Diqin Designer

Chapter 255: Emperor Wen's Ascension to the Throne
"During Liu Ying's reign, not much happened. The country was stable and the borders were peaceful, allowing the country, which had suffered from war, to begin to recover. However, his reign was not long, only seven years. After his death, he was posthumously named Emperor Xiaohui, without a temple name."

Li Nian said: "The Han Dynasty had very strict management of temple names. There were seven emperors with temple names in the Han Dynasty, four of whom were in the Western Han Dynasty. The first was naturally Emperor Gaozu of Han, Peigong, with the temple name Taizu and posthumous name Gaohuangdi. The second was Liu Heng, with the temple name Taizong and posthumous name Xiaowen Emperor. The third was Liu Che, with the temple name Shizong and posthumous name Xiaowu Emperor. The fourth was Liu Xun, with the temple name Zhongzong and posthumous name Xiaoxuan Emperor."

"According to what Liu Ying did in history, he can indeed be considered a wise ruler, but because of his short reign and his deliberate indulgence due to his mother, Empress Lü, he cannot be considered a ruler who governed well, let alone compare with His Majesty, Emperor Gaozu of Han, Emperor Wu of Han, Emperor Taizong of Tang, and Emperor Hongwu."

Ying Zheng liked to hear this, but what Li Nian said was also true. Liu Ying was at least much better than those anthropomorphic emperors, and his actions were not outrageous.

"The third wise ruler of the Han Dynasty was the Emperor Wen of Han, Liu Heng, who was just mentioned. He was also the son of the Duke of Pei, but not born to Empress Lü. He was able to succeed to the throne because after Liu Ying's death, Empress Lü took power and established Liu Ying's two sons as emperors, namely the former Shao Emperor Liu Gong and the latter Shao Emperor Liu Hong."

"It is said that Liu Gong was the son of Liu Ying and a palace maid. Liu Ying's queen Zhang Yan had no children, so Empress Lü had someone take Liu Gong and call him Zhang Yan's son. She also killed Liu Gong's mother and made Liu Gong the crown prince. But when Liu Gong grew up, he learned that his biological mother had been killed and that Zhang Yan was not his biological mother, so he vowed to avenge his biological mother."

"Of course Empress Lü could not tolerate this, so she deposed and killed Liu Gong."

"Let me add a sentence here. Zhang Yan was childless for two reasons. First, she was too young when she married Liu Ying. She married Liu Ying four years before his death. At that time, Zhang Yan was only eleven years old. Second, Zhang Yan was Liu Ying's niece, and her mother, Princess Lu Yuan, was Liu Ying's sister."

"Since they are close relatives and they are so young, it would be rare for them to get pregnant. Even if they do, the baby will most likely die. Although Empress Lu's plan is to strengthen the power of the Lu family and let Liu and Lu share the world, it is really hurting others and herself."

"After Liu Gong was killed, Empress Lü made Liu Hong the emperor, who reigned for four years. However, he was able to succeed to the throne because of Empress Lü, so when Empress Lü died, it was bound to be difficult for him to continue his reign."

"During the reign of Empress Lü, she appointed the Lü clan as kings. Many of her actions made the Liu clan kings and the ministers in the court extremely dissatisfied. Once Empress Lü dies, everyone will settle accounts with the people and things related to Empress Lü. Liu Hong is also among those to be settled!"

Meng Tian then asked: "Although Liu Hong was established as emperor by Empress Lü, he was also the son of Emperor Hui of Han, Liu Ying. His throne was legitimate. How could he be liquidated?"

Li Nian smiled and said, "Since it is legitimate, why not make it legitimate but not legitimate? Zhou Bo, Chen Ping and others said that Liu Hong was not Liu Ying's biological son and deposed him. Liu Hong was young at that time and had no real power. How could he compete with the founding ministers who helped his grandfather conquer the world?"

Hearing Li Nian mention Zhou Bo and Chen Ping, Meng Tian sighed inwardly. His thoughts were confirmed because he had met these two people and they were both very young.

"After Liu Hong was deposed, the throne remained vacant. However, the country could not be without a ruler, so Zhou Bo and his men began to think about establishing a new emperor. After careful consideration, they chose Liu Heng, who was then the King of Dai, and brought him to Chang'an to inherit the throne."

Ying Zheng said: "They chose Liu Heng because they thought he was easy to control?"

Li Nian did not believe that people like Zhou Bo would be impartial and just when establishing the new emperor, and had no other ideas at all. He probably wanted to find someone who was not very powerful but had an easy-to-control temperament to be the emperor. Not everyone is Huo Guang.

After hearing what Ying Zheng said, Li Nian nodded and said, "That's probably true. Among the sons of Pei Gong, Liu Heng was not favored. He always kept a low profile and had a good reputation among the kings for being 'generous and kind.'"

Li Nian deliberately emphasized the words "generous and kind". "However, they don't know that Liu Heng is very wise. When he first entered Chang'an, he knew that he was not strong enough, so he lay low and listened to the advice of the old ministers. But he is constantly accumulating strength and truly grasping the real power step by step."

Zhou Bo and others thought that they were welcoming an imperial dog that would listen to them, but they didn't know that they were welcoming a king wolf, and they couldn't deal with it. They really lifted a huge rock and dropped it on their feet.

"There is an uncertain rumor in later generations about Liu Heng's character that can be expressed."

"It is said that when Empress Lü was in power, she made the Lü clan kings, almost turning the Han Dynasty of the Liu family into the Lü clan. Even a dog raised by the Lü clan could do an imperial job and receive imperial food from Empress Lü."

"Under such circumstances, the Liu family was naturally targeted by Empress Lü. All the Liu kings were required to marry Lü's daughters. Even those who already had wives had to divorce or kill their original wives and marry Lü's daughters. Liu Heng was no exception. Under the powerful Empress Lü, his queen was also a Lü daughter, who gave birth to four sons for him."

"When Empress Lü was alive, he and the queen loved each other very much, otherwise they would not have given birth to four sons. But after Empress Lü died, the Lü clan was liquidated, and before Liu Heng ascended the throne, his queen and four sons all died."

"Some people in later generations believed that Liu Heng killed his wife and children in order to secure his throne."

"Because it was Zhou Bo, Chen Ping and other ministers who recommended him to be the emperor, and they had just settled accounts with the Lü clan, and Liu Heng's wife was a daughter of the Lü clan. If Liu Heng became the emperor, wouldn't the daughter of the Lü clan be the empress, and wouldn't the son born to the daughter of the Lü clan be the crown prince?"

"What will the daughter of the Lu family, who became the Empress of Liu Heng, do to redress the injustice of the Lü clan? Will those who have liquidated the Lü clan have a good ending?"

"Liu Heng killed his wife, but it relieved the ministers' worries. It was like a guarantee to the ministers: you can rest assured that I will ascend the throne. I, Liu Heng, will never reconcile with the Lü clan."

From the perspective of historical conspiracy theories, this incident is indeed possible. The deaths of Liu Heng's queen and four sons were too coincidental. Judging from the style of their ancestor Pei Gong, it is also possible.

The emperors of the Han Dynasty, especially those who were wise rulers, were mostly ruthless. For example, Gaozu of Han and Wudi of Han were both cruel people who could be brutal to their wives and children. Liu Heng's killing of his wife and children was just a manifestation of the excellent genes of the Liu family.

Li Nian said: "This is just a rumor, not true, and it is difficult for future generations to determine. It is possible that Liu Heng killed his wife and son, but there are also some unreasonable aspects:"

"First, not all of the Liu kings at that time married Lu's daughters; second, Sima Qian did not make a clear record in the "Records of the Grand Historian"; third, the identities of these four sons are in doubt, and they are not necessarily born to their queen; fourth, Liu Heng is the biological son of Pei Gong, and his queen must have been strictly selected. Not to mention that everyone in the world knows about it, it is impossible for important officials such as Zhou Bo and Chen Ping not to be unaware of her origin."

"If she was really the daughter of Lu, would Zhou Bo, Chen Ping and others take the risk to choose Liu Heng as the emperor? You should know that Liu Heng's queen has given birth to a son for him. Do they dare to bet that Liu Heng and the daughter of Lu have a deep relationship?"

　I went to print medical records for my grandma today, so I will update late.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)