The Emperor ordered Zhao Tang

Chapter 254: Jiade Ten Thousand Years (Part )

Jiangxi included eight states: Hong, Jiang, Xin, Yuan, Fu, Rao, Qian, and Ji, which are the well-known Yuzhang, Xunyang, Poyang, Yichun, Linchuan, Nankang, and Luling areas. It was not poor. In Qianzhou alone, there were 2.6 households in the Yuanhe period, and the number of road traffic was no less than one million.

In order to deal with the situation in Jiao and Guang during the Xiantong period, and also because the northern army was not adapted to the southern climate, the then Prime Minister Yang Shou ordered "to recruit 30,000 strong crossbowmen in Jiangxi." Cui An secretly stationed in Shu, and he transferred thousands of Jiangxi soldiers to Shu to teach the Shu people to "shoot while running with crossbows." The effect was very good - "then the Shenji Camp was established, and the Shu army became stronger."

After Wang Xianzhi's uprising, as Cao's army entered Jiangxi, Jiangxi also saw a surge of bandits. Zhong Chuan also made his fortune at this time, first entering Fuzhou and then chasing Gao Maoqing, the governor. However, compared with the historical Zhong Chuan who said "A scholar should be wise and consultative, not like a violent tiger crossing the river", he is a clown in this time and space. Zhu Wen sent someone to contact him soon after he stole the fake. After the second attempt by the Bian people to enter Bo failed, the court offered a reward for his head, and he was overthrown.

Of course, the clown is just the saint's own perspective. The reason is that he misjudged the situation.

With Zhu Quanzhong's strength, wouldn't it be easy to crush the remnant Tang Dynasty? Many people thought so during the most difficult time. Except for Li Keyong, Wang Chongying, and Tuoba Sigong, almost all the vassal states thought that the court was finished, and they didn't dare to go all out, and they didn't have confidence.

Thinking about that time, it was probably the time when I was the most depressed, the most diligent, the most innocent, and the least lustful, right?
After listening to Wang Shenzhi's advice, the sage was filled with thoughts.

Zheng Yanchang turned around and sat down, looking at Wang Shenzhi: "What is the current situation in Jiangxi?"

"Chaos." Wang Shenzhi reported everything he had seen and heard in a concise manner: "Right now, Huang Tianhan and Zhu Congli are in Hongzhou. Wei Quanfeng is in Fuzhou, and his brother Wei Zaichang is in Xinzhou. Lu Guangchou is in Qianzhou. Peng Gan is in Jizhou. Peng Yanzhang is in Yuanzhou. Tang Bao is in Raozhou. Liu Shouzhen is in Jiangzhou."

The saint was confused by what he heard.

Fuck your mother, where is this!

I can't stand it! There are 400 prefectures in the world, and you are trying to summon a dragon by putting together your eight characters. Do you think it's fun?

The saint snorted coldly and didn't respond. If you don't even know the basic geography of the eight states, what can you say? I'm afraid there won't be one minister present who can thoroughly understand the administrative divisions of the whole country.

Sure enough, Zheng Yanchang stared at the incense table without saying a word, as if he was searching for information in his mind.

Wang Shenzhi continued, "Except for Wei Quanfeng and Lu Guangchou, they are all cowards. Now that the court has recovered, we may call on the neighboring provinces of Fujian, Jing, Zhejiang, Guangdong, and Hunan to join the expedition to rectify the rules and regulations. Fujian will take the lead and should be the vanguard. We may also appoint a famous and respected official to observe Jiangxi."

Theoretically it is feasible.

Liu Yong, the Imperial Censor in the Palace, immediately expressed his opinion: "The eight prefectures of Jiangxi are rich in resources. Now there are many usurpers, all of whom are arrogant and treat the emperor like a puppet. It is better to order the princes to clean up Jiangxi, so that the finances can be more abundant."

Amid the discussions, the Saint looked at Wang Shenzhi and recalled the report he had seen before: Wang Chao was ill. He suddenly realized that Wang Chao was paving the way for his family and Wang Shenzhi?
Wang Chao only wanted to protect his territory and people, and had no intention of expansion or hegemony. This was due to his personality and geographical limitations.

Can the South conquer the world? Yes, but not during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms. A few thousand northern exiles like Wang Chao and Liu Shizheng could capture the important town of Quanzhou and run rampant in Lingnan, but if they were in the Central Plains or Guanzhong, they probably wouldn't be able to capture even a village.

When Liu Huaqiang stood there, ordinary people basically didn't dare to say a word. What about a warrior in armor who was even bigger than him, with a full beard, covered with various weapons and pieces of meat, and holding a blood-spurting spear? Three or five of these killers could kill an entire village.

What if there were another group, tens of thousands? Just imagine the scene.

In this era of killing people and beasts, the South is not an environment for training beast soldiers, so you are not qualified to be at the table. Your prestige, economic and political level, and the combat effectiveness of your troops... are all secondary auxiliary conditions.

Li Keyong's army could rush to the battlefield on an empty stomach to fight, and then eat the enemy's corpses on the spot to fill their stomachs after the battle. The Bian army fought hard in Tongguan in the dead of winter, in the blizzard and the sea of fire in the forest until dawn. Some of the court's troops fought the Bian army naked in the sea of fire in Shouyang Mountain... In front of these half-zombie armies, these are too powerless. All of this is based on the premise that your army can withstand it.

When can the South compete for hegemony? When the North is not so competitive and the quality of the soldiers on both sides is similar. At this time, it is a competition of economy, etc.

The same is true for Yang Xingmi, Ma Yin, Lei Man, Qian Liu, etc. They all have ambitions, but the strength of the army cannot support such ambitions.

Having said that, judging from the fact that Wang Shenzhi was sent as an envoy to pay homage and Wang Shenzhi’s remarks, Wang Chao was seriously ill and would probably die soon, so they had to prepare for the future.

The future is clear.

The Holy Tang Dynasty did not revive, but it would not fall as long as Emperor Li was alive.

Even if Emperor Li died suddenly tomorrow, he would not necessarily fall.

Between Sheng Tang and Fanzhen, the former must have a slightly deeper foundation and could withstand the fall of the capital and the escape of the emperor. But how many Jiedushi could withstand the fall of the capital and the escape of the Jiedushi? None.

A piece of imperial edict can kill Zhong Chuan and take the lives of Zhao Chang and his son. It is better not to try to take down other military governors.

In short, in the foreseeable future that Wang Chao can foresee, in the policies of cautious and qualified politicians, it is necessary to maintain good relations with the court - even if only temporarily.

Wang Shenzhi's motto was "I would rather be an open-door governor than a closed-door emperor." Although he ruled a region, his residence was humble and he often worked in shabby conditions. His main interests were in culture and education, government administration, agriculture, and trade.

Therefore, he had the motivation to request to move his garrison to Jiangxi as soon as he met the emperor, out of loyalty to the country.

How long has the Wang family been in Fujian? The interest group has not yet formed. The entire family consists of the brothers and their families. It doesn't matter where they serve as Jiedushi. Jiangxi is next door. If other princes send troops, it would be good to serve as a vanguard to gain some performance points.

Of course, this is Li’s personal analysis. It is unknown what the Wang Chao brothers think.

He still doesn't believe Wang Shenzhi.

He sat leisurely on the throne, listening to the discussion of his ministers.

"Ahem!" Zheng Yanchang spoke up. "Jiangxi is far away from Jing and Hubei, and there are many barbarians. There are also remnants of bandits. The imperial court is unable to control them. Sending an inspector is tantamount to sending ministers to their deaths and asking for a slap in the face. As for the crusade... Although the Zhu bandits have been pacified, the people of Bian are still very powerful. We are worried that they may rebel, so it is not appropriate to cause trouble to other places."

Wang Shenzhi mentioned Jing, Zhejiang, Guangdong, and Hu. Jingzhou is ready to join the attack on Bian again. Dong Chang and Ma Yin will obey the order, but they will probably just go through the motions. The internal affairs are not settled, and the doorstep is not safe. Why go on an expedition? If the two guys don't work hard, you can't do anything. As for Guangzhou, Liu Chonggui just died, so there is no hope. If there is a real fight, it is estimated that only Fujian will go. If the suppression fails, the losses will be heavy, and the Central Plains will be laughed at. I am afraid that Fujian will also follow the turmoil.

Therefore, Zheng Yanchang scoffed at Wang Shenzhi's suggestion, but he couldn't say it too bluntly on this occasion. The voices of opposition rose again.

Wang Shenzhi did not expect to be criticized by everyone in the palace and under the gaze of the saints. He felt ashamed and angry, and resented Zheng Yanchang. He was a man with great self-esteem and face. In later generations, Wu and Min intermarried, and Yang Wo married his daughter. When it came to the stage of picking up the bride, the plan was aborted because Wang Shenzhi beheaded Wu's envoy for his arrogant words and deeds. Miss Wang married Qian Liu's son instead.

Well, does this count as Yang Wo being cuckolded?
"Your Majesty." Seeing his face flush, Zhongshu Sheren Wei Shuo stepped forward to help him out, saying, "Wang Dujian cares about the empire, and what he said makes sense, but the situation is not favorable and the times are not convenient. Now we should cultivate our vitality. The governors of the eight states in Jiangxi, who were granted the imperial edict before, all expressed their gratitude. I have read them one by one, and they are quite sincere. You can send envoys to warn the eight states not to invade. Then select one of them to be an observer, and order him to be loyal to the emperor and pay tribute on time. If he is still violent, it will not be too late to entrust the princes to punish him."

Wang Shenzhi felt a little better.

"I understand your feelings very well." The sage coaxed him, and Jia Na said, "Let Wei Qing handle it."

"I obey your command." Wei said, crossing his hands and sitting down.

Hearing the saint's gentle comfort, Wang Shenzhi couldn't help but look up curiously, but unfortunately he was too far away and couldn't see his true face.

Oh! If only he could be summoned alone! He had so much to say to the saint.

After the conversation with the foreign officials from Fujian, the atmosphere was back on track.

"His Majesty!"

"I, the Minister of Rites, am reporting this to you! Xinqin Governor Tuoba Sigong, Yiwu Army Jiedushi Wang Chucun, and Guangzhou Jiedushi Liu Chonggui have all passed away. No news has been heard about the funeral arrangements for these three loyal ministers, please hurry up! In addition, the selection of the two commanders and one governor cannot be delayed. The successor Prince Xue Zhirou has a frugal personality, is intelligent and agile, and has served in various positions and is the best among the royal family. I recommend him as the commander of Guangdong."

"Yiwu army petitioned for Chucun's eldest son to be the successor, but the custom in Hebei is that only Zhao, Wei and Yan can be the successors. Yiwu is my eyes and ears in Hebei, how can a son succeed a father? Please make Chuzhi the commander."

The latter two were the pleas that arrived during the saint's lingering on Zhang Hui.

At present, it has been confirmed that Li Zhirou will be sent to Guangzhou. Many people have recommended him, and the saint has no objection.

The Yiwu Army was in trouble.

Yiwu is a remnant of the An Lushan Rebellion. The first governor was Zhang Xiaozhong, a Xiren who served under An Lushan. After the rebellion, he remained loyal to the emperor and was praised by people. After his son Zhang Maozhao succeeded to the throne, he first fought with Chengde and almost killed Wang Chengzong, and then brought his entire family to the court.

Since then, Yiwu has always been commanded by generals sent by the central government.

This time when Wang Chucun died, Yiwu demanded to "follow the story of Heshuo" and appointed his son Gao as the commander, which made him very angry.

After Yuanhe, except for Yan, Zhao and Wei, it was not allowed for the son to inherit the throne after the father's death. Liu Zhen and his subordinates once tried to make trouble, but were suppressed by the Eight Garrisons. The Zhaoyi Army was frightened and quickly rebelled - "Generals Guo Yi, Wang Xie, Dong Kewu and others killed Liu Zhen at a banquet, took more than 20 infants of Liu's family and killed some of his children. They also executed 11 people including Zhang Gu, the general of the government, and exterminated their families. Those who did not follow the army were all slaughtered."

Is that the end? No.

After the war - "The emperor ordered Liu Congjian's body to be brought out and left to dry in Luzhou for three days before Shi Xiong was ordered to chop it into pieces."

Pei, wife of Liu Congjian and mother of Liu Zhen, was also sentenced to death for making reactionary remarks to the wives of military officers: "Write to your husband, do not forget the promotion by your ancestors, do not betray the kindness and defect to the country."

The attitude is evident.

So, why did almost no one in the Central Plains, financial, and frontier-type vassal states dare to establish a system of father-to-son succession after the Yuanhe period?
It is a small matter to attack a sage, because a saint may not be able to defeat you. But once the war goes badly, the warriors feel the pressure, and internal chaos, fighting among the yamen soldiers, and the extermination of the Jiedushi will be put on the agenda. Not absolutely, but with a high probability, very likely.

As I said, you dare not take risks in this kind of thing, and you dare not trust the loyalty of your subordinates.

This is also the fundamental reason why Zhao Chang and his son committed suicide so quickly and Wang Yanzhang and his ilk fled with Zhang Hui.

So, the Yiwu Army incident is really terrible.

They did this because they obviously did not take the saint seriously. They also broke the rules. After the Chaos, four military governors, Zhuge Zhongfang, Zhao Kuangning, Wang Shifan, and Wang Ke, had illegally succeeded to the throne. Agreeing to Yiwu would be like adding fuel to the fire.

The saint did not want to agree.

Wang Chucun is a loyal minister and deserves preferential treatment, but that doesn't mean I will satisfy all your son's demands. Don't say that not letting Wang Gao succeed to the throne is a betrayal and you should rebel. Because this is not within the political rules. Not letting your son succeed to the throne is not a betrayal. Zhao Kuangning and the others have no choice. Now that we have a certain strength, we must not let this trend expand, we must put the brakes on.

The candidate the sage valued was Wang Chuzhi.

Letting him take over is both in line with the rules of the game and worthy of Wang Chucun's loyalty.

The last and most important point is that the sage suspected that the Yiwu Army did this with the support of Li Keyong behind the scenes - Wang Gao's younger brother Wang Ye married a Shatuo woman.

Because of this relationship, Wang Gao's ascension to the position was obviously more reliable for Li Keyong than other sons of the Wang family and Wang Chucun's brothers.

On the other hand, Wang Chuzhi was the best for Li. In later generations, this man ruled Yiwu Army for more than 20 years and maintained semi-independence between Liang and Jin for a long time. Could he be controlled? No, that's right. I can't control him, and neither can you.

It was not a big deal for him to lose such a person, but the situation was different for Li Keyong after he lost this ally at his doorstep.

However, will this make Li Keyong unhappy?

Thinking of this, the saint agreed with Li Chao's proposal, but he hesitated: "

(End of this chapter)