At the end of the Three Kingdoms period, Sima Zhao, in order to step up the usurpation of the throne, launched a war to destroy Shu with the strength of the whole country. At this time, the kings and subjects within the Shu state were discordant, and the soldiers were either too new or too old. The Wei army, with the help of the Shu surrender faction and the leading party, successfully captured the three counties of Hanzhong, Yinping, and Wudu at the gateway of Yizhou, and Jiang Wei was forced to retreat to The Sword Pavilion.
Sword Pavilion
The Sword Pavilion is dangerous, and no one can cross it. But Deng Ai was very bold, and sent a surprise soldier from the cliff of Wanzhang to Chengdu. Seeing that the soldiers were approaching the city, the kings and princes in Chengdu did not want to resist, either wanted to vote for Wu or go south.
At this moment, a person stood up, his surname was Zhou, the word Yunnan, born in Yizhou, simple appearance (to put it nicely, in fact, it is ugly), ugly, not trim. This led to the fact that when Zhou Zhou saw Zhuge Liang, Zhuge Liang's men all felt that this person was very funny, and they couldn't help but want to laugh, even Zhuge Liang himself could not be exempted. It can be seen that this circumference should look like a modern comedy star, ugly and cute.
Tan Zhou said, "Since ancient times, no emperor has run to another emperor and then had a son. When His Majesty arrived in Eastern Wu, he was still only a vassal of Eastern Wu, and what's more, after the State of Wei captured us, Eastern Wu could not hold out for long, and it was better to surrender twice than to surrender now. Speaking of the south, now those southern barbarians are not really willing to submit to us at all, and once we are in trouble, they are still eager to fall into the well. Therefore, surrendering to wei at present is the best choice, Your Majesty, you can have a good end, we also have a good future. “
Stone statue of Tan Zhou
As soon as Tan Zhou said this, all the kings and subjects of the Shu Kingdom were shaken, but there was still a little worry in their hearts. Since ancient times, few monarchs who surrendered have had a good ending. However, Tan Zhou himself also assured that as long as he surrendered to the State of Wei, he would certainly be able to ensure the peace of the Shu monarchs. In fact, as Yu Zhou said, after the surrender of the Shu state, except for Jiang Wei who died in the failed rebellion of the Sword Pavilion, Liu Chan and other monarchs spent their old age in peace.
From this point of view, as a courtier of the Shu Han Dynasty, Tan Zhou advocated surrendering to the State of Wei at the last moment and persuading the monarchs of the State of Shu to surrender, which was undoubtedly a traitor. Later generations also mostly denigrated Chen Zhou, and except for Chen Shou, almost no historical celebrity's evaluation of Tan Zhou was positive. This may also be because Chen Shou is Chen Zhou's apprentice.
Logically, Tan Zhou is a despicable and shameless traitor. But is this really the case? Is Yu Zhou a despicable and shameless villain who wants to be nailed to the pillar of shame of history?
Chen Shou, author of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms
No, the reason why Chen Zhou would let the people of the Shu kingdom surrender was entirely because at this time, all the kings and subjects of the Shu state had no intention of resisting. In their hearts, they also wanted to surrender to the State of Wei, but they were only worried that the State of Wei would not accept their surrender. It was not until Yu Zhou patted his chest to ensure that he could protect their lives that the Yizhou Emperor agreed to Yu Zhou's persuasion to surrender. If the people of Yizhou did not have the intention of surrendering, even if the skin of Yu Zhou's mouth was worn out, it would be useless.
That said, the reputation of traitor still has to be carried. From another point of view, Tan Zhou can also be regarded as a promoter of history, and it is precisely because of him that the three kingdoms can be unified faster and the people can rest and recuperate a day earlier.
At that time, in addition to the home country, there was a bigger concept, which was called the world. After all, the world is to be unified, and those who surrender are not just the kings and subjects of the Shu Han Dynasty. If you want to talk about traitors, then all the people who surrendered in the Shu Han Dynasty should be traitors, and even a prince of a country like Liu Chan sold himself and betrayed the last wishes of his father Liu Bei, as well as the efforts made by Zhuge Liang, the chancellor of the Shu Han Dynasty, to restore the Han Dynasty.
From a macroscopic point of view, there was nothing wrong with Yu Zhou's approach, the Shu state was already hopeless, rather than surviving and taking the people of Yizhou with them to perish, it was better to surrender as soon as possible and save the people from the suffering of military disasters. In fact, they are all children of the Han Dynasty, as long as they are Han people, who rules the Jiangshan is not still the same? At least at that time, Sima Zhao of the State of Wei was also considered a ming lord, and the future successor Sima Yan was also conscientious.
Proceeding from reality, Tan Zhou himself is not a villain. He lost his father at an early age, and only one mother lived with him. A mother with a child who has lost its father, how difficult it was for them at the time. But even under such a difficult circumstance, Tan Zhou still did not give up learning. In order to study, he often forgot to eat and sleep. Moreover, he did not acquire knowledge through any improper channels, nor did he use his knowledge to seek improper property. Tan Zhou was able to live in peace and happiness, just like Confucius's Face Hui, and could be regarded as a sage. Such a wise man will not be a villain in the true sense of the word.
Film and television image of Tan Zhou
At that time, when Yu Zhou defected to Zhuge Liang, Zhuge Liang laughed at him because of his funny appearance. However, after Zhuge Liang's death, Tan Zhou was the first person to risk the great disrespect to go to the battlefield ahead to mourn for Zhuge Liang. Such a person, his character will not be much worse.
The reason why Tan Zhou advocated surrender was really to look at the general trend of the world with the grandest vision. At that time, the surrender of Shu Han was beneficial and harmless to both Shu Han himself and to the world. Only after analyzing the pros and cons could Yu Zhou dare to persuade the Shu Han monarchs to surrender. Weighing the pros and cons is the quality and trait that a good politician should have.
The reason why Tan Zhou will be belittled by posterity may be more likely because he did not martyr the country! If he had been martyred at that time, then everyone would have known that The act of persuasion by Yu Zhou was not to betray the country and seek glory, but to truly consider the people of the world and the Shu Han. However, at that time, Yu Zhou could not die, and if he died, then where was Liu Chan, the Lord of Shu who was placed in the "Happy and Restless Mind"?
Later generations' depreciation of Tan Zhou is all standing on a moral high ground, rather than soberly looking at the problem on the matter of the time, in fact, standing and talking without waist pain. This person himself has no problems, and he is still a celebrity who truly has the world in mind. Perhaps, as Chen Shou said, Tan Zhou has the merit of the whole country.