King Wuling of Zhao, from Hufu to "Tai Shang Huang", a reformer who smashed himself

Zhao Wuling King , who are you?

I believe many people are unfamiliar with King Zhao Wuling. After all, the famous emperors such as Qin Huang Han Wu, Tang Zong Song Zu , a generation of Tianjiao Genghis Khan are too famous.

King Wuling of Zhao, a mere prince and prince is indeed not worth mentioning, but in terms of influence, he is no less than the monarch of any unified dynasty in history.

Chinese men who are active in formal social situations today all wear neatly collared clothes, sharp trousers and tight belts.

can be traced back more than 2,000 years ago, the modern male clothing is the patent of the northern minority Hu people.

The majority of Han men do not wear trousers or shorts, but robes with very wide cuffs and long skirts that are loose and slender to the feet.

It is estimated that there will be a strong wind, and men all over the street will be able to show their thighs. Don't want to be "sexy". This kind of scene will definitely rush to the hot search now.

Then why did men's clothing change from wide-sleeved long-sleeved to short-sleeved narrow-sleeved, thanks to King Wuling of Zhao's reform of "Hu clothing riding and shooting".

He transferred the tradition of the Hu people to the Han people, and gradually, from Zhao Guo to the whole country, some people will say that even if there is no King Zhao Wuling, it will be a matter of time before skirts are changed into trousers .

That said, without Qin Shihuang , China's reunification will be a matter of time, and there will never be an end to such a barrage.

Closer to home,King Wuling of Zhao, surnamed Ying's Zhao and named Yong, was born in 340 BC and was the son of Zhaosuhou , a prince of Zhao State.

In 326 BC, the 14-year-old Zhao Yong inherited the title of King Wuling of Zhao. At his father's condolence meeting, King Wuling of Zhao, with the help of Tugu's important minister Feiyi, smashed Wei, Chu, and Wei with a strong hand. Qin, Yan, Qi and other five vassal states attempted to destroy Zhao while they were still young.

From 323 BC to 307 BC, King Wuling of Zhao fought in the north and south, attacked Zhongshan , and made north Yan Kingdom , and fought between the various princes, but Zhao never achieved much success.

The so-called poverty brings change. King Wuling of Zhao is determined to change the status quo. The purpose of the change is to make Zhao the overlord of the princes. How to change it? Then "Hufu riding and shooting".

Hu clothing riding and shooting - a great military revolution that broke through the old tradition

Regarding Hu clothing riding and shooting, " Zizhi Tongjian" has a clear record, the original text is as follows:

Zhao Wuling King's Northern Lure in Zhongshan , to the house, then to the generation, to the north to infinity, to the west to the river, and ascending to the top of Huanghua. He and Feiyi planned to teach people how to ride and shoot in Hufu, saying: "What fools laugh at, but the wise look at it. Although I drive the world to laugh at me, I will have it in Hudi and Zhongshan!" Then Hufu .

The translation is roughly that King Zhao Wuling attacked the Zhongshan Kingdom to the north, passed the house, arrived at Daidi, and then went north to the desert thousands of miles away, and attacked the Yellow River westward to and the Yellow River , boarded the Huanghua At the top of the mountain, he negotiated with Prime Minister Feiyi to let the people wear shorts and Hu clothes and learn to ride horses and archery.

He said:

"Stupid people will laugh at me, but wise people will understand. Even if people all over the world laugh at me, I will do this, and I will surely conquer the territory of the northern Hu people. Take it with Zhongshan!" So he changed into Hu clothes.

"Zizhitongjian" introduces the situation of Hufu riding and shooting in a few words. Behind the seemingly simple process is an extremely complicated process.

's change to Hu clothing is essentially a challenge to the old tradition and ideology , and King Wuling of Zhao broke through the tradition based on practical needs.

Zhao State is located in today's Hebei and Shanxi. At that time, it was the northernmost of the vassal states in the Central Plains, and it was the border of the northern border. For a long time, it fought against the northern Hu people such as Xiongnu and Loufan, but was often at a disadvantage.

In addition to the limitation of strength, it depends to a large extent on military technology. Before the reform, Zhao State was the same as all countries in the Central Plains. From literati to sergeants, they wore wide shirts and long sleeves. .

This kind of tactics can't see the disadvantage in the Central Plains, but in front of the nomads in the north who are good at riding and shooting, the chariot and infantry are very clumsy, and they are often beaten and can't catch up.

cavalry is very flexible, in the words of King Zhao Wuling:

"The cavalry of the northern nomads come like birds, go like a string, they are the modern quick reaction force, with such troops galloping There is no reason not to win in the battlefield."

In the long-term actual combat exploration, King Wuling of Zhao deeply felt the superiority of cavalry, With great ambition, he wanted to prosper the country and strengthen the army.In the 19th year of taking office (307 BC), he formally proposed the decree of "wearing Hu clothing" and "learning to ride and shoot" in Handan .

He asked the army to adopt the clothing of the Hu people, that is, to change to short clothes, tie belts, use belt hooks, wear leather boots, and train soldiers to imitate the appearance of the Hu people, ride horses and shoot arrows, and conduct actual combat exercises.

Not only that, he also took the lead in wearing the Hu clothes to meet the ministers, and promoted the Hu clothes to the ministers and the people of the whole country. King Wuling of Zhao's quick and violent style is only the Russian Peter the Great. spell.

Of course, King Zhao Wuling's reforms were opposed by the traditional nobles headed by his uncle Gongzi. In Gongzicheng's words:

"To change the system of the ancestors is to go against the heart."

And Zhao Wuling Wang firmly refuted these claims:

"Do what is beneficial to the prosperity and strength of the country, why stick to the old laws of the ancients." , alienated the relationship between King Zhao Wuling and the nobles, and King Zhao Wuling hit back hard, summoned them and issued a stern warning:

"If anyone dares to say anything about obstructing the reform, my arrow will go through his chest!"

Young Master Cheng and the others looked at each other in dismay, and never dared to make rash discussions.

Not only that, in order to make the reform go on, King Wuling of Zhao found his minister Fei Yi to discuss measures, and secretly wooed the ministers in the DPRK and the emerging landlord class.

After receiving the support of the minister, King Zhao Wuling personally went to Gongzicheng's mansion to ask him to support the reform,He also wore Hu clothes to court, and spoke a lot of truth.

Young master is prejudiced, King Zhao Wuling is determined, and he has the support of his ministers, so he can only agree. In this way, King Zhao Wuling successfully broke through the obstruction of the old forces, and made the reform of Hufu cavalry and archery to be implemented. So far, Zhao State has established an army with cavalry as the main body .

The effect is also immediate. In the second year of the Hufu reform, that is, in the first 306 years, Zhao State launched an attack on Zhongshan, which had invaded itself for a long time, until Ningjia (now Huolu, Hebei). County North).

Then they attacked the Hu and Xiongnu westward and northward, until they reached Yuzhong (now the northeast bank of Hetao, Inner Mongolia) and Baotou, and ran for more than a thousand miles. King Linhu was forced to contribute good horses to seek peace.

From 305 BC to 296 BC, the state of Zhao continued to attack and destroy the state of Zhongshan. Zhao State quickly became the only state comparable in military strength to Qin State .

The reform of Hu Fu's riding and archery not only suppressed the power of the old aristocracy and promoted the power of the new landlord class, but also was a major change in the ancient military history of our country.

Zhao Wuling became the only person in Chinese history who, like Qin Shi Huang and Han Wudi , won the war against the northern nomads.

Not only that, the reform has promoted the improvement of Han clothing culture and ethnic integration. The convenience and practicality of Hu clothing has prompted the people of the Central Plains to follow suit, and it has gradually become popularized and popularized.

also shortens the social distance between Hu and Han, promotes economic and cultural exchanges between Central Plains Han and ethnic minorities, and promotes multi-ethnic integration in China.

If Zhao Wuling's reforms stop here, then his historical status cannot be said to be on the same level as Qin Huang and Han Wu, at least it is similar to Han Guangwu Emperor and Ming Chengzu .

But this old man may be too advanced in his thinking, or he may not be innovative enough. In his prime, he voluntarily gave up the throne and created a dualistic monarchy on a whim. He directly gave up his own life.

From Wuling King to "Master Father", the first Taishang emperor in history died tragically Dune

We know from the above that King Wuling of Zhao promoted Zhao State in a short time by riding and shooting in Hu clothing national power.

As a strategist, during his more than 20-year ruling career, King Zhao Wuling has mainly focused on national hegemony and military struggles.

King Wuling of Zhao continued to show his courage to be the first in the world. In 299 BC, at the age of 41, he voluntarily abdicated, and the prince Zhao He came to the throne ahead of schedule, for Zhao Huiwen King .

The original intention of King Wuling of Zhao was to build a dualistic politics. He and his son are both monarchs, but he is no longer a king, but uses the title of master and father with the meaning of the emperor.

In his opinion, with Zhao He in charge of internal affairs, he can devote himself to Zhao's fierce foreign military struggle. It looks beautiful, but the reality is a slap in the face.

And the reason starts with his sons.

His successor, Zhao He, is not the first prince he established.

After Mrs. Han died, King Zhao Wuling married a beautiful woman Wu Wa , Wu Wa was good at pleasing the king, but her lifespan was short.

In her short life, she brought infinite happiness to King Zhao Wuling, but she never begged him for a single thing, but just begged King Wuling of Zhao to make her son Zhao He the crown prince before she died.

It seems that Wu Wa is not only good at coaxing men, but also very scheming. At a young age, she understands the principle of "if you want to take it, you must give it first".

Zhao He is very like his mother. Although he is young, he is clever and ingenious. King Zhao Wuling, under the psychological influence of loving Zhao He and feeling guilty for Wu Wa, abolished Zhao Zhang and established Zhao He.

He also sent Feiyi to teach Zhao He. After three years of experience, Zhao He has become a new ruler and is very familiar with politics and state governance.

If King Wuling of Zhao does not change his original intention, he will be fine, and he will land smoothly at that time, but unfortunately he is a fickle man.

When he saw 's son Zhang 's dejected appearance in court when he met his younger brother Zhao, he was very distressed. He also thought of Mrs. Han's virtuousness and son Zhang's filial piety after being innocently demolished. He couldn't help feeling guilty flooded my mind.

In the eyes of King Zhao Wuling, Zhao Zhang has a strong personality and a strong physique. When he was fifteen years old, he followed him to conquer Zhongshan.

And Zhao He just because of his love for Wu Wa, thinking of this, King Zhao Wuling is determined to make up for his mistakes, at least to let his two sons share the supreme greatness he created.

The idea is good, but the bane is planted.

King Wuling of Zhao first sealed his son as Anyang Jun ,Appointing Tian Bu Li as the prime minister, this Tian Bu Li is a fallen noble of Qi , and has always hoped to make a comeback.

After being appointed as Prime Minister by King Wuling of Zhao, Tian Buli thought that the opportunity had come, and he wanted to use Gongzizhang to regain his power.

First of all, he pretended to be very sympathetic and often cared enthusiastically for Zhao Zhang. After gaining his trust, Tian Buli expressed his indignation at King Zhao Wuling's practice of abolishing the elders and raising the young, and instilled a sense of self-righteousness in the son-in-law. Long is a natural concept.

Over time, Zhao Zhang, who was already dead on the throne, was incited by Tian Ruli, and he thought of King Wuling's unfeeling love for himself and his mother, and the fire of desire reignited.

So Zhao Zhang took the initiative to get close to King Zhao Wuling, and the father and son almost developed to the point of eating and sleeping together, and King Zhao Wuling paid Zhao Zhang the same level of honor as King Zhao .

Zhao He felt inappropriate and hard to say, Feiyi could only comfort him, thinking that this was King Zhao Wuling's compensation for his son, but Feiyi's thought does not mean that his ministers think the same.

They saw that Zhao Zhang was loved by King Zhao Wuling again, and they seemed to smell some wind, so they became active and began to secretly send good news to Zhao Zhang. Yes, Zhao Zhang wanted this effect.

No stranger to power, he used this to form a group of henchmen and secretly vowed to take back the throne that should belong to him.

It's definitely not possible to take it hard, then continue to start with King Zhao Wuling and use the father's debt to his son to exert influence.

Coincidentally, the international situation at this time was also very good for Zhao State. King Wuling of Zhao had already conquered Zhongshan and drove out Beihu.

did not participate in the melee in the Central Plains countries,The Zhao State is the strongest, but Qi Qin Han Wei Chu is no longer its opponent due to years of melee.

So King Wuling of Zhao was not satisfied with the overlord of the northern grasslands, he wanted to be the overlord of the Central Plains, but after three years as the "master father", he found that he had lost his former central position.

Zhao He justifiably replaced him as the No. 1 figure in the state of Zhao. How could King Wuling of Zhao, as a horse king who once commanded a thousand armies, bear it. In order to realize the great ideal in his heart, he was determined to regain the throne and become the king of Zhao again.

This idea coincides with that of Zhao Zhang. In 295 BC, King Wuling of Zhao proposed to Feiyi that be replaced by the county to be given to Gongzizhang, so that Gongzizhang could also be called king. His intention was to take back Zhao He's real power. .

Feiyi was very aware of King Zhao Wuling's thoughts, so he politely refused. As the prime minister and teacher of King Zhao, he would never allow anyone to covet the kingship, even if it was the former master of King Zhao Wuling.

Here, King Wuling of Zhao had closed the door. Unwilling to fail, he simply told Zhao Zhang and Tian Buli about the matter, intending to anger the son Zhang and Zhao He to fight, so that he could reconcile the state and take charge of the government again.

The son Zhang Yutian was really furious. With his father's acquiescence, the son Zhang decided to take action.

And Zhao He was not idle. Feiyi told Zhao He that King Wuling of Zhao was looking for him, and discussed the countermeasures. On the one hand, he chose a reliable general to send troops to protect Zhao He, and on the other hand, he attracted Hu Fu to ride and shoot him. The son Cheng, who has been dormant for many years, relies on his influence to gain the support of the clan.

In this way, Zhao He and Zhao Zhang are at war with each other. At this time, King Zhao Wuling no longer regarded Zhao He as his son, but as his biggest opponent.

In 295 BC, King Wuling of Zhao asked Gongzi Zhang and Zhao He to accompany him in the name of choosing a cemetery in the sand dunes. Zhao He had no choice but to go with Feiyi.

After going to Dune,Zhao He lives in the first palace, and King Wuling of Zhao and his son Zhang live in the first palace. And the son Zhang decided to strike first, kill Zhao He, then control King Zhao Wuling, and then claim the king himself.

So the son-in-law Zhang invited Zhao He to the main father's palace to discuss matters in the name of King Zhao Wuling. Zhao He and Feiyi felt bad. After the discussion, Feiyi decided to go by himself.

Young Master Zhang and Tian Buli can't move in the name of the master, knowing that Zhao He has made preparations. So Gongzi Zhang and Tian Buli decided to kill Feiyi first, and then send envoys to transfer Zhao He. If he didn't come, they would attack immediately.

Zhao He is not stupid. He saw that Feiyi didn't come back, and the messenger came again. He knew that something was wrong. After pressing the messenger, he knew that Feiyi was killed. Zhao He decided to use the fast to control the slow, making a time difference.

He immediately led his army to surround the main father's palace, and fought fiercely with his son Zhang Hetian Buli.

Zhao He's strength was dominant, and he quickly took control of the situation, Gongzi Zhang and Tian Buli were defeated, Tian Buli fled Song Kingdom , Gongzi Zhang was defeated and retreated to the main father's palace.

Young Master Cheng and his subordinates surrounded this place, but after all, he was the Supreme Emperor, and his subordinates dared not do anything. If they wanted to ask Zhao He for instructions, it was Young Master Cheng who decided to break into the main father's palace and kill Young Master Zhang and his henchmen. King Zhao Wuling had no choice but to do it. Looking at it.

Then Gongzicheng kicked everyone around King Zhao Wuling out, leaving King Zhao Wuling alone in the palace. At the same time, Gongzicheng and others just surrounded and did not fight, because no one dared to take the charge of assassinating the master's father.

Poor King Zhao Wuling can only stay in the inner palace, there is no food in the inner palace, some of the daily melon and fruit snacks are eaten up within a few days.

In this way, three months later, King Wuling of Zhao was starved to death at the age of 45, and he also declared the failure of the dualistic monarchy.

Young Master Cheng is sure he is dead,Just opened the inner palace, and Zhao He cried like a cat and a mouse. It was three months. How could Zhao He not know, just pretending to be confused.

After the funeral, Zhao He appointed his son to be the prime minister, and the Zhao kingdom entered a new era.

Summary

Although King Wuling of Zhao ended his life with such a tragic experience, under the political background that the Central Plains Dynasty regarded ethnic minorities as "abnormal", he dared to be the first in the world and defied all opinions. Breaking through the obstruction of the conservative forces, resolutely learning from the barbarians, showing the courage and courage as a reformer, from this point of view, King Wuling of Zhao is indeed an outstanding historical figure worthy of the memory of future generations.

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