What kind of person was the real Liu Bang in history? Why do people who are obviously kind and generous always get blackmailed?

Sima Qian commented on Liu Bang, Taizu of the Han Dynasty, in "Historical Records": He was benevolent and loved others, loved to give, and had a broad mind. He is always generous and does not interfere with family production and work.

The meaning of this saying is: (Liu Bang) is kind and loves others, likes to give charity, and is broad-minded. They often have lofty ambitions and do not engage in ordinary people's production operations. But many people don’t understand this evaluation, especially the word “kindness and love”. Many people say that Liu Bang had a cold nature, kicked his children out of the car time and time again, and killed heroes after he became famous. How could he be such a kind and loving person? Where are people? Where is Liu Bang's kindness reflected? 1. Liu Bang’s black spots

Let’s first talk about Liu Bang’s two black spots:

1. Kicking his children out of the car while escaping for his life.

From a humanistic point of view, Liu Bang’s behavior is indeed very outrageous. The poison of a tiger is not enough to eat its seeds, let alone a human being? There is no need to clean up Liu Bang's behavior. It does exist. This is a major black spot of Liu Bang.

However, you cannot just look at the problem from the perspective of human nature, or your own perspective, but you must look at it from Liu Bang’s own perspective, or from the perspective of a politician, and you will be able to understand the problem. .

Liu Bang started out as a commoner. He was the first to enter Guanzhong and destroyed the Qin Dynasty, and became the second largest force in the world after Xiang Yu. After Xiang Yu divided the world, Liu Bang was obviously not willing to be the leader. The second child, he just wants to be an emperor, follow the example of Qin Shihuang, and become the most noble emperor in the world. This is Liu Bang's lofty ambition and his lifelong pursuit.

So Liu Bang left Hanzhong, regained Guanzhong, left Hangu, recovered the Central Plains, and united the five princes to attack Pengcheng. He originally thought that the world could be easily conquered, but because of his pride and complacency, Xiang Yu defeated the enemy with less and defeated more, 56 The Wanlian army was chased by Xiang Yu's 30,000 cavalry, and Liu Bang drove his children out of the car just when he was desperate to escape after being defeated in the Battle of Pengcheng.

What did Liu Bang think at this time?

Let’s simulate it: Liu Bang was originally a flexible and flexible person. After the defeat of Pengcheng, Liu Bang just wanted to survive and then make a comeback. Liu Bang also controlled the rear base areas such as Guanzhong, Hanzhong, Ba, and Shu. As long as people If you don't die, you will eventually make a comeback. Liu Bang only has one belief in his heart at this moment, which is to survive and escape the Chu army's pursuit.

No one can stop him from escaping, including his children. From a politician's point of view, Liu Bang regards his political career as more important than the lives of his children. From a politician's point of view, Liu Bang values ????his political career more than the lives of his children. From the perspective of his father, Liu Bang was wrong. From the perspective of human nature and morality, Liu Bang was also wrong.

This is not to whitewash Liu Bang, but to state the facts. If you look at the problem from a different angle, you will find that some things are not incomprehensible. Liu Bang only chose politics and gave up family ties at a critical moment. If he valued family ties more important than politics, he might not be able to succeed politically.

So, when Xiang Yu threatened to kill Liu Bang's father, Liu Bang actually said that he would give me a share of the pie. Such ruthless and unjust words coming from Liu Bang's mouth can easily make people think that Liu Bang is a scoundrel and a gangster. Or a gangster. In fact, Liu Bang is the real politician. Politicians always regard politics as more important than family ties.

2. After unifying the world, kill the heroes.

Let’s take a look at how Liu Bang “killed” the heroes after he unified the world.

The first person to rebel was King Yan Zang Tu. Zang Tu was originally the King of Yan who was entrusted by Xiang Yu, and later joined Liu Bang. Why did Zang Tu rebel? Because after Xiang Yu was killed, Liu Bang sent people to hunt down Xiang Yu's generals. Zang Tu felt afraid and always felt that Liu Bang would attack him, so he simply rebelled.

Zang Tu, the king of Yan, rebelled. Do you think Liu Bang, as the emperor, should put down the rebellion? This is a causal relationship between before and after, rather than Liu Bang wanting to kill Zang Tu and forcing Zang Tu to rebel. There is a difference. If all the generals rebel, can't they still kill the hero?

The second rebel was Li Ji. This man was originally the magistrate of Chen County under Xiang Yu. He later defected to Liu Bang and was named the Marquis of Yingchuan. Then Liu Bang summoned a large number of princes, and Li Ji was If he dared to come and rebelled directly, he probably had a ghost in his heart, so he was also killed.

The third one is Han Xin. Someone accused Han Xin of treason, so Liu Bang captured Han Xin on the pretext of patrolling, but did not kill him. He just demoted him to the title of Marquis of Huaiyin and took away his title of King of Chu. , but Liu Bang did not kill Han Xin.

Including Han Xin's death in the end, he died at the hands of Empress Lu and Xiao He, and had nothing to do with Liu Bang.

The reason why Han Xin is like this is often caused by himself. He is a general that Liu Bang reuses. After he has made great achievements, he threatens Liu Bang with sending troops. Han Xin relies on the platform, soldiers, generals, etc. given by Liu Bang. Success was achieved only with food and resources. In that feudal society, generals were absolutely not allowed to ask for rewards from princes. This was a violation, a taboo, and tantamount to treason.

Han Xin violated Liu Bang's taboo, but Liu Bang did not kill Han Xin, but demoted him and gave him the title of Marquis of Huaiyin. If Han Xin had kept a low profile honestly, he might not have been killed, but Han Xin later participated in Chen Xi's rebellion, which gave Empress Lu an excuse to kill Han Xin. Liu Bang was not present at the time.

The fourth rebel was Han Wangxin. Because the crusade against the Huns was unfavorable, he joined forces with the Huns. This was treason. Of course Liu Bang had to lead an army to put down the rebellion. Han Wangxin was later killed by the Han general Chai Wu.

The fifth person to rebel was Chen Xi, the acting prime minister. When Han Wangxin rebelled, he lobbied Chen Xi to join him. Later, Liu Bang summoned Chen Xi to Beijing. Chen Xi had some ghosts in his heart and did not dare to go, so he rebelled again. A person who took the initiative to rebel was later put down by Liu Bang personally leading his army.

The sixth one is Peng Yue. When Chen Kui rebelled, Liu Bang recruited Peng Yue to lead his army to fight. But Peng Yue did not come, so Liu Bang became angry and sent people to blame Peng Yue. Peng Yue was afraid, and Peng Yue's generals He often encouraged Peng Yue to rebel, but Peng Yue did not listen. Then Peng Yue's servants reported to Liu Bang that Peng Yue had rebelled.

So Liu Bang sent people to capture Peng Yue, then abolished Peng Yue's title of King of Liang and moved him to Shu. As a result, on the way to move, Peng Yue met Empress Lu, who deceived Peng Yue into telling Liu Bang After begging for mercy and bringing Peng Yue back, Empress Lu asked Peng Yue's retainers to accuse Peng Yue of treason behind his back. Several incidents were put together, and Liu Bang agreed to kill Peng Yue.

Liu Bang originally did not want to kill Peng Yue, but finally killed Peng Yue. Empress Lu played a greater role than Liu Bang.

The seventh rebel was Yingbu. Yingbu saw these kings with many different surnames being killed, so he took the initiative to rebel. Liu Bang personally led the army to pacify them. Yingbu was defeated and killed. You can't blame Liu Bang for this. Bar.

The eighth rebel was Lu Wan. Lu Wan was mainly instigated by his general Zhang Sheng. Zhang Sheng secretly colluded with the Huns and had contacts with Chen Xi and Zang Tu’s son Zang Yan. These They were all people who rebelled against Liu Bang, making Liu Bang believe that Lu Wan had betrayed him. At this time, Liu Bang had reached the end of his life and died of illness soon after. Then Lu Wan was forced to flee to the Huns.

Judging from these incidents of "killing" kings with different surnames, most of them were generals who took the initiative to rebel, while Liu Bang passively suppressed the rebellion. We cannot pin the blame for killing heroes on Liu Bang. , Liu Bang is not the Yue King Gou Jian, nor is he Zhu Yuanzhang. Liu Bang is actually kind to his heroes.

There were 143 marquises who contributed to the founding of the Western Han Dynasty. Liu Bang did not kill any of them, and they all died well. Moreover, the descendants of these marquises can inherit their titles forever as long as they do not commit crimes. There is also Wang Changsha with a different surname. Liu Bang did not kill Wang Wurui because Wu Rui was loyal to Liu Bang and did not betray. Wu Rui was also a general of Xiang Yu, but he did not rebel like King Zang Tu of Yan, so he died well. 2. Liu Bang’s character

Even among Xiang Yu’s tribesmen and generals, Liu Bang also pardoned many people. For example, Xiang Yu’s tribesmen, Liu Bang pardoned all of them. There are records in historical books: "Historical Records of Xiang Yu": Various items. The king of Han Dynasty would not kill any of his clan members. Then he granted Xiang Bo the title of Marquis of Sheyang. Taohou, Pinggaohou and Xuanwuhou were all Xiang surnames, and were given the surname Liu.

Not only did they not kill, but they also treated successful ministers as marquises. For example, Xiang Bo was granted the title of Marquis of Sheyang. Taohou, Pingjinghou and Xuanwuhou were all members of the Xiang clan, and were given the surname Liu. Xiang Yu had a general named Ji Bu. After Xiang Yu was killed, Liu Bang sent people everywhere to hunt down Ji Bu. Later, Xia Houying interceded with Liu Bang, and Liu Bang pardoned Ji Bu and allowed Ji Bu to serve as an official in the Han Dynasty. Bu lived until the period of Emperor Wen of Han Dynasty.

Liu Bang is not a vengeful person, but a reasonable person. As long as he can give a reason, Liu Bang will not kill people indiscriminately. For example, Kuai Tong once encouraged Han Xin to betray Liu Bang. After Han Xin was killed, Liu Bang Someone was sent to capture Kuai Tong. Kuai Tong said that as a general of Han Xin at that time, it was normal for him to make suggestions for Han Xin, and each was his own master. Then Liu Bang did not kill Kuai Tong.

There are too many examples of this. Even Liu Bang’s enemies, Liu Bang can resist killing them. For example, Yong Chi, a fellow countryman of Liu Bang, betrayed Liu Bang twice and almost killed Liu Bang. , but after unifying the world, Liu Bang did not avenge his personal revenge publicly. Instead, he listened to Zhang Liang's suggestion and was the first to make Yong Chi a marquis who had a grudge against him. This shows that he is broad-minded and kind-hearted.

Liu Bang was recognized as a generous elder at the time. After Xiang Liang died in the battle, the Chu State held a meeting to discuss the next strategy and unanimously believed that Liu Bang was a generous elder. This is also recorded in historical books: "Historical Records of Gaozu" "Ben Ji": It is better to send more elders to support Yi and go west, and tell Qin's father and brother. Qin's father and brother have been suffering from their master for a long time. Now the elder is sincere and can go. No aggression and violence. It is better to go down. Xiang Yu is so fierce now that he cannot be dispatched now. Dupei Gong is a generous and elder man and can be sent away.

What this means is: It is better to send another generous elder to march westward (referring to attacking Xianyang) with justice as the call, and explain the truth clearly to the fathers and brothers of Qin. They have suffered from the rule of their monarch for a long time. Now if they can really get generous elders to go to Guanzhong without bullying and tyranny, they should be able to win Guanzhong. Now Xiang Yu is so fierce that he cannot be dispatched. Only Peigong (Liu Bang), who has always been a generous elder, can be dispatched.

This was the internal view of Liu Bang in the Chu State in the early days of the anti-Qin uprising. This was the result of the comparison between Liu Bang and Xiang Yu, and it was also recognized by the Chu State at that time. After Liu Bang entered Xianyang, he made a three-chapter agreement to seal up the Qin Dynasty. He treated Qin's clan, ministers, and people well with wealth and treasures, and was admired by the people of Qin, and won the support of the people of Qin. This is Liu Bang's kindness.

Although Liu Bang's actions were for politics, at least in the hearts of the people, he was a kind and loving person, which is why Sima Qian evaluated Liu Bang like this in the Historical Records.

Chairman Mao once said of Liu Bang: he was open-minded and generous, and he followed advice readily. Liu Bang defeated Xiang Yu for two reasons: one was because of his decision-making on his opponents, and the other was because of the proper use of people.

Liu Bang is still an open-minded person who is willing to give advice easily. As long as he has political opinions, Liu Bang will immediately make a decision and obey it, and then make arrangements to do it. If Liu Bang makes a mistake in his own decision-making, he will immediately correct himself. I have never made any mistakes, and I have never felt embarrassed because I was the King of Han or the Emperor.

To give a few examples, Li Shiqi gave Liu Bang a wrong plan and asked Liu Bang to divide the world. Liu Bang thought it made sense and immediately asked someone to engrave the seal and make arrangements. Later Zhang Liang heard about it and pointed it out. Now that the world cannot be enfeoffed, the situation is different. Liu Bang felt that it was right, so he immediately stopped the previous decision and scolded Li Shiqi.

Before the siege of Baishan Mountain, Lou Jing suggested to Liu Bang not to advance rashly, thinking that the Huns' behavior was abnormal and that they might have a plan. Liu Bang refused to listen and put Lou Jing in prison, saying that he would deal with it when he came back. He, the situation turned out to be as Lou Jing said. After Liu Bang escaped, he immediately apologized to Lou Jing and made him a marquis. As an emperor, it is a kind of magnanimity to admit and correct his mistakes.

Liu Bang was once with Mrs. Qi. Zhou Chang, the censor doctor, came. Seeing that Liu Bang was inconvenient, Zhou Chang withdrew. Then Liu Bang chased him out and sat on Zhou Chang's neck and asked him. , what kind of emperor am I? Zhou Chang replied: Your Majesty, you are the same emperor as Xia Jie and Shang Zhou! Liu Bang was not angry at all, but laughed loudly. This was also magnanimous. If he didn't have that kind of self-confidence, which emperor wouldn't kill his ministers when he heard that he was Xia Jie or Shang Zhou?

There are too many examples of Liu Bang's admonishment. I don't need to give examples, but I basically agree with this. Chairman Mao also said that Liu Bang's ability to conquer the world relied on decision-making and employment. This was indeed Liu Bang's strength. Almost all the decisions of the entire Han regime were made by Liu Bang, not to mention employment. Xiao He, Zhang Liang, Great people like Han Xin are willing to follow Liu Bang and assist Liu Bang sincerely. This is employment.

So, what kind of person was the real Liu Bang in history?

It can be said that Liu Bang was an emperor who was kind and generous, broad-minded, open-minded, easy to follow advice, good at decision-making, and good at employing people.

The reason why Liu Bang is always criticized is because Liu Bang has some black spots, such as abandoning his children, neglecting his father, and killing heroes. These issues have been mentioned before. As a political figure, Liu Bang One has to choose one and give up the other. This is determined by his historical status. Only people who don't understand Liu Bang will criticize Liu Bang. But if you understand Liu Bang from a historical perspective, you will truly understand Liu Bang's character.