The videos I watched became popular in ancient times

Chapter 191 Weird appearance

Su Chen described the historical contribution of Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty Yang Jian from five aspects: politics, economy, military, ethnicity, and culture.

Originally, many people questioned why Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty could be rated as the first emperor of the ages. Now after listening to what the anchor said, everyone gradually understood the reason.

Although many people still disagree with Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty being named the first emperor through the ages, thinking that these achievements are not enough.

But most people reluctantly recognized this fact and felt that these achievements of Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty could meet the standard threshold of an emperor through the ages.

Yang Jian was in a state of excitement from beginning to end, and could not calm down for a long time until the anchor finished speaking.

As an emperor, there is no one who does not care about his posthumous reputation.

Especially for a wise king like him, he is even more concerned.

The reason why he formulated a series of policies was to let the people live and work in peace and contentment, so that the Sui Dynasty could prosper.

And he has done so much conscientiously, publicly for the country and the people, and privately for the sake of immortality.

What the anchor just said made him know that he had done it, and his name Yang Jian would be immortalized forever.

It seems that he is a little dissatisfied. He also wants to hear more praises from everyone, especially from future generations.

Yang Jian: Anchor, there have been comments from later generations on Wu Zetian. I wonder if they have comments on me?

The emperors of all dynasties were speechless. They had never seen such a thick-skinned person.

What the anchor said just now was all praising Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty for his achievements.

Unexpectedly, Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty was still not satisfied and asked the anchor to praise him more.

"As a relatively famous emperor, His Majesty Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty has naturally been evaluated by many people."

"Historian Hu Rulei once commented that Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty Yang Jian was an outstanding emperor who played a significant role in progress in Chinese history. He followed the trend of historical development and completed the mission entrusted by the times."

"Modern scholar Yang Xiyi also highly praised Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty. After the Zen dynasty of Zhou Ding, the attack on the Turks in the north, and the destruction of the Chen Dynasty in the south, he completed the great cause of unification and ended the 300-year-old division and separatism of China's feudal society since the late Western Jin Dynasty. The chaotic situation played a huge role in the cause of unifying China."

Yang Jian was smiling and feeling refreshed, as if he was listening to fairy music.

These words of praise are the evaluation of him by later generations, and it goes without saying that they are valuable.

If the dynasties after the Sui Dynasty had commented on him in this way, he might not be so relaxed and happy.

But these words were said by people of later generations, and they were said by very important people of later generations.

In this way, the words praising him seemed to have extra weight, making him very happy.

Yang Jian: Have you recorded it?

Historian: Your Majesty, I have recorded it verbatim.

Yang Jian glanced at the content recorded by the historian next to him. It was indeed word for word, exactly the same as what the anchor said.

Seeing this, he nodded with satisfaction.

Although later generations highly praised Yang Jian, many ancients still had negative views on Yang.

Zhao Zhen: We are almost praising Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty to the sky. Let me see it. Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty mishandled a series of major issues such as the establishment of a prince, which led to the political crisis in the later period of the Sui Dynasty and accelerated the short-term demise of the Sui Dynasty regime. That's all. At one point, Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty could not afford so much praise.

Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty changed his position to crown prince, which directly led to the collapse of the Sui Dynasty. This was a stain that Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty could not erase.

If Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty had not made Yang Guang the crown prince, the Sui Dynasty could have continued for many years, and how could it have perished so quickly.

Wei Zheng: Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty did not govern the country based on Confucianism. He killed too much and did not distinguish between loyal and traitors. In his later years, he executed many of the founding heroes.

Yang Jian ignored what Emperor Zhao Zhen of the Song Dynasty said. After all, the current prince was Yang Shimin, and there was nothing to explain.

But he did not agree with Wei Zheng's rhetoric.

It was not that he did not use Confucianism to govern the government, but used both Confucianism and Legalism.

To be more precise, he adopted Legalism more than Confucianism, focusing on Legalism and supplementing Confucianism.

Even with his vigorous promotion, Confucian education has greatly improved, and self-study has become a common practice. This is not what Wei Zheng said at all.

As for the criticism that he killed the founding heroes indiscriminately, he strongly disagreed.

First, he has not killed the founding hero at all, so this blame cannot be placed on his head.

Secondly, even if he executes the founding heroes in the future, it will definitely not be indiscriminate killing, and there must be a reason.

He could already vaguely guess why he went on such a killing spree in history.

Naturally, he was very grateful to those who had contributed to the founding of the country and followed him to conquer the world.

But now the founding merits of the country have changed. During this period, he found that these heroes used their power to bully others.

Thinking that they are the founding fathers of the country, they have no regard for laws and regulations and are arrogant.

If this situation continues, he will definitely clear out these lawless founding officials in his later years, lest no one can rule them after his death.

From the bottom of his heart, these founding fathers had made great contributions to him, and he hoped that they could die a good death.

Of course, this is if they don't seek death.

But if they seek death and act lawlessly, no one can save them.

I just hope that after watching tonight’s live broadcast, those founding heroes can restrain themselves and stop seeking death.

"Historian Fan Wenlan, who compiled the "Compendium of General History of China" and "Modern History of China", also said that the main achievement of Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty was to implement various measures to consolidate the unification after unifying the country, so that three hundred years of continuous war could be stopped. , the whole country is peaceful, people in the north and south can rest and recuperate, and society has experienced unprecedented prosperity."

"Qin Shihuang created the Qin system, which was followed by all dynasties after the Han Dynasty. Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty created the Sui system, which was followed by all dynasties after the Tang Dynasty. Both the Qin and Sui dynasties made huge contributions. Their role in history cannot be ignored just because the country was short-lived. function on.”

"Under the policy of striving to consolidate national unity, Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty made achievements in administration, customization systems, and treatment of enemy countries. The nearly three hundred years of turmoil since the Western Jin Dynasty had indeed stabilized by the time of Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty."

"In general, Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty was a better politician because he was able to pay more or less attention to the wishes of the working people."

"These are historian Fan Wenlan's evaluations of Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty, and these evaluations are very high."

Ying Zheng: Needless to say, the Qin system I created is also normal for it to be inherited by subsequent dynasties.

Yang Jian: I very much agree with what Fan Wenlan said. I ended the turmoil of the past three hundred years. This achievement is not insignificant. The great achievements I have made cannot be ignored just because Sui Dynasty II died.

The people who felt the most deeply about Fan Wenlan's words were naturally the common people throughout the country during the period of Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty.

They, ordinary people, have had to face wars that never seem to end since they were born.

When they grew up, they heard from the old people around them that this war had been going on for hundreds of years.

So later on, they became accustomed to fighting every year.

It can't be said that it is a habit, it is more accurate to say that it is numb.

They thought that even if they died of old age, this war would continue.

To the surprise of the people across the country, the current emperor suddenly appeared and ended the war that lasted for three hundred years.

One can imagine how ecstatic they were when the world was unified.

Today's emperor has brought eternal peace to their people. They no longer have to worry about war and can live in peace and contentment. Based on this alone, the current emperor's achievements deserve to be highly praised by future generations.

"Cui Ruide, a foreign sinologist who compiled the Cambridge History of Sui and Tang Dynasties in China, made a very comprehensive evaluation of Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty, with both bad and good sides."

"For example, on a negative note, Cui Ruide thinks that Yang Jian is prone to anger, and sometimes he feels deeply regretful after being furious."

"In the words of our later generations, Cui Ruide believed that Yang Jian was mentally abnormal."

Yang Jian:?

"The reason why Cui Ruide said this is well-founded and not nonsense."

"Once Yang Jian whipped a man in the palace, and then felt that this was inconsistent with the status of the emperor, and advocated the abolition of whipping."

"But not long after, Yang Jian was furious and whipped one person to death with a riding crop."

"Cui Ruide speculated that the reason why this happened was related to Yang Jian's personal sense of crisis. In his later years, it was related to his abnormal psychology of pursuing the highest power."

Yang Jian: You can't blame me entirely for this. If the minister hadn't been short-sighted, why would I have gotten so angry? Sometimes I get so angry that I really can't hold back.

Zhao Zhen: The violent character of Emperor Yang Guang of the Sui Dynasty was completely inherited from Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty. Like father, like son.

Emperor Yang Guang of the Sui Dynasty was a famous tyrant who once openly killed people in the court.

Now that I think about it, Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty cannot be entirely blamed. Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty must also bear half of the responsibility.

Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty openly whipped his ministers in the court, and finally beat them to death.

It is precisely because of his father's violence that his son will imitate him.

"Although Yang Jian has these limitations and is in this mental state, Cui Ruide still believes that Yang Jian is a strong and accomplished ruler."

"At the same time, Cui Ruide also had some very positive comments about Yang Jian."

"For example, Cui Ruide commented that Yang Jian loved his work and often brought a large number of memorials from the political hall to the palace for approval. This is enough to show Yang Jian's diligence."

"For some serious felony sentences, Yang Jian always requested a new trial to ensure fairness and strictness. Cui Ruide praised this very much."

"When Yang Jian met with local officials, he often took the trouble to warn them to work hard and become virtuous people."

"Cui Ruide believes that Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty, Yang Jian, as the founding emperor of the Sui Dynasty, although he did not do well in some aspects, his historical achievements cannot be erased."

Yang Jian nodded with satisfaction. The foreigner's evaluation of him was quite fair.

Although some minor faults of his were pointed out, overall the comments about him were mostly positive.

He believed that this emperor was very competent, the people lived and worked in peace and contentment, and the country was prosperous.

Compared with the positive achievements, those small problems are nothing to mention.

While Yang Jian was sighing, Su Chen's words immediately interrupted his thoughts.

"His Majesty Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty, the anchor has a very curious question. I wonder if it can be answered?"

Yang Jian was stunned for a moment. Although he was a little confused, he still nodded in agreement.

Yang Jian: If the anchor has anything to ask, just ask, I will definitely tell you everything.

"It's like this. When the anchor was searching for information about His Majesty Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty on the Internet, there were two places that described the appearance of His Majesty the Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty. The anchor wanted to verify whether it was true."

When Yang Jian heard this, he became even more confused. What could he ask for confirmation?

He looks ordinary, nothing out of the ordinary.

From what the anchor said, it seemed that later generations had made a fuss about his appearance.

Yang Jian: I don’t know how to describe my appearance, but I would like to hear the details.

"One is the Zizhi Tongjian compiled by Sima Guang, a historian of the Northern Song Dynasty, which records a very interesting story."

"In November of the first year of the Chen Dynasty to Germany, the empress of Chen, Chen Shubao, sent someone as an envoy to the Sui Dynasty."

"Chen Shubao heard that Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty Yang Jian looked strange, so he asked his envoy to bring back the portrait of Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty."

"When Chen Shubao saw Yang Jian's portrait, he was very frightened and said, 'I don't want to see this man!' and immediately ordered someone to throw the painting away."

"For his rival Chen Shubao to be so frightened after seeing the portrait of Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty, it shows that the appearance of Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty was extraordinary."

“The other place is the Book of Sui written by Wei Zheng of the Tang Dynasty, which records the appearance of Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty.”

"He is a man with a dragon's chin. There are five pillars on his forehead, his eyes are shining outward, and there is a text in his hand that says "King."

"From the description of the appearance recorded by Wei Zheng, we can see that there are five strange things about the appearance of Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty."

"One is that the forehead is protruding, and there are five small raised fleshy pillars, which go straight from the forehead to the top of the head."

"The second is that the lower jaw is very long and very prominent, like a dragon's jaw."

"Third, his eyes are sharp and aggressive, with light shooting out from his eyes."

"Fourth, there is a "king"-shaped palm print on the hand."

"Five is long in the upper body and short in the lower body."

"From the descriptions of these two places, from the perspective of our future generations, His Majesty Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty was extremely ugly, and his ugliness reached a new level."

"So, the anchor wants to ask if this is true."

Yang Jian:......

Sima Guang:......

Wei Zheng:......

Yang Jian: Don't get me wrong, anchor. How could I look like this? It's absolutely impossible. Although I don't have a handsome appearance, I'm not that strange either.

"That's right! The anchor feels the same way. How could someone look like this? They are already out of the realm of human beings."

"Originally the anchor didn't believe it, but Sima Guang's "Zizhi Tongjian" and Wei Zheng's "Sui Shu" are both widely recognized history books, so the anchor wanted to verify it."

Wei Zheng: The anchor does not know that the descriptions of historical celebrities have a certain degree of artistic processing in history books.

Sima Guang: Maybe the present generation did not have physiognomy, so it is not clear why the appearance of Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty was described in this way.

Wei Zheng: Physiography was very prosperous in our Tang Dynasty. The peculiar appearance of Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty was explained by physiognomy as being 'incomparably valuable'. The five flesh pillars on the forehead of Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty are called dragon rhinoceros in the terminology of the photo books, which are the symbols of the emperor.

After saying this, Su Chen suddenly realized and understood.

He seems to have indeed heard of the ancient art of physiognomy. The more bizarre the appearance, the more expensive it is.

Some historical celebrities in history books are often described like this, such as Zhu Yuanzhang.

(End of this chapter)