The reign of the Jin dynasty: The establishment of power and money and the short-lived rule of the Sima clan of the Jin dynasty have a low historical presence and are rarely mentioned. In addition to the short-lived unification, the Rebellion of the Eight Kings and the Five Hu Chaos after the Jin Dynasty led to wars in the Central Plains, and also caused foreign tribes to invade south. Compared to its predecessors, the Two Han dynasties, Sima's Jin dynasty encountered great difficulties in maintaining system governance.
The moral order established by Confucianism was an important means of safeguarding the interests of the ruling class during the Two Han Dynasty, but Sima's Jin dynasty lost the ability to believe in loyal monarchs. The question that arises from this is, how did Sima's Jin dynasty maintain its rule? During the Two Han Dynasties, the Confucian moral order was deeply rooted in the hearts of the people, and important social orders such as the guidelines of monarchs, fathers and sons, and husband and wife were established.
This order not only maintained social stability, but also established a code of conduct for the people, condemned the rebellion against the monarch, father, and husband, and wrote it down in the history books for centuries. The Confucian moral order was beneficial to the ruling class at that time, so the two Han dynasties actively promoted and consolidated Confucianism, which profoundly influenced people's thinking and was firmly engraved in people's genes, and neighboring countries began to be gradually influenced by Confucianism.
However, by the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, there were various problems in the rule of the Han Dynasty, the emperor was incompetent, and the people were suffering from suffering. Despite this, many well-educated people regard the Confucian social order as the most important thing in life. For example, Wang Yun risked losing everything to assassinate Dong Zhuo, and Wang Yun's status was second only to Dong Zhuo, but he did not care about his status, but wanted to maintain the rule of the Han family.
The same was true of Xun Yu during the Cao Cao period, who spared no effort to assist Cao Cao, but when Cao Cao prepared to usurp the Han dynasty, Xun Yu firmly opposed it. These actions were based on faith in the Han dynasty, and the clans still relied on the rule under this larger framework, Cao Cao relied on the name of the Han Emperor to conquer the four sides, and Guan Yu also declared that "the Han will not surrender Cao".
This belief in the Shi clan collapsed during the Cao Wei dynasty, leading to the later usurpation of Wei by the Sima clan, and many famous ministers sided with Sima Yi, and even the descendants of Cao Cao's confidant ministers did not hesitate to side with Sima Yi. Therefore, when the Sima clan's Jin Dynasty was established, the faith of the entire Tianxia Shi clan completely collapsed. The cost of rule of the Jin dynasty was much higher than that of other great unified dynasties.
Sima Yi seized power in a coup d'état at Gao Pingling, and Luoshui's untrustworthy distrust allowed the people of the world to see Sima's untrustworthy face; Sima Zhaodang's street murderer made the clans no longer afraid of the throne of heaven and man. The actions of Sima Yi's father and son completely disrupted the Confucian social order established by the two Han Dynasties, so Sima Yi's rule no longer relied on the faithful and patriotic beliefs of loyal monarchs. After Sima Yan established the Jin Dynasty, he could not believe any foreign ministers, because his throne was usurped by foreign ministers.
He could only rely on his own clan and wantonly divided the children of the clan as the real power king. Although this ensured that the throne remained his own, the outbreak of the Rebellion of the Eight Kings caused the collapse of the Western Jin Dynasty. The rule of the Western Jin Dynasty required not only the descendants of the Sima clan, but also ministers with other foreign surnames. However, Sima Yan could not guarantee the loyalty of the other ministers.
Other dynasties could establish their rule by instilling the ideas of loyalty to the monarch and patriotism and the principle of kings and subjects, but Sima's Jin dynasty lacked the constraints of these ideas. So Sima Yan could only rely on money and power to maintain the rule of the system, distributing money to the ministers and making them indulge in wealth. In addition, Sima Yan also granted military power in exchange for the loyalty of the Sima clan family. However, this relationship of domination, based on power and money, will not last long.
The extravagance of the Western Jin Dynasty is recorded in the history books. The wind of fighting for wealth emerges endlessly, and the horse Wang Ji uses money to pave the land, which is known as "Golden Gou"; Prime Minister He Zeng's food money was enough to feed thousands of people; Shi Chong brushed the pot with sugar water, and Wang Kai used candles to cook on the fire; Shi Chong hung a curtain forty miles outside the door with satin, and Wang Kai hung fifty li. Sima Yan and Prime Minister He Zeng lived extravagantly, and Sima Yan even allowed Prime Minister Cheng to bring food to the banquet himself.
This style of extravagance prevailed in the Western Jin Dynasty, and Sima Yan even personally participated in and encouraged Shi Chong and Wang Kai's fighting for wealth. This style of rule was unacceptable in other dynasties, but the Western Jin Dynasty became a symbol of luxury. However, the rule of the Western Jin Dynasty did not last. Unable to maintain power and money, the Western Jin Dynasty soon descended into civil strife.
The long war of the Rebellion of the Eight Kings led to the decline of the national strength of the Western Jin Dynasty, and also provided an opportunity for foreign tribes to take the opportunity to go south, and the era of the Five Hu Chaos began. The Western Jin Dynasty eventually perished, the Eastern Jin Dynasty was crowned in the south, and the royal family could only rely on the Shi clan Wang Clan to maintain the system. However, Sima Rui, the founding king of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, suffered from depression, and he hardly left the palace during his reign, and eventually died of depression. Sima's Jin rule was not long-lasting, which was already doomed when Sima usurped power.
To sum up, the Sima dynasty's Jin dynasty faced many difficulties in maintaining system governance. Losing the support of the Confucian order of loyalty and patriotism, the Sima clan had to rely on power and money to maintain the system, but this kind of rule based on power and money would not last. The rule of the Western Jin Dynasty was costly, and extravagance did not help maintain the system of governance.
The outbreak of the Rebellion of the Eight Kings led to the decline of the Western Jin Dynasty, and all the border ethnic groups went south, and the chaotic era of the Five Hu Hu began to be. Sima's Jin dynasty eventually collapsed, and although the Eastern Jin Dynasty inherited its position, its reign did not last long. Sima's lessons from the history of the Jin dynasty tell us that power and money cannot establish lasting rule, and that rule built on the Confucian moral order is firm.
So, for today's society, what kind of governance can better maintain social stability and unity? Please leave a message to share your opinion.