Chapter 11 Chapter Ten Yuan Emperor Liu Shi

Emperor Liu Shi of the Han Yuan Dynasty was the eldest son of Emperor Xuan Liu Xun, and his mother was Empress Xu.Liu Shi was born among the people when Emperor Xuan was a commoner. Emperor Xuan ascended the throne when he was 2 years old, and was made a prince when he was 9 years old.In the first year of Emperor Xuan of Huanglong (49 BC), Emperor Xuan died, and 27-year-old Liu Shi came to the throne.Emperor Yuan was a weak monarch. During his reign, the Western Han Dynasty began to decline. When Liu Shi grew up, he was gentle, benevolent and good at Confucianism. Seeing that Emperor Xuan used criminal law heavily in governing the country, he once said: "Your Majesty's punishment is too deep, and Confucian scholars should be used." Wang Erdao, Liu Shi prefers pure Confucianism, and I am afraid that he is a cowardly and incompetent heir who is not good at using people.He was worried that Liu Xi would not be able to inherit the heavy responsibility, and intended to replace the crown prince, but he was unwilling to abandon his late wife in distress and Liu Xi's biological mother, Empress Xu. Liu Shi.

Sure enough, the succeeding Emperor Yuan gave up the tradition of "miscellaneous use of the way of kings and overlords" of the previous emperors of the Han Dynasty, attached importance to Confucianism, respected Confucianism, respected teachers and respected Confucianism.Therefore, most of the important officials in the court were his masters and Confucian scholars. Before Emperor Xuan died, he entrusted three ministers to assist the government, one was Shi Gao, a foreign relative, and the other two were Yuan Emperor's masters Xiao Wangzhi and Zhou Kan.Xiao Wangzhi was a native of Lanling in the East China Sea (southeast of today’s Zaozhuang, Shandong). Emperor Xuan was the crown prince at the time, and he taught "Rituals" and "Shangshu" at the same time.When Emperor Xuan was ill, he worshiped Xiao Wangzhi as the former general Guangluxun, and Zhou Kan as Guanglu doctor, who granted imperial edicts to assist the government, and also served as minister.Xiao and Zhou Zhou were originally masters, and they were also assisted by the late emperor's edict. Therefore, when Emperor Yuan came to the throne, he met with Xiao and Zhou several times in succession to study state affairs and discuss government affairs.Emperor Yuan respected and trusted his master very much.

Emperor Yuan also vigorously promoted Confucian scholars.At that time, Xiao Wangzhi recommended Liu Xiang, a great scholar with many talents, and Jin Chang, a loyal and upright man. Emperor Yuan gave them important responsibilities, and added officials to Shizhong, that is, the right to enter and exit the forbidden center at will and participate in secrets.Not long after he ascended the throne, he heard that Wang Ji and Gong Yu from Langye (today's Shandong cities) were masters of Confucianism with clear scriptures and clean conduct, so he sent a special envoy to summon the capital to be an official. Wang Ji died of illness on the way to Beijing, and Gong Yu went to Beijing to worship Admonish doctor, and later promoted to doctor censor, ranking among the three princes.In order to develop Confucianism and make more use of Confucian students, the Yuan Emperor once ordered the doctoral students of the Imperial Academy to cancel the quota limit, and all folk Confucian students who could master the classics were exempted from military service and corvee service.Later, due to insufficient expenses, the number of doctoral disciples was limited to 1,000. Even so, it increased by 5 times compared with the number in the last year of Emperor Xuan.During the reign of Emperor Yuan, most of the ministers who were reused were well-known masters of Confucian classics in the Han Dynasty.

Among the Confucian scholars employed by the Yuan Emperor, there were quite a few who were upright and dared to speak out.Emperor Yuan attached great importance to Confucianism, so he did not blame Confucianists who were outspoken and admonishing.Xue Guangde dared to speak out, sometimes even embarrassing Emperor Yuan.Once, Emperor Yuan went out of the palace to worship his ancestors at the Ancestral Temple, and suddenly became interested in taking a boat to watch the water. He planned to abandon the bridge and take a boat to the Ancestral Temple instead.Xue Guangde stopped in front of Emperor Yuan, took off his hat, knelt on the ground respectfully and kowtowed, asking Emperor Yuan to pass on the bridge.Emperor Yuan asked him to put on his hat, and Xue Guangde said: "Your Majesty will not listen to your minister's advice, and your minister will kill himself and pollute the wheel with blood. At that time, Your Majesty will not be able to enter the temple to worship the ancestors." After hearing this, Emperor Yuan was very unhappy.Zhang Meng, the doctor of Guanglu, said to Emperor Yuan: "Your Majesty, I heard that only a wise monarch can have a direct minister who dares to speak out. It is dangerous to travel on a boat, but safe to walk on a bridge. The wise monarch does not approach danger. You should obey the words of the doctor Yushi. Emperor Yuan glared at Xue Guangde and said, "Shouldn't this be the case if you understand people?" Then he passed on the bridge.

While Emperor Yuan respected teachers and Confucianism, he also favored traitors and traitors. A group of traitors and villains gathered at the key points of the court. Shi Xian was the most important one among them. When Emperor Cheng ascended the throne. Shi Xian was born in a family of big landlords who were famous for generations. He was punished for juvenile delinquency and entered the palace as an eunuch.When Emperor Yuan came to the throne, Shi Xian was already a veteran who had seen the ups and downs of the officialdom and the accidents in the officialdom.He is eloquent, cunning, and vicious in heart. He is not only proficient in court affairs, but also can use scheming and language to detect the inner meaning of the emperor that has not been clearly stated or is difficult to express. With this set of skills, he quickly won the favor of Emperor Yuan. and favor.With the deepening of favor and trust, the power of Zhongshu is increasing day by day. Shi Xian and others take the advantage of Cardinal Jiudian and their familiarity with court affairs, and often criticize, resist and even overthrow the opinions of Xiao Wangzhi and Zhou Kan, who are the leaders of Shangshu. Waiting for the opposition of upright officials.As a result, a confrontation between the Zhongshu forces headed by Hong and Shi and the upright forces headed by Xiao and Zhou formed in the court.The two sides fought openly and secretly, and it became more and more fierce.

Xiao and Zhou proposed to Emperor Yuan to abolish the Zhongshu institution in an attempt to eradicate Shi Xian and other gangsters.Emperor Yuan was weak in character and adopted a compromise attitude, and he remained undecided on the abolition of Zhongshu for a long time.However, Shi Xian and Hong Gong acted in time and planned several times, first to force Xiao Wangzhi to commit suicide, and then to drive Zhou Kan to death.Although Emperor Yuan took pity on his master and even added Zhou Kan's position to Shi Xian's, but in the end he couldn't see through Shi Xian's strategy, and Shi's real power was stable, so he failed to keep his master's status and life.From then on, the upright officials lost their leaders and were even more passive and in a difficult situation.

After the failure of the upright faction, there was a Lang official in the court named Jingfang. Seeing that Shi Xian was in power and the officials were corrupt, he formulated a set of rewards and punishments for Qingming officials, called "the law of officials who test their homework".Emperor Yuan appreciated this plan very much.But Jingfang knew that in order to implement its law, Shi Xian must be eliminated first.During a meeting with Yan, Jingfang asked the Emperor Yuan a series of questions and made a thorough remonstrance.Jingfang asked: "Why did King Zhou You and King Li risk their lives? Who did they appoint?" Emperor Yuan said: "The monarch is confused, and he uses clever crafty people." Do you think they are wise?" Emperor Yuan said: "Of course I think they are wise." Jingfang then asked: "Then why do future generations know that they are not wise?" Emperor Yuan said: "The future generations know that they are not wise because they have seen the evil consequences of the ruined emperor. "Jingfang said: "In this way, it is true that any virtuous person must govern, and any sycophant must be chaotic. Then why didn't you and Li realize it, and why did they keep appointing sycophants, so that the country was ruined and died?" Emperor Yuan replied: "Facing chaos and death All the monarchs think that the ministers they appoint are virtuous ministers. If they all realize that, there will be no fools in the world!" Jingfang changed the subject and asked: "Then, in your Majesty's view, is the world today a ruled world or a chaotic world?" Emperor Yuan made no secrets Said: "It's extremely chaotic, what else can I say." Jingfang asked again: "So who is His Majesty appointing today?" Emperor Yuan hesitated: "... You can't say that. You and Li Shi are better; besides, it has nothing to do with employing people." Jing Fang said with emotion: "Your Majesty, the previous monarchs looked at his era in this way. I am afraid that future generations will comment on today, just like we comment on the previous generation today. Same." Emperor Yuan was silent.It took a while to speak, and he asked: "Then, who do you think is the traitor today?" Jing Fang replied: "Ming Lord should know." Emperor Yuan said: "I don't know. If I know, why do I still Do you want to use him?" Jingfang said: "What I'm talking about is the person whom His Majesty trusts the most, who jointly plots important affairs in secret and controls the world's human rights." Yuan Emperor understood that Jingfang was referring to Shi Xian, so he said : "I already know."

Jingfang's loyal remonstrance can be described as earnest and thought-provoking, but after Jingfang retreated, Emperor Yuan credited Shi Xian as always.Because Shi Xian had used various cunning means to deceive Emperor Yuan's unbreakable trust in him, the more Shi Xian deceived Emperor Yuan, the more Emperor Yuan trusted Shi Xian, and later he simply pushed the government to Shi Xian.No matter how big or small, Shi Xian will report to them, and most of them will be judged by Shi Xian.Shi Xiangui was lucky to fall to court, and all civil and military officials were in awe of him.Following the deaths of Xiao Wangzhi, Zhou Kan, and Zhang Meng, Shi Xian, in order to eliminate dissidents, successively murdered Jing Fang, Zheng Hong, Zhang Bo, Jia Jianzhi, Su Jian, and others, and persecuted Chen Xian, Zhu Yun, and Wang Zhang. Wait for many people.Because Emperor Yuan favored and trusted Shi Xian too much, Shi Xian always used the power of Zhongshu (Shangshu) to usurp the power of the court, which gradually reinstated the power of Shangshu institutions in the Han Dynasty.Relying on the power of Shangshu, Shi Xian constantly eliminated political opponents. Those who were imprisoned were imprisoned, and those who served their sentences served their sentences.All the officials of the Manchu Dynasty, from Gongqing to Langli, were afraid of the Zhongshu forces headed by Shi Xian, and they were cautious in every way, and they didn't even dare to be negligent in raising their legs and feet when walking.

During the reign of Emperor Yuan, the Xiongnu had declined, and the border counties were relatively safe, but there were occasional minor frictions.Regarding how to deal with the issue of border counties, Emperor Yuan always convened a group of ministers to discuss, and often adopted the opinions and propositions that prevailed in the debate. When Emperor Wu opened up the southern border of the Han Dynasty, he set up Zhuya and Dan'er counties on today's Hainan Island. Due to the brutal oppression of the local people by the officials of the Han Dynasty, armed resistance was often aroused.In the second year after Emperor Yuan ascended the throne, the South County of Zhuya Mountain rebelled against the Han, which could not be quelled for years.Emperor Yuan called a group of ministers to discuss and planned to send heavy troops to suppress it.Later Emperor Yuan adopted the proposition of Jia Donzhi, the representative of the majority faction, and decided to abandon Zhuya County.In the third year of the Yuan Dynasty (46 BC), an edict was issued to announce the removal of Zhuya County. The residents in the county were willing to belong to the Han and settled properly, but those who did not want to belong to the Han did not force each other.In this way, since Zhuya County was established in the first year of Yuanfeng (110 BC) by Emperor Wu, it lasted 64 years until Emperor Yuan was abolished.

In the autumn of the second year of Yongguang (42 BC), Qiang Pangzhong, the sister of Longxi County, rebelled against the Han Dynasty, and Emperor Yuan called a group of ministers to discuss countermeasures.Emperor Yuan listened to both sides' arguments, and on the basis of adopting the opinions of the majority, he ordered Feng Fengshi to lead more than 10,000 officers and soldiers into Longxi County, and divided them into three places.Feng Fengshi had no choice but to draw the detailed terrain of Longxi County and the distribution of Qiang Han troops, and sent it to Emperor Yuan for reinforcements.Emperor Yuan sent 60,000 reinforcements to Longxi, and put down the Qiang rebellion at the end of that year.

The successful example of Emperor Han Yuan's foreign policy was to make peace with the Huns in the north, and Hu Han made peace.At the beginning of Emperor Yuan's ascension to the throne, the Xiongnu were already weakened, and there were many internal conflicts.Hu Hanxie Shanyu returned to the Han Dynasty. In the first year of the first year of the Yuan Dynasty, he wrote a letter saying that the people were poor. Emperor Yuan ordered Yunzhong and Wuyuan two counties to send 20,000 hu of grain to rescue.Zhizhi Shanyu rebelled against the Han, killed the envoys of the Han in the fourth year of the Yuan Dynasty, and fled to Kangju.In the winter of the third year of Jianzhao (36 B.C.), Gan Yanshou, the governor of the Western Regions, and Chen Tang, the deputy lieutenant, mobilized soldiers from various countries in the Western Regions and executed Zhizhi Shanyu.When Hu Hanxie Shanyu heard that Zhizhi had been killed, he was both happy and afraid, so he wrote a letter and proposed to see the emperor.In the first year of Jingning (33 BC), Hu Hanxie came to Chang'an to worship Emperor Yuan and asked to be the son-in-law of the emperor of the Han Dynasty to show his closeness to the Han Dynasty.After Yuan Emperor, Wang Zhaojun, a daughter of a good family in the palace, gave Shanyu to Hu Hanxie. Hu Hanxie was very happy, and wanted to protect the northwest frontier for the Han Dynasty, and asked Yuan Emperor to remove the northwest frontier defense and rest with the people.Emperor Yuan asked the relevant departments to discuss it, and the discussants thought it was a good thing, but Lang Zhonghou should take the initiative. Starting from the long-term plan of the Han Dynasty's border defense, he listed 10 irrefutable reasons to Emperor Yuan.Therefore, Emperor Yuan sent someone to politely decline Hu Hanxie Shanyu's kind request. During the reign of Emperor Yuan of the Han Dynasty, he also adopted some policies in an attempt to revitalize the country, but in the end, due to too many evils, Emperor Yuan himself was weak and incompetent, and he favored traitors, so he failed to achieve his wish. At the beginning of his succession, the Yuan Emperor's masters and Confucian officials came to advise one after another, prohibiting extravagance and thrift.For example, Gong Yu pointed out that the monarchs in the early Han Dynasty were frugal, paid taxes on tithes, and had no other taxes and services, so the family was full.At the time of Gaozu, Wen, and Jing, there were only a dozen or so court ladies and more than a hundred horses in the stables. Later, the extravagance became more and more, and there were thousands of women in the harem, and tens of thousands of millet-eating horses in the stables.As a result, all of them became extravagant. Some princes had hundreds of wives and concubines, and dozens of singers of the rich and powerful.He suggested that Emperor Yuan should start from himself first, and become an example of thrift, so as to correct the society's extravagance.Under the advice of Gongyu, Emperor Yuan took many frugal measures within the royal family.He ordered to stop the maintenance of those infrequently visited palaces and other halls, the eunuchs reduced the grain for horses, the water balance reduced the meat for animals, and the Huangmen Office's rides, dogs, horses, and playthings were revoked, and the water scales were restricted. Yichun Xiayuan, Shaofu Yifei Waichi and Yanyu Ikeda are four hunting and recreation places and poor farm dwellings.He also issued an edict to relieve the guards of Ganquan and Jianzhang Second Palaces, and all the guards returned to the village to work in agriculture.The various departments of the hundred officials must reduce costs and report the actual situation upwards.He also ordered the eunuch who was in charge of the diet in the palace not to slaughter every day, and the food expenses were reduced by one-half as usual.The principle of raising horses in Chengyu is not to miss the business, and extravagance and waste should not be allowed.And the Jiaodai Opera and the commonly used Shanglin Palace Pavilion were abolished. Although Emperor Yuan used Confucian scholars to accept advice to a certain extent, and adopted some light punishment and frugal measures, these did not change the decline of the Western Han Dynasty.In terms of light punishment, Emperor Yuan reduced more than 70 punishments and granted amnesty year after year. However, if he is amnesty today, he will break the law tomorrow and be imprisoned.In terms of frugality, Emperor Yuan made many exemplary actions, but the trend of extravagance continued to increase.Due to the accumulation of hard work, the Yuan Emperor had no good strategy, and his revitalization was weak. In addition, he favored and trusted his ministers, so the upper beam was not upright and the lower beam was crooked, and the government was not organized, which would inevitably corrupt the local government. Can slide downhill. When Emperor Han Yuan was the crown prince, there were many concubines and beauties, but he only favored Sima Liangdi.After her death, Emperor Yuan kept away from concubines.Later, under the matchmaking of his father Xuandi and the queen, the beauty Wang Zhengjun was selected to enter the palace.A one-night companion, pregnant with Liu Ao.After Liu Ao was born, Emperor Xuan loved him very much, and personally named him Ao, with the word Taisun, and often stayed by his side to play.After Emperor Yuan came to the throne, he made Liu Ao the crown prince and ordered Shi Dan to assist the prince; Wang Zhengjun was made the queen, but Wang Zhengjun seldom got close to Emperor Yuan, and Emperor Yuan did not love her.However, Prince Liu Ao was fond of Confucianism and Confucianism when he was young, and he was magnanimous and cautious. Later, he was greedy for wine and sex, and indulged in Yanle. Emperor Yuan fell ill in his later years and was not involved in political affairs, seeking comfort and ease.He didn't like the queen and the prince, but loved his concubine Fu Zhaoyi and his son Liu Kang, so he wanted to be easy to store.In the first year of Jingning (33 B.C.), Emperor Yuan was seriously ill. Fu Zhaoyi and Liu Kang were often attendants, but the empress Wang Zhengjun and Prince Liu Ao rarely visited.Emperor Yuan asked Shangshu several times about Emperor Jing's old practice of abolishing the crown prince born to Liji and establishing Jiaodong King Liu Che, intending to follow the example of the story Yi Chu.Empress Wang Zhengjun, prince Liu Ao, and Liu Ao's eldest uncle Wei Wei Wang Feng were worried day and night, not knowing what to do.Shi Dan was a close former minister of Emperor Yuan, and he was able to visit Emperor Yuan in the imperial palace.When Emperor Yuan was sleeping alone, he broke into the bedroom, knelt in front of Emperor Yuan and cried, "It has been more than 10 years since the crown prince established his eldest son as the crown prince. His name has been imprinted in the hearts of the people, and all the people in the world return their hearts. Now see Dingtao The king is deeply favored by His Majesty, and there are many rumors that His Majesty intends to change the reserve, and the road is full of wind and rain. If there is such a thing, the officials of the Manchu Dynasty below the Duke will fight to the death and refuse to obey the imperial edict. May Your Majesty give the minister the death first, as a sign All the ministers." Emperor Yuan was originally a benevolent and gentle emperor. He couldn't bear to see his beloved minister cry, and felt deeply moved by Shi Dan's sincere words. How can I not miss it? However, I have no plans to store it easily. Besides, the empress is a generous and cautious person, and the late emperor liked Ao'er. How can I disobey his old man's will? Where did you hear these gossips? What about it?" Shi Dan took advantage of Emperor Yuan's words and kowtowed again and again, saying: "A foolish minister who hears and talks nonsense deserves death." Emperor Yuan said: "My illness is getting worse and worse. I am disappointed." From then on, Emperor Yuan dispelled Yi Chu's thoughts. In May of that year, Emperor Yuan died in Weiyang Palace.Reigned for 16 years and was 43 years old.In June, Prince Liu Ao ascended the throne as Emperor Cheng.In July, Emperor Cheng held a funeral for his father and was buried in Weiling (now northeast of Xianyang, Shaanxi).His posthumous title is "Emperor Xiaoyuan".In the first four years of Emperor Ping's Yuan Dynasty (4 BC), the name of the temple was "Gaozong".