曹魏皇帝與親貴關係述論

The Relationship between Emperors of Cao Wei and Their Close Relatives

公元249年的高平陵之變為魏晉之際政治發展的分界線，司馬氏自此壟斷了曹魏朝政，親貴集團也走向衰落。為探尋變動的因由，學界對於魏明帝與齊王曹芳的政局與結構，已有深刻且詳盡的分析。本文嘗試另闢蹊徑，利用社會關係作視角，考察以首三位曹魏皇帝與親貴的關係演變切入上述問題。整體來看，由曹氏與夏侯氏共同組成的親貴集團在魏武、文二帝均被委以重任。然而，在明帝一朝，外姓大臣繼親貴掌握軍權，親貴的政治、軍事權力急速下滑，埋下曹魏政權崩潰的種子。學者多認為曹魏親貴權力低落是因為帝室內部的尖銳矛盾，以及新世代親貴的能力與資歷均遠不如父輩與朝臣。本文提出皇帝與親貴早年長期而較對等的共同生活經驗，是構成親與信的關鍵元素。「親」即皇帝與親貴間的親密關係，而「信」為超越常制，來自於皇帝的強勢任用。親與信形成武帝、文帝與親貴在軍政上的緊密關係，親貴均備受殊禮重任。但是，親又不一定與信掛勾。隨著曹操一脈在政治地位的上升，宗族生活經驗相應地減退，加上明帝受少時高壓的政治氣氛影響，使得明帝雖與親貴雖然親密，但親貴並沒有被賦以過人的軍政權力。正如曹植所言：「權之所在，雖疏必重，勢之所去，雖親必輕」，內臣中書省深得明帝的重用信任，並成為明帝一朝重要的政治特色。明帝臨終前，輔政大臣人選的變動正是親與信角力的體現。

The Incident at the Gaoping (高平) Tombs of 249 AD marked a turning point in the political development of Wei and Jin history. Thereafter, the Si-ma family monopolized the politics of the Cao Wei (曹魏) court, while the power of the Cao clan declined. Scholars have analyzed the political structure and situation of Emperor Ming (明) of Wei and the Prince of Qi (齊) to explore the causes of this change in depth. This paper takes a different approach by using sociological analysis of social relationships to examine the evolution of the relationships between the first three emperors of the Cao Wei dynasty and their close relatives (Qin Gui親貴). Overall, the clan, composed of the Cao and Xiahou (夏侯) families, was given important responsibilities by both Emperor Wu (武) and Emperor Wen (文). However, during the reign of Emperor Ming, military power was seized by non-aristocratic ministers, and the political and military power of the clan declined rapidly, sowing the seeds of the collapse of the Cao Wei regime. It is believed that the decline of aristocratic power in the Cao Wei dynasty was due to sharp internal conflicts within the imperial family and the fact that the new generation of aristocrats had far less ability and experience than their predecessors and court officials.
This paper proposes that the long-term and relatively equal common life experience of the emperors and close relatives in their youth was a key element in establishing trust between them.“Closeness”(qin親) refers to the intimate relationship between the emperors and close relatives, while“trust”(xin信) comes from the emperor’s authorization beyond normal practice and regulations. Closeness and trust formed the relationship between Emperor Wu, Emperor Wen, and the close relatives in military and political affairs, and close relatives were highly respected and given important responsibilities. However, closeness does not always equate to trust. As the Cao clan rose in political status, the experience of family life correspondingly declined. Moreover, Emperor Ming was influenced by the political atmosphere of his childhood, which led to his close relationship with his relatives but did not endow them with extraordinary military and political power. As Cao Zhi (曹植) said,“Where power lies, even the distant become important; where power departs, even the close become trivial.”The Palace Secretariat (Zhong Shu Sheng中書省) were deeply trusted and utilized by Emperor Ming, becoming an important political characteristic of his reign. The changes in the selection of regents before Emperor Ming’s death were a manifestation of the conflict between closeness and trust.