Ask the mountains and rivers

Chapter 397 Public Opinion
Pei Qinghe wrote a letter, which, along with letters from King Qiao and General Situ, was sent to Prime Minister Pang.

Pei Qinghe's letter contained only a few words. In essence, it boiled down to just one sentence.

I lead the troops into battle, and I entrust all other matters to the Prime Minister.

After reading the letter, Prime Minister Pang felt a surge of long-dormant passion, his emotions running high and he was unable to calm down for a long time.

The Jian'an Emperor he served was dead, and the young crown prince was also gone. He had no better choice than to support Pei Qinghe. Pei Qinghe must have also known that he and the other civil officials had no other options.

Pei Qinghe could have easily ignored them or manipulated them using various methods. However, she disdained such underhanded tactics and simply told this former prime minister of the previous dynasty openly and honestly.

Go ahead and do it; I trust you.

You treat me as a national hero, and I will repay you as a national hero in return.

Prime Minister Pang no longer hesitated and had someone invite Vice Minister Qin and others over to read the letters from King Qiao and General Situ.

The civil officials were indeed filled with righteous indignation.

"That scoundrel Qiao's words are frivolous and despicable, showing no respect whatsoever for the general!"

"The Grand General Situ actually insulted the Prime Minister and us civil officials, saying we lack integrity! He holds a large army and controls Qin Province. Is his attack on Luoyang to avenge the late emperor or to secure his own ascension to the throne?"

Prime Minister Pang said in a deep voice, "We must fight this battle of public opinion brilliantly. Qiao is a bandit who killed the royal family, massacred the capital, and wreaked havoc on the country. Such a traitor deserves to be punished by everyone. Minister Qin, write a proclamation to denounce Qiao!"

Without hesitation, Vice Minister Qin accepted the order. He was a legitimate Jinshi (successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations) and had served as Vice Minister of Rites for several years. His specialty was using classical allusions and moral arguments to insult people.

Prime Minister Pang continued, "General Situ accused us of supporting a new emperor before avenging the loss of the capital, and even insulted me as a treacherous minister, saying that we civil officials have no backbone. I will then write an article to ask General Situ who he plans to support as the new emperor after capturing Luoyang."

"Everyone has students, old friends, relatives and friends. Write letters quickly and get everyone who can help mobilized. We must ensure that public opinion is on our side and that everyone knows that General Pei is a man born by Heaven to save the people. The Pei family is loyal and righteous. With the old dynasty gone, the new dynasty had no choice but to be established. General Pei wants to establish the capital in Yan County and have the emperor guard the nation's gate. This generosity and magnanimity is the true demeanor of a wise ruler!"

The civil officials, eager to get started, loudly accepted the order. Upon returning home, they all picked up their pens and began writing letters.

Leaving aside others, let's just talk about Minister Qin. He spent half a day writing a passionate and impassioned proclamation denouncing the traitor Qiao. Several trusted advisors worked tirelessly through the night, copying it into hundreds of copies. At daybreak, these copies of the proclamation were distributed and sent out in all directions.

Qin Shilang spent another two days writing letters non-stop.

In these times, those who could study and become officials mostly came from scholarly families or prominent clans. Minister Qin's family was of noble birth, a family of officials that had been established for generations, with connections throughout the land. Although the world was in chaos and turmoil, it hadn't completely collapsed; at the county level, there were still officials from the old dynasty supporting the system. Minister Qin's sixteen letters were precisely addressed to these powerful officials.

To wage a war of public opinion, we must leverage their true strengths. We need to get all the civil servants involved.

The other civil officials also followed suit, so there is no need to describe them one by one.

Prime Minister Pang's "Three Questions to General Situ" swept across the land at an extremely rapid pace.

One question to General Situ: If you claim to be a loyal minister, why didn't you come to Bohai Commandery to pledge your loyalty to Emperor Jian'an back then? Instead, you held onto your military power in Qin Prefecture.

The second question is for General Situ: you have repeatedly forced men into the army to attack Luoyang. Have you ever shown any pity for the innocent civilians?
The third question for General Situ: After capturing Luoyang, who do you plan to enthrone as emperor? The last question is the most insidious.

The legitimate bloodline of the Xie imperial family is extinct. You're going to attack Luoyang under the banner of avenging the Xie family, so after you win the battle, don't you want to sit on the dragon throne yourself?

If you yourself want to sit on the dragon throne, what right do you have to criticize and insult civil officials for lacking integrity?

The civil officials are just supporting the new emperor, but you yourself want to establish a new dynasty and sit on the dragon throne. How dare you call yourself a loyal minister?

……

The public opinion battle was in full swing, attracting even more attention and having a more profound impact than the Pei family army's previous attack on the Zhang family.

It was common for Qiao Tianwang to be criticized. He was a traitor; he was the one who captured the capital, burned down the palace, and the Jingchao Emperor truly died at his hands. These were undeniable facts. Officials loyal to the Jingchao Emperor frequently wrote articles criticizing him, but he didn't care at all.

Upon seeing the proclamation, King Qiao remained unmoved and even ordered a congratulatory gift to be prepared and sent to Yan County to congratulate Pei Qinghe on his upcoming ascension to the throne.

General Situ, however, was quite angered by Prime Minister Pang's three questions. He summoned all his clerks and ordered them to write articles refuting and rebuking him.
The clerks all wore bitter expressions: "General, this is an article written by Prime Minister Pang. All of us combined are no match for the power of Prime Minister Pang's pen."

"Yes! Even if we refute it, I'm afraid no one will care. We might as well just let it go..."

General Situ's gaze turned cold as he swept his eyes across the group.

The clerk who had suggested letting it go shuddered and immediately shut his mouth.

The other clerks dared not say anything more and said in unison, "We'll go and write it right away."

After General Situ stormed off, the clerks all breathed a sigh of relief, then exchanged wry glances again. One clerk lowered his voice and sighed, "What should we do now?"

"What else can we do?" another clerk sighed. "We are paid by the emperor and we have to share his burdens. The general asked us to write articles to refute him, so we will. As for the impact, there's really nothing we can do about it."

There is really no way around it.

Public opinion battles were originally a battlefield for civil officials. These clerks were mostly those who hadn't fared well in the imperial examinations. How could they possibly win a verbal battle against the civil official group led by Prime Minister Pang?

Even if they write excellent articles, how many people will go to great lengths to promote them and spread them throughout the world?
To put it another way, does General Situ not know whether he is a loyal minister and general seeking revenge for the country or an ambitious man who is using the opportunity to amass power?
Which of Prime Minister Pang's insults was wrong?

They've been hit where it hurts, and now they're furious, ready to let them curse back. If they had that kind of ability, they'd all be prime ministers, not humbly working as clerks in military tents.

The clerks were inwardly furious, but they still managed to get together and write an article refuting Prime Minister Pang.

After reading it, General Situ felt the scolding wasn't strong enough, so he threw it back.

The clerks stayed up all night, revising and revising until the ninth draft, before finally getting it approved by General Situ: "Make two hundred copies of this document and send them out."

(End of this chapter)