Chapter 276: The Ten Unsolved Mysteries of the Great Zhou
"Hello everyone, I'm Teacher Li. I previously presented a segment titled 'Is the Historical Figure Su Fengzhang a Feminist Champion?' It was incredibly well-received, with viewers leaving comments wanting to know more. So, today, let's discuss the Great Zhou Dynasty in history."
"As everyone knows, the Great Zhou dynasty was the longest-lasting and most influential in Zhongzhou's history, directly leading to the crucial period of Zhongzhou's transition from feudal society to capitalist society. As to whether Su Fengzhang alone was responsible for this transformation, please refer to the previous issue; we won't discuss it here."
"Today, Teacher Li isn't primarily interested in discussing the official history of the Great Zhou. After all, it's all in the history books, and historians have been going over it over and over again for so many years, there's really not much to discuss."
"If not official history, what else can we talk about? Of course, it's unofficial history."
"Today, Teacher Li mainly wants to talk about the ten unsolved mysteries of the Great Zhou Dynasty."
"The ten unsolved mysteries of the Great Zhou Dynasty. First, why did Su Fengzhang never marry?"
"Hey, bringing up this topic, aren't all the women in front of the screen excited? Talk about her homosexual relationship with Prince Cheng, her age-gap romance with Empress Dowager Yun, her childhood sweetheart relationship with Empress Dowager Fang—each one of them could be the subject of a 10,000-word essay."
"But, Teacher Li, let me say this to save my life. The following opinions are solely my own and have no archaeological significance."
"First, we must correctly understand Su Fengzhang. No matter how much the trolls criticize him, from the perspective of the entire history of the Great Zhou Dynasty, and even the history of Zhongzhou, he is still a relatively positive person."
"I'm saying he's relatively positive here, so the trolls don't have to pick on a few specific points. As a politician, it's a bit too demanding to demand that a powerful intellectual be spotless. After all, even if he truly had none, his enemies would surely fabricate some."
"Then why did Su Fengzhang never marry? Teacher Li sincerely believes that the main reason why Su Fengzhang did not marry and have children was the Great Zhou Dynasty."
"Su Fengzhang is a man of great foresight. To what extent is he farsighted? After he came to power, every decree he issued was linked to another, and he directly turned the Great Zhou royal family into a mascot. This shows that he is very capable."
"A person like this would definitely think about whether, if he really married and had children, given his status and position, these rights would also be passed down to his descendants."
"Everyone has selfish desires, even Su Fengzhang would definitely have them. If that day ever comes, the situation he worked so hard to build would return to the way it was before, and the Su family would become another Qin family, another royal family."
"So Su Fengzhang thought about it and decided not to get married. There may have been other reasons, but in Teacher Li's opinion, the best thing Su Fengzhang did in his life was not to leave behind any offspring, thus avoiding this risk."
"Whether everyone in front of the video agrees or disagrees, Teacher Li feels this way anyway."
"The ten unsolved mysteries of the Great Zhou Dynasty. Second, is Prince Cheng Qin Fang a man or a woman?"
"Here, Teacher Li would like to criticize a certain brainless idol drama by name. They directly cast a female actress to play the handsome and good-looking Prince Cheng. Teacher Li has no objection, but you portrayed Prince Cheng as a coy man who only thinks about falling in love all day and tortures Su Fengzhang every day, asking him whether he loves me. I do have an objection."
"Whether Prince Cheng was a man or a woman, no one knows now. After all, this prince lived in seclusion in the Qingshan Mountains with Su Fengzhang, but was burned to ashes by the later emperor. His remains cannot be found, and no archaeological excavation has been carried out."
"However, there are indeed some clues in the historical records of the Great Zhou Dynasty that suggest there's something fishy about Prince Cheng's identity. First, when there was already an adult prince, and a very capable one, why did Emperor Xuanwu pass the throne to Emperor Wen, who was less than three years old? Did he dislike the stability of the Great Zhou royal family, or was he just a bit of a fool?"
"The former is impossible, but the latter is somewhat possible. The more absurd things Emperor Xuanwu did in his life, the more worthy of a program to talk about them, but we won't talk about him today."
"Secondly, there are many unofficial historical records suggesting that Prince Cheng was a woman, that he stayed overnight at the Su family's house, and that he and Su Fengzhang were too close, as if they were married. They later retired together. Regardless of the truth, it is official that Su Fengzhang and Prince Cheng had a relationship beyond friendship."
"Third, in the suicide note left by Xu Siyuan, who once served as the Minister of Revenue, he criticized Prince Cheng for being a hen that crows at dawn. This Xu Siyuan was the Fourth Prince's maternal grandfather at the time, so it's not surprising that he knew the secrets of the imperial palace."
"Fourth, after Prince Cheng ascended to the throne, he was extremely powerful, but his biological mother, Concubine De, remained in seclusion in the cold palace and never appeared in public until her death. This is also very strange."
"Of course, Teacher Li can't tell you exactly whether she's a man or a woman, but even if she is, Prince Cheng is definitely a strong woman who can fight outside and handle official business at home, kill without blinking an eye, and is extremely decisive. She's definitely not some whiny, naive woman."
"The third of the ten unsolved mysteries of the Great Zhou Dynasty: What is the relationship between Su Fengzhang and Qin Fang?"
"Fujoshi, don't be too quick to scream. In fact, Teacher Li has been observing Qin Fang all along and feels that the possibility of her and Su Fengzhang being a couple is higher than the possibility of them being gay."
"Because from Emperor Xuanwu's dying edict to the reactions of those around him, or rather, society's tacit acceptance of the situation, everything was very strange. The strangest thing was that unofficial history records that when Su Fengzhang's mother, Old Lady Su, met Prince Cheng, they interacted like mother-in-law and daughter-in-law."
"Everyone should remember that Madam Su is a woman from ancient times. Her ability to accept things may not be as great as yours."
"The fourth of the ten unsolved mysteries of the Great Zhou Dynasty is: were Su Fengzhang and Qin Fang burned to death in Qingshan?"
"Everyone has probably heard the story of the Decline Emperor's poisonous fire on Qingshan Mountain. In order to force Su Fengzhang and Qin Fang to come out of the mountains to help him, he directly set fire to a hundred thousand mountains. Of course, archaeological evidence now proves that Qingshan Mountain is located in Zhejiang Province, so the number of mountains that were burned is probably not a hundred thousand."
"The history of Zhou Dynasty clearly records that no body was found on Qingshan Mountain, so we can only build a cenotaph for future generations to worship."
"The key point here is that no bodies were found. Not a single body was found. Even if the fire burned bigger, stronger, and longer, it's impossible that Su Fengzhang, Qin Fang, and their guards would have all been burned to ashes, right?"
"So, Mr. Li still tends to believe that Su Fengzhang was well prepared. After all, he's an old fox. How could he not be defeated by a wicked emperor who played himself to death? He must have fled long ago. Of course, the tomb of Su Fengzhang discovered in the neighboring country must be fake."
"The Ten Unsolved Mysteries of the Great Zhou Dynasty, No. 5: Was Emperor Wen truly stupid or just pretending to be stupid?"
Emperor Wen of Zhou is probably one of the most controversial emperors in history. When he was alive, he just ate, drank, and slept every day, living the kind of life that today's office workers envy. He didn't have any lofty ideals. "If you have something to ask, consult Master Su. If you don't have anything to ask, don't bother me." This emperor's most famous saying is:
"Historians used to generally believe that Emperor Wen was a loser and a brainless man, and that he bore most of the responsibility for the collapse of the Great Zhou royal family."
"However, in recent years, a cult has emerged, saying that Emperor Wen endured humiliation and pretended to be stupid, and was lucky to survive under Su Fengzhang, etc. Teacher Li shook his head. Are you stupid? Emperor Wen was already the emperor, why did he need to pretend to be stupid?"
"You have to know that in the later years of Emperor Wen's reign, Su Fengzhang had already retired to the mountains. Did he still need to pretend to be stupid then? As an emperor, he pretended to be stupid his entire life. Before his death, he was still thinking about his little toys and asked his son to stuff them all into the imperial mausoleum. Was this also pretending?"
"If he really is pretending, then Teacher Li would have to sigh that life is like a play. In fact, there is no need to pity Emperor Wen. Maybe he is enjoying it and doesn't know how happy he is to enjoy life."
"The ten unsolved mysteries of the Great Zhou Dynasty, number six: Are Su Fengzhang and He Jun friends or enemies?"
"Teacher Li privately thinks that Su Fengzhang and He Jun are a good pair. Of course, it's about their brotherhood."
"If you understand the history of the Great Zhou, you will know that during several serious foreign invasions, Su Fengzhang and He Jun fought back together. It is a stretch to say that these two are enemies."
"However, there were rumors of discord between generals and ministers, and the release of military power at the parade grounds. The relationship between these two must have been quite complex."
"But please believe one thing, Su Fengzhang and He Junneng are competing in the school field, which shows that their relationship is definitely not too bad. After all, they are men, who would play basketball with someone they don't have a good relationship with?"
"The ten unsolved mysteries of the Great Zhou Dynasty, number seven: Does the legendary Dark Guard exist?"
"This rumor originated from the Declined Emperor. Before his death, the Declined Emperor announced to the world that the Great Zhou Taizu had left behind two secret guards, one in the hands of Su Fengzhang and the other in the hands of Prince Cheng. If one could obtain these two secret guards, he would be able to rule the world."
"Regardless of whether the Declined Emperor was mentally sound at the time, this statement is illogical. There's no such thing as someone who can conquer the world. Furthermore, even if there was one, it would have long since disappeared. Everyone, stop dreaming. If an old man on the street suddenly says you have a special bone structure, he's usually just trying to get you out of your money."
"The ten unsolved mysteries of the Great Zhou Dynasty, number eight: What is the relationship between Su Fengzhang and Emperor Wen?"
"Even Teacher Li has to admire the train of thought of some people here. You spread rumors about Su Fengzhang and Prince Cheng, the two Empress Dowagers, and He Jun's wife. I don't want to say anything more. Why even Emperor Wen?"
"If you're stupid, you should read more books. Emperor Wen loves beautiful women, especially those who are charming and seductive. He thinks women are fragrant and men are smelly. This is no secret."
"Of course. Emperor Wen is indeed a strange person. He is the one who will hug his ministers and cry when he encounters difficulties, shouting, "I love you, my dear minister, can you help me solve this problem?" His words should not be taken seriously."
"As for the rumors about the affair between Emperor Wen and Su Fengzhang, the affair between Emperor Wen and Prince Cheng, the affair between Emperor Wen and Prince Xi, and the affair between Emperor Wen and Minister Li, they are all too strong. I suggest you don't read them. They will damage your brain."
"Ninth of the ten unsolved mysteries of the Great Zhou Dynasty, how did Su Fengzhang and He Jun manage to get the gunpowder into the enemy camp?"
"No matter what method it is, it's not the portable space everyone imagines. Let go of these thoughts of cultivating immortality, keep your feet on the ground, and read the Art of War. Maybe you can crack this secret."
"The ten unsolved mysteries of the Great Zhou Dynasty, number ten: Has anyone traveled through time?"
"Children, go home and read more. Is time travel that easy? The reason the Great Zhou Dynasty left behind so many traces of the modern era is actually due to its highly developed social and economic conditions, as well as its very enlightened political and educational system. This environment led to the frequent emergence of inventors, scientists, and economists, and a plethora of celebrities. Isn't that amazing?"
"Okay, here are today's top ten unsolved mysteries. If you like them, please click three times to share them. If the collection exceeds 100,000, Teacher Li will consider starting a second issue to talk about the top ten unsolved mysteries of the female officials of the Great Zhou Dynasty. Thank you everyone, see you next time."
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