At the end of the year, the Southeast Procuratorate finally caused a loss of life.
It was not the official who went down to inspect the land who was burned to death, but a Yuhang scholar named Wang who tried to collude with others to oppose the court's new policy after the cabinet meeting. As a result, he was reported by many people and the evidence was conclusive. As a result, he was too frightened and chose to hang himself before the imperial guards arrived at his home.
It was the morning of the 28th day of the twelfth lunar month.
Someone died, and it happened during the New Year, which immediately made the political atmosphere in the southeast become delicate.
This mentality doesn't seem to need special explanation... The corpse is already there, it would be a waste not to use it as a shield or weapon... People are being forced to death, so why don't the emperor and the husband stop?
Therefore, after the New Year's Day, taking advantage of the arrival of the envoys sent from Tokyo in Hangzhou, local officials in Hangzhou went to Phoenix Mountain to offer New Year gifts in the name of greetings. At the same time, they wrote a letter to impeach Yang Yi Zhong, the commander of the Imperial City, for forcing people to die, and advised Emperor Zhao to be magnanimous. At the same time, they formally suggested that Emperor Zhao and Prime Minister Lu suspend the land inspection to avoid delaying the spring ploughing.
However, Emperor Zhao and Prime Minister Lu, specifically Emperor Zhao, responded very directly and quickly.
First of all, the original case... that is, the case of Yuhang scholars who died in the conspiracy, still adhered to the original disposal strategy, all the members of the cabinet who had colluded and resisted were expelled from the cabinet, arrested and imprisoned, and then quickly exiled to the Yellow River for two years of custody and fined. As for the deceased Mr. Wang, because it was found that he held land in many places, and most of them were "held by others on his behalf", it was obvious that he was evading and resisting the country. In addition, he was the mastermind of this conspiracy, and his home was surrounded and confiscated by the iron cavalry as warned before.
As for Mr. Wang himself, he committed suicide out of fear of punishment, so he is dead.
Secondly, regarding the petitions from Hangzhou, Emperor Zhao did not express any extra words, but only publicly responded and refuted them. According to Lü Benzhong's argument in the first issue of the new Jiangnan Xingzai Dibao, the so-called Phoenix Weekly, the Emperor was just discussing the matter. Although the Emperor clearly opposed these unreasonable remonstrances and impeachments, he would never punish them for the act of petitioning. Otherwise, what was the point of running a government? What was the way to maintain the channel for speech?
At the same time, Mr. Lu also said in the newspaper that Wang's suicide was essentially a resistance to the investigation, and it was already very merciful to stop at the confiscation of his property. If someone really incited the people and tried to resist armed resistance, then it would be said that I had not warned you.
After using both soft and hard tactics and clearly expressing Emperor Zhao's determination, the sudden wave of resistance to the land inspection was immediately subsided.
However, the Wang family was the most virtuous family in Yuhang, and the fact that their family was surrounded and confiscated by cavalry after their death did indeed trigger grief among people from all walks of life in the southeast...After this incident, a large number of members of the two public cabinets, taking advantage of the smooth transportation conditions and public cabinet system in the southeast, began to submit petitions on a large scale. However, they no longer talked about land inspections and local decisions, nor did they discuss the New Deal. Instead, they focused their attacks on the Imperial City Department and the Military Control Department, pointing the finger at Yang Yi Zhong and Yu Yun Wen, and focusing the incident on the harassment and harm of the scholars and people in the southeast caused by this secret service system.
And gradually formed a trend.
In response to this, Emperor Zhao still sat firmly on Phoenix Mountain. He sent envoys to Wuwei Army to reward Wang Gui and other soldiers of the imperial camp. On the other hand, he still did not accuse them of their words and carefully approved the letters from the public cabinet.
Anyway, although there are a lot of memorials, they are more than enough to write an article with great effort, while Emperor Zhao can just respond with "absurd", "read it", "nonsense", and "got it", so it can't be said that one is more troublesome than the other.
Of course, Lü Benzhong would still meet some people on behalf of Emperor Zhao, but he pointed out directly: Anyone with a little common sense should know that if the 10,000 imperial camp troops of Wuwei Army crossed the river and went south, who could stop them? The current situation just shows that the emperor is kind-hearted and unwilling to use force.
Up to this point, there really is an attitude that the government is sitting comfortably on Phoenix Mountain, ready to fight back whenever an enemy comes and block the water with earth.
This situation lasted for about ten days. As the Lantern Festival of the ninth year of Jianyan was approaching, rumors spread that Emperor Zhao would take advantage of the spring plowing period after the Lantern Festival to send out squads of guards in an armed posture to go deep into the fields and forcibly complete the final inspection.
The reason why it is called a rumor rather than a hearsay is because many people believe that it is feasible... After a hard winter, Liangzhe Road and Jiangdong Road dare not say that the land inspection work has been completed, but the land inspection for households with favorable conditions is basically completed. Many things basically only need the final verification work, and spring ploughing is a good time.
As for the land tax, at the very least it would just be a tax increase on the relatively disadvantaged households. Do we really have to not go out for spring ploughing in order to resist this?
Moreover, in the second issue of Phoenix Weekly in the new year, Master Lu published another article, and then clearly conveyed the government's message three times: Even if there are acts of hiding land, holding land on behalf of others, etc., as long as they actively cooperate in the land inspection work, then the old things before the eighth year of Jianyan will not be investigated. However, after the ninth year of Jianyan, if the land is still hidden, or even abandoned to escape, it will be severely punished to serve as a warning to the rest.
After all this time...is it that serious?
Therefore, before the Lantern Festival, facing the resolute Zhao Guanjia on Phoenix Mountain, the households in Jiangnan East Road and Liangzhe Road almost lost the courage to continue the confrontation in the land inspection. Even the impeachment against Yang Yizhong and Yu Yunwen would have gradually stopped if they had not agreed with each other before.
However, at this moment, as a person hurriedly rushed to the southeast from Tokyo and suddenly contacted another person who had been silent locally on the way after crossing the river, the people in the southeast became more excited as if they had come back to life.
The person who came from Tokyo was the former Minister of Rites Zhu Shengfei, and the local person who stood up to respond to Zhu Shengfei was another former Minister Liu Dazhong.
Zhu Shengfei was from Caizhou, and his hometown was located in the southeastern part of the west of Beijing, next to Huaidian. When Emperor Zhao executed a white horse to build Shaoxing, he resigned from his post and returned to his hometown, but he spent all day wandering around Rushui and Huaidian. Therefore, although Emperor Zhao did not pass by his side when he went south this time, he could be regarded as watching from afar.
When it was early winter before the New Year, Emperor Zhao convened a martial arts conference and publicly put forward strategies such as the land tax and other strategies, and directly implemented them in the southeast, he immediately paid attention to this matter. After discussing it with friends, neighbors and relatives in Lianghuai and western Beijing, he felt that this matter was inappropriate. At that time, many of his former colleagues and local scholars advised him to come out and argue with the emperor.
As a representative figure of the White Horse Incident, although this Minister Zhu was recommended by Lü Yihao, he had been living in Lianghuai with his steadiness after retirement, and he often said that someone was harming the country. Now that he was pushed to the limit, he naturally had to stand up. However, he understood that going directly to Hangzhou to find Emperor Zhao would only bring humiliation upon himself, so he simply took another approach and went to Tokyo to personally criticize Zhao Ding, Zhang Jun, Liu Ji, Chen Gui, and even Lü Haowen, the ministers in Beijing, and provoked discussions in the Imperial College.
It can be said that the momentum was very loud and it caused some troubles to the five people in Tokyo, but the problem was that this system of dividing the land tax by land was obviously aimed at the southeast, that is, Liangzhe and Jiangdong. It was estimated that before the Northern Expedition, it would at most be extended to Lianghuai, Jiangxi and Fujian. So what if Tokyo was so lively?
Thousands of miles away, it had no substantial impact on Emperor Zhao.
However, it was not known whether the officials in the capital were annoyed by him, or for some other reason, but after the court sent out New Year's greetings envoys, they suddenly temporarily entrusted this old minister as the Lantern Festival greetings envoy and asked him to meet Emperor Zhao and explain the rules.
This person had no choice but to go on the road, and then crossed the Yangtze River after the New Year. However, he did not rush to see Emperor Zhao, but took the initiative to slow down his journey and observe the situation. When he could no longer avoid it, he calculated the time and suddenly gathered the local officials in Huzhou on the twelfth day of the first lunar month. He made a public statement that this trip was necessary to persuade Emperor Zhao and so on... Then he brought these local people to call out Liu Dazhong, the former Minister of Personnel, who had been unemployed in his hometown in Huzhou and had not even opened the door throughout the winter.
Liu Dazhong had been about to endure it, but after all, like Zhu Shengfei, he was a representative of the so-called conservative faction, and his political attributes were firmly controlled by the White Horse Incident. When Zhu and his fellow villagers kicked the door and stabbed him in the waist, he had no choice but to express his position in public and followed Zhu Shengfei to pay respects to the emperor.
Finally, we managed to arrive in Hangzhou at noon on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, the Lantern Festival.
How to say it? Although Zhu Shengfei and Liu Dazhong came in a hurry, there were still members of the cabinet from Hangzhou, Huzhou, Xiuzhou, Yuezhou, Mingzhou, Muzhou and other surrounding prefectures and counties who arrived in time to watch the lanterns during the Lantern Festival and to pay their respects to the emperor. They arrived in time to support the two officials.
If you count, there are about one or two hundred people.
But this gamble is basically the last one.
Back to the present, the significance of the Lantern Festival on the 15th day of the first lunar month is self-evident in this era. It is the most joyful festival. As the actual capital of the southeast, Hangzhou has not seen wars and chaos for more than ten years since Fang La, so it is of course very lively. Moreover, compared with the big city of Bianliang in the north, although Hangzhou has a smaller population, it also has the West Lake to rely on. In addition, the temperature in the south is warm and there are many cities around it, so it naturally has a different flavor.
Not to mention that countless mountains of lanterns had been set up a few days in advance, and on the day of the Lantern Festival, even the dilapidated Leifeng Pagoda was topped by the imperial cavalry soldiers from Tokyo who worked together to raise a colorfully painted hot air balloon. In response to the countless local and surrounding officials who came to pay their respects and offer tributes, Emperor Zhao gave a banquet on Phoenix Mountain at noon. The two former chancellors Liu and Zhu also received the treatment they deserved and attended the banquet… But there was nothing extra about the banquet. Zhu Shengfei and Liu Dazhong didn’t even have time to speak. Right after the meal, Lu Yihao personally led the local officials of Hangzhou to invite Emperor Zhao to get off Phoenix Mountain and board a big boat on West Lake to cruise around the lake and have fun with the people.
So, in the afternoon, Emperor Zhao set out the ceremonial guard and led the people of Fenghuang Mountain to the north to Yongjin Gate, and then boarded the boat that had been waiting there.
Among them, Emperor Zhao, his close ministers, and more than a dozen attendants boarded a large flat-bottomed boat nicknamed the Big Oolong, and placed the world-famous Jinwu flag at the stern. Prime Minister Lu, Prime Minister Xu, and the two former ministers Liu and Zhu also each had a boat. The boat that Prime Minister Lu and Xu took was nicknamed the Little Oolong, so there is no need to mention it further.
In addition, the local envoys and officials of the prefecture in Hangzhou, as well as members of the dukedoms of surrounding prefectures and counties, were also allocated ships according to their rank and region, and traveled together.
In fact, as the richest families in the prefectures and counties around Hangzhou in Liangzhe Road, which family of these officials did not have their own pleasure boats in West Lake? And which pleasure boats were not decorated with carved railings and jade, gold pendants and silver ornaments, and even incense and sweet fragrances? Aren't they better than these official boats with bare benches inside?
But then again, every household has a pleasure boat, but how many of them can board the official ship to accompany the emperor today?
There were too many people and it was the first time they did this, so everyone arrived at Yongjin Gate with the imperial carriage in the afternoon, but it was not until the sun set that they were able to board the ship.
But then, with the big Wulong in front and the small Wulong on the side and behind, dozens of official ships set out at the same time, following the Jinwu flag on the big Wulong's butt, and sailed out of the Yongjin Gate together, heading towards Su Causeway, which instantly set off the entire West Lake.
It was the Lantern Festival, Hangzhou was open all night long, and with the densely populated cities of Liangzhe and the Emperor Zhao staying there, many people came to West Lake to celebrate the festival. Today, they saw the Emperor riding a boat to tour the lake, and many people came out. Not only was it difficult to move on the Su Causeway in front of them, but also countless people gathered on both sides of the river to climb up to see the dragon boats.
What can be seen from such a distance? No one knows.
How were the interior and exterior of the dragon boats decorated? What were the differences between official boats and folk pleasure boats? No one knew.
They said they were going to see the emperor, the minister, and the imperial guards. But did the emperor leave the cabin? Did the minister wave his hand? How many imperial guards were there? Was Yang Yizhong, the treacherous minister who had forced the great good man Wang to death, among them? No one knew either.
But they just wanted to rush in to watch, to fill the banks and embankments to look out. Amid the hustle and bustle, countless pleasure boats were launched from all sides, circling around large and small Wulong boats and many official boats, almost covering half of the West Lake, and responding to the shouts from the shore.
In the chaos, those cabinet members who were able to accompany the emperor on the official ship had already become obsessed. Who still remembered the impeachment, the support for the two wise ministers, the suicide of Mr. Wang, and the evil policies of the local inspection?
But I just feel that this life is enough, and I wish I could go back and tell my fellow villagers that I was at West Lake that day, only three boat spaces away from Emperor Zhao’s house!
A few people still remembered what was going on, but they could only sigh in their hearts, thinking that the official was really smart enough to refuse advice. As long as the boats drifted on the West Lake until midnight, went back to stay overnight until dawn, and sent away Zhu Shengfei, the Lantern Festival envoy the next day, Liu Dazhong, who had come to make up the numbers, would be alone and powerless, and the matter would be over.
However, for some unknown reason, Liu Dazhong and Zhu Shengfei, the two instigators, held hands on the official ship. Although they looked at each other without saying a word, they also seemed somewhat relieved.
The boat moved forward slowly, and in the evening, when the sun shone from west to east, illuminating the lake with a golden glow, the Big Wulong arrived in front of the Su Causeway Bridge. Naturally, it could not go any further, so it had to turn around. At this moment, another climax appeared... Emperor Zhao, wearing a right-angled futou, a brand new light yellow robe, a gold-plated red belt, and black boots, in a manner that completely met the imagination of the people of Hangzhou, actually came out of the Big Wulong's cabin with a group of close ministers in purple, red and blue, and waved at the Su Causeway, which attracted the prime ministers, ministers, officials, and cabinet members on other official ships to follow suit.
Although it was only a moment when the bow of the boat turned, it caused the river bank and both banks to roar like thunder, and even scared away countless crows on Phoenix Mountain across the Sunset Mountain.
The bow of the boat turned around, and the people on the dike came to their senses. Although not many of them saw it clearly, they could not help but feel dry mouth. They just said that Emperor Zhao looked at me, and said that they saw the gold and red belt with their own eyes. Some who knew the allusions said that when Emperor Zhao was in danger on the day of the Huai River, he went alone to see Prince Han, who gave him a jade belt. After that, he never wore a jade belt again, only a gold belt, a cowhide belt and so on. It was really confusing.
That was not all. The boats turned around and slowly returned. As dusk gradually fell on the way, Emperor Zhao issued another decree, ordering all boats to light lanterns. Although the official boats were large, they were extremely simple. Only the bow and stern could be hung with ordinary lanterns. But as the two boats, Big Wulong and Small Wulong, lit a few lanterns, the whole lake and the city seemed to have received a signal. Starting from the lake, people lit up their lanterns before it got dark.
For a moment, the lights flickered, the stars gradually connected into one, and the entire West Lake was illuminated like heaven on earth. Even at this time, the moon was slightly visible on the horizon, and the setting sun was still lingering on the west of the lake, but it could not completely cover the lights of the world.
All I can say is that it is a beautiful scene of great unity among the monarch, his subjects, and the people in the feudal era.
If you don’t know, you would think we have returned to the Tokyo City of the Feng Hengyu era.
However, just as the lights were hung on the boat and everyone thought that Emperor Zhao was going to take advantage of the situation to wander around the West Lake until midnight to avoid Zhu and Liu, something unexpected happened... As dusk fell and the lake was full of lights, Da Wulong still took advantage of the last ray of sunset to return to the Yongjin Gate. Then the emperor went ashore and led the ceremonial procession back to Fenghuang Mountain.
Along the way, there was another decree that as the government officials and people in the southeast had offered a lot of offerings to Phoenix Mountain before the Lantern Festival and the Spring Festival, in order to prevent waste, they would all be issued at the foot of Phoenix Mountain.
Among them, all the offered money and silk were used to reward the cavalry soldiers in the imperial camp, all the popular and interesting things were distributed at a lantern riddle party under the Leifeng Pagoda for the common people to profit from, and all the food and specialties were distributed at a banquet in front of the Phoenix Mountain to entertain the ministers and officials who were accompanying the emperor that day, to show that everyone was having fun together.
Most people were naturally delighted to receive this decree, but a few people like Liu Dazhong, Zhu Shengfei and others could not help but complain - it was because with such a momentum unfolding, how could those of them who had previously expressed their determination in public hide?
I'm afraid I'm bound to be a bad guy.
As expected, as the moon gradually rose, the people of Hangzhou heard that the government was giving out profits on Xizhao Mountain, and they had already gathered on the south bank of West Lake. The military camps on both sides of Fenghuang Mountain also cheered after receiving rewards. At this time, at the foot of Fenghuang Mountain, on the site where the martial arts conference was held in the past, a banquet had already been spread out, and everyone sat down. Thinking of the original business, they felt that there were cheers and shouts from all directions, and they inevitably lost confidence. As expected, many people tried to avoid and perfunctorily deal with it.
What's worse, some of them pretended to have forgotten the previous agreement and were determined not to care about the matter anymore. They actually started to enjoy themselves openly at the foot of the mountain, making the atmosphere even more subtle.
The banquet started with Prime Minister Lu hosting it first, followed by a brief banquet ceremony, to celebrate the birthdays of the Second Saint who was in seclusion, the Third Queen Mother who was being well-fed, and the Emperor who was sitting up there with a smile on his face, and also to congratulate the Emperor on having a new prince last year... After a few rounds of drinking, everyone was a little tipsy.
But there is no way. The Song Dynasty has its own national conditions. Who can do anything about it?
After seven or eight glasses of wine, it was the Lantern Festival again. As the emperor personally ordered a portion of Dongpo pork to be sent to the Taishang Yuansheng Emperor in the west of the city, it was inevitable to compose poems and lyrics... In fact, the southeast was originally a place where literature flourished. Let alone other things, just like the three leaders of the Yuezhou Gongge present here, the Lu, Shi, and Zhuge families, all have their own libraries at home. Among them, the Lu family has a collection of about 13,000 volumes. As early as a few years ago, after the third son Lu Yi was promoted to Tongpan, he returned the favor and took the initiative to propose that his family organize the copying of books and offer them to the court... Even the Shi and Zhuge families have collections of 10,000 and 7,000 to 8,000 volumes respectively.
This is where the prosperous literary atmosphere of the southeast comes from...and as long as the children from such families have the intention, they will naturally not be lacking in poetry.
However, literary style is one thing, but isn’t there a great poet named Zhao Guanjia sitting above him?
What if this turns out to be embarrassing?
So, everyone pushed each other and I retreated, but someone took the initiative to step out and bowed his head. He was feeling regretful that the emperor had not written a poem or an inscription on the lake today, so he wanted to ask Emperor Zhao to write a poem first to lead the way.
"You think too much."
Under the lights all over the mountain and the bright moon, the view was clear. The Emperor Zhao, who had changed into a soft-winged hat, sat on the top and shook his head and laughed. "The Lantern Festival is a good time to have fun together. Today, you can write poems regardless of the subject matter, whether they are good or bad. Just write them and let the officials read them. If you think they are good, you can drink a cup and then ask the name. If you think they are bad, just smile and leave. Why worry so much?"
After hearing this, everyone felt relieved.
Soon after, officials from Hangzhou Prefecture came up to distribute paper and pens. At this moment, Emperor Zhao picked up the pen and was about to write, but for some reason he suddenly asked about Lu Zhen, the new cabinet member of the Yuezhou Lu family who had emerged after Lu Zhen was transferred to be the magistrate. He heard that the Lu family had a ten-year-old prodigy who was born on a boat. He could compose poetry at a young age, and his name was Lu You... Was he here today?
Upon hearing that Lu You had gone to see the lanterns with his brothers and cousins ​​during the day and could not be found for a while, the official finally felt relieved and began to write calmly.
After a while, the poem was completed, and then the former Minister of Rites Zhu Shengfei was appointed as the order official to stand up and recite the poem for everyone.
Others were fine. Zhu Shengfei himself was already a little wary at this time, but he didn't dare to disobey, so he could only stand up and agree.
But it's okay, if you read them one by one, they are all about BMWs and dragon boats, lights and moonlight, beautiful scenery of lakes and mountains, the emperor and the people enjoying themselves together, the prosperous scene of the restoration, etc. There are good ones and bad ones, and everyone is an expert, so they will naturally identify the poets with high level, and then call them out on the spot to drink wine and congratulate them.
For a while, everyone was having fun at the foot of Phoenix Mountain, and even Zhu Shengfei gradually lost his vigilance.
But soon, as a poem appeared in Ambassador Zhu's hands, the former Minister of Rites felt a buzzing on his forehead, and he knew that today would not end well.
"Why did Zhu Qing suddenly stop reading?" Zhao Jiu urged on the spot.
Zhu Shengfei looked at Emperor Zhao, his heart numbed, but he finally held the manuscript and read it out with gritted teeth:
"The river flows eastward for 30,000 miles into the sea, and the mountain rises 5,000 feet to the sky.
The remaining people shed their tears in the dust of the barbarians, and look south to the king's army for another year. "
When this poem was uttered, everyone in the room was stunned. The whole day's romance, romance, and lights of Jinhu Lake also vanished into thin air.
"What do you think of this poem?" Zhao Jiu seemed to be in awe, but he mentioned a name. "Lu Zhi, what do you think of this poem?"
Yuezhou Gongge Chief Lu Zhen really didn't know why such a thing and this poem would implicate him, but since the emperor had said so, he quickly left the table and faced the emperor head-on:
"So that the emperor can know that this poem is concise and points out the current situation. How can it be bad? However, since we are writing Lantern Festival poems today, this poem is suddenly listed, which inevitably makes it look a bit cynical..."
"Well said, it's quite pertinent." Zhao Jiu nodded, the soft wings of the futou on his head shaking for a while, but after making the judgment, he looked at Zhu Shengfei. "Mr. Zhu, which blind and cynical person wrote this? Don't you know that everyone is celebrating the Lantern Festival? Do you have to expose the scars now?"
Zhu Shengfei looked at Emperor Zhao, his heart chilled, but he could only force himself to remain calm and answer with all his strength: "The one who is cynical is none other than Emperor Zhao... The signature is Zhao Jiu from Cangzhou."
Besides, at this time, because the crows were scared away in the afternoon, there was a rare . Therefore, the so-called dead silence is particularly appropriate to describe this moment.
At the same time, not far away, there was a bustling scene under the Leifeng Pagoda. The entire West Lake was like a big moon on the ground that could emit its own light, illuminating the surroundings like daylight, which formed a sharp contrast with here.
But to be honest, although Lu Zong and others were frightened, when they thought about it, they did not find it particularly strange. They just felt that the incident happened suddenly and they felt a little aggrieved... Come to think of it, wasn't it you, Emperor Zhao, who started this romantic affair for an entire afternoon and night?
Moreover, even if Zhu and Liu had announced before they came that they were going to cause trouble, wasn't it resolved by your, Emperor Zhao's, trick? Why do you want me to come to you, and I will come to you? Why do you have to chase me relentlessly?
We have already said enough. Why do you, as an official, want to go against the moral code and launch a surprise attack?
"I'm wrong for ruining everyone's mood today." Just as everyone was silent with grievance, Emperor Zhao spoke again with emotion. "But you all must also understand my difficulties... I just realized when I picked up the pen that since I promised Han Liangchen the jade belt that day, I would never wear it again. And since I wrote "Qingyu Case" for Zong Zhongwu that day, how could I write Shangyuan Ci? And when I thought of Zong Zhongwu, I remembered that I had sworn a poisonous oath in front of Zong Zhongwu, saying that if I could not restore the two rivers, destroy the Jurchens, and unify the world, I would have nothing to live for and die without a complete body... And he also said that the reason why I would die without a complete body must be because if I die, I will be chopped by swords and axes on the battlefield... Thinking of this, I can't suppress my emotions, so I wrote this cynical poem, I hope you can forgive me."
At the foot of Phoenix Mountain, everyone heard this, and although they felt more aggrieved, they still didn't understand what Emperor Zhao meant. How could they refute it, and dare to refute it? Could anyone really stand up and complain, saying that Emperor Zhao said both the positive and negative things, leaving us speechless? On the contrary, after looking at each other, everyone could only come out one after another, confessing their guilt, saying that they were addicted to the prosperity of the southeast, and could not understand the emperor, nor the situation in the world.
For a moment, everyone knelt on the ground. Zhu Shengfei stood awkwardly on the side. Even Liu Dazhong sighed and came out to bow with the two husbands... So far, it can be said that the last wave of counterattack attempted by these people had been completely defeated by Emperor Zhao, and there was no possibility of recurrence.
However, the official sitting at the top still had no intention of letting it go, and instead shook his head directly:
"I understand what you mean. You apologize, but in fact you still feel wronged and dissatisfied. And I don't want to be called a culprit... What else do you have in your heart? Today, we, the king and his subjects, will talk about it under the influence of wine, but it will not count after today... Whether I can convince you is one thing, but at least you must understand my intentions, and I must also understand yours."
Hearing this, most people were somewhat confused, because it sounded a little wrong. How could it be said that someone should be punished for not teaching? Who let the government bear this reputation?
Zhu Shengfei, on the other hand, waited for a moment, his face turned pale and blue, and he finally lost control, and then he bowed his head and knelt down: "I am terrified, and I am ashamed of being punished without teaching..."
"You don't have to feel ashamed about this." Zhao Jiu said calmly in the upper seat. "After the White Horse Shaoxing Incident, I also reflected on it. I did go too far back then. I had the intention of punishing you without teaching you. It was even more extreme to treat you as enemies and drive you out of the court... It's natural that you feel resentful."
Everyone then realized who this sentence was directed at.
However, after hearing this, Zhu Shengfei still did not dare to move, but became even more frightened.
Emperor Zhao continued to shake his head and said, "But Mr. Zhu, you may be resentful of me, but why are you dissatisfied with the ministers in power? You have been traveling in Huaidian, telling people all day that Minister Zhao Ding is extravagant, burning four large incense burners on both sides of the lobby of the prime minister's mansion, burning dozens of kilograms of incense every day, and embezzling public funds to plant exotic bamboo at home... Is this reasonable?"
At this point, Zhu Shengfei no longer dared to look up. Even Lu Yihao, Xu Jingheng, and Liu Dazhong on the side were all stunned.
Besides, Zhao Ding's personal morality and character are recognized as good. Lu Yihao once served as the prefect of Yangzhou and later as the envoy to the southeast. He had frequent contacts with Zhao Ding, who was the transport envoy of Lianghuai at that time. Liu Dazhong had a very good personal relationship with Zhao Ding. Even Xu Jingheng had his own information channels. Everyone knew that Zhao Ding was a person who would go to a roadside stall in the south of the city to drink a bowl of mutton soup. How come he became an extravagant person when he came to Zhu Shengfei?
Not only that, Emperor Zhao continued to sigh: "And Zhang Jun, you said that he has a hall in his house, which is specially used for secret meetings with the members of the Wood Party. There are 9981 pieces of lapis lazuli slabs several feet square in the hall. It is extravagant and even beyond the rules... In fact, Zhang Jun's family is a famous family in Shuzhong. In Shuzhong, they can afford to invite Master Dahui and Master Keqin to come to their home. His wife is the niece of Yuwen Xianggong. For such a family, it is impossible to argue that he is extravagant... But I want to ask you, when you made up this statement, I am afraid you didn't know that I had awarded the same mansions in Jingyuan to the secret cabinet members and the prime ministers in the court, right? Which hall can be paved with so many lapis lazuli slabs? And I just gave them a house, and they want to do this beyond the rules under my nose? Don't they know that I still raise fish in my back garden?"
It was only the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, and it was outside the mountains. Even in the south, how could it be hot? But upon hearing this, Zhu Shengfei was already sweating profusely, and the people around him saw his reaction and knew what was going on, and they became even angrier - Lu Yihao could not help but shake his sleeves, and when Liu Dazhong came to his senses, he wished he could kick this man a few times for Zhao Ding.
But this is not over yet. Emperor Zhao continued to shake his head: "And Lu Haowen about Prime Minister Lu... You said that he embezzled 170,000 strings of public funds and looted more than 3,000 pieces of public property during his tenure. I don't even know about this. How did you calculate it so clearly? And for such a serious corruption, why didn't you impeach him while in office, but instead told these things to your fellow countrymen at home after you left office? And you also said that when I was fighting in Yaoshan, you accepted my entrustment to guard Tokyo? And you said that you would write these in your "Record of Ru Huai Xianju"? Don't you feel ashamed?"
"I beg you to expel this person immediately!" Upon hearing this, the usually good-tempered Xu Jingheng couldn't hold back. "This person is not of pure character. He is unworthy of being a minister and has also tarnished the friendship of his peers."
However, at the same time, Lu Yihao, who had the harshest temper and was the benefactor of this person in the past, laughed out loud.
Amid the laughter and anger around him, Zhu Shengfei no longer dared to say a word, let alone raise his head.
"I know you are resentful of me and the prime minister at that time because of the Baima Incident, but aren't you afraid that a hundred years later, someone will use your record of leisure as evidence to discredit you because you are the minister of this dynasty?!" Zhao Jiu was also a little disappointed. "In fact, judging from what you said in your hometown, you probably didn't really want to persuade me from the beginning, but just wanted to maintain your image as an upright minister, and you were set up by others, right? I'm afraid that's why you were sent to me by the two ministers Lu and Zhao who saw through your true intentions... There are some things that they are reluctant to say."
Zhu Shengfei finally looked up in surprise, because Emperor Zhao's words had hinted at another fact.
"Don't look at me." Zhao Jiu was speechless when he saw the other party looking up. "When you were showing off your power in Tokyo, your fellow villagers had already sent your words to the public office. Your words in Huaidian were also passed on by Lu Gong to Zhao Xianggong, so that the whole secret office knew about it. But they couldn't scold you in person after reading it, so they had to transfer you here for me to deal with... Otherwise, how do you think I know your words? Do you really think that my Imperial City Department is so powerful that it can collect all the gossip you said in Huaidian?"
Hearing that neither Lu Haowen nor Zhao Ding took Zhu Shengfei's words to heart, Lu Yihao and Xu Jingheng became deflated and decided not to take it to heart anymore.
As for the rest of the people, after hearing this, how could they not understand that this wave of self-righteous last-minute officials coming out to turn the tide was a joke from the very beginning?
At this point, things seemed to be calm, and Emperor Zhao couldn't let all the members of the Southeast Public Office and local officials kneel, so he waved his hand, letting Zhu Shengfei go home to avoid embarrassment, and asked everyone to stand up and continue the banquet.
However, just as Zhu Shengfei was escaping from Phoenix Mountain, and everyone was getting up to return to their seats for his sake, they suddenly discovered that one person, although he had also stood up and straightened his back, did not move at all... It was none other than the former Minister of Personnel Liu Dazhong.
This inevitably surprised everyone, including Emperor Zhao and his two husbands.
After all, Liu Dazhong himself was in Huzhou, and he had remained silent almost throughout the entire process of the martial arts conference. It was obvious that he had either long realized that Emperor Zhao's determination was unshakable, or he had been touched after the martial arts conference, so he chose to submit to Emperor Zhao and stop interfering.
Even this time, it was obvious that he was temporarily dragged in as a shield by the villain Zhu Shengfei.
Well, Zhu Shengfei has already run away, so why should he do that?
"Do you have anything else to say, Mr. Liu?" Zhao Jiu was silent for a moment. Knowing that he had met a tough guy, he asked seriously.
"Your Majesty, I originally had nothing to say, but after you said that if you don't teach, you will be punished, I felt the urge to speak my mind to you." Liu Dazhong bowed calmly, which was in stark contrast to the boiling state of West Lake not far behind him. "Since I resigned from my post and returned to my hometown, I have no intention of complaining, but I still want to discuss the recent issue of the tax-to-land tax system implemented by your government. However, I don't want to stop this policy, but I want you to know my feelings and why I resigned that day. I also want to know what your thoughts are... Please allow me to say a few words about this."
Zhao Jiu was silent again, then nodded: "You go ahead."
"Your Majesty, the issue of the land tax is the same as the green seedling loan that you have promoted before, and the new laws that Wang Shu and Wang Li have introduced. In my eyes, they are all the same." Liu Dazhong stood still under the watchful eyes of everyone, and said calmly. "That is, the method is very good, and it always looks like a good thing, but in fact, once it is used, it will always cause endless harm..."
"Because of improper employment, or harassment by corrupt officials?" Zhao Jiu responded sternly. "Or will there always be new problems in the future, causing new suffering for the people?"
"That's right." Liu Dazhong put his hands aside after hearing this. "This is why I have always opposed the government's haste and haste... I will not talk about the Qingmiao loan and the war with the Jin people, but only about the land tax... The land tax is divided into acres... There are benefits to the land tax, but for this benefit, the government set up the public cabinet to win people's hearts. But I would like to ask, if the literati and the powerful households are included in the public cabinet, and the public cabinet is vacant in the future, will they feel that the government is deceiving them? If the public cabinet has real power, will it harass the local areas in turn and become too powerful to be eliminated? Even coerce the local areas and become a reliance for the powerful households to bully and abuse their power? Moreover, if the power cannot be fairly divided within the public cabinet, how can the clerks and households be bought? And if the power is fairly divided, how can the literati tolerate the clerks and households being above them? These problems can help the government divide and conquer in the short term and implement new policies, but over time they will breed new difficulties."
Zhao Jiu remained silent, but gradually became solemn, while Lu Yihao and Xu Jingheng looked at this former Minister of Personnel with complicated expressions. He was famous in the Baima Shaoxing Rebellion, but had been silent since he resigned from office, and even his relationship with Taoism was gradually severed.
The Minister of Personnel was probably the most powerful official position after the Prime Minister and the Chief Censor. Liu Dazhong had been the most trusted member of Zhao Ding's party when he was in office. However, he resolutely resigned during the White Horse Incident and remained silent until now. Now that he has spoken, no one can underestimate him.
Emperor Zhao remained silent, and neither of the two ministers spoke. Naturally, Liu Dazhong had no scruples:
"Also, after the land tax is distributed, will silk and silk still be collected? If not, silver will be collected instead. In summer and autumn, the common people will gather to sell grain and silk for money. Will unscrupulous merchants lower the price? Will this make the common people more difficult? If silk and silk are still collected, how can the price of silk and silk, grain and silver be compared? Should the government decide it? If the government decides it, coupled with the new order that taxes will never be increased, will there be inequality between regions, causing some regions to pay more and others to pay less? Moreover, the power and responsibility lies with the government. What if we encounter a corrupt official whose family runs a silk and silk business? What if we encounter a person who is eager for merit and wants to curry favor with the government? Has the government considered this?"
Zhao Jiu nodded and replied: "I, Lu and Xu, and I have already considered this matter. Even if the cabinet is worried, I have already seen the advice."
"So, the government knew that there would be these new problems, but still wanted to push it forward?" Liu Dazhong couldn't ask any more.
"yes."
"Well then... I'll finish my speech in one go before I talk about other things... Next, in the long run, after the increase in the number of people is exempted from taxes and the tax is distributed according to the amount of land, the people will no longer drown their babies. As a result, after a generation grows up, the population will increase sharply, but most of them will be poor. What will happen then? Will they rise up in rebellion? Will we restore the old practice of the Xiang army and use the national treasury to support it? Has the emperor considered this matter?"
"How could I not have thought about such a natural thing?" Zhao Jiu responded seriously.
"Then there is... This time when the scholar surnamed Wang in Yuhang committed suicide, I certainly know that someone took advantage of the situation. That person committed suicide, and no one is to blame... But Your Majesty, this time for the land tax distribution, and last time for the Qingmiao loan, you gradually opened up the Military Control Department and the Imperial City Department, allowing them to have more and more power and responsibilities, and to intervene in more and more things. Isn't that true?" Liu Dazhong continued to ask, his emotions becoming more and more intense. "I know Yang Yizhong, although he has a bad reputation, he is actually a calm and loyal person, and Yu Yunwen is an outstanding junior. But Your Majesty, if you let the two departments go like this, aren't you afraid that one day Yang, Yu and others will be gone, and the two departments will be replaced by villains, and a Lai Junchen or Zhou Xing will appear, causing a disaster?"
Zhao Jiu still nodded: "You are right, there is such a hidden danger."
After these words were spoken, Yang Yi Zhong and Yu Yun Wen could no longer control themselves and they stepped out of the crowd and knelt down to apologize.
"Then your Majesty, my meaning is very clear..." Liu Dazhong ignored the two people and continued to express himself earnestly. "Since ancient times, why did Taoists talk about governing by doing nothing, why did Confucian scholars talk about virtue, and why was there a dispute between the old and new parties, and why did I oppose quick success and instant benefits... It's not because I don't know that your Majesty has good intentions, nor is it because I don't understand what is a good law and what is an existing inferior system, but I also know, and those ancient sages know even better, that no matter what, the people have no power to resist the situation and the government! No matter how good the law is, no matter how good the design is, it will become more harmful to the people after a long time than before the change, and the burden on the people will always be heavier than before the change!"
At this point, Liu Dazhong was filled with grief and said, "I will borrow an old saying. The wealth of the world, if not in the hands of the government, is in the hands of the people. However, the government officials and the powerful will always plunder the people, just like tigers and leopards eating sheep and rabbits. Do the government believe it or not?"
Hearing this, the situation-conscious people behind him were so frightened that they dared not say a word, but Xu Jingheng had already been touched. If it were not for the promise he made to the government after the martial arts conference that day, he would have almost turned against the government... After all, Liu Dazhong's words were exactly the heartfelt dilemma that these former Confucian idealists faced when they came into contact with the actual operation of society.
The more you do, the more problems you will end up causing.
Xu Jingheng lowered his head and remained silent. Lu Yihao opened his mouth to speak, but when he looked up, he met the gaze of Emperor Zhao and fell silent.
After Zhao Jiu stopped Lu Yihao with his eyes, he continued to speak sincerely to Liu Dazhong who suddenly appeared: "I believe in the sincerity of your words, and I also believe in the truth of your words."
This sentence made Liu Dazhong completely lose control. He immediately asked back: "So, even if you know this, the government still wants to do these things?"
"That's right." Zhao Jiu nodded in response. Although his words were calm, they were firm and resolute.
"Why is it so?" Liu Dazhong was almost furious. "Why is it so? Isn't the government considering the future generations?"
"Mr. Liu, please allow me to answer you for a moment." Zhao Jiu looked at him seriously. "We are talking about the heart-to-heart talk between the monarch and his subjects. Can I ask you a question as well?"
Liu Dazhong sighed and spread his hands.
When Zhao Jiu saw this, he suddenly took off his hat, stood up with the help of a gold-decorated red belt, and walked to the table. Then he did something that no one expected - he bent down, found something from Yang Yi's waist, and pulled it out directly.
The moonlight was bright and the lake was shining. Everyone could see clearly that Emperor Zhao had actually pulled out Yang Yizhong's sword, which also shocked them.
The sword shone like spring water. With a simple swing of Emperor Zhao's sword, it appeared less than a foot in front of Liu Dazhong. The Emperor immediately asked a question that frightened everyone present:
"Liu Qing, do you think this sword is sharp or not?"
Lu Yihao and Xu Jingheng both changed color and were about to step forward. The members of the Southeast Pavilion who were standing behind them, who were seeing such a scene for the first time, recalled those legends and were even more stunned.
But at this moment, Liu Dazhong was much calmer than the others. He calmly looked around, stopped the people around him from coming forward, and directly responded to the sword: "Your Majesty, in my opinion, this sword is sharp enough."
Zhao Jiuping held the sword still, but his expression darkened. "Liu Qing, this is an amateur's talk. It's the times and the situation. This sword was considered a good sword in the past when the country was at peace, but nowadays, any sword is not sharp enough. Because now on the battlefield, armor is getting more and more neat and harder. A sword like this may seem sharp, but after being used in battle, after one sword cuts a person, there will be tiny cracks covered by bloodstains. After two sword cuts, there will be tiny cracks quietly appearing. After three or five swords have really killed a person, it can no longer be used."
"I see." Liu Dazhong was puzzled for a moment and wanted to ask again. "Then..."
"Mr. Liu, you said that we should be open-hearted today, so I will be open-hearted with you. I am actually this sword." Zhao Jiu interrupted him and gave an unexpected explanation. "What I told Zhang Jiucheng that day was the external aspects, the situation. What I told you today is the internal aspects, myself... Mr. Liu, why do you think I am seeking some eternal method? Why do you think I am seeking some long-term plan?"
Liu Dazhong was confused for a moment.
“Mr. Liu, your actions today are enough to prove that although your beliefs differ from mine, you are still a gentleman, and a gentleman with insights and who knows the root of the problem... There was one thing I didn't say to Zhang Jiuchen that day, which was that although he was a man of high character, he had never stood on the ground. But today I can say that Mr. Liu is a gentleman who is both high and low.” Under the full moon, Zhao Jiu put down his arm holding the sword and sighed as he faced the other party.
Liu Dazhong was slightly startled, and quickly bowed: "I am ashamed to accept this."
"This year is already the ninth year of Jianyan, and I am already twenty-eight or twenty-nine... As the saying goes, time flies by like a flowing river." Zhao Jiu ignored him and continued to sigh. "When I look in the mirror occasionally, I can see a few gray hairs. Even if I don't look in the mirror, I can see that I have some wrinkles at the corners of my eyes by looking at the old ministers around me..."
"Your Majesty!" Lu Yihao couldn't help himself. "Don't underestimate yourself."
"I am not self-deprecating." Zhao Jiu shook his head and smiled. "On the contrary, it is because of this that I am so anxious... As the saying goes, an ant climbs a locust tree to boast of a great country, how can an ant shake a tree? The west wind blows, leaves fall in Chang'an, and arrows fly. There are so many things that are always urgent; the world is turning, and time is pressing. Ten thousand years is too long, we must seize the day."
Lu Yihao was slightly touched, and finally became sad for a rare moment. Even Xu Jingheng and Liu Dazhong couldn't help but look at each other, thinking for a moment.
Zhao Jiu also continued to hold his sword down and said calmly: "What Liu Qing said is very good, and the reason is very right, but so what? Are we not going to do anything? Besides, why do I have to ask for a law that will last forever? How many times can I swing this sword before it becomes dull? Liu Qing, first of all, I re-issued the Qingmiao loan, sold lottery tickets, issued national bonds, lowered myself to trade with the four barbarians, and won over the Western Liao and Mongolia, including the time when I drove you away from Bai Ma. I never did it for the sake of eternal stability or eternal admiration. I just made a short-term preparation for the Northern Expedition and the recovery of the two rivers, so as to have a clear conscience. ! As for my Northern Expedition, even if everything goes smoothly and I unify the country, I will be in my thirties. Then I will spend five or six years to clean up the broken north, and another five or six years to restore the general situation and reduce some taxes in the southeast, and I will be in my forties or fifties... By then, I will be exhausted both physically and mentally, and I will pass on the throne directly and go to the Imperial Academy to study the original knowledge... What happens later, what does it have to do with me? To put it bluntly, after I die, who cares if Mount Tai collapses or the Yellow River splits, what does it have to do with me? What does it have to do with you? We are alive just to do our best and do what we think is right!"
When Liu Dazhong heard this, he was half depressed and half emotional, and even had a tear in his eye: "Your Majesty... Your Majesty also doesn't know what to do... But since ancient times, there have been saints with unique skills, so there must be a law that will last forever! Your Majesty, you don't have to be like this!"
"Maybe." Zhao Jiu suddenly grinned. "But it's not your turn or mine to worry about it... I have such a sword now, and I am full of hope, just hoping that before this sword becomes blunt, I can move forward without hesitation, break the shackles, and see the unification of the country! As for the future, it won't be too late to talk about it after this incident."
Liu Dazhong became increasingly depressed.
Zhao Jiu also turned around and walked away with his sword. After walking a few steps, when he was about to return to the case, he probably felt that his words were a bit bleak, especially in front of a retired old official like Liu Dazhong, it seemed too much, so he finally looked back with a serious face:
"Liu Qing just said that the wealth of the world, if not in the government, is in the people. I deeply agree with that. But is the wealth of the world really fixed? Fields left uncultivated are not the same as fields cultivated and produced by people, right? Gold and silver left in the ground with no one digging them up are not the same as gold and silver dug up and owned by people, right? Therefore, I have always believed that success depends on human efforts and wealth is created by human efforts. If we can work hard to increase the wealth of the world, then there may be a smooth road ahead."
Liu Dazhong replied without hesitation: "Then may I ask the government, how can we make the wealth of the world grow and increase? How can we take this broad road?"
"Of course it is the original learning." Zhao Jiu reviewed it again.
Liu Dazhong was stunned.
Zhao Jiu suddenly laughed, "You don't think that my advocacy of original learning is just to suppress Taoism and the old party, do you? I'm telling you the truth, I really believe in original learning, and I really put the world's hopes on original learning that seeks truth from facts and emphasizes utilitarianism."
After saying that, Zhao Jiu saw that the other party finally stopped talking and just stood there desolately, but he continued to walk back, dragging his sword. When he walked behind the table, he felt a little bored, so he simply did not join the table. Instead, with his back to the lights of thousands of homes in West Lake and the many suspicious people at the foot of Phoenix Mountain, he dragged his sword upwards, actually preparing to go back to the palace.
The surrounding close ministers and guards hurriedly dropped their banquets and followed, but unexpectedly, at this moment, the flock of crows that had been scared away before finally returned to their nests... Countless crows kept making noises, gathered from all directions, and returned to Phoenix Mountain.
Zhao Jiu stood there and saw the crows covering the sky above his head, almost blocking the entire moon. He found it interesting, and then his mood suddenly changed. Coupled with his evil taste, he walked up the mountain path with his hands behind his back and dragged his sword. The sword hit the stone steps with a crisp sound, and he began to mutter to himself.
Moreover, the voice was getting louder and louder, and the tone was passionate but also slightly playful, so that it could be heard clearly at the foot of Phoenix Mountain where only the sounds of birds could be heard. It was the "Short Song" that Cao Mengde wrote when he tried to go to the south of the Yangtze River.
The poem says:
"Let's drink and sing, what is life like!
Like the morning dew, the past days are filled with suffering.
Be generous when you are moved, and be unforgettable when you are worried.
How to relieve worries? Only Du Kang.
Your green collar is always in my mind.
But for your sake, I have been pondering it until now.
Deers are calling, eating apples in the wild.
I have guests, playing the harp and the flute.
As bright as the moon, when can it be picked?
Worry comes from it and cannot be stopped.
Crossing the fields and paths, it is in vain for us to stay together.
We talked about the past and remembered the kindness we had in the past.
The moon is bright and the stars are sparse, and the magpies fly south.
I walked around the tree three times, but which branch could I find to hold on to ?
Mountains never tire of being high, and the sea never tires of being deep.
Duke Zhou spits out food for his guests, and the people of the country are at peace.”
By the end of the words, they had actually gradually become inaudible as Emperor Zhao walked into the palace. But perhaps because everyone knew the poem, the people at the foot of Phoenix Mountain still followed the emperor's voice and filled in all the verses in their minds.
This can be regarded as the emperor drawing his sword and composing poetry, and he can then go back and brag about it.
Most of the educated people in the southeast had this idea.