As a great hero who made many military achievements for the establishment of the Han Dynasty, Han Xin finally ended up being killed and destroyed by the three tribes. As he was dying, he lamented that he regretted not having followed Pu Tong's plan earlier. When he had some power, He advised him to rebel and stand on his own, but many suggestions were rejected by Han Xin. In fact, it was not that Han Xin did not want to establish himself as a separatist force, but that he could not do so.
One reason is that Liu Bang has the grace of knowing him, and Han Xin can have a number of people and horses, which is attributed to liu Bang's attention to him, and his power is granted by Liu Bang. Morally speaking, receiving a reward from Liu Bang, but betraying Liu Bang in turn, such an act would undoubtedly make Han Xin a treacherous person. In order to protect his reputation, Han Xin would naturally reject Pu Tong's suggestion. Another reason is that Han Xin's soldiers and horses seem to be many, but its military power is in the hands of Liu Bang. If Liu Bang took back his military power, it would naturally be difficult for him to carry out a rebellion, which would undoubtedly make him killed earlier.
Another point is that the generals under Han Xin were loyal to Liu Bang, and although Liu Bang handed over military power to Han Xin, in order to contain him, he arranged those major positions to his own cronies. In fact, Han Xin was more like an empty general, even if he chose to rebel, the result would be the same as Xiang Yu, no one supported him, and he would eventually be defeated by Liu Bang. Judging from these circumstances, Han Xin regretted that he had not been able to see the true face of Liu Bang earlier.
Powerful heroes like him may have ended similarly in other dynasties, and rulers would not allow these people to become hidden dangers that threatened the stability of their regimes. Perhaps if Han Xin chose to retire after the establishment of the Han Dynasty, he would not be able to invite the disaster of killing himself. Liu Bang did not even spare those subordinates who revolted with him, not to mention Han Xin, who later defected to him. From another point of view, Han Xin's actual power was not as good as that of Yingbu and Peng Yue, and when the two of them defected to Liu Bang, they still retained their original forces, choosing to rebel and at least some of the troops supporting them. The killing of Han Xin also illustrates a common feature of the founding emperors of ancient times, and for those who have made great merits, even if they are loyal to themselves, the rulers will not take them lightly. No matter how much trusted people are, they will not care about love in the face of power.
Like Zhong Hui in the Three Kingdoms period, he followed Jiang Wei's advice and chose to establish himself as king, he had some troops, but the result was still to be killed. At that time, he also occupied the geographical defense advantage of Shudi, and if Han Xin rebelled, he obviously did not have much advantage. A dishonest person, his subordinates naturally rarely choose to firmly side with him. Liu Bang's ability to become a leader is inseparable from the common recognition of his subordinates. Perhaps Liu Bang was also very strategic in the use of people, and a general like Han Xin, who was easy to accumulate prestige, replaced his subordinates with his own cronies. The important composition of Han Xin's troops was also drawn from the army loyal to him, so as to ensure that Han Xin's choice of rebellion would not pose much of a threat to him.
Therefore, whether Han Xin chooses to rebel or not cannot change his final outcome. Unless he did not participate in the uprising at the beginning, he waited until the establishment of the Han Dynasty, and then he found an official and a half-position. Or keep a low profile during the Eastern Expedition and the Western War, and give the main battle achievements to Liu Bang, so that Liu Bang may not deliberately guard against him. However, in comparison, choosing to retire is more effective in avoiding the front, and it is also the best choice for those generals who have established great achievements in ancient times.