lcionline Chapter 242 Shaokang's Restoration
Chapter 242 Shaokang's Restoration
Fu Hao was not only worthy of being the queen and presiding over the sacrifices, but also able to dispatch troops and fight with Wu Ding in all directions. Together, the two of them defeated Gui Fang, penetrated deep into Jingchu, conquered all directions, and pacified dozens of states.
This made the Shang Dynasty a great country stretching from Gansu in the west to the coast in the east, from the desert in the north to the Yangtze and Han River basins in the south.
In 1192 BC, Wu Ding came to the end of his life. He originally planned to make his third son Zu Jian his heir, but Zu Geng thought that his elder brother Zu Ji was still alive, so he let his younger brother inherit the throne.
This kind of disrespectful behavior could easily lead to disputes over the throne and a repeat of the "Nine Generations of Chaos", so Zu Jian chose to leave and live among the people like his father Wu Ding. In the capital, Zu Geng sat on the throne.
In memory of his mother Fu Hao, he cast the Houmuwu Ding. Among the common people, Zu Jian began to understand the suffering of the people and discovered the nobles' plunder of the people.
Around 1185 BC, Zu Geng passed away and Zu Jian ascended the throne. He immediately imposed restrictions on the nobles and strictly prohibited them from exploiting the people. In order to protect the interests of the people, he even revised the Tang Penal Code.
Around 1180 BC, Zu Jian passed away and was succeeded by his son Lin Xin. The 26th Shang King Kang Ding and the 27th Shang King Di Yi were both committed to conquering Gui Fang, but despite their repeated military campaigns, they were still unable to completely crush them.
If Guifang was an external threat, then Wujiao was the internal threat of the Shang Dynasty during this period. In his later years, Emperor Yi believed in Wujiao, so the power of Wujiao increased greatly, and even developed to the point of threatening the kingship. Although Emperor Yi's son Emperor Xin tried his best to save the situation after he succeeded to the throne, he was still powerless.
In 1113 BC, Emperor Yi died and his son Wen Ding ascended the throne. During Wen Ding's reign, the situation deteriorated again. In addition to Gui Fang, the Zhou Kingdom also rose.
Jili, the warlike leader of Zhou, was defeated repeatedly by Guifang and intended to unite with Shang Dynasty to fight against Guifang. Wen Ding was still in fear and decided to take the initiative to get rid of Jili.
However, he never imagined that Ji Li's death ignited a fuse, which was connected to a bomb that could destroy the entire Shang Dynasty.
In 1101 BC, after eliminating the potential rivals of the Shang Dynasty, Wen Ding closed his eyes contentedly, leaving his son, Di Yi, the 29th king of the Shang Dynasty, to deal with the increasingly powerful Zhou Kingdom.
However, the Shang Dynasty was gradually declining at that time and had no ability to make a comeback. He could only hand over the throne to his son Zhou and passed away in 1076 BC.
In terms of fame, Zhou is far less famous than his son, but his son is known as the last "99 Human Emperors". It is said that he could fight wild beasts with his bare hands and had conquered a region and returned victorious, but the Shang Dynasty actually perished in his hands. This last Shang king was called King Zhou.
In terms of military power, King Zhou was impeccable, but when it came to spending money, he was almost squandering it like water. The "terrace" and "pool of wine and meat" were all his masterpieces. His outrageous behavior became the last straw that broke the camel's back for the Shang Dynasty.
Around 1046 BC, the increasingly powerful Zhou Kingdom challenged the Shang Dynasty. In the Battle of Muye, King Wu of Zhou defeated King Zhou of Shang. The situation was irreversible, so King Zhou set a fire, and the Deer Terrace was reduced to ashes along with countless treasures.
After the dynasty fell, the people of the Shang Dynasty lost their land and became homeless, and some of them embarked on the road of business. The ancestors of the Shang Dynasty also happened to start their business, so people who do business are also called "merchants", and this name has been passed down to this day.
【One picture to understand the history of the Xia Dynasty and Hou Yi’s trivia】
When talking about Hou Yi, many people think of "Hou Yi Shooting the Sun", but was it really the sun that Hou Yi shot? How did such an archery expert seize the Xia Dynasty and become the king?
What is even more incredible is that Hou Yi, a brave and ambitious man, eventually died at the hands of a small thug. Today, let's take a look at Hou Yi, the first usurper in history.
Around 1996 BC, the throne of the Xia Dynasty had been passed to Yu's grandson Taikang. Unlike his ancestors, Taikang grew up in luxury and was spoiled by his father. He was not good at governing the country, but he was addicted to hunting and ignored state affairs.
Under his rule, the internal contradictions of the Xia Dynasty became increasingly acute, and the Youqiong tribe, which had originally submitted to the Xia Dynasty, also began to think about rebellion. Once, Taikang took his family and relatives to the north bank of the Luo River to hunt, and he did not want to come back after this trip.
This gave Houyi, the leader of Youqiong clan, an opportunity. Around 1990 BC, under the leadership of Houyi, Youqiong clan, with its powerful military force, was able to capture the capital of the Xia Dynasty directly.
When Taikang returned to the capital after hunting, the capital had been controlled by Houyi, and Taikang lived in exile from then on.
This is where the legend comes from, except that in the legend, Houyi shot down Taikang instead of the sun. In addition, there is another version of "Houyi shooting down the sun": when 10 suns were causing trouble for the world, the real sharpshooter was Dayi, but later the story of "Dayi shooting down the sun" was mistakenly passed down as "Houyi shooting down the sun".
Although he had taken the capital and had an advantage in military strength, Hou Yi was unable to ascend the throne due to opposition from the princes and court officials. He had no choice but to choose a puppet from the Xia royal family.
Around 1989 BC, Zhongkang came into Houyi's sight. After some discussion, Houyi expressed his willingness to support Zhongkang to take the throne, but on the condition that the Xia Dynasty would exempt Youqiong from taxes and provide double taxes to Youqiong every year.
Zhongkang agreed to the conditions, and from then on Houyi became the actual ruler of the Xia Dynasty.
Zhongkang was ambitious. He worked hard to build up his army in order to restore the glory of the Xia Dynasty.
Later, Zhongkang felt that the time had come, and he announced that he would no longer pay tribute to Youqiong. Houyi was naturally unwilling to accept this, and the Xia Dynasty and Youqiong tribe clashed again. However, Zhongkang did not expect that the army he had built for a long time would be vulnerable to Houyi. The Xia Dynasty was defeated again, and Zhongkang died of depression afterwards.
After Zhongkang passed away, Houyi supported Zhongkang's son Xiang to take the throne. It was not until around 1980 BC that Hanyue became Houyi's adopted son with his eloquence, and Houyi himself trusted this adopted son.
As time went by, Houyi became gradually arrogant and extravagant. He followed Taikang's old path, indulging in hunting and ignoring state affairs. He handed over the government affairs to his most trusted minister, Hanyue.
History repeated itself once again. Han Zhuo first won the hearts of the people, and then sent people to kill Hou Yi when he came back from hunting. In 1945 BC, the brave and unparalleled Hou Yi died at the hands of Han Zhuo, and the Xia Dynasty became Han Zhuo's possession.
【Learn Shaokang's Restoration History in one go】
After two hunting trips and three changes of dynasties, the ruthless man who could defeat Houyi was defeated by a child who escaped by chance.
This child was called Shaokang. He also took back the Xia Dynasty from the usurper and became the first monarch in China to successfully restore his country. In this video, let us walk into the story of Shaokang.
Speaking of Shaokang, we have to mention his great-uncle Taikang. Around 1990 BC, Taikang was driven off the throne by Houyi, the leader of the Youqiong clan of the Dongyi tribe, because he was addicted to hunting.
The government was in the hands of Houyi. He successively appointed Zhongkang and Xiang as puppets, and then deposed Xiang and sat on the throne himself.
Around 1945 BC, Houyi made the same mistake as Taikang. He also became addicted to hunting. His subordinate Hanyue took the opportunity to seize power. Houyi was killed and Hanyue took the throne. After successfully usurping the throne, Hanyue killed all the remaining forces of the Xia Dynasty and killed Xiang who was in exile.
At this point, Han Xuan thought he was safe, but he didn't expect that Xiang's wife actually escaped. She disguised herself as a peasant woman and quietly returned to her parents' home. In 1944 BC, she gave birth to Xiang's son Shaokang.
Shao Kang was very smart since he was young. After learning about his past experiences from his mother, he worked hard and determined to take back the country. As time went by, Shao Kang grew up and became the chief of the herdsmen under the leader of the Youren clan.
The pastor at that time was equivalent to the current Minister of Agriculture. Herding was an important source of national income, and its importance was comparable to farming. Shaokang learned to lead troops in battle while working.
It had been nearly 20 years since Han Xuan usurped the throne, but Han Xuan discovered Shao Kang's whereabouts and sent people to hunt him down. Shao Kang had no choice but to flee.
In 1926 BC, Shaokang fled to Youyu State. The king of Youyu State admired him very much and not only betrothed his two daughters to him, but also gave him the land of Lunyi to manage. It was here that Shaokang began to gather immigrants from the Xia Dynasty and took the first step to enrich the country.
While Shaokang was working diligently, Bo Mi, an old minister of the Xia Dynasty, was also planning to restore the country. After Han Zhuo usurped the throne, he fled to Youge State, then secretly organized the remaining forces and defected to Shaokang around 1910 BC.
At this point, Shaokang's restoration team has assembled, and what awaits them next is the impending war.
Before sending out his troops, Shaokang decided to start a spy war to eliminate the two brave and combative sons of Hanyue, Jiao and Shi. At this time, it was the turn of the first female spy in history, Ai, to appear.
She infiltrated the enemy and successfully joined forces with Shaokang to kill Jiao. The details of Nv Ai's assassination were not recorded, but according to Qu Yuan's "Heavenly Questions", Nv Ai probably assassinated the maid at night but accidentally killed her while she was sewing clothes.
After realizing that she had killed the wrong person, Nv'ai teamed up with Shaokang to launch an attack during hunting and finally got rid of Jiao.
At the same time, Shaokang's son Jizhu also killed Hanyue's other son, Shi, and took over his fiefdom. After losing two great generals, Hanyue was no longer Shaokang's opponent.
Around 1905 BC, Shaokang led his army to attack the capital of Hanyue's regime. At this time, Hanyue was old and unable to fight, so he could only hide and wait for the war to end. Unexpectedly, his subordinates opened the city gates and surrendered to Shaokang in order to save their lives.
They also handed over the unprepared Han Zhuo to Shao Kang. So far, Han Zhuo had reached the end of his life, and the country that belonged to the Xia Dynasty was taken back by Shao Kang.
After the restoration of the Xia Dynasty, Shaokang worked hard to govern the country. Under his rule, the people lived and worked in peace and contentment, which was known in history as "Shaokang's Restoration". In 1885 BC, Shaokang, a wise ruler, came to the end of his life, but the prosperous era he created continued.
[Understand the history of the Western Zhou Dynasty in one go]
If you ask which dynasty in Chinese history lasted the longest and had the most princes, it must be the Zhou Dynasty. Legend has it that King Wen pulled a cart 800 steps, and the Zhou Dynasty lasted for 800 years, from 1046 BC to 256 BC.
During this 800-year period, hundreds of princes appeared. King Wu of Zhou, who conquered the Shang Dynasty, and King Li of Zhou, who was driven out by the people, both came from this dynasty. Even Wu Zetian claimed to be a descendant of King Wen of Zhou, Ji Chang.
Today we will talk about the rise and fall of the Western Zhou Dynasty in the form of a chronology.
Legend has it that in ancient times, a woman named Jiang Yuan stepped on the footprint of a giant and became inexplicably pregnant and gave birth to Hou Ji's descendants, who later became the Zhou people.
The Zhou people originally lived in the Qishui area, and some say that this is why they took Ji as their surname. Around 1141 BC, they moved to Zhouyuan in the Weihe River basin and south of Mount Qishan due to the invasion of Rongdi.
At this time, the area of Zhou was less than half of that of the Shang Dynasty. It was not until Gugong Danfu became the king that the power of Zhou continued to grow.
In 1113 BC, Gugong Danfu conquered the Rongdi tribe and captured 12 tribal leaders. A few years later, he led his troops to conquer the Mixu Rong, Dali Rong, and Guifang Rong, and each time he went out to fight, he returned victorious.
King Wen Ding of Shang was afraid of Gugong Danfu's great military achievements. He decided to nip the threat in the bud, so he appointed Gugong Danfu as a priest, the leader of all the princes in the western part of the Shang Dynasty, and then announced that he would appoint him as a Fangbo and summon him to Yindu.
Sure enough, Gugong Tanfu was fooled. As soon as he rushed to Yindu, he was placed under house arrest and killed by King Wending of Shang.
Around 1100 BC, the death of Gugong Tanfu sounded a wake-up call for his son Ji Chang. Ji Chang, who succeeded the Zhou Dynasty, knew that if he did not enrich the country and strengthen the army, he would follow his father's old path.
So he selected talented people and brought together capable ministers such as Boyi, Shuqi, and Sanyisheng, and at the same time vigorously developed agriculture, making the Zhou country increasingly powerful.
Ji Chang's actions did not escape the eyes of King Zhou of Shang, and he was soon imprisoned by King Zhou. The Zhou State bribed King Zhou of Shang with a large sum of money, and Ji Chang was released back to the Zhou State.
On his way back home, he met Jiang Ziya who was fishing in the Wei River, and the two hit it off immediately. Legend has it that the story of King Wen pulling a cart 800 steps and the Zhou Dynasty lasting 800 years also happened at this time.
With the help of Jiang Ziya, the situation of Zhou State was very good. However, at this time, King Wen of Zhou, Ji Chang, died in 1056 BC. The responsibility of destroying the Shang Dynasty fell on the shoulders of King Wu of Zhou, Ji Fa.
The Zhou Kingdom was working hard to destroy the Shang Dynasty, but the Shang Dynasty was in chaos. King Zhou of Shang spared no effort to build terraces, which alienated the people. In 1046 BC, King Wu of Zhou united the princes and launched the Battle of Muye.
When the Battle of Muye began, the main force of the Shang Dynasty was away on a campaign, so King Zhou could only make do with prisoners of war and slaves. Such a makeshift force was naturally no match for King Wu of Zhou's elite troops. King Zhou was defeated, and the Battle of Muye marked the end of the Shang Dynasty, and the Zhou Dynasty was officially established.
After the establishment of the Zhou Dynasty in 1046 BC, in order to appease the people and prevent rebellion, King Wu of Zhou granted a fief to Wu Geng, the son of King Zhou of Shang, and also granted his three younger brothers Guan Shuxian, Cai Shudu and Huo Shuchu to the areas around Wu Geng to prevent him from raising the banner of rebellion. These three princes were also called the "Three Supervisors".
King Wu of Zhou could never have imagined that this action would almost destroy the Zhou Dynasty.