In June of the first year of The Ming Dynasty (476), The Taishang Emperor Tuoba Hong died suddenly, only six years after his abdication.
There is no record in the history books of his illness before his death, and suddenly the whole country was directly declared to be silent, which really gave people a very strange feeling. As mentioned earlier, before Emperor Xianwen abdicated, he said that he wanted to live a life of idle clouds and wild cranes after his abdication, but if you look at the historical data, you will find a strange phenomenon, he did not idle at all, but became more active, today's military parade, tomorrow's expedition, has been on the front line.
The Book of Wei preserves a large number of records of Emperor Wen's activities.
In the second year of Yanxing (472), the Emperor Taishang was second to the northern suburbs, and the generals were asked to discuss it.
In March, emperor Taishang went to the north to discuss.
In the winter of October, the creep is blocked. In November, the Emperor Taishang personally discussed it.
In the first month of the third year of Yanxing (473), the Emperor Taishang returned to the clouds. In February, Emperor Taishang went to the north to discuss.
In the winter of October, the Emperor Taishang personally asked for the south.
In February of the fourth year of Yanxing (474), Emperor Taishang toured from the south.
In the winter of October, the Emperor Taishang paraded in the northern suburbs.
The above is an excerpt from the "Book of Wei" about the activities after the abdication of Emperor Xianwen, and it can be seen that Emperor Xianwen was very active and had no intention of raising the heavenly years.
If he doesn't want to retire, why is he in a hurry to abdicate in the good old age of 17?
In fact, the answer is given in the Book of Wei, but it is very obscure. In the Wei Shu Tianxiang Zhi III, there is such a sentence that has been brushed forward:
Forced by the empress dowager, he passed the throne to the crown prince.
The upper is Emperor Xianwen, and the latter does not need to be explained, it is almost vernacular. Whether to retreat or not, when to retreat, the decision is not in his hands. However, Emperor Xianwen did not seem to be willing to go down to receive the box lunch like this, he was dissatisfied in his heart, and his role should not be so much.
So we see that Emperor Xianwen, who became emperor of the Taishang Dynasty, did not withdraw from the stage, but influenced the direction of the korean situation through various means, and the military parade, pro-conquest, and southern tour were just a means for him to demonstrate to the empress.
Emperor Xianwen's public provocation made Empress Feng intolerable, and the only bit of skin she had was torn.
So the worst result came, in June of the first year of Chengming (476), Xin Wei and the Emperor Taishang collapsed.
The 23-year-old Emperor Xianwen left this world that made him love and hate, and his death has become a mystery, some people say that he committed suicide, some people say that he was poisoned, and there are different opinions.
The Book of Wei is very cautious when it is written here, and the matter has been brushed through, but it also leaves a rumor record of Empress Feng poisoning Emperor Xianwen in the biography of Empress Feng.
In June of the first year of The Ming Dynasty (476), Martial Law was declared in Heisei Castle, and the atmosphere was tense. The Emperor Taishang was imprisoned when he was summoned to the palace, and died shortly after in the Yong'an Temple. Heaven knows this, the Emperor knows, Empress Feng knows, anyway, the melon-eating masses don't know. However, the melon-eating masses know one thing, that is, this is already the third emperor who has died since the founding of the Northern Wei Dynasty.
After the death of Emperor Taishang, the group of ministers was called Emperor Xianwen and the temple number was Xianzu. The Book of Wei avoids talking about the cause of his death, but inadvertently says a word at the end:
The change of the palace will be providence!
There seems to be some kind of information revealed.
The mysterious death of his father could not have had no impact on the young Emperor Xiaowen, but at that time, he was unable to confront Empress Feng at all, and could only choose to be patient, which was a full eighteen years. Emperor Xiaowen reigned for 28 years, and Empress Feng listened to the government for 18 years, which shows how complicated the relationship between these ancestors and grandchildren was.
More than twenty years later, Emperor Xiaowen moved the capital to Luoyang without hesitation, and took the lead in burying himself in the dead and burying himself in Jinling, and his father, Empress Feng, who was buried in Jinling in the clouds, never met. Pingcheng is not a sad place for him, perhaps only he knows.
In the year of Emperor Taishang's death, Emperor Xiaowen stopped using the chengxia number and changed it to the first year of Taihe, which was also the longest used year number for him, up to 23 years, until he died on the southern expedition and never changed it again.
As for Empress Feng, Emperor Xiaowen learned his father's lesson and did not engage in confrontation, but only Empress Feng was the leader of the horse, and was careful to serve at all times. At the same time, he also honored her as the empress dowager, and the imperial title system opened the era of Empress Feng. Although the power was in the hands of the empress dowager, Emperor Xiaowen still tried to be an effective emperor, and he repeatedly issued edicts asking his subjects to write to offer advice and advice, and to listen to the people's opinions.
"From now on, the officials and secretaries of state and the people will listen to the book and speak bluntly and do not hide anything." - "Wei Shu Gao Zu Ji"
He also stressed that if there is a good proposal that will benefit the government and the people, there will be a division that will be immediately cleared up, and I will personally look at it.
Emperor Xiaowen was generous and benevolent, as can be seen from the little things he did in power. When he was in Pingcheng, he personally invited the elderly over 70 years old to the Taihua Hall and rewarded the poor with clothing. It is also stipulated that poor families can leave a son to take care of their parents and be exempt from military service. Winter in Pingcheng was very cold, and every winter Emperor Xiaowen would give clothes to the poor people of Jingshi for the winter.
Although Emperor Xiaowen was young, he was very clear-headed, and he did not fight with Empress Feng because of his father's death, not to mention that he did not have the capital, he knew that Empress Feng could depose him at any time, just like he did against his father. Therefore, he chose to endure the humiliation and burden, respected Empress Feng, and asked for instructions and late reports, which was very filial piety.
"Since the empress dowager came to the dictatorship of the dynasty, gao zu was elegant and filial, did not want to participate in the decision, and did not have any big details, and was entrusted to the empress dowager." - "Wei Shu Wencheng Civilization Empress Feng's Biography"
To put it bluntly, Emperor Xiaowen did not care about anything except eating and sleeping, chatting with the empress dowager and snorting melon seeds, not making decisions, and reporting all major events and small things to the empress dowager.
Emperor Xiaowen was so sensible, the empress dowager was naturally overjoyed and very happy, and she finally became the female emperor of northern Wei without a crown, reaching the peak of her life. In this way, Empress Feng, who was not subject to any restraint, was a bit unscrupulous, and her outstanding performance was nepotism.
Qi Daode, Zhang Hu, Wang Yu and other small eunuchs only because they pleased Empress Feng, they were made marquises in less than a year, and Wang Rui even relied on the status of the empress dowager's favorite, and sat in the position of chancellor within a few years. There was also Li Chong, a famous minister of the Xiaowen Dynasty, who also soared because of his relationship with the empress, and received countless rewards alone.
Empress Feng was harsh, and her male pet would be severely punished if she broke the law, but after the punishment, the grace was still the same, which also led to a lot of small fresh meat that wanted to take the male pet shortcut, just like the carp across the river, and she did not shrink back when she died.
"It is because everyone has a desire for profit, and does not think of retreating until death."
Empress Feng, who is so maverick and has male pets all over the country, can actually get along with Emperor Xiaowen in harmony, and the mother-child relationship is deep, which has to be said to be a miracle.