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Chapter 335: The Divine Calculator of the Northern Wei Dynasty

After a series of wars, Tuoba Gui began to become psychologically distorted, suspicious, and would kill anyone who was dissatisfied. Many important officials who followed him were executed, and other ministers and soldiers were also worried every day.

Tuoba Gui was also a dissolute man. He once met a beautiful woman in the Helan tribe of his mother's clan, and this woman was his aunt He.

He did not shy away from marrying his aunt as his beloved concubine, and gave birth to his son Tuoba Tao in 394. However, this twisted marriage also planted the seeds of tragedy for him.

In November 409, Tuoba Gui's aunt and beloved concubine He made a mistake and was about to be executed by Tuoba Gui. When her son Tuoba Shao learned about it, he colluded with the eunuchs and guards in the palace to assassinate her.

After Tuoba Gui discovered this, he tried to find weapons to fight back, but was killed before he could get any. He was only 38 years old.

[The Northern Wei Dynasty's divine fortune teller was indeed powerful, but he did not expect that he would be destroyed by his own hands. Historical trivia and historical figures]

He was skilled in strategy and had an ability to foresee things. He participated in the major decisions of three generations of emperors. He was an important figure in the Northern Wei Dynasty's unification of northern China, and he held great power through accurate predictions.

However, this wise and well-planned Northern Wei hero did not expect that he would die because of his own writing, and all those who were related to him were killed. In this video, let's learn about the legendary story of Cui Hao, the master of calculation.

Cui Hao was born in 381 AD in Donggucheng, Qinghe County, which is today's Gucheng County, HEB Province. When he was young, he was keen on studying classics and history and exploring various books such as yin and yang, covering a wide range of topics.

Therefore, he was very confident in his own talents and often compared himself to Zhang Liang, his confidant in the early Han Dynasty.

In the later period of the reign of Northern Wei Emperor Tuoba Gui, due to long-term use of medicine, Tuoba Gui became irritable and moody, often killing court officials for trivial matters, which made everyone panic.

At that time, Cui Hao was a clerk, and he was always conscientious in his work. He never deliberately avoided Tuoba Gui's cruelty, nor did he flatter the emperor to please him. Therefore, Cui Hao was never reprimanded by Tuoba Gui.

In 409 AD, Tuoba Gui was killed by his son Tuoba Shao. His eldest son Tuoba Si avenged him and ascended the throne, becoming Emperor Mingyuan.

Tuoba Si was very interested in the art of yin and yang. After he succeeded to the throne, he admired Cui Hao's talent very much, so he often asked him to explain the "Book of Changes" and appointed Cui Hao to specialize in divination, and Cui Hao's divinations were often fulfilled.

For example, a rabbit appeared in the palace at that time, and people were ordered to search for where it came from but to no avail, so they asked Cui Hao to predict the good or bad luck of this matter. Cui Hao speculated that a girl from a neighboring country would be sent to the palace. As a result, the next year, the neighboring country really presented a girl to the Northern Wei.

Therefore, Cui Hao was deeply favored by Emperor Mingyuan, and he was asked to predict all military and national secrets.

In 415 AD, a famine occurred in Pingcheng, Northern Wei, and many people starved to death. Some people suggested moving the capital to Yecheng, but Cui Hao strongly opposed it.

He believed that although this move could temporarily alleviate the famine, in the long run, the relocation of the capital would take away a large number of people, which would have a huge impact both economically and politically. Moreover, the relocated people would be susceptible to epidemic diseases due to acclimatization, which would lead to people's depression and give foreign enemies an opportunity to attack.

Therefore, Cui Hao suggested that Emperor Mingyuan send the poorest refugees in the disaster area to other areas to make a living, and then let each household rent out 50 shi of grain to feed other poor households, and then return it to the rich households in the future when there is a good harvest.

Emperor Mingyuan highly approved of his suggestion and then implemented it. As expected, the local harvest was very good the following year, and people's hearts were finally settled. The country overcame the difficulties under Cui Hao's suggestion. Emperor Mingyuan also gave him a generous reward.

In 417 AD, Liu Yu, the Grand Commandant of the Eastern Jin Dynasty in the south, was preparing to march north to attack the Later Qin Dynasty. The Northern Wei officials believed that Liu Yu was plotting something bad, and not only rejected Liu Yu's request, but also sent troops to stop him from continuing up the river.

However, Cui Hao thought that they should lend him the road, wait for him to pass through, block his retreat, and then reap the benefits after Liu Yu fought with the Later Qin. However, Emperor Mingyuan was still worried, so he rejected Cui Hao's suggestion and sent troops to stop Liu Yu's imperial guards.

As a result, the 3 cavalry suffered a great defeat and failed to stop Liu Yu's northern expedition. Emperor Mingyuan then regretted not following Cui Hao's strategy.

In the same year, the Later Qin was destroyed by Liu Yu, and Emperor Mingyuan did not know what to do next. Cui Hao believed that although the Northern Wei had a strong army, it was definitely no match for Liu Yu in terms of fighting.

However, the territory of the Later Qin was prone to confusion, and it would be difficult for Liu Yu to make it submit in one or two years. So what the Northern Wei had to do was to wait and see what happened and wait for the right opportunity.

In 418 AD, a strange phenomenon appeared in the sky. Emperor Mingyuan was worried that it was a bad omen. After observation, Cui Hao believed that this phenomenon was very similar to the astronomical phenomenon when Wang Mang usurped the Han Dynasty.

However, during the reign of Emperor Mingyuan, the Northern Wei Dynasty was well-organized, with the ruler respected and the ministers humbled. The people of the world did not behave abnormally, so there would be no rebellion.

But the situation in the Eastern Jin Dynasty was exactly the opposite, so Liu Yu, who was in power, was a sign of his doom. As expected, in 420 AD, Liu Yu deposed the Eastern Jin Emperor Sima Dewen, proclaimed himself emperor, and established the Southern Dynasty Liu Song regime. After Emperor Mingyuan got the news, he was very surprised at Cui Hao's prediction.

Emperor Mingyuan was often ill and always dreamed of strange things, so he was worried that he would not live long and was very worried about the issue of appointing a crown prince. Cui Hao believed that his 12-year-old eldest son Tuoba Tao was sharp and intelligent and should be appointed as the crown prince as soon as possible.

If he waited until his sons were adults before doing this, other troubles would arise. Emperor Mingyuan appointed Tuoba Tao as the crown prince on Cui Hao's suggestion. Tuoba Tao performed well during this period.

In 422 AD, Liu Yu died, and Emperor Mingyuan wanted to take advantage of the opportunity to attack Luoyang and Hulao in the Southern Dynasty. Cui Hao raised objections and tried to stop him, believing that launching an attack at this time would definitely be met with strong resistance from the enemy.

It would be better to send people to the Southern Dynasty to comfort Liu Yu's family, let the world know the benevolence of the Northern Wei Dynasty, and lay the foundation for the future rule of the South. Moreover, Liu Yu's death will inevitably lead to domestic power struggles. If we go to war when the people are in civil strife, we can easily obtain Huaibei.

However, Emperor Mingyuan ignored the advice and insisted on marching south, and even fought for a long time without success in capturing Huatai alone.

In 423 AD, Emperor Mingyuan died of illness and Tuoba Tao ascended the throne as Emperor Taiwu. The following year, Cui Hao observed the stars and found that five stars gathered in the east, which he believed was a good sign for conquest.

Tuoba Tao was very good at military operations, so he personally led his troops to attack Huxia. However, during the attack, a sandstorm suddenly occurred, and the soldiers had a great advantage over the enemy with the wind.

Someone suggested to withdraw the troops and make another attempt later. Cui Hao loudly rebuked such a suggestion and strongly supported Tuoba Tao to fight against the wind. Tuoba Tao then strengthened his confidence in the attack and redeployed the troops, causing the Xia army to collapse across the board. Finally, he occupied the capital of Huxia.

Later, in order to avoid being attacked from both sides by the Rouran in the north and the Liu Song in the south, Tuoba Tao prepared to concentrate his forces to attack the Rouran. However, his ministers raised objections and dissuaded Tuoba Tao on the grounds that the astronomical phenomena were unfavorable.

However, these ministers were no match for Cui Hao. Cui Hao refuted the situation by citing his experience in attacking Hu Xia, and questioned the ministers why they failed to predict the unfavorable situation through astronomical phenomena. The ministers were speechless after Cui Hao's few questions.

Cui Hao continued to advise that it was summer and the Rouran were used to grazing their livestock in dispersed areas. If they took advantage of this opportunity to launch a surprise attack, the Rouran would not be able to quickly organize a defense, and the battle would definitely succeed, but some generals might not dare to go deep into the enemy's territory.

Tuoba Tao dispelled all his worries after Cui Hao's argument, and launched a fierce attack based on the strategy of taking the enemy by surprise. The Rouran were indeed completely unprepared, and in the end they could only negotiate peace through marriage.

In fact, the Northern Wei could have wiped out the Rouran army, but as Cui Hao expected, some generals stopped the attack because they were afraid that the enemy would set an ambush, thus resulting in the retention of the remnants of the Rouran force.

In 439 AD, Tuoba Tao was preparing to attack Northern Liang, but was opposed by his ministers, especially General Li Shun of Xi'an at the time. Li Shun had accepted bribes from Northern Liang and fabricated a lie, claiming that the land leading to Northern Liang was mostly dry rocks, and that if he sent troops to attack them, they would face a water shortage.

Cui Hao saw through Li Shun's thoughts at a glance. He believed that animal husbandry was the most developed in Northern Liang. How could animal husbandry be possible without abundant water and grass? Tuoba Tao later decided to march into Liangzhou. When he arrived, he found that the water and grass were indeed lush, which confirmed Li Shun's lie.

Therefore, Tuoba Tao not only trusted Cui Hao, but also treated him as close as a family member.

However, Cui Hao's son was in power, but Cui Hao did not have a good ending. He ignored the conflicts between Han landlords and Xianbei nobles and divided the clans according to the Han aristocratic family ideology, which led to strong dissatisfaction among the Xianbei nobles.

He also caused the wrath of Tuoba Tao by not avoiding the negative information about Emperor Tuoba in his early years when compiling the national history, and was eventually executed. All those who were related to him were killed.

[The first famous general of the Sui Dynasty, who caused his entire clan to be exterminated. Historical trivia and historical figures]

He was an important contributor to the founding of the Sui Dynasty. With his outstanding military talents, he gained power and became the most authoritative minister at that time. However, he helped the crown prince to kill the emperor and usurp the throne, and eventually he gave up treatment and died of illness.

In this video, we will learn about the rise and fall of Yang Su, a founding hero of the Sui Dynasty.

Yang Su was born in Huayin County, Hongnong Prefecture, which is today's Huayin City, Xinjiang Province. His ancestors served as officials for generations. His grandfather Yang Xuan was the general of the Northern Wei Dynasty, and his father Yang Fu was the governor of Fenzhou in the Northern Zhou Dynasty.

Yang Su was not particular about details since childhood and had great ambitions. When he grew up, he was accomplished in literature and calligraphy. History books said that he "was tireless in talking about the classics and was well-versed in many fields."

In October 576, Yang Su followed Yuwen Xian to attack Northern Qi and conquered Jinzhou. When the Northern Qi army marched from Jinyang to Jinzhou, Yang Su was terrified when he learned that the main force of the Northern Qi army had arrived. He fled in panic, but was caught up by the Northern Qi army and almost defeated.

After that, Yang Su and more than 10 brave generals were able to break the siege after a hard battle. After that, Yang Su repeatedly made military achievements. In October 577, the Chen Dynasty took advantage of the demise of the Northern Qi Dynasty to fight for the Huaibei area. Yang Su defeated the Chen army and captured the main general.

Two years later, he led his army alone to conquer Xuyi and Zhongli.

After Yang Jian came to power, Yang Su gained his trust and was appointed as the general, responsible for eliminating political enemies. Later, Yang Jian ascended the throne and established the Sui Dynasty. Yang Su was named Shangzhuguo and participated in the revision of Sui Dynasty laws.

However, he quarreled with his wife and said something offensive to the emperor, which resulted in him being reported and convicted, nearly ruining his bright future. Fortunately, Yang Su made many suggestions when planning to destroy the Chen Dynasty, and he was finally reinstated.

In March 588, Emperor Wen of Sui issued an edict listing 3 crimes of the last ruler of the Chen Dynasty. He then concentrated a total of 20 troops by land and sea, and attacked in eight directions from the upper reaches of the Yangtze River to the lower reaches.

Among them, Yang Su commanded the main force of the navy to go eastward downstream, responsible for destroying the Chen army on the Yangtze River and along the coast. In early December of the same year, Yang Su launched an offensive in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River according to the combat deployment.

More than 100 Qinglong warships of the Chen army held on to the Langwei Beach, which was in a dangerous terrain and had fast currents. Yang Su decided to coordinate the land and sea forces, using the darkness to make a frontal breakthrough while letting the infantry and cavalry on the shore launch a two-pronged attack on the Chen Dynasty's defenders.

In the end, with the cooperation of the navy and the army, the Chen Dynasty defenders were defeated in one fell swoop. Yang Su adopted a preferential policy towards the captured soldiers and released them all after release, thus gaining the favor of many people and creating favorable conditions for the subsequent war to destroy the Chen Dynasty.

Yang Su continued to go down the Yangtze River. The Chen Dynasty's garrison commander, Lü Zhongsu, was ordered to station at the entrance of the Xiling Gorge of the Yangtze River. In order to boost morale, he donated all his property to the army. As a result, the Chen army was very motivated and the defense was very tight. Yang Su suffered heavy casualties in more than 40 fierce attacks.

At that time, in order to win credit, the soldiers of the Chen Dynasty cut off the noses of the Sui army prisoners.

Yang Su then used the enemy's cruelty to anger the soldiers, who fought desperately, and Lü Zhongsu was eventually defeated and fled. Yang Su still did not kill or humiliate the captives of the Chen Dynasty.

Afterwards, Yang Su's army became more and more motivated and continued to move down the river. His preferential policies also played an important role, and eventually the entire upper reaches of the Yangtze River were controlled, ensuring the main force in the lower reaches could cross the river.

Because of his outstanding military achievements, Yang Su was promoted to Duke of Yue and gained 3000 households. His son Yang Xuangan was named Pillar of the State.

After the Sui Dynasty conquered the Chen Dynasty and unified China, Yang Su stipulated that all people in Jiangnan, regardless of gender, age, wealth, or status, must recite a book called "Wu Jiao". The book's teaching on the five human ethics caused dissatisfaction among the people in Jiangnan.

In addition, the southern powerful people were unwilling to accept the restrictive policies implemented by the Sui Dynasty, so they took advantage of the people's dissatisfaction and launched an uprising with a scale of tens of thousands of people.

Faced with such a grim situation, Emperor Wen of Sui ordered Yang Su to lead the army to suppress the rebellion. Yang Su then defeated several rebel forces one after another.

Emperor Wen of Sui later considered that the Sui army had been at war for a long time and should rest and recuperate, so he ordered Yang Su to lead his troops back to the court. However, Yang Su decided to continue to suppress the rebels and refused Emperor Wen's order.

During this period, he killed and captured more than 30 rebels. Emperor Wen of Sui was very happy about this. After suppressing the uprising, Yang Su was appointed Shangshu You Pushe and jointly ruled the government with Gao Jiong.