Liu Qi, one of the founders of the reign of Wenjing, loved the people, encouraged nongsang, reduced the burden on the people, and reduced the punishment, effectively developing the economy of the Han Dynasty and stabilizing the society. In particular, he himself has a humble personality, leads by example, and gradually improves the social atmosphere, making him a rare lord of prosperity in Chinese history. But even such a nearly perfect emperor also has a violent and cruel side.
During the reign of Emperor Jingdi of Han, the biggest event was the famous Rebellion of the Seven Kingdoms in history. Liu Hao, the King of Wu, had been plotting for more than forty years to seize the throne. He made money privately, gathered strength, and recruited fugitives. Therefore, in order to consolidate his rule, Emperor Jing of Han decided to cut down the domain.
Liu Qi listened to Chao's advice and decided to deprive Liu Hao of the huijian and yuzhang counties. Unwilling to sit still, Liu Hao rebelled and united the other six princes to rebel in the name of killing Chao.
For a time, the whole country was in chaos, and in order to protect national security and quell the rebellion, Liu Qi issued a decree to summon Chao Wrong. Poor Chao mistakenly worried about the Liu family day and night, and finally was beheaded by Liu Qi, and the whole family also suffered.
Zhou Yafu was a hero in quelling the Rebellion of the Seven Kingdoms, but he was also killed by Liu Qi. Liu Qi deposed the crown prince Liu Rong and made Liu Che crown prince, and Zhou Yafu seriously opposed it, which made Liu Qi very unhappy. He began to alienate Zhou Yafu, and took the opportunity to cut off his official position and go to prison. A generation of famous generals, who did not eat for five days, vomited blood and died.
Liu Qi was accustomed to crossing rivers and demolishing bridges, even those who had meritorious service to him.
Crown Prince Liu Rong was thrown into prison by him, Prince Tangtang was imprisoned, humiliated, only a little more than a year away from being deposed, and finally committed suicide with hatred, and Liu Qi did not react at all.
When Liu Qi's tomb was excavated in later generations, it was estimated that as many as 10,000 people were martyred. After his death, he did not call the Zongli Temple like Liu Bang and Liu Heng, and there was no place for him in the Seven Systems of Han titles spoken of by posterity. This may be related to his hypocrisy and meanness, which caused the minister to feel cold.