Portrait of Zhang Liang
Zhang Liang, zifang, one of the founding fathers of the Western Han Dynasty, an important strategist of Liu Bang, the ancestor of Han Gao, was known as the "Three Masters of the Early Han Dynasty" along with Han Xin and Xiao He.
Zhang Liang's ancestors were Korean nobles during the Warring States period, and his grandfather Zhang Kaidi and father Zhang Ping both held the position of Korean Xiangguo.
The Chronicle of History records:
Twenty years after Zhang Ping's death, the Qin state destroyed Korea, so Zhang Liang, as a descendant of the Korean nobles, hated Qin Shi Huang to the bone, bent on avenging his homeland, plotting to assassinate Qin Shi Huang, and fled abroad after the failure of the operation, hiding his name for many years.
After Liu Bang raised an army, Zhang Liang defected to Liu Bang, and later became Liu Bang's right-hand man, because of his keen vision and resourcefulness, he was deeply valued by Liu Bang and made great achievements for the creation of the Han Empire.
Liu Bang once praised Zhang Liang: "Strategizing in the drapery, decisive victory thousands of miles away, Zifang Gongye ..."
Liu Bang entered Guanzhong, and Zhang Liang was given the title of Marquis.
When Liu Bang brutally attacked the king with a different surname, Zhang Liang no longer gave advice and repeatedly claimed to be ill and retired to the fiefdom.
Zhang Liang was low-key and cautious, and when he witnessed Han Xin and many other heroes being eliminated by Liu Bang one by one, in order to protect himself, he requested to stay in the fiefdom and reduce the number of fiefs, gradually fading out of the center of power.
Zhang Liang had two sons, the eldest son Zhang Buxian and the second son Zhang Peiqiang (一作彊).
After Zhang Liang's death, the eldest son Zhang Buzhi inherited the marquisate.
In the eighth year of Gao Hou (179 BC), Lü Hou died of illness, and the chancellor Chen Pingren deposed Zhu Lü and made Liu Heng the Emperor of Han.
In the fifth year of Emperor Wen of Han (175 BC), Zhang Bu was sentenced to death and deposed from his fiefdom for participating in the murder of the nobles of the former Chu state and committing the crime of great disrespect.
Zhang Bu doubted that his family had ruined his life for himself, and later became a change-in-law of a certain city, and his son Zhang Dian later became an official to Qinghe Taishou.
Zhang Liang's second son, Zhang Peiqiang, was only fifteen years old at the time of Lü Hou's reign, but he had a clear mind, quick thinking, ghostly spirits, and quite a fatherly demeanor.
In the seventh year of Emperor Huidi(188 BC), Emperor Huidi of Han died at the age of twenty-three.
When the chancellor mourned for Emperor Hui of Han, although Lü Hou was crying, there were no tears, and the sensitive Zhang Peiqiang realized that it was not good, and he found Chen Ping (said to be the tomb of the Right Emperor) and said: "The empress dowager has only filial piety, and now she collapses, and she is not sad to cry, and the king knows what he understands?" ”
The empress's only son died, and she cried but did not grieve, do you know why?
The minister said, "What's the explanation?" ”
Zhang Peiqiang said: "The emperor is not a strong son, and the empress dowager is afraid of the king. Junjin asked Lü Tai, Lü Chan, and Lü Lu to be the generals, and the generals to the northern and southern armies, as well as all the Lü Lü, to enter the palace and use things in the middle, so that the empress dowager would be at ease, and the jun would be lucky to get rid of the disaster. ”
The meaning of this passage is: The son of the former emperor is young, and the empress dowager is afraid of you, the powerful subjects, and now you ask Lü Tai, Lü Chan, and Lü Lu to be generals to command the northern and southern armies, and when the people of the Lü family enter the palace and hold real power, the empress dowager will be at ease, and you will be spared from disaster.
Cheng Xiang listened to Zhang Peiqiang's advice.
The empress dowager was overjoyed, and when she wept again to sacrifice Emperor Hui of Han, she showed a very sad look and wept.
Zhang Peiqiang's suggestion enabled Chen Ping to be able to preserve his meritorious and powerful subjects, which can be described as a great achievement, but the history books record this person's exquisite Zhang Peiqiang end abruptly.
According to folklore, Zhang Peiqiang retired to the countryside during the reign of Lü Hou, avoided Shangdang (present-day Changzhi, Shanxi), changed his surname to Liang, and his descendant Liang Xie served as a doctor in the imperial court during the Eastern Han Dynasty.
Like his father Zhang Liang, Zhang Peiqiang is indeed very smart.
What is different is that Zhang Peiqiang is a little smart.