Many ancient emperors had great ambitions when they were young, but many emperors were suspicious of many people in their later years. It can be said that they made great efforts to conquer the country when they were young, but in their later years, they became less and less like themselves in the process of defending their country. In their eyes, only four words are beyond their control. Many things they did in their later years were due to two reasons: they were unwilling for a while, and they were unwilling to give up in the face of a great country after their own efforts and struggles, paving the way for their heirs. These are all things that they should do but future generations cannot understand.
Just like Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty and Sun Quan, when they were young, they were good emperors for the country and the people, but in their later years, they all became a little fatuous, appointing adulterers and no longer trusting ministers who followed them when they were young, especially Liu Che. He is afraid that the powerful ministers will harm the future generations, and he is becoming more and more suspicious and doesn't trust anyone. It can be said that what he did in his later years was completely inconsistent with the bloody emperor who worked hard to be strong when he was young.
But there is a great one, and that is Liang Wudi Xiao Yan. He has read many poems since he was a child, and his political and military abilities are very strong. He also learned the lesson of the demise of Qi, and all government affairs were personally questioned. He is a very thrifty emperor. Unlike emperors of past dynasties, he is not an emperor at all.
However, in his later years, Xiao Yan often went to temples to fast and read Buddha, because he blamed himself for killing too many people when he seized power. Faced with this kind of inner pressure, he no longer has the mind to manage state affairs, and only knows to worship Buddha every day, so under his impetus, Buddhism has been greatly promoted. But as an emperor, he was incompetent in his later years, and later he mistakenly believed Hou Jing because of carelessness. Finally, Hou Jing staged a coup and Xiao Yan was arrested by Hou Jing.
However, I think Xiao Yan just can't give up his own mistakes. He won the throne by seizing power, so he can't let go of his own murder. But he should consider for his subjects, and should not neglect national affairs and lead to national subjugation.