When Song Jing saw this article published in the official gazette, he felt dizzy and almost fell to the ground.
Fortunately, the servant was quick to help him up and prevent him from falling to the ground.
"It's a disaster, it's a disaster..."
Song Jing shook his head and said, "Who on earth is this Li Bai? He really doesn't know what life and death is... He doesn't know what life and death is! He even dares to say such things, and not only does he say it out loud, he even dares to mail it to the court newspaper."
"And those damned court newspapers were so ignorant that they published such a controversial article!"
"Are they really not afraid of being investigated? Do they think they are great just because they have a backer..."
Song Jing originally thought that if he burned the article, everything would be fine.
But I didn't expect that this arrogant and dissolute young man was so ignorant of the consequences and mailed this article to the official newspaper!
Now it was published directly, facing the world...
This made Song Jing feel a little numb.
After a while, he sighed slowly and said, "Forget it, this layer of paper will eventually be pierced..."
at the same time.
Imperial College.
This is an independent educational administrative body.
The highest administrative officer of the Imperial College was the Jijiu, who was equivalent to the president of a university.
There is also one chancellor and one chief clerk who are responsible for specific matters such as students' academic performance and academic status.
Overseas students from various countries also take classes at the Imperial College.
However, the Imperial College did not have language courses, nor did it have special classes for international students, so it would be difficult for international students who were not good at Chinese to learn.
The Imperial College offered six subjects.
The "Guozixue" enrolled children of officials of the third rank and above.
"Taixue" recruited children of officials of the fifth rank and above.
The "Four-door School" recruited children of officials of the seventh rank and above.
The "Law School" recruited the children of officials below the eighth rank and the children of common people, and their main major was to study laws and regulations.
"Shuxue" also recruited children of officials below the eighth rank and children of common people, and specialized in the Five Classics, Shuowen Jiezi, and Zilin.
The admission requirements for "Mathematics" and "Law" are the same as "Calligraphy", and the major is to study Jiuzhang and Zhoubi Suanjing.
The students who could come to the Imperial Academy and the Imperial College to attend classes were basically the children of the country's aristocrats.
At this moment, these children of powerful people were holding a court newspaper and discussing heatedly.
"This Li Bai is so bold, he even dares to talk about foreigners' affairs?"
"Isn't this talking about the Sui Dynasty?"
"What do you know? This is called innuendo!"
"This is a national policy. It is to show the might of the prosperous Tang Dynasty to all nations. It is a great event that will be remembered for generations to come. Shouldn't the people at the bottom of society be proud of it? I haven't heard them complain about anything!"
"Yes, this person thought that he was buying face with money, but in fact, he was buying master and servant. The heavenly soldiers will really conquer the disobedient!"
"This kind of person is really ignorant. He can only see the things in his own small piece of land. He doesn't know that this is a grand event that will be passed down through the ages and make him famous!"
"The tribute system has existed for so many years, from the Zhou Dynasty to now, and no one has ever stood up to speak out. Only he is so powerful, saying that he would rather make friends with foreign countries than give them to his own slaves. He really doesn't understand the overall situation!"
"Yeah, the pattern is too small..."
"This is a vassal state paying tribute to the central dynasty! This is the tribute system! What does he know?"
"These low-level people are educated but don't know anything, yet they dare to come out and talk nonsense. Damn it!"
at the same time.
Students of the subjects of "Mathematics", "Law" and "Calligraphy" were also holding the same newspaper and discussing it.
The voices in their discussions were completely different from those in the Imperial College and the Imperial University.
"Li Bai is so bold to say this, risking the world's disapproval. For something like this, he should have just expressed his dissatisfaction in private, but he actually dared to say it out loud..."
"In fact, the problem mentioned here is just a small part. Those foreign merchants came to the capital, doing business and selling along the way, making huge profits. This is all the people's blood and sweat..."
"No, he wrote about the problems of the Sui Dynasty. This is what happened in our Tang Dynasty. How could he write about it?"
“Indeed…”
“Those Gentiles are so arrogant and domineering that no one dares to stop them when they commit crimes. It’s hard to tell who is the master and who is the servant!”
"This is the first time I've seen a master pretending to be the master and trying to curry favor with his servants in order to gain recognition."
"Yes, the Sui Dynasty spent a huge amount of money to host the Tribute to All Nations. We all inherited it, and even went beyond it. The cost was enormous, but no one dared to speak out. There were countless taboos involved! This Li Bai is really bold and fearless!"
"I had some disputes a few days ago, and the people in the government didn't want to deal with it at all. They just tried to smooth things over and asked me to go forward and admit my mistakes. But when those foreigners encountered problems, they greeted them with smiles like dogs, and were happy to solve the problems for them!"
"If the country is not a country, the people are not people. This is the policy of the current dynasty. No one dares to say anything, except Li Bai. He is really brave!"
At this time, foreigners studying in the Imperial College also saw this official report.
"It is better to be friends with foreign countries than to be slaves within the family. What does this article mean?"
The person who spoke was Abe no Nakamaro, an international student from Japan who attended classes at the Imperial College. Those who could attend classes here were all children of officials of the fifth rank or above.
Seeing that Abe no Nakamaro was interested in the article, the students said quickly, "This is nonsense, not worth mentioning!"
"If that's true, why was it published in the official gazette?" Abe no Nakamaro asked with some confusion. Although his accent was still a little strange, he was able to communicate normally.
"This person is criticizing the Sui Dynasty's "all nations came to pay tribute", and is using this to satirize our Kaiyuan Period of Prosperity, which cost a huge amount of money and was unwilling to put this money into people's livelihood." Someone explained.
"So that's what you meant. I said he was clearly talking about the Sui Dynasty, so why were you still unhappy? Turns out he was making a veiled sarcasm." Abe no Nakamaro nodded and said.
Then Abe no Nakamaro asked curiously, "But the Tang Dynasty is rich and powerful, the people live and work in peace, the country is peaceful, and every household is rich. Why would this person say that?"
As soon as these words were spoken, the faces of the students nearby turned unhappy and they all started talking at once.
"This is what this person doesn't know!"
"I've already said that such arrogant and reckless words are not worth mentioning!"
“Well, there are poor people too!”
"The capital is definitely richer, but the outside world is poorer..."
Listening to everyone talking.
"Souga..." Abe no Nakamaro gradually understood. He nodded and said, "Then there is nothing wrong with this article. It is a very good article. If it can make the Tang Dynasty more prosperous, isn't it a very good article? As a king and an official, you should be compassionate to your people."
After hearing this, the students nearby blushed and lowered their heads in shame. Their subconscious thought was to denounce the absurdity of the article and tell Abe no Nakamaro not to care about it. They didn't think about the affairs of their own people at all.
However, what was unexpected was that Abe no Nakamaro did not care about the criticisms in the article at all, but instead agreed with it!
The topic of foreigners has always been a sensitive one.
People who dare to talk about these topics often don't have a good ending.
Because they touched too many interest groups.
Many aristocratic families formed an alliance of interests with the Hu merchants.
This is an era of tolerance, openness, and freedom. It is the Kaiyuan Period of Prosperity of the Celestial Empire. Anyone who dares to speak out about these issues will be targeted.
Anyone who has opinions about these foreigners is a politically incorrect person and must be suppressed!
During this era, Emperor Xuanzong of Tang treated foreigners equally in the true sense, and nearly one-tenth of the officials in the court came from foreign countries.
Sun Guangxian's "Bei Meng Suo Yan" said: "From Dazhong to Xiantong in the Tang Dynasty, Bai Zhongling was appointed prime minister, followed by Bi Xiangzhen, Cao Xiangque, Luo Xiangshao, who was also a temporary envoy to the prime minister, and then promoted to Yanlang. Cui Xiangshen said: 'Recently, all the secretaries are foreigners.' Foreigners, probably because Bi, Bai, Cao and Luo were foreign surnames."
According to statistics, there were as many as 3,000 foreigners serving as officials in the Tang Dynasty, and some even served as prime ministers.
When foreigners entered the Tang Dynasty and became Tang people, a large number of them squeezed out the existing Han people and rose to high positions.
More and more foreigners are becoming high-ranking officials, and more and more illegal immigrants are taking advantage of their racial advantages to take deep roots in this era of tolerance, openness and freedom.
The so-called Kaiyuan Prosperity, the so-called unprecedented era of self-confidence, was nothing but a scene of luxury achieved at the expense of countless lower-class people.
The top scholars and foreign nobles continued to enjoy themselves, and countless poets and talented people continued to sing praises.
It seems like a real prosperous age.
All of this gradually led to the Anshi Rebellion in the future.
Many people attribute the Anshi Rebellion to the fact that Emperor Xuanzong of Tang lost interest in state affairs after he became infatuated with Yang Yuhuan. He favored the treacherous ministers Li Linfu and Yang Guozhong, which led to the chaos.
But in fact, the three-foot-thick ice does not form overnight.
In this prosperous era, there are countless bones.
When this article became popular in Chang'an City, discussions about it were endless.
For the common people at the bottom of society, they don’t know what “righteousness” means, nor do they understand what “the overall situation” means. They only know whether they are living a good life or not.
When I saw this article at that moment, I was immediately excited and applauded.
"After so long, someone finally dares to speak out about this issue!"
"Who on earth is this Li Bai? He is not afraid of death! He is such a warrior!"
"You are so good, Li Bai, this article is well written, so good!"
"This article is well written, but I'm afraid the court won't accept it!"
now.
In the imperial palace of Chang'an City.
When Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, Li Longji, saw this article, he became furious. His eyes widened and he was shaking with anger, his whole body felt cold.
He said in disbelief: "I created the Kaiyuan Era of Prosperity, the country was at peace, and all nations came to pay tribute. He actually compared me to Emperor Yang of Sui?"
Of course, this article does not directly compare him with Emperor Yang of Sui, but this is clearly the meaning expressed in the words.
At first glance, there seemed to be nothing wrong, but as he watched, Li Longji saw the trick.
He kept cursing Emperor Yang of Sui, but Li Longji was completely immersed in the story and thought that Li Bai was cursing him!
Not only did he curse, but he was also extremely aggressive, arguing from every angle and every aspect, which made Li Longji furious.
In fact, there is another reason why I am so angry, and that is that the actual situation was predicted to be correct.
It is said that lies never hurt people, but the truth is a sharp knife. The more truthful the content is, the more real damage it can cause.
But Li Longji was obviously unwilling to admit this, so he seemed so angry and frustrated.
"Damn it, damn it!"
"What does he know? How dare a commoner question the decision of the imperial court? Are all the smart people in the world not as smart as Li Bai?!"
"How arrogant! Compared with tribute trade, the destruction of the border caused by the vassal states' invasion, and the loss of money and manpower caused by the expedition, what are those rewards? What are some preferential treatments?"
"During the Kaiyuan Era, all nations came to pay tribute to the Tang Dynasty. The fame of the Tang Dynasty was spread both at home and abroad. Everyone in the world knew about it. But in his mouth, this achievement that will be remembered for centuries is nothing more than a boast?"
"Nonsense, it's really nonsense!!!"
The emperor, the supreme ruler, the man standing at the pinnacle of the Tang Dynasty, was completely broken down by this article.
In this article, Su Che revealed the essence of the so-called tribute from all nations.
The so-called "all nations coming to pay tribute" means that the dynasty plunders the people's wealth and favors foreigners, and forcibly creates an atmosphere of prosperity and wealth in violation of objective economic laws in order to satisfy the emperor's personal vanity!
In fact, in this article written by Su Che, Wei Zheng, a representative of upright ministers, also said something similar.
Wei Zheng said: "Those who set themselves up as vassals should be tame and accepted. They should live outside the Great Wall. They will fear our power and respect our virtue, and will always be vassals. This is to show false favors and gain real benefits. Recently, the Turks have come to the court with all their might. Since we cannot capture them in the Yangtze and Huai Rivers to change their customs, we have placed them in the interior, not far from the capital. Although this is a magnanimous act, it is not a long-term plan. Every time we see a person surrender, we give him five pieces of goods and a robe. The chiefs are all appointed to high positions, with high salaries and high positions. This is a waste of money. China's taxes are used to feed these evil and vicious captives. Their numbers are increasing, which is not good for China."
Taizong: I won’t accept it.
The general meaning of this passage is -
The barbarian chieftains could get tangible benefits from the Tang Dynasty court without sacrificing their independent political power. The court could not actually control the tribes of these chieftains, and if they were allowed to multiply and prosper, they would become a big trouble in the future. Moreover, they were given various rewards, and each of them was appointed as a high official, and received a large sum of generous salary every year for nothing. It was simply using the people's blood and sweat to support robbers.
Li Shimin: That’s what I’d like to do.
Compared with Wei Zheng's euphemism, Su Che's article is more direct. It brings many dirty unspoken rules completely under the sun, allowing people all over the world to see the filthiness of the so-called prosperous court.
And such an article was actually published openly in the official gazette of the Zhengyi sect, causing an uproar in the city and countless discussions. This was undoubtedly like putting him on the fire, making Li Longji a laughing stock of the whole world!
It would be strange if this didn't break the defense...
If this article was handed to him individually, he would at most sneer and tear it up and throw it away. But when it appeared in the official gazette, the meaning was completely different.
"The Zhengyi Dao newspaper really doesn't give me face. They dare to publish any article in it?" Li Longji scolded angrily.
"Refute it and find someone to denounce this arrogant person in this official newspaper!"
"Also, check who this Li Bai is!"
"I want to see him!"
Li Longji actually wanted to be more direct and recall and destroy all the articles published in that official newspaper.
But doing so would only make things more obvious. After all, this article was criticizing the Sui Dynasty. If he did that, he would almost be admitting that he had done such a stupid thing.
In Li Longji's view, there was an essential difference between his tribute from all nations and that of the Sui Dynasty, and he was absolutely unwilling to admit that he was the stupid emperor in the article.
Therefore, he couldn't do that. He could only order people to refute him, and then catch him, meet him face to face, and ask this arrogant man what he wanted to do.
Following Li Longji's order, several court writers immediately began racking their brains to write articles, trying to publish them in the court gazette.
These court writers thought the matter was simple at first, so they wrote some grand articles as a matter of course. Standing on the commanding heights of the prosperous times, they denounced Li Bai for his blindness and how audacious it was to use the past to satirize the present.
However, as they wrote, they felt something was not right...
They tried to prove that the tribute from all nations in this dynasty was different from that in the previous dynasty.
There is an essential difference between the two.
The people of the Sui Dynasty were incompetent and tyrannical.
Our dynasty is wise and open.
But after writing and writing, they were finally shocked to discover a horrifying fact, that is, what this dynasty had done was even worse than what the Sui Dynasty had done!
What should I do?
They were a little dumbfounded and could only make up stories with their eyes closed.
But the final result was: the manuscript was rejected by the Zhengyi Dao Gazette!
The official of Zhengyi Sect said: "This article is too bad to be published in our newspaper..."
When these words were spoken, the people in the Hanlin Academy were dumbfounded. They directly explained that it was the emperor who asked them to write these, and no matter whether they were good or not, they had better be published!
The clerk glanced at the ridiculous article with some disdain, and nodded helplessly: "Since you are willing to publish this article, then let it be as you wish!"
soon.
Another such article was published in the official gazette.
The title of the article is: During the Kaiyuan Era, all nations came to pay tribute, the country was ruled by foreign powers, and the country was governed for eternity!
The wording of this article is much better than that of Su Che's article.
For example, this paragraph -
"At the beginning of the Kaiyuan period, the emperor worked hard to govern the country and eliminate corruption. Within six or seven years, the country was in great order, the rivers were clear and the seas were peaceful, and the people were prosperous. The Anxi states were all pacified and turned into counties. From the Kaiyuan Gate to the west, the land was more than ten thousand miles long, and the taxes were paid to the river. The treasuries on both sides were piled with wealth and goods, which were beyond counting. The harvests were abundant in all directions, and the people were rich. There were more than ten million households under the jurisdiction, and a dou of rice cost three or four coins. The able-bodied people did not know how to use weapons. No one picked up lost items on the road, and travelers did not carry food in their bags."
This article is brilliantly written, and its content exaggerates the current Kaiyuan Prosperity to the sky and the lives of the people under the Kaiyuan Prosperity to the sky.
All the people live and work in peace and contentment, in good health and prosperity. Such a prosperous era was compared by Li Bai with the Sui Dynasty. What was his intention?
He really has ulterior motives!
However, after such an article was published, it was naturally met with a lot of ridicule.
Because what is written forms a huge contrast with the real life of ordinary people.
Many people from poor families at the bottom of society began to write jokes.
Question: "Scholar, do you often read articles written by scholars from the Hanlin Academy?"
A: "Of course, otherwise how would I know that I am living a happy life?"
This article caused a lot of jokes.
Those voices even reached Xuanzong's ears.
Li Longji was even more angry at that moment: "What kind of writing is this? If you can't write, don't write! If you write it and people laugh at you, it will really bring shame to the royal family!"
Just at this moment.
"Your Majesty, the Prime Minister requests to see you!" an eunuch reported.
"Call him over!" Li Longji was immediately delighted and waved his hand quickly.
The prime minister of the Tang Dynasty at that time was Zhang Shuo.
He was a famous official during the Kaiyuan period and a "model teacher of the dynasty and a literary master of his generation" who dominated the literary world for thirty years.
When Zhang Shuo came to power, he officially began to recruit numerous literati to whitewash the situation and sing praises of the emperor.
Soon after Zhang Shuo came to power, he invited Xu Jian, He Zhizhang and other literati to write books to praise the king and the prosperous times.
Later, Zhang Shuo presided over the ceremony of Fengshan on Mount Tai in the presence of officials, nobles and foreign envoys to praise Xuanzong's achievements.
At this moment, Li Longji had gradually lost himself in his own achievements, which was largely due to the contribution of Zhang Shuo, the leader of the literary world.
When Zhang Shuo saw the article written by Su Che, he flew into a rage and cursed, "It's worse than shit!"
However, the uproar caused by this article was simply too big.
Almost everyone in the entire Chang'an city knew about it.
Even those illiterate old farmers knew about this article.
The official gazette was almost entirely devoted to discussions of the content of this article.
As a role model of the time and a great scholar, Zhang Shuo certainly could not bear it and hurried to pay a visit to the emperor.
Not long after, Zhang Shuo came trembling into the hall. Emperor Xuanzong Li Longji immediately came over and helped Zhang Shuo sit down beside him.
"Your Majesty, I have been recuperating from illness . I didn't expect that there would be such an arrogant person in this world who intended to criticize the saint. His crime is really heinous!" Zhang Shuo said with a guilty look on his face.
"Your Majesty, please give an order to arrest this arrogant man!"
Some days ago, after Li Longji had his Fengshan ceremony at Mount Tai, Zhang Shuo, who had returned to Chang'an after a long journey, fell ill and stayed at home recuperating ever since. Unexpectedly, someone wrote an article entitled "It is better to give to friendly foreign nations than to be a domestic slave".
It's really wrong to react so late.
Li Longji said helplessly: "I thought you were going to write an article to refute this villain."
"Your Majesty, don't pay attention to the words of the thieves." Zhang said, shaking his head.
While the two were talking, another eunuch came over and reported carefully: "Your Majesty, ever since the article 'Rather Be Friendly with Foreign Countries than Domestic Slaves' was published, the foreign envoys did not react at first, but no one knew who translated it for them, which made many foreign merchants angry and feel humiliated. Your Majesty, please give us an explanation! Punish the culprit quickly to serve as a warning to others!"
After hearing this, Li Longji was stunned: "What does this have to do with these foreigners?"
"Why are they joining in the fun?"
"How dare they?!"
Li Longji never dreamed that he had always given preferential treatment to these Hu merchants, whether it was allowing them to hold official positions, or granting them tax exemptions and various preferential policies.
Even though so many benefits were given, no one expected that they would take advantage of the situation. As soon as they saw a policy trend that threatened them, they directly united and tried to coerce the emperor!
As soon as these words came out, Zhang Shuo said quickly: "Your Majesty, please calm down. These foreign barbarians are honest and straightforward. They don't know what is implicit, so they dare to say this..."
"No, Master Zhang, this article doesn't mention them at all. It's blaming me. What do they mean by being angry and asking me to give an explanation?" Li Longji was so angry that even if Zhang Shuo said this, he couldn't calm down.
Zhang was speechless for a moment. He couldn't help cursing these foreigners in his heart. They were really getting too greedy. They kept worshipping them. Did they really think of themselves as their fathers?
Li Longji calmed down a little at this moment. He frowned and gradually realized the problem.
In fact, as he gradually calmed down these days, he would read the article from time to time. Even though he still felt angry every time he read it, gradually, he was able to think about the problem rationally.
Faced with the questions in the book, he had no answers.
This prosperous era.
Whose prosperous era is this?
Don’t the people of the Tang Dynasty deserve to enjoy this prosperous era?
When dealing with foreigners, Li Longji sometimes trusted them more than his own people - because in his view, these foreigners had traveled across the ocean to come to such an unfamiliar country, and he was their only support!
Just like emperors of all dynasties favored eunuchs, eunuchs are rootless people, and no matter how arrogant and domineering they are, they can only stand with the imperial power.
The same thing happened to these Gentiles.
Whether it was letting them become high-ranking officials or letting them take control of the military power, Li Longji behaved quite magnanimously and open-mindedly.
To Li Longji, foreigners were indeed more noble and more trustworthy than his own people.
However.
The appearance of that article was like a bolt from the blue. It made Li Longji angry, crazy, and trembling with anger. But after calming down, he had to start facing the many questions raised in that article.
This prosperous era.
It was not a prosperous era for the common people.
In fact, in the early years, when Emperor Xuanzong Li Longji first ascended the throne, it was not like this. He put things right, disciplined foreign relatives, cracked down on aristocratic families, and investigated land annexation, doing a pretty good job.
But after working for so long, can’t you just enjoy yourself?
After creating a prosperous era, Li Longji gradually became satisfied and indulged in pleasure. He completely lost his previous spirit of diligence and hard work, nor the frugality he had during the reform.
When that article appeared, Li Longji gradually came to his senses; he was not yet completely incompetent.
Li Longji took a deep breath and looked at the prime minister beside him: "Master Zhang, don't arrest him first. Please write an article to refute him."
After hearing this, Zhang Shuo had no way to object and could only obey the order.
After returning to his residence, Zhang Shuo looked at Su Che's article carefully, pondered for a long time, and then began to write.
A literary leader is a literary leader after all. His literary talent and skills are definitely not comparable to those of the imperial writers in the Hanlin Academy.
He wrote an 8,000-word article entitled "On the Great Power".
The book demonstrates the benefits of having all nations come to pay tribute from various angles.
At the same time, he also quoted from classics and wrote with logic and evidence, unlike those court writers who just talked nonsense with their eyes closed.
Soon, when this article was published in the official gazette, it once again sparked countless discussions.
This is because the author of this article is the leader of contemporary literary circles and the prime minister of the current dynasty!
For a time, countless scholars and literati praised it highly and expressed with emotion that this was the true great theory and would surely silence Li Bai's twisted and heretical ideas!
But after reading this article, Su Che smiled slightly.
Finally, I have waited for a worthy opponent...
Naturally, Su Che had also seen the articles written by the imperial writers of the Hanlin Academy.
He is too lazy to care.
If Su Che said a single word in a debate with these people, he would be considered the loser.
But an article like this is different.
This is the work of Zhang Shuo, the prime minister and literary leader of the time!
In this article, various arguments are given on why the ceremonies of tribute from all nations were continuously held, in terms of culture, politics, heritage, world influence, and the pattern of eternity.
In a word, you only see the present situation, while the court is planning for the future.
All nations came to the Tang Dynasty to absorb talents from all over the world and make use of them, making the dynasty more powerful than ever before.
How can this be compared with those petty profits?
What Zhang said was based on reality and was not mindless bragging.
This is indeed the case.
The influence of Tang culture spread throughout the world, affecting the pattern of all ages. At the same time, it attracted talents from all over the world, including many literati and military generals.
Those Hu people born in the grasslands are much better than the people in the Central Plains in terms of archery and horse riding. It is easy for them to become officers and hold military power. They have a natural advantage.
Faced with such an article, Su Che smiled slightly, then spread out the rice paper and began to write.
There were only three big characters on the paper.
The Wealth of Nations
Su Che had written this article once before, so it was natural for him to be familiar with writing a similar article again.
Since a literary leader like Zhang Shuo likes to talk to me about international influence, cultural politics, and world layout.
Then Su Che will discuss in detail how to make a country strong.
The Wealth of Nations discusses these principles.
Su Che described everything in detail, including the country, aristocratic families, common people, and foreign merchants and trade.
There is a numerical limit to the wealth in the world. If you want to make your country rich, you must practice the way of being a sage inside and a king outside, rather than using countless wealth to exchange for fame.
Let's take a step back.
It would be extremely foolish to gain fame but not convert it into actual benefits.
Whether it is tribute or treasures given as rewards, these are just a small part in international trade.
The truly terrifying loss of wealth came from allowing tribute missions to trade along the way and in Beijing.
The same item has one price abroad, another price in China, and yet another price in Beijing.
Foreigners traded their own specialties and then sold silk, tea, porcelain and other things back home.
Directly make huge profits.
This is also one of the reasons why many foreign countries are happy to pay tribute.
So profitable!
The imperial court had clearly spread its reputation far and wide, but it did not use this reputation to make money through trade. Instead, it allowed foreign merchants and aristocratic families to participate, and each of them became rich enough to rival a country.
This loss of wealth caused the country to appear strong on the surface, but in reality, it was nothing more than a castle in the air.
The common people did not become richer, the imperial treasury did not become richer, and the emperor's treasury did not become richer. Instead, the aristocratic families and foreigners became richer.
This has caused a huge economic burden to the court. If you can't even figure out this account, then you, Mr. Zhang, are worthy of being the leader of the literary world, as you know nothing about arithmetic!
This tribute should have been a profitable political deal. It could have been a great opportunity to make the country rich and the people strong, but it turned into a farce of whitewashing the truth!
Is there no one in the court who can't see the problem here?
Su Che wrote at the end of the article:
I have read Mr. Zhang's theory of a great power, and I agree with it and add to it. How about we enrich our country first and then talk about the theory of a great power?
After Su Che finished writing the article, the literary aura rose to the sky again, and all the guests in the inn were frightened. Su Che quickly folded the paper in half, which restrained the literary aura and calmed the storm.
Su Che was not against paying tribute. He was only against the extreme practice of "rather befriend foreign nations than be domestic slaves". The literati whitewashed the situation, but is this world really a peaceful and prosperous one?
After Su Che mailed the article to Zhenyidao Gazette, it was soon published again.
"The Wealth of Nations"——Li Bai!
This article is obviously a response to Zhang Shuo's previous article "On the Great Power".
As soon as this article came out, it was sold out in an instant. For a while, paper became expensive in Chang'an.
After the writers got the article, they all started reading it. They were full of praise for it, and it also caused a lot of controversy.
"I have to admit that Li Bai really has some knowledge!"
"What a great article on the Wealth of Nations, but is it really okay for China to do business with others?"
"But if we don't do this, do we have to suffer a loss? Swell up our face and pretend to be rich? Is this all right?"
"Talking about money is so vulgar..."
"Haha, no money is no problem? You can still afford to go to school and buy books even if you don't have money!"
"That's right! This is the talk of a strong country! The talk of a rich country!"
"You can't make a country strong and prosperous just by reading books of sages and talking about great principles! We still have to be pragmatic!"
The voices of the debate varied. Some people agreed with Su Che's article. Most of these people came from poor families and knew the sufferings of the people. They knew that pragmatism was the true truth.
As for the children of the aristocratic families and wealthy families, they sneered at this article: "The whole article is about money. Li Bai is really a commoner. He is obsessed with money. How can this be compared with Master Zhang's "On the Great Power"?"
For a time, Su Che's article was polarizing and caused countless debates.
When Zhang Shuo saw the article "The Wealth of Nations", he immediately raised his eyebrows: "What a smooth-talking guy! How dare you say that!!"
Even Zhang Shuo had to admit that what Li Bai said made a lot of sense.
But here’s the thing…
This article of yours is more incisive than the previous one. It has directly affected the interests of countless people. Those wealthy and powerful families will never let you go!
"Li Bai, Li Bai, if you dare to write such an article, you will die a miserable death!"
at the same time.
When the Minister of Personnel Song Jing saw this article, he could not help but exclaimed: "It is a pragmatic theory, a statement to strengthen the country, a good article, and it is really well written..."
When he saw the article before, he felt dizzy.
As expected, the article caused countless controversies, intensified the conflicts between the Chinese and foreigners, and made the city of Chang'an unstable for a long time. Only under the strict control of the court did the turmoil gradually subside.
At this moment, this article came out again, and Song Jing was shocked again.
Song Jing was different from Zhang Shuo. He was a practical man and knew very well that only by doing so could the country become strong.
But here’s the thing…
Can Your Majesty really listen to me?
Song Jing shook his head and couldn't help feeling a little worried for a moment.
now.
Inside the palace.
When Emperor Xuanzong Li Longji saw "The Wealth of Nations", he immediately frowned and his expression became gloomy for a while.
There was surprise, joy, and even some doubt in his eyes.
This is a pragmatic statement, but it is also what many people call the "common people"!
As a big country, should we plunder the interests of small countries?
What a disgrace!
Our past practice was to reward those small countries, make them prosperous, make them strong, and fill them with Tang culture.
This is an equal exchange. You give benefits to the other party, and the other party recognizes your status and respects you.
However, such behavior.
The veil was directly exposed by an article titled "Rather give to friendly foreign countries than to domestic slaves!", which said that this was just an act of covering one's ears and stealing the bell, using the people's hard-earned money to exchange for the reputation of the Celestial Empire, which was a waste of money.
When Li Longji saw that article, he was furious.
At this moment, Li Longji was shocked again by "The Wealth of Nations".
If there is only the former but not the latter, then Li Bai is just talking nonsense, just like those censors who criticize the emperor's behavior, focusing on the emperor's faults, finding small flaws in the emperor, and making trouble for no reason.
but……
Li Bai is obviously not such a person.
He not only produced critical articles, but also put forward practical methods that could make the country prosperous again, as long as it carried out international trade...
Li Longji read "The Wealth of Nations" over and over again.
The article's rhetoric is ordinary, but its content is extremely pragmatic. Every sentence goes straight to the essence of the problem and directly tells a way to make the country prosperous!
This is the most shocking article Li Longji has read in recent years.
It even surpasses the article "I would rather be friends with foreign nations than with my domestic slaves!"
"The country is rich and the people are strong... a prosperous era, but whose prosperity is it..."
Li Longji murmured softly, he was seriously thinking about the pros and cons of doing this.
The path proposed in this article greatly excited him.
But if we really do this, we will offend many vested interests and even ruin the previous prosperous situation!
even……
It will change his reputation in history books into a different evaluation!
How to choose between practical benefits and a good reputation?
Just as Li Longji was deep in thought, the eunuch came to report:
"Your Majesty, there is a young man outside the palace gate who calls himself Li Taibai and wants to see Your Majesty!"
"What?!" Hearing this, Li Longji stood up and said in astonishment: "Li Taibai?!"