Zhou Shizong

Chai Rong

Chai Rong

(October 27, 921 - July 27, 959), originally surnamed Chai, later changed to Guo. Yaoshan County, Xingzhou (now Longyao, Hebei Province) people. He was a politician in the Five Dynasties and the second emperor of the Later Zhou Dynasty (from February 26, 954 to July 27, 959).

Chai Rong was born in a famous family in Xingzhou. He was good at riding and shooting since he was young. He had a little knowledge of the history of calligraphy and Huang Lao's skills. He was cautious and honest, so he was adopted by his uncle Guo Wei. In his early years, he sold tea with merchants in Jiangling, and had some experience of the accumulated social evils. In the later Han Dynasty, he went to yedujiu town with Guo Wei and served as Tianxiong's commander. Guangshun first year (951), after the establishment of the Zhou Dynasty, Guo Wei appointed Chai Rong governance Danzhou. He cleaned up the government so that thieves would not break the border. In the third year of Guangshun (953), he became the official of Kaifeng and the king of Jin.

In the first year of Xiande (954), Guo Wei died and Chai Rong became emperor. Chai Rong devoted himself to the great cause of reunification and set up the ambition of "opening up the world in ten years, supporting the people in ten years, and achieving peace in ten years". During his reign, he reorganized the army, eliminated the redundant and weak, appeased the exiles, reduced taxes, revised rites and music, system and criminal law, which made the politics of the Later Zhou dynasty clear and the people rich, and the economy of the Central Plains began to recover. After the defeat of Shu in the west, the four states of Qin, Feng, Cheng and Jie were collected; the Southern Tang Dynasty was destroyed in the south, and the fourteen states of Jiangbei and Huainan were obtained; the Liao kingdom was defeated in the north, and the three states of Lianke were conquered. Historians praised him as "the great master of a generation".

In the sixth year of Xiande (959), Chai Rong suddenly fell ill when he was negotiating to conquer Youzhou. He died shortly after. He was only 39 years old and had been in office for six years. Posthumous title

Emperor ruiwu Xiaowen

, temple name

Shizong

, buried in Qingling.

(photo source: Chai Rong statue of Zhou Shizong painted by Qing Dynasty)

Life of the characters

Early experience

Chai Rong was born in CHAIJIAZHUANG, Yaoshan, Xingzhou (now Longyao County, Xingtai City, Hebei Province) on September 24, 1921 (October 27, 921). His grandfather Chai Weng (whose name is lost) and his father Chai Shouli are all well-known local rich people. Later, because of the decline of his family, Chai Rong, who was not born in Tongguan, went to marry his aunt chai (empress Shengmu).

Chai Rongsheng was sincere and generous. He helped his uncle Guo Wei deal with all kinds of affairs, and was deeply loved by Guo Wei. Chai had no son, so he adopted Chai Rong as his son. At that time, Guo Wei's family was not rich. Chai Rong, as a financial aid, went out to do tea business with Jiedi's family, a wealthy yedU merchant, and traveled to Jiangling and other places. During this period, he studied riding and shooting, and had a little knowledge of history books and Huang laoxue's works. When he came of age, he abandoned business and joined the army with Guo Wei.

Take the throne

In the 12th year of Tianfu (947), after the establishment of the Han Dynasty regime, Guo Wei took zuominggong as the Deputy privy envoy, and Chai Rong was appointed as the general of the left prison guard. In the third year of Qianyou reign (950), Guo Wei was appointed as the garrison, privy envoy, and governor of Tianxiong army in yedU (now northeast Daming of Hebei Province). He gave Chai Rong the post of commander in Tianxiong's teeth, and also led the governor of Guizhou Province and the inspector.

In the winter of the third year of Qianyou (950), Emperor Yin of the later Han Dynasty, suspicious of Guo Wei, killed all his relatives and Chai Rong's relatives who lived in Kaifeng, Kyoto, and tried to send someone to kill Guo Wei. Guo Wei then killed Kaifeng in the name of "Qing emperor's side", and Chai Rong was ordered to stay in yedU and preside over yedU affairs. The next year, after the establishment of the Zhou Dynasty, Chai Rong immediately as a prince, worshipped the governor of Danzhou (now Puyang, Henan Province), the Jiedushi of Zhenning army, the jianxiaotaibao, and became the Marquis of Taiyuan county. During his tenure in Danzhou, Chai Rong was deeply trusted by the officials and the people.

In the first month of the second year of Guangshun (952), Murong Yanchao, the governor of the taining army, rebelled. Chai Rong repeatedly asked the army to take charge of the rebellion, which was praised by Guo Wei. At a time when the war was not favorable, Guo Wei once said to Zai Chen, "if it is not feasible for me, we should make the son of Danzhou (Chai Rong) attack the thief before we do our business." However, due to the interference of Wang Jun, a powerful minister, the matter was stopped. In December, Chai Rong was awarded the title of the censor Taifu and tongzhongshu Xiaping Zhangshi.

In the first month of the third year of Guangshun (953), Chai Rong entered the pilgrimage, but because of Wang Jun's slander, he immediately returned to the town. In March of the same year, Chai Rong was granted the title of king of Jin and was incorporated into the court as Yin and Gongde envoy of Kaifeng Prefecture.

In the first month of the first year of Xiande (954), Guo Wei was seriously ill, and Chai Rong was awarded the title of Kaifu Yi, the third division of Kaifu Yi, the chief inspector, and the assistant middle school. On the 17th of the same month, Guo Wei died, and his courtiers did not mourn. On the 21st (February 26), Chai Rong took the throne of Emperor Zhou Shizong in front of the coffin according to the imperial edict.

Decisive battle Gao Ping

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< sub > battle of Gaoping

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< sub > the battle of attacking Jinyang in the northern Han Dynasty in the late Zhou Dynasty

In February of the first year of Xiande (954), Liu Chong, the founder of the northern Han Dynasty, led 30000 troops and attracted more than 10000 cavalry from Liao state to invade Luzhou.

After hearing the public opinion, Chai Lirong was determined to fight for it. He led the army to advance quickly, and encountered the northern Han Army in bagongyuan (now the town of Bagong in Jincheng, Shanxi Province) to the south of Gaoping, Zezhou. When the war started, fan Aineng and he Huibu of the right army did not fight and ran away. In the dangerous time, Chai Rong was not afraid of the stone, risked his life to supervise the battle, defeated the northern Han Dynasty, and killed Zhang Yuanhui. The Liao army on the sidelines retreated. At dusk, he Yang Jiedu envoy Liu CI led the rear army to arrive. Chai Rong joined forces with him to break through the northern Han Dynasty and pursue Gaoping. Liu Chong abandoned a lot of luggage and fled North in a hurry.

The battle of Gaoping consolidated Chai Rong's position. After the war, in order to straighten up military discipline, he killed more than 70 fleeing officers and soldiers, such as fan Aineng and he Hui, and rewarded Li Chongjin, Zhang Yongde and Zhao Kuangyin who had made great contributions to the war.

In May, Chai Rong took advantage of the victory to encircle Taiyuan, the capital of the northern Han Dynasty. However, due to the lack of food and pay, and the continuous rain and rain, the soldiers were too sick to conquer it. In Xinkou, however, the troops who blocked the Liao army were disadvantageous. General Shi Yanchao died bravely and his morale was greatly reduced. In June, Chai Rong ordered his class teacher.

arouse one 's all efforts to make the country prosperous

At the beginning of Chai Rong's accession to the throne, he was young, energetic and ambitious. He was determined to follow his adoptive father's will and do a great job. He once asked Wang Pu, the doctor of Zuo Jianyi, who was a good researcher of the number of skills: "how many years will I be Wang Pu replied: "I'm a humble official. I'm always trying to infer from what I've learned. After 30 years, I don't know what I've learned." After hearing this, Chai Rong was very happy and said, "if you say so, I should take ten years to open up the world, ten years to support the people, and ten years to achieve peace." In order to achieve this goal, Chai Rong worked hard and was determined to reform.

In October of the first year of Xiande (954), Chai Rong learned the lesson that the Zhou army would not have to fight in the battle of Gaoping. He ordered Zhao Kuangyin to recruit all the world's strong men to "select the best ones as the front classes" and reorganize the forbidden army into an army that was powerful in neighboring countries.

In March of the second year of Xiande (955), Chai Rongxian sent soldiers and civil servants to dredge the Hulu River between Shenzhou and Jizhou, and built a fortress in liyankou with the Hulu River between them. In April, he ordered more than 20 officials to write one song for Chai Rong. He also adopted Wang Pu's suggestion that "the way to attack is to start with those who change", and formulated the strategy of "south first and then north".

After the defeat of Western Sichuan

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< sub > the battle of Houzhou attacking houshu

In the second year of Xiande (955), Chai Rong sent Xiang Xun (Xiang Gong) and Wang Jing to lead the army to the west to conquer the four states of Qin, Feng, Cheng and Jie.

In July, Xiang Xun and others were blocked in Fengzhou, and the war was in a stalemate. However, the supply of military supplies for the western expedition division was not continued, so the prime minister insisted on asking for a strike. Chai Rong sent Zhao Kuangyin as a special envoy to the front line of Qinzhou to inspect the war situation. After Zhao Kuangyin returned, he thought that he would win, which strengthened Chai Rong's ambition to attack.

In September, after the Zhou army broke down Shu, Qin, Cheng and Jie were attached to the state one after another. In November, Fengzhou was conquered and the four states were restored.

Three expeditions to the Southern Tang Dynasty

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< sub > battle of Huainan

In November of the second year of Xiande (955), Chai Rong prepared to fight for the Southern Tang Dynasty. He first sent 12 generals, including Han Lingkun, the commander of Li Gu. At the same time, he issued an imperial edict to ask Qian hongchu, king of Wu and Yue, to send troops to Changzhou to contain the military power of the Southern Tang Dynasty. In the following year, because he did not agree with Li Gu's prudent strategy, he ordered Li Chongjin to be the commander of Huainan Daoxing camp, led Zhao Kuangyin and others to take the initiative to win the battle of Zhengyang (now the southwest of Yingshang in Anhui Province), and sent troops to attack Chu (now Chuxian in Anhui Province), Yang (now Yangzhou in Jiangsu Province), Tai (now Jiangsu Province), Guang (now Huangchuan in Henan Province) and Shu (now Qianshan in Anhui Province) in the Southern Tang Dynasty. Later, due to the rainy season, Li Zhong continued to besiege Shouzhou (now Shouxian County, Anhui Province), while his head teacher returned to Beijing. In May, Chai Rong recruited craftsmen to "build hundreds of warships on the side of bianshui in the west of Daliang City, and ordered Tang JIANGZU to teach northerners to fight in the water.". A few months later, the soldiers of Tang Dynasty appeared and disappeared.

In February of the fourth year of Xiande (957), because of the arrival of the reinforcements of the Southern Tang Dynasty and the disadvantage of the Zhou army, Chai Rong made another southward expedition. He defeated the reinforcements of the Southern Tang Dynasty in Zijin Mountain stronghold, destroyed 40000 people of the Tang army, and seized hundreds of ships and many money, silk and equipment. In March, Shouzhou ran out of ammunition and food and surrendered to the Zhou army. Chai Rong then returned to Beijing from CAI. In November, Chai Rong led his troops to the Southern Tang Dynasty for the third time, attacking Haozhou (now the northwest of Fengyang in Anhui Province), defeating the Tang army in Wukou. In one go, sweep east along the Huaicheng gate, invincible. In December, the general of Sizhou (now Southeast of Huisi County in Anhui Province) surrendered. Chai Rong personally led the army of water and land to the East. He got more than 300 ships from the Tang army, and hundreds of ships from the Zhou army. They all went to Haozhou, Lianshui, Bozhou and other places.

In the first month of the fifth year of Xiande (958), Chai Rong led his army to conquer Chuzhou (now Huai'an, Jiangsu Province). In February, it broke Yangzhou again and continued to expand its achievements. March, before

Chinese PinYin : Zhou Shi Zong