Chapter 6 Section 5 Incentives from Political Situations

There is another very important external factor for the success of young people in ancient China, which is the incentive of political situation.Some teenagers grew up under the dark political rule, living in a very bad situation, surrounded by struggles against the dark rule one after another, this kind of personal life situation and the motivation of the political environment make them demand to change the social status quo, prompt them to work hard, and finally Did a great job.Some teenagers grew up when the country was in danger. In order to save the country from peril, they worked hard and finally grew into heroes who are famous throughout the ages.There are also some teenagers who grew up in the midst of the division of the country and the struggles of various political forces [bai ​​he lily]. In order to fight for a way out and status with others, they study hard, constantly sum up experience and lessons in social practice, and finally grow into outstanding character.

Zhu Yuanzhang, the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty, belonged to the first type.He came from a humble background, and spent his youth under the dark rule of the Yuan Dynasty, under the blows of natural disasters and man-made disasters.His whole family died of cold and starvation, but he himself survived by chance, lived in a Buddhist temple, and became a young monk.But Zhu Yuanzhang did not succumb to fate, and with great ambitions, he was tempered and tested in the vicissitudes of the political situation at that time.He was determined to change his living situation and determined to make a big career out of it.At the age of 24, he joined the anti-Yuan team led by Guo Zixing and started the battle to transform the country.After more than 10 years of tempering in combat life, Zhu Yuanzhang constantly summed up experience and lessons, and constantly adjusted his combat strategies.After recruiting many civil and military talents, his pace of progress accelerated.Finally, at the age of 39, he led the army to overthrow the Yuan Dynasty, wiped out the separatists, and became the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty.

Huo Qubing in the Han Dynasty, Xin Qiji in the Southern Song Dynasty, and Zheng Chenggong in the late Ming and early Qing belonged to the second type. Huo Qubing came from a humble background, his father was a yamen servant, and his mother was a servant girl in Princess Pingyang's family.Huo Qubing lived among slaves since he was a child, his social status was very low, and people looked down on him.However, Huo Qubing had great ambitions since he was a child. He believed that under the situation that the Xiongnu continued to harass the south and most of the northern border of the Han Dynasty was restless, a man should work hard to learn martial arts and go to the battlefield to kill the enemy and make meritorious service. Make contributions and at the same time change one's social status.So whenever he was free, he played with swords and sticks, rode horses and shot arrows.By the time he was sixteen or seventeen, he had already mastered martial arts, so he was favored by Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty and selected to serve as a servant, responsible for protecting the emperor's safety.The development of the military situation at that time prompted him to repeatedly ask to go to the battlefield against the Huns. When he was 18 years old, he finally got the consent of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, let him be, and sent him to lead troops to fight against the Huns with the general Wei Qing.On the battlefield, Huo Qubing gave full play to his military talents. He led 800 elite cavalry to form a commando, and often hit the Huns severely by surprise. As a marquis and a general, his status gradually became equal to that of the general Wei Qing.The most remarkable thing about Huo Qubing is that his primary goal in making contributions is to contribute to the country and the nation, followed by his own interests.When he was 23 years old, together with Wei Qing, he defeated the main force of the Xiongnu for the last time and chased to Langjuxu Mountain (approximately in the area from the northwest of Keshigten Banner to Abaga Banner in Inner Mongolia today) and returned victoriously. The good intention of building the mansion said: "The Huns have not been destroyed, and there is no home." It means that the Huns have not been destroyed, and they cannot consider the issue of their own home, which fully expresses his heroic spirit of forgetting home for the country.In the second year, he died of illness.He really deserves to be a great young hero.

Xin Qiji lived in a period when the Jin soldiers continued to invade the south. His own hometown Licheng in Shandong was ravaged by the Jin soldiers, so he had to go into exile in the south of the Yangtze River.The hatred of the country and the family encouraged the young Xin Qiji to learn from Zu Ti in the Eastern Jin Dynasty, practice martial arts day and night, and prepare to serve the country. At the age of 21, he joined the anti-golden team. He once led 50 sergeants, broke into the barracks guarded by 50,000 gold soldiers, captured the traitor Zhang Anguo and returned to the south for execution.Later, when he was an official in Hubei, Jiangxi, Hunan, Fujian, Zhejiang and other places, he never forgot to contribute to the anti-golden war. Therefore, he was praised as "a passionate patriot", "a brave and strong man", "a quick man". , the courage to take responsibility" hero.Xin Qiji also wrote lyrics with vigorous pen power, expressing his patriotic enthusiasm for trying to restore the country, and pouring out his grief and indignation that ambition cannot be rewarded.He was a talented and outstanding figure in the Southern Song Dynasty.

Zheng Chenggong lived in the period when the political situation was turbulent in the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties, and the struggles of various political forces were complicated. In order to make contributions in the troubled times and serve the country, he studied hard and did not forget to practice martial arts. He had read a lot when he was a teenager. Books, practiced a good martial arts. At the age of 22, his father Zheng Zhilong betrayed the interests of the country and the nation and surrendered to the Qing army. Zheng Chenggong resolutely broke with him and led the troops to Nan'ao Island in Guangdong to raise the flag of anti-Qing righteousness, vowing to continue to be loyal to the Ming Dynasty.He repeatedly defeated the Qing army, and once fought near Nanjing, which shocked the Qing court and had to mobilize a large number of troops to fight him.In order to establish a solid anti-Qing base, Zheng Chenggong persisted in the struggle against the Qing Dynasty, crossed the Taiwan Strait, defeated the Dutch colonialist invading army, and regained China's sacred territory of Taiwan. He was only 37 years old that year.He completed a brilliant career in his youth and won the praise of future generations.

Famous historical figures such as Sun Quan and Zhuge Liang in the Three Kingdoms period, as well as some emperors such as Emperor Zhao of the Han Dynasty, Queen Mother Feng of the Northern Wei Dynasty, and Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty belong to the third type. Sun Quan's elder brother, Sun Ce, started galloping on the battlefield at the age of 17, and worked hard to establish the foundation of Soochow. At the age of 26, he was assassinated by the enemy and failed to complete his career.Sun Quan was only 19 years old that year.He bravely took over the unfinished business of his brother, and took on the important task of expanding and consolidating Jiangdong's foundation, and competing with the heroes for the world.He studied hard and exercised his courage in the intricate political struggle.Internally, he selected talents and appointed them, and united capable civil servants and generals around him; externally, he withstood the pressure of Cao Cao's hundreds of thousands of troops, resolutely united with Liu Bei, defeated Cao's army in the Battle of Chibi, and finally completed the domination of Jiangdong. career.Sun Quan himself became talented in his youth, and most of the generals he appointed were young people who were talented. Zhou Yu, the general who commanded the Battle of Chibi, was only 33 years old at the time, and Lu Meng, who made great contributions in the war, was only 30 years old.

Zhuge Liang, who helped Liu Bei start a business in Sichuan, lost his parents when he was young. When he was 17 years old, he lived in seclusion with his uncle in Longzhong (northwest of Xiangyang County, Hubei Province), studying classics, history and art of war.He has great ambitions and takes Guan Zhong and Le Yi of the Spring and Autumn and Warring States Periods as his role models.The secluded life in Longzhong did not isolate Zhuge Liang from the outside world. He was always concerned about the changes in the political situation, and prepared to go out to do a vigorous career when the time came.People compare him to a dragon lying on the ground ready to take off, and call him Mr. Wolong.Because Zhuge Liang had such ambitions, when Liu Bei took Guan Yu and Zhang Fei to visit the thatched cottage again and again to invite him, he estimated that the world might develop into a tripartite confrontation before he was born, and suggested that Liu Bei go to Sichuan to open a situation.The first major event that shocked the world after he came out of the mountain was to join forces with Sun Wu and defeat Cao Cao in Chibi.At that time, Zhuge Liang was six years younger than Zhou Yu, only 27 years old, and he was a typical young talent.Here are a few incidental remarks. Today we watched the Three Kingdoms drama performed on the stage. Except for Zhou Yu who was played by Xiaosheng with a white face and no beard, others such as Sun Quan, Zhuge Liang, and Lu Meng were mostly played by Xusheng or Jingjiao. They all had a lot of beards. The result of artistic processing is far from the actual situation of the year.Most of the young people who were active in the front line of political and military struggles in the Three Kingdoms were young people. They were full of vigor, and the political situation encouraged them to think quickly and act decisively. Therefore, the political and military struggles at that time were very complicated and intense.

In ancient China, emperors practiced the eldest son inheritance system, but sometimes the throne was passed on to other princes.This led to fierce struggles and competitions within the palace around the heir to the throne, and also prompted many young people who had inherited the throne or mastered the imperial power to become talented as soon as possible.Liu Fuling, Emperor Zhaodi of the Han Dynasty, was the youngest son of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty. He was only eight years old when he succeeded to the throne.At that time, Emperor Han Zhao's status was not stable. His eldest sister, Princess Gaichang, and his half-brother, King Liu Dan of Yan, colluded with the left general Shangguan Jie and the imperial historian Sang Hongyang to try to usurp the throne.With the help of Huo Guang, the young Emperor Zhaodi of the Han Dynasty worked hard to study history books while learning the skills of governing the country. He paid special attention to how to consolidate imperial power and see through the tricks of conspirators, which made him mature politically very quickly. Learned many things.When he was 14 years old, Princess Gaichang and Yan Wang Liu Dan wanted to get rid of Huo Guang first, and then launched a palace coup to abolish Emperor Han Zhao and make Yan Wang Liu Dan the emperor.One day, when General Huo Guang went to Guangming near Chang'an to inspect the army and transferred a lieutenant to work in the General's Mansion, General Zuo Shangguan Jie and others forged a letter in the name of Liu Dan, King of Yan. Send it to Emperor Zhao of the Han Dynasty to falsely accuse Huo Guang.The letter said that when Huo Guang went to inspect the army, he stole the emperor's guard of honor and showed off his might, very arrogantly;At the end of the letter, Liu Dan, the king of Yan, made a suggestion and said: "I am willing to return the seal of King Yan. Please transfer me to Chang'an to serve as the emperor's guard in the palace and suppress the traitor Huo Guang's rebellion." After sealing the false accusation letter, I read it several times carefully, and said with confidence: "I will discuss this matter when Huo Guang returns from the military parade tomorrow. I have my own opinion." Hurry up and let out the news that Huo Guang wanted to rebel, but he had been reported, and the emperor was about to execute him.The next day when Huo Guang came back from the military parade, he heard that someone had denounced him and that Emperor Han Zhao was about to execute him, but he couldn't figure out what was going on, so he was frightened and didn't dare to go to see Emperor Han Zhao.As soon as Emperor Zhao of the Han Dynasty went to court, he immediately summoned Huo Guang.When he saw Huo Guang kneeling in the hall, kowtowing without his crown, asking for forgiveness, he said: "General, please stand up and restore the crown. I have read the letter that denounced you, and I believe it was forged by someone with ulterior motives. You are not guilty, so don't be afraid." Huo Guang thanked Guo En and stood up, and asked in amazement: "I thank Your Majesty for your grace, but how does Your Majesty know that this letter is forged?" Tomorrow, the military parade is near the capital city; the adjustment officer will go to the General's Mansion to work in less than ten days. King Yan is in the far north, how can he know these things? Even if he really knows, send someone to deliver the letter immediately Come on, I'm afraid I won't be able to reach the capital today. Besides, if the general really wants to rebel, what's the use of transferring a small lieutenant? Therefore, I believe that someone wants to frame the general, so I forged such a letter. Although I am young, I can tell the truth from the false, and I will never be fooled." After listening to the analysis of Emperor Han Zhao, Huo Guang and the civil and military officials of the Manchu Dynasty felt that the young emperor was so quick in thinking and so accurate in his judgment. He really deserved to be called a young man. Yingcai, everyone said in unison: "The emperor is wise, the general is indeed innocent." Emperor Han Zhao not only saw through the conspiracy of Shangguan Jie and others, but also tracked down the conspiracy group with the help of Huo Guang, and finally killed Shangguan Jie and Sang. Hongyang and others forced Princess Gaichang and King Yan Liu Dan to commit suicide, thus consolidating their throne.It can be seen that the political struggle within the palace can also exercise the talents of young people and make young people with aspirations grow up.

Empress Dowager Feng of the Northern Wei Dynasty was the queen of Emperor Wencheng of Wei. When Emperor Wencheng died, she was only 23 years old, and she took on the important task of assisting the young Emperor Xianwen to take charge of the government.The emperor was young, the queen mother was young and female, and some ambitious ministers, such as Yi Hun, conspired to launch a rebellion and seize the throne.Faced with such a critical situation, Empress Dowager Feng did not flinch, and was determined to withstand this severe test.She made arrangements calmly, promoted those reliable officials to important positions as her helpers, and sent people to investigate the conspiracy activities of careerists such as Yi Hun.After everything was arranged, she arrested Yi Hun with lightning speed and executed him immediately, and ordered the followers who participated in the plot to surrender in public, promising to reform themselves.Later, Emperor Xianwen gave the throne to his young son Emperor Xiaowen, and Empress Dowager Feng became the Empress Dowager, and continued to attend the court and help Emperor Xiaowen take power.In order to change the situation of corrupt government, social turmoil, and production stagnation, with the help of some talented ministers, she promulgated the salary system to prevent corruption of officials, implemented it to stabilize social order, and implemented the order of land equalization to encourage farmers' enthusiasm for production. Finally, the administration of officials gradually cleared up, the society became more and more stable, and production developed step by step.The fact that the young Empress Dowager Feng of the Northern Wei Dynasty matured in the turmoil of political struggles shows that a young woman can also grow into a political reformer under the encouragement of political turmoil.

In the early Qing Dynasty, Emperor Kangxi, Aixinjueluo Xuanye, ascended the throne at the age of eight, and was assisted by four assistant ministers, Suo Suo, Su Ke Saha, Ye Bilong, and Aobai, to take power.Not all of the four auxiliary ministers are loyal, and among them, Aobai is a schemer with ulterior motives.Taking advantage of the opportunity of the death of the chief assistant minister, Sony, he made various excuses, killed Sukesaha, and planted cronies everywhere in the court in an attempt to murder Emperor Kangxi and seize the throne.Emperor Kangxi was a young man with great ambitions. After he came to the throne, he witnessed the unstable situation of his throne, so he worked hard to learn culture, and wanted to learn from history to consolidate the throne experience.In order to cultivate his cronies, he selected a group of aristocratic children who were similar in age to him, and they gathered together to practice Buku (wrestling) in the morning and evening.When he was 14 years old, he decided to take charge of the government by himself, and started a tit-for-tat struggle with the conspirator Obai.Two years later, Emperor Kangxi believed that the time was ripe, and with the help of those young guards, he acted preemptively, announced Obai's misdeeds in public, arrested him and put him in prison, smashed the upcoming rebellion, and consolidated his throne .The young emperor Kangxi can also be said to be a historical figure who grew up in the tempering of political struggles.

In short, in ancient China, whether it was the young people who struggled to become talents under the dark political rule, the young people who worked hard to become talents under the national crisis, or the young people who endured the test and became talents in the political struggle of the country's turbulent period, they All of them became talents under the encouragement of political situation, so the motivation of political situation is also an important external cause for the success of young people in ancient China.

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