The statements in this article are based on reliable sources and are repeated at the end of this article
"There are talented people from generation to generation, each leading the way for hundreds of years." This sentence is used to describe the rise and fall of ancient emperors, and it could not be more suitable.
But in that era of fierce competition, there is a famous saying that seems more appropriate: "When the birds are gone, the good bow is hidden, and the cunning rabbit dies, and the lackeys cook."
After the establishment of the new regime, the rulers often adopted a strategy - to eliminate dissidents and consolidate power, Liu Bang was one of the emperors, so was his act of killing meritorious heroes right or wrong, and what kind of impact did it leave on future generations?
01
The "hero" killed by Liu Bang
As the founding emperor of the Han Dynasty, Liu Bang did make some incomprehensible decisions in the process of unifying the world, including brutal blows to some of the founding heroes who had made great achievements.
These decisions have led to a polarization of his evaluations, with some praising his talent and ambition as a visionary leader.
His callousness and cruelty have also been strongly condemned for his lack of humanitarianism. So for these executed founding heroes, are they really innocent victims, or do they deserve it?
Yan Wang Zang Di was originally Han Guang's subordinate, and later betrayed Han Guang and switched to Xiang Yu, during the Chu and Han hegemony, Zang Di betrayed Xiang Yu again and returned to Liu Bang.
In order to stabilize the situation in the north, Liu Bang named Zang Di as the king of Yan, but Zang Di was not satisfied with this, he tried to unite other princes and kings to fight against Liu Bang, and was finally killed by Liu Bang for rebellion.
Lu Juan is Liu Bang's youngest child, and the two have a very close relationship, but when Chen Feng rebelled, Lu Juan chose to stand on Chen Fan's side, which made Liu Bang feel very disappointed.
Lu Xuan's betrayal completely broke his relationship with Liu Bang, and in the end he was also killed for rebellion, Chen Feng was originally Liu Bang's henchman, but in the face of power, he chose to betray Liu Bang, Chen Xuan's rebellion caused Liu Bang's strong dissatisfaction with him, and eventually led to him being killed.
Peng Yue said that he was sick and refused to act in Weidi, which made Liu Bang suspicious of him, and later Peng Yue said that he was sick again and refused to support Liu Bang, which made Liu Bang's trust in him completely collapse, and Peng Yue was finally framed by Empress Lu for rebellion, and the whole family was sentenced.
Yingbu was originally a prisoner, and if it weren't for Xiang Yu's appreciation, he might not have been able to survive in the troubled times, but after Yingbu defected to Liu Bang in the Chu-Han hegemony, he became arrogant, and even openly declared that he was going to rebel and become the emperor, and Yingbu's arrogant behavior eventually led to his tragic end.
Therefore, these killed founding heroes were not completely wronged, they gradually lost themselves under the temptation of power, and finally went to the road of betraying Liu Bang.
As the head of a country, Liu Bang must maintain the stability of the imperial power, and he will never be soft on those who betray. Therefore, we cannot simply see Liu Bang as a cruel and unkind emperor, and some of his decisions have their own rational considerations.
02
Orphans at the end of life
After the death of Liu Bang, the change of imperial power caused many disputes, and after the death of Empress Lü, the clan surnamed Liu and the founding heroes such as Chen Ping and Zhou Bo launched a coup d'état on the grounds of the Lü rebellion, resulting in the execution of all the Lü clans, regardless of gender, age and children.
When Liu Bang was dying, he gave great trust to Cao Shen, Wang Ling, Chen Ping, Zhou Bo and others, and he believed that Zhou Bo could stabilize the Liu family, so he sat on the position of Tai Lieutenant.
As Empress Lü became the empress dowager's tyrannical rule, Liu Bang's layout was gradually restricted, and Empress Lü killed other concubines and some princes surnamed Liu, causing dissatisfaction among the government and the opposition.
Whether Empress Lü really intended to usurp power, or simply to satisfy her own lust for power, is a question worth exploring.
But it is undeniable that her reign led to the outbreak of the Zhulu Rebellion, in which the heroes took the opportunity to get rid of dissidents, especially Liu Ying's concubines, rather than support other potential heirs.
The heroes created public opinion in full view of the public to prove the identity of Liu Ying's children, and in the process, they got rid of Liu Ying's concubines simply because they thought they might be a threat.
But this view is not entirely correct, Liu Bang's grandchildren did not really threaten their position, but the heroes chose to carry out a coup d'état in order to consolidate their power.
In the process, they not only got rid of the Lu faction, but also killed Liu Bang's grandson.
There can be some refutation of the view that "Liu Bang should not kill the heroes", Liu Bang may have killed the heroes to avoid a situation similar to the Zhulu Rebellion in the future, although his approach, although cruel, but effectively prevented the excessive concentration of power.
03
Why
Behind this power struggle is the infinite pursuit of power by Zhou Bo and Chen Ping, as well as the ruthlessness they show in realizing their personal interests.
So what drove these highly decorated figures to the extreme, even to the point of killing all the descendants of Emperor Hui of Han?
First of all, it is necessary to understand the predicament faced by Zhou Bo and Chen Ping, who feared that as the emperor grew up, their power would be threatened, and they would be caught in an inevitable "party struggle".
In order to maintain their dominance and avoid potential threats, they decided to take decisive measures, and after careful consideration, they decided to eradicate all the descendants of Emperor Hui of Han in order to eliminate potential contenders for the throne.
At the same time, in order to cover up this cruel fact, they claimed to the outside world that these so-called Liu Bang's direct bloodlines were actually carefully forged by Empress Lu in order to strengthen the power of the Lu family.
But there are obviously big loopholes in this practice, if Empress Lu really has the ability to create so many fake princes, then her ambitions and methods are undoubtedly very terrifying.
But in fact, Empress Lü did not succeed in transforming the Han family into the Lü dynasty, which is enough to show that the claims of the meritorious group are not entirely credible.
In the power struggle, the group of heroes succeeded in purging Liu Bang's descendants, which left them with a thorny question: who would be the new emperor?
If it was selected from within the meritorious group, this would definitely be opposed by the court, and even the vassal kings everywhere would not accept such an arrangement, so they chose Liu Heng, who was relatively easy to control, as the new emperor.
In this process, Liu Bang's foresight was particularly important, and although he had done his best to eliminate the feudal officials who might threaten the stability of the Han Dynasty, he failed to realize that the court's heroes also had a huge potential threat.
It was because of Liu Bang's hesitation and tolerance that his descendants did not escape their doom in the end.
04
The Great Cleansing of the Bloodline
After the end of the Lü era, the political situation of the Han Dynasty changed dramatically, and with the fall of the Lü family's power, those who had made great contributions to Liu Bang began to exert their influence in order to occupy a favorable position in the new political landscape.
They carefully planned and cleverly laid out the remnants of the Lu family in one fell swoop and ensured the stability of the Han family, but this was only the prelude, and a deeper purge was brewing.
The heroes turned their attention to Liu Ying's descendants, who were once regarded as the rightful heirs, who were now seen as obstacles, and they skillfully exploited the old affairs of Empress Lü's rebellion, claiming that Liu Ying's son was actually of Lü blood, not the authentic surname of Liu, and used this as an excuse to carry out a brutal purge of these innocent princes and grandsons.
In this wave of operations called "Purifying the Roots", several young princes lost their dignity and even suffered harsh punishments, and their tragic fate was embarrassing.
This purge not only led to the demise of the Liu bloodline, but also profoundly changed the political landscape of the Han dynasty, and the heroes succeeded in eliminating potential opponents and ensuring that their power above the court was unrivaled, while also taking the opportunity to adjust the power structure to more closely surround themselves.
However, this was effective for a while, but it laid a hidden danger for the future of the Han dynasty, and the distrust and suspicion within the court became more serious, and the foundation of the rule became more fragile.
Although the heroes consolidated their position, they also had to face the ensuing doubts about morality and legitimacy, which undoubtedly cast a shadow on the long-term development of the Han Dynasty.
The reason why Liu Bang can stand out in the era of competition is not only because of his personal bravery and wisdom, but also because he knows the balance of power.
Under his rule, he was unrelenting in curtailing the power of those who had fought alongside him, even resorting to extreme measures to maintain the stability of the dynasty.
Liu Bang's attitude towards Han Xin, Peng Yue and others, although it seemed ruthless at the time, precisely reflected his deep thinking about the future of national security.
He understands that after the world has been decided, no matter how strong the power of the individual is, it will not be able to compete with the whole country, and too strong individual power will become a threat to the stability of the country.
Therefore, he tried to weaken the influence of these heroes to prevent them from becoming a hidden danger to secession, so as to ensure the long-term stability of the Han Dynasty.
Although Liu Bang's actions caused a lot of controversy at the time and were even regarded as treachery, from the long history of history, his decisions did lay the foundation for the stability of the Han Dynasty to a certain extent.
Without his effective restraint on the power of the heroes during his lifetime, the Han Dynasty might have fallen into the quagmire of civil strife and division, and it would have been difficult to achieve rapid development.
Of course, Liu Bang's approach was not without flaws, and it also brought some negative effects, such as exacerbating tensions between the imperial power and the meritorious officials, and leaving many political hidden dangers for future generations.
However, from a more macro perspective, the power balance mechanism that Liu Bang tried to construct undoubtedly played a non-negligible role in maintaining the stability of the Han Dynasty for a long time. #MCN首发激励计划#
Resources
[1] Huishan.com Why didn't Liu Bang kill Zhou Bo? Why did Zhou Bo become Liu Bang's trusted minister?
[2] Biography Network Liu Bang Biography_11.2 Reign of Empress Lu (1/7)_Biography Network