Characters of the Three Kingdoms, and detailed introduction to the content

Introduction to the history of the Three Kingdoms:

The Three Kingdoms is a historical period in China. At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Cao Cao unified northern China and actually controlled the political power of the Eastern Han Dynasty with the position of prime minister. He obtained the title of "King of Wei" and added Jiuxi. In 220, Cao Cao died of illness, and his son Cao Pi succeeded him. In the same year, he forced Liu Xie, the last emperor of the Eastern Han Dynasty, to abdicate the throne to him, and established the Cao family's regime. The country was named "Wei" and the history was called "Cao Wei". At this point, the Eastern Han Dynasty regime was officially The Three Kingdoms era officially began. In 221, Liu Bei, who was based in Yizhou, proclaimed himself emperor. His country was named "Han" and was known as "Shu Han" in history. In the same year, Sun Quan, who had separated Yangzhou, Jingzhou, Jiaozhou and other places, accepted the canonization of the Cao Wei regime and began to be called "King of Wu". In 229, he officially proclaimed himself emperor and founded the country. The country was named "Wu" and was known as "Soochow" in history. After the Sima family, which had de facto controlled the Cao Wei regime, annexed the Shu Han in 263, Sima Yan deposed Emperor Yuan of Wei and established himself in 265. The country was named "Jin" and was known as the "Western Jin" in history. The Western Jin Dynasty conquered the Sun Wu regime in the south of the Yangtze River in 280 and formally unified China, thus ending the Three Kingdoms era.

Overview of the History of the Three Kingdoms

Since Emperor Zhang of the Han Dynasty, the Eastern Han Dynasty government has been in a power struggle between the eunuch group and the foreign relatives group. The struggle between the two groups formed a unique political situation in the Eastern Han Dynasty. ; Every transfer of power was accompanied by large-scale killings, which seriously weakened the power of the Eastern Han Empire.

In 184 AD, a peasant uprising of unprecedented scale broke out in China, led by the three Zhang Jiao brothers. In order to suppress the Yellow Turban Uprising, the Eastern Han Dynasty government delegated power to Zhou Mu and the prefect, while acquiescing to the Support the landlord class in organizing private armed forces to fight against the rebels. After nearly a year of fighting, the Yellow Turban Army was basically suppressed. However, after the Yellow Turban Uprising, the Eastern Han Dynasty government was already on the verge of collapse. In addition, power was decentralized to the state and county levels and the landlord class was allowed to have private armed forces. Herdsmen and prefects in various states supported their own troops, and local tyrants formed in order to benefit the common people. With the common interests and the selection of highly respected or capable people as commander-in-chief, the Eastern Han Dynasty regime has ceased to exist in name only.

In 189 AD, Emperor Ling died and Liu Bian ascended the throne; eunuchs and relatives started a new round of power struggle. In order to achieve a decisive victory in the power struggle, He Jin listened to Yuan Shao's suggestion and recruited powerful generals and heroes from all over the world. He led his troops into Beijing, causing Dong Zhuo's political chaos; local forces recruited troops and horses under the pretext of attacking Dong Zhuo. Later Wang Yun planned to kill Dong Zhuo. It's officially here.

In 196 AD, Cao Cao, who was entrenched in Gunzhou, defeated Lu Bu, listened to the opinions of his subordinates, promoted farming, and welcomed Emperor Xian to the west, gaining an unparalleled political advantage. Later, he defeated Liu Bei, Yuan Shu, Lu Bu, etc., and occupied Gun, Sili, and parts of Xuzhou and Qingzhou; Yuan Shao of Hebei also conquered Yijing, completely eliminated the warlord Gongsun Zan, and occupied most of Yizhou, Youzhou, Bingzhou, and Qingzhou, becoming the largest separatist force; Sun Ce of Jiangdong successively Defeated Xu Gong, Wang Lang and others, occupied Kuaiji, Danyang, Wujun and other places, and established a firm position in Jiangdong. Liu Biao of Jingzhou, Liu Yan of Yizhou, and Liu Zhang and his son also became strong contenders among the warlords.

In 200 AD, Yuan Shao selected 100,000 elite infantry and more than 10,000 cavalry, and went south to compete with his teenage friend Cao Cao. Cao Cao successively killed Yuan Shaoyong's generals Yan Liang and Wen Chou and then restricted his troops to Guandu; Yuan Shao could not tear them apart on the frontal battlefield. Cao Cao's defense line simultaneously launched a second battlefield in Qingzhou, Bingzhou and Runan behind Cao Cao, and Cao Cao took corresponding measures to dismantle them one by one. Later, Cao Cao set fire to the rations and other military supplies that Yuan Shao had stationed in Wuchao. Yuan Shao's generals Zhang He and Gao Lan surrendered to Cao Cao. Yuan's army lost all morale. Cao Cao took the opportunity to launch a major counterattack, killing more than 10,000 people and capturing more than 70,000 prisoners. Afterwards, Yuan Shao failed to recover, and his two sons fought for the throne. Cao Cao took advantage of it. In 207 AD, Cao Cao went on an expedition to Karasuma, unexpectedly won a great victory, pacified the north, and became the most powerful warlord in one fell swoop. Jiangdong Sun Ce prepared to sneak attack Xuchang during the decisive battle between Cao Cao and Yuan Shao. Unexpectedly, he was assassinated by an assassin while he was intensifying his planning. He died of serious injuries. His younger brother Sun Quan came to the throne and intensified the development of the south.

In 208 AD, Liu Biao, the shepherd of Jingzhou, died of illness. His youngest son Liu Cong became the herdsman of Jingzhou with the support of the local powerful brothers Kuai Liang, Kuai Yue brothers and uncle Cai Mao; Liu Bei and Jiangdong Sun Quan, who lived in Liu Biao, also He stepped up his efforts to seize Jingzhou; after Cao Cao learned that Liu Biao was dead, he immediately led 5,000 elite cavalry, lightly equipped and equipped, and marched day and night south to seize Jingzhou; and defeated Liu Bei who fled south at Changban; Liu Cong surrendered, and Cao Cao captured most of Jingzhou. . In order to fight against Cao Cao, Sun Quan and Liu Bei joined forces to deal with Cao Cao. In November 208, Cao Cao led an army of 140,000 to 50,000 people, marching by land and water, marched into Chibi, and confronted the Sun and Liu coalition forces. Zhou Yu used Huang Gai's plan to burn Cao Cao's serial ships. In addition, Cao Cao's army was not acclimated to the acclimatization and returned with a great defeat. All the naval forces surrendered in Jingzhou died or surrendered. Cao Cao lost his navy and part of his direct troops, and his rapid rise was severely hit, and he devoted himself to the north from then on. Later in the Battle of Chibi, Zhou Yu and Cao Ren fought fiercely for Nanjun. Liu Bei took the opportunity to seize the four southern counties of Jingzhou, and sent Guan Yu north to attack Xiangyang, but was defeated by the defender Le Jin. After a year of fighting, Cao Ren had to be ordered to withdraw to Xiangyang. , completely losing the southward stronghold; at the same time, Sun Quan's attack from the direction of Hefei was also defeated by Cao Jun.

In 211 AD, Liu Bei listened to the advice of his advisers Pang Tong and Zhuge Liang and left Guan Yu to guard Jingzhou. He led his army under the pretext of resisting Zhang Lu and entered Sichuan to capture Yizhou. After three years of fighting, he finally captured Yizhou. . From then on, the situation of the Three Kingdoms basically took shape.

In 214 AD, Cao Cao used the pretext of attacking Zhang Lu and provoked Ma Chao, Han Sui and others from the separatist forces in Guanzhong to openly rebel; Cao Cao took the opportunity to eliminate the forces in Guanzhong and captured Zhang Lu in Hanzhong; Liu Bei feared that Cao Cao would take the opportunity to attack Chengdu immediately retreated towards Sun Quan. In 218 AD, after Liu Bei captured Sanba, he personally led the main force north to fight for Hanzhong and killed Xia Houyuan, the Hanzhong defender. Cao Cao had to go to the front line of Hanzhong to command the battle in person. He was unable to save the defeat and had to withdraw from Hanzhong and lost the benefit of his advance. At the stronghold of the continent, the forces of the three countries reached a balance, and a tripartite situation officially emerged.

In 219 AD, Guan Yu, inspired by Liu Bei's victory in capturing Hanzhong, sent troops to attack Xiangyang. When a flash flood broke out, the water flooded Cao's army. He supervised 7 reinforcements in the forbidden area and surrounded Xiangyang and Fancheng. Cao Cao immediately sent Xu Huang He led the army to rescue Cao Ren and formed a short-term alliance with Sun Quan. Xu Huang defeated Guan Yu outside Xiangyang City. Sun Quan used Lu Meng as the commander-in-chief to sneak attack Nanjun, and used political means to consolidate his rule in Jingzhou, and captured Guan Yu who tried to escape; he was completely destroyed. Liu Bei's strategy of using Nanjun as a stronghold to go north to capture Xiangyang and take the opportunity to march into the Central Plains.

In 220 AD, Cao Cao died of illness, and Cao Pi ascended the throne. In the same year, he was proclaimed emperor, and his country was named Wei; in 221 AD, Liu Bei was proclaimed emperor, and his country was named Han; in 229 AD, Sun Quan ascended the throne and was proclaimed emperor, and his country was named Wu; the Three Kingdoms Officially appeared.

In 222 AD, Liu Bei sent generals Wu Ban and Chen Shi to supervise the navy into the Yiling area and lock the east and west banks of the river; he led the main force of infantry to prepare to recapture Nanjun. Sun Quan failed to seek peace, so he appointed Lu Xun as the commander-in-chief. He led an army of 50,000 and marched across Yiling to block Liu Bei's army and take advantage of Liu Bei's long-term supply line advantage. Liu Bei failed to seek a war, and his morale was declining. Coupled with the hot weather, he relaxed his guard. Lu Xun took advantage of this. When the situation was favorable, he first sent Zhu Ran to lead the main force of the navy to cut off Liu Jun's return route, and then burned the company camp to defeat Liu Bei. After this battle, Liu Bei's vitality was greatly damaged, he lost the capital to fight for the world, and he himself died in Baidi City.

In 229 AD, Zhuge Liang, the prime minister of the Shu Han Dynasty, took advantage of the death of Emperor Wen of Wei Cao Pi and left Hanzhong to attack Cao Wei in the north. He sent Zhao Yun as a partial army and threatened to attack Chang'an from Xiegu to attract the main force of Cao Wei. He personally led an army of 70,000 to 80,000 people. , starting from Qishan, preparing to capture Guanxi. Cao Rui came to Chang'an in person and sent General Cao Zhen to lead an army of 100,000 to stop Zhao Yun. At the same time, he sent the famous general Zhang He who was stationed in Guanzhong to lead 50,000 elite troops to rescue Qishan day and night. Zhang He defeated the Shu Han pioneer Ma Su in Jieting. Zhuge Liang lost Jieting and was dominated by Zhang He. He had no choice but to retreat. The Later Shu Han sent troops many times, but was restrained by opponents Zhang He and Sima Yi. Due to insufficient supplies, they had to retreat. In 234 AD, Zhuge Liang made his last Northern Expedition and faced Sima Yi at Wuzhangyuan; Sima Yi could not hold on; in August, Zhuge Liang died of illness and the Shu Han army withdrew.

In 241 AD, Sima Yi launched a coup and eliminated the power of Cao Wei's clan member Cao Shuang in one fell swoop; in 255 and 257 AD, Sima Shi and Sima Zhao pacified the remaining parties of Cao Wei respectively, establishing the foundation of the Western Jin Dynasty.

In 263 AD, Cao Wei led an army of 180,000 soldiers led by Zhong Hui, Guo Huai, and Zhugexu to attack Shu Han. Deng Ai led more than 30,000 troops from Didao to Gansong and Tazhong to attack Jiang Wei who was stationed here; Zhuge Xu led more than 30,000 troops from Qishan to Wujie and the bridgehead of Yinping, cutting off Jiang Wei's retreat; Zhong Hui led his main force of more than 100,000 people to march into Hanzhong from Xiegu, Luogu, and Ziwugu. After taking Hanzhong, he faced Jiang Wei at Jiange. Deng Ai's surprise troops went through hardships on the Yinping path and suddenly appeared near Chengdu. Zhuge Liang's son Zhuge Zhan died in the battle, and his successor Adou surrendered; the Shu Han Dynasty was destroyed.

In 265 AD, Sima Yan deposed Cao Huan and proclaimed himself emperor, changing the country's name to Jin.

In December 279 AD, Sima Yi stationed himself in Dipi and moved toward Tuzhong, Wang Hun left Jiangxi, Wang Rong attacked Wuchang, Hu Fen attacked Xiakou, and Du Yu left

Based in Xiangyang and marching to Jiangling, Wang Jun and Tang Bin led the soldiers of Bashu to float down the river and attack Soochow in a large scale. In 280 AD, Wang Hun defeated the main force of Eastern Wu Prime Minister Zhang Ti in Sanshan. Soon, Wu Lord Sun Hao surrendered; the Western Jin Dynasty unified the country and the Three Kingdoms officially came to an end.

Huang Renyu: The situation of long-term division

After the collapse of the Han Empire, China fell into a bleak and hopeless period of long-term turmoil. The social unrest caused by powerful mergers

has not yet been resolved; a series of intensified political struggles have even led to continuous wars and barbarian invasions,

which has completely destroyed social order. collapse. As a result, "Wubao" local self-defense organizations were established one after another, and China seemed to be entering another new form of the Warring States Period.

Chinese historians believe that from the fall of the Han Dynasty in 220 AD to the rise of the Sui Dynasty in 581 AD, it was a long period of chaos

and disappointment. From some perspectives, this is indeed true. We can even say that this is equivalent to 10 times the disaster caused to Germany by the Thirty Years' War. The population in many places in northern China has declined; the ancient five-baht coin has been in circulation since the late Zhou Dynasty, and became more common in the Han Dynasty. After the division of the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, it was used in many places< /p>

As a result, it became extinct.

Since there is no effective central government, whenever there is a famine, the people have no way to appeal, and the painful situation is self-evident.

During this period, there was a severe drought in 309 AD, and large rivers could be crossed on foot; and there was an epidemic in 369 AD, which killed people in vast areas on the north bank of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River.

A new form of the Warring States Period

However, it is incorrect to call this period the "Dark Age". Although the wars were intermittent during this long period, there were few large-scale conquests and decisive battles.

If this is not the case, future unification will also have to take different steps. Obviously, the split situation in the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties was completely different from that in the Warring States Period. After four and a half centuries of imperial political control, China was very different from the situation of most of the competing kingdoms that emerged after the dissolution of the feudal system. The wide distribution of the gentry class also made general mobilization difficult. Judging from records, most of the soldiers in the army during this split were recruited.

Ethnic minorities appear early in unrest, adding to the complexity of the situation. Traditionally called the "Five Husty Chinese",

in fact, these ethnic minorities include Tibetans and ethnic groups of the Altai language family (AltaiC), the latter including the original Mongols

and the early Turks Linguistic race. However, in most of the scenes, even experts cannot conclude that the ethnic and linguistic groups are correct, let alone the mixed troops among them. They and some Han adventurers established 16 kingdoms in North China from 304 AD to 439 AD, some of which overlapped in a short period of time, and some of which fell one after another. At the beginning

. Since they are called "barbarians, Rongdi", they must be destructive. Once they had properly arranged the dynasty they created, they also built Confucius Temples and Imperial Colleges, began to pay attention to cultural relics, and promoted mulberry farming. Two of the invading ethnic groups actually started to build the Great Wall

to prevent other nomadic peoples from following their way and disturbing their new kingdoms. This shows that they have changed

The degree of change is profound.

In the later period of this split, the country established by the Sinicized Hu people in the north and the "government-in-exile" of the Han people in the south of the Yangtze River

were engaged in tug-of-war from time to time, with each winning or losing. However, there were commercial exchanges, and envoys from the north and the south also visited each other. However

No one has ever suggested that this divided situation should be taken for granted. If it is allowed to exist, each small kingdom should maintain

the territory it can currently control. In the south or in the north. The principles for organizing government are still political philosophy, not geopolitics. The internal culture of this vast area called "China" is so homogeneous that no other logic, or even appropriate national boundaries, can support the situation of division. Only the concept of world unity can ideologically unite the civil service group. This trend can be seen in the documents of that day.

In the late Han Dynasty, Cao Cao attempted to rebuild a strong central government. His success was only as great as that of Wei. He tried again to attack the south

but failed miserably, and none of his descendants succeeded. The whole story may be of interest to today's tourists

and historians , because there is a geopolitical key to it.

The Three Kingdoms Period

The Shu Han Dynasty at that time used today's Sichuan and adjacent areas as its territory. Because it has sufficient manpower and resources to support a long-term war, it has the status of another country within the country. Although it spans a wide area, it is still surrounded by appropriate mountains and rivers as barriers. In recent years, many tourists have seen the Three Gorges of the Yangtze River in its east. In fact, tourists traveling to Jiangxi from the lower reaches may take a lot of time but leave a deeper impression. The cliffs on both sides of the bank have fallen vertically into the water, and the next section of scenery

is originally unique. After a period of delay, the more unexpected and unexpected the unfolding, the more interesting it is.

Taste. Not only during the civil war in the third century AD mentioned below, no one dared to invade the Three Gorges. Even during the Second World War, the Japanese army was approaching the east of the canyon and felt helpless.

Besides Wei and Shu, the third country is Wu, located in the water town. Wu State not only had a navy, but also fortified cities along the Yangtze River. Today's Nanjing (formerly known as Jiankang and Jinling) was founded by Wu. When it was founded, the city was located on the waterfront.

The stone walls along the coast formed an integral part of the city wall, which served as a strong defense in wartime. It is said that part of this stone wall can still be seen in the city today, but because the Yangtze River changed its course, this trace is now quite far away from the riverside.

In the 3rd century AD, the three kingdoms of Wei, Shu and Wu had been in a long-term confrontation. Among them, Wei is better at cavalry and seems to have the advantage. As of 263 AD, half a century after Cao Cao first conquered Wu and Shu, Wei general Sima Zhao finally broke the deadlock. They marched wherever they went and used a surprise attack to highlight the back gate of Shu Han. Once the plan is done, clean up the mess.

It just means taking care of the affairs of the world.

However, when he died the next year, his son Sima Yan copied the Cao family's methods and advocated that the destiny of heaven had been transferred from the Cao family

to the Sima family. He established the Jin Dynasty in 265 AD and asked the last emperor of Cao Wei to abdicate. Zha, everything is just like the previous Cao Wei Dynasty forcing the Liu family of the Han Dynasty to abdicate. This ritual, symbolizing the transfer of destiny, was also imitated by the next four short-lived dynasties (Song, Qi, Liang, and Chen) during the period of division.

Short-lived unification

The Jin Empire's conquest of Wu was implemented with a long-term plan. First of all, the military garrison was used to ensure sufficient food; its manufacturing

ships also took 7 years in the Shu territory. Commander-in-chief Wang Jun was always known for his boldness in doing things. When all preparations were completed,

< p>He was 70 years old, and the large ship he built was said to be 600 feet long and capable of carrying two thousand soldiers and horses. The State of Wu did not take things lightly. They built obstacles in the water and tied iron cables across the narrow places in the river. Wang Jun used large bamboo rafts to clear obstacles; for the iron cables across the river, he made 100-foot-long torches, tied with dry branches and easily flammable materials, and sprinkled with sesame oil.

< p>It is said that the high heat caused the iron rope to melt. Once this obstacle was removed, Wang Jun's ship sailed down the river and was surrendered by Wu in Nanjing in 280 AD.

The above deeds can be seen in the official history, and we can neither prove nor deny their legendary elements.

But because of these deeds, we can also observe some major changes. The Jin Dynasty of the Sima family was legitimated by abdication.

It was the only dynasty in these three and a half centuries that once eliminated all competing enemy countries. When it captured Nanjing in 280 AD, it seemed to have reestablished a unified empire. However, only 10 years later, new developments in the north shocked its dreams. break. In 291 AD, a family conflict in the Sima royal family involved various regions due to the relationship between the princes. As the civil war began, ethnic minorities within the Great Wall also took the opportunity to revolt. In 317 AD, the two capitals of Xi'an and Luoyang were plundered one after another. A Jin prince stationed in Nanjing proclaimed himself emperor at this juncture to maintain the name of the dynasty, but since then

Later, apart from controlling the south of the Yangtze River, he and his successors had few opportunities to set foot in other areas. In 383 AD,

the weak army of the exile government unexpectedly defeated the overwhelmingly superior Northern Alliance Army

led by the former Qin leader Fu Jian (Battle of Feishui) . But even so, the Eastern Jin Dynasty was still unable to carry out the Northern Expedition and could only maintain half of the country in the south. The same was true for the four short-lived dynasties that followed. They all claimed to rule the country, but in fact they only occupied < /p>

South China is waiting for the rise of the Sui Dynasty, the second empire.

When we review the history of this period, we find that there are many romantic deeds and little logic. Many

outstanding men and women have left their names in history because of their virtuous and foolish deeds, but it is difficult for us to comprehensively interpret their

actual significance.

Reinterpretation of the Eight Kings Rebellion

This history can be narrated from the fall of the Han Dynasty. The reasons were once traced to the rise of eunuchs, the riots of the Yellow Turban rebels, and the undisciplined border troops who were called into the capital. However, in fact, when the full-scale civil war began, the eunuchs had been purged, and Huang

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The bandits have been wiped out, and the border troops are no longer a problem. The same situation was true in the Jin Dynasty. The initial problem was caused by Queen Jia, who was said to be vicious and vain. Some historians even said she was dark and ugly. Because

she was fighting for power with the empress dowager and wanted to depose the prince (who was not born to empress Jia), which aroused the interference of the royal kings. It was the custom of the Jin Dynasty that each prince called himself a king, served as a courtier inside, and held military talismans outside. However, when the dispute spread to various regions, the queen had been killed, and all previous grievances had been redressed. However, the war was still in the ascendant, and hundreds of thousands of officers and soldiers were involved in the war. It was difficult to continue

Calling it the result of disputes in the palace, and thinking that the blame lies with women's vanity and jealousy.

Modern scholars quote the term "Key Economic Areas" in an attempt to provide a more in-depth explanation of the long-term

separation situation. They believe that several large grain-producing regions have deep internal exchanges and require little contact with the outside world. As a result, local governments gradually break away from the control of the central government. This argument has its

advantages. Judging from Cao Cao's inability to conquer the two countries in the south, and the fact that he was able to repel the invading enemy forces in the battle with the Eastern Jin Dynasty at Feishui, it seems that the economic hub area is indeed a thing. However, this is inconsistent with the once unified situation of the Jin Dynasty

. Even if there are geopolitical factors that hinder reunification, they can still be overcome through military action.

The subsequent civil war in the Jin Dynasty made this statement even more inappropriate. At that time, all the places affected by the war were near the capital, and the south should be beyond reach, but now it was peaceful.

In the absence of a better explanation, we have to reconsider the traditional theory of annexation. Land ownership has indeed had a profound impact on Chinese history.

The majority of small landowners serve as the basis for soldiers to pay taxes. Not to mention the fairness factor, they indeed lay a simple and uniform foundation in Chinese villages, which is convenient for bureaucratic organizations. p>

control. At that time, the Han Dynasty advocated filial piety and integrity (not only the integrity of officials, but also the modesty of property when dealing with people). It is obvious that the court relied on cultural and educational cohesion and had no intention of promoting managerial integrity. complicated. This organization and

structure is easily destroyed by land concentration. Readers must realize at this time that it is extremely difficult to conceal the number of households that are subject to tax in rural areas, but the number of acres of land and population within a household, including hired and slave laborers, can be entered and exited. If

the number of households actually decreases, tax revenue will inevitably decrease accordingly. In the future, the services that the government can provide, such as poverty relief, local self-defense, water conservancy, etc., will also be reduced. Moreover, the expansion of the power of local gentry will also affect the character of local government.

In the system of autocratic government, the imperial power flows from top to bottom and is unanimous throughout the country. If the local gentry begins to make their own decisions, it will have a revisionary nature. From what has been said above, it can be seen that Lingyi, the local government of the Later Han Dynasty, has experienced various unstable situations

.

When the Cao family replaced the Han Dynasty and the Sima family replaced the Wei Dynasty, the crisis of immediate collapse was temporarily passed safely,

But the basic reason has not been eliminated. The unstable situation on that day can be seen from various edicts: the famous "Wei Wu

Three Edicts" (issued when Cao Cao was Prime Minister) sought talents, which said that talented people did not have to have Virtue, as long as you have the skills to govern the country and use troops

, even if you are unkind and unfilial, you should still use it (local gentry usually consider themselves benevolent and righteous). The Jin Dynasty promulgated land occupation laws in an attempt to limit the amount of land each family could own. Both plans are attempts to break away from the shackles of the gentry. However, when Wei left and Jin came,

neither party achieved the goal of rebuilding the centralized system. The apparent calm in North China that day was entirely due to the temporary suppression of the powerful

entrepreneurial masters. It was only possible to maintain the status quo for a while. As soon as they were out of office, a slight dispute in the palace would cause various uncontrollable factors in the local area to take the opportunity to take advantage of it. The prince's title of king expanded the matter to the point of armed conflict

It lasted for 16 years (AD 291-306) and spread across various states. Their operations were disorderly, their lineups were chaotic, and they had no precise goals

All of which showed that the social organization had completely collapsed on a large scale.

The futility of cultural integration caused the chaos in China

In the latter part of these 16 years, there was the investment of the so-called barbarians, Rongdi, and this also requires an explanation. The first person to participate was Liu Yuan, who was of mixed Han and Huns descent. In 304 AD, he launched an uprising within the Great Wall, gathering 50,000 people within 20 days. Liu Yuan once served as the chief governor of the five tribes of the Jin Dynasty (the Xiongnu had five tribes), that is, he was ordered to supervise the Huns. This background made it easy for him to summon the Hun tribes on the defense line, and some Hun soldiers and horses had already been integrated into the border army. Other members of other ethnic groups, including Han tenant farmers and slave laborers, Shi Le, who became emperor 12 years after Liu Yuan, was sold into slavery when he was young. The entire nomadic tribe began to invade at this time. However, taken together, it is still the Han Dynasty system that focused on cultural integration in place of a powerful government. The disintegration of this system caused the melee in which ethnic minorities participated. To say

that the barbarians took the initiative and invaded China is contrary to the facts.

However, what ethnic minorities are good at is cavalry tactics, which had a serious impact during the civil war. When harassment became widespread

, villages organized self-defense forces and built dock walls to protect themselves. This practice had begun during the Yellow Turban Rebellion, and by the 4th century AD, it had formed a A common phenomenon in North China. Around AD 350, there were more than 300 fortified villages in the north of Shanxi, including "Hu and Jin" populations with more than 100,000 households. Around AD 400, there were 3,000 fortresses in Guanzhong. They recommended Dai Tongzhu and led them to form an alliance. The basic organization at the lower level may only have a few villages, but a large unit can include 100,000 households, including a mixed population of Hu and Han people. The powerful clans are the backbone of this kind of local self-defense organization. They have elite soldiers, and they obviously have the aristocratic style. If this trend is allowed to develop, a new type of feudalism may emerge in China, and the history of China in the next few hundred years may be similar to the ancient history of Japan. Just implementing mobile tactics in a vast area, and involving large forces in the battle, eventually caused the situation to develop in a different direction.

During this period, major battles usually involved more than 250,000 people, and the ratio of infantry to cavalry was no less than 3 to

l. Because of the need for personnel, the short-lived dynasty under the rule of the Hu people often invaded the self-defense groups organized by local gentry:

either sent supervisors to obtain their administrative power, or ordered their leaders to extort personnel and supplies. Both methods infringe upon their local autonomy rights in the same way.

As a result, China reached its lowest point in history in the 4th and 5th centuries AD. The royal family's emphasis on self-restraint and humility to others has been unable to be implemented at this point.

Another source is local autonomy, which is based on assets.

The landlord authority controlled by the gentry is rationalized into the manorial system (manorialism), but this way out has also been blocked.

And when the small court sent supervisors to various units that were allied with each other, they did not reorganize their lower-level organizations, so the small

owner farmers were the main body to facilitate the rule of the bureaucratic organization. Centralization of power cannot be restored. At that time, people were disappointed. I had to

match the "Five Hus" with a "Sixteen Kingdoms" to emphasize its negative factors. Little did I know that the broken mirror could eventually be reunited. With time

China's broken empire It can still be restored to its original state and carried forward, but it will take a long time.