Introduction: The time of Chai Rong's succession to the throne of Later Zhou Shizong was the first year of Xiande (954 AD), if it is calculated for 30 years of reign, it should be 983 AD. If Later Zhou Shizong Chai Rong could really persist for such a long time, he would not dare to say that the Han and Tang Dynasties but later Zhou would become a unified dynasty like the Sui Dynasty. As for whether Sejong Chai Rong will die and lead to the fall of the country, this possibility is very small. Let's elaborate.
The historical background of Chai Rong's succession
The throne of Later Zhou Shizong Chai Rong can be said to have been "picked up". The five dynasties were turbulent and the dynasties changed frequently, and the emperors were produced like products on the assembly line. That is really the banner of the changing king of the city, and you sing me to appear. Later Zhou Taizu Guo Wei also seized the world in a turbulent era to establish the Later Zhou regime, so Chai Rong should also be grateful for this era. Of course, it is reasonable to say that even if Guo Wei ascended the throne and claimed the title of emperor, it would not be the turn of Chai Rong's son to inherit the throne, but the family members of his uncle Guo Wei were all destroyed by Liu Chengyou, the Emperor of the Later Han Dynasty.
Later Zhou Shizong Chai Rong ascended the throne for six years
However, Chai Rong's behavior after ascending the throne did have the appearance of a ming king, and the wenzhi martial arts were good. At the beginning of the succession, he set up the ambition to unify the world, and formulated a thirty-year imperial plan to use ten years to pacify the world. After completing the dream of Zhou Da unification.
According to the "History of the Five Dynasties", Chai Rong's thirty-year plan: "To open up the world in ten years, to feed the people in ten years, and to bring peace to ten years."
Thirty years is too long for us to predict. But let's look at Chai Rong's actions and influences during the six years of his reign. In this way, we make a hypothesis about his thirty years of reign based on historical facts.
During Chai Rong's reign, he developed the economy and recruited exiles; selected talents and revised laws; reduced harsh taxes and miscellaneous taxes, further changed the rule of the Han dynasty and the people; implemented the strategy of elite troops and reorganized armaments. It can be said that Chai Rong's reforms involved political, people's livelihood, economic, and military aspects. On the basis of the governance of Guo Wei, the taizu of later Zhou, The Later Zhou presented a situation of political clarity and prosperity of the people. The entire Central Plains economy began a difficult recovery process after years of war and repeated ravages by warlords.
Relying on these foundations, it was possible to support Chai Rong's defeat in the west and the Shu, the southern destruction of the Southern Tang, and the northern destruction of the Khitans. There are quite a sign of the prosperity of the Northern Khitan and the unification of the world. With all three in place, we can say that we can see the imminent rise of a great dynasty. This situation is in sharp contrast to the later Great Song Dynasty foreign war to comfort Nono, and at every turn over the old coins to ensure peace. This is also one of the reasons why future generations miss Sejong Chai Rong.
History has said that the country is easier than Sui, but we say that Zhao Kuangyin's Great Song is ready-made. Sejong Chai rong was blessed and died young. Only then did Chen Qiao mutiny Zhou Lisong, and only then did the Central Plains Dynasty's martial spirit lack. This legacy of shortcomings has always affected the demise of the Ming Dynasty. Although there are three thousand years of culture that was created by Zhao and Song, it cannot change our objective impression of the cowardice and incompetence of Zhao and Song diplomacy.
Character determines destiny, and the temperament of the Later Zhou regime is inferred through Chai Rong's character
Let's now see what kind of regime houzhou was, and whether it was as martial and fierce as the Han and Tang dynasties. The editor agrees with Li Yunlong's point of view in "Bright Sword": the temperament of a unit and the temperament of the first commander who formed him are often the same, and the dynasty is also similar. The founder of the Western Jin Dynasty, Sima Shi, was cruel and murderous, and put profit first, so posterity buried the dynasty in the chaos of the Eight Kings. The fierce and courageous Zhu Yuanzhang created the Ming Dynasty, and the future emperors, regardless of the strength of the country, still practiced the ancestral precepts of the Heavenly Son Guarding the Gate of the Kingdom, the King of death, until the last emperor Zhu Youjian committed suicide and martyred the country.
And what kind of soul and system did the fierce and flexible Chai Rong inject into the Later Zhou Dynasty? We can refer to the strong han and the gangming, and the second week after the reunification will surely be a long unified dynasty that exudes the taste of prosperity.
After The Zhou Dynasty Emperor Chai Rong ascended the throne for 30 years
Later Zhou Shizong Chai Rong can be called a masterpiece, the pattern, vision, wrist, execution are the best choice. If you can live a long life, you can become an emperor on a par with Tang Zong and Han Wu. So we extrapolate what Chai Rong could have achieved in his thirty years on the throne based on what he had shown during his six years on the throne.
First of all, we can be sure that Chai Rong's pacification of the world in the first decade of the thirty-year plan is very likely to be achieved. The reasons are as follows: According to the combat effectiveness of the Great Song Dynasty, the unification of most of the southern territories can still be completed in more than ten years, not to mention Chai Rong, who can command Zhao Kuangyin. PS: The Great Song Dynasty was founded in 960, and the Northern Han Dynasty was completed in 979.
Khitan:
While completing the unification of the south, let's take a look at the situation of the Khitan and NorthwestErn Dangxiang in the north, the Tubo Six Animal Departments, and the Uighur Departments. First of all, the strong enemy of the north, the Liao state, from the time of Chai Rong's succession, was in the reign of Emperor Yelü Ruan of Liao. First of all, Yelü Nguyen was proclaimed emperor, and Empress Dowager Shu Luping preferred her son Yelü Lihu to be emperor. Even after a civil war, the empress dowager reluctantly approved of Emperor Shizong of Liao's throne, the rule of the Liao Dynasty was still unstable shortly after its establishment.
Moreover, Emperor Liao shizong was greedy for money and lustful, and liked to hunt; in his later years, he appointed traitors and ruled quite corruptly. In the end, Emperor Liao was killed by the usurper Yelü Chago, who established himself as emperor and was killed by Yelü Jing. Yelü Jing was proclaimed emperor and called Emperor Muzong of Liao. During the reign of Emperor Muzong of Liao, rebellions occurred from time to time, and the basis of rule was far from stable. Historically, Chai Rong's Northern Expedition to the Khitan and the breaking of the Three Passes to seize two states occurred during this period.
After ten years of emperor Muzong's reign, he was also killed, and Emperor Jingzong of Liao ascended to the throne. Emperor Jingzong was ill, so after his death, he was succeeded by Yelü Longxu as Empress Dowager Xiao Shu. After the governance of the Liao Shengzong, the Liao state gradually entered its heyday. Therefore, the Liao state has been in a historical moment of political turmoil before Liao Shengzong, which is a good opportunity for the Later Zhou Shizong Chai Rong Northern Expedition. Moreover, the Ugu tribe and Murong Wei in the north of the Khitan repeatedly rebelled, and the Khitan himself was a bit overwhelmed. As long as Chai Rong did not fall ill and had to die in the Khitan Dynasty, it was very possible to recover Youyun and push the border to the line of the Great Wall.
Party items
Let's look at the party item in the northwest, in history, it was the establishment of the Western Xia in the two hundred years of the founding of the country that made the western region not be included in the central plains until the Qing Dynasty. During the Five Dynasties period, the Party's Dingnan Army always depended on the Central Plains regime at that time. The method was similar to the clan system, so at this time, the Dingnan Army was far from the period of Li Jiqian, Li Deming, and Li Yuanhao, who were three generations of careerists.
At this time, Dang Xiang's family was Li Yiyin, and after the establishment of the State of Zhou, he was granted the title of King of Longxi County by Li Yin and then crowned him the Prince of Xiping in 954. That is to say, the strength of the party at this time was not very strong, unlike the unified regime of the various departments of the unified party at that time. As shown in the following figure:
Therefore, the Later Zhou Dynasty could be like other separatist regimes. As for the tubo liugu department, Ganzhou Uighurs and other small regimes that were divided, they could refer to the recovery method of the Western Xia, and the small Western Xia could recover this territory, not to mention the Later Zhou Chai Rong of Shangwu.
After the unification of the Zhou Dynasty, the territory is speculated
Because the Khitan founded Liao was also in the ascendancy period, it is likely that the northern border of the Later Zhou Dynasty would be bounded by the Great Wall; there was no problem in occupying Hexi in the northwest, and as for the Gaochang Uighurs further west, we did not dare to say nonsense due to the lack of historical data. Therefore, the northwest territory can at least be pushed to Hexi, so look for us to observe that the dynasty with the most similar territory is the Sui Dynasty. As for whether it can reach Central Asia with the same strength as the Han and Tang Dynasties, this is really difficult to speculate.
I am the emperor of history, welcome your attention; if there is a flaw, the axe is right.