Three Kingdoms Little People Zhi 0060: The True Clear Stream of the Troubled World - Liu Yu
【Sasha Lecture Hall No. 1507】 (Lecture 735 of the Historical Series)
The author of this article is the depths of dusk, and the editor-in-chief is Sasha, if reprinted, please be sure to indicate
The Three Kingdoms era was an era of constant fire and conquest... As the saying goes, in a chaotic world, there is no talk of benevolence. In this era of rising up together, warlords dividing the territory, and princes chasing deer, everyone lives in the bloody storm. All kinds of deceitful things, struggle for power and profit, and rogue and rogue things are also emerging in an endless stream.
However, even in such a terrible era when the knife licked blood and everyone was in danger, there were still some people who were known for their "benevolence" and could be called loyal and humble. They are not afraid of power and force, nor do they seek selfish interests for themselves, but they love the people like sons, and the world is just, which can be described as a clear stream in the chaotic world.
Who is such a person? Is it Uncle Liu Huang, the "Prince of Benevolence" advertised in the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms"? Or is it Tao Qian, Han Fu, Liu Biao, etc., these "benevolent elders" who can give up even their own territory?
In fact, if we leave aside the processing and rendering in the deductive novel, we will find out. The characters just mentioned are, in essence, the tyrants of the world. Although they do not deny that they all have a benevolent side, they all use this "benevolence" word as their own cloak to cover up their ambitions and attempts.
And we look at the entire late Han Dynasty, the real from the inside to the outside, from words to deeds, are completely called "benevolent" figures, only the protagonist we want to discuss today - the Eastern Han Dynasty Patriarch, known as one of the "Liu Room Three Mu", Liu Yu, who is in the high position of "Youzhou Mu"!
Yes, when it comes to the character of Liu Yu, many people may feel a little strange. Because in the novel "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", his role is too small. Only appeared in the second "Zhang Yide Angry Whip Inspector He Guo Uncle Plotting eunuchs", and was appointed by the imperial court as Youzhou Mu, responsible for recruiting Zhang Ju, Zhang Chun and other rebels...
According to the novel, Liu Bei also served in the military under Liu Yu, and had a lot of merit in battle, and was later recommended by Liu Yu to be promoted to the rank of Lower Secret Servant... And Liu Yu, because of the good resolution of the counter-rebellion, was promoted to a lieutenant by the imperial court, ranking among the "three dukes", and his status was no different from that of the prime minister...
However, compared to the thin description in the interpretation, and if there is no character image. Liu Yu, recorded in the history books, has a much more complicated life trajectory and event experience. He was not only a relative of the Han imperial family, but also lived in the north, with high prestige, deep support from the people, and even later, he almost had the opportunity to become an emperor...
Let's still start from the historical records to explore the true deeds of Liu Yu as a character, in history, and the reason why posterity evaluated him as the only "benevolent and clear stream" in the chaotic world at the end of the Han Dynasty...
Chen Shou's "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" does not contain an independent biography of Liu Yu. This is probably because Liu Yu was classified as a "late Han Dynasty figure" rather than a "Three Kingdoms figure" in the division of historical time periods. In addition, in the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", the main record is the character deeds of the Wei Shu wu three camps, so there is not much record of a figure like Liu Yu, who does not belong to one of the three families.
However, in Wu Ye's "Book of later Han", there is a special biography of Liu Yu, which is located in the "Later Han Shu Vol. 73 • Liu Yu Gongsun Tao Qian Lie Biography Sixty-third". It records in detail Liu Yu's origins, characters, and the process of becoming an official, and various political achievements and merits in office, etc.
As mentioned earlier, Liu Yu is also a relative of the Han Dynasty, and his family lineage is still very large. His ancestor Liu Qiang, the "Prince Gong of the Eastern Sea", was the eldest son of emperor Guangwu and was also the founding prince of the Eastern Han Dynasty... That is to say, the blood relationship between Liu Yu and the current royal family is very close. If it were not for his ancestor Liu Qiang, who took the initiative to abolish the position of prince, then the person who has inherited the throne to this day should be someone in his line of Liu Yu...
Not only that, Liu Yu's grandfather Liu Jia, who was once Guanglu Xun, and his father Liu Shu, who also served as the Taishou of Danyang, can be described as a prominent family lineage and a bright lintel. Liu Yu learned the Five Cars from an early age, was well versed in the Five Classics, and through filial piety and honesty, became an official, and served as a Cao official and a county official all the way, and then because of his accumulated political achievements, he moved to Youzhou Assassin History and became a feudal official.
(The Book of the Later Han Dynasty - Biography of Liu Yu records: Liu Yu zi Bo'an, The East China Sea Tan people also.) Grandfather Jia, Guanglu Xun. Yu Chuju filial piety, slightly moved to Youzhou Assassin History)
As a result, it was this period of office as the Assassin of Youzhou that laid the foundation for Liu Yu's fame throughout the four northern states. Because of his achievements during his tenure, it can be said that he was very prominent. Not only did he act well, be lenient and benevolent, appease the people, and win the hearts of the people, but he also treated the local nomads with a gentle policy, which made the whole world return to their hearts.
Originally, those northern ethnic groups that were bloodthirsty and belligerent and often plundered the borders of the Central Plains, such as Xianbei, Wuhuan, Fuyu, and Lu qi, under Liu Yu's "grace rule", all suspended their troops and horses, rarely invaded the border of Youzhou, and paid tribute to the Central Plains Dynasty at any time, and even more revered Liu Yu, a local official...
Until later, when Liu Yu was transferred from Youzhou for official business, the local people still missed him. They even sang various songs and ballads in the folk and praised Liu Yu's various merits...
(The Book of the Later Han Dynasty - Biography of Liu Yu records that the people of Yi felt its virtue, and the generations of Xianbei, Wuhuan, Fuyu, and Qin were all paying tribute at any time, and no one dared to disturb the border, and the people sang and rejoiced.) Official)
Later, in the first year of Zhongping (184 AD), due to the indiscriminate and indiscriminate behavior of the Han Ling Emperor to "sell officials and lords", the people at the bottom were miserable and had to rise up, and a huge Yellow Turban Rebellion broke out... At this time, Liu Yu was again appointed "Minister of Ganling" and went to the border of Jizhou to maintain stability for the imperial court.
After Liu Yu came to Jizhou, on the one hand, he used his own lofty reputation in the north to stabilize the situation in Jizhou after the disaster; on the other hand, he used various methods to appease the local people, and to restore production as much as possible, reserve grain, and improve people's livelihood.
Not only that, Liu Yu also led by example and practiced strict economy, and the people below also took him up and down, taking him as an example. For a time, the atmosphere of the jizhou officialdom was greatly changed, and almost everyone at all levels was diligent and simple, and devoted themselves to government... Soon, the vast number of people in Jizhou were at ease and responded positively to Liu Yu, and as for the storm of the Yellow Turban Uprising, it lost its sweeping foundation in the border of Jizhou...
There is no doubt that Liu Yu's outstanding achievements in Jizhou were appreciated by both the people at the bottom and the imperial court at the top. After this incident, his reputation in the north can be said to have risen again. The imperial court also rewarded him for meritorious deeds, and gave him the rank of knight and promoted him to "Zongzheng".
(The Book of later Han - Biography of Liu Yu records: At the beginning of The Middle Ping, the Yellow Turban rebelled, attacked the counties of Jizhou, worshiped Yu Ganlingxiang, appeased the wasteland, and was under the rate of vegetable frugality.) Qian Zongzheng)
A few years later, in the fourth year of Zhongping (187), Zhang Chun, the former minister of zhongshan, joined forces with the former Taishan Taishou ZhangJu and Wuhuan Dalai Qiu Liju to launch an armed rebellion. Attacking all the way to Jixia, burning the castle, and plundering and slaughtering the people, the power is extremely large. The local imperial court officials, Wuhuan Colonel Ji Chou, Right Beiping Taishou Liu Zheng, Liaodong Taishou Yangzhong, and others all died under their iron hooves...
Seeing the intensification of the rebellion, the whole north was in danger of falling into war, and even had a tendency to divide and split (Zhang Ju and Zhang Chun both called themselves the Prince of Tianzi)... At this time, the Eastern Han court had to use Liu Yu again, and he once again became the pastor of Youzhou, specifically dealing with the Erzhang rebellion.
(The Book of later Han - Biography of Liu Yu records that the former Zhongshan Xiang Zhang Chun privately referred to the former Taishan Taishou Zhang Juyi: "Now that Wuhuan is on the banks, everyone is willing to be chaotic, and the Liangzhou thieves are rising, and the imperial court cannot forbid it.") And the luoyang people's wives and children had two ends, and this Han Zuo declined, and there were two lords in the world. If the Son and I lead the Wuhuan Zhizhi to raise an army, Shu can set a great cause. "For example)
As a result, after Liu Yu arrived at Jicheng, he immediately gave in to Jicheng. On the one hand, the army was reorganized and the combat effectiveness was enhanced; on the other hand, benevolence was widely extended, and those who were not firm in the rebel army were treated with leniency... Due to Liu Yu's previous prestige in the north, everything must be done. Therefore, the seemingly powerful rebel group also quickly split from within under his surrender...
In the end, almost through Liu Yubing's bloodless "attack on the heart", Zhang Ju and Zhang Chun rebelled and had to abscond in fear of crime. And Liu Yu also continued to chase and beat fiercely, cleverly issuing a wanted order for ErZhang at this time, so that the two people who fled to Saiwai were successively cut off by their subordinates... So a rebellion that was originally huge was thus strangled in its infancy...
(The Book of the Later Han Dynasty - Biography of Liu Yu records that the imperial court was known for its prestige, enji north, and next year, it would pay homage to Youzhou Mu.) Yu went to Ji, dismissed the provincial soldiers, and took care of Guang Enxin. The envoys were sent to tell the king of Qiao and others to open up the road of goodness. There is also a bounty, pure. Lift, pure out of the plug, the rest are scattered. Purely killed by his guest Wang Zheng, send the first Yu Yu)
At this moment, Liu Yu really climbed to the peak of his personal prestige. Liu Hong, the Han Ling Emperor who was far away in Luoyang, also made him a lieutenant because of his various administrative achievements in Youzhou. Although Liu Yu repeatedly pushed back, he recommended Wei Wei Zhao Mo, Yizhou Mu Liu Yan, Yuzhou Mu Huang huan, Nanyang Taishou Yang Continuum and others to hold this position. But in the end, he could not resist the repeated invitations of the Han Ling Emperor and agreed to it...
Not only that, according to the "policy of buying officials" at that time, an official position like Taiwei, who was ranked as the third duke, was originally required to pay a large fee to the imperial court... And the Han Ling Emperor remembered Liu Yu's great merits, as well as his consistent reputation for honesty, and deliberately exempted him from this "official fee", which was unique in the last years of the Eastern Han Dynasty, when official selling was prevalent...
From this, we can see that Liu Yu is indeed a talent with "both ability and political integrity". He was talented, well-behaved, morally virtuous, and high-spirited, and could be regarded as a "sage" of the Confucian model. Especially in the last years of the Eastern Han Dynasty, in the environment of the great era of corruption in the world, the danger of the imperial court, and the imminent arrival of chaos, there could still be loyal and energy-saving ministers like Liu Yu, who came out of the mud and did not stain. This is simply the dawn of darkness, like the gospel of the people of the world...
Of course, we also know that many people in history are very good at disguise. The reason why they put on a cloak of "benevolence" in the beginning was only to cover up their true intentions. Once it was time to expose their ambitions, they would ruthlessly tear off their disguises and reveal their original form (the most typical example: when Wang Mang was humble and unused).
And Liu Yu? The reason why he was praised by posterity and revered as the only clear stream in the decaying and chaotic world is that he is a truly noble person. Everything he had done before had always come from his heart, and he had never deliberately done it for the purpose of achieving anything...
As the saying goes, a person can disguise for a while, but it is impossible to disguise for a lifetime... Some of the things that happened to Liu Yu later also irrefutably proved this. Even in the end, he practiced all this at the cost of his own life...
Let's take a look at the follow-up story about Liu Yu's reinstatement as The Pastor of Youzhou and his position after the Third Duke:
According to historical records, Youzhou has never been rich. All along, it has relied on the neighboring States of Qingdao and Hebei to subsidize various administrative expenses. Due to the impact of the war (Yellow Turban, Zhang Chun, etc.), the traffic between Youzhou and the outside world was basically cut off, and it fell into a financial famine in an instant...
In the face of such a mess, Liu Yu once again erupted, his bright power in both governance and morality. On the one hand, he pursued "leniency" in local policies, and persuaded the people to cultivate land and store grain with various tax reductions and incentives; on the other hand, he actively established various reciprocal transactions with nomadic tribes outside Cyprus, so that the local economy could prosper...
Not only that, he also presided over the mining of salt and iron minerals in the Yuyang area. On the one hand, a large number of jobs are created, and on the other hand, the revenue of the state capital and the counties is increased...
In this way, it only took not too long, and the originally poor and barren Youzhou quickly took on a new look. Not only did the financial situation improve greatly, but the lives of the people also improved quickly... The local economy is rich, and the people live and work in peace and contentment, which actually attracts the surrounding states and counties, which were originally richer and more prosperous, are quite popular.
In the end, many people in Xuzhou, Qingzhou, were forced by local wars and tyranny to relocate to Youzhou in order to have a full bite of food. According to incomplete statistics from historical data, the territory of Youzhou flowed into the population before and after Liu Yu's reign in the years when Liu Yu was in power, and there were more than a million people...
It can be said that Liu Yu is really remarkable for being able to achieve such local governance achievements in a short period of time. And he did not become complacent about it, but continued to practice it, keeping the simple life of the past unchanged. Although he was already an official lieutenant, Feng Lu was very rich. But he was frugal by nature and paid great attention to food, clothing, shelter and transportation. Each meal is dominated by vegetarian dishes, and there is never more than one dish with oil and meat. Usually wearing clothes is also very casual, sewing and patching old clothes are completely unconcerned to put on the body...
Just imagine, as the supreme chief of the three dukes, life is so simple, where are the people below who do not follow suit? As a result, the rich door valves all over Youzhou, even those who were originally generous and luxurious, have learned to be frugal. The entire social atmosphere of Youzhou has changed due to Liu Yu's influence...
(The Book of the Later Han Dynasty - Biography of Liu Yu records that the old Youbu should be outside the wilderness, the fees are very wide, and the years are often cut into green, and The Ji endowment is more than 200 million to give enough.) Everywhere is cut off, the commission can not be lost, and Yu Wucun is lenient, persuades the peasants to plant, opens up the benefits of Guhu City, Tongyuyang Salt and Iron Rao, Minyue Niandeng, Gu Shi Thirty. More than a million people who avoided the difficulties of the Yellow Turban and returned to The Yellow Turban were all treated with warm sympathy, and for the sake of Anli's livelihood, the displaced people forgot their migration. Although Yu is a superior, he is frugal in nature, he wears clothes and ropes, he eats no meat, and he who is rich and arrogant near and far, he will not change his mind and return to his heart)
However, just when Liu Yu was deeply ruling Youzhou and making the people return to their hearts, there was still a force that was not harmonious with him and was vaguely opposed, floating in the boundary of Youzhou... The master of this force was none other than the Three Kingdoms figures we know, who later competed with Yuan Shao for the hegemony of the four northern states, Gongsun Zhan.
Here, we need to first talk about the character of Gongsun Zhan. He was originally from an aristocratic family, but because his mother came from a humble background, his entry into the army was not smooth. Later, because he was young and handsome, his voice was loud, and his talent was quite outstanding, he was recruited as a son-in-law by the local Taishou, and only then began to climb year by year.
Later, because of the success of quelling the rebellion of the Western Liang people such as Bian Zhang and Han Sui, Gongsun Zhan began to control the army and gradually organized his own guard cavalry, Baima Yicong. Because of his fierce voice and bravery in battle, he is also famous in the Youzhou territory, and he can be called the god of war in the north, invincible and invincible...
On the surface, Gongsun Zhan and Liu Yu together are simply the most perfect combination. One is morally high and is good at internal rule; one is superior in force and stronger than combat strength. Wen and Wu were both pronged at the same time, daring to ask who else could match the two of them in the Youzhou Territory?
However, the truth is far from being as simple as we think. Liu Yu and Gongsun Zhan, although at the beginning they formed a very good cooperative relationship. One sings a white face politically, and the other sings a black face militarily, so that all the affairs of Youzhou can be smoothly balanced (such as the disintegration of Zhang Chun's rebellion, which was also backed by Gongsun Zhan's military oppression at the same time as Liu Yu's political offensive).
However, in the previous article, we analyzed the personality of Gongsun Zhan, who is too fierce and too martial, and likes to use violence to solve everything. I don't understand the principle of political equilibrium, and I lack the smoothness of doing things... Moreover, Gongsun Zhan and Liu Yu's political thinking was different; he engaged in the "policy of the first army," and the primary pursuit was the combat effectiveness of the army, and the restraint on military discipline was completely insufficient.
According to historical records, Gongsun Zhan often indulged his own people and horses, harassed the people near the garrison, and even killed people and looted goods. Even when the local officials came to stop it, he took it as a bystander... There is no doubt that Gongsun Zhan's move was to greatly destroy Liu Yu's "benevolent rule" atmosphere in Youzhou. The contradiction between the two of them gradually began to escalate...
(The Book of later Han - Biography of Liu Yu records that in the beginning, Gongsun Zhan was ordered to beg Wu Huan and be subject to Yu Jiedu.) The disciples of the Dan Dynasty are self-powerful, and even if they are in charge of the department, they are quite intrusive to the people, while Yu is benevolent to the government and thinks of the people's things, and is gradually uneven with Zhan)
Just when the gap between Liu Yu and Gongsun Zhan was gradually emerging, the general trend of the world was also undergoing various great changes. After emperor Hanling in Luoyang was killed, the general He Jin took power and supported Emperor Ling's eldest son Liu Wei as the young emperor, seized the real power of the court, and began to plot a blow against the eunuch clique...
However, soon after, he Jin was again in a struggle with the eunuchs, and was lured into the palace by Zhang Rang and others in the name of Empress He and beheaded... With the fierce struggle between the two forces of foreign relatives and eunuchs, in the end, the actual power of the imperial court gradually fell into the hands of Dong Zhuo, a western liang warlord who had entered Beijing from abroad.
Dong Zhuo was certainly not a virtuous and loyal minister. While using force as a coercion to monopolize the power inside and outside the DPRK, in order to further consolidate his position and enhance his prestige, he also arbitrarily deposed the emperor. He removed the young emperor Liu Wei, who was originally supported by He Jin, from the throne, and re-established Liu Xie, the younger son of Emperor Ling, as the new emperor...
There is no doubt that Dong Zhuo's perverse behavior and hegemonic rule have caused dissatisfaction among all people in the world. The powerful families represented by Yuan Shao's brothers Yuan Shu soon ordered the princes of the world to raise troops and serve the king in the name of opposing Dong Zhuo, and marched into Luoyang with several people and horses to confront the Western Liang army group.
Seeing the prelude to the great chaos in the world at the end of the Han Dynasty, it has begun. At this moment, Liu Yu, as a royal relative, as an important courtier of the imperial court, and as a feudal official on the side of the town guard, had he considered what plans he should have?
The answer is no. According to historical records, Liu Yu was still doing his best to handle various administrative affairs in his position of "Youzhou Pastor" and seek the welfare of the people. It can be said that although he has both territory and fame, he has no ambitions and no calculations. I never even thought that I should be able to do something in this era of declining imperial power and rising up...
However, a person like him who is virtuous and virtuous and famous is also doomed to be alone in the chaotic world. Soon, Dong Zhuo, who held great power in the imperial court, sent Liu Yu a letter of appointment, appointing him as the "Grand Sima of the Imperial Court" and making him the Marquis of Xiangben. Later, he also paid tribute to Liu Yu as a taifu and asked him to leave Yizhou and return to the central government...
Obviously, Dong Zhuo wanted to win Liu Yu over. Take him under his command, a kind and popular figure who is loyal and famous. Undoubtedly very favorable, proving the legitimacy of his rule in the DPRK ... However, due to war and natural disasters, road traffic jams have been caused. Therefore, Dong Zhuo, in the name of the imperial court, sent an appointment notice to Liu Yu, but in the end he failed to arrive in Youzhou...
At the same time, Yuan Shao also set his sights on Liu Yu. As the nominal leader of the combined forces of the Kwantung princes, he united with the then Jizhou Mu Hanfu and others to establish Liu Yu as "emperor"... Their reasoning was that the original orthodox Tianzi Liu Jie had been abolished and poisoned by Dong Zhuo, while Dong Zhuo's new emperor Liu Xie was only nine years old and could only be summoned as a puppet...
Therefore, Dong Zhuo was an evil man, and the new emperor he had created was also illegal. Today's world needs a truly virtuous and noble, and talented royal figure to become the new emperor. Only in this way can the people of the world return to their hearts and re-enable the Eastern Han Dynasty to return to the right track...
(The Book of Later Han - Biography of Liu Yu records: In the second year, Jizhou Assassin Shi Hanfu, Bohai Taishou Yuan Shao, and the Shandong generals discussed, with the imperial court's young chong, forcing Dong Zhuo, far away from the guansai, I don't know if it exists, with Yu Zong's elder, who wants to stand)
In this way, the title of emperor was placed in front of Liu Yu. Judging from the general environment at that time, it was also completely reasonable for him to come to be the emperor...
We know that in the nearly two hundred years since the Eastern Han Dynasty, due to the continuous interference of foreign relatives and eunuchs in the government, the imperial power has fallen, and it has also been greatly affected in the inheritance of the imperial throne. Moreover, in the middle of the Eastern Han Dynasty, there were several "doll emperors", who succeeded to the throne in infancy and died (killed or sick) before they reached adulthood. There is no doubt that this will bring about an inevitable problem, that is, the emperor who died early, without heirs, can inherit the unification...
Therefore, from the middle period of the Eastern Han Dynasty, there was also an embarrassing situation in which the imperial throne was vacant and no one could pass on. It could only be presided over by eunuchs and foreign relatives, and "virtuous" people were selected from the side branches of the Liu clan and came to the capital to inherit the unification (this was the case with the two emperors of Huanling before).
That is to say, under the premise of this "inheritance system", Liu Yu fully meets the conditions for ascending to the throne. Not only was he a royal family member, but he also had nothing to say about his talent, moral character, and achievements. What's more, his ancestor Liu Qiang, who was originally the eldest son of Emperor Guangwu of Han, was once the founding prince of the Eastern Han Dynasty, and the people in his family's lineage were originally the orthodox royal inheritance...
Yes, as long as Liu Yu is willing, he can immediately add a dragon robe... There is no need to even say a word, just a nod of the head, and someone will automatically embrace him as a nine-five.
However, Liu Yu was killed and did not agree to be the emperor. Even if Yuan Shao and the others took a step back and asked him to take the shang shu shi in order to make officials to everyone according to the system, he again refused. It is better to run alone to the outside of the Cyprus, the territory of the foreign tribes to hide, and is definitely not willing to accept this low-hanging on to the throne. What is the reason for this?
In fact, as long as people who understand politics a little can see the intentions of Yuan Shao and others. Their purpose was simply to hold Liu Yu out and bring himself a hat that was "justified"... To put it bluntly, no matter how they smear Dong Zhuo, whether they are cruel and unscrupulous or monopolize the government and politics, they will not be able to change the current situation of Dong Zhuo's "blackmailing the son of heaven to order the princes", resulting in them always being at a disadvantage in propaganda tone.
The only way to reverse this decline is to quickly create an emperor who is more important than Liu Xie in Dong Zhuo's hand. In this way, they can unite the Kwantung princes, never lose money, and have an absolute advantage in political propaganda...
And Liu Yu? As we have analyzed before, he is a "saint" figure deeply educated in Confucianism. In his heart, there is only kindness to the people of the world, and there is no selfishness for his own benefit. What's more, he also understood at all that the intentions of Yuan Shao, Han Fu and others were just to use him as a tool to compete for their own turf interests.
As the saying goes, the sky is not two in a row. It can be imagined that the Eastern Han Dynasty court, which was already flanked by imperial power and crumbling, suddenly had another "emperor" to fight... Dare to ask whether there will be a day of tranquility in the land of Shenzhou after that? I am afraid that in advance, I will enter the chaotic world of east-west division and confrontation and warlord division.
Therefore, don't look at Yuan Shao's clever tongue, saying that for the sake of the world' life, we must drive out the cruel Dong Zhuo and benefit the people of Li Min... Liu Yu was not a fool, nor was he coveting the temptation to become emperor, so naturally it was impossible to believe Yuan Shao's statement.
(The Book of the Later Han Dynasty - Biography of Liu Yu records that it was sent to the old Lelang Taishou Zhang Qi and other courtiers, and the title of Shangyu Zun.) Yu Miqi and others, Li Se Lingzhi said: "Today the earth is in turmoil, and the Lord is covered in dust." I have been greatly favored and have not been able to clear the shame of the country. All the kings and counties should work together to devote themselves to the royal family, and create a rebellion to make mistakes in order to deceive each other and mislead the evil! "Stubbornly rejected. Fu and others also asked Yu to lead the Shang Shu and undertake to make a worship, but did not listen. (Followed by the Beheading)
Of course, as a local official with a worldwide reputation and a northern prestige, Liu Yu could not be alone in this turbulent world. He had his own set of theories of saving the country and the people, and he also participated in some political events after the Central Plains and the North...
According to historical records, after Emperor Xian of Han was abducted by Dong Zhuo to Chang'an, he originally wanted to get rid of his control and secretly return to the east. So he sent Liu He, an attendant in the middle of the court, to sneak out of Wuguan to seek rescue troops. This Liu He is Liu Yu's son, and he naturally went to Youzhou to find his father Liu Yu to come up with ideas...
However, when Liu He passed through the Nanyang territory, he was detained by Yuan Shu, the Taishou of Nanyang. Only to see Yuan Shu search for the emperor's "distress letter" from him, but sent people to Youzhou to meet Liu Yu, saying that they were going to send troops together and go west to pick up Emperor Xian of Han...
As a result, Liu Yu, who sent troops as promised, sent thousands of cavalry to Yuan Shu for a round, but was secretly intercepted by Yuan Shu and took it for himself...
(The Book of later Han - Biography of Liu Yu records that he was an envoy to Chang'an.) Emperor Xian thought of returning to the east, and saw the great joy of the domain. At that time, Yu Zihe was a servant, so he sent and sneaked out of Wuguan and told Yu to come and greet him. Dao yu Nanyang, the later general Yuan Shu heard of its situation, so he made a message to send troops to the west. Yu Nai made thousands of horses and greeted the Son of Heaven, and the technique was not sent)
After that, Liu He found an opportunity and sneaked out from Yuan Shu. As a result, on the way north, he was detained by Yuan Shao again... It can be seen that the Yuan brothers, as the leaders of the Kwantung Alliance, shouted the slogan of "King Qin" very loudly in their daily lives, but when the emperor really needed help, one or two of them were secretly doing all kinds of evil, seeking benefits for themselves and gaining benefits...
On the contrary, Liu Yu, who actively responded to the emperor's edict and really sent troops to the west, became the one who was calculated by them. The son was detained, the army was plundered, and he was completely reduced to the situation of "people who are good and are deceived, and horses who are good at being ridden"...
There is no doubt that Liu Yu hates the yuan brothers as a rogue means with human faces and beast hearts. But he did not shake his inner thoughts and beliefs because of this. Until one day, he even paid the price of his life for it...
In the following years, with the displeasure of the Dong coalition army, Wang Yun designed to get rid of Dong Zhuo, and because of political short-sightedness and other reasons, he was attacked by Li Daoguo and others of the Western Liang Army, leading his troops to capture Chang'an... The Kwantung princes no longer had to pay attention to it, and the various restraints of the imperial court began to fight each other.
As for Youzhou, where Liu Yu was located, it was inevitable that he would be caught up in the war. Under the auspices of Gongsun Zhan, Youzhou formed an alliance with Yuan Shu of Nanyang and Tao Qian of Xuzhou against an alliance of Yuan Shao of Jizhou, Cao Cao of Yanzhou, and Liu Biao of Jingzhou... Since the war is fought like this, it is inevitable that the army will be expanded and grain will be levied. And whether it is the source of soldiers or money and food, it will not fall from the sky, to put it bluntly, it can only reach out to the people of Youzhou...
Yes, at this time, the contradiction between Liu Yu and Gongsun Zhan was already deepening. On the one hand, Liu Yu still insisted on his ruling principle of being good with the people and was unwilling to exploit the people too much; on the other hand, Gongsun Zhan's poor soldiers were fierce, and they were violent and violent, vowing to share a high position with Yuan Shao on the battlefield. Especially after the fiasco in the Battle of Longzhuo, Gongsun Zhan intensified his efforts, not hesitating to plunder and rob the people's property as military funds, and even what Liu Yu had originally prepared to reward the nomads, Gongsun Zhan did not mistakenly grab...
(The Book of Later Han - Biography of Liu Yu records that since He was tired of being defeated by Shao, but he was constantly attacking, Yu was troubled by his silent martial arts, and he was worried that his ambition could not be copied, and he was not allowed to do it, but he was slightly exempt from his courtesy.) Anger, repeated violations of the rules, and repeated violations of the people. Yu Suo rewarded Hu Yi with a pawn, and Copied it. Accumulation cannot be forbidden, but it is the sin of sending the envoy Feng Zhang to chen his violent plunder, and the treasure is not good)
This time, between Liu Yu and Gongsun Zhan, there is really no room for buffering... What's more, Gongsun Zhan did not intend to hide his own ambitions and intentions at all. While fully controlling the Youzhou army, he also did not repair the city and vigorously cultivated private forces, which was basically prepared to use force to resist the orders of Liu Yu, the top boss...
Since the matter had reached this point, Liu Yu had finally hardened his temper. He decided to eliminate Gongsun Zhan by force, so he united with a force of about 100,000 people and began to fight the latter. He felt that most of Gongsun Zhan's men and horses were now stationed outside Youzhou to confront Yuan Shao. And he has an absolute superiority in troop strength, so he will definitely be able to win and return triumphantly.
However, Cheng Xu, who was engaged in Youzhou, advised Liu Yu that although Gongsun Zhan had committed many evil deeds, he had always been the military leader of Youzhou. Instead of directly dispatching troops to use force in this way, it is better to use force as a means of deterrence to oppress them to change from evil to righteousness, so that it can also be regarded as a first salute and then a soldier, and it can play the effect of a soldier who surrenders without a fight.
However, if the troops are sent directly, it is equivalent to the two sides completely turning their faces, and there is no room for relaxation from then on. At that time, regardless of whether they win or lose, both sides will be in the same situation, and it will always come at the cost of the complete demise of one side. Even if you win the battle, you will inevitably lose your strength...
As a result, instead of following Cheng Xu's advice, Liu Yu was imprisoned and executed for the crime of "disturbing the hearts and minds of the army before the war." Next, the war between him and Gongsun Zhan began...
(The Book of the Later Han Dynasty - Biography of Liu Yu records that it is a pawn, and it is full of anger.) In the winter of the fourth year, he led zhutun troops from 100,000 people to attack Zhan. General, engaged in the DaiJun Cheng Xu exemption and the former said: "Although Gongsun Zhan has been evil, the crime is not correct. Ming Gong did not first inform him of the change of career, but raised a wall of soldiers, which was not the interest of the state. It is better to garrison the troops than to defeat them, and to repent and apologize for their sins, and the so-called those who obey people without fighting. "Yu Yixu was frustrated about the matter, so he cut it off)
Logically speaking, since the relations between the two sides have been formally broken, all contradictions and struggles have also been put on the surface. Then the next step should be to try to find a way to win the victory on the battlefield and completely destroy the other side. However, at this time, Liu Yu also informed the whole army, saying that the guilty person was only Gongsun Zhan, and only needed to bring him to justice, and must not hurt the innocent, let alone harass the people, occupy his house and burn the city, and so on...
There is no doubt that this order really shows liu Yu's military idiocy and ideological pedantic side. War is different from civil rule, engaging in destruction rather than construction, and the purpose is only to completely overthrow the opponent by any means... However, Liu Yu put his noble mentality of "compassion for compassion" to the battlefield. What the result will be at that time is almost predictable...
Sure enough, this internal war in Youzhou, Liu Yu fought like a joke. At the beginning, he was so powerful that Gongsun Zhan could only retreat to the city, and even had the idea of escaping to break through. However, due to the restrictions of Liu Yu's orders, the soldiers could not kill innocents indiscriminately, and second, they could not destroy the houses of the people and set fire to the city... As a result, Liu Yu's army was weak and weak in attack, and instead of being able to defeat the city that the enemy was holding, it suffered a lot of losses.
And his opponent Gongsun Zhan? Seeing Liu Yu's foolish general military command methods, he was afraid of his hands and feet. He immediately dispelled the idea of fleeing, but instead organized an elite warrior death squad of several hundred people to take advantage of Liu Yu's army's unpreparedness and suddenly launched a counterattack. At the same time, he also set fire to the wind, causing Liu Yujun's heart to be confused...
Then, Gongsun Zhan personally led his troops out of the city and directly destroyed Liu Yu's headquarters. Originally, Liu Yu's men and horses were hastily assembled, and although the number of people was large, their combat strength was low, and their combat experience and willpower were not strong enough. So after losing the command center, the 100,000 people soon collapsed and fled for their lives...
(The Book of the Later Han Dynasty - Biography of Liu Yu records that the Part of the Zhongshi Was scattered outside, and the pawns were afraid of themselves, but they wanted to dig up the Eastern City and want to leave.) Yu Bing was not accustomed to fighting, and he loved his lover's house, but he did not listen to the burning, and he could not attack and encircle it in a hurry. Zhan NaiJian recruited hundreds of sharp soldiers, set fire to the wind, and directly clashed)
Liu Yu, who was not good at military affairs, certainly had no experience in dealing with such fiasco. He retreated to Juyong County, where he was soon attacked by Gongsun Zhan's army and taken prisoner. However, Gongsun Zhan did not kill him, nor did he do anything to his family, but let him return to Jicheng with his wife and children, and continued to handle the affairs of Youzhou from then on...
(The Book of Later Han - Biography of Liu Yu records that Yu Sui was defeated and went north to Juyong County with his official subordinates.) After the siege of The Three Days, the city fell, so he took Yu and his wife and son back to thistle, and made the lingzhou document)
Of course, this is not because Gongsun Zhan is compassionate and kind, but because Liu Yu at this time still has considerable use value for him. Therefore, he imprisoned and monitored Liu Yu, making him a puppet and temporarily acting as a façade for himself. By the way, he also let him gradually transition his real power in Youzhou to his own hands.
Soon after, when the emissaries of the imperial court arrived again, Gongsun Zhan took the opportunity to worship the former general, FengYiHou, and the four prefectures of You, He, Qing, and Ji, becoming the titular king of the north...
Seeing that Liu Yu had lost his use value, Gongsun Zhan framed Liu Yu for "conspiracy to commit treason", saying that he had conspired with Yuan Shao before, and that he wanted to become emperor in a great rebellion, and that he deserved to be sentenced to death for his crimes... Moreover, he did not take matters into his own hands, and through various means coerced the imperial emissary Duan Xun, asking him to behead Liu Yu in the name of the imperial court and send the head to Kyoto...
(The Book of Later Han - Biography of Liu Yu records that The Huitianzi sent an emissary Duan Xunzeng Yu Fengyi to supervise the affairs of the Six Prefectures; the former general Bai Zhan, feng yihou, and the false festival governor You, He, Qing, and Ji.) 瓒乃 falsely accused Yu Qian and Yuan Shao of wanting to claim honorific titles, and threatened to behead Yu in Jishi)
A generation of loyal ministers, Xianliang Zhou pastors who loved the people like sons, and noble royal relatives of the Noble Liang Festival, died under the butcher's knife of Gongsun Zhan... Although his reputation in the four northern states is full of fame and the great shore in the hearts of the people, he still can't stop his defeat on the battlefield and his eventual separation...
Writing this, how should we evaluate the character of Liu Yan? It should be said that he was indeed a true gentleman, but also an ambitious, talented, and morally very noble man. Deeply influenced by Confucianism, he shone with the brilliance of humanity in the chaotic era of the late Han Dynasty, when the imperial power was endangered, and composed a clear chapter in the history books.
However, Liu Yu was also very pedantic, and in this turbulent world of deceit and sword and light, he blindly adhered to his own set of rules of benevolence, righteousness and benevolence. Even on the battlefield, you have to use this to restrain yourself. In the end, he was brutally killed by the enemy, becoming the first person to die in the "Liu Mu Sanmu", and the only one who died of death...
Perhaps, everyone has heard the old saying: the most rogue rogue can cut off the head of the noblest gentleman. This probably means that the law of survival in a chaotic world cannot tolerate simple benevolence and tolerance.
To put it bluntly, in the chaotic world, everyone speaks according to strength, and even if you really have ideals and ambitions, it must be based on your own strength. Like Liu Yu, what role can he play in reasoning with hooligans and "martial virtue" to the enemy in the end, except to lose his own life?
On the contrary, those who can really gain a firm foothold in the chaotic world and take the lead are those who attach equal importance to grace and power, and use both leniency and fierceness, such as Cao Cao, Yuan Shao, Liu Bei, etc.
Although these people are like Liu Yu, they have the ability to be literate and the people, and they have a generous side of benevolence. But in essence, they are all characters like the Tyrant. When it is necessary to tear off the disguise of benevolence and righteousness, they will also show their faces mercilessly, and even resort to very rogue means to achieve their goals...
And these people are the real protagonists in the chaotic world...
PS: Of course, we don't have to criticize Liu Yu's pedantry and rigidity too much. After all, he took the path of a saint, and whether it was the achievements of governance during his tenure or the noble moral character on his body, he was praised by everyone at that time and was also worthy of commemoration by future generations.
However, if there is only this, it is still far from enough in the chaotic world...
After all, to be born in a pack of wolves, you must learn to dance with wolves. Otherwise, it will really become the supporting role that can't even survive for three episodes...
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