He is also a "emperor of the ages" who has performed meritorious deeds, a tough monarch who has made outstanding achievements in resisting foreign aggression, and a ruthless character who started by rebellion to pull down the emperor of the previous dynasty.
Tang Taizong Li Shiming and Ming Chengzu Zhu Di both started with a coup d'état and immediately won the world's strong, but the historical reputation of the two is indeed different. Tang Taizong Li Shimin can be said to be the most powerful king in the history of the dynasty, creating immortal feats in the last years of the Sui Dynasty when the crowds were chasing deer, and then usurping the world in the imperial hidden pain XuanwuMen.
Ming Chengzu Zhu Di created the Yongle prosperous era, leveled the Mongol departments, moved the capital to Beiping, went to the West, passed the canal, and repaired the Yongle canon, which can be said to be wen tao's martial strategy. But similar "work experience", similar "work performance", but two "resumes", why is the evaluation of Li Shimin by later generations in the annals of history, but not so high for Zhu Di?
In fact, looking at the two emperors in the way of selecting and employing people as kings, they made judgments from above and below.
First, the "Heavenly Khan" Li Shimin employs people to absorb hundreds of rivers and swallow the world
Great politicians must have great minds and ideals. If we want to realize our great ideals, we must bow down to ourselves and embrace all kinds of rivers. Twist the most important internal political resources - talents into a single force, form a joint force to break through the ten thousand momentum. First of all, we need to be humble and consultative, take people as a mirror, and reflect on ourselves at all times.
Tang Taizong Li Shimin had one of the most famous mirrors in history - "Wei Zheng".
Wei Zheng was originally a prince of the crown prince Li Jiancheng, and after the change of Xuanwu Gate, Li Shimin spared Wei Zhengzhi for his own use. Wei Zheng was just right and devoted to public service, and said that he did not rub sand in his eyes. Li Shimin was also a powerful monarch, but in order to attract talents, in front of Wei Zheng, he could only rub sand in his eyes, but this kneading had been rubbed for decades.
Let's take an example: In the spring of the third year of Zhenguan, when the world was initially decided, and the countries of the Western Regions wanted to enter the dynasty to pay tribute, Li Shimin felt that this was a good thing to show the prosperity of Zhenguan, so he wanted to carry out a welcome ceremony. However, Wei Zheng strongly opposed this and bravely spoke up. Wei Zheng said to the effect: "The country has been in turmoil for many years, and the war has just been peaceful, at this time, we should cultivate our voices, waste less resources on these things that are ushered in, and let the people live a stable life." The meaning is actually very simple: "Leader, it is best to be less hesitant at this time!" ", it is very difficult for Li Shimin to get off the stage.
Such a blunt rebuke, didn't the emperor make a fuss or be angry? No, it was because the emperor's cultivation did not allow Li Shimin to be too angry. "Taking people as a mirror can be dressed in the right clothes, and history as a mirror can be replaced by Ming Xing." Li Shimin is such an advocate and practitioner, and it is precisely this way of employing people that can make Zhenguan a truly prosperous world, to realize his ideals, and to become the "first emperor of the ages".
For another example, with the prosperity of Zhenguan becoming a full-fledged trend, the courtiers and the public ministers hoped that the emperor would hold a ceremony of sealing Zen, which was also a great thing for an emperor to enter the annals of history and carry forward his deeds. Wei Zheng stood up against it again, and Li Shimin asked three times in a row: "Is it because my merits are not enough?" Or is the practice of kindness and virtue not enough? Or is the world not at peace now? Why can't you seal Zen!
Wei Zheng said in one sentence: "Enough, but not perfect!" ”。 In the end, Li Shimin had to give up the Sealing Zen Ceremony.
Li Shimin was a person with a very good face, but he was able to stop at the right time, and in time stopped the idea of sealing Zen Songde, which fully showed his importance to the direct subjects, the able ministers, and the true ministers.
Throughout the Zhenguan Dynasty, Wei Zheng advised hundreds of times, and was known as the "first small steel cannon of the Tang Dynasty".
For example, once Wei Zheng learned that the Western Regions had paid tribute to Li Shimin with a sparrowhawk, he immediately took the emperor of the world and loved things and played with them every day. Wei Zheng was afraid that the emperor's playthings would lose their minds and open up the wind of ruining the dynasty, so he specially took advantage of Li Shimin's playing with birds to report on the work, Li Shimin heard that Wei Zheng came and quickly hid the bird in his arms, Wei Zheng deliberately delayed the time and did not go, it was endless, Li Shimin did not dare to move and could only listen to him patiently. As a result, Wei Zheng was gone, and the bird was also covered to death. This is the famous "bird life" incident during the Zhenguan period.
Since then, there has been a saying that "Li Shimin is afraid of Wei Zheng" in later generations.
But at the end of the Sui Dynasty, after chasing deer and riding iron horses to conquer the world, would Li Shimin, the "Heavenly Khan" of the Pacific Turks and dingxi regions, be afraid of his courtiers? Obviously not, this kind of "fear" is the emperor's mental pattern. The way to employ people should be to be a hundred rivers, bowing down to the flow of advice, in order to be able to appoint people on merit.
It is this kind of "fear" that has created the prosperity of zhenguan in the east at sunrise, created the reputation of the heavenly khan of the wanbang dynasty, and laid a solid foundation for China to be in the center of the world stage.
Second, Ming Chengzu Zhu Di was a king who was fond of killing old subjects and was suspicious by nature
Pattern this kind of thing deeply affects a person's character and behavior, the pattern is sometimes not born alone, and family background, family inheritance are inextricably linked.
Li Yuan, the founding emperor of the Tang Dynasty, was born in the Wang clan of Longzhong, and was the third duke of the Lei Dynasty. Ming Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang beat up small cattle, grew up to ask for food, and later when the monks were barely mixed into the "system", they were hungry and could only be forced to rebel. It can be said that the family style of the old Zhu family is still slightly narrower than that of the old Li family, which is also deeply reflected in the descendants of the family in employing people for the king.
After the Ming Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang won the world, he killed the heroes, and it was difficult for his son Zhu Biao to inherit the unification, but the good times were not long, and he immediately died. Emperor Jianwen was cowardly but also suspicious by nature, but the strategy of cutting down the clan was sold to Zhu Di, the King of Yan, who was well versed in the art of war and was brave and good at war.
Even so, Emperor Jianwen said to the generals, "Never hurt my uncle and let me bear the insult of uncle forever." As a result, the King of Yan charged forward again and again in the civil war to seize the throne, and the hopeless were overwhelmed, and finally seized the great unity in his arms. To sum up in one sentence - with proof, it is good to make!
It can be seen how cruel the benevolence on the battlefield is to oneself! The "death-free gold medal" issued to Zhu Di by Emperor Jianwen personally buried his own emperor's fate.
At the same time, Zhu Di, the King of Yan, was also a good actor, and he was not prepared in the early stage of the army, while drawing together the old department, secretly contacting the troops, recruiting dead soldiers to build ordnance in the backyard of the palace, training soldiers and horses, and plotting rebellion. On the one hand, he or Yu Jia's family was wearing a shawl, pretending to be crazy and selling stupidity, or rolling in the street, self-harming and self-insulting, it is said that in order to convince the people sent by Emperor Jianwen to investigate that he was really crazy, he also jumped over the dung heap.
Yao Guangxiao, the chief strategist of the King of Yan, came to visit the King of Yan at home, and the King of Yan also showed him in a state of madness, and Yao Guangxiao restored the King of Yan to normal with a single word, and immediately and immediately rebelled. This sentence is plainly: "Leader, if you want to do this again, I will not play with you." ”
It can be seen that those who can achieve great things are cruel people.
Although such a ruthless man has won the throne, the improper acquisition of the throne and the suspicious nature have caused a quick way of employing people after killing. After the Jingnan Rebellion, the old ministers of the Jianwen Dynasty were purged bloodily. Although it is a helpless move to stabilize the super situation, the means are somewhat too cruel.
To take a typical example: Tie Xuan, the Bingbu Shangshu of the Jianwen Dynasty, gang yong and unyielding in the jing dynasty, led the old department to defend Jinan, Zhu Di could not attack for a long time, and could only dig up the Yellow River and divert water into the city of Jinan. After this battle, Tie Xuan was captured, and when he met Zhu Di, he vowed not to kneel, and the scolding was incessant. At that time, the angry Yan king Zhu Di ordered people to cut off his ears and nose, steam them and stuff them into Tie Xuan's mouth, and asked him what it tasted like. Tie Xuanning was unyielding and said sharply, "The meat of the loyal minister is delicious!"
Then Zhu Di ordered people to kill Tie Xuan Ling, so Zhu Di did not stop, ordered people to bring an oil pot to throw Tie Xuan's bones into it, at that time there was a eunuch who wanted to make the iron Xuan bones in the oil pot turn around, but they were splashed by the hot oil splashing from the oil pot, and the skeleton of Tie Xuan was always standing, showing its integrity.
Such a loyal and upright person as Tie Xuan, if he can be patient and carefully appeased, he will surely become a minister of the humerus of the dynasty. However, Zhu Di slaughtered him in public with extremely cruel means for the sake of face, which is the fundamental difference between Zhu Di and Li Shimin.
Another example: Jianwen Dynasty Rebbe Shangshu Chen Di, after the Jing Dynasty, Zhu Di let him submit, and his justice was awe-inspiring and categorically refused. He also reprimanded Zhu Di for betraying his ancestors, bullying his juniors, and seeking power and usurping the throne, which was really unkind, unjust, unfaithful, and filial piety. The enraged King of Yan sentenced Chen Di to Ling Chi at the same time as his six sons, and the female relatives were given a teaching hall for fun.
The disaster is not enough for the family, and killing Chen Di and all his sons is already cutting the grass and rooting out the roots. However, in order to establish his prestige, Zhu Di also wanted to beat his female dependents into a situation of no return, which was sad and lamentable!
Later, Zhu Di repeatedly suspected that Emperor Jianwen was still in the human world, and ordered Zheng He to go to the West and find his traces by the way. It can be seen that the Yongle Emperor's means are fierce, and everything is done for the sake of the big position. Therefore, even if the merit is high, such a way of employing people will still be criticized by future generations.
brief summary:
In general, the two monarchs were strong, the wenzhi martial arts were all outstanding, and one created the most brilliant and splendid civilization in ancient China, Zhenguan, forged the Silk Road that flowed for thousands of generations, and laid the benchmark for the prosperous history of ancient China.
A precedent that obviously changed the historical path of the Ming Dynasty and created a precedent for Tianzi to guard the gate of the country, its tenacious and fierce style greatly weakened the invasion of the Central Plains Dynasty by the Mongol barbarians, and wrote the most glorious prosperity of the Ming Dynasty - Yongle.
But one of them, in the morning bell and twilight drum of Zhenguan, overlooking the land of China, overlooking the countries of the western region, the world is at peace, and all the nations are coming to the dynasty, can proudly say to the late emperor: "This life is worthy of Huaxia"!
The other one, inside the palace walls where the sun was shining like blood, seemed to be everywhere to see the figure of his father Wei An, the gloomy eyes of his nephew, and the sharp questioning of the former courtiers echoing in his ears. Jinling is not warm, only to move the capital to Beiping, return! Return! The Son of Heaven guarded the gate of the country, and a long sigh was annihilated in the long river of history.
References: History of the Ming Dynasty, Three Hundred Years of the Rise and Fall of the Tang Dynasty
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