The Chen Dynasty has gone through five emperors, and its history has been full of drama in just 33 years. Among them, the most incredible is the life of Chen Shubao, the queen of Chen. This emperor was dissolute by nature, indulged in wine-colored poetry, and turned a blind eye to state affairs, which eventually led to the great mistake of destroying the country. His behavior is not only outrageous, but also impressive that he can be so shameless. How did he degenerate step by step and eventually cause catastrophe? Let's find out.
doting on beauty and poetry, and gradually losing the integrity of the king
Chen Shubao's family was difficult since he was a child, his father Chen Ji was captured, and his mother took him to take refuge in the city. It was not until 562 that Chen Shubao returned to Jiankang.
This bumpy experience may have given him a different yearning for power and pleasure.
In 569, Chen Shubao was made crown prince. At this time, he had already shown a strong interest in literature and art, often organized poetry clubs, and gathered a group of literati around him.
Not only does he love to write poetry, but he also likes to listen to the service and companionship of those who are talented and learned. It can be seen that at that time, he had already regarded poetry and wine as a pastime and enjoyment.
In 582, Chen Ji died, and Chen Shubao succeeded him as the queen of Chen. When he first ascended the throne, he followed the example of his predecessors and promulgated some wise policies.
But soon, he was completely immersed in a life of excessive drinking and pampering beauty.
Chen Shubao's favorite is Zhang Guifei Lihua. Lihua was born poor, but she has a peerless appearance. Chen Shubao admired her very much, and often held her on his lap, and the two listened to the recital with laughter.
As a result, Lihua gradually developed a desire to abuse power, secretly colluded with eunuchs, and wantonly sold officials and embezzled. The entire court was tossed by her and a group of people.
In addition to Zhang Guifei, Chen Shubao also dotes on Kong Guiren. He once praised Kong Guiren for "looking better than Xi Shi and Diao Chan"
, which shows how much I like her. Every day, Chen Shubao and the concubines and female scholars chanted poems, composing the most gorgeous poems into songs, which were played and sung by the palace maids. A group of people indulged in wine every day.
People of insight such as Zhang Hua, Fu Wei and others once wrote a book of extreme advice, pointing out that Chen Shubao "indulged in pets and confused by wine"
and warned that if the country did not change course, it was in danger of extinction. But instead of listening to the advice, Chen Shubao sentenced them to death. There are gradually no loyal ministers who dare to speak out, and only some ministers are left to greet them.
In this way, Chen Shubao was completely immersed in the beauty of poetry and wine, and ignored state affairs. His life was debauched, his behavior became more and more shameless, and he had gradually lost the integrity and sense of responsibility that an emperor should have. In this way, the future of the country was buried by him step by step.
Incompetence and self-destruction
In the first few years after Chen Shubao ascended the throne, he did something. In the first month of the fourteenth year of Taijian, he issued an edict saying that he would rely on the assistance of his ministers to benefit the people with the legacy of the previous king.
Subsequently, a number of wise policies such as tax exemption and incentives for farming were promulgated one after another. In order to make the Chen Dynasty develop for the better, Chen Shubao also forbade extravagance, promoted honest officials, cared about the people's welfare, and even adopted advice, which can be described as political clarity.
But soon, Chen Shubao was completely immersed in the wine. He was drunk day and night, and turned a blind eye to state affairs. The power of the government fell into the hands of traitors and villains.
From 584 onwards, Chen Shubao completely ignored political affairs and handed over the full power of the government to Shangshu Kong Fan. Kong Fan slandered Chen Shubao, saying that military generals only have the courage of a puppet and do not have much intelligence, and their positions should be filled by scribes.
Chen Shubao was convinced, so he dismissed all the talents of the generals and replaced them with civil servants in the military power.
In this way, there is no general in the Chen Kingdom who has real talent and learning. Shishu is centrifuged, border defense is slack, and national strength is declining. In order to save their lives, the upright people in the DPRK and China can only be silent. The rest are greedy and unrighteous people, who deceive and lawlessly for the sake of power, and the upright people in the DPRK are either demoted or beheaded.
Chen Shubao didn't know about this, and he was still intoxicated with wine every day. In the first month of the spring of the third year of Zhenming, the Sui army was preparing to cross the river, and Chen Shubao actually thought that no matter how powerful the Sui army was, it would not be able to cross the Yangtze River moat.
He was completely ignorant of the pressure of the army, and he sang and danced day and night, without the slightest worry.
In the same year, Chen Shubao ordered people to build a large number of buildings in front of the Guangzhao Palace, and built three pavilions of Linchun, Jieqi and Wangxian, each of which is dozens of zhang high and stretches for dozens of rooms. The wall railings are all carved from sandalwood and decorated with gold and stone, which is extravagant and erosive.
Linchun Pavilion was inhabited by Chen Shubao, Jieqi Pavilion was assigned to Zhang Guifei, and Wangxian Pavilion was shared by Kong Guiren and Gong Guiren.
Chen Shubao is so addicted to poetry and wine, and ignores state affairs, he has gradually lost the integrity and sense of responsibility that an emperor should have. His life was debauched, his behavior became more and more shameless, and the future of the country was buried by him step by step.
In March 588, Emperor Wen of Sui ordered Yang Guang, the king of Jin, to lead an army of 580,000 to Jiankang, the capital of the Chen Dynasty. Chen Shubao vowed to go out in person, but when the Sui army surrounded Jiankang, he cried day and night, and finally pushed away the loyal ministers who covered the well with his body, and hid in Jingyang Well with his favorite concubine.
After the Sui army found Chen Shubao, he begged for mercy again and again. In order to get him up, Sui Jun threw down a rope, only to find that one end of the rope was heavily loaded. It wasn't until he pulled it up that he found that Chen Shubao actually came up with Zhang Guifei and Kong Guifei. Because of his cowardice, Chen Shubao's move has been ridiculed by future generations.
New element: The other side of Chen Shubao
Although Chan's later actions were heinous, his life was not without brilliance. At the beginning of his ascension to the throne, he did work hard to open up a new situation for Chen Guo.
It's a pity that the good times didn't last long, and he was soon bewitched by beauty and degenerated into a life full of wine.
In 582 AD, Chen Shubao succeeded to the throne and became the queen of Chen. When he first ascended the throne, he followed the example of his predecessors and promulgated some wise policies.
For example, tax reduction, incentives for farming, and prohibition of extravagance all show his good intentions at that time.
In the first month of the fourteenth year of Taijian, Chen Shubao issued an edict, saying that he would rely on the assistance of his ministers to benefit all the people.
Although these words seemed hypocritical in his later actions, he did have a sincere heart at that time.
In order to make the Chen Dynasty develop for the better, Chen Shubao not only banned extravagance, but also vigorously supported agriculture and cared about the people's suffering. He also adopted a lot of advice, which can be described as political clarity.
It's a pity that all this beautiful beginning was soon buried by his own hands.
At the beginning of Chen Shubao's accession to the throne, there were still many loyal ministers in the court. For example, Zhang Hua, Fu Wei and others have written a book of extreme advice, pointing out that Chen Shubao is "indulged in pets and confused by wine", warning that if he does not change his course, the country will be in danger of extinction.
It is a pity that Chen Shubao not only did not listen to the advice, but instead sentenced them to death. There are gradually no loyal ministers who dare to speak out, and only some ministers are left to greet them. This also shows from the side that Chen Shubao was indeed lonely and brave at the beginning, and wanted to revitalize Chen Guo.
Chen Shubao lost his father when he was young, had a rough childhood, and once took refuge in the city.
Perhaps it was this difficult experience that gave him a different yearning for power and pleasure. It's a pity that in the end, he still failed to seize the opportunity, but was bewitched by power and beauty.
In 554 AD, Chen Shubao's father, Chen Ji, was captured in Chang'an, and his mother took him to take refuge in the city as a young child. It was not until 562 A.D., after Chen Shubao returned to the south, that Chen Shubao finally returned to the capital Jiankang.
This experience left a deep shadow on Chen Shubao.
Perhaps it was the hardships of his childhood that made Chen Shubao so hungry for power and pleasure. Once he ascended the throne, he began to indulge in alcohol and turned a blind eye to state affairs. In the end, it was a big mistake to destroy the country.
However, even after the death of the country, Chen Shubao still did not show any pain of losing the country. Every day, I still only know how to eat, drink, and have fun, sing and sing, so that I am not chic and happy.
This may also be a kind of obsession and compensation for his obsession with power and pleasure.
In general, Chen Shubao's life can be described as ups and downs. He had the courage to serve the country and the people, but unfortunately he failed to seize the opportunity in the end, but was confused by power and beauty, which led to the big mistake of destroying the country. However, his love of poetry and his obsession with the pursuit of pleasure are two main threads that run through his life.
Lose the king's integrity for life
In March 588, Emperor Wen of Sui ordered Yang Guang, the king of Jin, to lead an army of 580,000 to Jiankang, the capital of the Chen Dynasty. Chen Shubao vowed to go out in person, but when the Sui army surrounded Jiankang, he cried day and night, and finally pushed away the loyal ministers who covered the well with his body, and hid in Jingyang Well with his favorite concubine.
After the Sui army found Chen Shubao, he begged for mercy again and again. In order to get him up, Sui Jun threw down a rope, only to find that one end of the rope was heavily loaded. It wasn't until he pulled it up that he found that Chen Shubao actually came up with Zhang Guifei and Kong Guifei.
Because of his cowardice, Chen Shubao's move has been ridiculed by future generations.
In the first month of 589 AD, the Chen Dynasty was destroyed by the Sui Dynasty without any suspense. Three months later, Chen Shubao was escorted to Chang'an. In the more than ten years of the Sui Dynasty, Empress Chen still used wine as his companion every day, and rarely had a sober time.
Chen Shubao once wrote the poem "The Ballad of Drinking Alone", which wrote: "One drink is not hot, two is the wind is rushing, three is not smooth, four is boring, five is easy to overcome, six is happy, seven is tired, eight is Gao Zhichao, nine is forgetting me, and ten is suddenly in the sky." It can be seen that wine plays an important role in his life.
Chen Shubao, who was greedy for life and afraid of death, even lost his integrity in order to survive. Since the fall of the Chen Dynasty, he actually asked Emperor Wen of Sui for his official title, and what is even more incredible is that Chen Shubao also wrote poems to praise the Sui Dynasty.
If you are an ordinary literati, Chen Shubao is talented and writes poems and praises. But as the emperor of the Chen Dynasty, he ignored the government and politics, had no way to govern the country, and did not distinguish between loyalty and treachery, so he was really unworthy of being the king.
In the life under the fence of the Sui Dynasty, Chen Shubao and his children still drank day and night, drunk all day long, and rarely sober. Within a few years, Empress Chen's body collapsed and he died soon after.
That year, Chen Shubao was fifty-two years old, and was posthumously awarded the title of general, and had the nickname "Yang", and was buried in Pishan, which is known as the "Valley of the Emperors".
At the beginning of Chen Shubao's ascension to the throne, the general trend of Chen Guo had gone. With his qualifications as the king, the destruction of the country is inevitable. Not only did he ignore the country, but he was also timid as a mouse when he was in danger, and finally lost even the integrity of an emperor.
After the Sui army captured Zhang Lihua, Yang Guang, the king of Jin, planned to detain this stunning beauty privately. But the general Gao Gong didn't say much, and said to his subordinates: "When Jiang Taigong was killed, he blindfolded Daji and ordered him to be beheaded. Such a demon concubine will cause endless disasters if she stays!"
So, Gao Gong beheaded Zhang Lihua on the bank of Qingxi to prevent her from causing trouble to the Sui Dynasty like in the Chen Dynasty.
Epilogue: The incompetent and mediocre generation of the deceased
The emperors of the first few generations of the Chen Dynasty were all talented in politics, and their national strength gradually recovered. At the beginning of the founding of the country, Emperor Wu Chen Qian issued an edict "forgiveness for the world" in order to recuperate.
Emperor Wen Chen Shubao also granted amnesty to the world and reduced taxes, so that the people's strength could be restored. During the reign of Emperor Xuan, Emperor Chen Xuan promulgated a series of measures to strengthen the country, so that the state of Chen began to prosper.
However, the good times did not last long, and after Chen Shubao succeeded to the throne, Chen Guo collapsed. Empress Chen dotes on beauty and poetry, is drunk day and night, and ignores state affairs. He favored traitors and villains, deposed Zhongliang, and caused the power of the court to fall into the hands of his ministers.
In the third year of Zhenming, the Sui army pressed the border, but Chen Shubao was ignorant, singing and dancing day and night. When the Sui army invaded Jiankang, he was even more cowardly, pushing away his loyal ministers and hiding in Jingyang Well with his favorite concubine.
After the Sui army discovered Chen Shubao, he begged for mercy again and again, and was finally captured.
After the fall of the Chen Dynasty, Chen Shubao still drank and enjoyed himself every day, and he was completely ignorant of the pain of the country. In order to make a living, he even asked Emperor Wen of Sui for an official title and wrote poems to praise the Sui Dynasty.
This kind of behavior is outrageous, and it can be said that it is shameless to the extreme.
In 596 AD, Chen Shubao died of illness at the age of 52. Later, he was posthumously awarded the general, nicknamed "Yang", and was buried in the mountain known as the "Valley of the Emperors".
However, all this glory can no longer hide his incompetence and the great mistake that led to the destruction of the country.
At the beginning of Chen Shubao's ascension to the throne, the general trend of Chen Guo had gone. With his qualifications as the king, the destruction of the country is inevitable. Not only did he ignore the country, but he was also timid as a mouse when he was in danger, and finally lost even the integrity of an emperor.
After the Sui army captured Zhang Lihua, Yang Guang, the king of Jin, planned to detain this stunning beauty privately. But the general Gao Gong didn't say much, and said to his subordinates: "When Jiang Taigong was killed, he blindfolded Daji and ordered him to be beheaded. Such a demon concubine will cause endless disasters if she stays!"
So, Gao Gong beheaded Zhang Lihua on the bank of Qingxi to prevent her from causing trouble to the Sui Dynasty like in the Chen Dynasty.
Chen Shubao's life can be described as a portrayal of incompetence and mediocrity. He indulged in wine-colored poetry and turned a blind eye to state affairs, and finally made a big mistake for the country. As a generation of emperors, Empress Chen has achieved shamelessness to the extreme, and he is really a tyrant rarely seen in history books.