The Three Kingdoms: I asked you to save Guan Yu, not to destroy Sun Quan.

Chapter 537 The Emperor: The Strongest Army and the Best Horses Make King

The rebel leader died the following year, but the rebels still fought for eight years and were not completely quelled. What kind of perseverance and hatred must that have been? Why were the people of Hebei so persistent?

Guan Xing said, "This matter is a long story. Guanzhong and Hebei have had grudges since the Northern Zhou and Northern Qi dynasties. After the founding of the Tang Dynasty, Emperor Gaozu of Tang, Li Yuan, disregarded opposition and killed Dou Jiande, the King of Xia, who was deeply supported by the people of Hebei. From then on, resentment has accumulated."

"Afterwards, the Tang imperial family and the Guanzhong nobles who supported the Tang Dynasty were worried about a rebellion in Hebei, so they imposed the heaviest taxes on Hebei. In addition, the gentry were in power and the poor had no hope of advancement. All kinds of grievances erupted during the An Lushan Rebellion, which began an eight-year-long rebellion."

"The An Lushan Rebellion ended not because the rebellion was quelled, but because both the Tang army and the rebel army were exhausted and wanted to take a break. So the two sides negotiated a peace agreement. The rebel army continued to support the Tang imperial family and recognized the legitimacy of the Tang imperial family. The Tang imperial family recognized the rebel army's status as a regional military governor. We each went our own way and neither of us interfered with the other."

"Thus, the Tang Dynasty entered the era of regional warlordism. The warlords and the imperial family fought and stopped, coexisting with each other. This state lasted for more than a hundred years. During this period, the emperor was driven out of the capital several times, the capital fell six times, and the emperor moved nine times."

Liu Bei's lips trembled as he said, "The capital has fallen six times, and the emperor has been moved nine times like a stray dog. Isn't this too humiliating?"

Guan Xing laughed and said, "You can think about it from another angle. The fact that the capital fell six times proves that it was recaptured five times. The fact that the emperor moved nine times proves that he was defeated eight times. Other dynasties were finished after the capital fell once, but the Tang Dynasty fell so many times, playing a resurrection game again and again. This shows how deep the foundation of the Tang Dynasty was, how powerful the emperors were, and how awesome the Xuanwu Gate succession system created by the Tang Dynasty was. Some emperors in the later period of the Tang Dynasty were reckless, some were cruel and murderous, and some did nothing but do nothing. But there were no bad ones. This proves that the emperor who competes for the throne is more powerful than the emperor who inherits the throne."

Liu Bei, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, and Zhuge Liang: "..."

That seems to make sense, but this is too chaotic, and the people are suffering too much.

Guan Xing continued, "The separatist rule of the regional military governors lasted intermittently for over a hundred years. During this period, the Tang Dynasty also crippled neighboring countries such as the Uyghurs, Tibetans, and Dali, at least rendering them unable to invade the Central Plains."

"But the foundation of the Tang Dynasty was gradually exhausted in the repeated suppression of rebellions, and finally a man named Huang Chao delivered a fatal blow to the Tang Dynasty."

"Huang Chao was born into a lowly family of salt merchants. In his early years, he participated in the imperial examinations hoping to serve the court. However, after failing the exams multiple times, he tragically discovered that all those who passed were from aristocratic families who were inferior to him. The aristocratic families controlled the imperial examinations, and people like him, of lowly status, would never have a chance to rise. So Huang Chao rebelled, joined the uprising at the time, and gradually grew in strength. He fought his way from the Central Plains to Jiaozhou and then back to the Central Plains, ravaging the entire country. Finally, he stormed into Chang'an and wiped out all the aristocratic families in the city, led by the Five Clans and Seven Noble Families."

"Huang Chao used family genealogies to kill people. No one from aristocratic families could escape. The streets were littered with the bones of nobles and officials, and the city was filled with the heads of powerful and wealthy people. This shows how ruthless he was in killing them."

"Hiss..." Liu Bei, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, and Zhuge Liang gasped again.

The streets are littered with the bones of nobles and officials, and the city is filled with the heads of powerful and wealthy people. How many people must have been killed?

They killed only the top ruling class, which is equivalent to shaving the entire nation from the neck up. How can the nation still exist?

Guan Xing continued, "Huang Chao also wrote a poem full of murderous intent, titled 'Ode to Chrysanthemums After Failing the Imperial Examination.' Failing the examination means failing the imperial examination. The poem reads: 'When autumn comes on the ninth day of the ninth month, my flowers will bloom and all other flowers will wither. The fragrance will fill Chang'an, and the whole city will be adorned with golden armor.'"

Liu Bei silently pondered the matter several times before exclaiming in surprise, "Such a strong murderous aura! This man is even more ruthless than Cao Cao, and he actually succeeded in trampling the bones of officials and nobles on the streets. This shows that he is also a ruthless and vicious warlord in this chaotic era. What happened next?"

Guan Xing said, "Huang Chao's massacre of officials and nobles will eradicate the powerful clans that gradually rose after Emperor Guangwu Liu Xiu and reached their peak in the Sui and Tang Dynasties. This will allow the imperial examination system to be fully implemented and enable ordinary people to become officials through the examination. In this respect, Huang Chao's achievements can be considered meritorious."

"However, Huang Chao's excessive killings naturally disqualified him from becoming emperor. He was defeated and killed just a few days after establishing the Great Qi Dynasty. But the foundation of the Tang Dynasty was also completely exhausted, and the world entered the new era of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms."

"The Five Dynasties refers to the five dynasties in China that rose and fell rapidly like a flash in the pan due to constant fighting. The Ten Kingdoms refers to the ten kingdoms in the south that split after the fall of the Tang Dynasty. I have not studied this period of history, and I can't even name all ten kingdoms."

"But this period was a super chaotic era comparable to the Northern and Southern Dynasties. The chaos was not due to the invasion of foreign tribes, but because of the collapse of rites and music and the decline of morality. Sons killed fathers and brothers killed brothers. The dignity of the monarch was gone. It became common for various warlords to use human flesh as military rations. The world began to follow the naked law of the jungle. Some generals even openly declared that the emperor was not born with a special destiny, but that whoever had the strongest army could become emperor."

Liu Bei and his three companions frowned again, silently reciting the arrogant statement, "Is the emperor born with a special destiny? The one with the strongest army and the most powerful horses shall be king," their faces filled with heartache.

It is truly tragic that the emperor has fallen to such a state and the world has fallen into such ruin.

Liu Bei said, "What happened after that? Did no one deal with these lawless and inhuman arrogant soldiers and generals?"

Guan Xing said, "Of course there are. Qin Shi Huang, Emperor Wu of Han, Emperor Taizong of Tang, and Emperor Taizu of Song, the last of the four great emperors of all time, Emperor Taizu of Song, Zhao Kuangyin, was born."

"Zhao Kuangyin came from a military family. In his early years, he served as a general under Guo Wei, the Privy Councilor of the Later Han Dynasty. Later, he followed Guo Wei in rebelling against the Han Dynasty and establishing the Later Zhou Dynasty, and his status gradually rose."

"Guo Wei was a rare wise ruler during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. He rebelled and established the Later Zhou Dynasty after his family was massacred by the young emperor while he was away on a military campaign. During his reign, he was diligent and frugal, humbly accepted advice, reformed corrupt practices, and gradually healed the wounds caused by the series of wars in the Central Plains. However, as mentioned earlier, his family was wiped out by the young emperor of the Later Han Dynasty, leaving no heir. Therefore, Guo Wei eventually passed the throne to his wife's nephew, Chai Rong."

"Chai Rong was the most enlightened ruler of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. In terms of civil administration, he continued Guo Wei's policies, leading the country to become stronger. In terms of military prowess, he defeated the newly rising Khitan tribe on the northern grasslands. Chai Rong once said that if given twenty years, he would definitely be able to unify the world and end the chaos. Unfortunately..."

"It's a pity that the heavens are jealous of talent. Like Emperor Wu of Northern Zhou, Yuwen Yong, Chai Rong died young. Before his death, he passed the throne to his eldest son, Chai Zongxun, who was only seven years old. But in the era of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms, where people could eat each other, how could a seven-year-old child possibly suppress the chaos?"

"After Chai Zongxun succeeded to the throne, Zhao Kuangyin, who had already reached the pinnacle of power, used the excuse of leading troops on an expedition to have his subordinates drape him in a yellow robe at Chenqiao Post Station. He then openly declared himself emperor and subsequently returned to the capital to force Chai Zongxun to abdicate, thus establishing the Song Dynasty."

"Like other emperors of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms, Zhao Kuangyin came to power through a military coup. Therefore, he was most worried that his subordinates would follow suit and seize the throne for him as well. So after ascending the throne, Zhao Kuangyin had two major tasks to accomplish. The first was to suppress military generals and curb the bad habit of military generals frequently assassinating their rulers since the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period."

"Secondly, it is about unifying the world and ending the war. Unifying the world requires giving military generals power and letting them contribute. However, the background of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period dictates that military generals cannot be given power. Not only can they not be given power, but they must also be suppressed and put on a leash to prevent them from acting recklessly. It is contradictory to want military generals to contribute but not to give them too much power."

Liu Bei, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, and Zhuge Liang all have toothaches.

The military generals of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period, like the Sima family, completely ruined their reputation, causing the emperors to be hesitant to trust and appoint them. However, the emperors needed military generals to risk their lives to unify the country. Isn't this a case of the left brain attacking the right brain, and the cerebrum attacking the cerebellum?

This is too contradictory; Emperor Taizu of Song, Zhao Kuangyin, had it too difficult.