Although the southern kingdoms of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms are isolated in a corner, most of the founding monarchs can be diligent in government affairs, frugal in their governance, and generous and good governance. When power was handed over to the second generation of monarchs, the situation changed dramatically. The "second-generation sons and brothers" in the Ten Kingdoms regime were mostly born in wealth and nobility, did not understand that it was not easy for their predecessors to start a business, and squandered the wealth left by their predecessors at will.
In history, the Lord of Shu Hou, Meng Chang, was a famous emperor of luxury, and he was very experienced in squandering the wealth left by his father Meng Zhixiang. For Meng Chang's extravagant performance, the more frugal Song Taizu Zhao Kuangyin had an opinion, directly attributing the reason for the fall of Later Shu to this:
Ru decorates this with seven treasures, what kind of utensils should be used to store food? If you do it, you won't die! (Song Taizu Honji III)
The picture shows a portrait of Zhao Kuangyin, the grandfather of the Song Dynasty
Meng Chang's extravagance is not an isolated case, and there are no shortage of such extravagant masters in the Ten Kingdoms. It was only Meng Chang's extravagance that was criticized by posterity.
For example: Emperor Yanjun of Minhuizong "made a palace of great works, the grandeur of extreme civil engineering", King Jipeng of Min Kangzong "made a ziwei palace, decorated with crystals, and the grandeur of the earth and wood was doubled by the treasure palace"; Ma Xisheng, the king of Hengyang of the Chu kingdom, "killed fifty chickens a day for food"; Ma Xifan, the king of Wenzhao, "was a good luxury", "made the Heavenly Strategy Palace, and the prosperity of the extreme building"; Yang Wo, the ancestor of the Southern Wu Dynasty, "drank and had fun day and night, but the candles of the ten circles were beaten, and a candle cost tens of thousands of dollars"; Wu Yue Wusu Wang Qian wei "often recaptured his people with luxury, down to the chicken and fish eggs, and will take the family every day", and Wen mu wang Qian Yuanxuan" Sex is especially extravagant, good to govern the palace" and so on.
Among them, Qian Yue, the king of Wuyue, was the founding monarch of wu yueguo, and Qian Yuanwan was his son and the second monarch of Wuyue. Judging from the above description, could it be that this father and son are equally extravagant, and can they also be like other monarchs: the deficit of the state treasury, causing civil strife, resulting in the situation of national ruin?
Of course not, although The father and son of Qian Wei and Qian Yuanwan were extravagant on the surface and wanted to build a palace, it did not affect their position in the hearts of the wuyue people. The reason why father and son dare to be so extravagant once is that they have this confidence, and they cannot be reduced to a conversation with other extravagant kings.
The picture shows Lin'an-Qian's hometown
Qian's strength still comes from the fact that the State of Wu yue under his rule was in a state of prosperity and stability, which was greatly related to his ruling strategy. Qian Wei had a complete system for governing the State of Wu, and Wu Yue's successor was only Xiao Zhicao and insisted on implementing it. This made Wu Yueguo a rare pure land among the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms.
With regard to Qian's governing system, it can be roughly divided into these four contents: First, guarding the border and pursuing the "general policy of ensuring external stability and reducing unnecessary disputes"; second, stabilizing internal affairs, adopting the policy of "good officials and appointing people on the basis of merit" to ensure that the government is clear and clear, and consolidating the stability of internal affairs; third, grasping the people's hearts, actively benefiting the people, and maintaining a state of common desire between the upper and lower levels; fourth, protecting the country, absorbing the lessons of the "establishing heirs" of the surrounding political powers, and implementing the system of establishing the virtuous. These four points constitute the essence of Qian Wei's rule of the country, and it is also the governance system of Wu Yueguo.
Compared with several other regimes, each family was able to implement one or two of them to a greater or lesser extent, but none of them was able to form a skillful and perfect governing system like Qian Wei's, and it could continue to be used among subsequent monarchs. It can be said that this is the reason why several other regimes are inferior to Wu Yueguo.
The implementation of the "big policy"
The most typical is Wang Zhenzhi, whose sentence "It is better to be an open door and a modest ambassador than a closed door heavenly son" has become a model of "big policy" in the Ten Kingdoms. Unfortunately, the great policy pursued by Wang Zhenzhi came to an abrupt end after his death, and his children and grandchildren not only went against Wang Zhenzhi's wishes, but also tore their faces with the Central Plains Dynasty, called themselves emperors without authorization, and became "closed-door heavenly sons". This has also become one of the reasons for the rapid demise of the Fujian state.
With the lesson of the failure of the Min state, Qian Wei stipulated that future generations should adhere to the "big policy of doing things." Therefore, no matter which monarch ascended to the throne, and no matter how the political situation of the Central Plains Dynasty changed, Wu Yueguo always pursued the national policy of "paying tribute and calling the domain".
The State of Wuyue was located in a corner of the southeast, bordering the Kingdom of Wu (Southern Tang) and the State of Min. Yang Xingmi, the ruler of the State of Wu, had always been at odds with Zhu Wen, and had ambitions to annex the world, and often had the intention of annexing the southern states. As Yang Xingmi's neighbor, Qian Wei was small and weak, and fighting against Wu was tantamount to hitting a stone with an egg. Therefore, it is necessary to decisively claim the title of vassal to the Central Plains Dynasty in order to contain the ambitions of the State of Wu.
In the hands of the last monarch, Qian Hongli, he still adhered to the rules set by Qian Wei, successively enshrined the Later Zhou and Northern Song dynasties, and at the same time refused the request to claim the title of Southern Tang, and at the invitation of Zhao Kuangyin, sent troops to southern Tang to assist Zhao Kuangyin in seizing the territory of Southern Tang.
The big policy in the southern countries is a "strong desire to survive" strategy. In the intricate division of forces, only with the approval of the Central Plains Dynasty can we stand firm in the local area with our backs to the big tree and avoid the intrusion of neighboring countries and the Central Plains Dynasty. Therefore, the founding monarchs of the southern countries can pursue this policy very well. However, their successors could not maintain this policy, and in order to covet enjoyment, they called the emperor the founding of the country and buried the country that their fathers had worked hard to lay.
In the final analysis, the subsequent monarchs violated the will of the founding monarch and were related to the education of the founding monarchs.
The picture shows the West Lake of Hangzhou - the capital of wuyue in the five dynasties and ten kingdoms
Qian's godson
Heir inheritance and education have always been the biggest problems in the Ten Kingdoms, and many regimes have caused chaos in which brothers and sisters are fighting and fighting with each other because of the inheritance of heirs. For example, the Ma brothers of the Chu State, although they had a succession system of "brother to brother and brother", could not suppress the struggle caused by the brothers to seize the throne; the Wang brothers of the Min State, from Wang Yanhan onwards, the phenomenon of brotherly cannibalism has been accompanied by the demise of the Min State.
Qian Wei was well aware of this principle, knowing that brotherly discord would lead to the destruction of the country and the death of the family. Therefore, he was also very strict in self-cultivation and family governance, and successively formulated family rules such as "Eight Trainings of King Wusu" and "Testament of King Wusu" to inform his descendants. When the throne passed to the last Qian Hongli, he could still uphold the ancestral precepts and continue the family style.
Qian Hongli was able to become the King of Wuyue because the general Hu Sijin staged a coup d'état and imprisoned Qian Hongqian before he was inaugurated to the throne. After Qian Hongqian was deposed, Hu Sijin repeatedly threatened to kill him to get rid of the troubles. Because of his brotherly affection and ancestral teachings, Qian Hongli refused Hu Sijin's request several times and sent his relatives to protect Xue Wen by Qian Hongjun's side.
Qian Hongqiang became one of the few monarchs in the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms who could lose his throne and save his life, thanks to the family rules founded by Qian Hongjun, if it were not for Qian Hongli following the ancestral precepts, Qian Hongjun would not have been able to escape death.
A good family style can make the foundation of the regime long and permanent! Among the southern countries, only the Qian family can do this. Although The father and son of Qian Wei had the disadvantage of "being poor and extravagant and extremely expensive", they were still able to make sober decisions on the education of their heirs and the major affairs of the state. For example, the following point of "the people and the nobles are light", which is what those monarchs who covet pleasure and are extremely extravagant cannot do!
The picture shows the Ancestral Hall of the King qian in Hangzhou - the people built an ancestral hall for Qian
The people and nobles are light, judging the hour and sizing up the situation
The idea of "the people, the nobles, and the king is light" is the core of Qian's entire system of governance. He often admonished his heirs: The people are the foundation of the society, the people are noble, and the society is secondary. No need to do it, that is, love the people also. Qian Wei was able to have this "enlightenment" thanks to the reminder of his father Qian Kuan.
After Qian Wei occupied two Zhejiang and thirteen prefectures, he built a mansion in his hometown of Lin'an, which was extremely luxurious; every time he returned to his hometown, the parade team was also extremely luxurious. When Qian Kuan learned that Qian Kuan had returned, he hid around and did not see him, Qian Kuan was confused, and found his father to ask him why he did not see the reason, Qian Kuan said:
My family's Shitian fishing is a matter, no one has ever had Guida like this, Erjin is the lord of the thirteen states, he is enemies on three sides, fighting with people for profits, and fearing that it will harm my family, so he can't bear to see Ru. "The History of the Old Five Dynasties: Hereditary Chronicles"
It is precisely because of Qian Kuan's teachings that Qian Kuan was able to wake up like a dream, and he also had this idea of "the people are noble and the king is light". During his tenure, Qian Wei actively reclaimed acres of land, persuaded farmers to do so, built water conservancy projects, and built stone ponds to benefit the people of Wuyue, so the people honored him as the "Sea Dragon King".
The picture shows the stone pond built by Qiantang - Qiantong
Subsequent kings have also always pursued the idea of "the people are noble and the king is light", and the last Wuyue king Qian Hongli succeeded to the throne, and even more vigorously tried to govern, on the basis of exempting the tax arrears in previous years, implemented the policy of "indulging in the cultivation of the people, and not adding gifts to the public", which made the people of Wuyue very happy.
In addition, Qian Hongli was also able to judge the hour and size up the situation, and in the absence of war in Wuyue, he took the initiative to surrender and save the land of Wuyue, and the people still lived in a prosperous and harmonious life.
The picture shows the Leifeng Pagoda in Hangzhou's West Lake - it is said to have been built for Qian Hongli
In summary, Wu Yueguo was able to sit in the land of the two Zhejiang provinces for eighty-four years (based on the record of the "New Five Dynasties History of Wu Yue Shijia"), which was not an overnight effort, but through the unremitting efforts of the five kings, the land of Wu Yue was in a stable state for a long time. Several other regimes, although they have highlight moments, are unable to maintain a high-light state for a long time.
Looking at Qian Wei and Qian Yuanwan's father and son, the occasional extravagance does not hurt the national body. In the choice of right and wrong, they can judge the hour and size up the situation, not hesitate to lower their own self-worth, but also protect the border and the people, and achieve the goal of "the people are noble and the king is light."Second, whether it is for officials or the selection of successor kings, they are all pursuing the strategy of selecting the best and the best, and only those who are selected in this way can implement and implement Qian's thinking and the entire system of governing the country.
This is the reason why Wu Yueguo can remain safe and sound in the state of "luxury" of the lord of the country!
Resources:
History of the Old Five Dynasties, History of the New Five Dynasties, Spring and Autumn of the Ten Kingdoms, Zizhi Tongjian