Chapter 29 8. The death of Cui Hao

The attack on Rouran in the Northern Wei Dynasty, in hindsight, was basically "a lot of thunder, but little rain".But from Tuoba Tao's actions, we can infer that he intends to go straight to Mobei and fight Rouran to the death (of course, most of the time, he still has the confidence to ensure that the net will not be broken).This can be seen first from the declaration of martial law that year. Tuoba Tao dared to dispatch a large army only to ensure that there was nothing wrong with the rear. It can be seen that the scale is not small; in the previous Northern Expedition, the crown prince was stationed in Pingcheng, the capital of the country, and Taiping Zhenjun was in the ninth year. During the Northern Expedition, Prince Tuoba Huang ran to the palace in Monan, met Tuoba Tao, and went north with the army; moreover, Tuoba Tao used troops three times in two consecutive years, exceeding the density of any previous campaign.

The first use of troops was in the winter of that year. The army of the Northern Wei Dynasty marched north into the desert, searching for no trace of Rouran, and finally arrived at the surrendered city left by the Han Dynasty when they conquered the Huns (now in Wuliji, Uradhou Banner, Inner Mongolia).The weather was cold and it was difficult to march, so the Wei army hoarded the grain and grass they carried in the city, left some guards in the city, and retreated. In the spring of the next year, Tuoba Tao returned to Monan and had a big banquet for all the ministers.Probably soaked in the flattery of the ministers during the meeting, Tuoba Tao suddenly became ambitious, unwilling to be reconciled to the futility of the previous year, and ordered another Northern Expedition. The army was divided into three groups: Gaoliang King Tuoba Na went east King Tuoba Jieer of Lueyang took the west road, and Tuoba Tao himself and the prince crossed Zhuoxie Mountain (now the eastern part of Altai Mountain, Gobi Altai Province, Mongolia), traveling thousands of miles north.This momentum is very scary, Rouran Khan Tuhezhen heard the wind and ran away, Tuoba Tao's second consecutive northern expedition failed.

Tuoba Tao did not give up. He analyzed the gains and losses of the last few Northern Expeditions, and summed up the lesson: every time the situation was made too big, and people were scared to death before reaching the hinterland of Rouran. How could this achieve the goal of destroying the enemy's vital strength? What is the purpose?He learned his lesson and launched the third Northern Expedition in the following autumn. This time, he only let Tuoba Na and Tuoba Jieer lead a small number of elite soldiers to go north from the east road and the middle road respectively.Tu Hezhen accepted the attack as expected, he fought with Rouran's elite soldiers several times larger than that of the Wei army, and surrounded Tuoba's army, and the encirclement stretched for tens of miles.

Tuoba Na had no fear at all, and ordered the soldiers to dig deep into the trenches and stand on standby.The two sides had been stalemate for many days, and every time Tu Hezhen went out to challenge, he was repelled by Tuoba Na.Rouran has a lot of people and is powerful, but Tu Hezhen gradually felt fearful. The more he thought about it, the more he felt that Wei Jun must have backup.Tuoba Na led his troops in pursuit, and for nine days and nine nights, he pursued relentlessly.Tu Hezhen didn't have confidence in his own fighting power, so he abandoned his luggage and ran desperately across mountains and ridges.Tuoba Na got the supplies, stopped chasing, and returned to the army to join forces.Tuoba Jie'er on the other side also collected Rouran's herdsmen and livestock, numbering in the millions, and brought them all back to the Northern Wei Dynasty.

Taiping Zhenjun continued to use troops against Rouran from nine to ten years (AD 448 to 449), but in the end he failed to completely wipe out the upper-level forces in Rouran. Rouran Khan still existed, but he was effectively defeated in the last war. Obtained Rouran's resources and property.According to historical records, "Naturally, he is soft and weak, and he does not dare to offend Wei Sai".Strictly speaking, it should be that Rouran's power center of gravity has shifted westward, and it has more conflicts with the countries in the Western Regions, instead of daring to provoke the overlord in the East.

Tuobatao suppressed Rouran, and Tuyuhun in the southwest was also beaten to the point where he couldn't hold his head up. When he was proud, he thought of how great his achievements were, and how he would be famous in history.As early as when Beiliang was eliminated, he already had this idea. He asked Cui Hao to be the secretary of the supervisor, and ordered him to gather a group of Han literati Gao Yun, Zhang Wei, etc. to compile the history of the country for Wei.Compiling history books is the strong point of the Han people. From ancient times to the present, among the many countries in the world, which one is as continuous and complete as China's historical books?Cui Hao also did his part, feeling that this kind of task should be led by him, so he readily took over.

In fact, although Cui Hao has a wide range of knowledge, his writing style is not very good. Most of the work of writing is done by his literati, and he is only responsible for summarizing the work of compromise.However, many Xianbei nobles still regard Cui Hao as a thorn in their side and a thorn in their flesh. Cui Hao has hurt their vital interests on many issues (especially the time when the Buddha was destroyed). Got it.But there is no way out, the emperor trusts those Han scholars so much, as for himself, although he is good at fighting, he is like an idiot, so he has to let it go. Those who compiled the history of the country were all Han people. Their understanding of history was different from that of Tuoba Tao, who had never read history books. History books were not "records of good people and good deeds", but narratives of facts.The so-called Spring and Autumn History pen is "the pen should be written, and the cut should be cut". What should be recorded should be recorded, and what should be deleted should be deleted. , These have to be written on paper.What Tuoba Tao thought about was Guangzong Yaozu. He had always admired Cui Hao. Seeing him lead a group of people at their desks day and night, writing vigorously, he felt secretly refreshed, and hoped that this history book would be finished soon.

In the eleventh year of Taiping Zhenjun (AD 450), the compilation of Wei Guoshi "Guo Ji" was completed. Cui Jie reviewed it and was very satisfied, so she submitted it to the emperor.Min Zhan and Xi Biao, who participated in the history, suggested that "Guo Ji" be engraved on the stone tablet to show the straight writing, and at the same time, "Five Classics" annotated by Cui Hao should be engraved.When Gao Yun heard about this, he said privately: "Min Zhan and others are villains, I'm afraid they will hurt the Cui family!" Cui Hao agreed with this suggestion very much, and raised it to Prince Tuobahuang.Tuobahuang gave support, so he ordered the construction of a forest of steles in the southern suburbs of Pingcheng, with a radius of 130 steps, and "three million hard work", and it was finally completed.

A forest of steles was newly built in the south of the city, and people who were so fresh and lively rushed to watch it.Of course, those Xianbei nobles who had opinions on the revision of the history of the country also went to see it. This was a great look. The words on the stone tablet are not boasting of merits and virtues, they are obviously revealing shortcomings.The Tuoba family has only gone through three generations, and there are a lot of disgraceful things about their ancestors, so it’s okay for me to know, how can I put it outside for everyone to see, it’s too disgraceful.The Xianbei aristocrats were so angry that they ran up to Tuoba Tao and complained to Tuoba Tao, saying that Cui Hao and the Han people were deliberately hurting us, and they should be severely punished!

Tuoba Tao just woke up like a dream, slapped the table, sent someone to smash the stele quickly, and ordered the arrest of Cui Hao and all the literati who participated in the history. Prince Tuobahuang was the first to hear the news.Since the Buddha was exterminated, he had had a grudge with Cui Hao. He should be happy that Cui Hao was convicted this time, but Gao Yun, the main member of Xiushi, was his teacher. He quickly took Gao Yun to the East Palace and told him to Said: "Follow me to see the emperor tomorrow, if the emperor asks you something, you can answer according to my meaning, do you understand?"

Gao Yun was confused and asked the prince, "What is it for?" Tuoba Huang didn't go into details, he just replied: "I'll know when I go to see the emperor." Early the next morning, Tuoba Huang led Gao Yun to the palace, and reported to Tuoba Tao: "Zhongshu's servant Gao Yun has been in the Erchen Palace for many years. He has always been cautious and law-abiding. The same history, but the status is very low, the crime is all Cui Hao's, I implore the father to investigate clearly, and spare him the death penalty." Tuoba Tao nodded, summoned Gao Yun, and asked him as soon as they met: "Cui Hao wrote "Records of the Kingdom", right?" Gao Yunyi replied truthfully: ""Taizu Ji" was written by the former author Lang Dengyuan, "Xiandiji" (the first emperor refers to Tuoba Si) and "Jinji" were co-written by Wei Chen and Cui Hao, but Cui Hao took care of many of them. , only focus on overall affairs. As for the writing of annotations, there are more humble ministers than Cui Hao." Tuoba Tao was furious, and said to Tuoba Huang: "What's wrong, Gao Yun's crime is heavier than Cui Hao, how can I forgive him?" The prince secretly complained, thinking that this Gao Yun didn't have a brain, and didn't listen to me, so he hurriedly explained: "Young minister Gao Yun, when he first saw his father, Huang Tianwei, he spoke incoherently. My son asked him just now, and he said it was all Cui Hao did it." Tuoba Tao turned his face and asked Gao Yun: "What the prince said is the truth?" Gao Yun replied: "The crime of a humble official should be annihilation of the family, and I dare not speak in vain. The crown prince just sympathized with my experience and wanted to save my life because of my humble official. In fact, he did not ask me, nor did I. said that." Tuoba Tao took a breath, and there was such a minister, and sighed: "It's really upright! Few people in the world can do it, but Gao Yun can do it! When death is imminent, he can still keep his face and tell lies , this is faith; as a minister, he can insist on the truth and not deceive the emperor, this is chastity. Both faith and chastity are admirable, well, I will forgive him." Tuoba Tao sent someone to summon Cui Hao to question him, but Cui Hao was too frightened to speak.Tuoba Tao asked Gao Yun to draft an imperial edict, copying Cui Hao's family and killing officials related to writing national history. Gao Yun accepted the edict, but has been hesitant to write the edict.Tuoba Tao urged and urged, and finally Gao Yun asked to see the emperor before writing.Tuoba Tao called him into the palace, and Gao Yun said: "I really don't know what other crimes Cui Hao committed. If it is only because of writing the history of the country that he offended the ancestors of the royal family, if he doesn't hide it for the venerable, it will not be the case. Sentenced to death." When Tuoba Tao heard what he was talking about, he couldn't sit still and ordered the warriors to tie up Gao Yun and kill him.Tuoba Huang next to him was frightened and tried to persuade him again and again.Tuoba Tao finally calmed down, thinking that Gao Yun was right, he untied Gao Yun, let him go, and sighed: "Without this person, I'm afraid I would have killed thousands of people!" Afterwards, Tuobahuang blamed Gao Yun: "He who knows the current affairs is a hero. I plead for you, but why did you anger the emperor instead? Every time I think about this, I still have lingering fears." Gao Yun replied: "The so-called history is to record the behavior of the emperor according to the facts, and to serve as a reference for those who come later. Only in this way can people today know what happened in the past, and people in the future can know what happened today. At the same time, this kind of history writing method also It can make the monarchs have scruples and be cautious in words and deeds. Cui Hao presided over the compilation of history. He has a lot of selfishness. Compiling a book is a matter of life and death, and cannot be exempted. I am grateful to His Highness the Crown Prince for protecting me; but if I want to say something against my will in order to survive, I will not do it." Tuoba Huang was moved by it From then on, he brought Gao Yun by his side to consult with him on important matters. Gao Yun was lucky enough to survive, but Tuoba Tao still did not let Cui Hao go, he found another person to issue an edict to punish the Qinghe Cui family that Cui Hao belonged to and the three noble families of Lu, Guo, and Liu who were married to him, and other people involved in the case Only kill myself.Cui Hao planned his whole life for the monarch of the Tuoba clan, but in the end he turned into Nanke Yimeng.On the day of execution, 70-year-old Cui Hao was locked in a prison van and taken to the execution ground. On the way, the guards climbed on top of his head, urinating on his head while saying insulting words.It is embarrassing that this counselor, whose talent and insight are no less than that of Zhuge Kongming, ended up so miserable. Due to the heavy blows suffered by the Yanzhao Han people, the institutional Sinicization that had been thriving in the Northern Wei Dynasty cast a shadow.Tuoba Tao also regretted his momentary tyrannical behavior later, but it was a done deal and he had to swallow the bitter fruit. Cui Hao contributed a lot to the development and consolidation of the regime in the early Northern Wei Dynasty.Although he himself is a weak scholar, he can always strategize and win a decisive victory thousands of miles away. The Tuoba family has adopted his suggestions many times in the military expansion, and there are few mistakes.Regarding the system of the Northern Wei Dynasty, his influence was implicit and gradual on the ideological level. He attached great importance to the promotion of Confucianism, and focused on selecting talents like the Han people. These measures can affect several generations.Many people believe that Cui Hao kept the Han family in his heart and was not keen on the Southern Expedition, but tried to push the Northern Wei regime to expand in other directions. This is actually a kind of inertial way of thinking in Han culture.Since the education Cui Hao received since he was a child is the traditional cultural education of the Han people, his words and deeds, no matter whether they are subjective or objective, will naturally benefit the Han people and Han culture.Xianbei people have no real "culture" in the true sense. Cui Hao wants to write history for Xianbei people from the perspective of Han culture, but the result can only be tragedy.The killing of Cui Hao, in the final analysis, stemmed from the conflict of cultures. It marked that the trend of Sinicization in the early Northern Wei Dynasty had encountered a temporary obstacle.However, for the Xianbei aristocrats, whether voluntary or forced, they had no choice culturally if they wanted to survive in the Chinese world.The wheel of history is running over with a bang, and the general trend is unstoppable.