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In the first year of Yuan Xing (105), Emperor He of Han died, and the 24-year-old empress Deng Sui became empress dowager, beginning a 16-year career of pro-dynasty titles. So how Deng Sui governed the Han Dynasty, why was the Deng family suppressed after her death, the captain told you in detail.
First, from a famous family
Deng Sui
Deng Sui was born in Nanyang, the granddaughter of Deng Yu, the first hero of the Founding of the Eastern Han Dynasty, and the daughter of Deng Xun, a lieutenant of the Qiang Dynasty, so she received a good education from an early age, studied with her brothers, and was familiar with books such as the Analects and the Book of Poetry. Therefore, Deng Sui likes to read and study since he was a child, and is not interested in female red.
Eastern han dynasty
Deng Sui's mother, Yin, believed that women only needed to learn female red, and reading was of little use, so she repeatedly blamed Deng Sui and told her to learn female red. Deng Sui did not want to disobey his mother's teachings, so he studied female red during the day and seized the time to study at night. When Deng Sui encountered problems that he did not understand, he humbly asked his brothers for advice, so his knowledge grew rapidly. Deng Xun saw that his daughter Deng Sui was very knowledgeable, so he often discussed political affairs with her, solicited her opinions and enhanced her insight.
Second, serve and the emperor
Han and Emperor
In the fourth year of Yongyuan (92), Emperor He of Han selected xiunu, and Deng Sui was selected. However, deng Xun died of illness soon after, and Deng Sui was very sad, so he kept filial piety for his father for three years before entering the palace to serve Han he and the emperor. In the eighth year of Yongyuan (96), Emperor Han and Emperor Deng Sui made her a nobleman because of her talent. Deng Sui was well aware that the harem struggle was fierce, so he did not argue or grab, maintained a humble and tolerant and frugal attitude, and was cautious when receiving people and things, especially to empress Yin. Emperor Han and Emperor Therefore greatly favored Deng Sui and often rewarded and praised her.
Queen of Yin
Empress Yin, seeing that Han and the emperor favored Deng Sui and alienated herself, resented Deng Sui very much and secretly cursed her by performing witchcraft. It just so happened that Han and Emperor were seriously ill, so Empress Yin said to her subordinates that she would kill all the Tang clan. When Deng Sui heard about this, he was very afraid in his heart, and in order to avoid the fate of Lady Qi, he decided to be martyred for Han He and emperor and kill himself by drinking medicine. Zhao Yu, a palace official, was always treated favorably by Deng Sui, so he resolutely prevented her from committing suicide, and also lied that Han he and Emperor had been cured. Deng Suixin believed it to be true, so he gave up his plan to commit suicide. The next day, Han and the emperor recovered, and Deng Sui was able to escape the disaster.
Three, become empress
Luoyang
In the fourteenth year of Yongyuan (102), Empress Yin was deposed by Emperor Han and Emperor For performing witchcraft. However, Deng Sui did not remember the old evil, but instead tried his best to say good things for Empress Yin, and asked Han and Emperor To forgive the Yin clan. Although Emperor Han and Emperor Did not agree to Deng Sui, they admired her character even more and planned to make her empress. Soon the Hundred Officials proposed to Emperor Hanhe to make a new empress, and Emperor Hanhe praised Deng Suo for her virtue and then made her empress.
Deng Sui told Emperor Han and Emperor that his virtue was shallow and that he could not serve as empress, and he vigorously resigned. However, Emperor Han and Emperor He had already made up their minds and insisted on making Deng Sui empress. Only then did Deng Sui stop resigning and ascended the throne as empress. After Deng Sui became empress, he continued to maintain a humble and frugal attitude, forbidding the donation of rare treasures from all over the world, and repeatedly rejecting the emperor's proposal to add officials to the Tang clan.
Fourth, the pro-dynasty weighing system
Since the empress dowager came to the dynasty, there have been ten years of drought, four invasions, and thieves inside. Every time a man hears of hunger, or a day of not sleeping, but bows down to alleviate the disaster, the world is at peace, and the years are still rich. (Book of the Later Han Dynasty, vol. 10)
Emperor Han
In the first year of Yuan Xing (105), Emperor He of Han died of illness, so Deng Sui made his younger crown prince Liu Long (i.e., Emperor Han) emperor and made him emperor in the name of empress dowager. Deng Sui pursued a policy of frugality and leniency: to dispense with many extravagant and unnecessary expenses, to order the local tribute to be halved, to reduce punishment, to pardon the families of Empress Ma (Empress Hanming) and Empress Dou (Empress Hanzhang), and to restore their personal freedom.
Emperor Han died of illness less than a year after his reign, and Deng Sui made Emperor Han and Emperor's nephew Liu Hu emperor (i.e., Emperor An of Han) emperor and continued to reign in the dynasty. In view of the lessons learned from foreign relatives interfering in politics in the past, Deng Sui demanded that Lieutenant Colonel Si Li, Henan Yin, Nanyang Taishou, and others act impartially and not shield the relatives and guests of the Deng family because of themselves. Deng Sui then spared Empress Yin's people, allowing them to return to their hometowns and return their confiscated family property.
Emperor Han
At that time, floods and droughts were frequent, and Deng Sui believed that it was a warning from heaven, so he personally handled the prison, punished the guilty officials, and pardoned those who had been wrongfully victimized. Deng Sui then ordered that entertainment be reduced at banquets for palace guards at the end of the year to save money. Deng Sui then summoned learned Confucian students and officials from all over the world to edit history books and proofread the classics so as not to mislead the world with mistakes; then Deng Sui asked the palace women and eunuchs to study the classics and enhance their cultural accomplishment.
In the sixth year of the first year of the Yuan Dynasty (119), in order to enable the children of the nobles to cultivate good character, so that they would not do anything and become stupid disciples who did not learn and did not learn any skills, Deng Sui sent people to find more than seventy of the sons of Liu and Deng, and specially opened an academy for them, let people teach them knowledge, and personally supervised them.
The Yue cavalry lieutenant Deng Kang saw that his cousin Deng Sui had long controlled the imperial government, and Emperor An of Han had already reached adulthood, and was worried that Emperor Han An was dissatisfied with the dictatorship of the empress, so he repeatedly advised Deng Sui to return to the emperor. However, Deng Sui was greedy for power at this time and was reluctant to hand over the government to Emperor An of Han. Deng Kang was helpless, so that Yongning said in the first year (120) that he was ill. When Deng Sui learned of this, he dismissed Deng Kang from his official position and severed his kinship with him. Dugan, Cheng Yishi and other officials also wrote to persuade Deng Sui to return to power, so they were also suppressed.
Deng Xiao
In the second year of Yongning (121), Deng Sui died of illness, and Emperor An of Han was able to take the government personally. However, Emperor An of Han was dissatisfied with his long-term inability to govern himself, so he deliberately suppressed the Deng clan, forced Deng Sui's brother Deng Sui to die, the Marquis of Shangcai, and deposed Deng Sui's nephews Deng Guangde the Marquis of Xiping, Deng Guangzong of Yehou, Deng Zhong the Marquis of Xihua, Deng Zhen the Marquis of Yang'an, and Deng Fude the Marquis of Duxiang.
In general, Deng Sui controlled the government as the empress dowager for sixteen years, and in the face of successive natural and man-made disasters, she implemented a policy of leniency and benevolence, worked hard to reduce the burden on the people, and was an excellent empress dowager. However, after that, Deng Sui was greedy for power and refused to return to the government of Emperor Han'an, which caused emperor Han's jealousy and led to the suppression of the Deng family after her death.