troops in Lingnan, and they didn't know where to go.
The southbound cadres "judged the situation and knew that the Qin Dynasty was unpopular and would perish in the near future, and Lingnan, which he had painstakingly managed, could rely on the favorable time and place to dominate one side in order to avoid war, but he was seriously ill and would soon die, and he could no longer lead the people of the three counties.
In 208 BC, Ren Huan, who was critically ill, thought of his good partner Zhao Tuo for many years, and made the last decision in his life, urgently calling Zhao Tuo to act as the captain of the South China Sea and entrusting him with the three counties of Lingnan.
Before his death, Ren Huan said to Zhao Tuo: Hearing that Chen Sheng and others were in turmoil, Qin was unreasonable, and the world was suffering, Xiang Yu, Liu Ji, Chen Sheng, Wu Guang and other prefectures and counties gathered together to raise the army, and the tiger fought for the world.
The South China Sea is far away, I am afraid that the thieves will invade the land here, I want to raise troops to make a new way, prepare myself, and wait for the princes to change, I will be very sick. Moreover, Panyu bears mountain dangers, blocks the South China Sea, thousands of miles from east to west, and is quite complemented by Chinese, and this is also the lord of a state, which can establish a country.
The magistrate of the county has no words to speak, so he summons an announcement. Zhao Tuo was indeed a character, he lived up to his responsibilities, and quickly sent troops to set up military defense lines at three important passes, namely Hengpu Pass (now Dayu County, Jiangxi Province to Meiguan Pass on the Dayu Ridge in Nanxiong, Guangdong), Yangshan Pass (now Luozhai Ridge in the northeast of Yangshan County, Guangdong) and Huangxi Pass (now northwest of Lianxian County, Guangdong), and issued an order: "The rebellious army (anti-Qin Yi Army) is about to fight, immediately cut off the passage and strictly guard the pass!" ”
Later, when Liu Bang and Xiang Yu competed for the world, he was a melon eater in the south. Subsequently, Zhao Tuo, who was well versed in the rules of officialdom, killed a large number of Qin Dynasty officials who disobeyed him on charges of violating Qin law, and sent his own cronies to take over.
In this way, Lingnan was under the control of Zhao Tuo alone, and lost contact with the Central Plains Dynasty. After the death of Qin, Zhao Tuo established himself as the king of the three counties of Lingnan, and was known as the Wu King of Nanyue.
On the map of South Vietnam, Zhao Tuo took the initiative to interact with the Vietnamese people in order to promote ethnic integration. He encouraged Han and Vietnamese intermarriage to bridge the barrier. Lü Jia, the minister of power in South Vietnam, and the Zhao family have been married for generations, and all family members have marriage contracts with the Zhao family.
Zhao Tuo did not tie his hair and wear crowns like people in other regions, but learned the way of Yue people, his hair was tied in a bun, and he sat with his legs spread. The Qin Dynasty severely punished the law, and Zhao Tuo did the opposite, and the government was simple and the punishment was clear.
There are no taxes in South Vietnam, only rent in kind. In history, South Vietnam takes high-quality chickens as a tax, similar to the current Wenchang chicken in Hainan and Qingyuan chicken in Guangdong. Zhao Tuo's various measures to benefit the country and the people and eliminate conflicts eased the contradictions between Han and Vietnam, but in fact were conducive to future reunification.
Later, Liu Bang sent Lu Jia as an envoy and officially issued an edict to crown Zhao Tuo as the king of Nanyue, saying that he had good governance in the south. Zhao Tuo accepted Liu Bang's canonization, repaired his post and paid tribute, and restored **, which was actually equivalent to a vassal state of the Han Dynasty.
The Han Dynasty provided Nanyue with the most scarce resources such as cattle and horses, iron tools and other resources in Lingnan, and Nanyue paid tribute to the Han Dynasty such as jade, pearls, rhino horns, parrots, peacocks and other products, until the death of Han Gaozu, and the Han and Yue were at peace.
During the period of the Later Lu Dynasty, the Nanyue Kingdom was disobedient. Empress Lü ordered an economic blockade, prohibiting the transportation of iron tools and livestock to the Central Plains of South Vietnam, especially female horses, cattle, and sheep.
As a result, South Vietnam lost its means of production and livestock**, and its economy suffered a major blow.
In February, Zhao Tuo said indignantly: "Emperor Gao appointed me as the king of Nanyue and opened **, and now Empress Lu listens to slander and regards us as barbarians and isolates ** contacts, which must be the idea of the king of Changsha." ”
At the beginning, when the Han Dynasty had not yet subjugated Nanyue, it had Wu Rui as the king of Changsha, leading Changsha, Yuzhang, Xiangjun, Guilin, and Nanhai five counties, three of which were the territory of Nanyue, and it was obvious that the king of Changsha was used to contain the king of Nanyue.
Zhao Tuo pressed his anger and sent three envoys to Chang'an to apologize and ask the Han Dynasty to lift the embargo. Empress Lü not only detained three South Vietnamese envoys, but also sent people to kill Zhao Tuo's brother clan left in the Central Plains, and ordered the destruction of the graves of Zhao Tuo's parents in their hometown.
Zhao Tuo was angry, and the consequences were serious. He decided to contend with the Han Dynasty with millions of people and thousands of miles from east to west, so he proclaimed himself emperor and sent troops to attack the border towns of Changsha.
Empress Lü sent troops to attack South Vietnam, and the two sides confronted each other in the north and south of the Five Mountains, forming a trend of resistance for a while.
After Emperor Wen of the Han Dynasty ascended the throne, the Han-Yue peace talks ushered in a turning point. He adopted the policy of Huairou, compensated Zhao Tuo's relatives, repaired the tombs of Zhao Tuo's ancestors, and sent Lu Jia to South Vietnam with letters to persuade Zhao Tuo to give up the imperial title and return to the imperial court.
Emperor Wen of Han wrote in the letter that Zhao Tuo's imperial title would lead to antagonism between the two sides, and it was not in line with the principle of benevolence to fight over others. He hoped that Zhao Tuo would be able to put aside his previous suspicions and maintain good relations with the imperial court.
Zhao Tuo accepted Emperor Wen of Han's suggestion and expressed his willingness to serve as a vassal for a long time and pay tribute to the imperial court. The peace talks were successfully realized with the assistance of Lu Jia and laid the foundation for the stability and development of the Lingnan region.
Emperor Wen of Han's wisdom and tolerance allowed a war to be averted and brought stability to the southern frontier for 40 years. This peace allowed the Han Dynasty to recuperate and recuperate, creating a prosperous era of Wenjing's rule.
And Zhao Tuo's abandonment of resistance also bought decades of peace for the development of Lingnan. His grandson, Zhao Yuan, still submitted to the Han Dynasty and sent the crown prince Zhao Yingqi to Chang'an as a guard to express his gratitude to the Han Dynasty for rescuing South Vietnam.
Although some people have questioned Zhao Tuo's longevity, his contribution and influence cannot be denied.
Zhao Yingqi, the king of Nanyue, married a Han woman as a concubine in Chang'an, and brought her back to Nanyue, asking her to be made queen and Zhao Xing to be made the crown prince. However, Lü Jia, the prime minister of South Vietnam, opposed the Central Plains woman becoming queen and married the South Vietnamese royal family for generations.
This decision of Zhao Yingqi led to internal contradictions and rebellions. In the end, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty decided to adopt a policy of "flattening" to eliminate the separatist regime of South Vietnam and complete the great cause of unification.
The Han Dynasty mission persuaded Zhao Xing, the king of Nanyue, to go to Chang'an to meet the Son of Heaven, but under the proclamation of the peaceful unification of the Han Dynasty, Zhao Xing, the king of Nanyue, agreed to meet the emperor with his mother, the Tai Dynasty, and agreed to cancel the status of the secession party of Nanyue.
However, this decision caused discontent among the Yue people, and Lü Jia incited them against the Nanyue King and Empress Dowager and spread rumors. In the end, there was a civil strife in Nanyue, Lü Jia's younger brother held military power, and the mother and son of the Empress Dowager were killed.
Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty sent an army to attack Lü Jia, and the Nanyue Kingdom was finally wiped out.
From Qin Shi Huang to Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, from the wilderness to the Chinese lineage, the Nanyue Kingdom came to an end after 93 years. Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty set up nine counties in Lingnan and spread glory to every inch of land.
The mind of the first emperor through the ages, the achievements spanning thousands of years, the inclusion of Lingnan into the map of civilization, the beginning of the glorious two thousand years. The world is unified, and the golden ou is flawless, and this merit benefits all living beings.