Zhao Kuangyin
In our understanding, I am afraid that no founding emperor can gain the country as easily as Zhao Kuangyin. During the Spring Festival of the seventh year of the Democratic Republic of , an urgent document from the border broke the festive atmosphere of the king and his ministers congratulating the New Year together. What came from the 800-li expedition was the news that Beihan and Khitan joined forces to lead the army south. As soon as this news came out, the government and the public were shocked, and the two prime ministers hurriedly sent Zhao Kuangyin to lead his army to the expedition. The next day, the vanguard troops set out, and before Zhao Kuangyin could leave Beijing, the rumor of "inspection as the emperor" had already spread. On the third day, when Zhao Kuangyin set out, a strange phenomenon came from the sky, and the wonder of fighting each other for two days appeared. On the fourth day, Zhao Kuangyin was put on the yellow robe by his generals and was forced to ascend the throne to the new emperor. However, the fact is not so accidental. If you study history books, you will find that this is a big drama planned by Zhao Kuangyin. Because as early as 10 years ago, he witnessed the yellow robe in his own eyes - Guo Wei established the Hou Zhou.
yellow robe
1. Rebellion suspicion
The founding emperor of the Later Han conquered the country and died before he could sit firmly. His son Liu Chengyou ascended the throne and became emperor. As soon as the Emperor died, the three towns broke out. In the court, the ministers were angry. However, the newly appointed emperor yawned repeatedly, and the ministers couldn't help but wonder, could it be that the newly appointed emperor was a fool? In fact, this is not the case. The newly ascended emperor had his own plans in his heart. But why didn't the emperor say it out and discuss it with the ministers? It turned out that it was because the late emperor selected five ministers to entrust his son when he was dying. The old emperor believed that with these five old ministers assisting his son, his country would be able to spread to all ages. However, things went against his wishes. In Liu Chengyou's view, these five old ministers controlled the government and left him without real power. Liu Chengyou did not appoint Guo Wei, one of the orphan ministers, to quell the rebellion, but instead asked him to go home to recuperate. Liu Chengyou thought he had planned well, but because the sent people were inexperienced, he did not quell the rebellion.
Liu Chengyou in "Legend of the Song Dynasty: Zhao Kuangyin"
had no choice but to ask Guo Wei to lead his troops to the war. Guo Wei's sword was not old and returned in triumph. Because Guo Wei chewed this hard bone, people loved him very much. This made Liu Chengyou feel dissatisfied and took Guo Wei's military power. This time he was even more cruel. He did not let Guo Wei go back to his hometown, but asked him to guard the border. Several other ministers who were still in Beijing did not escape Liu Chengyou's claws and were all killed on charges of treason. Liu Chengyou was worried that Guo Wei, who was far away, slaughtered his family. This forced Guo Wei to embark on a path that cannot be turned back - rebellion. Liu Chengyou sent Jiedushi Murong Yanchao to fight. But where is Murong Yanchao Guo Wei’s opponent? Guo Wei solved Murong Yanchao in lightning, broke through Kaifeng City , and took Liu Chengyou's head. At this time, according to the normal routine, Guo Wei should ascend the throne and become king.
"Legend of the Song Dynasty: Zhao Kuangyin" Liu Chengyou sent troops to execute Guo Wei's family
However, an incredible scene happened. Guo Wei entered the palace to pay tribute to the Empress Dowager, saying that this was still the country of the Han Dynasty and asked the Empress Dowager to choose a wise monarch to ascend the throne. Guo Wei's series of operations shocked the soldiers who followed Guo Wei's rebellion. Subsequently, Guo Wei ordered the army to return to its original place to attack , Xiongnu . On the way back, the soldiers felt more and more unable to get over it. We have all rebelled and killed the emperor. Why don’t we establish the new dynasty of by ourselves? Besides, how could the Liu Han regime let us go? So, the soldiers decided to force Guo Wei to ascend the throne. The first emperor in history to be "in yellow robe" was born like this. He is Guo Wei, the founding emperor of the Later Zhou Dynasty.
The Empress Dowager in "Legend of the Song Dynasty: Zhao Kuangyin"
2. Breaking the clouds and seeing the sun
Seeing this, we seem to have not figured out what Guo Wei is planning to do? Don't worry, let's fall back little by little. Let’s go back to the moment when Guo Wei killed Liu Chengyou. At this time, if Guo Wei ascended the throne and became emperor, it would be 100%. But Guo Wei's vision is longer-term.He was far-sighted and considered what happened after he ascended the throne. He clearly realized that most of the success he had made was worthy of his soldiers. If he is the emperor, then the soldiers who helped him ascend to the throne will inevitably become arrogant and put a lot of pressure on themselves. Guo Wei and the soldiers had a psychological battle. Obviously, the soldiers were not as scheming as Guo Wei, and were disguised as Guo Wei. When the soldiers forced Guo Wei to become emperor, their psychology had completely changed. They no longer serve Guo Wei for their own benefit, and Guo Wei is no longer threatened by them.
"Legend of the Song Dynasty: Zhao Kuangyin" Guo Wei's soldiers
Guo Wei is good at psychological warfare, which is not only reflected in this. In the war of pacifying the three towns, he fully utilized this advantage. Since Liu Chengyou sent people to attack the city before, the soldiers guarding the city Li Shouzhen repeatedly improved the city ward facilities and fought to the death, and persisted for a full 4 months. After Guo Wei arrived, he conducted a survey here and decided to build a village around him and play the necessary tactics for siege. The so-called siege of the city means not sieging the enemy to death and leaving him with some hope. It is this little bit of hope that I don’t know how many soldiers were killed. Li Shouzhen is definitely not an ordinary person, and he did not grasp this point and hope to break through. His response was to take the initiative to destroy the Dazhai. This move angered the soldiers of the Later Han Dynasty. They couldn't wait to attack the city and kill Li Shouzhen, so that they could relieve their hatred. Guo Wei ordered the soldiers to build a village again. Although the soldiers were reluctant, the military orders were difficult to violate and had to rebuild the village. Guo Wei and Li Shouzhen seemed to be deliberately trying to get along with each other. Both of them didn't bother with it. One could tear down and the other could build it. It was a stalemate for a whole year.
"Legend of the Song Dynasty: Zhao Kuangyin" Build Dazhai
Finally, Guo Wei finally issued an order to attack and won the war. In this struggle that lasted for a year, both sides tortured each other, but the results were very different. Why is this? Only by seeing this through can you truly understand Guo Wei’s tactics. Guo Wei's soldiers have been building the big village. Although they are tired, they will not suffer any casualties. Li Shouzhen repeatedly led his troops to demolish the village, and many soldiers died at the hands of the Han soldiers. This is true for a battle, not to mention that the two sides have been in a stalemate for a year, and the gap in strength widened. Li Shouzhen ended up in an irreversible situation. However, Guo Wei created a new dynasty and created a legend that belonged to him.
"Legend of the Song Dynasty: Zhao Kuangyin" Guo Wei ascended the throne
Wenshijun said
Guo Wei killed the emperor Liu Chengyou, but he did not establish himself as king, but led the crowd away. I believe most people will be very puzzled by Guo Wei’s decision, but this is the key to Guo Wei’s final victory. It is this decision that highlights Guo Wei's extraordinary leadership ability. Guo Wei's victory demonstrates that the initiative from bottom to top is far better than the strong suppression from top to bottom.
References
(Yuan) Tuotuo "History of the Song Dynasty", Zhonghua Book Company, 1985.
(Song Dynasty) Ouyang Xiu's "New History of the Five Dynasties", Zhonghua Book Company, 2016.
(Author: Haoran Literature and History·Henan Normal University Spring and Autumn Society)
This article is an original work of Haoran Literature and History popularization self-media. Reproduction is prohibited without authorization!
The pictures used in this article are all from the Internet search unless otherwise specified. If there is any infringement, please contact the author to delete it. Thank you!
Haoran Literature and History is a popular media for the whole doctoral team of literature and history, and a high-quality author of literature and history on the mainstream platform of the entire network. makes professional history more interesting and interesting content more in-depth. Ancient and modern times,Archaeology and literature,For more content, please follow our public account with the same name (id: haoranwenshi)
