Liu Jizi ascended the throne at the age of nine and was eleven when Wang Mang chose a wife for him. Children around the age of ten are the time when their bodies and memories are growing. Because of the fire in Wang's backyard, Wang Mang suddenly killed everyone related to Liu Jizi, except Wei Ji. Wang Mang killed Liu Jizi's relatives, at least hundreds of them. Wang Mang's butcher knife struck Liu Jizi's heart, leaving an unforgettable scar on his young mind.
Liu Xin was the emperor caught between powers, and Liu Jizi was the emperor who fell under Wang Mang's sword. Once Wang Mang is unhappy, Liu Jizi may die. Liu Jizi cannot be an unhappy emperor. He must smile at Wang Mang, just like a doll smiling at its master. Wang Mang killed Liu Jizi's family, and Liu Jizi even wanted to smile at Wang Mang. If one day Liu Jizi behaves like an emperor and becomes unhappy, his death will come.
It is true that there are still intact eggs under the overturned nest.
In the fourth year of Emperor Ping's first year (AD 4), on the seventh day of the second lunar month, Da Situ and Da Sikong led the royal wedding team to the Wang family to marry the queen. Liu Jizi married the daughter of his enemy, and happily married her, and even wanted to grant amnesty to the whole world to express his inner happiness. It was really a sin.
Wang Mang didn't like silence. As soon as the happy event was completed, Wang Mang planned another drama of collective petition. He ordered Wang Shun to summon court officials and some poor people to petition Wang Zhengjun in front of the gate of Weiyang Palace to reward the Grand Sima Wang Mang. Just like this, a big play written, directed and acted by Wang Mang began.
History is always deceptive, and few people can understand the true meaning of history. Wang Mang is more complicated than history. If you don't pay attention, you really don't know what Wang Mang wants to do. A large number of teams petitioned at the gate of Weiyang Palace. Wang Zhengjun, who was old and weak, could only grant a reward. She decreed that Wang Mang's two sons should be made marquises, and an additional 37 million yuan would be paid as a betrothal gift for marrying the queen.
The imperial court offered a reward, but Wang Mang said no. Wang Mang always said no, and Wang Zhengjun was very upset. Wang Zhengjun is really old and has no ability to control Wang Mang. Since Wang Mang's comeback, Wang Zhengjun, the Queen Mother, has been in vain, and Wang Mang will not look at her. When dealing with ordinary matters, Wang Mang pretended to ask Wang Zhengjun for instructions, such as not allowing the Wei family to enter Chang'an; when dealing with matters of a higher level, Wang Mang did not discuss it with her, but asked her to guess, such as the matter of selecting a queen; when handling matters of a higher level Wang Mang killed Wang Mang first and reported later, just like arresting Wang Li.
Faced with Wang Mang's repeated refusals, a man jumped out. That was Kong Guang, the last ray of light in his political career. Kong Guang said that Wang Mang managed everything day by day, and his achievements were unparalleled and unique. No matter what rewards he received, they were very small, just like feeding an elephant an ant's ration.
Kong Guang was right. For Wang Mang, no matter what the reward was, it was very small. What Wang Mang was thinking about was the Han Dynasty's foundation, and neither silver nor jewelry could satisfy his appetite.
After Wang Mang accepted the reward, Kong Guang wrote a letter asking him to go home and retire. Kong Guang's political career was both tortuous and difficult. At the midpoint of his political career, he took a big turn and even ran counter to the past. In the early days, Kong Guang was upright and upright. After he was demoted for being upright, Kong Guang found a new perspective and understood the principle of tact and adaptability. In the later period, Kong Guang made tactful changes, which suited Wang Mang's wishes, and he was kept in the court. Throughout Kong Guang's life, he did not make great contributions to the country, but he did work hard.
After Kong Guang recuperated at home for a year, he died on the first day of April that year. In Wang Mang's political career, Kong Guang was a very cooperative person. In order to express his memory for his colleague, Wang Mang held a grand and solemn funeral for Kong Guang. There were many people sending Kong Guang up the mountain, and there were more than 10,000 vehicles alone.
After Kong Guang was buried in Fengguang, people from all over the world gathered in Chang'an again and flocked to the gate of Weiyang Palace like a tide. Nearly half a million people petitioned for Wang Mang. This can only be said that he really won the hearts of the people. This miraculous scene was recorded by Ban Gu.
There was a sea of people outside the gate of Weiyang Palace, and Wang Mang's heart was churning like a sea. Everyone petitioned for Wang Mang, and Wang Mang devoted himself to reforming Jiuxi. Wang Mang is very powerful, and he always wants people to praise him and history to remember him. Wang Mang is familiar with "Etiquette" and knows the meaning of Jiuxi.
"" "Book of Rites" records that Jiuxi refers to: chariots and horses, clothes, music, Zhuhu, Nabi, Hubin, ax and axe, bow and arrow, and 鬯. Jiuxi is an important thing awarded by the emperor to the great meritorious officials. It requires high merit and hard work like the Duke of Zhou to enjoy it.
Wang Mang wants Jiuxi, and even more wants the Jiuxi he created. After a lot of hard work, Wang Mang’s new Jiuxi contains the following items: green silk (colored silk covering the knees), Gunmian (dragon hat), clothes (dragon robe), 璒琫 (saber with a jade handle decorated with jade), 璒猌(saber with a jade-decorated scabbard), Julu (imperial shoes with upturned toes), Luanlu (imperial chariot), Chengma (four horses), Dragon Flag Jiuli (a dragon with nine tail tips) flag).
There is already a pattern for Wang Mang to follow in accepting awards, not to mention his several pushbacks and concessions. In May of AD 5, Wang Mang officially accepted Jiuxi. If you accept Jiuxi, your status will be equivalent to Duke Zhou. Wang Mang has dreamed of becoming a Zhou official figure all his life. Now that his wish has come true, Wang Mang feels bored again; in order to amuse his boredom, Wang Mang takes another step towards a higher level of desire.
Wang Mang walked towards his desire, just like a child walking, the sound of his footsteps getting louder and louder, his steps getting bigger and bigger, very heroic. Wang Mang became more courageous, and Liu Jizi became older. It is a good thing for children to grow up, but it is not necessarily a good thing for the emperor to grow up. The emperor has grown up and become sensible. For a powerless emperor, being sensible is definitely not a good thing, but doing the right thing is a good thing. Hundreds of thousands of people, like a mighty and invincible fighting army, gathered in Chang'an at the same time and loudly petitioned for Wang Mang. The petition team was so powerful that even though Wang Mang himself was as timid as a mouse, he became bold with the support of the people.
Liu Jizi gradually became more sensible, and began to say or do wrong things. For power, Wang Mang did not hesitate to kill his two sons; for power, Wang Mang also did not care about sacrificing Liu Jizi. On the day of the winter solstice, Wang Mang gave Liu Jizi a glass of pepper wine. It is said that pepper wine can drive away evil spirits and ghosts. Liu Jizi wanted to drive away evil spirits and ghosts, so he drank it.
It is said that after Liu Jizi finished drinking, the world abandoned him. Liu Jizi died at the age of fourteen. He died at an age with great hope for growth. Liu Jizi died and Wang Mang's daughter became a widow. This proves that they are not a perfect match, and it also proves Kong Guang's absurdity. The emperor died suddenly, and the court would definitely open a case to investigate, but this time there was no result. It's not that there is really no result, but no one dares to investigate.
Wang Mang held a funeral for Liu Jizi, granted a general amnesty to the whole country, and ordered officials of the Han Dynasty with more than 600 shi to mourn Liu Jizi for three years.
Superstitious people believe that it is unlucky to encounter a funeral. Wang Mang's experience tells the world that people should not panic when encountering a funeral, but should deal with it calmly. For the death of one heralds the life of another. After the death of Liu Ao, Wang Mang was responsible for the funeral; after the death of Liu Xin, Wang Mang was still responsible for the funeral; after the death of the son-emperor Liu Jizi, Wang Mang was also responsible for the funeral. Emperors of the Liu family died one after another in front of Wang Mang. Wang Mang would think that the time was coming when the Liu family declined.
The Liu family has monopolized the imperial power for hundreds of years, which makes ambitious people jealous and incompetent people sad. Wang Mang buried three emperors, but none of the three emperors left any heirs. Liu Ao adopted Liu Xin as his son. Liu Xin was a young man when he ascended the throne, and he was almost able to drive away the opposition forces of the Wang family. It is a pity that after becoming emperor, Liu Xin was obsessed with wine and sex, and died in his prime before he could choose a prince, which opened the door for Wang Mang to enter the palace of power. Wang Mang took advantage of this God-given opportunity to eliminate his dissidents and eventually dominate the world.
Liu Jizi died short-lived without leaving any heirs. For the sake of the Han Dynasty, Wang Mang could only welcome someone else as emperor. Wang Mang encountered the negative lessons of Liu Xin after he ascended the throne, and enjoyed the positive experience of Liu Jizi after he ascended the throne, so he knew that he should welcome the young emperor. In Wang Mang's mind, the younger the emperor, the better, and it is best to have a posthumous son.
After Liu Jizi was buried, Wang Zhengjun issued an edict to elect an emperor. Wang Zhengjun lived for a long time, but his husband Liu Shi had no successors. It was really sad. Liu She has no successor. We cannot blame Wang Zhengjun, nor Liu She, but only Liu Ao and Liu Xin. Liu Jizi was poisoned to death before he could achieve success and was the victim. For the royal family, everything is lacking except the blood vessels. The continuity of bloodline profoundly affects the development of a dynasty.
The Liu Shi lineage was cut off, and the court officials looked through the Liu family tree and traced it back to Liu Xun's great-grandson. In this generation, there are five princes and forty-eight princes. Wang Mang's heart dropped when he heard that there were so many candidates. Wang Mang was not worried that there were too many people to choose, but that he was afraid of choosing an adult to be the emperor. But it doesn't matter, Wang Mang has great power and he can break the rules at will. There are two kinds of people in the game field, one can only play the game by following the rules, and the other plays the game while breaking the rules. The former type of person has no power, while the latter type of person covers the sky with only one hand. Wang Mang is the latter type of person.
Wang Mang said that Liu Ao stipulated that people of the same generation could not become emperors one after another, that is, if the elder brother became emperor, the younger brother could not. In ancient times, there were two ways of inheriting the throne, one was that the elder brother succeeded the younger brother, and the other was that the son inherited the throne from his father. Brother-to-brother means that after the emperor's death, his brother will succeed to the throne; son-to-father means that after the emperor's death, his son will succeed to the throne. Liu Ao stipulated that no one of the same generation could become emperor one after another, and courtiers could only be selected from the great-great-grandsons of Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty.
At the critical moment of power succession, God helped Wang Mang again. Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty had twenty-three great-great-grandchildren, twenty-three of whom were underage, and some were even babies. For tomorrow, Wang Mang decided to be the emperor's father for once and elected Liu Ying as the crown prince. Wang Mang chose Liu Ying as the crown prince, which meant that Liu Ying would be the crown prince. If Liu Ying cannot be emperor, it must be because Wang Mang wants to be.
Times have changed, Wang Zhengjun is old, and she cannot adapt to the court under Wang Mang's power. Faced with such resistance, Wang Mang decided to kick Wang Zhengjun off the power carriage he was driving. Wang Mang was a master at creating rumors, and Wang Shun was a natural at spreading rumors. Together, they were invincible. Wang Shun went to Wang Zhengjun and told her something. He said that a memorial was issued in Northern Chang'an County and a strange large stone was found. On the large stone were engraved the words "Inform Anhan Duke Wang Mang to become emperor".
Wang Shun looked at Wang Zhengjun, and Wang Zhengjun looked at Wang Shun, both of them were silent. In Wang Zhengjun's eyes, the person standing in front of her seemed to be the Wang Mang of the past. At that time, Wang Mang was very obedient to her words. She asked Wang Mang to resign, and Wang Mang resigned without hesitation; she asked Wang Mang to stay, but Wang Mang stayed without saying a word. However, things change and people change. At this time, Wang Shun looked at Wang Zhengjun and seemed to see Wang Mang, the regent. Once Wang Mang takes over as regent, Wang Shun will be given an official title and title. No one is born and destined to be a helper to others, and Wang Shun has the potential to become a helper.
Seeing Wang Zhengjun in despair, Wang Shun immediately comforted him, saying that Wang Mang only wanted to be regent and would not proclaim himself emperor. The powerless Wang Zhengjun could only believe and surrender. In Wang Zhengjun's heart, there is no difference between being a regent and being an emperor. She had served as a regent and knew that being a regent meant exercising the power of the emperor. Looking at Wang Shun's leaving figure, Wang Zhengjun seemed to see the end of the Han Dynasty.
On March 1, 6 AD, Wang Mang made Liu Ying the crown prince. Liu Ying was made the crown prince by the imperial edict, and Wang Mang's intentions were known to the world. Wang Mang wanted to be emperor, and others wanted to do the same; Wang Mang wanted to exercise the power of emperor, and others wanted to do it even more. For the sake of power, Liu's children took the lead in raising the banner of righteousness and chanting to attack Wang Mang.
For Wang Mang, reputation is as important as life. Because it was his reputation that made him rise step by step; once Wang Mang destroyed his reputation, his reputation would kill him. It's hard to get a good reputation, but it's easy to get a bad reputation. In this way, Wang Mang was accused of usurping the throne and became the target of public criticism. The arrival of the first wave of rebels was a test of Wang Mang's strength.
Liu Chong, the marquis of Anzhong of the Liu clan, and Zhang Shao, the prime minister, discussed the rebellion, triggering the first wave of rebels. Liu Chong was ambitious, but he acted purely based on blood and could not achieve success. He led the people in the feudal state to attack Wan County vigorously, but was crushed to pieces by Wang Mang's army. When people who act recklessly die, people will mourn for them instead of mourning for them. Zhai Yi is a person who holds this view.
Zhai Yi is the son of Zhai Fangjin, the ghost who died in vain. Seeing Zhai Yi, people can't help but think of Zhai Fangjin's innocent and wasted death. Zhai Fangjin did not walk proudly to the food market in Chang'an, nor walked up to the guillotine with dignity, but ended his life helplessly. In the era of Liu Ao's rule, not many people were forced to death, among which the death of Zhai Fangjin was the most special.
Learning from the experience of Liu Chong's defeat, Zhai Yi, the governor of Dongjun, secretly sent a letter to Liu's children, inviting them to form an alliance to rebel. Zhai Yi's boss Liu Yu, the captain of Dongjun, discussed with Yanxiang Hou Liu Xin and Wuping Hou Liu Huang, Liu Xin's brother, and decided to raise troops in September. September is a good month because the militia can be trained in September. Taking advantage of the opportunity of training the militia, Zhai Yiguang recruited troops and horses and headed straight for Chang'an.
Zhai Yi's army moved forward, followed closely by Liu Kuang, King of Dongping. Liu Kuang was very ambitious and believed that Wang Mang would be annihilated in one fell swoop. Once Wang Mang is annihilated by the rebels, Chang'an will be his. He handed over the feudal army to Zhai Yi on the condition that Zhai Yi would support his father Liu Xin as emperor. Liu Kuang's actions showed that not all those who rebelled were people with pure intentions. Adapted from the French Madam Roland's words: Kill the traitors of the country, how many people pretend to be your honor.
Zhai Yisheng was an upright man, and his only purpose in sending troops was to eliminate Wang Mang. He didn't care who became emperor and quickly accepted Liu Kuang's conditions. Wang Mang loved to create momentum, so Zhai Yi made it particularly big. Zhai Yi proclaimed himself the Grand Sima of the Han Dynasty and spread the word, calling on the people to join the rebel army and jointly kill the traitor Wang Mang. Zhai Yi used his actions to tell the world what a true uprising is. Zhai Yi can cooperate with Liu Kuang, which shows that he knows the priorities better than Zhai Fangjin.
When they arrived at Yangjun (now Changyi Town in the northwest of Jinxiang County, Shandong Province), the rebel army commanded by Zhai Yisheng had a strength of 100,000.
