He ascended the throne when he was 20, having been made heir by his uncle, who was childless. He reigned from 141 BC to 87 BC. The people viewed him as intelligent, articulate, and capable. However, under Emperor Wu, [[corruption]] became even more prevalent and heavy taxes were placed on the people. In an unpopular act, he had his prime minister [[Wang Jia]] put to death for criticizing him, which made him appear tyrannical. | He ascended the throne when he was 20, having been made heir by his uncle, who was childless. He reigned from 141 BC to 87 BC. The people viewed him as intelligent, articulate, and capable. However, under Emperor Wu, [[corruption]] became even more prevalent and heavy taxes were placed on the people. In an unpopular act, he had his prime minister [[Wang Jia]] put to death for criticizing him, which made him appear tyrannical. |