The emperor who invented chess and kept a low profile would have unified China if he hadn't lived for a short time.

Life is like chess, walking on thin ice. There is an emperor in history who not only invented chess, but also calculated every step of his life accurately: crossing the sea to get rid of the powerful ministers, making friends with the north and the south, destroying the enemy with one sword in three years, leaving behind the pieces of chess. Alas, every day is false, and he died young. If God gives him a few more years, it is very likely that another hero in history will appear-Emperor Yu Wenyong of the Northern Zhou Dynasty.

Yu Wenyong was born in an imperial family. His father was Wen Tai, a native of Quan Xiangyu in the Western Wei Dynasty. His two brothers, Zhou Xiaomin's Yu Wenjue and Zhou Mingdi Yu Wenyu, will soon become the third emperor in the Northern Zhou Dynasty after his two brothers. On the surface, Yu Wenyong is so lucky and has a bright future. But in fact, Yu Wenyong lives in a dangerous environment, and his life is in danger at any time. The Northern Zhou Dynasty was the usurper of Wei. Before Yu Wentai died, because his son was young, he gave power to his nephew Yuwen Hu to keep the land laid by Yuwen Hu's family. Yu Wenhu, who was worthy of his uncle, made two cousins emperors and killed two "disobedient" cousins. And Yu Wenyong is his third cousin, the emperor. Whether to be killed in the footsteps of his two brothers, or to do something with his wisdom to save his life, the harsh reality is in front of Yu Wenyong.

How did the two brothers die? For one reason, he was dissatisfied with Yuwen Hu's autocratic power, unwilling to be Yuwen Hu's puppet emperor, and eager to recover his power. He was thoughtless. Just like when Emperor Xian of the Han Dynasty tried to kill Cao Cao in the Three Kingdoms, how easy was it? If you mess with Cao Cao, you will die. Yuwen Hu, Yu Wenxuan and Yu Wenyu are brothers, but in the face of life and power, family ties are so thin. If I don't kill you, you will kill me. I would rather kill you than wait for you to kill me. The Yuwen family are all Xianbei people, and they are not deeply influenced by the three cardinal guides and five permanent members of Confucianism. Compared with one's own life, it is obvious that the latter will prevail. Yu Wenyong became the third emperor of Yuwen Hu and faced the same danger as his two brothers.

Yuwen Yong was only eighteen when he inherited the Northern Zhou Dynasty. In order to avoid the unfortunate fate of his two brothers, he wisely chose forbearance, not only respectfully to Yuwen Hu, but also willingly let him master state affairs and military power, and led the royal family to pay homage to Yuwen Hu's mother, so as to relieve Yuwen Hu's vigilance against him. This "forbearance" was twelve years, during which Yuwen Yong did two great things. First, chess was invented and perfected. The history contains "four years in heaven, ugly in May, the imperial" Elephant Classic "was completed, and a hundred people gathered to talk". Did Yuwen Yong invent chess just for the game? Not exactly. Chess has existed since the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. Yuwen Yong should only be reformed and perfected according to the inventions of predecessors. The boundary between Chu River and Han Dynasty is the reappearance of Liu Bang and Xiang Yu's hegemony. A game of chess is actually a sand table deduction and a military exercise. At that time, there were hidden worries of Turks outside the Northern Qi Dynasty, the Southern Chen Dynasty and the Northern Zhou Dynasty, including the autocratic power of Yuwen Hu, and the emperor could not lead the country. Yuwen Yong said in chess: "The two countries strive for strength, the soldiers are born in the suburbs, the war is Japanese, the war is flat, and the battlefields are one after another." This not only exercised the wisdom of fighting, but also fooled Yu Wenyong, making him think that playing with things was a weariness.

The second thing that Yuwen Yong did in this 12 year was to gather forces secretly and eradicate the powerful ministers. He must succeed with one blow, and he can't startle him and ask for trouble. It was the day when the elephant classic was made, and Yu Wenyong's consciousness was enough to subdue Yu Wenhu. First, Yu Wenyong is thirty years old at this time, in the prime of life. Secondly, he rebelled against Yu Wenzhi and other Yuwen brothers who were dissatisfied with Yu Wenhu and thought that foreign aid was needed. Third, Yuwen Hu failed in two wars against Beiqi, and he lost his morale and public opinion. But Yu Wenyong didn't blame him. Instead, he comforted him and said that it is common for military strategists to win or lose, which made Yuwen Hu off guard. Everything is ready, Yuwen Yong invited Yu Wenhu to meet his mother, and asked Yu Wenhu to persuade the old lady not to drink too much in the name of filial piety, which would hurt Phoenix's health. In order to show sincerity, Yu Wenyong gave Yu Wenhu a copy of Wine as a theoretical basis and advised the old lady not to drink too much. This makes Yu Wenhu feel grateful. How can he be alert to this obedient brother? At this time, Yuwen Hu was a 60-year-old man, and Yuwen Yongzheng was in his prime. Just as Yu Wenhu was absorbed in reading "Wine and Wine" to his elderly mother, Yu Wenyong suddenly attacked, and the "jade" in his hand fell head-on, knocking Yu Wenhu to the ground on the spot, while others who were lying in ambush suddenly rushed out and slashed at Yu Wenhu's head.

It is a good move for Yuwen Yong to eradicate the powerful ministers, otherwise he will not only fail to lead the government, but also follow in the footsteps of two short-lived emperors. Yuwen Yong's second move is even more groundbreaking: to destroy the Buddha and return to the common customs. Why did Yu Wenyong do this? Because of the perennial war with Beiqi, the defeat is more than the victory. After analysis, Yuwen Yong's national strength is inferior to that of Beiqi. However, a large number of temples and Taoist temples occupied the land of the Northern Zhou Dynasty, and a large number of monks and Taoists who did not work or pay taxes not only seriously affected the economic production and tax revenue of the Northern Zhou Dynasty, but also seriously affected the source of soldiers used in the Northern Zhou War. From the perspective of cultural factors, Confucianism is more conducive to the rule and development of the Northern Zhou Dynasty than Buddhism and Taoism. Yuwen Yong completely accepted the educational theory of Han and Confucianism, so he decided to ban the spread of Buddhism and Taoism in the whole country. The imperial edict shook the earth and destroyed 40,000 temples and 3 million monks and nuns. Yu Wenyong risked "going to hell" and forcibly destroyed the Buddha, which greatly increased the national strength of the Northern Zhou Dynasty and took the initiative in the war against the Northern Qi.

Yuwen Yong's third good move is to join the Turks in the north, make friends with Chen in the south, and concentrate on the separatist regime in Northern Qi. Beiqi is an old rival of the Northern Zhou Dynasty, and the relationship between the two countries has long been a war relationship. If we want to defeat Beiqi, we must increase our national strength at home, and foreign countries and neighboring countries can fight the enemy wholeheartedly. So Yuwen Yong adopted the "kissing" strategy of Emperor Gaozu Liu Bang, tried every means to please the Turks, and finally succeeded in marrying the Turkish princess Ashina, and then formed an in-laws relationship with the Turkish king, which not only relieved the danger of the North, but also got foreign aid in the war of attacking and destroying the Northern Qi. In the south, Yuwen Yong reached an agreement with Chen and Chen Zhuan, the owner of the southern country. The two sides exchanged ambassadors, established formal diplomatic relations, and agreed to attack Beiqi and carve up the territory. After everything was ready, Yuwen Yong resolutely launched the Northern Zhou Dynasty to destroy Qi. Facing the strong enemies of Northern Zhou Dynasty, Southern Chen and Turkic, Gao Wei of Northern Qi actually listened to rumors, destroyed the Great Wall, destroyed the last pillar of the country, and even faced the war with Feng Xiaolian, a stunner of the country, which greatly lost morale and public opinion. During his three years in office, Emperor Wudi of Northern Zhou launched several major battles against Northern Qi, such as the Battle of Yin He, the Battle of Pingyang and the Battle of Yecheng. Finally, he joined forces with Yu Wenxian, the king of Qi, and Wu Mingche, the general of South Kerwin Chen, to capture Huai, Yin, Si and other cities in Northern Qi with hundreds of thousands of people. The Northern Qi Dynasty succeeded as a "general" under the Li Ling offensive of Yu Wenyong's third move.