Why did the younger brother defect to the enemy?
The younger brother's defection is almost completely absent from the history books about Qin Shi Huang's childhood and adolescence, from his birth to the time he took power at the age of twenty-two. It is precisely because of this that the existing biographies of Qin Shi Huang and the various lectures that have been popular in recent years all avoid this issue, suffering from the fact that it is difficult for a clever woman to cook without rice.
Searching for all the historical materials we can find, we have found only two clues about Qin Shi Huang's youth. One is his childhood friend Ji Dan, and the other is his younger brother Cheng in his youth, these extremely limited friendships and family ties reflect the fragments of Qin Shi Huang's life.
The Chronicles of the Assassins mentions that Qin Shi Huang had a friend in his childhood, named Ji Dan, who was a prince of the Yan Kingdom, and that they had both been hostages in Handan, the capital of the Zhao Kingdom, and that they had played together and loved each other. After Qin Shi Huang came to power, Ji Dan came to Qin as a hostage. At this time, Qin Shi Huang, who was already in power and bent on annexing the Six Kingdoms, was very arrogant and disrespectful to Ji Dan, who fled in resentment and invited the assassin Jing Ke to assassinate Yingzheng, and staged a historical drama that shocked the world and cried ghosts and gods. This incident has been praised through the ages, not only in various historical books, but also adapted into drama novels, films and television, forever reflecting the unkind cold side of Qin Shi Huang's human nature. Human nature is distorted because of power, and the distorted human nature has exacerbated the alienation of power, and it has almost become the fate of the centralized system. There is a lot of discussion about the truth and falsehood of this matter, both at home and abroad, and we will have the opportunity to clarify them one by one in the future.
Regarding Qin Shi Huang's teenage years, we also found another clue, which is his younger brother Chang'an Juncheng. Cheng is Yingzheng's half-brother, they are close in age, and under the care of their father Prince Zhuang Xiang, they spent a happy childhood together in Xianyang. After Yingzheng ascended the throne, Cheng also grew up smoothly, and later became a political figure, with a certain amount of power and ability.
In the eighth year of the reign of King Qin, Cheng led his troops to attack Zhao and suddenly surrendered to the enemy and treason at the front line. Since then, he has disappeared from historical records like a meteor across the night sky. This incident, known in history as the "Cheng Rebellion", is found in the eighth year of the reign of King Qin in the "Historical Records of Qin Shi Huang Benji":
Wang's younger brother General Chang'an Juncheng attacked Zhao, and died (according to, "death" is a derivative of the word) to stay, and the military officials were all beheaded to death, and their people were moved to Lintao.
This incident is also seen in the "Five Elements of Hanshu":
Wang's younger brother Chang'an Juncheng, the general attacked Zhao, rebelled to stay, the military officials were all beheaded to death, and the people were moved to Lintao.
The above record says that in the eighth year of the reign of King Qin, King Qin's younger brother Chang'an Juncheng led an army to attack Zhao and rebelled in Tunliu (now Tunliu, Shanxi). After the rebellion was put down, all the military officials who participated in the rebellion were beheaded, and the people who participated in the rebellion were relocated to Lintao (present-day Lintao, Gansu).
According to the records of the "Historical Records of the Zhao Family", after this incident, Cheng died in Zhao and was granted the fiefdom of Rao (now Raoyang, Hebei).
The above narrative is all the direct information that the history books provide us with about the Cheng Rebellion. As for the more detailed situation, such as Cheng's life history, who his mother is, when he was born, where he was born, why he rebelled on the front line, what his fate will be in the future, etc., there is no news at all.
Qin Shi Huang's secret Cheng is Ying Zheng's half-brother, and the Cheng Rebellion occurred between brothers on the surface, but there are shadows of two mothers behind it. This matter, first of all, implicates the family affection within the Yingzheng family, and the relationship between brothers has reached the point where water and fire are incompatible, and it cannot be said to be the outbreak of a family crisis. Under the hereditary royal system of the family, the family affection within the royal family is the political situation. The Cheng Rebellion also implicated the political situation of the Qin State, and the contradictions between different political forces developed to the point of meeting each other, which could not be described as the outbreak of a political crisis.
However, the strange thing is that there is only the above-mentioned short record of this incident in the history books, and as for the cause and effect of this incident, and the ins and outs, there is no mention of it in a single word, which not only leaves a huge historical gap, but also becomes a mystery through the ages. To track down the suspected case on the escape road of Handan, it is first necessary to track down the suspects related to the suspected case. The protagonist of Cheng's rebellion is Cheng, who is naturally the first suspect in the investigation. We can provide a simple list of materials about Cheng Qiren as follows:
into a resume
Name into
Birth year Fifty-one years of King Qin Zhao?
Father Zhuang Xiang Wang Yingyi
Mother Mrs. Han?
Title: Chang'anjun
Official position General
In the fifth year of the reign of King Qin, he sent an envoy to Korea and forced Korea to give up a large piece of land.
In the eighth year of the reign of King Qin, he led the army to rebel and surrendered to Zhao.
Based on this table, let's start with a brief introduction to the finished work. Cheng and Yingzheng have the same father, and they are both the sons of Zhuangxiang Wang Yingyi. There is a twist and turn story about Cheng's birth. This twist and turn of the story, which happened because of the extraordinary upheaval, is also closely related to the life experience of Qin Shi Huang.
In order to facilitate the investigation of this matter, below, I will compile the situation of Yingyi's life into a more detailed chronology and provide it to you, and at the same time, in order to facilitate the investigation of the relationship between Yingyi and his two sons, I have noted the age of Yingzheng and Cheng next to this material.
Qin Zhuang Xiangwang Yingyi resume
Age, age, life, Yingzheng, age, age, Qin Zhaowang, twenty-six years, 1 year old, Yingyisheng. In the forty-second year of King Qin Zhao, at the age of 17, he went to Handan as a hostage. King Qin Zhao was forty-five years old, at the age of 20, he met Lü Buwei, and King Qin Zhao lived with Zhao Ji at the age of twenty-seven years. Zhao Ji is pregnant. The Battle of Changping was a crushing defeat for the Zhao army. In the forty-eighth year of King Qin Zhao, at the age of 23, the eldest son Yingzheng was born. At the age of 1, the Qin army entered the state of Zhao. In the forty-ninth year of King Qin Zhao, at the age of 24, the Qin army besieged Handan. At the age of 2, King Qin Zhao was in the fiftieth year, and at the age of 25, Yingyi and Lü Buwei escaped and returned to Qin. 3-year-old Zhao Ji and Ying Zheng stayed in Handan. King Qin Zhao was fifty-one years old, the second son Cheng was born at the age of 26, was born at the age of 4, and at the age of 1, King Qin Zhao was fifty-six years old, and at the age of 31, Yingzheng and Zhao Ji returned to Qin. At the age of 9 and 6, the state of Qin reconciled with the state of Zhao. In the first year of King Xiaowen, at the age of 32, Yingyi became the crown prince. Three days after the age of 10 and 7, King Xiaowen died, and won the difference. King Zhuangxiang ascended the throne at the age of 33 in the first year. At the age of 11 and 8, Yingzheng became the crown prince. King Zhuang Xiang died at the age of 35 in the third year. 13-year-old and 10-year-old Ying Zhengli.
Please look at this table and let me give you a brief introduction to Yingwei's life and his relationship with his two sons.
Ying Yi was born in the twenty-sixth year of the reign of his grandfather, King Qin Zhao, which corresponds to 281 BC. At the age of seventeen, he went to Handan, the capital of Zhao, as a hostage, and soon became acquainted with Lü Buwei, and together they began to fight for the succession of the crown prince. Ziyi got Zhao Ji from Lü Buwei and lived with him when he was twenty-two years old. When Ziyi was twenty-three years old, Zhao Ji gave birth to Yingzheng. When Ziyi was twenty-five years old, he returned to Qin and officially became the heir to the crown prince. Ziyi inherited the throne at the age of thirty-two, he was the king of Qin for three years, died at the age of thirty-five, and was called King Zhuangxiang after his death, and the throne was inherited by Yingzheng.
In this material of Ziyi, I ask you to pay special attention to one thing, Ziyi has been separated from his wife Zhao Ji and eldest son Yingzheng for six years. This incident not only profoundly affected Qin Shi Huang's life, but also directly related to Cheng's birth, and we must do a special investigation.
Please follow this table to find the column of the forty-seventh year of King Qin Zhao. This year, Ziyi and Zhao Ji lived together, and Zhao Ji was pregnant with Yingzheng. It was also in this year that the famous Battle of Changping broke out between the Qin and Zhao states. As a result of the Battle of Changping, Zhao was defeated, and more than 400,000 Zhao troops surrendered and were buried alive by the Qin general Bai Qi. This war profoundly affected the course of Chinese history. It can be summed up in one sentence, the Battle of Changping determined that it was the Qin State and not the Zhao State that would unify China in the future. Where did Ziyi get the news of the Battle of Changping?
It was in Handan, the capital of the Zhao State. This news was an unprecedented victory for his motherland, Qin, and a fiasco for his wife, Zhao Ji's motherland, since the founding of the country. Ziyi's family, what kind of fate will they usher in for this, and what price will they pay?
Changping was defeated, Zhao was shaken, and Handan City was filled with grief and panic. The following year, that is, in the forty-eighth year of King Qin Zhao, the Qin army took advantage of the victory to invade the territory of Zhao. In this year, King Yingzheng of Qin was born in Handan, and he was born in the midst of war and chaos. In the forty-ninth year of King Qin Zhao, the Qin army came to the city and began to besiege Handan for a long time. The Ziyi family, who are in Handan, are caught in the sea of hatred of the Zhao people, and there is danger of accidents at any time.
In the fiftieth year of King Qin Zhao, the Qin army fiercely attacked Handan, and the war became increasingly fierce. In Handan City, the number of soldiers has decreased, food is in short supply, women and the old and weak have all contributed to the army, and there are also cases of burning human bones and eating human flesh from time to time. In order to show his determination to resist Qin to the death, Zhao decided to execute Qin people and their entire family. Under the extreme urgency of the situation, Lü Buwei bribed the guards of Zhao State with a lot of money, and escaped from Handan City with Ziyi, entered the Qin army camp, and was escorted back to Xianyang.
What about Zhao Ji and Ying Zheng, who was only three years old? They stayed in Handan City, where they died nine times and were in danger of being killed many times. Fortunately, Zhao Ji is a native of Handan, and her family is a well-known wealthy family in Handan, and she is quite powerful in Zhao State, and under the desperate protection of Zhao Ji's family, Zhao Ji and Yingzheng were transferred and hidden, and they were saved from death. Cheng's life experience returned to Xianyang's Ziyi and officially became the heir of the crown prince. He was accompanied by Lü Buwei and deliberately wore the clothes of the Chu State to meet his adoptive mother, Mrs. Huayang. Mrs. Huayang was very happy, she said to Ziyi, I am from Chu, and if you succeed you as my son, you can use "Chu" as your name. Ziyi was later called Zichu, and it was from here that he came.
Ziyi returned to Xianyang, in addition to Mrs. Huayang, his father An Guojun and grandfather King Qin Zhao were naturally bound to meet. However, I ask you not to forget that Ziyi also has to meet someone. Who is this Ziyi who must be seen? She is Xia Ji. We have already introduced before, Xia Ji is Ziyi's biological mother, after she gave birth to Ziyi, she has been neglected for many years, she and Ziyi depend on each other, and there is a strong mother-son relationship between the two. Ziyi was adopted by Mrs. Huayang as an adopted son and became the heir to the crown prince, Xia Ji was also stained, and she had a bright future, and now her son has gone through a lot of hardships and finally returned to his side, naturally he is very happy. Xia Ji is happy for her son, she is grateful to Lu Buwei, Mrs. Huayang, and God for blessing, and between her and Ziyi, the joy of reunion after the catastrophe is naturally indispensable.
There are very few records about Xia Ji and her person, but it is only said that she is one of An Guojun's many wives, after giving birth to Ziyi, she is "not favored", she is not favored by An Guojun, and she is a depressed woman in the harem. We know that during the Warring States Period, royal families intermarried, and the princess married to a foreign country, and the prince married a foreign princess. Marriages between royal families often have an international background. In this common sense, Xia Ji should also be the wife of a certain royal family.
The "Hime" in Natsuhime is a woman's name, and the "Natsu" in front of Hime, either a surname or a title related to the country of birth. As we have already mentioned, Qin Shi Huang's mother was called Zhao Ji. Zhao, not her surname, but a title that indicates her country of birth, the Kingdom of Zhao. By analogy, Natsuhime's "Summer" may be the same.
Xia was the first dynasty of ancient China, and the area of activity of Xia, centered on Anyi (now Xia County, Shanxi) in the south of Shanxi and Yangcheng (now Luoyang, Henan) in the west of Henan, belonged to the territory of Korea during the Warring States Period.
There are at least two circumstantial evidence for this speculation of historical detectives. First, as we will see later, when Cheng was fifteen years old, he once sent an envoy to Korea, and without spending a single soldier, forced Korea to give up a large piece of land, and when he returned, he was knighted and rewarded. Behind this incident, it shows the close relationship between Empress Dowager Xia and South Korea.
Second, the last king of Qin, Yingying, was the son of Cheng, and after he was made king of Qin, he conspired with his two sons and a cronie named Han Tan to assassinate the powerful Zhao Gao. This Han Tan, inferred from his surname, should be born in the royal family of South Korea, and the close relationship between him and Ying Ying should be rooted in their common origin. I have a separate article discussing the identity of the baby. Briefly, there are several theories such as the son of Qin II (Fusu), Qin II, Qin Shi Huang's brother, and the son of Shi Huang's brother (Cheng), the first three of which are contradictory to known historical materials, such as Ying Ying and his son conspired to punish Zhao Gao, and his son should not be young - it is difficult for Qin Shi Huang, who lived only 50 years old, to have such a big great-grandson, and the whereabouts of Qin Shi Huang's three younger brothers, Cheng, etc., who had killed his brothers and sisters who were a potential threat to his succession, and Qin Shi Huang's three younger brothers, Cheng and others, and only the latter theory can reasonably explain the details about Ying Ying.
So we say that "Xia Ji" was born in the Korean royal family and is the wife of the Korean lineage.
Ziyi, who returned to Xianyang, was only twenty-five years old. When he and Lü Buwei got out of Handan together, due to the urgency of the matter, his wife Zhao Ji and his eldest son Yingzheng, who was only three years old, were left in the besieged city of Handan, and their life and death were unknown. In this case, out of consideration of human feelings, and according to the system of the Qin State, it became an urgent matter to immediately find a side room lady for her.
According to the practice of the time, the marriage of the prince was mostly decided by the queen mother. Xia Ji is Yingyi's biological mother, she can't intervene in her son's political future, she has to listen to Mrs. Huayang, and in her son's second marriage, she is the key figure, Ziyi's new wife, should be chosen by her. According to the practice at that time, when the queen mother married a wife for her son, she would mostly choose among her close relatives, and the familiar maiden family naturally became the first choice. For example, King Wu of Qin's mother, Hui Wenhou, was born in the Wei state, and the wife she chose for King Wu of Qin was Lady Wei. King Qin Zhao's mother, Empress Dowager Xuan, was born in the state of Chu, and the wife she chose for King Qin Zhao was Mrs. Chu. It can be inferred from this that the lady of the side room selected by Xia Ji for Ziyi should be Mrs. Han from the Korean royal family.
Ziyi returned to Qin at the beginning of the fiftieth year of King Qin Zhao, and we estimate that he married a wife when he returned to Xianyang, and gave birth to Cheng in the second year, Cheng is about three years younger than Ying Zheng, and is the second son of Ziyi and the half-brother of Ying Zheng. Mrs. Han is Xia Ji's daughter-in-law selected from her mother's family, and she gave birth to Cheng, so she was naturally loved and cared for by Xia Ji. In this way, Xia Ji and Mrs. Han became the center inside, and Korea was the support outside, and a new political force of Korean relatives was naturally formed in the royal family of the Qin State. In this case, if Zhao Ji and Ying Zheng cannot return from Zhao State, Achievement will replace Ying Zheng as Ziyi's first heir, and Mrs. Han will replace Zhao Ji as the first lady, the political situation of Qin State will change, and Qin Shi Huang's life will have a completely different fate. Fortunately, Zhao Ji and Yingzheng survived the catastrophe. In the fifty-sixth year of King Qin Zhao (251 BC), Yingzheng's great-grandfather King Qin Zhao died, and his grandfather An Guojun ascended the throne as King Xiaowen, and his father and son officially became the crown prince. Taking the new king's accession to the throne as an opportunity, the hostile Qin and Zhao relations were reconciled, and as an act of reconciliation, the Zhao government sent Zhao Ji and Ying Zheng back to Qin. At this time, it was six years since Ziyi escaped from Handan, and Yingzheng was already nine years old, and Chengcheng was about six years old.
King Xiaowen was already in his fifties when he ascended the throne, his body was weak, and he died three days after his official accession to the throne. After King Zhuangxiang ascended the throne, his adoptive mother, Mrs. Huayang, was honored as the Empress Dowager of Huayang, and his biological mother Xia Ji was honored as the Empress Dowager Xia, and the situation of the Empress Dowager of the two palaces was formally formed. In the Qin court in Xianyang, with Zhuangxiang Wang Yingyi as the center and the two queen mothers as the wings, a subtle political network was formed. For the sake of clarity, I've listed them as follows:
Political relations of the Qin court during the reign of King Zhuangxiang
First of all, look at the Empress Dowager Huayang and Empress Dowager Xia on this table, I use juxtaposition to summarize the relationship between them. The juxtaposition relationship I am talking about is a relationship of sharing and cooperation, that is, cooperation and confrontation. Empress Dowager Huayang is Ziyi's adoptive mother, a political mother, she was born in the state of Chu and is the central figure of the powerful Chu relatives. Empress Dowager Xia is Ziyi's biological mother, born in South Korea, and is the central figure of the Korean relatives. The two queen mothers are consistent in their support for Prince Zhuang Xiang. However, in terms of their attitudes towards Zhao Ji and Mrs. Han, the two queen mothers are different. Through Lu Buwei's communication, Mrs. Huayang accepted Ziyi and his family in Handan, Zhao Ji's status as the wife, and Ying Zheng's status as the eldest son, all of which she recognized, and she naturally had a sense of closeness to Zhao Ji and Ying Zheng. Empress Dowager Xia is different, she has nothing to do with Lu Buwei and Zhao Ji, and Yingzheng only returned to Xianyang after the age of nine, and the relationship is relatively estranged. On the other hand, Mrs. Han is her chosen daughter-in-law, and she has a close relationship with her, and Cheng has grown up by her side since she was a child, and it is natural for her to be loved and cared for more.
For Zhao Ji, Ying Zheng and Mrs. Han and Cheng, I use antagonism to summarize their relationship. Zhao Ji was born in a wealthy family in Zhao State, and most of the characters related to her are Zhao people, such as his later face and power minister Chang Yu, or people who came to Qin from Zhao State, such as Lü Buwei, she herself and Ying Zheng were also sent back to Qin by the Zhao government, so the political forces centered on Zhao Ji have a close relationship with Zhao State, and they may as well be called Zhao's foreign relatives forces. Before the power of Zhao's relatives developed, Zhao Ji was attached to Mrs. Huayang and was protected by Chu's relatives.
<!–start–> On the other hand, Madame Han was born in the royal family of Korea, she was a relative of the Empress Dowager Xia, and she and Zhao Ji belonged to different foreign forces. Ziyi married Mrs. Han after returning to Xianyang from Handan, at that time, the life and death of Zhao Ji and Yingzheng were unknown, and the newlywed Mrs. Han had the support of Xia Ji, of course, she was the first choice to replace Mrs. Zhao Ji. Judging from this historical background, Mrs. Han and Zhao Ji have always been opposite harems, and as for Cheng, since his birth, he has been a potential political enemy of Yingzheng.
There is no doubt that replacing Zhao Ji with Mrs. Han and Ying Zheng with Cheng is in the interests of Xia Ji and the Han relatives, but it is not in the interests of the Chu relatives centered on Mrs. Huayang. Zhao Ji and Ying Zheng, although they are not blood relatives of the Chu family, are adoptive relatives recognized by the Chu family, and the Chu family must resolutely support them to prevent Xia Ji and the Han family's power from overexpanding. Come to think of it, it was with the resolute support of the Chu relatives headed by Mrs. Huayang and the assistance of Lu Buwei that Ziyi was able to resist the pressure of his biological mother Xia Ji and Han relatives, and insisted on waiting for Zhao Ji and Yingzheng for six years. In the past six years, all kinds of complicated relationships and fierce battles in the shadows, although the details are unknown, can still be largely associated.
After Ziyi ascended the throne, Zhao Ji was established as the queen, Yingzheng was established as the crown prince, under the balance of the Zhuangxiang king, all kinds of names were determined, the old ministers were respected, the relatives were favored, the people were also favored, and the political situation was stable. The two queen mothers were on top, and they were also safe for a while. According to the custom of the Qin royal family, queens generally did not participate in politics. In the absence of a direct conflict of interest, Queen Zhao Ji and Mrs. Han in the side room are generally calm, Ying Zheng and Cheng, under the love of Ziyi, the eldest brother and the younger brother grow up together. It can be said that Yingzheng, who returned to Xianyang, spent the happiest teenage years of his life.
Yingzheng's happy boyhood was premised on the lifetime of his father, King Zhuangxiang. King Zhuangxiang reigned for only three years, and in 247 BC, King Zhuangxiang died, and Yingzheng, who was only thirteen years old, became the king of Qin. The political situation of the Qin State has undergone major changes as a result, and Ying Zheng has also ended his happy youth and entered the turbulent and undercurrent of the Young King Era. Under the protection of the queen mothers, the secret and open battles between him and his younger brother Cheng also became obvious and fierce step by step. When Ying Zheng ascended the throne, he was only 13 years old, and he was not yet a minor, so he could not personally govern the government, but could only entrust the government to the empress dowager and ministers. Ying political commissar to the queen mother and ministers, from thirteen to twenty-two years old, a full ten years, so, in these ten years, who was entrusted with the big government, who was really in charge of the power of the Qin State?
The interpretation of scholars of the past dynasties believes that during Yingzheng's childhood, the empress dowager who was entrusted to the government was his mother, the empress dowager, and the minister who was entrusted was Lü Buwei, Xiangguo, and the two of them were the main figures who really controlled the power of Qin in these ten years. However, this statement is really a big misunderstanding and a historical error that must be clarified.
Why do you say this? Because this view ignores two important historical facts. First: When Ying Zheng ascended the throne, there were three queen mothers, in addition to Ying Zheng's biological mother, the Empress Dowager Zhao, there were two queen mothers, one was Ying Zheng's adoptive grandmother, the Empress Dowager Huayang, and the other was Ying Zheng's own grandmother, the Empress Dowager Xia.
The three queen mothers, whether in terms of name and generation, or from the perspective of foundation power, the queen mother Huayang has an absolute advantage and is the first. The Empress Dowager Huayang was followed by the Empress Dowager Xia, and finally the Empress Dowager. This order is not only supported by literature, but also by the newly unearthed laws of the Qin and Han dynasties. According to the two-year decree of the Zhangjiashan Han Jian, in the Qin and Han dynasties, there were clear regulations on the order of the rights and interests of the heirs after a man's death: the first was the son, the second was the parents, the third was the wife, and the fourth was the daughter. According to this principle, after Ziyi's death, the first successor is his son Yingzheng, the second is the two living mothers, that is, the Empress Dowager Huayang and the Empress Dowager Xia, and the third is Ziyi's wife, the Empress Dowager.
Therefore, Ying Zheng is young and entrusted to the Queen Mother, it should be entrusted to the three Queen Mothers, and among the three Queen Mothers, the person who is really in charge is the Queen Mother Huayang. Empress Dowager Huayang is the wife of Yingzheng's grandfather King Xiaowen, and is the mother of Yingzheng's father and son, she is not only powerful, but also around her, there are a large number of relatives and cronies, such as the eldest sister of Huayang and younger brother Yangquanjun, who played a major role in the process of adopting a son to adopt a son, and others, all gathered around the Empress Dowager Huayang at this time. Over the years, the relatives and cronies led by the Empress Dowager Huayang have formed a group of Chu relatives who control the power of the Qin State, and their power is as strong as the sky. It is safe to say that in the ten years before Yingzheng was in power, the person who was really in charge of the Qin regime was the Chu family of relatives headed by the Empress Dowager Huayang, and this is the first major historical fact that we must be clear.
The second major historical fact is that the ministers at the beginning of Yingzheng's accession to the throne, in addition to Xiangguo Lü Buwei, a large number of old ministers since King Qin Zhao are still alive, such as the generals Meng Fu, Wang and others, who have always been respected and used to lead the army. It is particularly worth mentioning that there are two very important ministers who are in charge of state affairs with Lü Buwei, one is Changping Jun and the other is Chang Wenjun. The three of them were the three giants who received the "attack order" at the same time when the Chang Yu Rebellion broke out (more on that later). Chang Pingjun and Chang Wenjun are both princes of Chu who are active in the political arena of Qin, and they both belong to the Chu family of relatives headed by the Empress Dowager Huayang.
On the other hand, Mrs. Han was born in the royal family of South Korea, she is a relative of Empress Dowager Xia, and she and Zhao Ji belong to different relatives. Ziyi married Mrs. Han after returning to Xianyang from Handan, at that time, the life and death of Zhao Ji and Yingzheng were unknown, and the newlywed Mrs. Han had the support of Xia Ji, of course, she was the first choice to replace Mrs. Zhao Ji. Judging from this historical background, Mrs. Han and Zhao Ji have always been opposite harems, and as for Cheng, since his birth, he has been a potential political enemy of Yingzheng.
There is no doubt that replacing Zhao Ji with Mrs. Han and Ying Zheng with Cheng is in the interests of Xia Ji and the Han relatives, but it is not in the interests of the Chu relatives centered on Mrs. Huayang. Zhao Ji and Ying Zheng, although they are not blood relatives of the Chu family, are adoptive relatives recognized by the Chu family, and the Chu family must resolutely support them to prevent Xia Ji and the Han family's power from overexpanding. Come to think of it, it was with the resolute support of the Chu relatives headed by Mrs. Huayang and the assistance of Lu Buwei that Ziyi was able to resist the pressure of his biological mother Xia Ji and Han relatives, and insisted on waiting for Zhao Ji and Yingzheng for six years. In the past six years, all kinds of complicated relationships and fierce battles in the shadows, although the details are unknown, can still be largely associated.
After Ziyi ascended the throne, Zhao Ji was established as the queen, Yingzheng was established as the crown prince, under the balance of the Zhuangxiang king, all kinds of names were determined, the old ministers were respected, the relatives were favored, the people were also favored, and the political situation was stable. The two queen mothers were on top, and they were also safe for a while. According to the custom of the Qin royal family, queens generally did not participate in politics. In the absence of a direct conflict of interest, Queen Zhao Ji and Mrs. Han in the side room are generally calm, Ying Zheng and Cheng, under the love of Ziyi, the eldest brother and the younger brother grow up together. It can be said that Yingzheng, who returned to Xianyang, spent the happiest teenage years of his life.
Yingzheng's happy boyhood was premised on the lifetime of his father, King Zhuangxiang. King Zhuangxiang reigned for only three years, and in 247 BC, King Zhuangxiang died, and Yingzheng, who was only thirteen years old, became the king of Qin. The political situation of the Qin State has undergone major changes as a result, and Ying Zheng has also ended his happy youth and entered the turbulent and undercurrent of the Young King Era. Under the protection of the queen mothers, the secret and open battles between him and his younger brother Cheng also became obvious and fierce step by step. When Ying Zheng ascended the throne, he was only 13 years old, and he was not yet a minor, so he could not personally govern the government, but could only entrust the government to the empress dowager and ministers. Ying political commissar to the queen mother and ministers, from thirteen to twenty-two years old, a full ten years, so, in these ten years, who was entrusted with the big government, who was really in charge of the power of the Qin State?
The interpretation of scholars of the past dynasties believes that during Yingzheng's childhood, the empress dowager who was entrusted to the government was his mother, the empress dowager, and the minister who was entrusted was Lü Buwei, Xiangguo, and the two of them were the main figures who really controlled the power of Qin in these ten years. However, this statement is really a big misunderstanding and a historical error that must be clarified.
Why do you say this? Because this view ignores two important historical facts. First: When Ying Zheng ascended the throne, there were three queen mothers, in addition to Ying Zheng's biological mother, the Empress Dowager Zhao, there were two queen mothers, one was Ying Zheng's adoptive grandmother, the Empress Dowager Huayang, and the other was Ying Zheng's own grandmother, the Empress Dowager Xia.
The three queen mothers, whether in terms of name and generation, or from the perspective of foundation power, the queen mother Huayang has an absolute advantage and is the first. The Empress Dowager Huayang was followed by the Empress Dowager Xia, and finally the Empress Dowager. This order is not only supported by literature, but also by the newly unearthed laws of the Qin and Han dynasties. According to the two-year decree of the Zhangjiashan Han Jian, in the Qin and Han dynasties, there were clear regulations on the order of the rights and interests of the heirs after a man's death: the first was the son, the second was the parents, the third was the wife, and the fourth was the daughter. According to this principle, after Ziyi's death, the first successor is his son Yingzheng, the second is the two living mothers, that is, the Empress Dowager Huayang and the Empress Dowager Xia, and the third is Ziyi's wife, the Empress Dowager.
Therefore, Ying Zheng is young and entrusted to the Queen Mother, it should be entrusted to the three Queen Mothers, and among the three Queen Mothers, the person who is really in charge is the Queen Mother Huayang. Empress Dowager Huayang is the wife of Yingzheng's grandfather King Xiaowen, and is the mother of Yingzheng's father and son, she is not only powerful, but also around her, there are a large number of relatives and cronies, such as the eldest sister of Huayang and younger brother Yangquanjun, who played a major role in the process of adopting a son to adopt a son, and others, all gathered around the Empress Dowager Huayang at this time. Over the years, the relatives and cronies led by the Empress Dowager Huayang have formed a group of Chu relatives who control the power of the Qin State, and their power is as strong as the sky. It is safe to say that in the ten years before Yingzheng was in power, the person who was really in charge of the Qin regime was the Chu family of relatives headed by the Empress Dowager Huayang, and this is the first major historical fact that we must be clear.
The second major historical fact is that the ministers at the beginning of Yingzheng's accession to the throne, in addition to Xiangguo Lü Buwei, a large number of old ministers since King Qin Zhao are still alive, such as the generals Meng Fu, Wang and others, who have always been respected and used to lead the army. It is particularly worth mentioning that there are two very important ministers who are in charge of state affairs with Lü Buwei, one is Changping Jun and the other is Chang Wenjun. The three of them were the three giants who received the "attack order" at the same time when the Chang Yu Rebellion broke out (more on that later). Chang Pingjun and Chang Wenjun are both princes of Chu who are active in the political arena of Qin, and they both belong to the Chu family of relatives headed by the Empress Dowager Huayang.
Therefore, Ying Zheng is young and entrusted to the minister, which by no means refers to Lü Buwei alone, but refers to a group of old ministers since King Qin Zhao, among them, there are three main people who preside over state affairs in the center of the regime: Lü Buwei, Changping Jun and Chang Wenjun. Among the three, Chang Pingjun and Chang Wenjun are both relatives and cronies of the Empress Dowager Huayang, as for Lü Buwei, he is the matchmaker who facilitated the adoption of Ziyi by the Empress Dowager Huayang, and has the trust of both the Empress Dowager Huayang and Ziyi, and can also be regarded as the Empress Dowager Huayang's person. After the death of Prince Zhuang Xiang, he continued to gain the trust of the Empress Dowager Huayang and the Empress Dowager, and was able to continue to govern the country. The shock caused by the death of the Empress Dowager Xia can be seen from this that when Yingzheng ascended the throne at the age of thirteen, Cheng was only ten years old, and the relationship between them was completely affected by the relationship between the three empress dowagers. There are very few records of Cheng in the history books, only two things, one is the rebellion against Qin and Zhao that we have already talked about earlier, and the other is the envoy to Korea.
According to the records of "Warring States Policy, Qin Ce", "New Preface, Good Strategy" and "Historical Records: The Biography of Chunshen Jun", in the fifth year of the reign of King Qin, he sent an envoy to South Korea, and without spending a single soldier, the Qin State obtained the "land of a hundred miles" offered by Korea. This incident was handed down as a story of the Warring States Period, and it was only accidentally mentioned in the conversation between the foreign envoy and the King of Qin, and the details of the matter were not specifically explained, which inevitably became a historical mystery.
When I was sorting out this matter, I noticed an age problem, this incident happened in the fifth year of the reign of King Qin, at that time, Ying Zheng was eighteen years old, and he was not yet in power, and he was only fifteen years old at most (the age of the characters in this book is all used in accordance with ancient conventions), and it is really a bit incredible that he was able to obtain a large piece of land in Korea without spending a single soldier.
Many incredible chronicles in ancient history often have hidden backgrounds. This situation is not only common in history, but also not difficult to encounter in reality. For this incredible thing, following the context of Cheng-Mrs. Han-Empress Dowager Xia-Han's relatives, we can make a reasonable guess. The young prince became a young man, his mother Mrs. Han was worried, and his grandmother, Empress Dowager Xia, also felt that it was inappropriate. According to the laws of the Qin State, Cheng Cheng, who is a prince, cannot get a knighthood without merit. The development of the early stage not only affected the heart of his mother, Mrs. Han, but also became the heart disease of his grandmother, Empress Dowager Xia.
As we have mentioned earlier, Empress Dowager Xia and Mrs. Han were both born in South Korea and have a close relationship with the Korean royal family, so they used their networks to send envoys to South Korea, and through military pressure and diplomatic activities, they forced South Korea to give up a hundred miles of land. From this point of view, Cheng's meritorious service in the expansion of Korea is likely to be an activity specially arranged by Empress Dowager Xia and Mrs. Han in order to reward Cheng.
In a word, Empress Dowager Xia is Cheng's protector, and she made as many arrangements as possible for her beloved grandson before her death. However, the careful arrangement of the protector can manage the time before death, but not after death. In the seventh year of the reign of King Qin, Empress Dowager Xia died, Cheng lost his protective umbrella, and his fate changed as a result. The unfortunate result of this change is chaos.
"Historical Records: Qin Shi Huang Benji" records that in the seventh year, "Empress Dowager Xia died." In the eighth year, General Chang'an Juncheng, the younger brother of the king, attacked Zhao and died in Tunliu". Between the grandmother and grandson of the Korean family, two unfortunate events have occurred one after another, and there will be no connection behind them. What exactly is this connection? Since there is no record in the history books, we can only make some possible speculations based on archaeological excavations in recent years.
Empress Dowager Xia is the side chamber of King Xiaowen, the grandfather of Qin Shi Huang, and Mrs. Huayang, who is still alive, is the wife, so she cannot be buried with King Xiaowen after her death. The cemetery of King Xiaowen is in the Eastern Tomb of Qin (now Lintong District, Xi'an), and the Empress Dowager Huayang was buried here with King Xiaowen after her death. Before the death of the Empress Dowager Xia, she chose another burial place for herself, "Dudong", in Chang'an District, south of today's Xi'an. In "Historical Records: The Biography of Lü Buweilie", she has a sentence about why she chose Du Dong as her burial place: "Look at my son in the east, and look at my husband in the west." After a hundred years, there were 10,000 families next to it. "It means that I chose Dudong as my burial place, so that to the east, I can see the grave of my son, and from this west, I can see the grave of my husband. In a hundred years, the place will flourish and become a city with 10,000 households. If this sentence is really what the Empress Dowager Xia said before her death, it has become the only message of the old Empress Dowager in history.
Regarding the Empress Dowager Xia, because there are only a few words in the history books, the image she left in history seems to be just a neglected harem lady, and her existence in history seems to be only arranged to be used as a foil for Mrs. Huayang, reflecting the brilliance of Mrs. Huayang with her gloomy loss. But is this really the truth of history? Or is it just a misunderstanding caused by the incomplete records of the history books?
In 2006, I received news that the tomb of Empress Dowager Xia had been excavated. In March 2007, he made a special trip to investigate. When I came to Shenhe Plateau, Chang'an District, south of Xi'an, and entered the excavation site, I was amazed and shocked, and the impression of the Empress Dowager Xia left by reading history books in the old days was instantly swept away. At that time, the tomb that appeared in front of my eyes was large-scale, magnificent, a large tomb of the emperor-level scale in the shape of a zigzag, 130 meters long from east to west, 110 meters wide from north to south, the tomb chamber was 15 meters deep underground, and there were thirteen burial tombs around. The whole cemetery covers an area of about 260 acres, 550 meters long from north to south, 310 meters wide from east to west, and originally had various ground buildings.
If this tomb is really the tomb of the Empress Dowager Xia, it is conceivable that a large tomb of this scale can not be built in a short time. Xia Ji was revered as the queen mother in the first year of King Zhuangxiang, and the death of the queen mother Xia was in the seventh year of the reign of King Qin, and the ten years in between, should be the construction time of this tomb. It is also conceivable that the owner of such a large tomb must have a noble status and prominent power during his lifetime. In the era of his son Prince Zhuang Xiang, the Empress Dowager Xia and the Empress Dowager Huayang were divided into two palaces to jointly assist the King of Qin. In the era of her grandson King Yingzheng of Qin, Empress Dowager Xia and Empress Dowager Huayang jointly supervised the regime and guarded the inheritance left by the previous king, and her influence in the political situation of Qin was very important.
The queen mother's intervention in politics and the power of her relatives are the general practice of Qin and Han politics, which can be said to be a product of the system. The early history of the Qin State is not very clear due to the lack of historical materials, but in the words of the historical books and the unearthed inscriptions, the activities of the powerful queen mother and relatives can still be seen, and after the accession of King Qin Zhao, the situation is very obvious. The Chu group of foreign relatives centered on the Empress Dowager Xuan completely dominated the Qin regime. Along with this situation, when the empress dowager in power died, there were often major political changes. Empress Dowager Xuan died, and the powerful Chu relatives, including Mrs. Huayang's grandfather, were exiled from Beijing and relieved of political power. Similarly, the death of the Empress Dowager Xia led to corresponding changes in the politics of the Qin state.
With the death of Empress Dowager Xia, the Korean relatives lost their central figure and inevitably declined. According to the two grandmother-level empress dowagers in the two palaces, only the Empress Dowager Huayang remains, and the Zhao relatives with Zhao Ji as the center are becoming stronger and stronger, and the political forces of the Qin court will be reshuffled and combined. When the Empress Dowager Xia was alive, Mrs. Han could invoke the Empress Dowager Xia and Zhao Ji to fight against each other, and the widows of the two Zhuang Xiang kings could maintain a certain balance. On the contrary, Zhao Ji did not have the restraint of the Empress Dowager Xia, she believed that she was the biological mother of the King of Qin, and she had the support of Xiangguo Lu Buwei and the face of the head of the face, the market was bullish, and even went step by step to be unscrupulous and fearless. In this context, it can be said that it is a matter of course that she took advantage of the death of Empress Dowager Xia to squeeze out Mrs. Han and Cheng.
Judging from a series of events in the future, the result of the Zhao family's relatives led by the Empress Dowager Zhao Ji attacking Mrs. Han and Cheng was the Cheng Rebellion. The person who acts as a thug for the Empress Dowager is the first concubine. Who was the widowed Empress Dowager Chang Yu, and why did he act as a thug for the Empress Dowager during the Cheng Zhi Rebellion? In order to facilitate the investigation of the case, I would like to first provide the following personal materials about the Empress Dowager:
Archives of the Princess
Name: Chang Yu
Gender: Male
Country of birth: Zhao State
Place of birth: Handan
The title of Marquis of Changxin
Career advocacy
Xianyang, where the crime occurred
The relationship with the case is the face of the Empress Dowager Zhao Ji. The thugs of the chaos?
Chang Yu is a native of Handan, Zhao State, and is a fellow villager with the Empress Dowager Zhao Ji. Some people say that he had an affair with Zhao Ji, and later came to Qin with Zhao Ji, and has been silently waiting for Zhao Ji, and after Zhao Ji became the queen mother, he became popular. However, "Historical Records: The Biography of Lü Buwei" said that Chang Yu was originally Lü Buwei's housekeeper, that is, a retainer, and was later introduced to the empress dowager by Lü Buwei, and was favored by the empress dowager, so he developed and was awarded the highest title of Qin State, and was named the Marquis of Changxin, and his power was for a while.
Chang Yu is a person who advocates excellence. One of his characteristics is that he has a super sexual function. It is said that in the music and dance performances of the banquet, he can use an erect phallus to put on a paulownia wheel to make a wonderful performance, and he is called the Great Yin Man. So, why did such a strange and peculiar figure come into being favored by Lü Buwei and introduce him to the Empress Dowager? Why did the Empress Dowager favor him? Why was he able to become a smash hit in the political arena of the Qin State? This must start with the relationship between Lü Buwei and the Empress Dowager Zhao Ji.
Zhao Ji is a native of Handan and was born in a wealthy family in the Zhao State. The so-called "wealthy family" is a powerful family. Zhao Ji is extremely talented, can sing and dance, and can be called a pioneer in fashion among the beautiful ladies in Handan.
We all know an idiom, called "Handan toddler", about a Yan people came to Handan, the capital of Zhao State, everything in Handan is so trendy and prosperous, even Handan people's walking posture is so good-looking, so this Yan people learn Handan people to walk, but not only did not learn, but even forgot their original way of walking, there was no way, so they had to crawl back.
The idiom of Handan toddler, from "Zhuangzi", is certainly a metaphor, a metaphor for blindly imitating people, not only not learning new things, but throwing away their original things. Zhuangzi was a native of the Warring States Period, and the historical background of Handan's toddler is quite close to Handan, the capital of Zhao in the Zhao Ji era. At that time, Handan was a world-famous metropolis and was known for leading the world's fashion. Handan fashion, one is a son, a warrior, and the other is a beautiful woman who is passionate and good at dancing. Judging from Zhao Ji's behavior in the future, she is indeed a charming and amorous beauty, and her life value orientation is less in politics and more in life.
As we have already introduced, the year when Zhao Ji was pregnant with Yingzheng met the Battle of Changping. In the second year after giving birth to Yingzheng, the Qin army besieged Handan. In the third year, Ziyi and Lü Buwei escaped from Handan, and she took the three-year-old Yingzheng to die for the rest of her life, going through a lot of hardships. Six years later, Qin and Zhao reconciled, and she took the nine-year-old Ying Zheng and was returned to Xianyang by Zhao State. It can be imagined that during this period, Zhao Ji, as a mother, went through many hardships and hardships in order to protect and raise Yingzheng. The mother and son can be described as sharing weal and woe, and their love is as deep as the sea.
The queen mother's intervention in politics and the power of her relatives are the general practice of Qin and Han politics, which can be said to be a product of the system. The early history of the Qin State is not very clear due to the lack of historical materials, but in the words of the historical books and the unearthed inscriptions, the activities of the powerful queen mother and relatives can still be seen, and after the accession of King Qin Zhao, the situation is very obvious. The Chu group of foreign relatives centered on the Empress Dowager Xuan completely dominated the Qin regime. Along with this situation, when the empress dowager in power died, there were often major political changes. Empress Dowager Xuan died, and the powerful Chu relatives, including Mrs. Huayang's grandfather, were exiled from Beijing and relieved of political power. Similarly, the death of the Empress Dowager Xia led to corresponding changes in the politics of the Qin state.
With the death of Empress Dowager Xia, the Korean relatives lost their central figure and inevitably declined. According to the two grandmother-level empress dowagers in the two palaces, only the Empress Dowager Huayang remains, and the Zhao relatives with Zhao Ji as the center are becoming stronger and stronger, and the political forces of the Qin court will be reshuffled and combined. When the Empress Dowager Xia was alive, Mrs. Han could invoke the Empress Dowager Xia and Zhao Ji to fight against each other, and the widows of the two Zhuang Xiang kings could maintain a certain balance. On the contrary, Zhao Ji did not have the restraint of the Empress Dowager Xia, she believed that she was the biological mother of the King of Qin, and she had the support of Xiangguo Lu Buwei and the face of the head of the face, the market was bullish, and even went step by step to be unscrupulous and fearless. In this context, it can be said that it is a matter of course that she took advantage of the death of Empress Dowager Xia to squeeze out Mrs. Han and Cheng.
From Handan to Xianyang, it can be said that from hell to heaven. After a long absence, Ziyi made compensation for his wife Zhao Ji and eldest son Yingzheng who did not forget the old love, Zhao Ji officially became the prince's wife, and Yingzheng was also made the heir of the prince. After Ziyi ascended the throne, Zhao Ji became the queen, and the eleven-year-old Yingzheng became the crown prince. For Zhao Ji, her life in Qin was smooth sailing, and she spent a happy period in her life in Xianyang. However, the good times did not last long, and soon, a new turn occurred in her life.
In 247 BC, Prince Zhuang Xiang, who had only been the king of Qin for three years, died, Yingzheng ascended the throne at the age of thirteen, and Zhao Ji became the queen mother. The newly widowed Zhao Ji is only in her thirties, and her amorous mind once again threw herself into her old lover Lu Buwei. It is said that the old love between them recurred, became a secret lover, and had a period of passionate years, as if returning to the past.
"Historical Records: The Biography of Lü Buwei" recounts this incident and says: "The King of Qin was young, and the Queen Mother was always secretly communicating with Lü Buwei. That is to say, between Zhao Ji and Lu Buwei, the old love was rekindled and they became lovers again. This statement has some legendary colors, and some people think that it is not credible, and it is a fabrication to frame Lü Buwei and smear the Qin royal family. How should we understand the relationship between Lü Buwei and Zhao Ji?
From the perspective of history, we can reasonably associate that Zhao Ji was originally a dancing girl in Handan, married Ziyi and became the wife of the prince and grandson of Qin, and she later came to Xianyang alone with Yingzheng, and with the change of Ziyi's status, she first became the prince's wife, and then the queen mother, and became the first lady of Qin, a noble political figure. However, Zhao Ji, who is in the Qin State, she is a foreigner, she has neither a political foundation nor a lack of connections in the Qin State, and there are only three people she can rely on in the Qin State, her husband and son are different, her old lover Lu Buwei, and her son Yingzheng. After Ziyi's death, his son Yingzheng was too young to be in power, and the only person Zhao Ji could trust and rely on politically was Lü Buwei. Zhao Ji is an amorous and good dancer, young and widowed, lonely and helpless, and the only man she can rely on emotionally is Lu Buwei. Therefore, Lü Buwei had to play the dual role of lover and political adviser of the Empress Dowager Zhao Ji.
In ancient and modern times, politicians who acted as the lovers of the young queen mother and the queen mother faced a huge risk of ruin. First of all, it is inevitable that he will be attacked by political opponents, and secondly, once the young king grows up to be in power, he will also be held accountable by the new king. There is a third layer of danger in the lover relationship between Zhao Ji and Lu Buwei, which is the deterrence and supervision of Zhao Ji's two mothers-in-law, the Empress Dowager Huayang and the Empress Dowager Xia. We have already said that the political commissar of Qin Wang Ying is the Empress Dowager, the first is the Empress Dowager Huayang, the second is the Empress Dowager Xia, and the third is the Empress Dowager. When Prince Zhuang Xiang passed away, the Empress Dowager Huayang and the Empress Dowager Xia were still alive, and they were the empress dowagers of the powerful and powerful Empress Dowagers, and they were the ancestors of the Qin royal family. It can be imagined that once they know about it, the consequences will be unimaginable.
Zhao Jiqi is a person with a rich temperament, she lives alone in the palace, bearing huge political pressure and mental pressure, whether it is politically or emotionally inseparable from Lu Buwei. Lü Buwei is a businessman and politician, he is shrewd and wise, as a prime minister, there is no shortage of women around him, and there is no shortage of power in his hands, he knows that his personal relationship with Zhao Ji has all kinds of harm and no benefit, and he must get out as soon as possible.
After careful consideration and careful planning, Lü Buwei came up with a plan to get out of the best of both worlds. This plan to get out is to offer "face to the head". In order to avoid disaster, Lü Buwei decided to support the Empress Dowager Zhao Ji and the young Wang Yingzheng politically, and resolutely cut off the relationship with the Empress Dowager's lover in life. Lü Buwei is Lü Buwei after all, he is well versed in the world, and he is tactful, worried that the sudden severance of the lover relationship with the Empress Dowager may cause accidents, so he considered finding a stand-in who can replace him as the empress dowager's lover. The person he found was Chang Yu.
Lü Buwei took a fancy to Chang Yu for two reasons: first, Chang Yu was a native of Zhao, and Zhao Ji was also a native of Zhao, with the same pronunciation and customs, easy to get close to, and could relieve the sorrow of the Empress Dowager alone in a foreign country; second, Chang Yu was a man with super sexual functions, and he could perform sexual performances, which was attractive to mature women. Lü Buwei mentioned Chang Yu in front of the Empress Dowager from time to time, which aroused the interest of the Empress Dowager, so he asked Lü Buwei to send Chang Yu to his side.
In the Empress Dowager's palace, the guards are heavily guarded, and irrelevant men can enter casually. It was still Lü Buwei who was resourceful, and he managed to convict Chang Yu and send him to the Empress Dowager's palace as a eunuch. He also instigated the Empress Dowager to bribe the officials who presided over the punishment, and simply plucked Chang Yu's beard and sent him to the palace as a eunuch. The Empress Dowager got the concubine and was very excited after being used. The history books say that the emperor and the queen mother are "absolutely in love" for Chang Yu, that is, she loves her so much that she almost forgets everything. Naturally, everything that the Empress Dowager forgot because she loved Chang Yu also included her old lover Lü Buwei. Lü Buwei was happy to see this, and he was greatly relieved, glad that he had finally avoided emotional entanglement and political danger.
The Empress Dowager was immersed in love with Chang Yu and soon became pregnant. In order to avoid the eyes and ears of the world, the empress dowager divined that she was unwell, and got the result that she should avoid her current residence, so she left Xianyang and moved to live in the palace of Yongcheng. Yongcheng is in the current Baoji, hundreds of miles away from Xianyang, is the old capital of the Qin State, not only the ancestral tomb and ancestral temple of the first kings of the Qin State, but also built a lot of palace annexes. The Empress Dowager, who moved to Yongcheng with Chang Yu, built a paradise-like love nest here. Her private life is not only laissez-faire, almost unscrupulous, and forgetful, between her and Chang Yu, she gave birth to two sons in a row.
Chang Yu, who was favored by the Empress Dowager, was inseparable from the Empress Dowager. He was rewarded by the Empress Dowager, with thousands of family assets and thousands of slaves, and became one of the richest people in the Qin State. Not only that, Chang Yu also actively participated in politics and became a favorite of power.
For Chang Yu, a historical figure, he has been regarded as a despised sexual monster for thousands of years, demonized and abused, and over the years, movies and television have treated him as a yin evil thing hidden in the palace, not only not to see the light of day, but also disgusted from image to behavior. From a historical point of view, this treatment does not conform to the historical facts of the time, and is a kind of face-painted character image formed by the addition and distortion of the imagination of later generations.
In fact, in the Warring States Qin and Han dynasties, the widowed queen mother princess raised her face and held a lot of sexual partners publicly, and she did not hide it because she was ugly, and was even supported and encouraged. It is almost an open secret that Qin Shi Huang's great-great-grandmother, Empress Dowager Xuan, had an affair with the king of Yiqu in the northwest and had two sons. When Empress Dowager Xuan died, she asked another face to be buried with Wei Choufu, and after the skillful persuasion of the strategists, this idea was dispelled. Emperor Zhao of the Han Dynasty had a face head, called Ding Wairen, and Emperor Zhao of the Han Dynasty issued a special edict to provide convenience. These are ancient customs and customs, and the human nature in them is real and natural. Therefore, Zhao Ji's raising of the first concubine was not an ugly thing at that time, it was equivalent to a man raising a concubine. The real problem with Chang Yu is political. His true image is that of a political figure, and he has done quite a bit in politics. As a historical figure, Chang Yu's true image has been concealed and tampered with. Regarding the situation after Chang Yu was favored by the empress dowager, the "Historical Records of Lü Buweilie" said: "Chang Yu is always obedient, and the rewards are very generous, and everything is decided by Chang Yu. There were thousands of servants in the house, and there were more than 1,000 people in the courtesy. ”
This is to say that Chang Yu followed the Empress Dowager every day and received very rich rewards, and the Empress Dowager handed over all kinds of things to Chang Yu to deal with. There are thousands of slaves in the Chang Yu family, and more than 1,000 travelers from all over the world have taken refuge in the Chang Yu Mansion as shepherds.
Interpreting this historical material, it can be seen that Chang Yu is not hidden in the palace of the Empress Dowager, he lives in his mansion with dignity, and calls thousands of slaves. He is by no means inferior to others, but opens the door of the mansion and openly recruits travelers from all over the world, in that case, just like the four princes of the Warring States, that is, Chunshenjun of Chu State, Xinling Jun of Wei State, Pingyuan Jun of Zhao State and Meng Weijun of Qi State, famous all over the world, and completely like Lü Buwei at that time, full of guests and very public.
Regarding the grand occasion of Chang Yu's development, the "Historical Records of Qin Shi Huang Benji" records more correctly and concretely:
Chang Yu was named the Marquis of Changxin, and he was given the land of Shanyang, so that he lived in it. The palace carriages and horses and clothes are confined to the hunting. No matter how big or small, it depends on you. and Taiyuan County in Hexi is more of a country.
This means that Chang Yu was named the Marquis of Changxin, and his territory was in the place of Shanyang (now the area of Huojia and Qinyang, Henan). With the connivance of the Empress Dowager, Chang Yu was free to use the palaces, carriages, horses, clothes, gardens, and hunting grounds of the Qin royal family. The affairs of the Empress Dowager, no matter how big or small, are all handled and decided by Chang Yu. Then, the area west of the Fen River in Taiyuan County was rewarded to Chang Yu as a feudal state.
Chang Yu, as the face and favorite of the empress dowager, was rewarded with wealth, and used the palace, chariots, horses, clothes, gardens and hunting grounds of the Qin royal family at will. The Empress Dowager also handed over her own family affairs to Chang Yu to decide. These things, under the personal grace of the Empress Dowager, are not difficult to do. However, the matter of Chang Yu being named the Marquis of Changxin and establishing a feudal country is not an ordinary thing, but a major event that has been recorded in the annals of classics and has a bearing on the law of the country, so why was Chang Yu made a marquis?
There is no record in the history books about why Chang Yu was a marquis, and scholars have always understood that he was the face of the empress dowager's favor, and the marquis was also out of the empress dowager's personal kindness. I initially followed the crowd and understood it this way, but when I carefully sorted out this history, I realized that it was a misconception. Not only has it been misunderstood for more than 2,000 years, but it has also directly affected the punctuation and segmentation of the "Historical Records". The subsections of the Chung Hwa Book Company point to the school book, that is, the two related events that happened in the same year are listed in the eight and nine years before the reign of King Qin. This segmentation, which is based on misunderstanding, in turn, reinforces the foundation of misunderstanding.
Well, today's article ends here, thank you for having such a good temperament and come to see Xiao Jia's article, friends who like history and real estate knowledge, you can pay attention to Xiao Jia, and good articles ^_^ will be updated every day