Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei - Early Personal Reign

Early Personal Reign

After Grand Empress Dowager Feng's death, Emperor Xiaowen not only continued the sinicization campaign, but carried it out in earnest, changing many laws and customs of the Northern Wei states to conform with Han, particularly Confucian, customs. While he sought out his mother Consort Li's cousins (Consort Li's brothers had been executed with their father Li Hui) and rewarded them with relatively low offices, he later retracted the rewards, bringing criticism that he was treating the Fengs with too much kindness and not treating the Lis with sufficient kindness.

in 492, in conformance with past dynasties' tradition, Emperor Xiaowen demoted the many princes in the state, unless they were descendants of the dynasty founder Emperor Daowu, to the titles of duke, with two exceptions: Baba Guan (拔拔觀) the Prince of Shangdang, because of the great accomplishments of his grandfather Baba Daosheng (拔拔道生), was allowed to remain prince; and the former Liu Song prince Liu Chang the Prince of Danyang, while having his own rank reduced to Duke of Qi Commandery, was given a special title, which appeared to be non-inheritable, of Prince of Song.

In 493, Emperor Xiaowen married another daughter of Feng Xi, Feng Qing, as empress.

Also in 493, Emperor Xiaowen began the first of a number of campaigns that he would conduct against Southern Qi – although in the case of this campaign, it was intended to instead allow him to move the capital from Pingcheng south to the Han heartland of Luoyang, to further his sinicization campaign. As he reached Luoyang in the late fall, he ordered a continued advance despite heavy rains, and then, when the Xianbei officials who opposed the campaign tried again to stop him, he offered a compromise—that the capital be moved to Luoyang, and the campaign be abandoned. The officials agreed. He also entrusted the matters of changing Xianbei ceremonies and music to Han ceremonies to the official Wang Su (王肅), who had only recently defected from Southern Qi.

in 494, Emperor Xiaowen made a return to Pingcheng, and, for reasons that are not clear, reopened the discussions on whether to move the capital to Luoyang. This time, the Xianbei officials largely opposed the move, but Emperor Xiaowen overruled them and continued moving the governmental agencies to Luoyang, although maintaining a fairly substantial governmental presence at Pingcheng for it to serve as the secondary capital. To alleviate the concerns that the move from Pingcheng to Luoyang would cause a supply shortage of horses and other livestock, he had the general Yuwen Fu (宇文福) set up a large livestock grazing zone at Heyang (河陽, in modern Jiaozuo and Xinxiang, Henan).