After the death of Zhao Shihu, several of his sons caused chaos over the struggle for power. Ran Min rose to prominence in this chaotic situation, usurped power in Later Zhao, established himself as emperor, and established the state of Wei.
At the same time, Shi Hu's son, Shi Yi, occupied the kingdom of Xiang. Later, Shi Yi sent Liu Xian to lead an army of 70,000 to attack Yecheng, where Ran Min was located, but was successfully repelled by Ran Min.
Liu Xian promised to kill Shi Yi and surrender to Ran Min for his own benefit, but he treacherously occupied the state of Xiang and proclaimed himself emperor after killing Shi Yi. However, his reign did not last long, and Ran Min soon eliminated Hou Zhao.
Qianyan in the north saw this opportunity and sent a large army south. The war between Murong Jun and Ran Min of Qianyan is about to break out. Will Ran Min be able to create a miracle again and resist Qianyan's army?
Ran Min, formerly known as Shi Min, was born in a Han family and was the adopted grandson of Later Zhao Shihu. Because of his wisdom and bravery, he seized the opportunity in the chaos after Shi Hu's death and gradually seized power. At the beginning of 350, Ran Min changed his country name from Later Zhao to Wei, and restored his original surname Ran.
In the process, he discovered Shi Jian's treachery plots, and immediately deposed and executed Shi Jian, while purging the Shi Hu family of influence, and killing thirty-eight of Shi Hu's descendants. Subsequently, Ran Min declared himself emperor, the country name was Wei, the capital was built in Yecheng (now southwest of Linzhang County, Handan City, Hebei), and the era name was Yongxing.
Ran Min is most famous in history for his "Killing Hu Order". He once sent an invitation to the Eastern Jin Dynasty to jointly defeat the Hu people, but because he had established himself as emperor and had participated in wars against the Eastern Jin Dynasty in the past, this proposal did not receive the response and support of the Eastern Jin Dynasty.
Ran Min's policy of "killing Hu Ling" exacerbated ethnic contradictions, led to the betrayal of many Hu generals, and made his dynasty increasingly shaken. And his act of becoming emperor has attracted attacks from surrounding forces, making his regime precarious.
In 350 AD, Shi Hu's concubine Shi Yi established himself as emperor in Xiangguo (present-day Xingtai, Hebei), which was responded to by many Hu generals. In the following year, Shi Yi united with the Xianbei and Qiang people to launch a flanking attack on Ran Min, causing him to suffer heavy losses and a large number of his troops were killed.
After this battle, Ran Min's power declined sharply, and Xuzhou, Yuzhou, Yanzhou, and Jingzhou successively defected to the Eastern Jin Dynasty. Ran Min showed no mercy in the battle with the Hu people, and even killed Li Nong, the king of Qi, and his three sons.
Soon, Shi You's subordinate Liu Xian rebelled, killed Shi You, and returned to Ran Min, marking the demise of Later Zhao. But soon after, Liu Xian rebelled, attacked Yecheng and proclaimed himself emperor, and was finally defeated by Ran Min.
However, the real tragedy of Ran Min was in his war against Qianyan. While Ran Min was attacking Liu Xian, Qianyan in Liaodong took the opportunity to go south, occupied Youzhou, and marched south in three armies.
In April 352, the Former Yan army led by Murong Ke engaged Ran Min at Liantai (northeast of present-day Wuji County, east of Shijiazhuang, Hebei). On the battlefield, Ran Min was extremely brave, and won many battles in the early days, but because he was too conceited, he fell into Murong Ke's trap, and was finally surrounded by the Qianyan cavalry, and when he broke through, his mount Zhu Long died unexpectedly, resulting in Ran Min being captured alive.
After Ran Min was captured, the Ran Wei defenders in Yecheng immediately surrendered to Qianyan, and Ran Wei was destroyed. Ran Min was sent to Jicheng (present-day Beijing) and insisted in front of Murong Jun that his throne was justified. Ran Min was posthumously named the King of Martial Mourning, and his epitaph called him Emperor Ping, showing his extraordinary influence in troubled times.
In this battle, the more tragic was the siege of Yecheng. When the former Yan army besieged Yecheng, the food in the city had been eaten, and the soldiers actually killed and ate the 100,000 palace maids forcibly recruited during the Later Zhao Shihu period. This history truly shows the cruelty of war and the distortion of human nature.
In that era of Wuhu Chaohua, everyone's fate was like dust in the wind, which could be blown away at any time. Ran Min's life is a reflection on personal heroism, as well as a profound warning about war and power. In the long river of history, everyone is insignificant, but their stories are witnesses of the times.