Guangwu's stratagems

Author: Ni Dai Feng
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2003-01-01
Features: As the saying goes, "times of chaos bring forth heroes." Liu Xiu, as a representative of the feudal ruling class, was indeed an accomplished and wise ruler skilled in both literature and martial arts. His strategic wisdom was not innate or magically bestowed but rather cultivated through his practical experience in military campaigns and statecraft. The era in which Liu Xiu lived was also a period of rise in feudal society, where feudal economic relations were actively promoting productivity, and the feudal landlord class was still the representative of developing productivity. When the Wang Mang regime provoked nationwide peasant uprisings, Liu Xiu raised an army and, to a significant extent, represented the interests of the peasants. Coming from the peasantry, understanding the people's livelihood, showing compassion for the common folk, being magnanimous, readily accepting advice, diligently governing, and maintaining strict self-discipline—especially his enlightened governance and his historical contribution to unifying the nation—won him widespread popularity across all social strata, which was natural. Throughout his life, Liu Xiu never made major mistakes, which is the best embodiment of his extraordinary talent and virtue as well as his strategic acumen. Liu Xiu focused on strengthening local power. For example, in the local administrative system, he enhanced the authority of the magistrates, dividing the entire country into thirteen inspection divisions (the thirteen provinces). Except for the capital, which was under the jurisdiction of the Cìlì Xiàowèi, each province had one cìshǐ (inspector) who could report directly to the emperor without the need for approval from the three dukes or the three ministers. This effectively weakened the power of the three dukes and centralized the authority over local officials in his own hands. Of course, this also had negative consequences, such as the growing power and independence of the cìshǐs, leading to tensions between the localities and the central government. This contradiction was not resolved until the late Eastern Han Dynasty, when later generations changed the cìshǐ to zhōumù (provincial governor), raised its rank to the second thousand rank on the right, and appointed influential members of the nine ministers to hold the position.