Everyone knows the allusion of "The king and the horse share the world": Wang Dao led the Jin Dynasty's southern crossing, persuaded Sima Rui to move the capital to build Ye, and established the Eastern Jin Dynasty, which made great achievements. When Sima Rui first came to the throne, he took Wang Dao to sit on the throne to be congratulated, so people at that time had the saying "the king and the horse share the world".
And the king is still in front of the horse, which shows the status of Langya Wang family in the early Jin Dynasty.
Wang Dun's Rebellion Process
At that time, Wang Dao and Wang Dun's cousins were in charge of the government at home, and the other held military power outside. Wang Dao served as Sikong, Lu Shangshu, and led the Central Secretary; Wang Dun served as the general, Jiangzhou pastor, and controlled the middle and upper reaches of the Yangtze River army, and the prefectures and counties under his jurisdiction all collected tribute from themselves, just like the princes who obeyed the instructions but not the propaganda. Moreover, three-quarters of the officials in the government and the public at that time were members of the Wang family or people related to the Wang family. At this time, the Wang family was extremely prosperous.
However, a family with too much power is always something the emperor does not want to see, even if the family has served as a prime minister. Therefore, Emperor Yuan of Jin soon after he came to the throne, he began to reuse the old people of Qiandi to divide the power of the Wang family. Among them, the most famous ones are Shangshuling Diao Xie , Shizhong Liu Wei, and Zhonghujun Dai Yuan.
Diao Xie, a native of Rao'an, Bohai, served as the Grand Central Magistrate of Bohai County. He also served under King Sima Ying of Chengdu, King Sima Lun of King Zhao, and Sima Yi, King of Changsha. Because he was familiar with the court system, he entered the shogunate of King Langxie after crossing the river. At the beginning of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, all ministers were unfamiliar with all kinds of etiquette, so Diao Xie gave full play to his talents and was reused by Emperor Jin Yuan.
Liu Wei, Pengcheng, was good at literature and history. He had done the internal history of Pengcheng, and also entered the shogunate of King Langxie after crossing the river. When Sima Rui was Prime Minister, he served as Prime Minister Si Xian and was known for his strict law enforcement.
Dai Yuan, courtesy name Ruosi, was born in Guangling County and was the son of Dai Chang, the prefect of Kuaiji. In the early years of Yongjia, he surrendered to Sima Rui and served as the right Sima and former general of King Langxie's shogunate. He was highly trusted by Sima Rui.
After Sima Rui became emperor, the three people were placed in important positions, and they maintained imperial power everywhere to suppress the Wang family and other wealthy families. Director Wang was also a little dissatisfied with this, but didn't say anything. But Wang Dun was different. He had a fiery temper. Therefore, in 320, Wang Dun wrote to Sima Rui from Jingzhou .
Shu Zhongyun said: "In the past, I received the honorary order and said: 'I, Qing and Maohong (Wang Daozi) should be in charge of Bao's friends.' I have been appointed to foreign affairs for ten years, and my teachings and guidance have been paid day by day. Forget it; as for this fate, it is engraved in the heart, and it is still cherished, saying that the previous kindness cannot be used up in one day. "
This is blaming Sima Rui for breaking his promise. How can Wang's kindness to Sima be "done in one day"?
Shu Zhong also said: "Praise from popular customs will inevitably lead to slander. It is better to record the ministers, staff and governors. Moreover, the king's assistant should be a person with great vision, high integrity and judgment, and good morals. The ministers know their talents secretly. However, when meeting people, they are not more than guides. With years of support, they can You must do your best. Why don't you, the overlord, appoint talents and support each other?"
Wang Dun first complained that loyal ministers in ancient and modern times were always suspected by monarchs, and villains like flies were in the middle to stir up trouble. He also said that Director Wang has the talent of a king, how can you, Sima Rui, not use it? And hope he can always trust Director Wang.
Regarding Wang Dun's petition, Director Wang felt that it was too straightforward, so he sealed the memorial back to Wang Dun. However, Wang Dun insisted on his own way and directly sent someone to submit the memorial to Emperor Yuan.
After seeing the memorial, Sima Rui showed it to King Qiao Sima Cheng and said, "Wang Dun has spoken to such an extent, how can we do it?" Sima Cheng was a generation older than Sima Rui. He was a loyal man and had always been trusted by Emperor Yuan. Sima Cheng said: "If we don't deal with it early, there will be trouble later."
So Sima Rui rejected Wang Dun's suggestion to recommend his confidant Shen Chong to be the governor of Xiangzhou and sent Sima Cheng to Xiangzhou as the governor. Before leaving, Sima Rui warned his uncle to "take advantage of the upper class" to guard against Wang Dun. Wang Dun also understood Sima Rui's intentions very well, but he knew that Sima Cheng was not a talented general, so he didn't take him to heart at all.
321, Sima Rui appointed Dai Yuan as the governor of Sizhou, the town of Hefei, and Liu Wei as the governor of Qingzhou, town of Huaiyin. On the surface, this was to strengthen the northern border defense to prevent Zhao Shile from going south, but in fact it was aimed at Wang Dun. Two months before appointing the two men, Sima Rui also adopted Diao Xie's suggestion and issued an edict to exempt the people who moved south from the Central Plains from the status of child guests, and then assigned them to serve in the army under Liu Wei. "Now they will be divided and all will serve as Wei's army." Although Sima Rui's move enriched the central military power of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, it greatly harmed the interests of the aristocratic families and was resented by them.
Subsequently, Sima Rui appointed Zhou Zha to guard Stone City and Liu Wei to guard Jincheng in the middle of the river. In addition, he ordered the Liangzhou governor Gan Zhuo to supervise the military affairs of Jing and Liangzhou, and Tao Kan to lead the Jiangzhou governor to attack Wang Dun's rear.
However, water from afar could not quench the thirst of the nearer. Tao Kan was far away in Guangzhou and could not rush to help; Gan Zhuo was hesitant and missed the opportunity. In the situation at that time, it was very difficult and too late for Sima Rui's military order to reach Gan Zhuo at the rear of Wang Dun's army. But if Gan Zhuo can lead his troops from Xiangyang down the Han River and march eastward to Wuchang, he can put down Wang Dun's rebellion in a short time.
Wang Dun also understood this, so he contacted Gan Zhuo in advance and waited until he agreed to cooperate before launching an army. But when he was ready to send troops to Jiankang, Gan Zhuo didn't come, so he sent people to urge him, but Gan Zhuo sent people to persuade him not to send troops. This really surprised Wang Dun. He quickly sent an envoy to make a wish to Gan Zhuo, but Gan Zhuo still did not take any action.
In addition, behind Wang Dun was Sima Cheng, the king of Xiangzhou Qiao. Although Wang Dun is not afraid of him, he also hopes to win him over. He sent an envoy to Xiangzhou and asked Sima Cheng to be his military commander. Sima Cheng not only imprisoned the envoy, but also launched an army to attack Wang Dun. However, Xiangzhou in the Eastern Jin Dynasty was not comparable to Hunan in modern times. It had a sparse population and few soldiers. Sima Cheng could only do it knowing that it was impossible to do. He had high hopes that Gan Zhuo could raise an army to "King Qin", so he sent his most capable subordinate, the chief secretary Deng Qian, to Xiangyang to persuade Gan Zhuo.
When Deng Qian saw that Gan Zhuo was exhausted, he not only said that suppressing the rebellion would be a great achievement for Qi Heng and Jin Wen; but also said that if Wang Dun succeeded or failed, Gan Zhuo would have no place to stand if Wang Dun succeeded and returned to the west.
What Deng Qian said was extremely reasonable, but Gan Zhuo was still hesitant. Unexpectedly, Wang Dun sent another lobbyist to help. It turned out that Wang Dun was afraid that Gan Zhuo would attack behind him, so he sent Le Daorong, a member of the army, to invite Gan Zhuo to go eastward with him. Unexpectedly, Le Daorong was an "undercover agent". He strongly disapproved of Wang Dun's rebellion, so when he met Gan Zhuo, he persuaded him to attack Wuchang.
Le Daorong and Deng Qian were singing the same tune, and Gan Zhuo was finally convinced. He issued a proclamation, denounced Wang Dun, and sent an envoy to Guangzhou to invite Tao Kan to join the army. At that time, Wang Dun had not yet arrived in Jiankang. In Wuchang City, there were rumors that Gan Zhuo's troops had arrived, which really caused panic for a while.
Wang Dun was horrified when he heard that Gan Zhuo had raised his troops. He sent Gan Yin, a member of the army, back to see his uncle, and told Wang Dun: "What you are doing is a matter of loyalty, and I don't blame you. I did it because the Wang family was in a critical situation, and I had no choice but to do it. Now I invite you to leave the army, and we will make good friends again in the future."
Wang Dun's words were empty, but Gan Zhuo was moved after hearing this, so that when the troops reached the pig's mouth, they stopped advancing.
Gan Zhuo was waiting and watching, while Wang Dun stepped up his actions. He adopted the suggestion of his general Du Hong and first attacked Stone City, an important military town west of Jiankang. Du Hong understood that Zhou Zha was a mean and ungrateful man and his soldiers were unwilling to be used by him, so no matter how dangerous and fortified Stone City was, it was the best place to attack.Sure enough, when Du Hong's troops arrived, Zhou Zha was unable to resist and had to surrender. Sima Rui ordered Diao Xie, Liu Wei, and Dai Yuan to counterattack and try to recapture Stone City, but they were all defeated.
Diao Xie and Liu Wei came to see Sima Rui in a state of embarrassment. Sima Rui cried bitterly and ordered the two of them to escape quickly. Diao Xie was old and could not ride a horse. He fled to the river and was killed. Liu Wei fled to Hou Zhao and finally reached the high position of Taifu.
At this point, the "treacherous minister" mentioned in Wang Dunxi's article died and fled. He no longer had an excuse to rebel, but he still supported his troops in Stone City. Not only did he not go to Jiankang to meet Sima Rui, but he allowed his soldiers to plunder, and Jiankang was in chaos. At this time, all the officials and guards fled, leaving only Anton general Liu Chao and two attendants. Sima Rui said angrily: "If you want my position, you should have agreed earlier, why bother harming the people!" He sent someone to send a message to Wang Dun: "If you don't forget this dynasty and stop the army, the world can still be maintained. If not, I will return to Langye's old residence to avoid the evil way!" He was ready to be deposed.
However, Wang Dun was not in a hurry to depose Emperor Yuan, but rushed to eliminate dissidents and let Sima Rui be a puppet in name only.
Wang Dun first killed Zhou Wei and Dai Yuan, who had always opposed him. Dai Yuan was Sima Rui's confidant and one of the generals who led the troops to guard against Wang Dun. Of course, he could not escape death. However, Zhou Wei was different from Dai Yuan. Although he often criticized Wang Dun and Director Wang, he only said words and did not take any practical actions. Moreover, he once saved the Wang family.
When Wang Dun first started his army, the Wang family was in a difficult situation in Jiankang City. Director Wang would take more than 20 people from the clan to the palace gate every morning to plead guilty and wait for punishment. At that time, Diao Xie and Liu Wei both advised Sima Rui to execute the entire Wang family. Although Sima Rui did not approve it, he was still hesitant about how to treat the Wang family. The person who played a decisive role in this issue was Zuopushe Zhou Wei, the minister at that time.
When Zhou Yi entered the palace to see Sima Rui, Director Wang saw him and called him: " Boren (Zhou Yi's character), the lives of my whole family will be entrusted to you!" But Zhou Yi entered the palace without looking back. Director Wang thought he had no intention of rescuing him and was very dissatisfied. But when he met Emperor Yuan, he said that Wang Dao was loyal and could not punish him. Emperor Yuan was reassured by him, so he summoned Wang Dao into the palace and expressed his complete trust in him. Only then did the Wang family avoid the fate of being exterminated.
However, Director Wang did not know all this, so when Wang Dun executed Zhou Wei, Director Wang did not say a word to plead for mercy. Later, when Director Wang saw the relevant documents, he felt regretful and said in tears: "Although I did not kill Boren, Boren died because of me!"
After Wang Dun killed the two men, he began to deal with Gan Zhuo and Sima Cheng. He first ordered Gan Zhuo to return to Xiangyang in the name of the court. At that time, Le Daorong persuaded Gan Zhuo to march into the army Pengze , but Gan Zhuo refused to listen and said hypocritically: "Since the emperor and the prince are safe and sound, I can stop." Then he ordered to return to Xiangyang. However, not long after he returned to Xiangyang, Wang Dun assigned Xiangyang Governor Zhou Lu to lead troops to attack and kill him. Xiangzhou, which Sima Cheng was guarding, also fell after nearly a hundred days of defense. Sima Cheng was secretly killed by Wang Dun's men on the way to Jiankang.
Later, Wang Dun abolished the post of Situ, incorporated his subordinate officials into his prime minister's palace, and made himself the governor of Ning and Yizhou. Sima Rui became ill with hatred and died in 322. Prince Sima Shao ascended the throne and became Emperor Ming. Wang Dun was stationed in Wuchang and controlled the government from a distance, while Jiankang was governed by Wang Dao.
html In 0323, Wang Dun felt that the time was ripe, so he prepared to usurp the throne. He first hinted that the imperial court summoned him to the court, and gave him a fake yellow ax and other special gifts such as "to do things without name, to enter the court without trends, and to cover the palace with swords" and other special gifts. Then he moved his master Gushu to Yuhu and forced Jiankang with troops.
However, at this critical moment, Wang Dun fell ill, and was seriously ill. He knew that he didn't have much time left, so he wanted to rein in the situation. In May 324, Wang Dun was seriously ill and joined the army. Qian Feng asked him what he would do next. Wang Dun said: "Ordinary people cannot do extraordinary things. Ying'er (Wang Dun has no children, and his adopted brother Wang Han's son Wang Ying is his heir) is young and cannot bear the big responsibility.After my death, the best strategy is to disperse the troops and surrender to the imperial court; the middle strategy is to retreat to Wuchang and defend with troops; the worst strategy is to advance to Jiankang while I am still alive, just for the sake of luck. Qian Feng was originally from the main war faction, so he said to his comrades: "The father's worst policy is the best policy." "Decided to march dangerously for luck.
Emperor Ming of Jin also knew that Wang Dun was ill, so he planned to attack Wang Dun. He asked Guanglu Xun and Ying Zhan for his opinion. Ying Zhan agreed that it was feasible. Sima Shao then made up his mind to appoint Wang Dao as the governor, Wen Qiao, Xi Jian, Ying Zhan, Yu Liang and others as generals, and transferred Su Junh to lead the troops in the north. tml2, Zu Yue, Liu Xia and others went south to defend the capital.
Director Wang even took advantage of the news that Wang Dun was seriously ill, falsely claiming that Wang Dun was dead and leading his children to mourn. People believed it and their fear was gone. The imperial court also issued an edict condemning Wang Dun and calling on his troops to surrender without any further investigation.
Wang Dun is ill When he saw the edict in bed, he became furious and wanted to personally lead the troops to attack Jiankang. However, he had no choice but to make his brother Wang Han the marshal and march with Qian Feng and others to Jiankang. In early July, the troops arrived at the south bank of the Qin Zhun River in Jiankang. Wen Qiao's troops were weak because the foreign troops he had recruited had not arrived, so he burned the bridge and maintained a stalemate with the enemy across the water.
Both sides are waiting for reinforcements. Shen Chong first led more than 10,000 people to join Wang Han and Qian Feng. From the imperial court, the Northern Army of Liu Xia and Su Jun also arrived subsequently. Soon Qian Feng and Shen Chong The initiative to attack the Northern Army failed. At that time, Wang Dun had been dead for many days, but the army did not know it. Later, when the incident was leaked, morale was greatly affected. In late July, Wang Han could no longer support his troops, so he burned the camp and retreated.
In the end, Wang Han and Wang Ying fled to Jingzhou and were killed. Qian Feng was killed by Zhou Guang, the governor of Jiangzhou; Shen Chong fled to the home of his old general Wu Ru and was also killed by Wu Ru. At this point, the Wangdun Rebellion came to an end.
However, many questions caused by Wang Dun's rebellion But it has always troubled many history enthusiasts. For example, why did Director Wang not side with his brother Wang Dun? If Director Wang joins Wang Dun's camp, can the Wang family usurp the Jin Dynasty and become independent?
Reasons why Director Wang did not side with Wang Dun
The editor believes that there are three reasons why Director Wang did not join Wang Dun’s camp:
1. Director Wang and Sima Rui have a very good personal relationship.
When Sima Rui was King of Langya , Director Wang had been following him. After Yiguan's journey south, the Eastern Jin Dynasty was established with his support. Their relationship was not only that of a monarch but also a close friend. Sima Rui completely trusted Director Wang, comparing him to his " Xiao He " and calling him "Father Zhong". Director Wang also expressed his sincerity to Sima Rui. According to historical records, the two often talked late into the night during the founding of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, and Director Wang often stayed with Sima Rui without hesitation. Stay in the palace.
Wang Dun rebelled against Sima Rui and did not touch Director Wang. It was not just Zhou Wei who said something fair, but also had a lot to do with the personal relationship between the two.
Not all historical events are cold, rational and objective analysis. The protagonists of the events are all living people, with emotions, tempers and shortcomings. The pair of monarchs and ministers, Director Wang and Sima Rui, are one of the anomalies.
2. Most of the Wang family are against Wang Dun
Let’s talk about Director Wang first. In fact, Director Wang has also gone through repeated changes in his heart.
At the beginning, when Wang Dun raised troops under the pretext of pleading grievances for Wang Dao and attacking traitors, Wang Dao was silent and even happy to see the outcome. This can be seen from his letter to Wang Han, "In the past, the sycophants caused chaos in the dynasty, and people were restless, just like the disciples of the leader, their thoughts were external. "
However, Director Wang did not want Wang Dun to stand on his own behalf on behalf of the Jin Dynasty. Especially his plunder in Stone City made Director Wang realize that Wang Dun was not a "wise king" at all. "The general came to station in the lake and gradually lost the support of the people. The gentleman was in danger and the people were suffering from fatigue. "
Therefore, when his best friend Sima Rui died out of anger, he firmly stood on the opposite side of Wang Dun. Of course, Director Wang also had selfish motives. He did not want Sima Rui to He did not want Wang Dun's side to be completely destroyed. When Wang Dun was seriously ill, he wrote a letter to Wang Han, analyzing the situation and urging him to withdraw from Wuchang. If he persisted, he would kill his relatives out of justice, and then cleverly leaked the military information of Jiankang to Wang Han.
Everyone knows the allusion of "The king and the horse share the world": Wang Dao led the Jin Dynasty's southern crossing, persuaded Sima Rui to move the capital to build Ye, and established the Eastern Jin Dynasty, which made great achievements. When Sima Rui first came to the throne, he took Wang Dao to sit on the throne to be congratulated, so people at that time had the saying "the king and the horse share the world".
And the king is still in front of the horse, which shows the status of Langya Wang family in the early Jin Dynasty.
Wang Dun's Rebellion Process
At that time, Wang Dao and Wang Dun's cousins were in charge of the government at home, and the other held military power outside. Wang Dao served as Sikong, Lu Shangshu, and led the Central Secretary; Wang Dun served as the general, Jiangzhou pastor, and controlled the middle and upper reaches of the Yangtze River army, and the prefectures and counties under his jurisdiction all collected tribute from themselves, just like the princes who obeyed the instructions but not the propaganda. Moreover, three-quarters of the officials in the government and the public at that time were members of the Wang family or people related to the Wang family. At this time, the Wang family was extremely prosperous.
However, a family with too much power is always something the emperor does not want to see, even if the family has served as a prime minister. Therefore, Emperor Yuan of Jin soon after he came to the throne, he began to reuse the old people of Qiandi to divide the power of the Wang family. Among them, the most famous ones are Shangshuling Diao Xie , Shizhong Liu Wei, and Zhonghujun Dai Yuan.
Diao Xie, a native of Rao'an, Bohai, served as the Grand Central Magistrate of Bohai County. He also served under King Sima Ying of Chengdu, King Sima Lun of King Zhao, and Sima Yi, King of Changsha. Because he was familiar with the court system, he entered the shogunate of King Langxie after crossing the river. At the beginning of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, all ministers were unfamiliar with all kinds of etiquette, so Diao Xie gave full play to his talents and was reused by Emperor Jin Yuan.
Liu Wei, Pengcheng, was good at literature and history. He had done the internal history of Pengcheng, and also entered the shogunate of King Langxie after crossing the river. When Sima Rui was Prime Minister, he served as Prime Minister Si Xian and was known for his strict law enforcement.
Dai Yuan, courtesy name Ruosi, was born in Guangling County and was the son of Dai Chang, the prefect of Kuaiji. In the early years of Yongjia, he surrendered to Sima Rui and served as the right Sima and former general of King Langxie's shogunate. He was highly trusted by Sima Rui.
After Sima Rui became emperor, the three people were placed in important positions, and they maintained imperial power everywhere to suppress the Wang family and other wealthy families. Director Wang was also a little dissatisfied with this, but didn't say anything. But Wang Dun was different. He had a fiery temper. Therefore, in 320, Wang Dun wrote to Sima Rui from Jingzhou .
Shu Zhongyun said: "In the past, I received the honorary order and said: 'I, Qing and Maohong (Wang Daozi) should be in charge of Bao's friends.' I have been appointed to foreign affairs for ten years, and my teachings and guidance have been paid day by day. Forget it; as for this fate, it is engraved in the heart, and it is still cherished, saying that the previous kindness cannot be used up in one day. "
This is blaming Sima Rui for breaking his promise. How can Wang's kindness to Sima be "done in one day"?
Shu Zhong also said: "Praise from popular customs will inevitably lead to slander. It is better to record the ministers, staff and governors. Moreover, the king's assistant should be a person with great vision, high integrity and judgment, and good morals. The ministers know their talents secretly. However, when meeting people, they are not more than guides. With years of support, they can You must do your best. Why don't you, the overlord, appoint talents and support each other?"
Wang Dun first complained that loyal ministers in ancient and modern times were always suspected by monarchs, and villains like flies were in the middle to stir up trouble. He also said that Director Wang has the talent of a king, how can you, Sima Rui, not use it? And hope he can always trust Director Wang.
Regarding Wang Dun's petition, Director Wang felt that it was too straightforward, so he sealed the memorial back to Wang Dun. However, Wang Dun insisted on his own way and directly sent someone to submit the memorial to Emperor Yuan.
After seeing the memorial, Sima Rui showed it to King Qiao Sima Cheng and said, "Wang Dun has spoken to such an extent, how can we do it?" Sima Cheng was a generation older than Sima Rui. He was a loyal man and had always been trusted by Emperor Yuan. Sima Cheng said: "If we don't deal with it early, there will be trouble later."
So Sima Rui rejected Wang Dun's suggestion to recommend his confidant Shen Chong to be the governor of Xiangzhou and sent Sima Cheng to Xiangzhou as the governor. Before leaving, Sima Rui warned his uncle to "take advantage of the upper class" to guard against Wang Dun. Wang Dun also understood Sima Rui's intentions very well, but he knew that Sima Cheng was not a talented general, so he didn't take him to heart at all.
321, Sima Rui appointed Dai Yuan as the governor of Sizhou, the town of Hefei, and Liu Wei as the governor of Qingzhou, town of Huaiyin. On the surface, this was to strengthen the northern border defense to prevent Zhao Shile from going south, but in fact it was aimed at Wang Dun. Two months before appointing the two men, Sima Rui also adopted Diao Xie's suggestion and issued an edict to exempt the people who moved south from the Central Plains from the status of child guests, and then assigned them to serve in the army under Liu Wei. "Now they will be divided and all will serve as Wei's army." Although Sima Rui's move enriched the central military power of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, it greatly harmed the interests of the aristocratic families and was resented by them.
Subsequently, Sima Rui appointed Zhou Zha to guard Stone City and Liu Wei to guard Jincheng in the middle of the river. In addition, he ordered the Liangzhou governor Gan Zhuo to supervise the military affairs of Jing and Liangzhou, and Tao Kan to lead the Jiangzhou governor to attack Wang Dun's rear.
However, water from afar could not quench the thirst of the nearer. Tao Kan was far away in Guangzhou and could not rush to help; Gan Zhuo was hesitant and missed the opportunity. In the situation at that time, it was very difficult and too late for Sima Rui's military order to reach Gan Zhuo at the rear of Wang Dun's army. But if Gan Zhuo can lead his troops from Xiangyang down the Han River and march eastward to Wuchang, he can put down Wang Dun's rebellion in a short time.
Wang Dun also understood this, so he contacted Gan Zhuo in advance and waited until he agreed to cooperate before launching an army. But when he was ready to send troops to Jiankang, Gan Zhuo didn't come, so he sent people to urge him, but Gan Zhuo sent people to persuade him not to send troops. This really surprised Wang Dun. He quickly sent an envoy to make a wish to Gan Zhuo, but Gan Zhuo still did not take any action.
In addition, behind Wang Dun was Sima Cheng, the king of Xiangzhou Qiao. Although Wang Dun is not afraid of him, he also hopes to win him over. He sent an envoy to Xiangzhou and asked Sima Cheng to be his military commander. Sima Cheng not only imprisoned the envoy, but also launched an army to attack Wang Dun. However, Xiangzhou in the Eastern Jin Dynasty was not comparable to Hunan in modern times. It had a sparse population and few soldiers. Sima Cheng could only do it knowing that it was impossible to do. He had high hopes that Gan Zhuo could raise an army to "King Qin", so he sent his most capable subordinate, the chief secretary Deng Qian, to Xiangyang to persuade Gan Zhuo.
When Deng Qian saw that Gan Zhuo was exhausted, he not only said that suppressing the rebellion would be a great achievement for Qi Heng and Jin Wen; but also said that if Wang Dun succeeded or failed, Gan Zhuo would have no place to stand if Wang Dun succeeded and returned to the west.
What Deng Qian said was extremely reasonable, but Gan Zhuo was still hesitant. Unexpectedly, Wang Dun sent another lobbyist to help. It turned out that Wang Dun was afraid that Gan Zhuo would attack behind him, so he sent Le Daorong, a member of the army, to invite Gan Zhuo to go eastward with him. Unexpectedly, Le Daorong was an "undercover agent". He strongly disapproved of Wang Dun's rebellion, so when he met Gan Zhuo, he persuaded him to attack Wuchang.
Le Daorong and Deng Qian were singing the same tune, and Gan Zhuo was finally convinced. He issued a proclamation, denounced Wang Dun, and sent an envoy to Guangzhou to invite Tao Kan to join the army. At that time, Wang Dun had not yet arrived in Jiankang. In Wuchang City, there were rumors that Gan Zhuo's troops had arrived, which really caused panic for a while.
Wang Dun was horrified when he heard that Gan Zhuo had raised his troops. He sent Gan Yin, a member of the army, back to see his uncle, and told Wang Dun: "What you are doing is a matter of loyalty, and I don't blame you. I did it because the Wang family was in a critical situation, and I had no choice but to do it. Now I invite you to leave the army, and we will make good friends again in the future."
Wang Dun's words were empty, but Gan Zhuo was moved after hearing this, so that when the troops reached the pig's mouth, they stopped advancing.
Gan Zhuo was waiting and watching, while Wang Dun stepped up his actions. He adopted the suggestion of his general Du Hong and first attacked Stone City, an important military town west of Jiankang. Du Hong understood that Zhou Zha was a mean and ungrateful man and his soldiers were unwilling to be used by him, so no matter how dangerous and fortified Stone City was, it was the best place to attack.Sure enough, when Du Hong's troops arrived, Zhou Zha was unable to resist and had to surrender. Sima Rui ordered Diao Xie, Liu Wei, and Dai Yuan to counterattack and try to recapture Stone City, but they were all defeated.
Diao Xie and Liu Wei came to see Sima Rui in a state of embarrassment. Sima Rui cried bitterly and ordered the two of them to escape quickly. Diao Xie was old and could not ride a horse. He fled to the river and was killed. Liu Wei fled to Hou Zhao and finally reached the high position of Taifu.
At this point, the "treacherous minister" mentioned in Wang Dunxi's article died and fled. He no longer had an excuse to rebel, but he still supported his troops in Stone City. Not only did he not go to Jiankang to meet Sima Rui, but he allowed his soldiers to plunder, and Jiankang was in chaos. At this time, all the officials and guards fled, leaving only Anton general Liu Chao and two attendants. Sima Rui said angrily: "If you want my position, you should have agreed earlier, why bother harming the people!" He sent someone to send a message to Wang Dun: "If you don't forget this dynasty and stop the army, the world can still be maintained. If not, I will return to Langye's old residence to avoid the evil way!" He was ready to be deposed.
However, Wang Dun was not in a hurry to depose Emperor Yuan, but rushed to eliminate dissidents and let Sima Rui be a puppet in name only.
Wang Dun first killed Zhou Wei and Dai Yuan, who had always opposed him. Dai Yuan was Sima Rui's confidant and one of the generals who led the troops to guard against Wang Dun. Of course, he could not escape death. However, Zhou Wei was different from Dai Yuan. Although he often criticized Wang Dun and Director Wang, he only said words and did not take any practical actions. Moreover, he once saved the Wang family.
When Wang Dun first started his army, the Wang family was in a difficult situation in Jiankang City. Director Wang would take more than 20 people from the clan to the palace gate every morning to plead guilty and wait for punishment. At that time, Diao Xie and Liu Wei both advised Sima Rui to execute the entire Wang family. Although Sima Rui did not approve it, he was still hesitant about how to treat the Wang family. The person who played a decisive role in this issue was Zuopushe Zhou Wei, the minister at that time.
When Zhou Yi entered the palace to see Sima Rui, Director Wang saw him and called him: " Boren (Zhou Yi's character), the lives of my whole family will be entrusted to you!" But Zhou Yi entered the palace without looking back. Director Wang thought he had no intention of rescuing him and was very dissatisfied. But when he met Emperor Yuan, he said that Wang Dao was loyal and could not punish him. Emperor Yuan was reassured by him, so he summoned Wang Dao into the palace and expressed his complete trust in him. Only then did the Wang family avoid the fate of being exterminated.
However, Director Wang did not know all this, so when Wang Dun executed Zhou Wei, Director Wang did not say a word to plead for mercy. Later, when Director Wang saw the relevant documents, he felt regretful and said in tears: "Although I did not kill Boren, Boren died because of me!"
After Wang Dun killed the two men, he began to deal with Gan Zhuo and Sima Cheng. He first ordered Gan Zhuo to return to Xiangyang in the name of the court. At that time, Le Daorong persuaded Gan Zhuo to march into the army Pengze , but Gan Zhuo refused to listen and said hypocritically: "Since the emperor and the prince are safe and sound, I can stop." Then he ordered to return to Xiangyang. However, not long after he returned to Xiangyang, Wang Dun assigned Xiangyang Governor Zhou Lu to lead troops to attack and kill him. Xiangzhou, which Sima Cheng was guarding, also fell after nearly a hundred days of defense. Sima Cheng was secretly killed by Wang Dun's men on the way to Jiankang.
Later, Wang Dun abolished the post of Situ, incorporated his subordinate officials into his prime minister's palace, and made himself the governor of Ning and Yizhou. Sima Rui became ill with hatred and died in 322. Prince Sima Shao ascended the throne and became Emperor Ming. Wang Dun was stationed in Wuchang and controlled the government from a distance, while Jiankang was governed by Wang Dao.
html In 0323, Wang Dun felt that the time was ripe, so he prepared to usurp the throne. He first hinted that the imperial court summoned him to the court, and gave him a fake yellow ax and other special gifts such as "to do things without name, to enter the court without trends, and to cover the palace with swords" and other special gifts. Then he moved his master Gushu to Yuhu and forced Jiankang with troops.
However, at this critical moment, Wang Dun fell ill, and was seriously ill. He knew that he didn't have much time left, so he wanted to rein in the situation. In May 324, Wang Dun was seriously ill and joined the army. Qian Feng asked him what he would do next. Wang Dun said: "Ordinary people cannot do extraordinary things. Ying'er (Wang Dun has no children, and his adopted brother Wang Han's son Wang Ying is his heir) is young and cannot bear the big responsibility.After my death, the best strategy is to disperse the troops and surrender to the imperial court; the middle strategy is to retreat to Wuchang and defend with troops; the worst strategy is to advance to Jiankang while I am still alive, just for the sake of luck. Qian Feng was originally from the main war faction, so he said to his comrades: "The father's worst policy is the best policy." "Decided to march dangerously for luck.
Emperor Ming of Jin also knew that Wang Dun was ill, so he planned to attack Wang Dun. He asked Guanglu Xun and Ying Zhan for his opinion. Ying Zhan agreed that it was feasible. Sima Shao then made up his mind to appoint Wang Dao as the governor, Wen Qiao, Xi Jian, Ying Zhan, Yu Liang and others as generals, and transferred Su Junh to lead the troops in the north. tml2, Zu Yue, Liu Xia and others went south to defend the capital.
Director Wang even took advantage of the news that Wang Dun was seriously ill, falsely claiming that Wang Dun was dead and leading his children to mourn. People believed it and their fear was gone. The imperial court also issued an edict condemning Wang Dun and calling on his troops to surrender without any further investigation.
Wang Dun is ill When he saw the edict in bed, he became furious and wanted to personally lead the troops to attack Jiankang. However, he had no choice but to make his brother Wang Han the marshal and march with Qian Feng and others to Jiankang. In early July, the troops arrived at the south bank of the Qin Zhun River in Jiankang. Wen Qiao's troops were weak because the foreign troops he had recruited had not arrived, so he burned the bridge and maintained a stalemate with the enemy across the water.
Both sides are waiting for reinforcements. Shen Chong first led more than 10,000 people to join Wang Han and Qian Feng. From the imperial court, the Northern Army of Liu Xia and Su Jun also arrived subsequently. Soon Qian Feng and Shen Chong The initiative to attack the Northern Army failed. At that time, Wang Dun had been dead for many days, but the army did not know it. Later, when the incident was leaked, morale was greatly affected. In late July, Wang Han could no longer support his troops, so he burned the camp and retreated.
In the end, Wang Han and Wang Ying fled to Jingzhou and were killed. Qian Feng was killed by Zhou Guang, the governor of Jiangzhou; Shen Chong fled to the home of his old general Wu Ru and was also killed by Wu Ru. At this point, the Wangdun Rebellion came to an end.
However, many questions caused by Wang Dun's rebellion But it has always troubled many history enthusiasts. For example, why did Director Wang not side with his brother Wang Dun? If Director Wang joins Wang Dun's camp, can the Wang family usurp the Jin Dynasty and become independent?
Reasons why Director Wang did not side with Wang Dun
The editor believes that there are three reasons why Director Wang did not join Wang Dun’s camp:
1. Director Wang and Sima Rui have a very good personal relationship.
When Sima Rui was King of Langya , Director Wang had been following him. After Yiguan's journey south, the Eastern Jin Dynasty was established with his support. Their relationship was not only that of a monarch but also a close friend. Sima Rui completely trusted Director Wang, comparing him to his " Xiao He " and calling him "Father Zhong". Director Wang also expressed his sincerity to Sima Rui. According to historical records, the two often talked late into the night during the founding of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, and Director Wang often stayed with Sima Rui without hesitation. Stay in the palace.
Wang Dun rebelled against Sima Rui and did not touch Director Wang. It was not just Zhou Wei who said something fair, but also had a lot to do with the personal relationship between the two.
Not all historical events are cold, rational and objective analysis. The protagonists of the events are all living people, with emotions, tempers and shortcomings. The pair of monarchs and ministers, Director Wang and Sima Rui, are one of the anomalies.
2. Most of the Wang family are against Wang Dun
Let’s talk about Director Wang first. In fact, Director Wang has also gone through repeated changes in his heart.
At the beginning, when Wang Dun raised troops under the pretext of pleading grievances for Wang Dao and attacking traitors, Wang Dao was silent and even happy to see the outcome. This can be seen from his letter to Wang Han, "In the past, the sycophants caused chaos in the dynasty, and people were restless, just like the disciples of the leader, their thoughts were external. "
However, Director Wang did not want Wang Dun to stand on his own behalf on behalf of the Jin Dynasty. Especially his plunder in Stone City made Director Wang realize that Wang Dun was not a "wise king" at all. "The general came to station in the lake and gradually lost the support of the people. The gentleman was in danger and the people were suffering from fatigue. "
Therefore, when his best friend Sima Rui died out of anger, he firmly stood on the opposite side of Wang Dun. Of course, Director Wang also had selfish motives. He did not want Sima Rui to He did not want Wang Dun's side to be completely destroyed. When Wang Dun was seriously ill, he wrote a letter to Wang Han, analyzing the situation and urging him to withdraw from Wuchang. If he persisted, he would kill his relatives out of justice, and then cleverly leaked the military information of Jiankang to Wang Han.The letter wrote: "The six armies commanded by the director include 5,000 Shitou, 20,000 people in the palace and rear gardens, and 6,000 troops garrisoned in Jincheng. Liu Xuan has arrived, and 15,000 people have been sent to the north yesterday. With the power of the emperor, civil and military strength, how can we take it seriously! The matter can still be pursued, brother, I have already thought about it."
Wang Dao's selfishness is understandable. After all, once Wang Dun completely fails, he will have no troops to rely on in the court, and the Wang family will also be at risk of decline.
Therefore, Director Wang's heart must have gone through many iterations. At first, he acquiesced or even supported it. Later, as Wang Dun became arrogant and domineering, he began to oppose it, and finally became very contradictory. What he hoped most at that time was to maintain the status quo. Wang Dun controlled it from outside, and he stabilized the court from collapse internally.
In addition to Wang Dao, there are also Wang Bin, Wang Leng, Wang Shu, Wang Yun among the Wang family who all oppose Wang Dun.
When Wang Dun first captured Stone City, Wang Bin became the mediator between him and Sima Rui because of his loyalty. Wang Bin had always disliked Wang Dun. He had a good relationship with Zhou Yi. When Zhou Yi was killed, Wang Bin cried bitterly. Wang Dun's face darkened when he saw it. Unexpectedly, Wang Bin became even more angry and scolded Wang Dun directly: You are killing Zhongliang, and our family will be affected by you.
Wang Dun became angrier as he listened. Director Wang happened to be nearby and hurriedly advised Wang Bin to bow down and apologize to Wang Dun. Wang Bin said: Since I have foot pain, I don’t even bow to the emperor when I see him. Why would I still salute him? Wang Dun said: Is the pain in your feet as good as the pain in your neck?
Wang Bin didn't even step on him, he just shook his head and left, leaving you to kill and chop him into pieces.
Afterwards, seeing that Wang Dun was about to raise troops again, Wang Bin questioned him face to face. Wang Dun wanted to kill him, so he signaled with his eyes to catch him. Wang Bin looked troubled and said: You have killed Wang Leng, are you going to kill me now?
Wang Leng was also Wang Dun's cousin. He was secretly killed by Wang Dun because he prevented Wang Dun from rebelling. To deceive others, the assassin was made a scapegoat. Wang Dun didn't want to cause betrayal and separation, and Wang Bin had always been prestigious, so he spared his life without killing him.
Wang Shu and Wang Yunzhi are father and son. Wang Shu is Wang Dun's cousin. He expressed different opinions when Wang Dun launched his army and was alienated by Wang Dun. Wang Yunzhi is Wang Dun's beloved nephew. According to the " Book of Jin ", Wang Yunzhi once made great contributions to the Eastern Jin Dynasty. It was said that he was lying in bed one night and heard a private conversation between Wang Dun and his confidant Qian Feng. He pretended to be drunk and unconscious, vomiting until his face and clothes were a mess. After Qian Feng left, Wang Dun took a lamp to shine. Seeing his appearance, he thought he didn't hear anything. Unexpectedly, he returned to Jiankang and told his father Wang Shu everything. Wang Shu went to tell Emperor Ming again, so the Eastern Jin Dynasty court became very clear about Wang Dun's details, which played a key role in the subsequent suppression of the rebellion.
In addition, there are other Wang brothers such as Wang Li, Wang Fu and others who are against Wang Dun either openly or covertly. It can be said that except for Wang Han, the Wang family basically opposed Wang Dun.
In ancient times, the power of the clan was very strong. Even Wang Dun did not want to cause everyone to rebel and alienate. It was very natural for Director Wang to side with the majority of the clan.
3. The situation in the Eastern Jin Dynasty made it difficult for Wang Dun to succeed.
The Eastern Jin Dynasty at that time was a situation in which aristocratic families were restraining each other. Although the Wang family was the first group of people to go south with the emperor and gained full trust from the Eastern Jin royal family and grew rapidly, the local aristocratic families in the south were more prestigious among the people, such as the Xie family of the "Old Time Wang Xie " at that time.
Therefore, the foundation of the Wang family in the Eastern Jin Dynasty was not very stable, let alone to the point of becoming a dominant family.
Moreover, although Wang Dun's attack on Jiankang seemed to be overwhelming and very easy, he took advantage of the fact that he controlled Jiangzhou, an important town in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River. In addition, there is another rising force-, Huan Wen, and , which is even more difficult to deal with.
Director Wang is undoubtedly a very wise man, and he should see this relatively clearly, so Wang Dunqing can be on his side, but if he wants to usurp the Jin Dynasty and become independent, the chance is very small.This should be one of the reasons why Wang Dun firmly opposed Wang Dun.
Moreover, even if Director Wang joins, it will not actually help Wang Dun. After all, Director Wang has the ability to govern but not the ability to command troops. Moreover, Director Wang does not command troops. Even if he becomes the marshal of the army in the later period, he has no direct lineage. Once he rebels against the Jin Dynasty, he, the marshal, will be just a polished commander.
This should be one of the reasons why Wang Dun firmly opposed Wang Dun.Moreover, even if Director Wang joins, it will not actually help Wang Dun. After all, Director Wang has the ability to govern but not the ability to command troops. Moreover, Director Wang does not command troops. Even if he becomes the marshal of the army in the later period, he has no direct lineage. Once he rebels against the Jin Dynasty, he, the marshal, will be just a polished commander.
