In November of the third year of Ming Hongwu (1370 AD), Ming Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang was a great feudal emperor of wen and martial arts, and the first to be crowned were six dukes, twenty-eight marquises and two counts.
There is no doubt that these people have made great contributions to the opening of the Ming Dynasty.
In this award, it was surprising that Tang He, a general who was extremely close to Zhu Yuanzhang and the most senior in the army, could not be made a duke, but only a marquis.
Although Tang He ranked first in the list of marquises, he still wronged the founding father.
Who is Tang He? He was Zhu Yuanzhang's compatriot and young man, and he joined the peasant rebel army earlier than Zhu Yuanzhang, and it was he who summoned Zhu Yuanzhang into the ranks of the peasant rebel army.
It can be said that Tang He was the introducer and leader of Zhu Yuanzhang's revolution.
In addition, at the beginning of Zhu Yuanzhang's independent leadership of the first army, when the prestige was insufficient, it was Tang He who first set an example and submitted to Zhu Yuanzhang.
As for the battle achievements, it goes without saying that the merits are innumerable.
In terms of revolutionary qualifications alone, none of the six dukes who were crowned by Hongwu in his three years could match Tang He.
For example, Xu Da, he was still invited by Zhu Yuanzhang to join the peasant rebel army after Zhu Yuanzhang was invited by Tang Hezhi to join the revolutionary army.
Obviously, Tang He's title was deliberately lowered by Zhu Yuanzhang.
As for the reason, it is recorded in the Ming Shi Tang He Biography:
And Shen Min has many wisdoms, and has been quite drunk. When guarding Changzhou, he tried to ask Taizu for something, but he was not allowed to get drunk and complained: "If I sit on the roof of this city in my town, the left is left, and the right is right." Taizu sniffed it. The Pingzhongyuan Division also discussed the merits, and sent Chen Youding to the remnants of the Eight Counties during the conquest of Fujian, and the division was returned, which was attacked by the Thieves of Xiulan Mountain, and lost the second command, so it was not allowed to be crowned a duke.
One was that Tang He had complained when he was defending Changzhou, and the other was that he had been carelessly taken advantage of by the enemy during the battle, resulting in the death of two generals.
Among them, the grumbling words made when he was in Changzhou have always been firmly remembered by Zhu Yuanzhang.
In the tenth year of Hongwu (1377 AD, recorded as the eleventh year of Hongwu in the Biography of Tang He of Mingshi, the time is slightly disputed), when Zhu Yuanzhang gave Tang He the title of knight, he also warned Tang He in this way, and the Biography of Tang He of Ming Shi records:
Its letter guo gong also counted its Changzhou time negligence, engraved coupons.
However, Zhu Yuanzhang only did not give Tang he the title of duke, or it is more confusing, is this the real reason?
First of all, the generals in the army are all big bosses, and it is absolutely normal for them to complain when they are unhappy, and Zhu Yuanzhang will not be so careful.
Secondly, with regard to the defeat of the battle, it is also unrealistic to ask the generals to win every battle, or not to make a mistake, and no one dares to guarantee this.
Take Feng Sheng, who was made the Duke of Song in the third year of Hongwu's reign, for example, he often made mistakes and disobeyed military orders many times, as recorded in the Biography of Feng Sheng of the Ming Dynasty:
Gao Youshou surrendered fraudulently, and Sheng Ling commanded hundreds of Kang Taishuai to enter the city first, and the enemy killed them behind closed doors. Taizu was furious, summoned the Great Staff Ten, and made bu Yi Gaoyou... In the first year of Hongwu's reign, he was also the Crown Prince's Right Zhan Shi. Sit on the small law to degrade an official... In September (Hongwu II), the emperor summoned the general to return and ordered him to garrison Qingyang and restrain the armies. Victory was established in GuanShan, and the troops were returned. The emperor is angry, and he is severely responsible. Remember his great deeds, forgive and do not cure.
However, Zhu Yuanzhang did not lower Feng Sheng's title because of this, and he should give it or give it.
Moreover, before Tang He was later made the title of duke, Tang He continued to make mistakes, as recorded in the Biography of Ming Shi Tang He:
(Hongwu four years) Cut Shu back, (Zhu Yuanzhang) counted his teasing sins... (Hongwu five years) next year from the general Northern Expedition, encountered the enemy at the Broken Head Mountain, defeated, killed a command, the emperor did not ask.
Leading a large army in Shudi, tang he was still the same tang he, but Zhu Yuanzhang still promoted his title.
Therefore, Tang He's failure to be made duke in the third year of Hongwu, complaining and losing the battle, is the reason, but not the absolute reason.
In the "Biography of Ming Shi Tang He", it seems that the reason for Tang He's failure to be made a duke in the third year of Hongwu is clearly remembered, but in fact, the deeper reasons are not revealed.
So, why did Zhu Yuanzhang lower Tang He's title at that time?
According to my judgment, it is estimated that Zhu Yuanzhang wanted to suppress Tang He's title to deter the rest of the merits enough, but failed to be crowned dukes of the marquises.
When Hongwu was in his third year, there were still twenty-seven marquises alongside Tang He, many of whom were self-sustaining and untamed.
These people may not be satisfied with the title, if someone makes a fuss and shouts that the title is low, what will Zhu Yuanzhang do?
This has only just been founded, and it is impossible to punish the heroes for this, and we cannot let them make a fuss.
This situation occurred at the beginning of the founding of the People's Republic of China, when the title was awarded, and the founding great man once said: "The boy has tears and does not flick, but it is not yet the time to award the title."
The founding fathers of the early Ming Dynasty were no more enlightened than the founding generals of New China, so it is worth studying to satisfy everyone.
Therefore, after careful consideration, Zhu Yuanzhang borrowed Tang He's mistakes and deliberately lowered Tang He's title, and only gave him the title of Marquis.
Tang He could only be enfeoffed, and the generals behind him could only put an end to the banner no matter how dissatisfied they were, no matter how they maintained their own merits, they could not get around Tang He, right?
This is the method that Zhu Yuanzhang came up with when he grievanced Tang He and came up with the "One Hou Zhen Qun Hou".
Readers who are familiar with the matter of our army's first award of titles should be familiar with this.
When the title was awarded in 1955, the general who ranked first in the general ranking and the general who ranked first in the general had a similar role in it.
Pressing a tang he and solving the complaints of all the founders is a big game of chess under Zhu Yuanzhang.
As for Tang He, if he is clever, he should know that this is Zhu Yuanzhang's practice of regarding him as a concubine and a close confidant, and sooner or later he will be compensated for his grievances.
Or take Feng Sheng as an example, he made more mistakes than Tang He, but why didn't Zhu Yuanzhang lower his title?
The reason is very simple, Feng Sheng is not a concubine of Zhu Yuanzhang when he started his family, the relationship is not as close as Zhu Yuanzhang and Tang He, and Zhu Yuanzhang cannot grievance Feng Sheng.
The endings of Feng Sheng and Tang He were vastly different, and Tang He was not only made up for the title of duke, but also died well, and Feng Sheng was given death by Zhu Yuanzhang.
To sum up, when Hongwu was in his third year, Tang He was not knighted as a duke, not because he was not senior enough, nor because he had complained and lost battles, these were just excuses.
Perhaps the main reason was that Zhu Yuanzhang wanted to borrow his trusted general Tang He to quell the clamor that might occur when he was knighted, "unfair and low in title".
Tang He's momentary grievances were exchanged for lifelong peace and no loss.
Reference: "Myo history"