Chapter 16 Chapter 16 Full Interpretation of "Zhaoxuan Zhongxing"

When it comes to the famous prosperous times in the history of the Western Han Dynasty, people today know more about it. Naturally, the "Government of Wen and Jing" is the first to be promoted. important times.China in this era enjoys a peaceful situation in which the country grows stronger and the frontiers gradually stabilize after Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty attacked the Huns in the north. This is the famous "Zhaoxuan Zhongxing" in history. The so-called Zhaoxuan Zhongxing refers to the 48 years from the enthronement of Han Zhaodi in 87 BC to the death of Han Xuandi in 48 BC.These 48 years were another glorious period for the Western Han Empire. Externally, the Western Han Empire pursued the strategic thinking of Anbian and prudent, and did not easily launch foreign wars. It adopted a policy of combining grace and power with the Xiongnu. It focused on peace, but did not give up the use of force and actively defended itself. The military attack of the Han Dynasty further weakened and divided the Xiongnu, and gradually became a major problem for the Han Empire.At the same time, the Han Empire continued the active management and development of the Western Regions during the period of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, and gradually included the vast Western Regions under the rule of the Western Han Empire, from a subsidiary state of the Western Han Empire to a part of the Chinese territory.The Chinese civilization still crossed the Silk Road and continued to spread far and wide. During this period, the countries that had good relations with China had reached the West Asia region of the Persian Gulf to the west. Chinese silk even crossed the Mediterranean Sea and spread as far as the Roman region.Internally, the rulers of the Han Dynasty during this period, while continuing the achievements of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty in strengthening the centralization of power, carried out the policy of resting with the people, emphasizing the use of Confucian scholars, respecting Confucianism, mitigating punishments, lightening corvees and paying less taxes, and strictly practicing resting with the people. The high-efficiency taxation system established during Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty ensured that the country could accumulate sufficient tax revenue, the government's administrative operation efficiency was greatly improved, and the national economy recovered rapidly.This period of civil and martial arts is commendable, which is the famous Zhaoxuan Zhongxing in history.

The beginning of Zhaoxuan Zhongxing began in 87 BC when Emperor Zhaodi Liu Fuling of the Han Dynasty came to the throne. At that time, Liu Fuling was only an 8-year-old child, and the real leader of the national policy was the general Huo Guang, who had both reputation and reputation. As the chief auxiliary minister left over from the period of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, Huo Guang has always been a well-known cautious person in the period of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty.He is Huo Qubing's half brother.In the later years of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, he was an official to Doctor Guanglu. He was famous for being cautious. He was so cautious that he came to work every day, and there were clear figures for how many steps he took. struggle, especially the famous "Witch Gu Case".In 91 BC, Prince Liu Ju was "rebelled by witchcraft" by powerful minister Jiang Chong. The real planner of this framed case was Li Guangli, a high-ranking general at this time. Li Guangli wanted to support his nephew King Changyi as the prince. Therefore, he conspired with Prime Minister Liu Qumao to frame the prince with all his strength.This political storm swept many people, including the children of General Wei Qing, and the Prime Minister Gongsun He's family was all convicted. In order to prove his innocence, Prince Liu Ju raised his troops angrily and killed Jiang Chong who was unjustly imprisoned in Daxing. Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty misunderstood it as treason, resulting in an internal strife, Prince Liu Shi was killed, and his mother Wei Zifu committed suicide to prove his innocence.Huge political changes dealt a heavy blow to Emperor Wu of Han in his later years. Later, he chose Liu Fuling, the youngest son born to Mrs. Gouyi, as the prince.In the selection of the assistant minister, he chose Huo Guang, who was cautious, and showed Huo Guang the picture of "Duke Zhou Fucheng King", expressing his expectation for Huo Guang.After the death of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, Huo Guang was appointed to assist the government and took over the mess of the Han Empire.

In the early days of Liu Fuling's accession to the throne, there were both internal and external troubles.Internally, General Zuo Shangguan Jie and Sang Hongyang, who assisted with Huo Guang, were not willing to be under Huo Guang, who was already a great general, so they colluded with each other and conspired to launch a rebellion.They first colluded with Liu Dan, King of Yan, and framed Huo Guang for rebellion. However, Liu Fuling, Emperor Zhaodi of the Han Dynasty, was a smart man who saw through the false accusation at a glance and wanted to track down the mastermind. , Huo Guang was killed in a surprise attack during the banquet, and then Emperor Zhao of the Han Dynasty was abolished, and King Liu Dan of Yan was welcomed to the throne.Huo Guang was cautious on the surface, but his heart was like a bright mirror. He pretended to be calm, but acted before Shangguan Jie and others, and quickly arrested Shangguan Jie, Sang Hongyang and others, crushing the attempted coup.Afterwards, Shangguan Jie and others were ransacked and beheaded, and Yan Wang Liu Dan and the eldest princess who participated in the rebellion committed suicide in fear of crime.What is deplorable is Shangguan Jie and Sang Hongyang. Shangguan Jie and Huo Guang are relatives of sons and daughters, but they are still so ruthless in the face of power. Sang Hongyang is even more deplorable. The identity of an outstanding reformer in history has gone down in history, but who would have thought that the temptation of power and the temptation of profit will make the mind faint, so that it will not be safe at the end of the day.

The "reactionary clique" of Shangguan Jie was smashed, so that Huo Guang could finally let go of his hands and feet and fulfill the last entrustment of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty.Being cautious, his most important job during this period was to "reduce the burden", that is, to continuously reduce and exempt various taxes in the late period of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, and rest with the people.It is worth mentioning that in 86 BC, the Western Han Empire held the famous "Salt and Iron Conference", that is, convened virtuous people from the people to discuss the country's major policies with the auxiliary ministers of the court and the central government.During the meeting, middle and lower-level scholars invited from the people slammed the policies of the Western Han Empire, such as the official operation of salt and iron, equal losses, and equal standards, but Sang Hongyang and others strongly refuted and demanded that these established policies be continued policy.As a general in charge of the state power, Huo Guang, who has the "decision-making power", adopted a fair attitude. Regarding the excessive monopoly of Yantie's government-run policy, he decided to cancel the monopoly of wine and give private management rights, but still retained his control over Yantie. Operational control.As for the informant and countdown policies that are beneficial to reducing the burden on the common people, the rate of tax collection has been reduced to a limited extent, the harsh regulations of "reporting" have been abolished, the trend of whistleblowers has been eliminated, and national stability has been maintained.It has not completely overthrown and restarted, but also ensured the recovery of the national economy. Compared with the "one size fits all" political atmosphere in ancient China's political arena, it can be said to be much more enlightened.

While resting with the people economically, the Han Dynasty's attitude towards the Huns was also kind and powerful.While taking the initiative to send peace signals to the Xiongnu, while not relaxing their arms, they continued to develop farmland on the border, reorganized the army to prepare for war, and repelled the Huns' invasion many times.The Xiongnu changed a lot during this period. Hugu Lu Shanyu, who defeated Li Guangli, triumphantly claimed that the Xiongnu was the proud son of heaven and wrote a letter of state to humiliate Emperor Wu of Han, but he himself died in 85 BC and could not see the Xiongnu. A day to reign supreme.His death brought about a "domino effect" within the Xiongnu, because his assistant, King Youguli, was dissatisfied with his lack of succession and openly rebelled against Xin Shanyu, so the Xiongnu Empire fell into civil war.At this time, the Han Empire had another outstanding general, Zhao Chongguo, who defeated the Huns many times and forced the Huns to reconnect with the Western Han Empire.The Han Empire during this period was known in history as "the barbarians serve the people and the people are enriched." The Western Han Empire, which went downhill in the last years of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, began to climb up again.

The Han Empire began to climb, but the health of Han Zhaodi himself continued to decline. The 8-year-old young king trusted Huo Guang and entrusted him with handling state affairs as much as possible. As he grew older, Huo Guang was also very knowledgeable. , More and more power was handed over to Emperor Han Zhao.If there is no accident, this young and wise monarch is likely to become a generation of outstanding saints.But an accident happened. In April 74 BC, Emperor Zhaodi of the Han Dynasty passed away at the age of 21. The last edict before his death was to order another three-tenth reduction of the national agricultural tax. "The will can be said to be carried out to the end.

The sudden death of Emperor Han Zhao left the throne of the Han Empire in a vacuum again. What was particularly troublesome was that the young king had no heirs. Therefore, in theory, at this time, the princes and kings of the Han Empire, especially the direct descendants of Emperor Wu of the Han, Everyone has a chance of succession.As a general, Huo Guang once again assumed the important task of assisting the government.After selection, Changyi King Liu He was the first to be established as the emperor. He is the direct descendant of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, the nephew of Emperor Zhao of the Han Dynasty, and the successor of Genzheng Miaohong. But this Liu He is a "prodigal son". Playing and having fun, on the way to Beijing to succeed to the throne, he allowed his subordinates to plunder the women of the people, and he did not look like an emperor at all.During this period, the emperor's words did not count, and the power to abolish and establish was completely controlled by Huo Guang.Unbearable, on the 27th day of Liu He's ascension to the throne, Huo Guang called a group of ministers and announced the abolition of Liu He.Another important reason why it went so smoothly was that Huo Guang's move was supported by the famous general Zhao Chongguo who held military power at this time, and the trust Zhao Chongguo gained during Emperor Xuan's period was also related to this.

After Liu He was abolished, Liu Bing, the great-grandson of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, had been established as emperor. This was another important figure in the Zhaoxuan ZTE period—Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty.The Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty is one of the legendary emperors in Chinese history.His grandfather was the prince Liu Shi who raised troops in the disaster of witchcraft. Liu Bing was born in prison and lived in the folk for a long time because of being implicated by his grandfather. This life experience also made him deeply aware of the hardships of the folk. .When Huo Guang abolished Liu He, although Liu Bing had recovered the Liu family's ancestry, he did not have a title.In the history of the Han Dynasty, in addition to Han Gaozu Liu Bang, he was another 100% civilian emperor.

But during this period, Liu Bing already knew his identity—a puppet.In fact, after Liu Bing came to the throne, the power of the country was taken over by Huo Guang. Huo Guang, who had been cautious all his life, also completely rebounded during this period. He poisoned Xu Pingjun, the first wife of Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty, to make his daughter Huo Chengjun the queen.Xu Pingjun lived with Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty for many years when he was poor and humble. He was simple and low-key, but the power struggle was doomed to be ruthless. Her departure was a painful event in the life of Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty. Many years later, Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty wrote poems to mourn her.

The death of Xu Pingjun also changed the relationship between Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty and Huo Guang. In the past, the monarchs and ministers who were like thighs were now enemies.Huo Chengjun was established as a queen, adding a "Hedong Lion" to the family of Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty. This woman is domineering and lives extravagantly and extravagantly. She is completely different from the gentle and virtuous Queen Xu who is diligent and thrifty.Regarding all of this, Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty had only one attitude: forbearance.If you can't bear it, you can't bear it. All the civil and military people in the court are from the Huo family, and you are on the cusp of the storm. Anyway, you have endured it from the people since you were a child. It doesn't matter if you bear it for a few more years.During this period, the national strength of the Han Empire was still thriving. The Han Empire continued to implement the policy of recuperation, and continued to resume production by reducing taxes and encouraging frontier generals to cultivate.Enduring until 68 BC, Huo Guang, who had worked hard all his life, finally passed away.For Huo Guang, Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty also gave him the utmost honor and favor, and he was buried with the emperor's standard etiquette, giving him great respect, but the fate of the Huo family began to change from then on.

In fact, for the Huo Guang family, Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty had no intention of liquidating at the beginning. Although Huo Guang killed his first wife, Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty was still grateful for his great contribution to support.Especially for the queen Huo Chengjun, Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty also tried his best to tolerate it. The change of things was because the descendants of the Huo family became more and more domineering.While forbearance, Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty cut off Huo Guang's wings calmly, his two sons-in-law were dismissed from their posts, and his son Huo Xun was promoted to Da Sima. In fact, Ming Sheng secretly degraded his military power.Panicked, the Huo family decided to take risks and rebel. However, just like Shangguan Jie's failed rebellion, this time the Huo family also lost to the cautious Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty.The news of the rebellion had been grasped by Emperor Xuan of the Han from the very beginning. Before the Huo family launched an attack, Emperor Xuan of the Han quietly issued an appointment to transfer the descendants of the Huo family out of the capital, and then made a sudden move to catch them all. , The whole Huo family was punished.Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty, who had endured for many years, truly took control of the political power. Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty after taking charge of the government began to continue the "ZTE situation" that had existed in the era of Emperor Zhaodi of the Han Dynasty.Compared with Emperor Zhaodi of the Han Dynasty, his pioneering work in internal affairs was the reintegration of the administration of officials, the most important of which was anti-corruption. He dispatched a large number of capable officials to rectify the emerging local corruption and strictly investigate corrupt officials.For example, Tian Yannian, the prime minister who made great contributions to him, was punished for corruption.In contrast, he revised the laws of the Han Dynasty, abolishing many harsh and brutal laws, governing officials with strictness, but governing the people with lenient and simple, and the official and folk customs of the Han Dynasty were completely reversed during this period. .In terms of economy, Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty inherited the policy of rest and recuperation, but also strengthened the achievements of economic reforms during the period of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty.In particular, he vigorously weakened the princes and distributed the land of the princes to farmers for cultivation as much as possible, which further eased land conflicts. In terms of industry and commerce, while strengthening tax control, he further relaxed business restrictions. During this period, industry, commerce and agriculture have made great progress. . The most important thing that Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty did during his reign was to completely solve the problem of the Huns.The Xiongnu in the era of Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty had split into two major tribes, the North and the South. The two tribes attacked and killed each other, and could no longer pose a threat to the frontiers of the Han Dynasty. However, Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty was not satisfied with this temporary peace and seized the opportunity. attack.On the one hand, he repeatedly united with Wusun and other countries in the Western Regions to send troops to attack the Huns, and on the other hand, he implemented a policy of appeasement and recruited the Huns to join him.His efforts paid off. In 51 BC, Huhanxie Shanyu, the Hun, took the initiative to go to Chang'an and swore to submit to the Han Dynasty. Victory, the long-dead Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, if he knows it, can also smile at Jiuquan.61 BC during the reign of Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty is also a year worthy of Chinese records.In this year, the Han Empire officially established the Western Regions Protectorate in Luntai, with Zheng Ji as the first Western Regions Protector. From then on, the vast land of Xinjiang was officially included in the territory of China. Achievement. The 38 years from 86 B.C. to 48 B.C. during the reign of Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty was the last glorious period of the Western Han Empire. Just like the setting sun was red, the Western Han Empire, which had been established for more than a hundred years, had indeed reached the late period of the dynasty. Zhaoxuan After the afterglow of ZTE, the Han Empire is about to enter a long period of darkness.