In order to vent his grievances over the years, Chen Ping ordered all the members of the Lu clan to be killed, both young and old, and Empress Lu's sister Lu Xiao was beaten to death with a stick by Chen Ping. Before dying, Lu Xiao resented Empress Lu for not listening to the admonition, which led to the destruction of the family...
During the reign of Qin II, the eunuchs were autocratic, which led to the misery of the people. Chen Sheng and Wu Guang were the first to rise up, and then Xiang Yu and Liu Bang responded. After years of fighting, Liu Bang finally ruled the world and established the Han Dynasty.
However, after Liu Bang's death, the political situation in the Han Dynasty fell into turmoil. Prince Liu was young, and Empress Lu and his relatives controlled the power of the court, and the princes of the Liu family were indignant.
Empress Lu once made Liu Bang's favored Mrs. Qi an adult, and also assassinated Han Xin, a famous general in the early Han Dynasty, which caused dissatisfaction among the government and the opposition. But no one dared to confront the power of the empress, and the entire Han Dynasty was effectively under the control of the Lü clique.
In view of Empress Lü's cruel methods, Liu Bang had secretly planned to get rid of Lü's forces before his death. Before Han Gaozu died, he sent Chen Ping to suppress the rebellion of King Yan, and at the same time instructed Chen Ping to find an opportunity to get rid of the hidden danger of Empress Lu's brother-in-law Fan Xu.
Chen Ping took the order to set off and quickly captured Fan Xu. His subordinate general Zhou Bo persuaded Chen Ping to execute Fan Xu immediately, but Chen Ping, considering the relationship between Fan Xu and Empress Lü, did not kill him immediately, but imprisoned him in the car and escorted him back to Chang'an, preparing for Liu Bang to deal with it personally.
On the way back, Chen Ping suddenly received the news of Liu Bang's death. At this time, Empress Lu sent someone to deliver a message, asking Chen Ping to stop and wait for the verdict.
Chen Ping realized that the general trend had gone, so he decided to make a desperate bet and forcibly break through to Chang'an, crying in front of Liu Bangling and telling that he had not disobeyed the king's order. Lu Hou saw that Fan Xu was still alive and did not pursue it for the time being, but Lu Xiao was resentful of Chen Ping's actions.
A few years later, Fan died and his son Fan Yan inherited the title. Empress Lü deposed Emperor Hui again, renamed the young Liu Hong as emperor, and rewarded the Lü clan greatly. Lu Xiao was also named a marquis and participated in court politics, but her fierce style caused dissatisfaction among the government and the opposition.
In the face of the Lu family's dictatorship, Prime Minister Chen Ping is also secretly brewing a counterattack. Because Lu Xiao slandered in front of her sister many times to get rid of Chen Ping, a traitor, Chen Ping drank and had fun with beautiful women all day long in order to eliminate Lu Hou's doubts.
At the same time, Chen Ping privately befriended other nobles, especially wooing Lu Jia, who was dismissed from office at home. The two corresponded frequently, and Chen Ping gave Lu Jia a lot of money and property, supporting him to contact the ministers everywhere and unite against the forces of the Lu family.
When Empress Lü was seriously ill, she instructed Lü's nephews Lü Lu and Lü Chan to firmly control the military power and not to leave the palace lightly, so as to ensure that Lü could continue to rule the dictatorship. However, Chen Ping managed to kidnap Lu Lu's friend's father and trick Lu Lu into going out to play.
When passing by Lu Xiao's mansion, Lu Xiao scolded Lu Lu for not obeying his sister's orders, which was destined to cause the Lu family to decline. Lu Lu returned to the barracks in a hurry, but it was too late.
Chen Ping sent someone to the military camp with the emperor's jade seal and forced Lü Lu to hand over his military power. Lu Lu did not dare to disobey, so he had to hand over the military power. Knowing that the tide was over, Lu Xiao was so grief-stricken that she threw away all the gold, silver and jewelry in her home, because she realized that these would not belong to her after all.
Zhou Bo, who had gained military power, immediately led his army into the palace and killed Lü Lu and Lü Chan. The people of the Lu clan, young and old, were all killed. Chen Ping also ordered Lü Xiao and her son Fan Yan to be beaten to death with sticks to vent their grievances over the years. Before dying, Lu Xiao resented that Lu Hou did not listen to the admonition, which led to the destruction of the family.
The Lü clique was overthrown, and the Han dynasty was freed from its rule. Chen Ping then proclaimed Liu Heng as emperor, and the Han Dynasty entered a new era. Although this coup d'état was more or less mixed with personal grievances, it was generally conducive to historical progress, eliminated the chaos of the Lü clan, and put the Han dynasty on the right track.
It was not only the Liu clan that competed for power with the Lu family, but also a large number of foreign surnamed Xungui groups produced in the early Han Dynasty. These nobles have always held important positions in the early Han Dynasty, and Liu Bang was aware of the problem before his death, but he was seriously ill and unable to rectify it. After Liu Bang's death, Empress Lü was determined to reduce the power of Xungui, and the contradictions between the two sides intensified.
Fan Xu was almost killed, which is the epitome of the confrontation between Liu Lu's two groups. Chen Ping did not kill Fan Xu immediately, also because the strength of the Xungui Group was insufficient at that time. Lu Xiao repeatedly tried to kill Chen Ping, but Empress Lu did not agree, also because the Lu clan's power was still expanding and needed Chen Ping's support.
Chen Ping was obedient to the Lu clan on the surface, but secretly consulted with other nobles and jointly dealt with the Lu clan. When Empress Lu divided the seal of Lu's relatives, Chen Ping expressed his approval, but in fact he had different intentions. The more Lu Xiao gossiped about Chen Ping, the more deliberately he was debauched and forced Empress Lu to trust herself. Both sides are testing each other's strength, and they are secretly arranged.
Empress Lu has always adopted a strategy of dividing the Liu clan and trying to achieve a balance through time, but after all, she has not been able to prevent the Liu clan from joining forces with the Xungui group. After the fall of the Lü family, Chen Ping did not support the young emperor supported by Empress Lü, but set Liu Heng as the emperor. So far, the Xungui group has won this power game.
This is the essence of the power struggle, not considering morality and justice, but only looking at the result. If the Lu clan succeeds in eradicating dissidents, it will also be recorded as an abuse of power and disorder in the future. History is written by the victors, but its essence remains the same.
Lu Xiao regretted that she did not get rid of Chen Ping in time under the chaos, and it can also be seen that the fall of the Lu family was self-inflicted.
