During the Northern Song Dynasty, a "Treatise on Vertical Prisoners" came out of nowhere, and Ouyang Xiu's sharp and sharp words caused many literati to discuss the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty another round of heated discussion.
Many people felt that Ouyang Xiu's words were reasonable, and that Emperor Taizong was just selling his reputation; some people felt that this idea was too obscure, but he was just a person of his own...
The allusion of "indulgence" comes from the Zhenguan period of the Tang Dynasty, which tells the story of "Emperor Taizong ordered 390 death row prisoners to go home for the New Year, and agreed with them to stay at home and voluntarily come to be tortured."
It's just that, as people who committed capital crimes and got the opportunity to escape from prison, will they really obediently come back and send them to death?
Today, I will talk to you about this story.
As recognized by historians and as one of the famous emperors in China's history, Li Shimin's merits are naturally undeniable: he ended the chaotic world under the world, created the rule of Zhenguan, allowed hundreds of people to live and work in peace and contentment, and laid a solid foundation for the prosperous era of the Tang Dynasty.
However, there was a very controversial event in his life, and it was also a matter that countless people criticized him for -- the Xuanwumen Mutiny.
Born in 598 AD, Li Shimin was brilliant from an early age, showing extraordinary wit and excellent foresight. He was both literate and martial, and since he was a teenager, he had followed his father to kill the enemy and made great achievements.
In 616, when the world rose up and the Sui Dynasty's fortunes were decided, he also took the opportunity to persuade his father Li Yuan to join the wave of rebellion against Sui, and he began the life of a soldier from then on.
Two years later, Li Yuan was able to ascend the throne smoothly and change the name of the country to "Tang", and Li Shimin was also crowned king of Qin and a great general by his father by virtue of his own merits. In the following years, he has been fighting on the battlefield, eliminating the Sui and Tang dynasties one by one.
As Li Shimin rose to fame in the hearts of the people, he was jealous of his father.
In 626 AD, the situation of national unification had been established, and after there was no "external trouble", his competition with the crown prince Li Jiancheng became more and more fierce. In order to be uncontrolled, Li Shimin decided to take the lead and launched the "Xuanwumen Mutiny", which has been criticized in history.
"Xuanwumen Mutiny"
No matter what later generations commented, at this time, Li Shimin had successfully ascended the throne and became emperor, changing the era name "Wude" to "Zhenguan". The following year, he also sent troops to attack Liang Shidu and Shuofang Dongcheng in a big way, completely unifying the country.
As a state that had been successfully established by relying on the wave of peasant uprisings, Li Shimin was well aware of the strength of the peasants, and in order to consolidate the rule of the Li Tang Dynasty, he knew that he must become a Ming Emperor, otherwise, the Sui Emperor was the most vivid example.
For Li Shimin, who fought with his soldiers on the battlefield to fight a bloody road, he was well aware of the lives of the people at the bottom and the current situation of the people. If you want to achieve a strong dynasty, if you want to become a Ming emperor who is praised by everyone in the mouths of the people, the emperor must not only be able to know and make good use of people, but also strive to govern.
With the assistance of Wei Zheng, Fang Xuanling, Changsun Wujie, and others, at the beginning of the "Zhenguan", Li Shimin very smoothly implemented the equalization system and the rent system, and the quality of life of the people at the bottom was also greatly improved.
One day, when summarizing the rise and fall of the dynasties, Li Shimin lamented: Since ancient times, emperors have been too willful and like to do things according to their own preferences. If you are happy, you will begin to reward those who have no merit; if you are angry, you will begin to kill innocent people indiscriminately, so the rise and fall of the world and the riots are all from this!
Therefore, he was very aware of the importance of the rule of law, in addition to improving the lives of the people, but also to improve the laws of the Tang Dynasty. When he revised the law, he abolished the cruel death penalties that had been handed down through the generations, such as waist beheading, dismemberment, and lingchi.
The revised Tang Dynasty law had a total of 500 regulations, established 20 penal names, etc., which was 92 articles less than the laws of the Sui Dynasty and reduced 71 articles of exile for labor.
When convicts are sentenced, in addition to those who are heinous, the rest will also be treated leniently and simply, and even more explicitly prohibited, opposing harsh treatment and abuse of prisoners.
In addition, Li Shimin also demanded that when sentencing, there should be no more punishment for one crime, and when yamenli adjudicated cases, he should not judge by his distant relatives or his own likes and dislikes.
After six years of "Zhenguan", the people lived and worked in peace and contentment, and after driving away the Turks who were watching the tigers at the border, Li Shimin had become a well-known "Heavenly Khan" in the mouths of neighboring countries.
In addition, he knew that in order to gain the love of the people, he must listen to the voice of the people and understand the sufferings of the people, so he issued an edict to open up the way of speech and allow the people of the world to freely give him and the hundred officials various opinions.
But the edict has been written for a long time, and few people have made suggestions.
Therefore, Li Shimin, who felt very strange, once again ordered that those who made suggestions could be rewarded to varying degrees by virtue of the merits of their speeches.
However, even officials have rarely responded.
Li Shimin, who likes to read history books, has known the story of "King Zhou Li stopped slandering and destroying the country" since he was a child, but under the reward, the people did not dare to open their mouths. Obviously their lives have become better now, don't you want to go further?
One day, when changsun Wuji was playing chess with Li Shimin, he gave him some hints: it turned out that it was the Xuanwumen Mutiny before, which left a bad impression on the hearts of the people, and the people thought that he was a fierce and ruthless monarch, so they were worried that the upward speech would offend him.
So how do you reverse this stereotype of the people about him? Li Shimin fell into further thought.
One night, he read the recital overnight, only to find that after the autumn of this year, 390 death row inmates would be executed! He couldn't help but wonder if there was something wrong with his decree.
After ascending the throne, he abolished many of the strict laws of the Sui Dynasty, showing a scene of singing and dancing, under such a decree, why would so many people commit the crime of killing their heads?
Li Shimin quickly changed a lot of ideas in his mind, whether it was the bureaucracy that deceived and concealed, the implementation of government decrees was not thorough, or what problems encountered by the people could not be solved?
In order to be able to understand the truth of the matter, he decided to go to the prison to see it for himself, which may also be a good time to reverse the people's perception of him.
In the seventh year of the "Zhenguan", under the team of light soldiers, Dai Ji, the secretary of the Dali Temple, bent down to accompany Emperor Taizong to inspect the imperial court prison. The prison is full of despair: some people are still being tortured on torture equipment to extract confessions, and others are lying on the ground crying in pain because of the heavy torture...
The 390 death row prisoners who were about to be executed after the autumn were also escorted to the emperor by the guards.
After learning that the majestic young man in front of him was the emperor, he was followed by a series of crying and complaining voices. The jailers, fearing that their cries would annoy the Emperor, began to whisper, but to no avail.
One of them caught The Attention of Li Shimin, whose behavior was diametrically opposed to that of the crowd, and seeing that the Emperor not only did not panic and told him about his grievances, but instead looked like he was not stingy.
"What's your name?" Li Shimin asked curiously.
"Your Majesty the Emperor, the villain's name is Zhang Wu."
"Why don't you pray to you to reduce your punishment?"
"When a villain kills a man, he deserves his life, so why should he ask for your forgiveness?" His words made Li Shimin appreciate it even more.
"Then why did you kill people?" he asked.
Only to see that Zhang Wu replied: "Our family originally opened a bakery shop in Dongshi, and Zhao Duobao, the nephew of the county order, did not think that the county order had a crush on my sister and asked her to become a concubine." Although we are only ordinary people, we only want peace and joy, and we don't want to fight for glory and wealth in the Gaomen compound! ”
He paused, thinking of his sister's tragic death, and continued, "If you want to protect the capital, is it not a good person who thinks that he can't succeed?" In the middle of the night, I had to forcibly abduct my sister, and she was so humiliated that she jumped into the river and committed suicide. In order to avenge her, I killed Zhao Duobao. ”
"Why didn't you report it?" Li Shimin asked.
"What is the use of reporting to the officials?" His uncle was a county order, and I couldn't even get in through the gate of the gate. But this is also good, I avenged my sister, naturally I can go to his door. But pity my lonely mother, who has no one to take care of her, no one to provide for her. When Zhang Wu thought of this, he couldn't help but blush his eyes.
"Sure enough, there are bureaucrats who do not act!" Li Shimin thought to himself.
Immediately after that, he dispatched several death row inmates and asked them the reasons for their crimes, which were basically the same.
"If we had a better solution, who would want to fight for their lives?" Zhang Wu said. "However, if the villain can see the emperor with his own eyes before he dies, he can also be regarded as a Guangzong Yaozu!"
Li Shimin asked, "Then do you think your punishment is heavy?" ”
Li Shimin, who had been listening to the prisoners cry bitterly for several hours, was ready to listen to these people's requests that he give them a reduction in sentence, but the direction of things was diametrically opposite.
These people went so far as to say:
"We have all committed capital crimes, and the county orders' punishments are not wrong."
"Killing people to pay for their lives is what they should be."
"A manly husband, eighteen years later a good man again!"
I didn't think that these people were close to death, and although they felt wronged, they did not pray that they could forgive them.
"Then if you say that you can fulfill one wish now, what do you want?" Hearing this, the eyes of the people also lit up.
They scrambled to talk about their thoughts, but they were all the same, summed up in one sentence: "We want to go home and have a look before we die." ”
Considering that it was now the Waxing Moon, Li Shimin said, "Then Shuo will make a gentleman's covenant with you now, and now he can let you go back to the New Year to reunite with your family, and when the next autumn comes, you will come here to make an appointment. ”
"Good!"
"I agree!"
Knowing that they still had a chance to go home, the death row inmates who had passed the last year were very happy, and after a lively time, they knelt down in unison, bowed their heads, and said, "Long live my emperor!" ”
At this moment, Dai Ji, the secretary of the Dali Temple, could no longer hold back, and took a step forward and said, "Emperor, these people are all people who have committed the most heinous crimes!" They are all murderous people who don't blink an eye, where will there be any credit? Besides, they were originally death row prisoners, and now let them go home, and when the appointed day comes, what if they don't come back? ”
He bowed, "Emperor, think twice before you do it!" ”
Hearing Dai Ji's dissuasion, Li Shimin did not worry too much, but instead advised Dai Ji back: "No problem! Anyway! It is only by sincerity that they can be exchanged for loyalty, and I believe that they will not betray the trust of yuan. ”
Although the emperor said that he had sworn an oath, but the people accompanying him would believe it, and who could ensure that he was safe from this unknown matter?
After this incident, Emperor Taizong returned to the palace and continued to read the recital chapter without sleeping or eating, and it seemed that he did not take this matter to heart at all. However, the news of the return of these death row prisoners was like a drop of water falling into a hot oil pot, and quickly spread throughout the streets and alleys of Chang'an City.
"Eh, did you hear that?" The murderer Zhang Wu had actually gone home! ”
"Yeah, yeah, not just him, I've heard that so many of them have been let home?"
"Why is that?" Can death row inmates also be pardoned? This is not the day of amnesty. ”
"Hey, who knows? We can't say for sure about this! ”
The streets were filled with discussions about the matter.
Naturally, there are also good people who have found those death row inmates who have been released home to understand the situation. "Zhang Wu, how did you come back?"
"I still want to thank the emperor for his great kindness!" After saying that, he bowed deeply in the direction of the imperial city, "After learning of our situation, the emperor said that he would make a gentleman's covenant with us, gave us a chance to accompany our family for the New Year, and said that he would wait until the autumn queen asked for a beheading before voluntarily receiving the punishment." ”
"Is what you say true?"
"I'm all standing in front of you, can this still be fake?" Such conversations continued to occur around every prisoner.
As for whether these prisoners are willing to go to prison again after returning home, the answer will not be known until the autumn of the following year.
On the fourth day of the first month of September in the eighth year of Zhenguan, the Suzaku Street, which was 150 meters wide in Chang'an City, was crowded with people from all over the city early. People want to see for themselves how many of the 390 prisoners from last year will be back today. Are they really willing to fulfill their original agreement, throw themselves into the net, and take the initiative to send them to death?
"Alas, you are squeezing me!"
"Look at it a little, I've met people!"
"Can you leave me a place?" I'd like to take a look too. ”
"How many people are back now?"
"There are already more than a hundred!"
"Hey! There are a lot of them! ”
"Do you think this can really all come back?" That's more than two hundred. ”
"Who knows, it's still half an hour before three o'clock in the afternoon, and wait!"
From the morning, one, two, three... At three o'clock in the afternoon, the guards counted and found that 389 prisoners had returned. Only one death row prisoner Xu Fulin, who lives in Gyeonggi Fufeng, has not yet arrived!
Officials who saw this were already very satisfied, because the number of prisoners returning far exceeded their expectations.
But at this time, the death row inmates whispered, and even could not contain the anger in their hearts. They were not worried about their imminent execution, but because of the pain of their broken companion.
How can a well-said covenant of a gentleman be disregarded? At this time, the eyes of many officials turned to Emperor Taizong, trying to obey his next instructions, but he waved his hand and said, "Wait a quarter of an hour!" ”
As soon as the words stopped, the sound of wheels advancing not far away came, accompanied by the shouts of the coachman: "Let's let go!" Let's go! I'm bringing people to the appointment!" ”
Hearing this sound, people also consciously opened up a path for ox carts to move forward. At this time, a person poked his head out of the ox cart, and this was not the same Xu Fulin! It just looks like the yellow face is thin, as if it is a serious illness.
It turned out that he had fallen ill on the way back to the capital, and he could not hurry, so he had to hire an ox cart to come, which also led to an hour later than the agreed time.
"Are they really all back?"
"Not really! Three hundred and ninety people, not one will fall! ”
"Then what will the emperor do?" Are they really going to be executed? ”
Yes, these 390 prisoners arrived as promised, what was the emperor going to do? Looking at the people in front of him, as well as the prisoners who abided by the agreement, Li Shimin's face also showed a smile, and with a wave of his hand, the eunuch next to him took out the holy will that had been prepared.
These prisoners were eventually granted a chance to be pardoned by virtue of their integrity. As soon as this news came out, many prisoners raised their arms and shouted, and the people also praised: "Emperor Shengming!" ”
At this point, he is no longer the cruel emperor in the hearts of the people, but what remains is his image of wisdom, divine martial arts, and benevolence.
After this, Li Shimin's wide-ranging speech finally came in handy, all kinds of suggestions came pouring in, and his image of wisdom and divine martial arts became more and more deeply rooted in the hearts of the people. In order to be able to screen out talents who are useful to the country, he also improved and perfected the imperial examination system that has been handed down, and opened up an objective channel based on examinations rather than relationships, and on knowledge rather than on doors.
"The reason why the people are thieves is that they are given heavy labor, officials are greedy, and they are hungry and cold, so they do not have time to be honest and shameful." He always deeply observed the people's feelings and understood what the people thought and what the people thought.
A few years later, eleven years after the "Zhenguan", the "Zhenguan Law" was officially promulgated, truly realizing the ascension of the sea, the road is not left behind, and the outside is not closed.
If we look at Li Shimin's "indulgence" from our current eyes, we can find that this is actually inseparable from his strategy of governing the country by "settling the country and peaceful the country" and "preserving the people first," as well as the whole proposition of "using the law to reduce leniency" and "killing with compassion."
He knows that the people's hearts and minds are won over by easing the contradictions between classes rather than by force; he knows that to restore the vitality of the country, it is necessary to protect the population; he knows that even those who have committed capital crimes are not unculturable.
For Li Shimin, who created the "Rule of Zhenguan", his life was magnificent enough, and his merits and demerits have long been commented on by countless people. However, it is undeniable that during his reign, he made great efforts to govern and laid a solid foundation for the creation of the prosperous era of the Tang Dynasty.
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