Han Shizu

Chapter 2183 Peninsula History: King Huan
When the two most important commanders in the development of Linyi Kingdom had disagreements and even a split, it was bound to have a major impact on the development of Linyi Kingdom, and this impact was bound to be negative.

When an irreconcilable contradiction arises between the two, one side will inevitably be destroyed, and the winner is undoubtedly Liu Wenyan, after all, he occupies the righteousness of the king.

In the sixth year of Jianlong in the Han Empire (1023), Liu Gong, Marquis of Mao, was executed in Jinzhou, the capital of Linyi State, when he was less than fifty years old. People at that time lamented and regretted it.

The death of Mao Hou was undoubtedly a huge loss for Linyi. It interrupted Linyi's pioneering and enterprising spirit since its founding, and in fact affected Linyi's annexation process of Zhenla Kingdom in the north.

This incident can be said to be the biggest stain in the life of Liu Wenyan, who had been wise and brave all his life, and the most criticized part. After all, no matter what fault Liu Gong had, at least his crime was not punishable by death, and the reason for his execution was also a "false charge".
If we really want to say what crime Liu Gong committed, it can be summed up in eight words: his achievements were so great that they frightened the ruler, and his talent was difficult to control.

For decades, Liu Gong has been known as Linyi's first meritorious official and general, and is well-known in Southeast Asia. Of course, he deserves this honor and achievement.

By the sixth year of Jianlong, more than half of the 11 states occupied by the Linyi Kingdom were conquered or pacified by Liu Gong's army, and he also basically participated in the conquest of the rest.

In the early days, Liu Shu established eight states, namely Jin, Qing, Phu, Ping, Ninh, Shun, Song and De, on the basis of the old site of Champa. Later, during the war between the empire and Zhenla, he took the opportunity to capture the lower Mekong Delta region. After ten years of immigration, development and management, he established Jiangzhou, Jianzhou and Maozhou.

The latter three states were conquered by Liu Wenyan and Liu Gong together, but it was Liu Gong who was in charge of the subsequent management and consolidation, as well as the continued attacks on the Zhenla Kingdom.

It is important to know that the "strategy of destroying the state" of Linyi against Zhenla was proposed by Liu Gong, who was responsible for its implementation and achieved great results. The trend of Linyi's complete annexation of Zhenla was only formed after Liu Gong's repeated harassment and plunder for more than ten years.

Although Liu Wenyan and Liu Gong have a bit of a "rival" reputation in Linyi, if we compare their actual battle records and contributions, Liu Wenyan is much weaker than Liu Gong.

Because of his hard work and great achievements, Liu Shu appointed him as the general, the governor of Zhenla, and granted him the title of Marquis of Mao, and made Maozhou his residence and fief. Maozhou is roughly the location of Phnom Penh in Cambodia in later generations.

One can imagine the favor and trust that Liu Shu showed to Liu Gong, his adopted son and commander-in-chief. This was unmatched among all the powerful nobles. Even his princes and grandchildren, as well as the first foreign relatives such as the Fu family, could not receive such treatment.

Therefore, in addition to Liu Wenyan's suspicion of Liu Gong, the fact that a big tree attracts the wind and is condemned by everyone is probably another important reason for Liu Gong's miserable ending.

At the same time, Liu Gong was originally a slave in the Duke of Chu's Mansion, but he was able to become the backbone of the Linyi Kingdom step by step. He was also adopted as an adopted son by Liu Shu. His reputation spread far and wide to Southeast Asia. His experience was inspiring and was highly respected by countless Han merchants and civilians who went to Southeast Asia.

In the process of the Han people's large-scale colonization of Southeast Asia, countless heroes and successful people emerged, but those who could achieve a starting point like Liu Gong and obtain such great achievements and reputation were rare.

Even if we only talk about Linyi, while Liu Gong was envied and rejected by the old nobles, he had a very high reputation in the eyes of the middle and lower class people. Liu Shu could tolerate this kind of popularity, and Liu Wenyan showed his attitude with practical actions.

Mao Hou Liu Gong was also burdened by his fame.

Before being summoned to Jinlan City, Liu Gong may have had a premonition, so he gave some solemn instructions to his eldest son Liu Kan, asking him to be loyal to the royal family no matter what happened.

However, when the news of Liu Gong's death was reported back to Maozhou, Liu Kan was so angry that he threw his father's instructions to the back of his mind. He then led the troops of Maozhou in rebellion under the banner of revenge.

Because of Liu Gong's prestige and influence in the local area, he had many followers and made a great noise. Liu Kan also quickly led his army to capture Jiangzhou and advance to Songzhou (Ho Chi Minh City) in the east.

As for Liu Wenyan, he was still hesitating about how to deal with the issue between Liu Gong's family and the military and civilians of Maozhou. But when the news of the rebellion reached the royal city, he no longer hesitated.

Therefore, Liu Wenyan personally led 30,000 naval and land forces southward, and Liu Kan led his people to meet them, and the two sides fought in Songzhou. In terms of military command ability, Liu Kan was not even a little bit inferior to his father, and Liu Wenyan was in his prime, and his command ability was not inferior, but more experienced. Coupled with the political offensive and naval advantages, the collapse of the Maozhou rebels was only a matter of time.

Under Liu Wenyan's command, it took Linyi only one and a half months to put down the "Liu Kan Rebellion". However, in order to eliminate the negative impact from Liu Gong's death to the Maozhou Rebellion, Liu Wenyan spent three or four years to barely eliminate it.

Of course, it is difficult to completely eliminate the negative political effects of Liu Gong’s death, which is much greater than Liu Wenyan imagined. It even caused ideological confusion in the Linyi Kingdom to a certain extent.

In comparison, Liu Kan's rebellion was only the most direct and intense reaction. At the same time, the economy of the four southwestern states, including Songzhou, caused serious damage, and the lower Mekong Delta region, which had been managed for 20 years, was nearly half destroyed.

Militarily, not only did Liu Wenyan's prestige in the army decline, but the most elite Maozhou army of Linyi State was also destroyed. Almost all the officers and soldiers were liquidated, and the military strength of Linyi State was greatly damaged.

All these influences required Liu Wenyan to pay a greater price to calm down and make up for them. However, if Liu Wenyan had any regrets, at least when Liu Kan rebelled, he did not.

On the contrary, he was very fortunate at that time. Liu Gong had such a great reputation among the military and civilians, and his family had such a huge influence in the "Hezhou Land". If it was not curbed, what would happen?
However, Liu Wenyan could only slowly taste the bitter consequences in the following years.

Because of this rebellion, the Zhenla Kingdom in the north became concerned. When they learned that Liu Gong, who had oppressed them for twenty years, was killed by the King of Linyi, the entire Zhenla court celebrated. After the civil strife in Linyi, the whole country rejoiced. At least the princes and nobles in the Tonle Sap Lake area who were frequently attacked by Linyi were jubilant and gloating.

Therefore, taking advantage of the fact that the civil strife in Linyi had just subsided and the country was in chaos, the Zhenla Kingdom once again mustered up its courage, united the various princes and nobles in the country who had already established de facto independent regimes, gathered 70,000 soldiers and 10,000 war elephants, and launched a southern expedition, intending to recover the land and cities that had been forcibly seized by Linyi for more than 30 years.

Faced with the counterattack of Zhenla, Liu Wenyan had no choice but to fight back and personally lead the army again, gathering 40,000 naval and land troops, 3,000 cavalry, and 100 artillery pieces, which was a collection of elite troops.

With the accumulation of several decades, it was not too difficult for Linyi to maintain such a large army. However, after the Maozhou Rebellion, it was not so easy for people's hearts and morale to recover. It was that under the stimulation of the national war, the soldiers were still brave and brave.

However, this war, which was said to be the largest-scale national war between the two sides in the past 25 years, took Liu Wenyan half a year to achieve a decisive victory over the Zhenla army.

After this battle, the Linyi army, led by Liu Wenyan, annihilated 20,000 enemies and occupied a large area southwest of Tonle Sap Lake. The Linyi army further spread northward, and was able to reach the capital of Zhenla the next day.

This also directly led to the westward migration of the Zhenla royal family to avoid disaster, and was also a sign of the complete collapse of the Zhenla regime. From then on, the Zhenla court was basically just an empty shell, and there was no longer any control over the local princes and tribes. The vast area in the central part of the peninsula (mainly the modern Thailand area) formed a chaotic situation with warlords separatist.

This situation was originally a great opportunity for the Linyi Kingdom to seize the opportunity to advance and annex other states. However, due to the internal strife and wars that occurred before and after, Liu Wenyan was powerless to do so.

In contrast, the coastal countries, which had established strongholds along the "Gulf" (Bangkok Bay) early on, took the opportunity to expand to the great plains in the central part of the peninsula.

As the King of Linyi, Liu Wenyan knew that he could not only focus on military conquest and rule, but also put more energy into the construction of the national system, the stability of public security, and the recovery of the military and civilians. This was also the most important task in his remaining few years of rule.

Liu Wenyan died in the 1029th year of Jianlong (8) at the age of . He reigned for only years and died diligently. He was posthumously named Huan.

As the king of Linyi, Liu Wenyan's reign was not long, but his contributions to the establishment, development and growth of Linyi Kingdom since his time as crown prince cannot be erased and are even crucial. He laid a solid foundation for the continued expansion during the reign of Liu Jirong, who inherited the throne.

The idea that "the son conquers the world and the father rules it" is most thoroughly reflected in the father and son pair played by Liu Shu and Liu Wen.

Speaking of the family of Maohou Liu Gong, after suppressing the rebellion of Liu Kan, Liu Wenyan carried out a severe purge, deprived them of their titles, exterminated their clan, and uprooted their family from Maozhou.

However, Liu Gong's family line did not end because his third son, Liu Guang, was saved under the protection of the princess because he was Liu Wenyan's son-in-law. But he also lived in fear during the days when Liu Wenyan was in power.

Before Liu Wenyan passed away, perhaps because he felt guilty, or perhaps because of the lingering remembrance of Liu Gong that could never be shaken off by the government and the public, Liu Wenyan restored the title of Marquis Mao and made Liu Gong his successor.

Of course, the restored marquis, in terms of status and treatment, was very different from that of Liu Gong. But when Liu Gong's lineage was passed down to the 7th generation grandson, the Liu family rose again and became the powerful ministers of Linyi State. They once seized the highest power of the country and led Linyi State to participate in the "Nanyang hegemony".
(End of this chapter)