In 975 AD, Zhao Kuangyin, the Taizu of the Northern Song Dynasty, set out to conquer the Southern Tang Dynasty, which was his first step in unifying the world. Since the usurpation of the Later Zhou regime, Zhao Kuangyin has been committed to external expansion.
After the disappearance of the Later Zhou regime, the Five Dynasties officially ended, leaving only the Ten Kingdoms. Among these countries, some died out, some perished, and only the Southern Tang Dynasty still had a certain influence and strength.
Although Li Yu is a literary and artistic youth, he is not weak and powerless in the face of powerful enemies. In the seventh year of Kaibao, Zhao Kuangyin greeted Li Yu before the war, hoping that he could pack his luggage as soon as possible and take the initiative to surrender, so as to avoid being unable to fight and dying and destroying the country.
In the art of war, it is said that the best strategy is to surrender without a fight. Zhao Kuangyin was an outstanding figure in the late Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms, and his words were not threats, but advice, because although the Southern Tang Dynasty was rich, its national strength was gradually weakening, and instead of resisting, it was better to surrender with dignity and live the second half of his life of wealth and prosperity.
Of course, whether you can live the second half of your life depends on Zhao Kuangyin's mood.
Although Zhao Kuangyin hinted and persuaded him many times, Li Yu firmly stated that as the lord of the Southern Tang Dynasty, he only hoped to preserve the foundation and temple of his ancestors, and did not think too much about other things.
His words made Zhao Kuangyin very angry, so Zhao Kuangyin gathered his troops and began to conquer the Southern Tang Dynasty. However, Li Yu found that his pride and ambition were not enough to withstand the attack of the Northern Song army on the battlefield.
The Southern Tang army was beaten to the point that it lost its armor, and Li Yu had no power to fight back. At this time, Li Yu realized that he had to seek foreign aid to help him, so he asked for help from the Liao Dynasty and Wu Yueguo.
The emperor of the Liao Dynasty was Jingzong Yeluxian.
Yeluxian, as his name suggests, is a very virtuous monarch. He had intended to assist the Southern Tang Dynasty and stop the trend of continuous expansion of the Northern Song Dynasty, but helplessly, this Renjun was in poor physical condition and spent 29 days in a hospital bed every month, so he could not devote himself to the war.
In addition, the Liao Dynasty was geographically distant and could not provide immediate help, so the Southern Tang could only pin all their hopes on Wu Yueguo. In order to persuade Wu Yueguo to send troops to help, Li Yu personally wrote a letter, which was sincere, fierce and moving.
In the letter, Li Yu said that the Southern Tang was in a critical situation, and if he could not succeed, then the Southern Tang would perish, and he could also die. However, Wu Yue and the Southern Tang Dynasty depended on each other, and if the Southern Tang Dynasty perished, the next person to suffer would be Wu Yueguo.
Li Yu's words are not alarmist, in fact, Zhao Kuangyin is determined to unify the whole world, and the Southern Tang Dynasty is just one of his goals. After cleaning up the Southern Tang Dynasty, the next target will definitely be Wu Yueguo.
Qian Biao, the founding emperor of Wu Yue, was a hero of the Five Dynasties period, and his country has always maintained an independent status.
During the period of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms, Qian Biao, the Taizu of Wu Yue, was different from the aggressive expansion of other separatist regimes, and he paid more attention to protecting the territory and the people, and developed the country in a steady way. His concept of governing the country was continued by later emperors such as Sejong Qian Yuanjun, Chengzong Qian Hongzuo, and Xunzong Qian Hongliang, and implemented the policy of fighting with fewer soldiers and benefiting the people more, making Wuyue a happy land where the country is rich and the people are strong, and the people live and work in peace and contentment.
However, after receiving a letter from Li Yu of the Southern Tang Dynasty asking for help, Qian Hongyu of Wu Yueyizong did not immediately assist the Southern Tang Dynasty, but forwarded the letter to Zhao Kuangyin, Taizu of the Song Dynasty.
This may be because he believes that the greatest threat is not to the Southern Tang Dynasty, but to the Song Dynasty. Wu Yue's strategy not only showed their identification with the Song Dynasty, but also showed their wisdom and strategy.
While this approach may be considered unsophisticated, there is no doubt that they succeeded in keeping their country while also contributing to the unification of the Song dynasty.
The previous emperor of Wu Yueguo, Qian Hongliang, had never been at odds with Hu Jinsi, the right man of Shangshu, and was eventually placed under house arrest by Hu Jinsi. In order to fill the vacancy on the throne, Hu Jinsi supported Qian Hongyu's younger brother Qian Hongyu as the new monarch.
Although Qian Hongyu did not take the initiative to become the emperor, he still ruled with a humble and courteous attitude, and his governance of Wu Yue was very good. However, when Li Yu needed assistance, Qian Hongyu chose to side with Zhao Kuangyin and launched an attack on the Southern Tang Dynasty, which eventually led to Li Yu's surrender.
Although Qian Hongyu's actions were somewhat unexpected, his ability to govern and his humble attitude were still recognized by the historical community.
The demise of the Southern Tang Dynasty may be good news for Zhao Kuangyin, but it is shocking news for Qian Hongyu. However, this bad news was actually caused by Qian Hongyu himself.
The fall of the Southern Tang Dynasty caused the wartime alliance between the Northern Song Dynasty and Wu Yue to break down instantly, and Zhao Kuangyin began to march towards Wu Yue. Hearing that the Northern Song Dynasty had gathered heavy troops to attack him, Qian Hongyu did not panic, but behaved very calmly, as if he had already expected all this.
For Wu Yueguo's civil and military officials, this is not a big deal. Wu Yueguo silently accumulated strength in the troubled times, and now there is enough money and food, strong city defense, and strong soldiers, a small Northern Song Dynasty, they did not pay attention to it.
In addition, Taizu Zhao Kuangyin has passed away, and the strength of the new leader Taizong Zhao Guangyi is unpredictable, so they decided to fight to the end, even if the fish is dead and the net is broken, they must fight to the death.
However, in the face of the invasion of the Northern Song Dynasty, Qian Hongyu made a decision that surprised everyone. He decided to surrender Kaesong unconditionally, giving up the chance of victory in the war.
In the third year of the Taiping Rejuvenation in 978 AD, Qian Hongyu gave all the thirteen states, one army, eighty-six counties, 550,680 households, and 115,166 soldiers owned by Wu Yue to the Northern Song Dynasty.
This is a very surprising decision, and it is also a choice for Qian Hongyu as a monarch.
Portrait of Zhao Guangyi) focuses on the country, and Qian Hongyu humbly abdicated. Li Yu of the Southern Tang Dynasty repaired the book, and Qian Hongyu had already foreseen the end of abdication. The ancestral teachings of the Wuyue Qian emperors are hundreds of words long, but there is only one word at the core: "The people are precious".
Qian Hongyu understood that in the face of the Northern Song Dynasty, the war would only bring innocent people's wives separated and soldiers' blood spilled on the battlefield. If he wants to protect the country and the imperial power, he must pay the price of his life, which makes him feel painful.
For the sake of the people, the common people and ordinary people in troubled times, Qian Hongyu chose to give up and became one of the great humble monarchs in history. From Qin Shi Huang, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang, Emperor Wu of the Northern Zhou Dynasty, Shizong of the Later Zhou Dynasty, Emperor Chengzu of the Ming Dynasty, Emperor Yongzheng and other emperors, we can see their merits and personality charm, but Qian Hongyu's humble abdication is also worthy of our respect.
The rivers and mountains are picturesque, showing the heroic style. From the experiences of these kings, we learn that conquest is a powerful tool, but it is not the only way to solve the world's problems.
In Qian Hongyu's story, the author discovers a more precious quality, that is, renunciation. It turns out that the most powerful force in this world is not violence and conquest, not killing and plundering, but love and peace, patience and renunciation.