"Who in the world deserves to be regarded as the Marquis of Shen?"
This question is somewhat interesting. The relationship between Marquis Shen of the Zhou Dynasty and the Zhou royal family was related by marriage! This was not the case in the Ming Dynasty. On the contrary, it had already been very prepared for this situation. Therefore, there was a powerful natal family of Marquis Shen behind King Zhou You's queen, but there was no equally powerful natal family behind Queen Wang.
Of course, since the dispute over the country became a core topic in the Ming Dynasty, Gao Pragmatic has played an important role in the royal family of the queen to a large extent in the past two decades. This is an indisputable fact. .
"It looks like a ridge on the side and a peak on the side, with different heights from near to far. I don't know the true face of Mount Lu, just because I am in this mountain." It is difficult for the officials in the imperial court to assume one thing in the "game" of the struggle over the country's origins: if Without Gao Pragmatic's firm support over the years, would the Queen be able to survive the clouds and see the moon as she does today?
In fact, when they ask themselves privately, most of them think this is impossible. In other words, if the eldest son of the emperor is King Yijiu of Zhou Ping, the civil service group is the princes of Guandong, and the empress Wang is the queen of Shen, then Gao pragmatism is undoubtedly the prince of Shen!
Gao Pragmatic himself was not a relative, but in this matter he played a role like a relative of the queen. Once this happens, regardless of whether the queen herself really does not violate the rules, the issue of "foreign relatives interfering in politics" will still become a potential possibility.
Although the Queen and Mr. Gao Ge are not real family members, Mr. Gao Ge's long-term support for the Queen is enough to make their relationship highly close. Under this premise, it does not matter whether the "Queen of Shen" is involved in politics. What is important is that the "Marquis of Shen" behind "Queen of Shen" not only has the ability to interfere in politics, but he is even now the speaker of the foreign court, which is very dangerous.
In fact, the problem of foreign relatives interfering in political affairs in China since ancient times has been a long-term process that gradually went from being extremely serious to being basically negligible. By the Ming Dynasty, this issue could even be said to have disappeared from a national level.
What is a "relative"? Simply put, maternal relatives are the natal families of the king’s mother and wives and concubines, the natal families of the wives and concubines of the king’s uncles, nephews, and grandnephews, and the husband’s families of the king’s sisters, daughters, nieces, and granddaughters.
For example, grandfather, father-in-law, uncle, brother-in-law, nephew, cousin, nephew, etc., they can all be called "foreign relatives". If we look at it from this perspective and considering the relationship between Princess Yongning and Princess Yongning, Gao Jingshi is actually a relative, but his identity as a relative has never been made public, and it is impossible to make it public.
However, the so-called "foreign relatives intervening in politics" actually generally require relatives to take advantage of the emperor's youth - for example, in the Qin Dynasty, during the period of King Zhaoxiang of Qin, because King Zhaoxiang was young, the Queen Mother Xuan was able to preside over the government as the Queen Mother. His younger brothers Wei Ran and Mi Rong were able to take control of the court; another example is the Eastern Han Dynasty, during the Han Dynasty, when Emperor He was young, Empress Dowager Dou came to the court to listen to the government. Her brother Dou Xian took the opportunity to control the government and "shocked the court with his authority."
Or fatuous - such as the Northern Zhou Dynasty. During the period of Emperor Jing of the Northern Zhou Dynasty, due to Emperor Jing's fatuousness, Queen Yang Lihua's father Yang Jian was able to take over the imperial power on his behalf, and finally replaced him with the Northern Zhou Dynasty.
Or incompetence - such as the Western Han Dynasty, during the period of Emperor Hui of the Han Dynasty, because Emperor Hui was incompetent, Empress Lu came to rule, and her nephews Lu Tai, Lu Chan, Lu Lu, and grand nephew Lu Tong were able to monopolize power and disrupt the government; another example is the Tang Dynasty, during the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty Because Xuanzong was old and fatuous, Yang Guozhong, the brother of Yang Guifei, took the opportunity to control the government. He "served from the imperial censor to the prime minister, and led more than forty envoys. He also specialized in judging Duzhi and Libu Sanquan, and was in charge of affairs."
In short, it was because the emperor himself could not exercise imperial power, so as a relative, he was able to control the government and exercise the imperial power that only the emperor could exercise without authorization.
The reason why relatives have the opportunity to interfere in politics should at least be traced back to the "family world" of the Xia Dynasty.
Since the Xia Dynasty started the "family world", foreign relatives interfering in politics has been a common problem. In most dynasties, there were relatives who were involved in politics and power, such as Huo Guang of the Han Dynasty and Jia Sidao of the Song Dynasty, or even those who tried to usurp the throne, such as Wang Mang of the New Dynasty and Yang Jian of the Sui Dynasty.
It can be said that "foreign relatives interfering in politics" was an inevitable problem in most dynasties in China, and even the powerful Han Dynasty and the prosperous Tang Dynasty were not immune.
For example, in the Han Dynasty, from the beginning of the Emperor Gaozu of the Han Dynasty to the end of the Han Dynasty when Emperor Xian was present, relatives were involved in politics throughout the 407-year history of the Han Dynasty. The Lu family (Lü family, empress Liu Bang, Emperor Gaozu of Han Dynasty), the Dou family (Dou family, empress Liu Heng of Han Dynasty, the Dou family of Emperor Huan Emperor Liu Zhi, the Dou family of empress Liu Zhi, emperor Zhang of Han Dynasty), the Wang family (Wang family, empress Liu Qi, emperor of Han Jing, Han Dynasty) Emperor Yuan, Empress Liu Shi, Wang surname), Huo surname (Emperor Liu Che, Empress Wei of Han), Deng surname (Emperor Hanhe, Empress Liu Zhao, Deng surname), Yan surname (Emperor Han An, Empress Liu Hu, Yan surname), Liang surname (Emperor Shun of Han) Empress Liu Bao, Liang family), He family (Empress Liu Hong, Emperor Ling of Han Dynasty, He family) and other relatives appeared one after another.
As a result, for nearly two-thirds of the time of the Han Dynasty, the government was controlled by relatives, and even the Western Han Dynasty was finally destroyed by the Wang family. Although the Eastern Han Dynasty was not destroyed by his relatives, his relatives, the He family, were also one of the reasons for its demise.
For example, in the Tang Dynasty, although the problem of relatives intervening in politics was not as serious as in the Han Dynasty, it was also relatively frequent in the mid-Tang Dynasty. First, the Wu family (Tang Emperor Li Zhi and Empress Wu Zetian) replaced the Tang Dynasty. After the "Shenlong Coup", Li Tang was restored to power and the Wu family lost power. Later, Wei Shi (Wei Shi, Empress Li Xian of Tang Zhongzong) collaborated with Wu Sansi to disrupt the government, and then even poisoned Zhongzong, hoping to take over Tang Dynasty and replace him. Later, Webster was executed in the "Tang Long Coup", and Tang Ruizhong Li Dan came to the throne. After that, Ruizong gave way to Xuanzong Li Longji, and Xuanzong favored Concubine Yang in his later years, and Yang's relatives took the opportunity to cause trouble in the government.
It can only be said that "foreign relatives interfering in politics" was a difficult problem to solve in China's feudal period. In most dynasties, even if the founding monarch was wise and powerful, the issue of foreign relatives interfering in politics was always a big problem hanging over the head of the new dynasty.
However, everything is an exception. There is such a dynasty that has never really had the problem of "foreign relatives intervening in politics" in its nearly three hundred years of history. This magical dynasty is the Ming Dynasty.
In the Ming Dynasty, although there were various problems such as the emperor's neglect of government, eunuchs' manipulation of power, constant party disputes, and widespread corruption, these problems also existed in other dynasties. However, in the Ming Dynasty, there was never a problem of relatives interfering in politics or even causing chaos. This must be said It was a rare light in the Ming Dynasty court.
So why was the problem of foreign relatives interfering in politics that could not be solved even by the powerful Han Dynasty, the prosperous Tang Dynasty, and the prosperous Song Dynasty in the past, but was perfectly solved in the Ming Dynasty?
The reason why relatives in the past dynasties were able to interfere in politics was due to two reasons. One was that the emperor was young, stupid or incompetent, and the other was that the emperor's wives, concubines, aunts or biological mothers had the ambition to control the government or even replace them.
For example, during the period of Emperor He of the Han Dynasty, Empress Dowager Dou took the name of Emperor He's young age (Emperor He was only 10 years old when he ascended the throne), so that she could legitimately claim the throne. Later, Empress Dowager Dou had political ambitions and tried to control the government. As a result, his brother Dou Xian was able to control the government and "shocked the court with his authority." Another example is the period of Emperor Hui of the Jin Dynasty. Because Emperor Hui was incompetent and Empress Jia was extremely politically ambitious, Jia Mo, Jia Mi and other relatives of the Jia family were able to control the government.
It can be said that if a foreign relative wants to participate in politics, he must meet the above two points. If one of these cannot be satisfied, it will be difficult for the foreign relative to control the government.
For example, during the period of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, as the talented Liu Che grew up, the relatives of the Dou family and the Wang family who once controlled the government lost power one after another and could no longer control the government. Another example is during the Renzong period of the Song Dynasty. Although the Empress Dowager Liu came to rule the court, because the Empress Dowager Liu did not have the ambition to completely take charge of the government, the problem of the Liu family's involvement in politics did not arise during the Renzong period.
For the Ming Dynasty, these two points were almost never satisfied. First of all, among the sixteen emperors of the Ming Dynasty, except for Yingzong who ascended the throne at the age of nine and Shenzong who ascended the throne at the age of ten, the other fourteen emperors were not young emperors. Therefore, their relatives lost the legality, reasonableness and cooperation to participate in politics. etiquette.
Furthermore, although many of the emperors in the middle and late period of the Ming Dynasty were a little lazy in their administration, including Daojun emperors like Jiajing, and playful emperors like Zhengde who proclaimed themselves generals, it is undeniable that most of the emperors in the Ming Dynasty were not A foolish and incompetent king.
For example, although Emperor Jiajing was obsessed with Taoism, he was able to firmly control the government, and important ministers such as the chief minister of the cabinet could be replaced at a moment's notice. Although Emperor Zhengde was playful, his ability was not weak. The great victory in Yingzhou made Mongolia dare not enter the Ming Dynasty for a long time. Therefore, since most emperors of the Ming Dynasty were neither young emperors nor incompetent, it was naturally difficult for relatives to take advantage of the emperor's incompetence to wield imperial power.
Secondly, the two emperors Hongwu and Yongle were very wary of their relatives. Under the ancestral system established by their father and son, no matter how much the emperors favored their concubines, the most they could do was to give them to their relatives: "the best ones have land and houses, and children are slaves." Although he has abundant money, he will not reuse his relatives, let alone give them a high position.
As the saying goes, "The father-in-law was only a commander at the beginning, and Uncle Hou protected him and made progress gradually." Even if the father was a queen, he initially held a vacuous position like a commander, and then the highest position was a "noble but empty" position like a Tai Tu. Anyway, they will not be given real power and important positions. Therefore, most of the relatives in the Ming Dynasty "had extravagant wealth, but they never had the power to draw on it."
At the same time, the emperors of the Ming Dynasty not only did not reuse their relatives, but also implemented strict control over them. Secret service agencies such as Jinyiwei and Dongxi Chang paid special attention to their relatives. Once they found that their relatives had violated laws and disciplines, the punishment was "Qi Wan is the most responsible" "Abide by the law, otherwise you will be guilty twice as much as ordinary people", no matter what kind of crime, the crime will be doubled. [Note: Of course, this is just something to say in the later stage, especially for crimes caused by greed for money, which are often forgiven. ]
Furthermore, due to the profound influence of Neo-Confucianism, most of the queens and empress dowagers of the Ming Dynasty were virtuous queens, at least they almost had no political ambitions.
This point has to be said. Although the previous dynasties of the Ming Dynasty were in chaos, with eunuchs disrupting government, party disputes, corruption and other problems emerging one after another, the harem was much cleaner than previous dynasties. Its concubines, especially the mother of a country, were many. He is a "virtuous and kind" person. Most of these concubines can lead by example. They have no political ambitions. Not only do they not actively interfere in government affairs, they often even take the lead in suppressing the power of their mother clan.
For example, Empress Ma, every time Zhu Yuanzhang wanted to confer an imperial title on her mother's family, she would refuse Zhu Yuanzhang's imperial title on the grounds that "state officials and titles should be given to talented people. Relatives of the concubine's family may not have available talents."
Another example is the Empress Dowager Zhang. When Yingzong succeeded to the throne, because of her young age, the Empress Dowager Zhang could legitimately intervene in the government affairs, and there were ministers who supported her in doing so. However, the Empress Dowager Zhang refused on the grounds of "not breaking the ancestral law". The political commissar of the general dynasty was in charge of "Sanyang", not the mother clan.
In this way, without the support of the harem, the relatives will naturally lose the conditions to participate in politics.
Finally, the reason why there was no problem of relatives interfering in politics in the Ming Dynasty was also due to the officials of the Ming Dynasty. As we all know, the civil service group of the Ming Dynasty was very powerful. Naturally, they could not tolerate the influence of foreign relatives that could threaten the status of the civil service group. As long as there was a slight sign, the civil service group would immediately step on it with ten thousand feet.
There is no need to cite anyone else for this example, just say that when Concubine Zheng was the most favored, Zheng Guotai, as the uncle of the country, was as respectful and well-behaved as a baby when he met Gao Pragmatic, which is evident from this.
As mentioned just now, the prerequisite for "relatives intervening in politics" is that the emperor is young or stupid, and the person in the harem - the empress dowager of the young emperor or the concubine of the ignorant emperor - has a strong desire for power.
Neither of these two are satisfactory now. Logically speaking, Gao Pragmatic need not worry that anyone will regard him as "Shen Hou" now. However, things are not that simple.
There is definitely no such thing as the emperor being stupid now. The only weakness of the emperor may be that he refuses to treat Concubine Zheng badly no matter what, but this problem is far from enough to make Zhu Yijun reach the level of stupidity.
There are women in the harem who have a desire for power, but they are neither the Queen Mother nor the Queen, but Concubine Zheng. However, Concubine Zheng's desire for power may not necessarily be how much power she hopes to have, but more out of her desire for her son to inherit the throne.
From this point of view, none of the conditions are met. However, don't forget that the emperor coughed up blood and fainted not long ago.
Gao Pragmatic himself is not proficient in medical science, but at least he knows that a healthy person cannot cough up blood and faint easily. Even if it is due to some kind of medical toxic reaction, coughing up blood and fainting would be too shocking. In Gao Pragmatic's view, this probably means that Zhu Yijun already has a physical problem, and the problem is not small.
In other words, even if Zhu Yijun's body didn't have any major problems before, there must be problems after he coughed up blood and fainted, and the root cause of the disease was most likely to be found.
If Gao Pragmatic can really fully control the government now, it will be easier to handle. He can ensure the safety of the emperor's diet in the future and have enough time to take care of his body. But the problem is that Gao Pragmatic cannot completely control the government - this is not because of his ability, but because he must actively retain his political opposition.
This is troublesome, after all, preventing thieves for a thousand days is not an easy task. Shen Yiguan is not a fuel-efficient lamp, Li Wenjin is not a fearful master, and Concubine Zheng has even unlocked the health-locking bug.
Although these three people have been defeated this time, it is unlikely that they will join hands again for a while, but as long as Shen Yiguan has settled the matter of Feng Chan and returns to Beijing, what's so surprising about brewing another conspiracy?
Even if we don't mention things so far away, just say that Shen Yiguan is about to leave the capital and the emperor refuses to add more cabinet ministers. This is a mixed situation. The good thing is that without Shen Yigui in Beijing, Gao Pragmatic will be able to do many things more smoothly; the bad thing is that once it goes so smoothly, Gao Ge will look more like "Shen Hou".
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(End of chapter)
