During the reign of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, Wei Qing and Huo Fuyi became famous for their meritorious efforts in fighting the Xiongnu, and the two joined hands to eliminate the main force of the Xiongnu. Huo's illness is even more because of the "sealing of wolves", which has been regarded by future generations as a generation of gods of war.
But
At that time, the Xiongnu were not actually "wiped out" by Wei and Huo. Shortly after the death of Emperor Wu of Han, the Xiongnu began to move south again, tentatively harassing the Han Dynasty. Later, the Huns themselves fell into a situation of "five kings seizing hegemony", which eventually caused a great split between the north and the south.
By the middle and late han Xuan Emperor,
The Southern Xiongnu's Hu Han evil Shan Yu took the initiative to rely on the Han Dynasty because of his lonely strength
。 Many times into Beijing to meet Emperor Xuan of Han,
And during the Han Yuan Emperor period, after Chen Tang broke the Northern Xiongnu, he took the initiative to ask the Han Dynasty for "peace and affection"
, claiming to guard the frontier for the Han Dynasty.
First, the historical background of Zhaojun's departure
In 52 BC, Hu Han was defeated by Zhi Zhidan in the Xiongnu civil strife, so he planned to defect to the Han Dynasty. Hu Hanxian personally went to the border of Wuyuan County, and the magistrate told Emperor Xuan of Han that he would offer a large number of treasures and hoped to meet Emperor Xuan of Han in Chang'an.
The following spring, after receiving the approval of Emperor Xuan of Han, Hu Han came to Chang'an.
He claimed to be a vassal of the Han Dynasty and did not call himself by his first name. Gave away valuables such as swords, carts, horses, and gold,
He also wrote to him: I hope that I can move my subordinates to guanglusai in the south of the country
。
In case his tribe was attacked, he could immediately retreat into the Han Dynasty and be protected.
Emperor Xuan of Han agreed to Hu Han's request and sent 160 million cavalry to help Hu Han's evil forces move to Guanglu Sai and beat off the Northern Xiongnu. However, Hu Han evil only submitted to the Han Dynasty for self-preservation, so Xiao Wangzhi, the chancellor of the Han Dynasty at that time, felt that he might rebel in the future and should be more observed.
When Emperor Yuan of Han ascended the throne, Zhi Zhidan advanced westward in the previous year and annexed three small states in one fell swoop. It occupied most of the original Xiongnu and established the Northern Xiongnu in the eastern part of the Jiankun State.
In 44 BC, Zhi Zhidan sent emissaries to the Han Dynasty to pay tribute, and at the same time asked Emperor Yuan of Han to release his son as a hostage. The Han Dynasty sent Gu Ji as an envoy to escort the prince back to China. In the end, Zhi Zhidan Yu'en took revenge and killed Gu Ji and other Han envoys. Afterwards, Zhi Zhidan was afraid of retaliation from the Han Dynasty and had been hiding in the northern royal city and did not dare to go out.
At this time,
Hu Han evil relied on the support of the Han Dynasty to become more and more powerful,
No longer afraid of Zhi Zhidanyu's attack. His subordinates proposed the Northern Expedition to Zhi Zhidan yu and regain the territory,
Finally, in 42 BC, the Court of the Huns was returned.
Besides, Zhi Zhidan Yu originally did not dare to move because he killed the Envoys of the Han Dynasty and hid in the north. As a result, King Kangju took the initiative to contact him, and the two countries sent troops together to destroy Wusun.
At that time, most of the northern region was occupied by the Hu Han evil, and Zhi Shan Yu stayed in Kangju and became king. He also killed the daughters of King Kangju and other nobles for some small matters, cut off their limbs, and enslaved the people of Kangju to build a palace for him.
The Han Dynasty sent envoys to see him, and Zhi Zhidan was probably worried about being "assassinated". He said that he was willing to send his son to be a hostage, but he refused to meet with the envoys, and let the Western Regions protect the "letter" to contact him.
The famous general Chen Tang believed that Zhi Zhi was arrogant and would become a big problem after the fact, so he wrote to the imperial court to attack the Northern Xiongnu.
Chen Tang and Gan Yanshou led an army into the court of King Kangju in 35 BC, cut off the head of Zhi Zhidanyu, and sent him back to Chang'an. Afterwards, Chen Tang said the famous sentence: Those who commit crimes against strong men will be punished from afar.
When Hu Hanxian got the news, he was both happy and scared
。 The Southern Xiongnu developed better and better under his leadership over the years, but he was also afraid of the powerful military strength of the Han Dynasty. So in the following year again asked for a pilgrimage, and
He arrived in Chang'an in 33 BC and proposed to "be the son-in-law of the Han family".
SECOND, "this and relatives" is not "other and relatives"
Through the above historical background, we can know:
The Han Dynasty during the zhaojun period was the most powerful country in the east. After the Xiongnu fell into civil unrest in 57 BC, they almost never dared to clash head-on with the Han Dynasty.
It was not until 44 BC that Zhi Zhidan killed the Han envoy Gu Ji after the establishment of the northern state. Afterwards, he shrank in the northern region, watching the Huhan evil grow stronger and fight all the way back to the royal court.
During the reign of Emperor Xuan of Han, Hu Han had the intention of attaching himself to the Han Dynasty, and even had the idea of "submitting" all the time, but was dissuaded by his subordinates. Moreover, when Hu Han evil first went to Chang'an to meet Emperor Xuan of Han, he called himself a vassal and did not even dare to say his name. After the Southern Xiongnu grew stronger
When Hu Hanxian saw Chen Tang and the others running for a long time and easily destroying the Northern Xiongnu, he was actually afraid in his heart.
Therefore, the Han Dynasty sent Wang Zhaojun out of the plug, and this time the meaning of "peace and affinity" and the early Han Dynasty was also completely different. Previously it was because the country was weak and forced to adopt acts of peace, but this time it was a "gift".
Long before Zhaosai left the country, during the time of Emperor Xuan of Han, Princess Liu Xieyou was the queen of Wusun. Later, Liu Xieyou and Wusun "Mad King" fell out of harmony, and they conspired with two Han Dynasty emissaries to assassinate their husbands.
After the defeat, Emperor Xuan of Han killed two envoys of the Han Dynasty, but Liu Xieyou was safe and sound, because she was a princess of the Han Dynasty, and no one could do anything to her, and Liu Xieyou finally returned to his hometown smoothly.
Zhaojun's departure was tragic for Wang Zhaojun personally, but it was not humiliating for the Han Dynasty.
During the Han and Yuan Dynasties, natural disasters such as earthquakes and droughts occurred frequently, and the state had to quell the Rebellion of the Qiang Nationality in Longxi from time to time, the Zhuya Rebellion in Hainan, and the living conditions of the Tun army and the people on the border of the state were very difficult.
Emperor Xuan of Han's chancellor Xiao Wangzhi once mentioned that after military operations, disasters are bound to occur. Because you can't farm when you're fighting. Coupled with the incompetence of the county magistrates and feudal administrators, local customs were corrupt.
For example, in the year 65 BC alone, there were more than two hundred incidents of brothers killing brothers and wives killing husbands on the northern border. If you want to recruit, such a person is overwhelmed. Therefore, Emperor Xuan of Han and Emperor Yuan of Han were absolutely unwilling to send troops to fight until they had no choice.
Now that Hu Han was willing to "make peace", Emperor Yuan of Han was happy to let the semi-Han Southern Xiongnu defend the frontier for him.
epilogue
The territory of the Xiongnu was very large, and although Emperor Wudi of the Han Dynasty feared them, after the deaths of Wei Qing and Huo Fu, they slowly revived. They entered the "Five Singles In The Era" around 57 BC and made a pot of porridge themselves.
However, for the Han Dynasty, the Xiongnu after entering the division between the north and the south were only a "hidden danger" at that time.
Because the target of the Northern Xiongnu's war has always been the Southern Xiongnu and small countries such as Wusun and Kangju.
The only "offense" to the Han Dynasty was to kill Gu Ji, and from then on, Zhi Zhidan was afraid of being "assassinated" by the Han envoys and never dared to see the Han envoys again.
After the Northern Xiongnu were destroyed, the Southern Xiongnu Huhan Evil was already very powerful.
The Southern Xiongnu who called han evil had a higher degree of sinicization, and he was willing to reconcile with the Han Dynasty and took the initiative to ask to be the son-in-law of the Han Dynasty, and the Han Dynasty was not originally a warlike country, so he agreed to this time and kissed, and then there was the story of Zhaojun's departure.