In China's costume dramas, there will always be two major treasures,
One is the Shang Fang Sword, which can behead the Emperor and kill the traitors; the other is the death-free gold medal that can be saved from death when committing a heinous crime.
For example, in the previous classic TV series "Bao Qingtian", there will always be a scene of the emperor's relatives being sent to the guillotine, these prisoners will stretch their necks and shout how honorable their identity is, and it is not Bao Zheng's turn to dispose of him, at this time, the Shangfang sword will always shine on the scene, and the criminal will immediately fall to the ground. There is also the death-free gold medal that the two Gege in "Huan Zhu Ge Ge" painstakingly wanted to get, which is also a treasure that can withstand all crimes.
Does the Shang Fang Sword really have such great power? Can the gold medal really avoid death?
Can the Shang Fang Sword really kill traitors and eliminate villains?
Appeared in the TV series
"Shang Fang Sword"
, in fact, is not a special noun, among them
"Shang fang"
In fact, it is an ancient official signature, this institution specializes in manufacturing and supplying utensils used by the emperor, and the Shangfang Sword is also made by this institution. However, this sword can only be used by the emperor, so the sword has actually become a symbol of imperial power since its birth. Although this kind of sword was already available in the Qin Dynasty, it was not more prestigious until the Han Dynasty. It is recorded in the Book of Han,
When Emperor Hancheng was emperor, there was a minister named Zhang Yu, who was extremely favored by the emperor and was arrogant and extravagant in the folk, with his private life and extravagance.
A courtier named Zhu Yun, who was outspoken because he was not accustomed to the style of the chancellor, asked the emperor to give him permission
"Shang Fang Chopper Sword"
, killing courtiers in the imperial court, such as Zhang Yu, the chancellor. His remarks actually angered Emperor Hancheng, a small slanderer, who dared to slander the prime minister above the court, which was simply an unforgivable crime. This too
"Shang Fang Sword"
It first appeared in the history books. But before the Song Dynasty, the term Shangfang Sword was not widely used, and this sword was completely unfit for the task of exercising power on behalf of the emperor.
If before the Song Dynasty, anyone who took out a Shangfang sword and said that he wanted to replace The Way of Heaven, it was completely made up by the screenwriter.
Then this kind of like the emperor himself came
What role did it play in the Song Dynasty? It is recorded in the Song Book of Wujing That
The Song Dynasty had such a system, whenever a general went on a campaign, the emperor would give the imperial sword to accompany him, and if anyone violated the military order, he could use this sword to kill him.
For example, in 974 AD, Song Taizu gave the general Cao Bin a sword at the send-off banquet for the Southern Tang Dynasty, this sword can have the right to cut first and play later, and 100,000 troops must also be transferred by Cao Bin, but this does not mean that he can kill the soldiers at will, the scope of the sword is limited, he only has the power to dispose of
"Vice Admiral below"
soldier. From this point of view, the TV series
"If you come in person, you will kill in violation of the law"
, there is still a certain element of fiction.
The Shangfang Sword of the Yuan Dynasty also still exists, but during this period
It was only a symbol of honor bestowed on the hundred officials by the imperial court, because the sword was completely dispensed with
"Cut first, play later"
Rights. Until the Ming Dynasty, the right of shangfang sword was truly perfected. Moreover, it is recorded in detail in the History of Ming:
"Give shang fang sword, and reward it with cheapness." ...... Supervisors and vice generals below, all are engaged in Shang Fangjian"
The Ming Dynasty poet also wrote
"Seal the sword of Shang Fang first, and curse adultery according to the law"
Such a verse is enough to see that the rights exercised by the Ming Dynasty Shang Fangjian are truly implemented.
The Shang Fang Sword of this period was never a decoration. Especially in the last years of the Ming Dynasty, due to the frequent wars at that time, many generals were given the Shang Fang Sword in the process of carrying out military orders.
The most famous is that Yuan Chonghuan killed Mao Wenlong.
This incident occurred in May of the second year of Chongzhen, when Yuan Chonghuan, who was only a Zhengerpin official at the time, went to meet Mao Wenlong, a member of the Zhengyipin commander, on the pretext of a military parade. In terms of rank alone, Mao Wenlong's position was naturally higher than that of Yuan Chonghuan, but Yuan Chonghuan beheaded Mao Wenlong with the Shangfang Sword on 12 counts, which shows the great power of the Shangfang Sword.
The last feudal dynasty in China was the Qing Dynasty, a period of autocratic imperial power that reached its peak for thousands of years. In order to ensure the absoluteness of imperial power, all military and political matters are judged by the emperor himself, and outsiders are even less likely to intervene. However, because of this situation, the Shangfang Sword, which played a decentralization role to a certain extent during the Ming Dynasty, was completely non-existent in the Qing Dynasty.
However, in some film and television dramas related to the Qing Dynasty, there are often storylines of Shangfang Sword, which are completely fabricated and do not conform to historical reality.
Therefore, although the Shang fang sword has appeared for a long time, it really has the authority to cut first and then do the authority,
It was limited to the two periods of the Song and Ming Dynasties, and the scope of use was also limited,
It is not like the film and television drama, you can put aside the identity class and kill corrupt officials and adulterers at will. Moreover, this kind of sword is generally given to the minister who holds military power, which is used to mobilize the army and issue military orders.
Deathless gold medals do not necessarily "avoid death"
After learning the real thing
Let's talk about another treasure in the costume drama
"Deathless Gold Medal"
。 In fact, the death-free gold medal often mentioned in TV dramas is really named in the history books
"Danshu Iron Coupon"
。 Like the Shang Fang Sword, the Danshu Iron Coupon first appeared in the Han Dynasty, and its earliest use was used by Han Gaozu to honor meritorious heroes. At that time, in order to prevent this
"Iron Coupons"
It is imitated and kept very strictly. It is recorded in the Book of Han:
"Danshu Tieqi, golden stone chamber, hidden Jongmyo Temple",
This sentence shows that this iron coupon is divided into two parts, one part is specially kept by the imperial court, and the other part is kept by the princes and heroes. Since this object is so precious, does it really have a death-free function?
This also starts from the content of the Danshu iron coupon, the Han Dynasty rewards the meritorious Danshu iron coupon, a total of 17 words are written:
"Make the Yellow River like a belt, Taishan like a strong belt, the country to live forever, and the Miao people." ，
In fact, this sentence only shows the close relationship between the imperial court and the princes, as well as the contract between the monarch and the subject, so this period
, and does not have the often mentioned in film and television dramas
"Avoid Death"
function. However, during the Southern and Northern Dynasties, this kind of contract iron coupon gradually became available
Significant features. It is recorded in the Northern History that Emperor Wen of Northern Zhou was saved by the general Li Muxiang, so he:
"Special gift of Li Mu iron coupons, forgive ten deaths"
This is the earliest iron coupon with a death-free function in history, but only those who have made great achievements can get it.
The only pity is that the Danshu iron coupons before the Tang Dynasty have not been unearthed so far, and the earliest surviving iron coupons are the iron coupons given to the king of Pengcheng County during the Tang Dynasty, which are now in the Collection of Chinese History Museum.
There are 333 words on the iron coupon, the most important of which is that the king of the county can be exempted from the death penalty nine times, and his descendants can be exempted from the death penalty three times, which can be ignored if the family violates the general law.
From this point of view, Danshu iron coupons
The function was implemented in this period.
During the Song Dynasty, there was indeed a system of Danshu iron coupons, but it did not have the role of a god. This is related to the official system of the Song Dynasty itself, the Song Dynasty had a decree that the literati were not killed, and the military generals were also forgiving, so the officials living in the Song Dynasty were rarely sentenced to death, so these so-called death-free gold medals were of little use. After the founding of the Yuan Dynasty, it has always followed the system of Danshu iron coupons of the Central Plains Dynasty.
However, when it comes to the dynasty with the most perfect iron coupon system, it is definitely the Ming Dynasty; however, this dynasty is also the dynasty that has the most role in breaking the original role of this "death-free gold medal".
After Zhu Yuanzhang ascended the throne, he specially standardized the object of the issuance of Danshu iron coupons, clearly formulated the scope of iron coupons exempted from punishment, and when issuing iron coupons to these ministers, they should also be formulated according to the level of their positions. The contents of each iron coupon are also written in great detail, and the iron coupon should record the name, official position, and the great achievements they had established, as well as the privileges granted to them by the emperor.
However, the iron coupons of the Ming Dynasty were not a single function of avoiding death, and there were provisions in the iron coupons that this privilege could not be exempted from the death penalty for treason, and the number of times it was exempted from the death penalty was limited, and it was exempted once less than once, and other descendants related to this official could not exercise the privilege of avoiding death of the Danshu iron coupon.
Although the Ming Dynasty's Danshu iron coupon system seemed so complete and at the same time had an actual death-free function, the ministers who had been rewarded by the emperor with Danshu iron coupons finally let history tell them that this death-free gold medal did not work at all. When the emperor wanted to kill a minister, he could definitely find a thousand reasons, especially those like Zhu Yuanzhang who was narrow-minded and jealous, and those who had made great achievements in battle and obtained the Danshu iron coupon were almost all executed by him.
For example, Li Shanchang, a strategist who followed Zhu Yuanzhang in the southern expedition to the north and sought for him to win the Jiangshan, did not suffer the disaster of annihilation after obtaining the Danshu iron coupon.
It is said to be a gold medal to avoid death, but in fact, it is just a product of the imperial power that the emperor used to consolidate his rule.
In the Qing Dynasty, the Danshu iron coupon completely disappeared, whether it was the "Qing History Draft" or the excavated cultural relics, it was no longer seen in the special used by the former Central Plains Dynasty
。 Therefore, the gold medal mentioned in "Huan Zhu Ge Ge", or the gold medal of some ministers in the film and television drama hanging on their waists and engraved with the word "avoid death", are actually invented by posterity.
In the Qing Dynasty, there was neither the Shangfang Sword, nor the Danshu Iron Coupon, but when the novels and film and television dramas were created, in order to promote the development of the storyline, they would always deliberately emphasize these two treasures, but they did not know that they revealed things that did not exist in real history. The sword of Shangfang in the past has long disappeared into the clouds of history; the Danshu iron coupon, which is said to be able to avoid death, has also become a museum object. They often appear in film and television dramas, but they are always used in the wrong place, I wonder how the ancients would feel when they saw this kind of mistake?
Resources:
"Continued Zizhi Tongjian"
Notes on the General Outline of the Martial Arts
"What is the Ming Dynasty Shangfang Sword System"
"Did Ancient China Have the Sword of Shangfang"
"The Gold Medal of Deathlessness"