Why did Liu Bei not unify China later?

The reasons why Liu Bei could not unify China:

1. National strength. The war was fought for national strength, and the Shu Han Dynasty was in the most isolated and impoverished place at that time. The national power is too weak, and it does not occupy the rich areas of the Central Plains and Jiangnan. The chance of success in attacking the Central Plains from the southwest is too small.

2. Talent. The Five Tiger Generals and Zhuge died, and the talents of Shu withered. There are no more talents or generals.

3. Military strength. It was too weak. When the Shu Han was at its strongest, it only had an army of more than 200,000, which meant that it could not conquer the Central Plains.

4. Power. It was almost the same as the first one. At that time, Cao Wei had been established for a long time, and most of the people in the world had returned to their own country. The so-called orthodoxy of the Han Dynasty was basically gone. And Cao Wei occupied the Central Plains again, and its momentum was a foregone conclusion

Extended information:

Liu Bei's political measures

Postal Station Construction

Liu Bei established the Shu Han regime in Sichuan. At that time, Sichuan's transportation was relatively backward and there were mostly mountain roads. Liu Bei and Prime Minister Zhuge Liang made important contributions to the development of Sichuan Postal Service.

After Liu Bei founded the Han Dynasty, in order to deal with Cao Wei in the north, he established a military base for the Northern Expedition in the Hanzhong area. In order to open up the main military transport routes, four main roads were opened between Sichuan and Hanzhong, namely the famous Ziwu Road, Tangluo Road, Baoxie Road and Jinniu Road. The Shu Han also set up an important military pass, Baishui Pass, in Hanzhong.

The mountains around Baishui Pass are covered with beacon towers. A series of pavilions and pavilions were set up 400 miles from Baishui Pass to the capital Chengdu to ensure the normal operation of the post. In the Jingzhou area on the border with Soochow, General Guan Yu also set up a military communication "exit" along the river. The beacon tower reached from the rear to the Xiangfan front line.

There were correspondence exchanges between the Shu Han and Wei in the north and Wu in the east. Historical records record that after Xu Jing, a famous scholar, became the Taifu in the Shu Han Dynasty, he kept exchanging letters with his former friends in the north, Wei ministers Hua Xin and Wang Lang, "please express your gratitude to the emperor." "Three Kingdoms" quoted from "Wei Lue" there is a letter written by Wang Lang to Xu Jing, saying that "there were books in the previous summer but were not reached, but now there are books again, and I also sent a question to the former."

Other ministers of Wei State and some ministers of Shu Han also often corresponded with each other. Chen Qun, an official of Wei State and minister Pushe, once wrote to Zhuge Liang to inquire about Liu Ba, the minister of Shu Han. There were more friendly letters exchanged between Shu Han and Wu State. Chen Zhen once discussed this matter with the general of Wu State when he was on a mission to Wu State.

Zhuge Liang often exchanged letters with his brother Zhuge Jin and general Lu Xun.

The characteristic of the Shuhan Postal Station is that there are almost no carriages. Most of the mail is delivered by stagecoach. People who do this work are called "postmasters". This is probably because Shu is located in the southwest, mostly in remote mountainous areas, and the roads are uneven.

Formulate Shu Ke

Shu Ke was the law of the Shu Han Dynasty. When Liu Bei first entered Sichuan, everything was waiting for improvement. He ordered Xu Ci, Hu Qian, who were familiar with the code system and old laws at that time, Meng Guang and Lai Mindian were in charge of old texts and created systems.

After Yizhou was pacified, he began to formulate laws. According to the "Three Kingdoms" records, there were five people who participated in the formulation of Shu laws, namely Zhuge Liang, Fa Zheng, Yi Ji, and Liu Ba , Li Yan. The specific content of Shu Ke has been lost, but according to "The Biography of Zhuge Liang", although the law of Shu Han was strict, it was fair and impartial, and the people had no complaints.

Liu Bei criticized the amnesty system of Liu Biao and Liu Zhang, and Zhuge Liang also pointed out the reasons for Liu Zhang's bad governance in Yizhou. He believes that the so-called virtuous government implemented by Liu Zhang is to win over people with small favors, use good and high positions to respect his subordinates, violate the law, and establish the majesty of the law.

When the law is implemented, people will be grateful, and the people will be governed by titles. When the title increases, glory will be known. When honor and grace are applied together, the superiors and subordinates will advance and retreat in a measured manner. This is the key to governing the country. It not only contains the Legalist concept that the rule of law is superior to the rule of virtue, but also reflects the foundation of Legalist theory - the theory of human nature and evil.

Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang governed the country by using both law and etiquette, and by using authority and virtue simultaneously. They emphasized "exercising rules and clarifying the law" and "encouraging good and deposing evil", that is, taking law as the body, focusing on the principle of fairness and objectivity; using virtue as the function. , focusing on education. Use Shang Yang's method, but not superstitious in its authoritarianism, adopt its principles and methods, combine them with Confucian teachings, and combine the practice and teachings into one.

After such a "rule of law innovation" movement, the work efficiency of the Shu Han regime has been significantly improved, and the administration of officials has gradually become clearer. In the late Shu Han Dynasty, the ruler Fei Yi issued amnesties many times. The chief minister Meng Guang quoted the stories of Zhuge Liang and Liu Bei to strongly reprimand Fei Yi.

Baidu Encyclopedia--History of the Three Kingdoms

Baidu Encyclopedia--Liu Bei