Liu Bang knew that Empress Lu was ruthless, why didn't he get rid of her
When Lu Fazan was arrested and put into Xiang Yu's military camp, Mrs. Qi became Liu Bang's new favorite. Although Xiang Yu released Lu Fazan, the frustrated Lu Fazan did not get Liu Bang's favor, so Lu Fazan with"Hate not to meet when you are not married"The contradictions between Mrs. Qi are already very deep. In addition, in the tenth year of Gaozu of the Han Dynasty (197 BC), Liu Bang intended to appoint Liu Ruyi, the son of Mrs. Qi, as the crown prince instead of Liu Ying, and the contradiction between the two became difficult to resolve under the new and old hatreds.
For Mrs. Qi, Liu Bang is undoubtedly extremely supportive. Liu Bang's love for her must have also made Liu Ruyi have a very good impression of her, after the death of Han Xin and Peng Yue, Liu Bang was worried that Empress Lu's viciousness had been deeply rooted in the hearts of the people. So, why didn't Liu Bang execute Empress Lu to ensure the safety of Mrs. Qi's mother and son? In fact, the reason is very simple: Liu Bang must leave the stronger Lu Qiang behind to ensure the stability of the country.
Empress Lü was very powerful in the court, so the relationship between Liu Bang and Empress Lü was complicated.
The wedding of Lu Qiang and Liu Bang is actually more like a political wedding. Liu Bang went from the uprising to the seizure of the world, and he was inseparable from the support of the Lu family. After Liu Bang launched an anti-Qin uprising in Pei County, Lü Pheasant's younger brother Lü Ze launched an uprising in Dang County"Send troops to rectify the world for the benefit of Gaozu"。
Since Lü Ze was an independent army, although he was only named the Marquis of Lingwu in the early years of the Han Dynasty, in the Qin War and the Chu-Han War, the Marquis of Yangdu Dingfu, the Marquis of Yangdu, and the Marquis of Qucheng were clearly marked among Lü Ze's subordinates, Zhu Jing, Marquis of Duchang, Marquis Chen of Yangxia, Guo Meng, Marquis of Dongwu, Marquis of Xinwu, Marquis of Xinwu, Marquis Fu Kuan of Yangling, Marquis of Aling Guo Ting, Marquis of Bocheng Feng Wuxian, and Marquis of Chengtao Zhou Xin. Among them, the Marquis of Dingfu and the Marquis of Gongfeng are ranked among the eighteen meritorious marquis, which shows the influence of the Lu family in the court. Zhou Xin, Ding's father, and Gongfeng are listed as eighteen meritorious marquises, which shows the influence of the Lu family in the court.
Liu Ying is Liu Bang's only son, so Liu Ying is not only the crown prince, but also the only heir to the name. However, the only problem is Liu Ying's character, because Liu Bang is cowardly by nature, coupled with the fact that he is 100 years old, coupled with the influence of the Lu family's army, it is caused"The child is weak and the mother is strong"situation. When he was a hundred years later, coupled with the influence of the Lu army, it appeared"The child is weak and the mother is strong"No one can guarantee that Liu Ying can still sit firmly on the throne of the Liu family.
In the eighth year of Gaozu of the Han Dynasty (199 BC), Lü Ze was killed in the battle to suppress the rebellion of Han Wangxin, and Liu Bang began to plan to abolish Liu Ying's crown prince and replace Liu Ruyi, the son of Madame Qi, as the crown prince. However, Liu Bang did not expect that due to the strong influence of the traditional patriarchal system and Empress Lü's secret plans, this move would be strongly opposed by most courtiers. The so-called"Shangshan Sihao"To a certain extent, it represented public opinion, and the unanimous opposition of the government and the opposition made Liu Bang give up the plan to replace the prince.
Although the change of imperial power has ended, Liu Bang has to find another way to stabilize the Liu family, which is actually very simple, which is to weaken and eliminate the power of Empress Lü, especially Empress Lü's power in the army. I even suspect that Chen Feng's rebellion and the deposition of Zhang Ao, the king of Zhao, were deliberately done by Liu Bang. In his later years, Liu Bang even killed Empress Lu's brother-in-law Fan Xu.
As mentioned above, Lü Pheasant was not only an excellent strategist, but also had great influence in the court of the early Han Dynasty, ensuring the stability of Liu Ying's position as the crown prince. However, due to the change of situation, the relationship between Lü Pheasant and Liu Bang turned from cooperation to hostility. However, Liu Bang did not get rid of Lu Pheasant, mainly because she ensured the stability of Liu Ying's throne to a certain extent.
In order to ensure the stability of Liu Bang's country, Liu Bang needed Lü Xiang to control the foreign dynasty.
As mentioned earlier, Liu Ying's ascension to the throne was justified, the only question was his character. Theoretically, Liu Ying was 16 years old when he ascended the throne, which can be said to be the age of the ancient ** leader, but his character made it difficult for him to sit on the throne in the troubled times in the early years of the Western Han Dynasty.
An emperor with a cowardly personality like Liu Ying could easily appear if he confronted the many ministers in the imperial court who controlled and restrained him, or with many relatives and princes with different surnames and clans"The lord is weak and the minister is strong"The situation has led to instability. In this case, the capable and strict Empress Lu was a good assistant, who not only helped Liu Ying stabilize the throne, but also prevented Liu Ying from taking the opportunity to seize power.
The first thing Liu Bang did after ascending the throne was to eliminate the threat of the princes and kings to the court. Zang Di was killed for rebellion, and Han Wangxin was killed for colluding with the Xiongnu rebellion; However, Zhang Ao, the king of Zhao, was removed, Peng Yue was removed during his lifetime, Yingbu was killed for rebellion, and Han Xin's death was mainly committed by Empress Lu. After getting rid of the princes and kings with various surnames, Liu Bang successively sealed nine princes and kings surnamed Liu, and made agreements with the ministers"The Alliance of the White Horses", stipulated"The surname Liu must not be king"。
Secondly, Liu Bang focused on the Feng Pei clan, who was close to him, and the direct clan that he had followed for a long time"Sickbed courtiers"It is clear proof to ensure that the ministers support Liu Ying as much as possible. In addition, as mentioned above, he gradually weakened the influence of the Lü family in the army, which allowed Empress Lü to expand her power in the imperial court. This formed a balanced situation in which the internal and external courts checked each other.
Thus, in the later years of Liu Bang's reign, the Western Han dynasty was organized in such a way that Empress Lü and her ministers were controlled internally, while the Liu kings acted as external obstacles. Of course, in order to ensure a sufficiently stable balance, Liu Bang delegated as much military power as possible to his most trusted generals, such as Gu Ying and Zhou Bo.
If Liu Bang could maintain the balance inside and outside the palace under the control of the foreign ministers and the defense of the princes and kings of the Liu family, the power of Empress Lu would not be so strong, and with the support of the Minister of the Interior Zhou Chang, the safety of Mrs. Qi's mother and son could be guaranteed. However, the development of the case was completely unexpected by Liu Bang, after Liu Bang's death, Empress Lu was in charge of the palace, the emperor was weak and powerless, and the ministers relied on their own abilities, and finally ended up in their own affairs. The emperor was weak, the ministers in the palace did nothing, and the princes and kings of the Liu family all had ghosts. The balance in the palace was broken, and the lives of Mrs. Qi and Liu Ruye could not be guaranteed.
In fact, for a founding monarch like Liu Bang, although he is lustful, he is also a good monarch, of course, he can also make a compromise between royal power and beauty, so it is very important for the stability and inheritance of the Liu family, what is the value of Mrs. Qi and Liu Ruyi?