Cao Cao in the Three Kingdoms period at the end of the Han Dynasty once famously said: "It is better to teach me to bear the people of the world than to teach the people of the world to bear me." In a word, it shows Cao Cao's coldness. In the chaotic era of the Sixteen Kingdoms after the Wei and Jin Dynasties, the ethical code on the land of China often collapsed, and many monarchs who were more cold-blooded and ruthless than Cao Cao were born. The protagonist today, Yao Cang, the founding prince of the Later Qin Dynasty, is such a person.
Cao Cao
Yao Cang was born in 329 AD and was originally a Qiang tribe living in the northwest region. The Qiang originally had more than one hundred and fifty tribes. Yao Changzu's Burning Dang Qiang is one of the larger ones. At the beginning of the second century, Yaodangqiang was defeated by the Eastern Han government and forced to migrate from Hequ (present-day Hequ, southeastern Qinghai) to Hanyang (present-day Gangu County, Gansu), Anding (present-day zhenyuan County, Gansu), and Longxi (present-day Lintao County, Gansu).
Qiang
During the Yongjia period of the Western Jin Dynasty, during the Rebellion of the Eight Kings within the Western Jin Dynasty, a group of Qiang people living in Chiting, Longxi, under the leadership of Yao Yizhong, migrated to Kui Mi (present-day east of Qianyang County, Shaanxi). In 333, Later Zhao's ruler, Shi Hu of the Qi, made Yao Yizhong the governor of the Western Qiang Dynasty, and led tens of thousands of Qiang people to move to Qinghe (滠頭, in present-day zaoqiang County, Hebei). After the fall of Later Zhao, Yao Yizhong accepted the title of Eastern Jin government and successively served as the governor of Liuyi, the great general of Cheqi, and The Great Danyu.
After Yao Yizhong's death, his eldest son Yao Xiang (姚襄), yao Cang's older brother, betrayed the Eastern Jin Dynasty and defeated The Yangzhou Assassin Shi Yinhao at Shansang (present-day northern Mengcheng, Anhui), and tun bing Xuyi (盱眙, in modern Xuyi, Jiangsu), who recruited displaced people and initially established political power. Soon after, Yao Xiang led his men back to Guanzhong, where they were defeated and killed by Former Qin forces on the way. Yao Xiang's younger brother Yao Cang led the remnants to surrender to Former Qin.
After Yao Cang surrendered to Former Qin, he tried to work under Former Qin Jian, and because of his military merits, he was successively awarded the posts of General of Left Wei and General of Yang Wei, and was the assassin of The Three Prefectures of Renning, You, and Yan. After Jian Jian's crushing defeat at the Battle of Shuishui, Former Qin immediately fell apart. In 384, Yao Cang, who had endured humiliation and burden for nearly thirty years, received the support of the Qiang people in Guanzhong and the Hao clan in the northwest, and formally broke away from Former Qin in Weibei Mamu, re-established political power, and proclaimed himself a great general, a great danyu, and a king of ten thousand years of Qin.
The Battle of Shuishui
In order to establish a divided regime, Yao Cang can be said to have ignored the six relatives and was very cold-blooded. Because Yao Cang announced his separation from Former Qin and re-established power, his eldest son Yao Xing was still a hostage in the Former Qin capital Chang'an. At that time, Yao Xing was just 18 years old, and he learned that after his father rebelled against Ma Mu, he knew that he was in Chang'an and could not save his life, so he risked escaping from Chang'an City overnight to save his life.
Jian Jian
Jian Jian sent a large army to attack Yao Cang several times, but he was unsuccessful. In 385, Ling jian, who was trapped in Chang'an, broke through the siege of Murong Xianbei and reached Wujiangshan (五將山, northeast of present-day Qishan, Shaanxi), but was captured alive and killed by Yao Cang. In 386, murong Xianbei abandoned Chang'an and fled eastward. Yao Cang took the opportunity to occupy Chang'an, called Emperor Jianyuan, the founding name was Great Qin, and the history was called Later Qin.
After Jian Jian's death, his son Gong Pi led the remnants to control Guanzhong. Soon After, Fei Pi also died, and Gong Pi's son Gong Deng succeeded to the throne and often harassed Later Qin. Yao Cang repeatedly attacked Gong Deng, but he was never able to eliminate it.
In 392, Yao Cang fell seriously ill on the front line of the crusade against Chang'an, and hurriedly asked Yao Xing, who was guarding Chang'an, to listen to the aftermath. Yao Xing completely inherited his father in cold blood. Because Yao Xing was worried that after he left, the bureaucrats who belonged to Former Qin in Chang'an City would rebel, so he indiscriminately killed a group of ministers who might rebel, and then set off to see Yao Cang. As a result, after Yao Xing arrived at the front line, Yao Cang's illness gradually improved.
Yao Cang was satisfied with his son's arrangement to kill the chancellor decisively, and asked Yao Xing to lead an army to attack Gong Deng, in order to test his actual combat ability. At that time, Dou Chong broke away from Gong Deng and established himself as the King of Qin, and was attacked by Zhi Deng. Dou Chong then asked Yao Cang for help, and Yao Cang asked Yao Xing to rescue Dou Chong.
Yao Xiang cleverly avoided the army of Zhi Deng, and instead sneaked into the other side's old lair, resulting in a heavy blow to the enemy at a very small cost and successfully completing the rescue plan. Yao Cang was satisfied with Yao Xing's ability to command the army and govern the country. Before his death, the assistant chancellor Yao Huang asked about his plan to attack Andeng, and Yao Cang said: "This great cause will be successful immediately. Yao Xing's talent is enough to do it, you don't have to ask me. ”