Who influenced Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty to "oust a hundred schools of thought and respect Confucianism alone"

Dong Zhongshu, a great scholar, played a decisive role in the decision of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty to "oust a hundred schools of thought and respect Confucianism alone". Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty issued three imperial edicts and Dong Zhongshu made three countermeasures. In BC 124, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, at the suggestion of Prime Minister Gongsun Hong, respected Confucianism as an official school. Recruit disciples for doctors and set up 50 doctoral disciples. In order to let these people study with peace of mind and concentrate on their studies, the court also exempted these people from conscription. Only in this way can morality and knowledge be respected and promoted by society, and these outstanding talents can be mentioned and rewarded. Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty made an important choice with his extraordinary talent, adopted Dong Zhongshu's suggestion of "ousting a hundred schools of thought and respecting Confucianism alone", and raised Confucianism to the will of the ruling class. It changed the fate of the Han empire and had a great influence on the traditional culture of China.

Some historians have said that the political unification of China was completed by Qin Shihuang, while the cultural unification of China was completed by Emperor Wu of Han Dynasty. Why? Before Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, China did not form a nationally recognized cultural system. After Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty carried out respect for Confucianism, Confucianism, as a value system observed by the whole country, was also the basic basis for national rulers to formulate major policies.

On the surface, "respecting Confucius alone" means that Confucius thought is supreme and Confucian culture is the basis. But in fact, the "Confucianism" of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty is not pure pre-Qin Confucianism, and the Confucianism he admired is a "Confucianism" that was transformed by Dong Zhongshu and integrated the theories of Legalism and Yin and Yang, not pure pre-Qin Confucianism. Emperor Xuandi of Emperor Gaozu once said: "The Han family has its own system, which is based on hegemony." In other words, the Han Dynasty was a mixture of hegemony and kingship from the beginning. Wang Dao refers to the academic system of Confucianism, and bullying is the "art of governing the country" of Legalists. Xuan Di's words show that the imperial court respected Confucianism on the surface, but actually secretly used the system and ideological resources designed by the Legalists. On the surface, it is a theory of good nature, but in fact it is a theory of evil nature; Verbally speaking, it is ethical centralism, but in fact it is power centralism; On the surface, it is official Confucianism, but in essence, it is official Confucianism. This is the usual ruling strategy of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty and its later rulers.