Chapter 37 (Thirty-seven) Very Monarch and Minister

In the history of the Three Kingdoms, the Shu Han regime entered the era of Zhuge Liang after Liu Bei's death. The successor Liu Chan was only the nominal head of state, and the actual military and political power was in the hands of Zhuge Liang.So, what is the relationship between Liu Chan and Zhuge Liang?What kind of historical secrets lie behind this special relationship?Professor Yi Zhongtian of Xiamen University will give you a wonderful taste of the Three Kingdoms——Extraordinary Monarchs and Ministers. "Hundreds of Lectures" began to launch programs in February 2006, and today it has broadcast three parts, namely "Wei Wu Swings the Whip", "Sun Liu Alliance" and "Three Kingdoms". Mr. Yi Zhongtian has 36 It focuses on the formation and struggle process of the three major groups of Wei, Shu, and Wu, and depicts the portraits of the three kingdoms headed by Cao Cao, Liu Bei, and Sun Quan.

But "the rolling Yangtze River flows eastward, and the waves wipe out the heroes."The development of history is independent of human will, and the Three Kingdoms were finally unified by the Jin Dynasty.So, how did the two countries of Wu and Shu, which once produced a large number of talents, perish?Why was the powerful Wei state changed by the Sima family?Mr. Yi Zhongtian will unravel these mysteries one by one for you, and the last drama "Return to Unity" will officially meet the audience from today. First of all, Mr. Yi Zhongtian started with the Shu Han after Liu Bei's death, and led us to experience the special relationship between Zhuge Liang and Liu Chan, a pair of monarchs and ministers.Liu Chan succeeded to the throne, but he was only the head of state in name; Zhuge Liang assisted the government, but he monopolized the power.What kind of historical secrets lie behind their special relationship?Professor Yi Zhongtian of Xiamen University is a guest of "Hundreds of Lectures", and will give you a wonderful taste of the "extraordinary monarchs and ministers" of the Three Kingdoms.

In the third year of Zhangwu in the Shu Han Dynasty, Liu Beituo was alone with Zhuge Liang, and Zhuge Liang took over the heavy burden of the Shu Han regime.For him, on the one hand, this is an opportunity to realize his political ideals and political revenge, and on the other hand, he also faces many difficulties.We know that Zhuge Liang is an outstanding politician. For Zhuge Liang, he has to deal with four major relationships: the first is the relationship between monarch and minister, the second is the relationship between colleagues, the third is the relationship between allies, and the fourth is the relationship between ourselves and the enemy.From this episode, we will talk about how Zhuge Liang handles these four major relationships.The first thing to bear the brunt is the relationship between him and the emperor Liu Chan.This is a special pair of monarchs and ministers, very monarchs and ministers.Because when Liu Bei was in Tuogu, he had two confessions, or two arrangements: one was to tell Liu Chan that you should treat the prime minister like a father, "do things like a father"; the second is that he said to Zhuge Liang, " If you are not talented, you can take it yourself."So it's a very special relationship.

So the first question we have to ask is, did Liu Chan execute Liu Bei's political will?The conclusion is affirmative, it has been implemented, not only has it been implemented, but it has also been increased.We can look at a table, which is the treatment Zhuge Liang received after Liu Chan succeeded to the throne.First, he was named Marquis of Wu Township, which gave him a lofty status.Second, open the government and manage affairs, which is to grant him the independent power of prime minister.What is Kaifu?That is, he established a whole set of administrative institutions by himself, and possessed relative powers that were relatively independent of the imperial power.This system disappeared later, and Cao Cao took the lead in restoring the prime minister system, and he was the prime minister himself, and he was the founder of the government.After Liu Bei founded the country, he also restored the prime minister system, but he did not open the government.Then Liu Chan asked Zhuge Liang to open the mansion. This matter is very important, and we will mention it again and again in the future.Third, lead Yizhou Mu, which is to grant him national administrative power.We know that the so-called Shu Han regime is basically based in Yizhou, so since you are the prime minister of Shu Han, why do you still lead Yizhou Mu?What is the need?Necessary because while geographically it is basically one thing, nationally it is two.Shuhan is the dynasty and the center; Yizhou is the county and the place.The prime minister of Shu Han is the central political figure, and the prefect of Yizhou is the local official.Then let Zhuge Liang take Yizhou Mu again, which means handing over the whole country to him.Moreover, according to Pei Songzhi's annotation and quotation of "Wei Lue", Liu Chan also said this to Zhuge Liang, saying: "Government is up to the Ge family, and sacrifices are made to widows." What does it mean?That is, you have the final say on all military and political affairs, and the widow only does one thing, which is to sacrifice to the heaven, earth and ancestors.To put it more bluntly, all major military and state affairs are handled by Zhuge Liang, and Liu Chan is only the head of state in name.Therefore, "Three Kingdoms • Zhuge Liang's Biography" said: "Political affairs are not big or small, and they are determined by Liang." That is to say, Zhuge Liang makes decisions on major and small matters in this country, no matter how big or small.

Therefore, we can say that after Liu Chan succeeded to the throne, Zhuge Liang's status was exactly the same as that of Cao Cao.We can also take a look at the comparison between Cao Cao and Zhuge Liang.What is Cao Cao's title?Feng Wupinghou, prime minister, led Jizhou animal husbandry.Zhuge Liang was granted the title of Marquis of Wu Township, prime minister, and led Yizhou Mu.Marquis Wuping and Marquis Wuxiang were both county marquises, and both of their prime ministers were prime ministers who founded the mansion. Both Jizhou and Yizhou were big states at that time.Take a look, how similar they are!If there is any difference, the difference is that most of Cao Cao's titles were obtained by himself; while Zhuge Liang's titles and titles were bestowed on him by the two emperors of Shu Han willingly.

Comparing Cao Cao and Zhuge Liang together, we always feel a little strange.Because in the eyes of ordinary people, Cao Cao is a traitor, and Zhuge Liang is a loyal minister.Treacherous officials always want to make trouble, so if the puppet emperor Han Xiandi hated Cao Cao so much that his teeth were itchy, most people would understand.As a loyal minister, Zhuge Liang came to assist Liu Chan, the master of the Shu Han. Does Liu Chan laugh like a flower when he sleeps?So, is this Liu Chan's true feeling?What would Liu Chan's true feelings be like? How does Liu Chan feel?accurate.Is there any evidence?a little bit.According to "Xiangyang Ji" quoted in Pei Songzhi's note, after Zhuge Liang's death, all parts of the country asked to build temples for Zhuge Liang.What is the result? "The court will not listen to the proposal", that is, it will not approve it.So the common people had no choice but to set up a spiritual altar in the streets and alleys to worship Zhuge Liang, the prime minister whom they missed infinitely.At this time, someone asked the court whether it is possible to build a temple for Zhuge Liang in Chengdu?The result was that "the master will not obey" and did not approve.Later, someone suggested that this is not very good, because you cannot stop private sacrifices, so it is better for our government to regulate these random sacrifices among the people.Only then did he reluctantly agree, and a temple was built in front of Zhuge Liang's tomb in Dingjun Mountain.So this matter is controversial.Some people say that Liu Chan did not approve the establishment of a temple for Zhuge Liang, which is also stipulated by the system.Because the original text of "Xiangyang Ji" is: "The court will not listen to the order of etiquette." That is, according to the provisions of the etiquette law, it is not allowed to do this, so he followed the system.So what we have to ask is, in such an era, is the system really that important?For example, Liu Bei restored the prime minister system, what happened after Zhuge Liang passed away?Liu Chan abolished it, and after Zhuge Liang passed away, there was no prime minister in Shu Han.Also, Zhuge Liang's national policy of the Northern Expedition to Cao Wei was abolished by Liu Chan.Such a big system can be changed. If Liu Chan respects his father-in-law from the bottom of his heart, he should make an exception. Why doesn't he do it?

We have to figure out why Liu Chan is unhappy, three reasons.First, it is like house arrest.After Liu Chan succeeded to the throne, I guess he never went out of the palace. It was not until Zhuge Liang passed away that Liu Chan went to Dujiangyan once in April of the 14th year of Jianxing.This incident was specially written in the "Three Kingdoms", which said that Liu Chan went to Dujiangyan and saw the water of the Minjiang River.And it is said that some people are talking about whether the prime minister can go if he is alive!You think Liu Chan succeeded to the throne at the age of 17, a young man in his 17, 18 or 20s, who can’t walk around in the palace all day, and if he takes a look at Dujiangyan, he will be said to be a plaything and lose his mind. Is he happy?This is the first point.

The second point is that it is inevitable to be punished.Let's read Zhuge Liang's "Teacher's List" to know, how does "Teacher's List" teach Liu Chan?For example: "It is not advisable to belittle oneself and make inaccurate quotations." What does it mean?In fact, it means that you belittle yourself and make inaccurate metaphors. This is the tone of an adult scolding a child.And I counted it, and the short article "List of Teachers" mentioned the first emperor in ten places.At the beginning, it was "the first emperor's business was not halfway", and then he said what the first emperor was like, what was the first emperor, so what, a certain thing was decided by the first emperor, a certain person was valued by the first emperor, and a certain person "the first emperor called it capable", What should His Majesty do? The ministers are entrusted by the late Emperor. How to serve the late Emperor is all about the late Emperor.So if you compare your heart with your heart, it is equivalent to saying to a person, look at what happened when your father was alive, what your father was like before, and how your father confessed.Let alone an emperor, even a boy from a commoner family, he can't stand being alone talking about your father and your father all day long.How about my dad, how about my dad, what about me?How am I?Not happy.I'm not saying that Zhuge Liang is right or wrong, I don't have a question of right or wrong here, I'm just saying that Liu Chan is upset.

The third is that it is difficult to be in charge of the government.According to the traditional rules of Gu Ming or Tuogu, this power will be returned to the emperor sooner or later, but because the emperor is still young, underage, and has lost his father, he is "called Gu".What about when he becomes an adult?Should he turn from a trainee emperor to a working emperor?And as Minister Gu Ming and Minister Tuogu, your task is to assist the government, not to govern.And we obviously don't see the possibility of Liu Chan pro-government. With these three items, I guess he is unhappy.Of course there is no objection, but it's hard to say whether I'm muttering or not, and it's hard to say whether I'm depressed or not.

Mr. Yi Zhongtian sold a small pass here, we simply pierced this layer of window paper, Liu Chan must be muttering in his heart, it must be very depressed.Not to mention that Liu Chan is the emperor, but ordinary people, who are always reprimanded, have no personal freedom, and are not allowed to do things, can they not be muttered, can they not be depressed?Then we have a question, why did Zhuge Liang make Liu Chan mutter in his heart?Wouldn't it be over for Zhuge Liang to return the government to the king, and he would save trouble, why didn't he do this? The usual saying is that it's very simple, Liu Chan can't help him up.Isn't Liu Adou, who everyone says can't be helped, has a low IQ and poor ability.Is there any proof?There are also four.The first, trust villains.After he came to power, didn't he just use villains, eunuchs there?Second, surrender without a fight.The third, ungrateful.How ungrateful?Forget about Zhao Yun's kindness in saving him.In the third year of Jingyao's reign, several generals from the previous dynasty, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Ma Chao, and Huang Zhong were all given posthumous titles, but not Zhao Yun.Later, it was Jiang Wei and others who came out to fight for Zhao Yun's injustice, so they pursued Zhao Yun's honorary title.This is called ingratitude.The fourth, no heart.Liu Chan later subjugated the country, and went to Luoyang after surrendering.After arriving in Luoyang, Sima Zhao hosted a banquet for him, played Shu music, and performed Shu music and dance.At that time, all the people who came from the Kingdom of Shu were weeping bitterly, but Liu Chan was the only one who could smile freely and was extremely happy.Sima Zhao told people at the time, how can a person without a heart reach such a point!Later, Sima Zhao asked Liu Chan again, saying, do you still miss Shu?Liu Chan immediately replied: "I am happy here, but I don't think of Shu."After saying this, an old minister he brought ran to him and said, you can't say that, it's too heartless to say that, next time Sima Zhao asks you again, you just say, the tomb of the ancestors is in Shu Guo, I don't think about it for a day, and then I close my eyes.Alright, next time Sima Zhao will ask Liu Chan if he misses the Kingdom of Shu?Liu Chan said: Ah, the tombs of our ancestors are all buried there, and there is not a day when I don't think about it.What Sima Zhao said was wrong, why didn’t I sound like what you said, it sounded like someone who said it.Liu Chan immediately opened his eyes: Hey, that's right, that's what he said, and he taught me to say that!I said that if Liu Chan is the host of the TV station, he would also say that he guessed it right, plus 10 points!No heart.

But these claims are also open to debate.The first one, which of the emperors of all dynasties has no villains around him?Emperor Wen of the Han Dynasty had it, so did Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, and Emperor Zhaolie had it beside Liu Bei. Many scholars believed that Fazheng beside Liu Bei was a villain.So you can't say that there is a villain around him who is a bad emperor, right?The second is to surrender without a fight, so Liu Zhang also surrendered without a fight.It was right for Liu Zhang to surrender to Liu Bei without a fight, but wrong for Liu Chan to surrender to Cao Wei without a fight?It doesn't make sense.The third one, not sealing Zhao Yun, is actually inheriting his father's treatment of Zhao Yun.Some people say that the five tiger generals, why not only Zhao Yun?Let me tell you, there are no five tiger generals. When Liu Bei was named general, he named four generals: the former general Guan Yu, the right general Zhang Fei, the left general Ma Chao, the rear general Huang Zhong, and the four generals.Zhao Yun is a miscellaneous general in Liu Bei's hands, not a famous general.That is, the front, back, left, and right generals are called generals of the same name, and the others are called generals of miscellaneous names.Zhao Yun has been a miscellaneous general throughout his life.Then when he pursued his posthumous title for the first time, he must have wanted the posthumous title of general, which cannot be said to be Liu Chan's ungratefulness.Moreover, when Jiang Wei and the others raised this question, Liu Chan also accepted it, and also pursued Zhao Yun. This should be called following the good.Then the fourth question, of course this, no matter how you look at it, he is heartless. ——But some people think that this is actually pretending to be crazy.At this time, you have already become a prisoner, so after Liu Chan said this, everyone laughed from left to right, just like today.This roar of laughter made Sima Zhao no longer want to kill. Of course, you said that Liu Chan's performance after he surrendered to Wei, is it good-looking?Not good-looking, much worse than another subjugated king.Another king of subjugation is Sun Hao, the king of subjugation of Sun Wu. Sun Hao also surrendered, and then he also went to Luoyang.At that time, it was already the Jin Dynasty, and the emperor was Sima Yan, Emperor Wu of Jin.Sima Yan saw Sun Hao coming in and asked him to sit: Please sit down, I have set up this seat to wait for you, but I have been waiting for a long time.Sun Hao immediately said: "The minister also set up a seat in the south to wait for His Majesty."It seemed that the bones were quite hard.But Sun Hao is a tyrant. Compared with Liu Chan, I think he should be considered a benevolent king.Therefore, Liu Chan cannot be belittled so low. Mr. Yi Zhongtian thinks that Liu Chan is a benevolent king, and some people have another opinion. If Liu Chan is a benevolent king, it also shows that he is cowardly, soft-sounded, unable to employ people, and has no backbone. He is simply mentally retarded. You are right.Zhuge Liang didn't hand over the military and political power to Liu Chan because he understood Liu Chan and knew that Liu Chan was useless, so he had to do everything himself.So, is Liu Chan really a useless mentally handicapped? In fact, Liu Chan is not mentally handicapped.Is there any evidence?Have. First, Liu Bei gave Liu Chan an imperial edict when he was dying. The edict mentioned Zhuge Liang's evaluation of Liu Chan. What evaluation?Four words: "Great intelligence", translated into the current words, it means very smart and very promising.If Liu Chan is said to be mentally handicapped, wouldn't that be the same as saying that Zhuge Liang lied?Of course, some people said that this was a kind of well-intentioned lie. Because Liu Bei was about to die, he was afraid that Liu Bei would be worried, so he comforted him.Just like our doctor treats the patient, the patient is already terminally ill and may die in two days, the patient asks the doctor, do you think I can be saved?The doctor said no problem, no problem, right? Don't worry about treatment, you will definitely be cured.In fact, it can't be cured. This is called a white lie.However, looking at the situation at the time, it would not be said that he was "very intelligent". If Liu Chan was mentally retarded, Zhuge Liang would use another way to comfort Liu Bei.This is the first point. The second point is that after Zhuge Liang's death, Liu Chan immediately abolished the prime minister system.Then he appointed Jiang Wan as Da Sima, in charge of administration and military affairs.He also appointed Fei Yi as the general, in charge of military affairs and supervising administration.That is to say, he divided the position and power that was originally centralized in Zhuge Liang into two people, and let the two people cross each other and check and balance each other.Could such an exquisite political arrangement be made by mentally handicapped people?impossible.Moreover, after Jiang Wan's death, Liu Chan simply took over the regent himself, took charge of the government, and took charge of the government himself. This is not like the behavior of a mentally handicapped person. Then there is another piece of evidence that is the third point. In the first year of Yanxi, something happened in the north.According to Zhuge Liang's practice back then, it is certain that the Shu Kingdom will start the Northern Expedition at this time.At this time, Liu Chan issued an edict to Jiang Wan and said: This is of course a golden opportunity, because Xiangfu has already talked about the Longzhong strategy, and we will do what we want if the world changes. Of course, this is a very good opportunity; but Don't act rashly, "must Wu move", see if Wu is moving, if Wu moves, we will move too, our two countries will move together to fight Cao Wei.So, is such a decision made by a mentally handicapped person?So Liu Chan is not mentally handicapped. The example given by Mr. Yi Zhongtian let us know that the old saying "A Dou who cannot be lifted up" seems to be untenable. Not only is Liu Chan not mentally handicapped, but he is also very intelligent.Then we are even more surprised. Zhuge Liang, as the prime minister of Shu Han who "dedicated himself to death", wanted to develop and strengthen the Shu Han regime. We also know that Zhuge Liang has no ambition to usurp the throne, so why didn't he return the power to Liu Chan? ? So now there is a problem.First, Liu Bei Tuogu made it very clear: "If the heir can assist you, assist him; if he is not talented, you can take it yourself." He made it clear that there are two possibilities. If he can assist you, assist him. If he cannot assist you, no matter what manage.Then, according to the previous analysis, Liu Chan is not a person who cannot be assisted, so Zhuge Liang assisted him.But after all, you are an assistant, not self-serving, so why don't you return the power to the king?The interpretation of Wei Lue quoted by Pei Songzhi is as follows. Its original text says: "Government is up to the Ge family, sacrifices are for widows." It means that all things should be done by the prime minister, and the widows only do the country in name The Führer is gone.Then the following sentence is: "Liang Yichan was not idle in politics, so he was always inside and outside." What does "leisure" mean?Just familiar.It is Zhuge Liang who is in charge of the overall situation because Liu Chan is still familiar with administrative affairs, has no work experience, and has no experience in governing the country.Then we have to ask, what if Liu Chan is "free"?Yes, he has no experience now; will he have experience in the future?Besides, if you don't give him a chance to practice, where does he get experience? Isn't he never experienced?Experience can only come from practice.That's why I have always advocated that parents should not worry too much about their children, and don't be afraid that they will make mistakes, and let them learn by themselves. Even if they stumble and stumble, it is also a lesson in life, and they will grow naturally. stand up.You always say that this child is young, he doesn't know how, he has no experience, and you always arrange to replace him, and he will never grow up.This makes people feel that Zhuge Liang always wraps Liu Chan in his wings to protect him at this time. Of course, he has a good heart and good intentions, but Liu Chan cannot grow.So we have to ask why. I can only put forward some speculative opinions. My guess has three possibilities.The first one, I guess, Zhuge Liang wanted to restore the political system of the early Western Han Dynasty.What was the political system in the early Western Han Dynasty?That is, the emperor, as a symbol of national unity, does not deal with specific daily political and military affairs; the daily political and military affairs are handled by the three princes, that is, the prime minister, the Taiwei, and the imperial doctor. Five days and one morning.And at this time, the Sangong Conference has already prepared a solution, and handed it over to the emperor, who will approve it.So to put it more bluntly, let the emperor act as a rubber stamp.I call this system the virtual emperor and the real image, the emperor is a symbol, and the real power lies with the prime minister. I personally think this system is the best system in the history of Chinese empire.Why is it the best system?Because it is an accountable system.That is, if we take a company today as an example, a good company must have the chairman in charge and the general manager in charge.It should be that the general meeting of shareholders elects the board of directors, the board of directors elects the chairman, the chairman appoints the general manager, and then the company is handed over to you.Once you do something bad, the board of directors can represent the shareholders, which is the main body of property rights, and the general manager is accountable, and can even be removed.This is the responsibility someone can ask and someone can bear.We read Zhuge Liang's "List of Distinguished Teachers", and he also made it very clear, please give your majesty what powers to your ministers, and if your majesty fails to do a good job, please hold your majesty accountable to your ministers.This is the best system, but this system was later destroyed.So Zhuge Liang is a person with political thoughts and ideals. Did he consider restoring the best system established in the early Western Han Dynasty?Then I have no evidence, no evidence that he thinks so, but I think it is possible. The second is that there is a long way to go, and I dare not let go.Let's read the "Biao Shi Biao", which says: "The former emperor's advising ministers were cautious, so he sent his ministers to deal with important matters when he was about to collapse. Since he was ordered, Su Ye sighed. I was afraid that the Tuo Fu would not work, so as to hurt the former emperor's bright." Zhuge Liang took over After a heavy burden, his sense of responsibility is very heavy. He is deeply afraid of making mistakes, and he dare not let an ignorant child do it.This is the second possibility. The third possibility is that at this time, the Kingdom of Shu is in trouble at home and abroad, and is full of crises.This can also be read from the "Teacher's List", which says at the beginning of "Teacher's List": "Today's three-point score, Yizhou is exhausted, and this is really a critical autumn of survival." The words are very serious and critical. Survival.But the usual understanding is that it is understood as external pressure. There is Cao Wei in the north, eyeing it covetously, and Sun Wu in the east, with malicious intentions.At this time in Yizhou, that is, on the Shuhan side, a group of outstanding politicians and military strategists have passed away one after another, and there is a shortage of talents.So feel very critical, this is the usual understanding.In fact, there is another crisis in the Shu Han regime at this time, which is their internal contradictions.The problem with the Shu Han regime is that its internal contradictions have never been resolved, and it was this internal contradiction that eventually led to the demise of the Shu Kingdom.Therefore, after Zhuge Liang took over the burden entrusted by Liu Bei, in addition to handling the relationship between him and the emperor Liu Chan, he must also handle his colleagues in the Shu Han regime, those who came from different camps, represented different political factions and The relationship between these persons of group interest.It was for this reason that Zhuge Liang had a serious disagreement with Li Yan, another Tuogu minister, and finally Li Yan was abolished. So what happened to Li Yan being deposed?In the event of Li Yan being abolished, what kind of internal crisis and hidden worries did the Shu Han regime imply?Please see the next episode - it's hard to tolerate fire and water.