The fairy’s face was like a flower with dew, and the jade tree shone brightly in the backyard. The flowers bloomed and did not fall for long, falling red all over the ground and falling into silence. This piece of music is called “Yu Shu Hou Ting Hua” and is often referred to as the sound of the kingdom by later generations. A duet between the last emperor of the Southern Dynasty, Empress Chen, and his concubines. Chen, the Empress Dowager, ignored the government and indulged in emotions day and night. Soon, Chen’s land withered and shattered like the short-lived backyard flowers. Over the past 300 years, similar relics of national subjugation were sung on the land of the north and south. This was the most frequent period of dynastic changes in Chinese history. In the north, from the end of the Western Jin Dynasty to the unification of the Yellow River Basin by the Northern Wei Dynasty, during the period of the Five Barbarians and Sixteen Kingdoms, you sang and I appeared, and the shortest one survived for only eight years. In the south, dynastic changes are equally frequent, with the Yangtze River surging and witnessing the rise and fall of these separatist regimes and the profound suffering of the people.
The Yangtze River in the later period of the Northern and Southern Dynasties not only became a fragmentation zone of separatist regimes, but also a scar that the Chinese nation found difficult to heal. However, unification was a historical trend, a political need, an economic requirement, a cultural aspiration, and a people’s desire. But at this time, due to political corruption and incompetence, the Northern and Southern Dynasties had no intention of unification. The Northern Dynasties were constrained by nomadic tribes, unable to unify, and the mountains and rivers were divided. The world was like a chaotic chess game. So how can we solve this difficult situation that has been unsolvable for over three hundred years? The chess piece that solved this dilemma did not fall on the healthy political center of the south, nor on the political center of Luoyang in the Northern Wei, but on this desolate and cold land.
Wuchuan Town Site, Wuchuan County, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region
Tuchengliang Village, located at the northern foot of Daqing Mountain, is 25 kilometers northwest of Hohhot City. To the north is an endless grassland, and then to the north is a desolate desert. Who would have thought that this lonely section of Huangtu Liang was embraced by the military fortress of Northern Wei, Wuchuan Town. Later generations lamented that Wuchuan Town was a gathering place of royal energy. In this small area, China, which has only a history of over 300 years, has emerged from the imperial families of the Northern Zhou, Sui, and Tang dynasties.
Researcher at the Institute of History, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Lou Jin: So there was a sorcerer at that time who, while in Wuchuan Town, found that his physiognomy seemed to have a huge problem. Because he saw everything in the small yamen on the street, all he saw were emperors, generals, and prime ministers. How could this happen? This is impossible. After returning, he burned the photo book, but indeed, a large number of political and military leaders emerged from the six towns that influenced the entire history of China in the future.
In 398 AD, the Northern Wei Dynasty occupied most of the Central Plains, and the regime established by the nomadic tribe Tuoba Xianbei moved the capital to Pingcheng, present-day Datong, Shanxi. In order to resist the attacks of the northern nomadic tribes Rouran and defend Pingcheng, Northern Wei established a series of military towns along the Great Wall, of which six were the most important. In addition to Wuchuan Town, the other five were Woye, Huaisu, Fuming, Rouxuan, and Huaihuang, which are the famous six northern towns. The main military force of Northern Wei’s resistance against Rouran was concentrated in the six northern towns, and the border areas of the six towns were mostly filled by noble and virtuous officials of the Tuoba clan, with a high social status,
Although they were far from the political core, they did not affect their official career and were often promoted out of the ordinary. Therefore, at that time, they were highly regarded. However, in 493 AD, after Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei, Tuoba Hong, moved the capital to Luoyang, the status of the six northern towns plummeted, and the brave soldiers guarding the border were gradually forgotten, becoming abandoned children of Emperor Xiaowen’s sinicization policy. The distance between spaces widened the gap in political identity. Those who stayed in Beijing obtained the highest rank of officials, while those who stayed in the town were separated by the clear road and wandered in the bustling and prosperous Central Plains. Who would have thought of the desolate and cold border fortress, where the generals of the six towns not only lost their former glory, but also the soldiers and civilians of the towns were even classified as lowly people.
Researcher at the Institute of History, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Lou Jin: The Six Towns Group used to be guarded by the noblest people in the north. Now, it is regarded as the lowest ranking military personnel, especially the lower level generals. They have a relationship of drinking and singing, mutual loyalty, and the relationship between adoptive fathers, brothers, and sons. In such a strong group, when faced with strong contempt and pressure to place them at the bottom of society, the rebound he provoked and the unity he demonstrated are unmatched by anyone, and no group at that time can match.
The strong military power and strong family relationships, combined with the accumulated resentment, gradually transformed the six most important garrison areas in the north into the least secure areas of Northern Wei. In March 524 AD, due to the harsh treatment of subordinates by a high-ranking garrison leader under the jurisdiction of Woye Town, the town residents broke through the rebellion of the six Han Baling and killed the garrison leader, quickly occupying Woye Town, opening the prelude to the Six Town Uprising. Soon, the flames of war swept over the six northern towns, and the military groups of the six towns rose up. After a series of warlord conflicts and separatism, Gao Huan from Huaishuo Town and Yuwen Tai from Wuchuan Town dominated the fate of the Northern Wei Dynasty. These two coexisting warlords ultimately divided Northern Wei into two opposing politics, Eastern Wei and Western Wei. The division of Northern Wei weakened the power of the north, coupled with the emerging Turks outside the Great Wall and the inactive Southern Dynasty, China fell into a more chaotic political regime, and the future of national unity became even more uncertain. History continues to wander and explore in the darkness, calling for a powerful figure, a ruler who can truly unify the world.
On a late night in July 541 AD, a loud cry sounded in the city of Fengxi in Western Wei. The wife of Yang Zhong, the governor of Tongzhou, gave birth to a strong baby here, who was later known as Yang Jian, Emperor Wen of Sui. On that evening, a nun named Zhixian crossed the Yellow River from Shanxi and came to Tongzhou at night to meet Yang Zhong, Yang Jian’s father. She told Yang Zhong that her son had a rich background and could not be raised in a commoner’s house. Yang Zhong believed in this stranger nun and decided to split her own courtyard into a nun’s temple, handing over her son to Zhixian for custody.
Researcher at the Institute of History of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Huang Zhengjian: The Yang Jian family has been guarding generals in Wuchuan for generations since the fifth generation of ancestors. By the time Yang Jian’s father, Yang Zhong, was born, this family began to prosper because Yang Zhong was a very remarkable person. He had a strong physique, exceptional martial arts skills, and profound knowledge. Later, he went to Guanxi with Yu Wentai. In the war against Eastern Wei, he achieved outstanding military achievements and became a very important military commander under Yu Wentai, who was conferred the title of Duke of Sui. So why did Yang Jian establish a dynasty called the Sui Dynasty? This Sui Dynasty came from here, so Yang Jian was born into such a prestigious family.
Due to Yang Zhong’s constant involvement in battles with Yuwen Tai, Yang Jian spent most of his teenage years with Zhi Xian. Zhi Xian even gave Yang Jian a very Buddhist nickname, Narayan, which means Vajrayana. History has no way of exploring the specific origin of Zhixian, but she had a huge impact on Yang Jian’s life. To truly train Yang Jian into a brave, progressive, and resolute warrior. Yuwen Tai, a legendary hero, once praised Yang Jian for his character, which is different from that of other generations. During Yang Jian’s years of growth, the wars between Eastern and Western Wei were uninterrupted, with five large-scale battles. In a series of tug of war, the balance of the war gradually shifted towards Western Wei. In fact, at the beginning of the confrontation with the Gao Huan group of Eastern Wei, the cramped Yuwen Tai group in a corner of Guanzhong did not have much advantage, especially in terms of military strength, they did not have the ability to compete with Gao Huan. Because after being baptized by the six towns, more than 200000 Xianbei armed forces were placed under the command of Gao Huan and were led by Yuwen Tai. But there are only ten thousand people.
Due to the weak strength of the Wuchuan resident group in Yuwen Tai, especially the small number of Xianbei troops, in order to stabilize the political order in the Guanzhong region and compete with the Gao Huan group, they had to rely on the local Han people’s power in Guanzhong. In order to reorganize the previously unrelated armies and rural soldiers, Yuwen Tai began to reform the military system in 543 AD, recruiting the Guanlong Haoyou to increase military strength. Some Han aristocratic families successively led their rural soldiers to surrender to Yuwen Tai. In 550 AD, Yuwen Tai finally completed the construction of the prefectural army system, transforming the previously scattered local armed forces into a tightly organized system.
Researcher Lou Jin from the Institute of History of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences: The Fubing system was a measure taken by Yuwen Tai to stabilize the Guanzhong area, strengthen his military power, and even strengthen his own military and political core. After Yuwen Tai led his core military group to Guanzhong, he faced a situation of one Han powerful group after another. The Han powerful group leading these soldiers was included in the senior generals, and various levels of generals were placed in their positions. The core group around him was appointed as the highest level general to lead them, thus creating a military system.
At the top of the Western Wei Dynasty’s military system were eight major generals of the Zhu Kingdom. In addition to Yuwen Tai himself and Yuan Xin, there were also six other generals, namely Li Hu, Li Bi, Dugu Xin, Zhao Gui, Yu Jin, and Hou Mo Chen Chong. Under the Eight Zhu Kingdom, there were also 12 major generals, all of whom were the most important leading generals under the military system. Yang Jian’s father, Yang Zhong, was among the 12 major generals. It was through the military system that the combat effectiveness of the Western Wei army gradually increased, not only able to compete with the Eastern Wei, but also gaining an advantage in the strategic situation of both sides. After reaching adulthood, Yang Jian began to join the ranks of the expedition with his father. At this time, Gao Huan and Yu Wentai were no longer alive. Their sons, Gao Yang and Yu Wenjue, had successively deposed the emperors of Eastern Wei and Western Wei, and established two countries, Northern Qi and Northern Zhou. However, the wars between them continued, and Yang Jian’s special growth experience quickly made him stand out in the battle. He was successively awarded the titles of General of Chariots and Cavalry and General of Cavalry by the Northern Zhou Emperor, demonstrating his strong military talent and extraordinary royal aura. Yang Jian’s talent in junior high school was appreciated by the more powerful Dugu family, which led to an important political alliance. His father Yang Zhong won the seventh daughter of the Dugu family for him. Yang Jian’s father-in-law, Dugu Xin, was a Xianbei aristocrat and the founding father of the Western Wei Dynasty. He was one of the top eight pillar states in the imperial military system.
Researcher at the Institute of History of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Huang Zhengjian: The Dugu family was a Xianbei aristocrat, whose ancestors were tribal adults in Xianbei. Therefore, his status was relatively high from the beginning. He was also born in Wuchuan Town and followed Yuwen Tai to Guanxi. His eldest daughter married the emperor of Northern Zhou and later became the empress of Emperor Ming of Northern Zhou. His fourth daughter married Li Bing, the son of Li Hu, who was also from the Eight Pillars Kingdom. This Li Bing was the father of Tang Gaozu, who later established the Tang Dynasty. In other words, Dugu Xin’s fourth daughter was the mother of Tang Gaozu Li Yuan, and his seventh daughter married him. Yang Jian later became the Empress of Documents in the Sui Dynasty, and thus the Dugu family produced three empresses.
Whether it was during the Northern Zhou Dynasty or the previous Western Wei Dynasty, marriages between Xianbei nobles and Han nobles were very common, thanks to Yuwen Tai’s governance strategy. Yuwen Tai’s military and financial strength in the corner of Guanlong were not as strong as Gao Huan in the Eastern Wei Dynasty, and his culture was not as good as that of the Xiao family in Jiangnan. Therefore, a new policy must be sought, which is to integrate different ethnic groups in terms of spiritual and cultural aspects. This is another reform by Yuwen Tai beyond the prefectural military system. Yuwen Tai used the Confucian classic Zhou Li to transform the central government system, bringing Han Chinese tycoons and scholars back to their hearts. At the same time, some Han military commanders were given Xianbei surnames to achieve the goal of blending Hu and Han. The Yang Jian family was bestowed with the Pu Liu Ru clan, a political alliance formed by the combination of Hu and Han forces. Guan Longji emerged on the historical stage through political alliances and the ability to conquer and fight effectively. Yang Jian quickly entered the core of Guanlong Group.
Researcher at the Institute of History, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Lou Jin: Guanlong Group refers to a regional powerful group, which is Guanzhong, Longyou, and Longyou. After Yuwen Tai’s army arrived in Guanzhong and temporarily stabilized the military situation in the Guanzhong area, this group became an important political group that Yuwen Tai first needed to utilize and rely on. They were all senior and intermediate generals in the Fubing Group, so the entire Guanlong Group was Yuwen Tai’s ruling core group. The will of the Guanlong Group was directly manifested as the ruling will of the Northern Zhou Dynasty.
The emergence of the Guanlong Group was the last link in the ethnic integration of the Northern Dynasties. Throughout the nearly 400 year history of the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, the quality of ethnic policies and the degree of ethnic integration have always tested the wisdom of politicians. It is an important lever for the rise and fall of the dynasty, which is different from the ethnic integration policy implemented by Yuwen Tai. Gao Huan of the Eastern Wei Dynasty had a strong tendency towards Xianbei culture, and a strong Xianbei army was the foundation on which the Gao Huan group relied for survival. Both the Eastern Wei and later Northern Qi were taking many measures to ensure their interests. Gao Huan often used the Xianbei dialect to command the Three Armies, and Xianbei officials generally looked down upon the aristocrats of the Central Plains. During court discussions, they even called them “dog Han”. Bullying Han people by Xianbei people in the folk was also a common social phenomenon, which not only intensified ethnic conflicts but also led to the rapid corruption of the Northern Qi dynasty.
In early 577 AD, the Northern Zhou and Northern Qi engaged in their final battle. At this point, the balance that determined the outcome of the war had completely shifted towards the Northern Zhou Dynasty. Soon, the Northern Zhou Dynasty destroyed the Northern Qi Dynasty and unified northern China, achieving a confrontation across the river from three parts of the country to the north and south, taking a crucial step on the road to unifying the country. That year, Yang Jian was 36 years old due to his outstanding military achievements. Promoted to Shangzhu Guo, more importantly, Yang Jian benefited from a political alliance. Previously, his 13-year-old daughter Yang Lihua was chosen as the Crown Princess by Emperor Wu of Zhou. In the second year of Northern Zhou’s unification of the north, Emperor Wu passed away due to illness. Emperor Xuan succeeded to the throne, and Yang Lihua became the empress. Yang Jian was also promoted to the position of Grand Marshal, getting closer and closer to the highest power throne. This is a painting of emperors created by the great Tang Dynasty painter Yan Liben, from which one can easily feel Yang Jian’s profound and resolute royal temperament. However, it was the excessively high honor and domineering appearance that pushed Yang Jian into the most dangerous situation.
Researcher at the Institute of History, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Lei Wen: As Yang Jian’s status and political prestige improved, Emperor Xuan of Zhou became increasingly suspicious of him, so his situation was actually quite dangerous. Emperor Xuan of Zhou once told Yang Lihua, also known as Yang Jian’s daughter, that one day I would marry your Yang family. Once, Emperor Xuan of Zhou summoned Yang Jian into the palace. Before entering the palace, he first told the left and right attendants around him that if Yang Jian’s expression changed, he would immediately kill him. Therefore, after Yang Jian entered the palace, he appeared very calm and composed. Faced with various criticisms and humiliations from Emperor Zhou, he pretended to be deaf and mute, and ultimately managed to avoid a disaster.
In order to dispel the suspicion and fear of Emperor Zhou towards him. Yang Jian requests an external transfer of the current head of Shouxian County, Anhui Province, to temporarily stay away from the political center. Previously, Yang Jian had served as the Governor of Suizhou, the Governor of Dingzhou, and the Governor of Mizhou. He was well aware of the refugee problem, corruption in the official system, and the chaotic management of multiple prefectures and counties in the Northern Zhou Dynasty, which would also destroy the country. This made Yang Jian eager for the highest power. He wanted to change all of this, but currently it needed to wait in silence. In May 580 AD, Emperor Xuan of Zhou, who had already abdicated the previous year, fell ill and passed away, leaving behind Emperor Jing, who was only eight years old. However, the king of Northern Zhou’s aura dimmed, and as Emperor Jing’s maternal grandfather, Yang Jian, who was already the King of Sui, was only one step away from the highest power throne. At this point, Yang Jian no longer had to restrain his dominance as a king. In order to prevent a mutiny by the Northern Zhou Zongshi, he successively recalled five princes to Chang’an and executed them. At this time, the local powerful factions with heavy troops were deeply uneasy. In June 580 AD, Yu Wentai’s nephew, the general of Shandong, Wei Chijun, swore his oath of allegiance against Yang Jian in Xiangzhou, while the governor of Xunzhou, Sima Xiaonan, and the governor of Yizhou, Wang Qian, quickly rose up to respond. The three sides were in chaos, and in half a day, it was raging. Yang Jian could not tolerate the re division of the unified northern region. He dispatched the famous Han general Wei Xiaokuan to launch a full-scale attack on the most threatening city of Wei Chijun, who quickly broke through Ye City and committed suicide. At the end of August, Yang Jian’s army entered the border, and the governor of Yunzhou, Sima Xiao, was unable to escape to the Chen Dynasty. At the end of October, Wang Qian, the governor of Yizhou, was killed and passed on to the capital. In just four months, the rebellion of the three governors was completely quelled.
Professor Wu Guozong from Peking University: Two months after quelling the rebellion of the three governors of Wei Chijun, Yang Jian ordered that Yuwen Tai be changed to the surnames of some Han generals with Xianbei surnames, and also to the Han surname. For example, Yang Jian’s original name was Pu Liuru, but now it has been restored to Yang Jian. This indicates that Yang Jian wants to announce to everyone that he is the representative of Han orthodoxy, and also indicates that he wants to draw a clear line from traditional Xianbei.
In February 581 AD, Yang Jian deposed the last Xianbei Emperor of the Northern Zhou Dynasty, Emperor Jing, and took the throne from his grandson, establishing the Great Sui Dynasty ruled by the Han people. Yang Jian made every effort to highlight the legitimacy of his Han culture, as the Northern Emperor, who only sat halfway through the country, was clearly not Yang Jian’s ambition. Since the establishment of the Sui Dynasty, he has been in charge of governing the court. However, although the Sui Dynasty replaced the Northern Zhou Dynasty, its political structure was no different from that of the Northern Wei period many years ago. At this time, the southern part of China was under the rule of the Chen Dynasty, while the northern part was constrained by the Turks. In order to unify the country, Yang Jian must first eliminate the threat from the nomadic tribes in the north. This tests the courage and wisdom of Yang Jian and the emerging dynasty.
The Turks were a nomadic ethnic group that emerged in the northern grasslands during the late Northern Dynasty, with hundreds of thousands of elite cavalry. Many tribes in the northern grasslands belonged to them. During the confrontation between Northern Qi and Northern Zhou, both sides competed to win over the Turks, giving them a large amount of silk and other materials every year in exchange for their help. The Turks naturally enjoyed watching the tiger fight while sitting on the mountain.
Huang Zhengjian, a researcher at the Institute of History of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, suddenly felt that Tuoba Khan once proudly said, “I am so filial with these two sons in the south, do I still worry about the lack of resources?”? The two sons he mentioned could only be Northern Zhou and Northern Qi, indicating his arrogance. However, after Northern Zhou pacified Northern Qi and unified the north, the Turks could no longer obtain huge economic benefits by manipulating the Central Plains civil war. Especially after Yang Jian established the Sui Dynasty, he adopted a tougher policy towards the Turks. According to historical records, the Turks were extremely resentful towards the Sui Dynasty and constantly sent troops south to invade and harass.
However, the powerful Turks also have insurmountable weaknesses, which are the numerous internal contradictions. Along with the Shabole Khan, there are several other Khanates such as Datou, Tuli, and Awa, forming a separatist situation. In response to this, in December 581 of the first year of Emperor Kaihuang’s reign, Chang Sunsheng, who was familiar with the secrets of the Turks, wrote a letter to Yang Jian, suggesting a policy of distant and close attacks, separating the strong and weak, and dividing and disintegrating the various branches of the Turks. The fact proved that this strategy had a miraculous effect. In the second half of 583 AD, Emperor Wen of Sui appointed Prince Wei Yang Shuang as the marching marshal, dividing his troops into eight routes to attack the Turks, resulting in a great defeat of the Shaboliu Khan. The Turks were defeated, and internal conflicts further intensified, ultimately splitting into the East and West. Due to the confrontation between the East and West Turks, they respectively showed goodwill to the Sui Dynasty. The strategic situation in the late Northern Dynasty was completely reversed. In the year 584 AD, the Shaboliu Khan of the Eastern Turks finally surrendered to the Sui Dynasty. It is said that when the once invincible Shabo Khan knelt down under the coercion and temptation of Changsun Sheng and received the edict from Yang Jian, he felt ashamed and cried bitterly with his ministers for a long time. Not only did he lose face, but it also made them sad. Perhaps it was the passing of the strong Turkic era that solved the worries of the north, and Yang Jian could finally turn his gaze to the Chen Dynasty, which was ruled across the river. According to records in the Book of Sui, since the establishment of the Sui Dynasty, Yang Jian had discussed with his ministers several times the strategy of pacifying Chen, and he was particularly cautious in this regard. 200 years ago, Fu Jian of the Former Qin Dynasty led a million strong army to march south, but was defeated in World War I, causing the Central Plains region to once again fall into chaos among various ethnic regimes. Yang Jian did not want to repeat the same mistake and adopted the more prudent advice of the current prime minister, Gao Ying.
Researcher at the Institute of History of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Lei Wen: Gao Ying suggested that during the harvest season in Jiangnan, a part of the Sui army should be gathered in Jiangbei, presenting an attacking posture and using a bluff to lure the Chen dynasty to station troops for defense, which could delay the agricultural season in Jiangnan. After the Chen army began to gather, the Sui soldiers immediately withdrew from their armor and withdrew their troops. This suggestion has two main purposes: firstly, to destroy the economy of Jiangnan; secondly, to numb the Chen Dynasty and increase the suddenness of future attacks.
But this proposal had a fatal weakness, as it was unable to effectively break down the main army of the Chen Dynasty. In the sixth year of the Kaihuang reign, which was 586 AD, the Governor of Guozhou, Cui Zhongfang, proposed a more specific strategic plan to build warships in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River west of Wuchang, with multiple voices to attract Chen’s attention. He used the lower reaches of the Yangtze River east of Wuchang as the main attack direction for his troops and conspired to cross the river. If Chen’s army reinforced the upper reaches with elite troops, the Sui army east of Wuchang could cross the Yangtze River and directly take Jiankang. If the Chen army downstream did not move, the Sui army upstream could go downstream and cooperate with the downstream army to capture Jiankang. Yang Jian greatly appreciated this plan and fully adopted it. In 587 AD, Yang Jian made exquisite arrangements for the Sui army on the north bank of the Yangtze River, and secretly ordered General Yang Su to build warships in the present-day Fengjie area of Chongqing under the White Emperor’s command. He also instructed the surplus materials from tree cutting and shipbuilding to be thrown downstream of the Yangtze River, exerting psychological pressure on the Chen Dynasty to lure troops westward, thereby diverting attention from the preparation of the Sui army downstream.
In March 588 AD, Emperor Wen of Sui officially issued an edict to overthrow Chen. In order to undermine the hearts of the people in Jiangnan, he had this edict transcribed 300000 copies and quietly distributed them throughout Jiangnan. Even as the war was imminent, the Chen Dynasty was still obsessed with extravagance, singing and dancing. Chen, the Empress Dowager, believed that Jiangnan was a place of royal pride, so there was no need to worry. The ministers also said that the Changjiang Heavenly Trench, isolated from the north and south since ancient times, could the Sui army still fly over? However, the Sui Dynasty in the north did not believe so. Emperor Wen of Sui and his ministers were already well prepared, and the enhancement of northern national strength had already broken the military gap between the north and south. The great integration of various ethnic groups in the north, with sinicization as the mainstream, gradually eliminated the ethnic contradictions of the north-south confrontation. The people yearned for unity, called for unity, and supported unity, all of which made Emperor Wen of Sui full of confidence in unity.
Researcher at the Institute of History of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Huang Zhengjian: Chinese people, including ancient and modern people, have a unified sentiment in their hearts. This sentiment may have existed since the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, or even earlier. He has a concept that there should be only one political power and one country on this land, which is the most common in the world. This concept is deeply ingrained in people’s hearts, so no matter how much you divide, in the end, he will eventually move towards unity.
On the 10th day of November in 588 AD, Emperor Wen of Sui Yang Jian personally went to Dingcheng, 30 miles away from Tongguan, and solemnly swore his oath. Under the command of King Yang Guang of Jin, King Yang Jun of Qin, and Duke Yang Su of Qinghe, 500000 troops marched southward like a flood, dividing into eight routes and rushing out from the gate of Tongguan. This is another large-scale unification war that has officially begun since the Southern Expedition launched by King Fu Jian of Former Qin. However, the history of the Feishui War has not been repeated, and the progress of the war has been smooth, even exceeding the imagination of Emperor Wen of Sui. Han Qinhu and He Ruobi were the two main characters in the Battle of Pingchen. On the first day of the first lunar month in 589 AD, He Ruobi crossed the river from Guangling and quickly captured Jingkou, while Han Qinhu crossed the Yangtze River from Caishi Night. They divided into north and south routes, forming a encirclement against Jiankang. He Ruobi’s army fought hard for two days, defeating the main force of the Chen army. On January 21st, Han Qinhu led his cavalry to take the lead in attacking Jiankang City.
Researcher at the Institute of History of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Lei Wen: When Han Qinhu led a large army to invade the palace, but could not find Empress Chen everywhere, a palace attendant secretly pointed to a dry well behind the Jingyang Hall. The Sui army understood the meaning and hung a rope to pull out Empress Chen. At the same time, besides Empress Chen, there were actually two of his concubines, one was Zhang Lihua and the other was Kong Gui. We can see that in this situation, he did not forget to bring two concubines, indicating that this person is really not suitable for being an emperor. Yang Jian also saw this. Point, so he did not kill Empress Chen, but ordered the Sui army to bring him to Chang’an, bring him back to Chang’an, and bestow a marquis on him, giving him more care in his daily life. Of course, Emperor Wen of Sui did this to appease the people of Jiangnan.
Outside the door, Han captured a tiger, while Zhang Lihua stood at the top of the building. Who pitied the earth, but envied the frog in the well? A thousand years later, Du Mu’s poetry still left a lasting impression. He vividly portrayed the reasons for the downfall of the Chen Dynasty and also expressed the endless sorrow of the last emperor of the Chen Dynasty. After capturing Jiankang, other fronts were also unstoppable. In early February, Lady Xian of Lingnan led her people to surrender to the Sui Dynasty. Since then, the state of Chen has been peaceful, and Yang Jian has finally completed the historical mission of rebuilding unity. This has been a dream that many people have dreamed of for hundreds of years, whether it be Fu Jian of the Former Qin, Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei, Xianbei hero Yuwen Tai, or Emperor Wu of the Zhou dynasty, they have all made tremendous efforts and contributions to achieve this dream. This is also the long-standing aspiration of the Chinese nation, which has experienced over 300 years of great division. The people are full of strong desire for national harmony and national unity. The unification of the Sui Dynasty ended the split situation since the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, and was another unification of great significance in Chinese history. He once again unified the Yellow River, Yangtze River, and the Pearl River basins that gave birth to the Chinese civilization under a single regime, greatly promoting the development process of the Chinese nation’s unified multi-ethnic country. It was a great rejuvenation of the Chinese civilization, and also opened the subsequent 200 years of peace for the Tang Dynasty. However, the unification of the territory was only the first step in rebuilding unity. The mission that awaits Emperor Wen of Sui Yang Jian and the Great Sui Dynasty to complete in the coming years will be even more important. He needs to inject new systems into this vast territory and fundamentally eliminate the factors of national division. This undoubtedly tests the courage and wisdom of this outstanding politician and the entire nation.
90 seconds in history: The Grand Canal
More than 1400 years ago, Emperor Yang Guang of Sui Dynasty used millions of people to develop a canal – the Beijing Hangzhou Grand Canal. The canal spans the five major water systems of the Hai River, Yellow River, Huai River, Yangtze River, and Qiantang River, with a total length of about 2000 kilometers, nearly 10 times longer than the Suez Canal and 20 times longer than the Panama Canal. Surprisingly, the project was completed in just 6 years, and the planning, vision, technological level, and material foundation of the Sui Dynasty reached unprecedented heights. The construction of the Grand Canal was a move to unite China, connecting two civilizations and gradually integrating the Yellow River and Yangtze River basins. It promoted the great integration of the Chinese nation and ushered in the unification of the Tang and Song dynasties. The splendid civilization.
