Emperor Jing of Han was the son of Emperor Wen of Han; his mother was Dowager Empress Dou. When Emperor Wen of Han was the Crown Prince in Dai, he had three sons, but later, as Dowager Empress Dou gained favor, all three sons died, allowing Emperor Jing of Han to ascend to the throne.
In 156 BC, the first year of Emperor Jing of Han's reign, on the *yi mao* day of the fourth month, there was a general amnesty. On the *yi si* day, every household was elevated a rank. In the fifth month, land taxes were halved, and a temple for Emperor Wen of Han was established. He also dispensed with the usual court congratulations. That year, the Xiongnu invaded Dai, but negotiations led to a peace agreement.
In the spring of the second year, Emperor Jing of Han appointed Xiao Xi, grandson of the former Prime Minister Xiao He, as the Marquis of Wuling. He also stipulated that marriage and fatherhood were legally delayed until age twenty. On the *ren wu* day of the fourth month, Emperor Wen's Dowager Empress died. The Kings of Guangchuan and Changsha returned to their domains. The Prime Minister Shentu Jia also passed away. In August, Emperor Jing of Han appointed Tao Qing, Grand Master and Marquis of Kaifeng, as Prime Minister. That year, a comet appeared in the sky in the northeast. In the autumn, there was hail in Hengshan, some as large as five inches and accumulating up to two feet deep. Mars appeared to stand still near the North Star. The moon appeared near the North Star, and Saturn also retrograded in the celestial court. Nanling and Neishi Duxian counties were also established.
In the third year's first month, on the Yisi day, there was another amnesty across the country. A comet appeared in the west. The main hall and city walls of the Eastern Palace in Luoyang were burned down by fire from the heavens. King Liu Bi of Wu, King Liu Wu of Chu, King Liu Sui of Zhao, King Liu Yang of Jiaoxi, King Liu Biguang of Jinnan, King Liu Xian of Zichuan, and King Liu Xiong of Jiaodong rebelled and marched west with their troops. In order to quell the rebellion, the Emperor wanted to kill Chao Cuo and sent Yuan Ang to persuade him, but the seven kingdoms did not listen and continued to advance westward to besiege Liangdi (a region). Therefore, Emperor Jing of Han sent General Dou Ying and Grand Commandant Zhou Yafu to lead the troops to suppress the rebels. On the day of Yihai in the sixth month, amnesty was granted to deserters and those who conspired with Chu Prince Liu Wu. Emperor Jing of Han installed General Dou Ying as Marquis of Weiqi, appointed Liu Li, the son of the Prince of Chu, as King of Chu, made Prince Liu Duan King of Jiaoxi, made Prince Liu Sheng King of Zhongshan, relocated Prince Liu Zhi of Jibei as King of Zichuan, made Prince Liu Yu of Huaiyang King of Lu, and made Prince Liu Fei of Runan King of Jiangdu. Qi Prince Liu Jianglu and Yan Prince Liu Jia died.
In the fourth year's summer, Emperor Jing of Han appointed the Crown Prince. Prince Liu Che was also made King of Jiaodong. On the day of Jiaxu in the sixth month, there was a general amnesty across the country. In the same year in September, Yang was changed to Yangling. Customs posts were reestablished to manage the passage of entry and exit at the borders. In winter, Zhao was changed to Handan Commandery.
In March of 145 BC, I was busy working around Yangling and Weiqiao. In May, the court requisitioned laborers to build Yangling, and I allocated 200,000 coins for this purpose. Ah, during that time, there was a huge storm in Jiangdu, blowing in from the west, directly blowing down twelve *zhang* (approximately 36 meters) of the city wall; it was really frightening! On the day of Dingmao, I also appointed the son of the Imperial Princess Chang as Marquis of Longlu. At the same time, the King of Guangchuan was transferred to Zhao.
In the spring of 144 BC, I named Zhongwei as the Marquis of Jianling, Jiangdu Prime Minister Jia as the Marquis of Jianping, Longxi Prefect Hunye as the Marquis of Pingqu, Zhao Prime Minister Jia as the Marquis of Jiangling, and the old general Bu as the Marquis of Shu. Ah, in that year both the King of Liang and the King of Chu passed away. In September, I ordered the felling of trees along the Imperial Highway, and then planted trees in the Orchid Pond.
In the winter of 143 BC, I deposed the Crown Prince, Prince Li, and appointed him as the King of Linjiang. On the last day of November, there was a solar eclipse, which was truly inauspicious. In the spring, I exempted the slaves and prisoners who were conscripted to build Yangling from their forced labor. Prime Minister Qing was also dismissed. On the second day of the second month, I appointed Grand Commandant Zhou Yafu as the Prime Minister. On the second day of the fourth month, I appointed the Dowager Queen of Jiaodong as the Empress, and on the fourth day of the fourth month, I appointed the Prince of Jiaodong as the Crown Prince; his name was Che.
In 142 BC, also known as the Zhongyuan Year, I appointed the grandson of the former Imperial Secretary Zhou Ke, Zhou Ping, as the Marquis of Shèng, and the grandson of the former Imperial Secretary Zhou Chang, Zuo Che, as the Marquis of Anyang. On the second day of the fourth month, I granted a general amnesty to all under heaven, bestowed nobility upon everyone, and lifted the restrictions on some individuals. That year, there was also an earthquake, and hail fell in the Hengshan and Yuandi areas, with hailstones as big as a foot and eight inches long—truly a series of disasters!
In February of 141 BC, the Xiongnu (a nomadic group) invaded the Yan region, and from then on, our relationship with them deteriorated. In March, I summoned the King of Linjiang back to Chang'an, but he died in the Commander-in-Chief's mansion. In the summer, I appointed Prince Yue as the King of Guangchuan, appointed my son Ji as the King of Jiaodong, and granted titles to four marquises. On the day of Jiaxu in September, there was another solar eclipse.
In the winter of 140 BC, I dismissed all the chief inspectors of the vassal states. In the spring, two Xiongnu kings surrendered with their followers, and I made them marquises. I also appointed my son Fang Cheng as the King of Qinghe. In March, a comet appeared in the northwest. Prime Minister Zhou Yafu was dismissed, and I appointed the top inspector, Liu She, as the Prime Minister. In April, there was an earthquake. At the end of September, there was a solar eclipse. The army was stationed outside the eastern capital.
In March of 139 BC, I built the Deyang Palace. That year, there was a terrible plague of locusts. In the autumn, I pardoned the prisoners and slaves who had been conscripted to build the Yangling Tomb.
In the summer of 138 BC, I appointed Prince Shun as the King of Changshan and enfeoffed ten marquises. On the day of Ding Si in June, I granted a general pardon and gave everyone a promotion. That year, there were widespread floods and disasters. I also changed the title of the chief ministers in the vassal states to "Xiang." In the autumn, there was another earthquake.
In February of 141 BC, on the day of Ji Mao, Emperor Jing of Han went on an inspection tour to the Yong region and saw signs of the Five Emperors (the historical record's unclear on the specifics). In March, there was a hailstorm. In April, Prince Xiao of Liang, Prince Gong of Chengyang, and Prince Nan of Runan all died. Emperor Jing of Han appointed Prince Xiao's sons as the Kings of Jichuan, Jidong, Shanyang, and Jiyin, dividing Liang into five smaller kingdoms and creating four marquisates. He also renamed several government positions. He promoted high-ranking officials in the imperial palace and established left and right palace officials, all under the jurisdiction of the imperial palace. On the day of Xin Hai in July, there was a solar eclipse. In August, the Xiongnu invaded Shang Commandery.
In the winter of 140 BC, Emperor Jing of Han ordered the title of Zhong Daifu to be changed to Grand Minister. On the day of Ding You in March, there was a general amnesty, and everyone was promoted by one rank. High-ranking officials and the prime ministers of the vassal states were promoted to Minister of the Right. In April, a lavish banquet was held. On the day of Bing Xu in May, an earthquake occurred, and there was a second quake during breakfast! The earthquake in the Shangyong area lasted for twenty-two days, damaging the city walls. On the day of Yi Si in July, there was a solar eclipse. Prime Minister Liu She was dismissed. On the day of Ren Chen in August, the Grand Master Wans was appointed as the prime minister and was titled as the Jianling Marquis.
In January of 139 BC, three earthquakes occurred within one day! General Zhi led troops to attack the Xiongnu. Afterwards, banquets were held for five consecutive days. Emperor Jing of Han ordered that the Neishi and the counties were not allowed to eat horse feed, which was confiscated for public use. It was also stipulated that slaves could only use coarse cloth for clothing. The use of horses to grind rice was stopped. Due to poor harvest, production of food exceeding the year's harvest was banned nationwide. The number of marquises returning to their hometowns was reduced. In March, the Xiongnu invaded Yanmen again. In October, the land tax of Changling began to be collected. That year was marked by severe drought, and plagues occurred in Hengshan country, Hedong county, and Yunzhong county.
In October of 138 BC, the sun and the moon turned red for five days. On the last day of December, the sun appeared purple (the historical record offers no further detail). The five planets retrograded and remained in the Taiwei Palace (a celestial palace). The moon traversed the Tian Ting (a celestial palace). On the day of Jia Yin in January, the Crown Prince's coronation ceremony took place. On the day of Jia Zi, Emperor Jing of Han passed away. Before his death, Emperor Jing left a decree, granting everyone from kings to commoners a promotion by one rank, and rewarding every household in the country with one hundred coins. The palace maids were dismissed. The Crown Prince ascended to the throne, becoming Emperor Wu of Han. In March, Emperor Wu of Han appointed Liu Fen, the brother of the Empress Dowager, as the Marquis of Wuan, and another brother Liu Sheng as the Marquis of Zhouyang. A mausoleum was also built in Yangling.
Sima Qian said: After the establishment of the Han Dynasty, Emperor Wen of Han implemented benevolent governance, bringing peace to the world. By the time of Emperor Jing of Han, there was no longer any worry about the power of the princes. However, Chao Cuo was eager to weaken the power of the kingdoms, which resulted in seven kingdoms rebelling together and launching an attack on the western regions. The root cause was that the power of the kingdoms was too great, and Chao Cuo's measures were too hasty and lacked gradual progress. Later, Zhu Fu Yan proposed a suggestion, adopting a gentle strategy, which gradually weakened the power of the kingdoms and ultimately brought stability to the realm. The key to national security lies in meticulous planning, doesn't it?
Look, during the Han Dynasty, things were so much better during Emperor Wen's reign, and the common people lived peaceful lives. By the time of Emperor Jing, those princes weren't really a big issue, but Chao Cuo insisted on hastily weakening their power, and that blew up in his face. Basically, the princes were too powerful, and Chao Cuo was too hasty, upsetting everyone and causing a huge mess. Later, Zhu Fu Yan came up with an idea to gradually weaken the princes, which finally resolved the situation. So there you have it – a country needs a good plan; you can't just rush things!
