Entering ChinaIs Zhao Kuangyin’s “cup of wine to release military power” really solve the problem of heroes by just eating one meal? In the five generations before this, in just 53 years, there were eight surnames and thirteen emperors, and after that, there was Zhu Yuanzhang, who killed heroes, which emperor didn’t want to easily remove the general’s military power? Why can only Zhao Kuangyin succeed?
It’s too difficult to be a son of heaven
In July of the second year of Jianlong (961), after the end of the dynasty one night, Zhao Kuangyin, the founder of the Great Song Dynasty, had a treat and drank and chatted with a group of old friends such as Shi Shouxin and Wang Xianqi. After the wine was hot, he ordered his attendants to retreat, and expressed his feelings to these forbidden army generals: “Without you, there would be no today for my Lao Zhao, I am talking about your merits every day!” But it’s too difficult to be the son of heaven, and it’s better to be happy when you are in season, so I’ve been annoyed lately, and I don’t dare to sleep well for many years. ”
Shi Shouxin and the others were a little in a trance, a little blind, being an emperor is not as good as being a festival to make him happy, so why are they still planning to be emperors? Zhao Kuangyin said: “You still don’t understand this? Who doesn’t want to sit in the position of the Son of Heaven? When Shi Shouxin and the others heard this, they had something to say, and most of them suddenly sobered up, and they all hurriedly kowtowed: “Your Majesty, why did you say this!” If today’s fate has been decided, who dares to have a different heart! ”
Zhao Kuangyin said: “I know that you have no dissenting intentions, but what if your people want to be rich and rich? Once the yellow robe is put on you, even if you don’t want to do it, you can’t do it! ”
The generals knew that they were suspicious, and if they didn’t get it right, they would be killed, so they quickly kowtowed frequently, wept bitterly and said: “We people are all pig brains, I beg Your Majesty to have mercy and show us a way out.” ”
Zhao Kuangyin saw that the time was almost up, and took the opportunity to enlighten: “Life in the world is like a white horse passing through a gap, and those who pursue wealth and nobility want to accumulate more gold and silver treasures, enjoy themselves well, and let their children and grandchildren no longer be poor.” Why don’t you give up your military power, go out to defend the feudal town, buy a good land, buy a good house, and leave a permanent inheritance for your children and grandchildren; Collect more singers and dancers, drink every day, listen to songs, see beautiful women, and be happy all year round. I am married to you, and there is no need for mutual suspicion between the kings and ministers, and there is harmony between the top and bottom, what a beautiful thing! ”
When the generals heard Zhao Kuangyin say so clearly and clearly, they immediately kowtowed and thanked him, saying, “Your Majesty has thought too much about us, and you are really our reborn parents!” ”
The next day, Shi Shouxin, Gao Huaide, Wang Xianqi, Zhang Lingduo and others all wrote to complain of illness, and their words were earnest, asking the imperial court to relieve them of their military power. Taizu allowed them to go out of the town as the envoy of the festival, except for Shi Shouxin, the envoy of the Tianping Festival, who also nominally retained the empty name of the commander of the guard’s pro-army Ma Bujun, the other generals of the forbidden army were abolished. In the third year of Jianlong (962), Shi Shouxin’s false name was also deprived, and from then on, the position of commander of the guards and pro-army Ma Bujun was also vacant.
Zhao Kuangyin is a man of his word, so soon after, he married these generals as sons and daughters, intermarriage, his eldest daughter Princess Zhaoqing married Wang Chengyan, the son of Wang Xianqi, the second daughter Princess Yanqing married Shi Baoji, the son of Shi Shouxin, and the imperial brother Zhao Guangmei also married Zhang Lingduo’s daughter as his wife.
This is the famous “cup of wine releases military power” incident in the early history of the Northern Song Dynasty.
A power struggle surging beneath the surface of peace
The matter seemed to be easy, and after bringing a few people together, drinking a few bowls of wine, having a meal, and chatting for a while, the problem was completely solved, and it was solved very well. The question is, can a single meal solve the problem of military power? If it were that simple, which of the founding kings of the Five Dynasties would not want to remove his generals from their military powers? Are the powerful generals of the forbidden army and the founding fathers of the Great Song Dynasty so willing to hand over military power? In fact, this is the result of a secret contest between the monarch and the general in terms of status, strength, and intelligence.
First, from Zhao Kuangyin’s point of view, the many measures taken since the founding of the People’s Republic of China have formed a momentum of stars and moons.
At the beginning of the founding of the country, the five generations of monarchs did not want to hold the power alone, but they failed to make their dreams come true, and in the end they all laid the foundation for others. The reason why Zhao Kuangyin was able to achieve the power of monopoly is that he is higher than the five generations of dead kings, that is, his courage, determination and strength expansion. Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty once had the following comment on “releasing military power with a glass of wine”: Most people who have always read history books think that Song Taizu easily lifted the military power of the generals of the forbidden army between banquets and drinks, and unconsciously and quietly stabilized the world, which is really despicable and shallow. If Shi Shouxin and other leaders of the forbidden army were not subject to Song Taizu, how could they give up their military power with a few kind words, confidant words, and implicit threats? At that time, Song Taizu was more witty and brave than these forbidden army generals, and he had the confidence and ability to deal with things according to his own wishes, take precautions, and prevent problems before they happen. Shi Shouxin and the others were too late to accept the order, so how could they dare to disagree? The people who revise history have no foresight, but they just keep showing off the strangeness of the way of transferring power in the way of feasting and drinking, instead of starting from the heroic decision of Song Taizu himself, which is very ridiculous!
Qianlong was emperor for 60 years, and his understanding of the delicate relationship between monarchs and ministers was naturally much deeper than that of ordinary literati, and he pointed out the “power of the army with a glass of wine” and the power struggle surging under the surface of peace. The most critical reason why Zhao Kuangyin was able to achieve the transfer of power in the form of banquets and drinks was that he had the initiative, and in the competition between the two sides, the single force was not weak.
Second, Zhao Kuangyin’s lifting of the military power of the generals of the forbidden army was not completed all at once, but took a step-by-step step and broke through each step. This step is obviously deliberately arranged, and it is of great significance, which shows Zhao Kuangyin’s political skill.
The first step, in the leap March of the second year of Jianlong (961), Murong Yanzhao and Han Lingkun were first relieved of their positions as leaders of the forbidden army. At that time, one of them was the supreme leader of the front division of the palace, and the other was the top leader of the guard department, and the commander of the pro-army and the horse infantry army of the guard department. Why start with them? Because although these two people are nominally the top generals of the forbidden army, they have been stationed in the place, and they actually do not have enough control over the forbidden army, at most they are part-time jobs. Since it’s just a reputation, it’s not a big deal for them to have that reputation lifted. Therefore, it is safer to start with them.
The second step is to lift the military power of the four forbidden army generals in the “glass of wine to release military power” incident, for them, the number one has been dismissed, and their second-in-command and third-in-command will not be much unbalanced psychologically, not to mention that Zhao Kuangyin still has a lot of preferential conditions waiting for them!
The third step is to wrap up. Several high-ranking generals of the forbidden army, including Taizu’s brother Zhao Guangyi, were dismissed, leaving only the guards and infantry commanders to keep Han Chongyun in the forbidden army, but he was changed from the guard division to the front of the palace division, and was reappointed as the commander of the front of the palace.
The game between Zhao Kuangyin and the generals of the forbidden army lasted for more than four months, and finally won by an absolute advantage, and “releasing the military power with a glass of wine” is only one of the most important scenes.
The result has always been the result of many battles between multiple parties
Think about the previous five dynasties, there were eight surnames and thirteen emperors in fifty-three years. Don’t these emperors want to reign for a long time? Why can’t they gather the generals with heavy armies for a meal and let the feudal towns surrender their military power? The reason is very simple, the emperors of the five generations do not have this strength. In the game between the emperor and various warlords, the emperor did not have the strength to deter the feudal towns. If you want to solve the problem of military power by having a meal at this time, you will undoubtedly let the coup d’état happen in advance.
The result of political struggle has always been the result of various parties playing games and competing with each other. Therefore, the seemingly smooth transfer of power is actually the result of a game of strength and wisdom of all parties. It’s just that this game is sometimes on the table, sometimes under the table; Sometimes this kind of game can be seen and understood, and sometimes everyone can’t see it, and if you see it, you can’t understand the mystery.
Since the result is the result of multiple games, you should be very calm in the face of the result. Not every outcome in life is in your own interests, and you should be rational in the face of results that are not in your own interests. Because this is not something that individual forces can solve at that time, since this is the case, it is a good option to accept it. Acceptance for a moment does not mean acceptance forever. When the individual strength is strong enough, a new round of contests and games will be accelerated, and the time is ripe to change the outcome.
