In the rivers of history, there are always periods when the heavens and the earth are broken and recorded as catastrophic times. And when we open the "Historical Records", why did Sima Qian cast the era of Emperor Jing of the Han Dynasty into a chapter of disaster? Hail, locust plagues, plagues, what kind of historical propositions do these natural arrivals reveal?
The era of Emperor Jing of the Han Dynasty was supposed to be an era of imperial prosperity, however, Sima Qian used an iron pen to depict a picture of the history of disasters. In this chaotic period, hail descended like a cold winter, shaking the foundation of the dynasty, the plague of locusts swept away like the dormant of evil beasts, and the plague swept like a merciless grim reaper, sweeping in.
This article will dig deep into the historical records of the era of Emperor Jing of the Han Dynasty and uncover the mystery of the fall of the empire in the eyes of Sima Qian. It's a feast of history that will take readers on a journey through time and space in a deep dive into a forgotten era.
Hail, locust plagues, and plagues are only appearances, and the real disasters may be hidden in the subtleties of history. Let's embark on this mysterious and thrilling journey through history and uncover the catastrophe of the Han Jingdi era.
In 195 BC, Emperor Wen of Han appointed his eldest son, Liu Qi, as the crown prince. Liu Qi's biological mother, Dou, was also made empress, which was actually to stabilize Liu Qi's status as the crown prince.
However, Liu Qi did not restrain his style because of this. Once, Liu Xian, the son of King Wu, entered the palace to play chess with Liu Qi. Liu Xian is used to being arrogant on weekdays, and he does not give in in the game, which angers Liu Qi. He slapped the chessboard, and the chessboard hit Liu Xian's head, and Liu Xian died on the spot.
This incident brought great pain to Liu Bi, the king of Wu, and his hair turned gray overnight. His longing for his son and his anger towards Liu Qi made him secretly accumulate strength and prepare for revenge. This laid a hidden danger for the later rebellion of the Seven Kings.
Liu Qi, the future monarch, has already exposed problems in his personality. He is stubborn, playful, and lacks tolerance for others. Unfortunately, no one realizes this, and what disastrous consequences they will have for his rule.
In 180 BC, Emperor Wen of Han died, and the crown prince Liu Qi ascended the throne, and the year name was the beginning, which was Emperor Jing of Han. When he first ascended the throne, he was arrogant and dismissive of the advice of the ministers around him.
At this time, he decided to reduce the power of the princes and kings, with the most powerful Wu king Liu Bi as the primary target. This move obviously angered Liu Bi, who, in the name of "killing the strategists and supporting the Han family", united with the kings of the six kingdoms such as Qi and Zhao to launch a rebellion, known as the "Rebellion of the Seven Kingdoms".
When the news came, the wind was blowing inside and outside Chang'an City, and the torrential rain was pouring. That night, a thunderbolt swept over Chang'an, illuminating the entire palace. The brilliance is only for a moment, and Chang'an is back to darkness.
The thorny and dim and confused road is like Emperor Jing's state of mind at this time. He wanted to cut the feudal domain to strengthen it, but he set himself on fire. In the heavy rain, he looked out the window at the vast night, not knowing where to go. At this moment, he suddenly understood that the turbulent waves of the imperial throne were far beyond his control.
After quelling the rebellion, Liu Qi deprived the princes of a large number of fiefs and established the dominant position of **. However, the bitter lesson of the Rebellion of the Seven Kingdoms has become an eternal pain in Liu Qi's heart. Whenever a strong wind blows, memories throw him into the ups and downs of political storms.
In 154 BC, Liu Qi, who had reigned for 26 years, got drunk at a banquet and said that he would pass the throne to his younger brother King Liang Xiao. The ministers were shocked and tried their best to admonish. With the fermentation of this turmoil, there were frequent storms in Chang'an.
The summer of that year was extremely hot, and the scorching heat made Liu Qi even more impatient. He was furious, slapped the table, and knocked the table to the ground. At this time, there was a thunderclap outside the window, which shattered the sky. "This is the Celestial Police! Everyone else was pale. Only then did Liu Qi sober up and realize that he had lost his temper.
The ministers worked hard to get Liu Qi to retract his promise to become the king of Liang and pass on the throne. But the turmoil did not subside. Yuan An, a minister who participated in the persuasion, was later assassinated by the King of Liang. Liu Qi knew that ** was the king of Liang, but he avoided it. This time, Liu Qi once again understood the heaviness of the emperor's throne. The twists and turns of political affairs made him even more depressed, and he became more and more suspicious of the ministers around him.
In the pacification of the rebellion of the Seven Kingdoms, there was also a former friend of Emperor Wen of the Han Dynasty and a general, Zhou Yafu. Zhou Yafu was loyal, and before Emperor Wen died, Emperor Wen also specially instructed Emperor Jing to rely on Zhou Yafu in the future.
However, after Emperor Jing ascended the throne, due to Zhou Yafu's high merits and suspicion in Emperor Jing's character, he actually ordered people to trip his war horse on the bridge out of the city when Zhou Yafu returned from hunting. Zhou Yafu fell from his horse and died of serious injuries.
That night, an earth-shattering thunderclap pierced the night sky of Chang'an City. It is as if God is indicting this unjust case. Emperor Jing soon regretted his move, but it was too late. Once again, he understood that the emperor was often the most loyal confidant ministers who abandoned him. But by the time it comes to this, it's too late.
Sima Qian's Emperor Jing of the Han Dynasty is a complex character. At the beginning of his ascension to the throne, various problems in his personality were exposed, which brought great obstacles to his future governance and dealings with people. However, what really made him never able to control this imperial throne was the catastrophe caused by these problems in the end.
Every time there is a great turmoil in the country, it will be accompanied by amazing weather disasters. Perhaps this is the warning of the heavens, the bane of Emperor Jing, which has been planted since the time of the prince who accidentally killed Liu Xian. It's a pity that he didn't recognize himself clearly, and he didn't listen to the warning of the sky, so he ended up dying.