After Hu Hai ascended the throne, he slaughtered his brothers and sisters in a frenzied manner, but only the children and babies were spared, which was very strange.
So why? Wasn't he afraid of the usurpation of power by his son?
Qin Shi Huang's great achievements are many, the most important of which is that he unified the Six Kingdoms and became the first emperor in Chinese history. However, no one is perfect, and his life has also failed, that is, he did not appoint a prince in advance, and there was a major mistake in the establishment of an heir.
In the twelfth year of the First Emperor (210 BC), Qin Shi Huang died on the way to the fifth eastern tour. Among the retinue at that time was his second son Hu Hai. The eldest son, Fu Su, was stationed at the Great Wall, so he did not accompany him. Some people say that Qin Shi Huang did not pay attention to Su, but in fact, it is not. The defense of the border plug is the cornerstone of the security of the entire Qin state, and Qin Shi Huang's peace of mind to entrust the heavy responsibility to Fu Su just shows that Fu Su is the successor in his heart.
When Qin Shi Huang was alive, although he did not establish a crown prince, he wrote a suicide note, which he wanted to help Su succeed to the throne. Since Hu Hai accompanied Qin Shi Huang and got the moon first near the water tower, he first learned of this news. In Hu Hai's view, the son of the same Qin Shi Huang, why can't he inherit the throne himself? At this time, Zhao Gao and Li Siqiang joined forces to assist Hu Hai in seizing power.
After that, they secretly changed the content of Qin Shi Huang's letter to Fu Su and ordered Fu Su to commit suicide immediately. Subsequently, Hu Hai naturally inherited the throne. In this way, Hu Hai used this despicable means to obtain the throne and forced Fu Su to die. Although Hu Hai had won the throne he had dreamed of for a long time, he also knew in his heart that the means he had obtained were not legitimate.
Therefore, he was always suspicious and constantly thinking, what if someone else found out? What if the ministers felt that they were faint and incompetent, and what if they set up other brothers? Fearing that his throne would be regained, Hu Hai was in a state of panic at every moment. Eventually, he even decided to do something to his brothers and sisters. History records that Hu Hai killed more than twenty of his brothers and sisters in total.
In the end, Hu Hai still did not keep his throne. Facts have proved that without the strength of the emperor, no matter what means are used, it is impossible to sit firmly on the throne. Hu Hai was ousted from power after only sitting on the throne for four years, which was really a big surprise. And ironically, he was ousted by Zhao Gao, who had helped him. After Zhao Gao forced Hu Hai to die, he made zi bao emperor.
So, why didn't Hu Hai kill the baby?
In fact, the historical record of children and babies is also very vague. In the Qin Shi Huang Benji of the "Chronicle of History", it is recorded that "the brother of Li II, Gongzi Bao, is the King of Qin", which means that the "brother" of Li Qin II is the Prince of Qin. Some people say that this is the meaning of "eldest son", that is, the baby is Hu Hai's nephew. However, if it was a nephew, he would not stay. Because, he has killed his brothers, why do he still have his nephews, let him avenge their old man and kill himself? Therefore, this inference does not work.
The biography of Li Silie in the "Records of History" records: "The first emperor was summoned, the seal was granted, and the child was on the throne", saying: The child was the younger brother of Qin Shi Huang, that is, Hu Hai's uncle. However, Qin Shi Huang had only one younger brother named Cheng Yu. So, this is also contrary to history. However, historians still have not given up on studying the person of cheng yu. When Qin Shi Huang did not unify the world, Cheng Yu defected to the Zhao Kingdom, so everyone believed that the child should be the son of Cheng Yu, so it could make sense.
The reason why Hu Hai did not kill his cousin Zi Bao was because when Hu Hai wantonly killed his brother, Zi Bao was not in Xianyang City. Or rather, Zi Bao was hiding in the previous Zhao Guo realm, hiding in anonymity and not wanting Hu Hai to find himself. Just as the so-called Emperor Ofsaka was far away, it was not easy to find the baby at that time. Hu Hai's other brothers and sisters were all in Xianyang City, and if Hu Hai wanted to kill them, he could find them at any time, but the baby was different, not only did he not live in Xianyang City, but Hu Hai did not know the baby since he was a child.
Therefore, the baby hid during the massacre and was not killed by Hu Hai, which can also be said to be in the past.
Later, how did zibao become emperor?
Then it all depends on Zhao Gao, Zhao Gao found the baby in the vast sea of people, Zhao Gao forced the fainting Hu Hai to die, and the baby became emperor with the assistance of Zhao Gao.
Zi Bao was a figure that could not be underestimated, he thought: "His brother was assisted by Zhao Gao, and he was also brought down by Zhao Gao. From the perspective of his own safety, Zhao Gao is obviously not a good kind. If, one day, he threatened Zhao Gao, presumably Zhao Gao would definitely kill himself. Moreover, even if Zhao Gao did not kill himself now, he would not be able to fully grasp the political power, and it would definitely be Zhao Gao who grasped the power of the government. Thinking like this, I am just a puppet. ”
Therefore, Zi Bao thought twice and decided not to do two things at a time, and killed Zhao Gao on the sixth day after he took the throne. But even so, a month later, Liu Bang entered Xianyang City, and Zi Bao surrendered. At this time, Fan Duo proposed to kill the baby, but Liu Bang did not agree, but instead handed him over to the custody of the officials accompanying him. More than a month later, after Xiang Yu led a large army into Xianyang, he immediately killed his children and babies, set fire to the Qin palace, and carried out a massacre, and the accumulation of the Qin Dynasty was completed.
Although Zi Bao quickly showed his political ability and boldness, and killed Zhao Gao in an attempt to revive the Qin court, the general trend was gone, and it was only a matter of time before the Qin Dynasty collapsed. About the wife of his family members, the children: at least one wife is known, and his name and deeds are not examined. Zi Bao's son: It is known that there are two sons who jointly murdered Zhao Gao with Zi Bao himself, and his name and deeds are missing.
Resources:
["History, Volume 5, Qin Benji No. 5, Shiji, Volume 6, Qin Shi Huang Benji No. 6, Shiji, Vol. 87, Li Silie's Biography No. 27]