For every emperor in ancient China, learning to balance power was a required course. It is similar to the separation of powers in the United States, where the strengths of each party need to be checked and balanced.
The only difference is that the emperor balances the power of his subjects to rule autocratically.
When Zhu Yuanzhang first established the Ming Dynasty, he had no intention of wiping away Liu Bowen. Because he needed Liu Bowen to run the country.
Zhu Yuanzhang needed Liu Bowen to do many things for him. But as a successful politician, Zhu Yuanzhang took a broader view and took three steps to check Liu Bowen’s power.
First Step: Limit Power
After the founding of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang began to assign rights to the meritorious officials. Liu Bowen’s credit is not smaller than that of Li Shanchang, but Liu Bowen’s rights are far less than Li’s rights.
In fact, Liu Bowen’s official position was mainly responsible for supervising officials of the Ming Dynasty. Such a situation was straightforward to offend other officials of the Ming Dynasty.
Apparently, Zhu Yuanzhang did not trust Liu Bowen and deliberately suppressed him.
Second Step: Build an Enemy
To control Liu Bowen, Zhu Yuanzhang had deliberately asked who could serve as the prime minister of the Ming Dynasty. Zhu Yuanzhang proposed three lists, but was rejected by Liu Bowen.
When Liu Bowen returned home, the dialogue between him and Zhu Yuanzhang was deliberately leaked out by Zhu Yuanzhang, causing the three nominees to be dissatisfied with Liu Bowen.
The three nominees included Hu Weiyong, who finally became Zhu Yuanzhang’s executioner and poisoned Liu Bowen.
Third Step: Cancellation of Pensions
In 1375, Liu Bowen’s pension was canceled by Zhu Yuanzhang. Obviously, the attack on the old and frail Liu Bowen was serious.
After losing his pension, Liu Bowen’s body began to deteriorate, and eventually he was ill. After Zhu Yuanzhang knew the news of Liu Bowen’s illness, he immediately ordered Hu Weiyong to visit.
As a former political enemy, Zhu Yuanzhang also secretly instructed Hu Weiyong to eliminate Liu Bowen.
Finally, Hu Weiyong went to visit his political enemies with poison. When Liu Bowen drank the medicine of Hu Weiyong, Liu Bowen’s life ended here. The Ming Dynasty lost another hero, and Zhu Yuanzhang seemed to be able to sleep well.
In Conclusion
In my opinion, the struggle for rights in the Ming Dynasty is fierce, and Zhu Yuanzhang does not believe in any of the courtiers.
For example, Hu Weiyong, who is responsible for poisoning Liu Bowen, didn’t escape the bad luck eliminated by Zhu Yuanzhang.
