The "Seven Absolutes" once said: "The sword and crossbow are fierce, and the compatriots turn their eyes on the imperial power." "In the early days of the Tang Dynasty, the change of Xuanwu Gate broke out, the imperial throne changed hands, and Tang Taizong created the Zhenguan Dynasty. Although the reign of Emperor Taizong was prosperous, the threat of Gaozu was everywhere.
Looking at the history of China's ancient social development, it will be found that although the emperor held the supreme power of the state, the life of the imperial family was chaotic, after all, everyone was eager for power, and in order to compete for imperial power, it was very common for royal brothers to fight for imperial power.
During the Tang Dynasty, Li Yuan's abdication was not voluntary, but was coerced by Li Shimin. For this reason, Li Yuan naturally harbored a grudge against Li Shimin. According to historical records, Li Yuan gave birth to thirty children after his abdication, which caused great turmoil in the imperial family. During the reign of Emperor Taizong of Tang, the thirty children born to Li Yuan after his abdication caused him a headache, but empress Wu Zetian's ascension to the throne succeeded in solving this problem. Why was Li Yuan able to give birth to thirty children after his abdication? How did Empress Wu Zetian solve this problem?
In the early days of The Tang Dynasty, the outbreak of the Xuanwumen Revolution caused great turmoil in the rule of the imperial court. By understanding the history of the development of the Tang Dynasty, we will find that when Li Yuan fought the world, Li Shimin's contribution far exceeded that of the crown prince Li Jiancheng, and Li Yuan's ability to smoothly unify the Central Plains was inseparable from Li Shimin's contribution. However, under the influence of the concept of inheritance of the eldest son, Li Yuan insisted on establishing Li Jian as the crown prince, and for Li Shimin, who had distinguished himself, Li Yuan's choice naturally disappointed him.
After being made crown prince, although Li Jiancheng had a high status, he still had a grudge against Li Shimin. In order to completely eliminate the obstacle to his ascension to the throne, the crown prince Li Jiancheng, together with other princes, squeezed Li Shimin everywhere, causing his status to decline repeatedly. Under extreme oppression, Li Shimin could not bear it and decided to launch the Xuanwumen Rebellion.
After the Xuanwumen Rebellion broke out, Li Shimin killed Li Jiancheng and then forced Li Yuan to abdicate. Although Li Shimin's way of ascending to the throne has been criticized by the world, the rule of chastity he pioneered has pushed the level of social development in our country to a new peak and brought a more stable living environment to the people.
As the founding emperor of the Tang Dynasty, Li Yuan, who was forced to abdicate, was naturally unwilling, but forced by Li Shimin's power, Li Yuan had to accept the fact of abdication. After his abdication, Li Yuan did not need to care about the politics of the dynasty, and indulgence became his main way to pass the time. In the process of enjoying himself with his wives and concubines, Li Yuan's wives and concubines gave birth to thirty children in succession, which led to great chaos within the Tang Dynasty royal family.
For Li Shimin, the appearance of these thirty younger siblings posed a great threat to him, although his sister could be used as a tool to enlist the power of the courtiers, but the existence of his younger brother was a great threat to the imperial power. After all, Li Yuan's sons are all of royal blood, and they naturally hold a certain amount of power in their hands.
However, during the Xuanwumen Rebellion, Li Shimin had already killed the crown prince Li Jiancheng, and in order to stabilize the people's hearts, Li Shimin had to treat these younger brothers kindly in order to keep the title of Renjun. Under the connivance of Li Shimin, these younger brothers are extremely arrogant, and no matter where they are, they will become the greatest threat to the people. As a result, Li Shimin had a headache, but there was no suitable way to solve this problem.
Over time, Li Shimin's brothers became the greatest threat to Tang rule, and until Li Shimin's death, a reasonable solution to the matter had not been found. However, the ascension of Emperor Wu Zetian to the throne successfully helped the Tang Dynasty solve this problem. As a former harem talent, Wu Zetian's path to the throne is legendary, although Wu Zetian's ascension to the throne was accompanied by the opposition of many ministers, but his political ability was also recognized by some courtiers.
Under the influence of Wu Zetian's iron fist politics, most of Li Yuan's children died at the hands of Wu Zetian, and all the factors that threatened the central government's rule were effectively eradicated. In the process of eradicating Li Yuan's son, Wu Zetian's descendants were even implicated, but Wu Zetian did not soften his heart, but insisted on excluding dissidents and ensuring the stability of his rule.
After Wu Zetian ascended to the throne, he successfully solved the problem of Li Shimin's lifelong headache and helped the Tang Dynasty to achieve stable development, although Wu Zetian's solution was relatively brutal and cruel, but if it never solved the huge threat of Li Yuan's son, the Tang Dynasty rule would inevitably lead to turmoil and eventually end up in ruins.
epilogue
From Wu Zetian's method of resolving this matter, it can be seen that in the process of ancient social development, in order to maintain the power in his hands, the emperor had to pay a very high price. Perhaps in the eyes of some people, Wu Zetian's behavior was too cruel, but if Wu Zetian did not make such a move, the rule of the central region would be seriously threatened.
It can be seen that everything has advantages and disadvantages, when judging historical figures, we must look at the problem from many aspects, if only a single impression of the historical figures to be judged, the results will be more one-sided, can not help future generations to understand the real historical development background.
Reference: Zizhi Tongjian
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