What is the Han Empire going to the world?

When the army of Emperor Gaozu Liu Bang entered Xianyang, the second Punic War between ancient Rome and Carthage was going on. In 192, the Roman emperor Commodus was killed and the early empire ended. This year is the third year of the Eastern Han Dynasty. Xian Di was hijacked, the country was caught in a war of division, and the Eastern Han Empire actually collapsed.

Both eastern and western empires are developing according to their own trajectories. If there is some synchronization, it can only be a historical coincidence, because so far, we can find very little evidence of exchanges between the two empires.

Before the Western Han Dynasty, the connection between Qin's hometown and the west may have existed, but it did not form a stable communication line. An important reason is that the Chinese nation is separated from the outside world by many non-Chinese nations. From the Central Plains to the west, it must pass through Rong, Qiang, Xiongnu and the western regions, and to the southwest, it must pass through the southwest Yi region. In the state of isolation or vendetta between ethnic groups, it is naturally very difficult to use and cross each other's areas. Until the beginning of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, this situation has not changed.

In the third year of Jianyuan (BC 138), Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty learned from the Xiongnu population that Da Yue originally lived between Dunhuang and Qilian Mountains and was forced to move westward under the attack of Xiongnu. The Huns cut off the head of the big moon king and made it into a container for wine. Under the expulsion of Wusun, Da Yue moved to Guishui (now Amu Darya). Da Yue hated the Huns, but he couldn't get revenge because he didn't help. After learning this, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty came up with the idea of contacting the Yue family to attack the Huns and ordered the recruitment of envoys of the Yue family. Zhang Qian, a native of Chenggu, Hanzhong (now Chenggu County, Shaanxi Province), was recruited as a Langguan and led more than 100 followers such as Gan Fu to leave Longxi County. When passing through Xiongnu area, Zhang Qian and his party were detained and sent to Khan compound. Shan Yu said, "The moon man is in our north. How can the Han Dynasty send messengers? If I send a special envoy to South Vietnam, can the Han Dynasty let me pass? " Appreciation of Landscape Paintings He left Zhang Qian behind, gave him a wife and told him never to leave. Although Zhang Qian had a wife and children, he always kept the envoys granted by the imperial court and never forgot his mission. Gan Fu, a Hun, was a domestic slave of Tang Houyi in the Han Dynasty. He is good at riding and shooting birds and beasts, helping Zhang Qian tide over the difficulties. After more than ten years, the Huns relaxed their surveillance. Zhang Qian, Gan Fu and others finally got the chance to escape and continued to move westward. After dozens of days of arduous trekking, they finally crossed the Green Ridge (now Pamirs) and arrived at Dawan (now Fergana Valley). Dawan Wang has long heard that the Han Dynasty was very rich and powerful, but he has been unable to communicate. He welcomed the arrival of Zhang Qian. Zhang Qian explained the intention of the mission, asked Dawan King to send them to Yueshi, and promised to give them a generous reward after returning to Han. King Dawan sent guides and translators to Kangzhou, and from Kangzhou to Yueshi (now northern Afghanistan). At this time, the Vietnamese had defeated Daxia, lived and worked in peace and contentment here, and had no interest in revenge against the Huns. Zhang Qian stayed for more than a year, but still got nowhere, so he had to return home. They wanted to return to China through the Hexi Corridor, but they were detained by the Huns. More than a year later, Khan died and the Huns were in civil strife. Zhang Qian fled back to the Han Dynasty with his wife and father, and returned to Chang 'an in the third year of Yuanshuo (BC 126).

Although Zhang Qian didn't complete the mission of contacting Da Yueshi, he provided a lot of unheard-of information for the Han Dynasty, and also spread the situation of the Han Dynasty in the western regions. Sima Qian's Records of the Western Regions in Historical Records and Biography of Dawan were compiled according to Zhang Qian's experience.

Zhang Qian directly reported his experience in the Western Regions to Emperor Wu, and introduced the situation of Dawan, Wusun, Kangju, Chae Yeon, Da Yue, rest in peace, adjustment and summer, which made the ambitious emperor unheard of and opened his eyes.

Dawan produces wine and is a good horse. Horse sweat is like blood, and it is a descendant of Tianma.

All the rivers to the west of Khotan flow westward to the West Sea. The river east of Khotan flows eastward and injects salt. The water from the salt marsh flows underground, flows out of the ground and flows south to become the source of the Yellow River. This area is rich in jade, and the Yellow River flows into China.

The customs of Wusun are the same as those of Xiongnu. Tens of thousands of people can bow and shoot arrows. They are brave and good at fighting. I used to surrender to the Huns, but now I am strong. I was inseparable from the Huns and refused to go to the court again.

Resting thousands of miles west of Da Yue, people settled down, engaged in agriculture, planted rice and wheat and produced wine. There is a city like Dawan, which is hundreds in size and thousands of miles in territory. It is the largest country in that region. In the Guishui (Amu Darya) valley, there is a market where people do business with cars and boats, and the countries that trade are thousands of miles away. With silver coins, the image of the king is cast on it, and the silver coins will be replaced when the king dies. The words are written on the leather, all of which are written horizontally. The rest has a branch in the west and Chae Yeon and Li Xuan in the north.

The branch is thousands of miles west of the rest, facing the west sea (Mediterranean), and the climate is hot and humid, so people grow rice. There is a big bird that lays eggs as big as an urn. China people are good at magic. The rest of the elders said there were weak water and queen mother of the west, but they had never seen them.

However, because the Huns were still between the Han Dynasty and the Western Regions, it was difficult for Emperor Wudi to make a difference for a while. In the fourth year of Yuanshou (before 1 19), Zhang Qian suggested to Emperor Wu that Wu Sun should return to his hometown in Hexi. He said: "Now the Huns have just been defeated by us, and the former site of evil king Kun in Hexi is empty, and barbarians covet the property of the Han family. If we can spend a lot of money to win Wusun, attract him back to his hometown in the East and become brothers with the Han Dynasty, then we will be sure. Once an alliance is made with Wusun, countries such as Daxia in the West can attract peace. " Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty named Zhang Qian as a corps commander and sent him to the Western Regions again. Zhang Qian led 300 people, each with two horses, carrying tens of thousands of cattle and sheep, tens of millions of gold coins and silks, and accompanied by several envoys, ready to be sent to neighboring countries respectively under the condition of convenient transportation. When Zhang Qian arrived in Wusun (now the Ili River Basin and Lake Issyk Kul area), it coincided with the civil strife in the whole country. Wusun people did not want to be enemies with Xiongnu, but were willing to contact with Han Dynasty. In the second year of Ding Yuan (1 15), they sent envoys to Chang 'an with Zhang Qian. Zhang Qian sent envoys to Dawan, Kangju, Da Yue, Daxia, Rest in Peace, Body Poison, Khotan, Kilometers and other countries (now Central Asia, Kazakhstan and other countries, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, and western Xinjiang), and returned more than a year later with the envoys of various countries. Since then, the Han dynasty has been in constant contact with envoys and businessmen from various countries in the western regions.

Although Zhang Qian's two missions failed to achieve military objectives, he established direct contact between the Han Dynasty and other countries in the Western Regions. His achievements in "hollowing out" (opening up) the western regions were highly praised by the ruling and opposition parties, and Zhang Qian also had great influence in the western regions. All countries know the name "Bo Wanghou" (knighted in Zhang Qian). Since then, the "Silk Road" has been opened, connecting the two major civilization centers of the East and the West.

The name of the Silk Road was first put forward by German geographer Richthofen in his book China published in 1877. Refers to the traffic routes between Han Dynasty and Central Asia and India, mainly silk trade. Later research results extended the western part of this road to the west coast of the Mediterranean and Asia Minor.

Silk, a specialty of China, was introduced to Central Asia and India as early as the Qin and Han Dynasties. However, the direct trade route didn't start until Zhang Qian returned from the Western Regions for the second time, but it didn't keep smooth until the establishment of the capital of the Western Regions in 60 BC.

The Silk Road starts from Chang 'an, reaches Ban Long in the west, passes through Hexi Corridor, exits Yumenguan or Yangguan, passes through Bailongdui, and reaches Loulan in the northwest of Lop Nur today. At this point, it is divided into two roads: North Road goes to Quli (now Korla City, Xinjiang) along Peacock River West, and passes through Leo, Luntai, Qiuci (now Kuche County) and Gu Mo (now Aksu City) to Shule (now Kashgar City); South Road passes through Shanshan Mud City (now Ruoqiang County), and southwest along Qierqin River passes through Qiemo, Bai Weiling, Yutian (now Hotan City), Pishan (now Pishan County) and shache (now shache county) to Shule. After the Eastern Han Dynasty forced the Northern Xiongnu to move westward, it opened up a "Northern New Road", that is, from Dunhuang to Yiwu in the north, passing through Liu Zhong, Gaochangbi and Jiaohe City in front of Cheshi in the west (all in Turpan Basin), crossing the Tianshan Mountains, passing through Yanqi and Qiuci, and then passing through the North Road to Shule. From Shule to the west, through the green ridge, through today's Fergana Valley, across the Amu Darya River, to the Mediterranean coast. From here, along the southwest direction of the Mediterranean, you can reach Li Xuan (Li Xuan, now Alexandria). Starting from Shule, you can directly cross the Alai Plateau in the west and Afghanistan today, and you can also encounter the above roads. The other left the country from the southwest of Pishan along the south road, passing through Hangdu (now Dalil) and Maobin (now Kabul, Afghanistan) to Wuyishan (now Sistan), which was called "Maobin Wuyishan Exit Road" in the Eastern Han Dynasty. Under the land or along the land westward to the Persian Gulf, or southward to Karachi, Pakistan.

The Silk Road Camels on the Silk Road are not only used in the silk trade, but also grapes, pomegranates, alfalfa, beans, flax, cucurbitaceae, garlic, walnuts, spices, pearls, furs, good horses and camels from the Central Plains, handicrafts, metal products, ironware and paper from the Western Regions are also transported to the West. Music, dance, acrobatics, Buddhism and Buddhist art in the western regions, as well as well as drilling wells, cast iron and agricultural technology in the Central Plains, are all spread and exchanged.

However, the direct connection between the Han Dynasty and the Roman Empire was omitted. In the 9th year of the Eastern Han Dynasty (97), Gan Ying, a subordinate of Ban Chao, the protector of the western regions, was sent to Daqin (Roman Empire). Gan Ying set out from Tagan City (now southwest of Xinhe County, Xinjiang), the capital of the Western Regions, and after a long journey, arrived at the seaside of Tiaozhi (now Persian Gulf). Just as he was preparing to cross the sea, the crew members of interested countries (now the Iranian plateau and the two river basins) said to him, "The sea surface is very vast, and it takes three months to cross when encountering a downwind and two years when encountering a headwind, so everyone who enters the sea should prepare enough food for three years." Moreover, sailing at sea is easy to homesick, and people often die at sea. Hearing this, Gan Ying dared not cross the sea and had to come back. "。 In this way, the Han Dynasty and the Roman Empire missed each other, and the direct communication between East and West was delayed for at least 70 years. If Gan Ying can have Zhang Qian's adventurous spirit, then the history of China's official envoys' arrival in Europe and Africa should begin at the end of 1 year, not more than 1000 years later.

The purpose of others to prevent direct contact between the Han Dynasty and the Roman Empire was to monopolize the interests of silk entrepot trade. However, at that time, the Han Dynasty defeated the northern Xiongnu and regained control of the Western Regions. The rest of the people were awed by the power of the Han Dynasty, and did not dare to stop it directly. But Gan Ying was frightened by this sentence.

Zhang Qian had seen Zhang Qiong and Shubu produced in Sichuan Basin in summer, and learned that these items were transported to summer by body poison (India). This shows that this traffic route existed at the latest in BC 126. Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty once sent messengers from Sichuan to find the road to ptomaine, but due to the uncooperative of the local ethnic groups, he only went to Yunnan (now Dianchi Lake, Yunnan Province). Later, after the road leading to the western regions in Hexi Corridor was opened, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty was no longer interested in the road leading to the southwest.

In fact, as early as 22 1 year BC, Qin Shihuang sent people to renovate the road from Sichuan basin to Yunnan today-"Wuchi Road". "Wuchi Road" passes through the rugged and steep mountainous area, and can only be opened in a short time by using the existing sidewalks and trails. It can be seen that this traffic line has existed for many years. From the "five-foot road", you can connect to the "body poison road", that is, the communication line that people have been using from Yunnan to India via present-day Myanmar. Zhang Qiong and corn are not very valuable materials. If the transportation cost is too high, businessmen will be unprofitable, so this traffic line should be relatively smooth and convenient.

In the 9th year of Yongyuan in the Eastern Han Dynasty (97), Wang Yongyou of Shan State came into contact with the Han Dynasty. In the first year of Yongning (120), Yong Youdiao presented the magic man (acrobat) of Haixi (Daqin, Roman Empire) to Luoyang. The Romans entered through present-day Myanmar, which proved that there was indeed an important road from present-day Sichuan and Yunnan to the west through Myanmar and India. This traffic line also exported silk and other materials to the west, especially when the Silk Road in the northwest land was cut off and gradually declined, this traffic line played a great role. In recent years, some scholars call it the Southwest Silk Road, or a part of the Maritime Silk Road.

The air route from Chinese mainland to the Korean Peninsula has existed for a long time, and it became a very convenient communication line from the end of the Warring States to the Qin Dynasty, so there were a large number of immigrants in the north and south of the peninsula at that time. Although the legend of Xu Fuding's residence in Japan has not been fully confirmed, it is certain that there were many routes from Chinese mainland to the Japanese archipelago as early as the Qin Dynasty, and all of them could sail to Japan from Liaodong Peninsula, Shandong Peninsula, Zhejiang and Fujian in the Han Dynasty. In the second year of the Eastern Han Dynasty (57 years), the emissary of slave countries went to Luoyang, and Emperor Guangwu gave him a seal. 1784, this gold "Han Wei (Japan) slave Wang Yin" was unearthed in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan, which completely confirmed this record.

The History of Han Geography also records the route between the Western Han Dynasty and southern overseas:

From Rinan (now the central coast of Vietnam) to Zhang Sai, Xuwen (now the southwest of xuwen county, Guangdong) and Hepu (now Beihai City and Hepu County, Guangxi), the ship can sail in May, with Duyuan country: it can sail in April, and Lu Yi has no country; After more than 20 days of sailing, he left the country; After walking for more than ten days, Fu Gan's belly was exposed. From Fugandu to Lu, there is Huang Zhiguo, whose folk custom is similar to that of Zhu Ya (now northeast of Hainan Island).

From Huang Zhichuan to Pizong in August; The ship can sail in February and reach the border of Rinan and Xianglin (now Weichuan County, Quang Nam Province, Vietnam). South of the Yellow Branch, there is a journey to serve the country, and Chinese-English translation has since returned.

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Today, there are different understandings of these place names, and some contents in the article are still difficult to explain correctly, but it is generally certain that sailing from central and southern Vietnam, Guangxi coast and Leizhou Peninsula at that time could lead to Southeast Asia and South Asia. In the 9th year of Yan Xi in the Eastern Han Dynasty (166), "An Dun, king of the Great Qin Dynasty, sent envoys from Japan to offer ivory, rhinoceros horn and tortoise shell". Although it is entirely possible that Roman merchants used the name of the messenger, this is the first official contact between the Roman Empire and the Han Dynasty. The "emissary" apparently entered the Han Dynasty from the sea via Japan.

The communication with overseas countries in Han Dynasty not only brought a lot of material products to China, but also introduced foreign cultures, among which Buddhism originated in India had the greatest influence.

There are different opinions about the time when Buddhism was introduced into China. The most credible is the Biography of Wei Lue Xi Rong quoted in the Biography of the Three Kingdoms Shu Wei Dongyi, that is, Lu Jing, a doctoral disciple of Emperor Yuan Shou of the Han Dynasty, accepted the Fautu Sutra dictated by Da Yue's envoy Yicun. Doctoral disciples are also willing to accept foreign messengers to preach scriptures, which shows that this belief has attracted the attention of people above the middle class at that time and can be regarded as evidence of the introduction of Buddhism.

In the early years of the Eastern Han Dynasty, monks from Tianzhu (India) arrived in Luoyang to spread Buddhism. It is explained that the Emperor (reigned in 58 ~ 75 AD) once dreamed that Jin people came empty-handed and told his ministers to dream. Yi Fu said, "I heard that there is a god in the western regions called Buddha. Your dream must be Buddha. " Ming Di sent Cai Qing, a doctor, and Qin Jing, a disciple of the doctor, to Tianzhu to look for Buddhism, where they met She Moteng and Zhu Falan and invited them to the Han Dynasty. When Morten and Cai Qing came to Luoyang, Ming Di personally greeted them and built a temple outside the West Gate. This is the earliest White Horse Temple in China. Zhu Falan also arrived in Luoyang soon, and he quickly learned Chinese. All died in Luoyang. At that time, some upper-class people believed in Buddhism, such as Ming Di's brother, Liu Ying, the king of Chu, who worshipped Buddhism. But at that time, Buddhism was regarded as one of all kinds of immortal magic, and the Buddha was attached to Huang Lao for sacrifice.

1 In the middle of the century, the Yueshi (Guishuang country) was constantly in war, and a large number of refugees moved eastward to the western countries. Some of them moved to Dunhuang, while others continued to move eastward. For example, Zhiqian's grandfather was a monk. During the reign of Emperor Han Ling, he led hundreds of people to Luoyang and was named a good commander in chief. Therefore, the former branch was called "Henan Branch". In the war at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the family members of Henan Branch moved to the south of the Yangtze River.

The Sogdians (or Kangju and Guo Kang) between Amu Darya and Syr Darya in Central Asia are good at business and travel widely. Some Sogdians became monks in Tianzhu, and then came to Han to spread Buddhism with the Sogdians who were doing business (called Shanghu at that time). For example, when Ling Di and Kang came to Luoyang, Kang Ju and Kang were engaged in translating Buddhist scriptures into Chinese. Emperor Kang Carboniferous came to the Central Plains when he was Emperor Lingdi, and Dixian moved to Huzhou (now Zhejiang) when he was Emperor Lingdi. In this way, Mahayana Buddhist Prajna Sutra was introduced into China, and a large number of Buddhist Sutras were translated into Chinese.

In the fourth year of Chuping (193), Danyang people merged into grain for Xuzhou Mu County, Tao Qian County and Duguangling County. And use public funds to build pagodas and temples and bronze pagodas to attract believers by reducing corvee. This is the earliest Buddhist statue and the record of attracting believers on a large scale.

The main route for the introduction of Buddhism and the arrival of Buddhists in China is the land route through Hexi Corridor in the northwest, but the southern sea route is also an important source. For example, Kangju people lived in Tianzhu for generations, and their parents moved to Jiaotuo (now northern and central Vietnam) to do business. After becoming a monk in his teens, Kang Sanghui arrived in Jianye (now Nanjing, Jiangsu) in the tenth year of Wu Chiwu (247). Apparently, the Buddhist monks' association arrived in Jiao Jiao by sea and then went north. In recent years, according to archaeological findings, some scholars have confirmed that Buddhism was introduced into China from the South Road much earlier.

Buddhism spread in the Han Dynasty for more than 200 years, and had a fairly broad foundation in the Central Plains, and eventually became the most important religion in the Southern and Northern Dynasties, which had a far-reaching impact on the development of China culture and China history.

With the expansion of the territory of the Han dynasty, many ethnic minorities around moved to the mainland, and immigrants from overseas countries, especially Central Asia and West Asia, also moved to the mainland. There are many floating people engaged in trade, and they are called "businessmen". The imported products imported by Shanghu have become the hobbies and collections of dignitaries. At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the number of businessmen in Luoyang and other big cities was considerable. In order to collect rabbit hair, Liang Ji, the ruler at that time, once stipulated that people should not kill rabbits, and offenders would be executed. A businessman from the western regions did not understand and killed a rabbit by mistake. As a result, in the process of tracing, more than ten people were implicated in this murder case. It can be seen that the number of tigers in Luoyang is quite large, which is no different from that of ordinary residents. Lin Yulang, a Yuefu poem written by Xin Yannian in the Eastern Han Dynasty, describes a 15-year-old "restaurant Hu" (a Hu girl selling wine) being teased by nobles and slaves, which shows that Hu has opened a hotel in Luoyang and Hu Ji has begun to be favored by people.

At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Emperor Ling had a special liking for Hu, and he loved Hu Chuang, Hu Zan, Hu Di and Hu Dance. Under his influence, the nobles in Beijing followed suit and became a fashion. These clothes, furniture, food, musical instruments, music and dances from abroad could not have been formed without a large number of communication carriers-immigrants and floating population. However, this cultural phenomenon also has a great influence on China's traditional culture, so the authors of the official history such as the Book of the Later Han Dynasty call it "subduing demons" and think it is an "ominous sign" that leads to turmoil and national subjugation.

The Han Dynasty, like the Tang Dynasty, was a relatively open era in the history of China, and it was also an era that attracted more foreign cultures in the history of China. However, due to historical limitations, this kind of openness is still quite limited, which is completely different from the openness we require today. Because of this, this kind of opening did not bring all the positive effects to the Han Dynasty.

Emperor Wu of Meihua sent Zhang Qian to the Western Regions to contact Da Yue and Wusun to deal with the Huns. The purpose of fighting in the southwest is to obtain "imported goods" from abroad, militarily contain the Huns and satisfy their desire of "weeds all over the world"; To go to war with Dawan, we should not only plunder the local BMW, but also provide Li Guangli with the opportunity to seal the Hou. Although these measures objectively played a role in expanding the territory, opening up traffic in the western regions and southwest regions, and promoting cultural exchanges between China and foreign countries, they did not change the concepts of Emperor Wu and Han people at all. Moreover, it did not benefit the Han dynasty economically, but caused huge material losses and increased the burden on the people.

The number of envoys sent by Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty to foreign countries is as many as a dozen batches each year, ranging from several hundred to several hundred people. In addition to collecting treasures and fabricating anecdotes to arouse Emperor Wu's new interest, these messengers also went abroad to show off their wealth, spend money like water, or seek benefits for themselves. The "foreign guests" they recruited received special treatment from Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty. In order to show the "wealth" of the Han Dynasty, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty gave them a lot of money as a reward, and even set up a wine pool and a meat forest to perform acrobatics, magic and wrestling, which everyone enjoyed. Let them visit the granary everywhere and take whatever they want, or let these foreigners tremble in the face of the huge material wealth of the Han Dynasty. In the later period of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, the population declined, the treasury was empty and the people were displaced, which had a lot to do with this profligate opening. Therefore, it is not difficult to understand why Emperor Wudi's "Four Musts of Westernization", including sending Zhang Qian to the Western Regions, was criticized and opposed by his subjects at that time; Why did Emperor Guangwu of the Eastern Han Dynasty resolutely refuse to restore the capital of the Western Regions, and later monarchs and ministers often considered giving up the Western Regions?

Landscape map While a large number of western businessmen came to Han to do business for profit, no Han businessmen went out to do business or sell goods. It was westerners and other foreigners who made money on the Silk Road, not the Han Dynasty. Except for official emissaries, Han people are strictly forbidden to leave the country. Up to now, we haven't found any record of the Han Dynasty sending people abroad for political or military purposes, and we haven't found any comments that the Han people think it is necessary to learn from foreign countries. Buddhism may be the only exception.

Therefore, it seems accidental for Gan Ying to miss the Roman Empire, but in fact it is inevitable. Even if Gan Ying really arrives in Daqin, will history be rewritten? You can say for sure: No, because there is no requirement to communicate with overseas civilization centers in either the Western Han Dynasty or the Eastern Han Dynasty. Besides, Gan Ying was only a representative sent by the local government, and had no official mission, so leaving halfway did not cause the investigation of the court or the dissatisfaction of the people. If he really went to the Roman Empire, he probably wouldn't have done more than Zhang Qian.

We should not criticize Emperor Wudi or other Han Chinese, because in the East at that time, the Han Dynasty was indeed the country with the strongest national strength and the highest cultural level. The resources of the Han Dynasty were enough to feed the whole population and meet all the needs of the development of agricultural civilization, and there was no need to seek resources and markets from outside. In the sphere of influence of Zhang Qian and other emissaries, there is actually no superior and more advanced material civilization and cultural civilization than the Han Dynasty. Their report made Emperor Wu and Han people more convinced that they were completely normal in the world, in the richest, most civilized and most advanced places in the world.

But when we sum up our historical experience today, we must see these limitations. If we think that the "openness" of the Han Dynasty is worthy of our inheritance, it will be counterproductive to look at today's openness with the mentality of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty.