At the beginning of the founding of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the descendants of the Liu family were full of people. Since Liu Bang's ancestor, he has overcome obstacles all the way, and finally returned to the rising sun and has his own country. Later generations have been crowned marquis and worshiped the prime minister, and the power is tilted towards the government and the opposition. However, with the change of dynasty, the imperial system became farther and farther away, and the princes of the Liu family gradually lost their confidence and motivation to compete for the unification.
For example, Liu Yu, the great-grandson of Liu Xiu, has been in charge of Youzhou for generations. In the north of Youzhou, an important town, Liu Yu personally supervised the battle and established meritorious deeds. Whenever Yuan Shao, Cao Cao and others secretly coveted Youzhou, Liu Yu always took it by surprise and made a preemptive strike. However, whenever he faced the enemy, he stopped at defending his family and country, and never thought of seizing greater power.
Another Liu Xuan, who lives in Yangzhou, is a relative of Liu Feiyan, the king of the early Han Dynasty. Yangzhou is fertile for thousands of miles, the people are rich and rich, Liu Miao has a heavy army, and his family is rich. He was very satisfied with the status quo, did not have any big ambitions, immersed himself in eating, drinking, and having fun all day long, and stayed away from the government and the military state. Even Liu Xuan's clan, King Chen, Liu Chong, died at the hands of Yuan Shu when it was time to conquer the Yellow Turban, and no one came forward to save him.
Liu Biao was also a relative of Emperor Jing of the Han Dynasty and guarded Jingzhou. He was a good general, and when he was young, he had the ambition of serving the country and saving the people. However, in the face of Li Dao, Guo Yan and others wreaking havoc in Chang'an, he chose to bow his head and succumb and was given the post of pastor of Jingzhou. Since then, he has been pampered, addicted to wine, eating and having fun day and night, doing nothing all day long, never talking about the dream of revival, which is contrary to the fighting spirit of Liu Xiu and Liu Bang.
The princes of the Liu family have little ahead of them, most of them lack ambition, and they are content with small wealth and small glory, and they have no intention of making a blockbuster. The ancestors Guanghui and the imperial system gradually drifted apart, and they lost the spirit of serving the country and the determination to rejuvenate, which doomed them to ultimate failure and decline.
Most of the princes of the Liu clan only know the power and honor of the present dynasty, but they have not looked to the future, and there is any grand blueprint. They are immersed in the glory and wealth of the present all day long, short-sighted and short-sighted, and do nothing about the future.
For example, when Liu Miao was in charge of Yangzhou, it was at a time when the heroes were divided and the war was raging. However, he turned a blind eye to this, and only knew how to blackmail the people and hoard private wealth. Even if Yuan Shao, Cao Cao and others came to commit crimes, he ignored them and had no concept of the survival of his family and country. In the end, Yangzhou fell, and his rich country returned to dust overnight.
Although Liu Biao is in charge of Jingzhou, he is mediocre and incompetent when he is old, greedy for wine and longevity all day long, and the military affairs are completely forgotten. He didn't want to take care of the military and politics, and threw all the heavy responsibilities to a few small officials and generals, and he only knew the company of beauty, and he was always drunk and dreamed of death. Since there are many political departments, people's hearts have gradually left, and the territory has fallen.
Liu Zhang is even more downright unconscious in Yizhou. A good hand of cards was played, conniving at the arrogance and lasciviousness of the family, the corruption of the officials was everywhere, and the people of the prefecture and county were all in the midst of fire and water. Even if Zhang Lu came forward to persuade him, he turned a deaf ear. In the end, Dong Zhuo's old subordinate Zhirong defeated Yizhou, and he even escaped.
The princes also had widespread acts of corrupting the law and discrediting the residue of goods. Liu Yu was in power, and he was even harsh in Youzhou, and he took all the people's fat and ointment into private ownership. Liu Miao was also insatiable, he hoarded countless real estate and farms during his Yangzhou period, and even the minister was ashamed of himself. Even if internal and external troubles frequently knock on the door, they also stay out of the matter, ignoring the prosperity of the country, and only know how to sink into pleasure.
The incompetence of the Liu princes, their self-restraint, and their short-sightedness eventually led to the destruction of their power. Drinking and having fun, mediocrity and inaction, naturally powerless to stop the rise of stronger opponents. The world rises and falls, sharing honor and disgrace, but they turn a blind eye and are finally replaced by knowledgeable generals one by one.
Although the princes of the Liu family were in charge of important towns, due to the defects of the hereditary system, there were rifts within the family from time to time. The hereditary succession of imperial power was destined to make the heirs fight each other for the right to inherit, which seriously slowed down the development of the entire family.
When Liu Qian was in Yangzhou, his uncle Liu Qian tried his best to seize power in Yangzhou, and the two were constantly at war. Later, although Liu Qian died at the hands of Cao Cao, Yangzhou was in crisis, which damaged Liu Qian's foundation. When Liu Biao was in Jingzhou, his brother-in-law Wu Jing peeked at his status, and the two fought to the death, and Jingzhou naturally fell into division and turmoil.
In addition to the sibling rivalry, power struggles between uncles and nephews are commonplace. Liu Bei and Liu Zhang are a pair of life-and-death enemies. Liu Zhang guards Yizhou, has a desire for power, and wants to get rid of his uncle Liu Bei everywhere. Later, Liu Bei was forced out of Yizhou by Zhang Lu, and the two fought a lot, consuming the strength of the family in vain. Liu Dai, Liu Yao's nephew, also teamed up with Yuan Shao to instigate a warlord dispute, and Yangzhou almost fell into a full-scale civil war.
The struggle for power erupted over the succession to the throne. After Liu Yu's death, his son Liu Bao wanted to inherit the power of Youzhou, but was strongly opposed by his brother Liu Fei. The two brothers lost peace and fought for several years, but both of them died, and Youzhou was taken away by grass mustard. Liu Biao did not designate a crown prince before his death, which led to the rebellion of his sons, and finally surrendered Jingzhou to Cao Cao.
The family infighting is really a big bane for the fall of the Liu family. They lack clan rules and discipline, and the power struggle is endless, resulting in the fragmentation of family power and the slaughter of others. Even if the ancestors are sheltered, they will not escape the doom of destruction.
Among the four major Liu families, Liu Xianzhu's behavior is really the most despicable. His ancestor was originally a relative of Emperor Zhao of the Han Dynasty and had great power in Beijing. It's a pity that Liu Xianzhu was rebellious by nature, and he actually betrayed his promise, cooperated with Wang Mang, and finally overthrew the Han Dynasty.
In order to get rich, the ancestor of Liu openly tore up the Liu family motto, destroyed the will of the ancestors, and did not hesitate to collude with his relatives to kill other relatives of the Liu family. It can be said that he is the root of the Liu family's demise from this vein. Later generations have the infamy of "backstabbing relatives", and he really deserves it.
There have also been thieves like King Chen and Liu Pet in the Liu clan. Liu Pet is stubborn by nature, and he did countless things that hurt nature and reason when he was young. When the Yellow Turban Rebellion broke out, he openly rebelled and joined forces with the Yellow Turban Army.
At that time, the leader of the Yellow Turban Army was still in rebellion in Yongzhou, but Liu Chong sent a large army to strangle Yuan Shao, Cao Cao and other officials and soldiers. As a result, he was sniped by Yuan Shu, and not only suffered heavy casualties, but he himself was also killed. This treacherous rebellion undoubtedly smeared the entire Liu family with a black cauldron.
Even among the princes, there are also chaotic ministers and thieves like Liu Zhang, who are extremely mediocre and evil. Liu Zhangzhen guarded Yizhou, and actually indulged his family to be arrogant and lascivious, and to be powerful. When Dong Zhuo's warlord Zhenrong captured Yizhou, he only knew how to flee and turned a blind eye to the people.
Liu Zhang's incompetence and mediocrity completely destroyed the confidence of the military and people in Yizhou. Soon Zhenrong captured Qianzhong, and Liu Zhang disappeared from then on. He was unheard of, mediocre, and became a hammer in the decline of the Liu family.
As a member of the royal family, he should shoulder the responsibility of revitalization. However, there were so many thieves and scum in the Liu clan, which caused the entire family to suffer heavy losses. They disregarded the family motto and rebelled, and in the end they were duly punished one by one, which also accelerated the demise of the family.
Although the princes of the Liu family have a prominent family background, due to continuous infighting, arrogance and indulgence, their family background and strength are not as good as before. Cao Cao, Yuan Shao and others took advantage of the situation, and it was not difficult to encircle these former magnates.
Liu Miao was defeated and retreated in Yangzhou, and his only remaining family assets were almost exhausted. Coupled with the continuous infighting, Liu Qian's uncle Liu Qian even colluded with Cao Cao and others, and it is not surprising that Yangzhou was overthrown. Liu Yu's family was originally a big surname in the north, but because of the arrogance of the children and grandchildren for generations, the family was in the middle of the road, and even Youzhou could not be defended.
What's even more fatal is that the Liu family is isolated from each other and lacks a tacit understanding to help each other. In the face of the attack of Cao Cao, Yuan Shao and others, they had no way to seek help at all, so they could only be slaughtered.
Liu Bei hoped to get Liu Biao's support back then, but was resolutely refused. Later, when Liu's cousins and heirs fought among themselves, they did not see other clans lend a hand. Liu Yu's father and son fended off Cao Cao alone in Youzhou, and did not receive any military aid from other families. In the end, the situation of fragmentation can only lead to the destruction of each other.
The four Liu families are even more inclined to each other, and the internal strife continues, giving outsiders an opportunity to take advantage of. For example, Liu Bei and Liu Zhang fought to the death when they were in Yizhou, and there were rebels and traitors like Liu Chong intervening in it, no wonder Zhenrong quickly captured Yizhou.
Liu Qian was completely betrayed by Cao Cao's confidant Liu Qian, and the family foundation was lost. Liu Yu also failed to get the help of his brothers in Youzhou, so he could only let Cao Cao annex him. It was really his own people who did the obstruction, which caused the family foundation to weaken day by day and be embattled.
Although the princes of the Liu family have many relatives and their families are located in most of the Central Plains, due to their incompetence and successive defeats, they can only face the fate of being replaced by the Li Yan family.