The "Chronicle of History" records: "Everyone was killed by five punishments for being extremely loyal to Si, and examining his origin is different from the common saying." Li Si was the chancellor of the Qin Dynasty and helped Ying zheng complete the great cause of unifying the six kingdoms, but after Yingzheng died, he conspired with Zhao Gao to force Fu Su to commit suicide, and established Hu Hai as emperor, and finally was framed and killed by Zhao Gao. Li Si's death was a major reason for qin's downfall, and if Li Si could play a restraining role in Zhao Gao, even Zhao Gao's strength alone might not be able to overthrow the Qin Dynasty, and Li Si's killing would completely destroy the already crumbling Qin state.
In history, there are many seeds of the demise of a country or a dynasty because of the death of individuals, some are loyal and patriotic and virtuous ministers, some are eunuchs who form parties and monopolize power, and some are controversial figures. And among these many people, there is a name that many people will not feel unfamiliar with, and this person is Wei Zhongxian, the eunuch of Bingbi, the superintendent of ceremonies during the Ming Dynasty. Wei Zhongxian was a famous traitor in history, but after such a traitor was executed by the emperor, the Ming Dynasty collapsed, and Wang Cheng'en had a very reasonable sentence.
Wei Zhongxian's origin was not a famous scholarly family or a large family, on the contrary, Wei Zhongxian was born into poverty and had little culture. But he could shoot arrows and ride horses, and was addicted to gambling and alcohol, and it was precisely because of his gambling personality that he castrated himself as a eunuch. During the Wanli Dynasty, Wei Zhongxian was selected to enter the palace, and by chance, he met the Wei Dynasty and met the emperor's eldest grandson's nursing mother, keshi. It was also from here that Wei Zhongxian's soaring life had a beginning.
In 1620, Emperor Mingguangzong died, and Emperor Mingxi succeeded Zhu Youxiao, and Wei Zhongxian was deeply loved by Zhu Youxiao, so soon Wei Zhongxian was promoted from the Salary Division to the eunuch of The Ceremony Supervisor Bingbi. Wei Zhongxian was able to become a eunuch of Bingbi, the superintendent of ceremonies, and Keshi had a great merit, because people who could not read according to the law could not serve as eunuchs of Bingbi, the superintendent of ceremonies. Because Keshi was also deeply loved by Zhu Youxiao, and Wei Zhongxian and Keshi were relatively close, Wei Zhongxian was appointed as a eunuch of Si Li Supervisor Bingbi by exception.
Later, Wei Zhongxian monopolized the Keshi, because both Keshi and Wei Zhongxian were deeply trusted by Zhu Youxiao, so he had great power in a very short period of time, but the Keshi yin was vicious and vicious, and Wei Zhongxian was also suspicious and vicious, and was good at flattery. The two quickly cultivated and consolidated their own power, and Wei Zhongxian reached the point where he was above ten thousand people under one person, and was called "Nine Thousand Years Old" by the people of the Court. Because Wei Zhongxian held a high position of power and gained the trust of the emperor, he hardly dared to disobey him, and the History of Ming once recorded: "Do not dare to rebel in the palace."
At this time, Wei Zhongxian can be called to reach the peak of his life, and then because Zhu Youxiao began to gradually tire of political affairs, Wei Zhongxian began to specialize in government affairs, and at this time he could be described as covering the sky with one hand. Then the Donglin party struggle broke out, and Wei Zhongxian used the power he had cultivated before to strike at many dissidents in this party struggle, truly reaching the point where his henchmen were all over the government and the opposition. At this time, the internal and external power was almost concentrated in the hands of Wei Zhongxian, but all this began to change in 1627.
When Emperor Xizong died in 1627 and Zhu Youguan succeeded him as Emperor Mingsizong, the Chongzhen Emperor, Zhu Youjian, unlike Zhu Youxiao, had the same trust in Wei Zhongxian, and as soon as he came to power, he began to fight back against Wei Zhongxian. Under zhu Youjian's gradual blows, Wei Zhongxian was eventually executed for ten major crimes, Keshi was also beheaded by the door, and their henchmen were almost executed. In the end, Wei Zhongxian and all his forces were completely destroyed, and at this time, Zhu Youjian felt more relaxed than ever, and he felt that the future was almost bright.
After eliminating Wei Zhongxian's forces, Zhu Youjian began to rectify the rule of officials, hoping to return the Ming Dynasty to the situation it once was strong through his own efforts. Although Zhu Youjian had ambitions and was constantly trying to change the situation of the late Ming Dynasty, all this was still in vain in the end, not to mention the strong enemies on the outside, and there were constant uprisings inside, and the forces of the uprising were getting bigger and bigger. In 1644, Li Zicheng successfully invaded Beijing, and Zhu Youjian hanged himself in Coal Mountain when he saw that he was unable to return to heaven.
Before Chongzhen hanged himself, he had said to himself that "the ministers had mistakenly degenerated", and after hanging himself, Wang Cheng'en, who followed him, once said, "If the loyalty is there, why is this", and then he also followed Chongzhen to hang himself, and the words before the death of the two inadvertently explained the reason for the fall of the Ming Dynasty. The so-called "mistake of the ministers" is because the Donglin Party members above the government and the opposition, although Chongzhen adopted the method of Zhu Yuanzhang and the scholar masters in the past to rule the world together, he lacked the fierceness and decisiveness that he should have. In addition, the Donglin Party members did not seek their posts in their positions, and they held high positions without worrying about the king.
As for Wei Zhongxian, the reason why he said, "If he is not here," is that although he is vicious and fierce, his viciousness is aimed at hundreds of officials, and he can still treat the people in terms of his attitude towards the people. At the same time, because of the shadow he has created for the hundred officials, to a large extent, it has played a restraining role in various parties and hundred officials. Not only that, he can also bring a lot of economic benefits to the emperor, and in many cases can play a certain role in helping the emperor's decision-making, so Wang Cheng'en will say "he is not here."
Resources:
Historia
History of the Ming Dynasty