Although ancient emperors often said that "princes break the law and the common people are guilty of the same crime", they often face difficulties when executing relatives who have committed capital crimes, even if they have to kill, they are mostly given to commit suicide, but if the emperor's relatives refuse to commit suicide, then it can only be done by the emperor himself. However, when Emperor Wen of Han was faced with this situation, he came up with a way to force his uncle Bo Zhao to commit suicide by crying and dying. What's going on here?
Bo Zhao, the only younger brother of Empress Bo (a concubine of Liu Bang of Han Gaozu) and the uncle of Emperor Wen of Han, Liu Heng, followed his sister and nephew to daiguo when Liu Heng had just been crowned acting king. The historical facts of Liu Heng's reign as a daiwang are not recorded in the main history, and Bo Zhao's deeds are naturally lost, but according to reasonable speculation, he should have done his best to assist his nephew in the daiwang palace and won his trust.
Empress Bo was a concubine of Emperor Gaozu of Han and the mother of Emperor Wen of Han
In the eighth year of Gao's reign (180 BC), Empress Dowager Lü, who had been in power for many years, died, and the chancellor Chen Ping and The Eunuch Zhou Bo immediately launched a coup d'état, deposing the young emperor Liu Hong after killing Zhu Lü and installing Liu Heng as emperor. Because Liu Heng did not know the true intentions of Chen Ping and Zhou Bo, he sent Bo Zhao to Beijing to investigate the situation, and after confirming that there was no danger, he entered Chang'an in the same year and officially ascended the throne as emperor, in order to be Emperor Wen of Han.
After Emperor Wen ascended the throne, he honored his mother Bo Ji as empress dowager. Emperor Wen considered that he only had one uncle, and Bo Zhao had risked his life to "explore the way" for himself, and his merits were not insignificant, so he was particularly close and kind to him, not only named him a che riding general and a marquis, but also repeatedly gave him property, thus making Bo Zhao extremely rich.
Most of the courtiers were the masters of the inflamed vassals, and now seeing that Bo Zhao was favored by the emperor, they came to him one after another, and even the chancellor Zhou Bo, after adding the title of Food Yi, also gave all the property he received to Bo Zhao, and asked him for protection, which shows Bo Zhao's power and prestige ("Bo Zhiyi was given to Bo Zhao. "See History, Vol. 57, The Twenty-seventh Family of the Marquis of Daihou").
Bo Zhao flew high and thin, gradually causing Emperor Wen's dissatisfaction
In a touting and greeting, Bo Zhao, who had been unknown for many years, suddenly became the "number one red man" of the empire, and this huge change made him a little fluttery, dizzy, and gradually lost himself, transforming into an image of extravagance and arrogance. Relying on the emperor's favor, Bo Zhao often installed cronies inside and outside the court and openly interfered in the affairs of the court, which gradually caused Emperor Wen's dissatisfaction.
However, out of the consideration of comforting his mother, coupled with Bo Zhao's previous great achievements, Emperor Wen's arrogant and illegal behavior towards his uncle was not stopped in time, which led the latter to slide into the abyss of self-destruction. In the winter of Emperor Wen's tenth year (170 BC), Bo Zhao somehow killed the emissaries sent by Emperor Wen, thus causing himself the misfortune of killing himself ("Winter, ascending xingganquan, the general Bo Zhao killed the Han emissaries." See Zizhi Tongjian, Vol. XIV).
At the suggestion of Qunchen, Emperor Wen decided to execute Bo Zhao
When Emperor Wen received the news, he immediately convened a royal council to discuss with the ministers how to deal with Bo Zhao. Many ministers, not believing that the emperor would really punish their uncles, suggested that they should be sent lightly, and only a few courtiers suggested that Bo Zhao be executed, which could only give the people of the country a strong signal: the emperor was selfless in enforcing the law. Emperor Wen thought about it for a long time and felt that the latter's point of view was very correct, so he decided to execute Bo Zhao.
However, considering the empress's feelings, Emperor Wen could not bear to execute her uncle in public, so he came up with an idea: to send a minister to Bo Zhao's house to persuade his uncle to commit suicide. Unexpectedly, Bo Zhao did not want to die at all, and it was still useless to let the minister who came to do ideological work wear out his lips. Emperor Wen was unable to make a plan, and then sent several ministers to Bo Zhao's mansion to cry and mourn, forcing him to cut himself off.
The courtiers wept for Bo Zhao and forced him to commit suicide
Sure enough, when Bo Zhao saw the ministers entering the mansion with sacrificial eulogies in their hands and weeping around him, his heart was both disgusted and angry. So Bo Zhao stopped the group of courtiers, and then said to them: "Go back to the emperor, I Bo Zhao as he wishes!" Then he drew his sword and killed himself ("The emperor could not bear to curse him, so that the secretary of state drank from it.") If he wants to divide himself, he will not accept it; and to make his subjects mourn and weep is to commit suicide. Ibid.).
Emperor Wen of Han forced his uncle to die by weeping and mourning, causing great controversy in later generations. For example, the Wei Emperor Cao Pi ridiculed Emperor Wen of Han, saying that if he had only supported his uncle but not given him power, then there would have been no final act of killing his uncle. Li Deyu, the chancellor of the Tang Dynasty, also believed that Empress Bo only had one brother, but Emperor Wen of Han still executed him, which was really unkind.
Emperor Cao Pi of Wei criticized Emperor Wen of Han's practices
Li Deyu thought: "Emperor Wen of Han cursed Bo Zhao, and if he broke it, he would be clear, and Yu Yi would not be safe... The empress dowager is still alive, the only brother Bo Zhao, there is no doubt about it, not so the heart of the mother's clan is also "... Emperor Wen of Wei tasted the beauty of Emperor Wen of Han, but did not take it to kill Bo Zhao, saying: "Uncle Hou's family, but when he is raised with grace and not under the guise of power, he not only violates the law of sin, but also has to harm." "The beginning of Emperor Wen's ridicule is not guarded against idleness, and Si is able to say it." Ibid.