Across the Water Margin: Officials of Ximen

Page 573

Chapter 869 The taste of Song Dynasty rule

With the help of the Jin army, the Song Dynasty took back Yandi and did three things that made the local Han people hate it.

One of these three things is changing officials, the second is granting land, and the third is the salt law.

The change of officials made the Song court lose the hearts of the scholars in Yandi, the granting of land made the Song court lose the hearts of the people in Yandi, and the law of salt made the Song court hurt the interests of the scholars and the people in Yandi at the same time, making them Feeling resentful.

The so-called "official change" means that after the Song Dynasty acquired the land of Yan, it transferred a large number of local Han Chinese who had previously served as officials in various prefectures and counties in the Yanjing area of ​​the Liao Kingdom to the interior, and assigned Song Dynasty inland officials to manage the land.

That is to say, these former Liao officials who were called "Guiming people" were all revoked from their original official positions, and they were sent to Bianliang City, Tokyo to accept the examination and appointment of the imperial court, and to find other positions in other places.

In the easy-to-understand words of later generations, on the land of the Liao Kingdom occupied by the Song Dynasty, all the former Liao officials were "laid off and competed for employment and re-employment".

The reason why the Song court acted in this way was apparently to win over and control the upper-level figures of the Han family in Yanjing, and summon them to Bianliang City, Tokyo to face the saint.In fact, it was out of distrust of these former Liao officials that they dared not let them continue to serve as officials in place.

Such a change of officials by the court of the Great Song Dynasty harmed the scholars among the Han people in Yandi.

These people first had to travel thousands of miles from Yanshan Mansion to the Song Dynasty court in Bianliang City, Tokyo to accept the assessment, and then returned to their homes in Yanshan Mansion from Bianliang City, Tokyo.

After receiving appointments in other places, they had to go from Yanshan Mansion to take up posts in Hedong, Hebei and other places, and they wandered back and forth on the road.

What's more, many middle- and lower-level officials in Yandi were exploited and made things difficult by the officials of the Song Dynasty when they were appointed by the examiners.

After being tortured like this, many Yandi scholars were disappointed with the Song Dynasty, and fled eastward to Pingzhou, which was controlled by the Jin army, and fell into the embrace of the Jin State.

These scholars who took refuge in the Kingdom of Jin informed the rulers of the Kingdom of Jin about the situation of Bianliang City in Tokyo in the Song Dynasty and what they had seen and heard along the way, allowing the Jin army to further grasp the reality of the Song Dynasty.

Then there is the so-called "granting land" that made the Song court notorious. The essence is that the court took the Han people out of Yanjing City and granted them to the soldiers of the Ever Victorious Army after forcibly occupying their land.

Some of these relocated Han people from Yanjing City returned to Yanjing City and competed with the soldiers of the Ever Victorious Army for land property, but they could not get the support of the court, and they had nowhere to ask, and became destitute people.

These Han people in Yandi, who had been wronged by the Song Dynasty in Yanjing City, moved to the Kingdom of Jin again with hatred for the Song Dynasty.After they arrived in the Kingdom of Jin, just as they had persuaded Zhang Jue to rebel against the Jin and become independent in Pingzhou, they all encouraged the Jin army to take back the land of Yan.

Because these Han people in Yandi who had their land taken away knew that only when the Jin army defeated the Song army and occupied Yanjing City could they recover their land and properties.

If changing officials hurt the interests of officials and scholars in Yandi, and granting land hurt the interests of Han people who were forcibly relocated around Yanjing City, then the salt law implemented in Yanjing area in the Song Dynasty benefited everyone in Yandi damaged.

In the late Liao Dynasty, the economic burden of the Han people in the Yanyun area was not heavy.Because compared with the Song Dynasty, which had a lot of exorbitant taxes and miscellaneous taxes, which overwhelmed the people, the taxation of the Liao Kingdom was not heavy, and there were not many subjects.

Therefore, the price of salt, wine and koji in the land of Yanyun is low, and the life of ordinary people is much easier than that of the people in the Song Dynasty.

This is why the Han people in Yandi did not want to be ruled by the Song Dynasty when Taiwei Tong Guan led the army to the Northern Expedition.

Although the Song Dynasty took back Yandi from the Jin army, Song Huizong generously exempted it from tax for three years as a show of favor, but the people in Yandi were not fools, and no one was grateful for it.

When the Liao Kingdom ruled Yandi, there were not so many heavy taxes. After the Song Dynasty ruled, a lot of taxes were suddenly increased.

Although it can be temporarily exempted from paying for three years, but after three years?Isn't it necessary to bear the burden of weighing for a long time?

For the common people, it is important not to collect so many exorbitant taxes, instead of increasing the exorbitant taxes under a clever name, and then reducing or exempting them for a few years, instead treating this as a favor from the ruler to the people.

Such a simple and easy-to-understand truth, would the people of Yandi not understand?

Moreover, after the Song Dynasty ruled Yandi, although the people of Yandi have not yet tasted the great grace of the Song Dynasty emperor and the taste of "ten thousand taxes", they have already tasted whether the taste of the official salt of the Song Dynasty is bitter or salty.

In the Yanyun area, there is a salt lake in the north of Yunzhong, and the sea in the east of Yandi, both of which are rich in table salt.Therefore, the salt price in Yandi is extremely low.

However, the Song Dynasty did not consider the actual situation in Yandi, and imposed an official salt system that was the same as or even higher than the price in the mainland.

During the rule of the Liao Kingdom, four hundred Wen could buy 120 catties of table salt, that is, a catty of salt cost more than three Wen.

However, after the Song Dynasty ruled Yandi, the officials of the Song Dynasty did not care about whether the newly attached people in Yandi could adapt, so they sold official salt for 250 or 280 Wen per catty.

The people of Yandi were really in bad luck, and the price of salt increased eighty to ninety times.

Come, come, folks, come and taste the deliciousness of our high-priced salt in Song Dynasty!

On the surface, Yandi can be exempted from tax for three years. In fact, only through the forced sale of official salt, the Song court plundered a lot of wealth from the people of Yandi.

The government of the Great Song Dynasty raised the price of salt in Yandi so arbitrarily, and unscrupulously searched for people's fat and people's anointing. It can be said that it has offended everyone in the Yanjing area, whether it is a wealthy family or ordinary people.

Recalling the ease and comfort of the Liao Kingdom's rule, and finding out that the taxation in the Jin Kingdom was lighter than that of the Liao Kingdom, all the Yan people felt as if they had swallowed a fly in their stomachs, and they felt very uncomfortable.

It can be said that more and more people in Yandi are looking forward to the Jin army going south.

However, it is not enough for the people of Yandi to accept the imperial grace of the Song court. Song Huizong was still worried that the people in the Yunzhong area did not bathe in the emperor's grace!

After Jin Taizong Wanyan Wu Qimai ascended the throne, the Song Dynasty sent envoys Ma Kuo and others to visit Wanyan Wu Qimai and ask for the land of Xijing.Because the Song Dynasty's collusion with Zhang Jue was discovered by Jin Guo, Ma Kuo and others returned home in despair.

However, after killing Zhang Ju and easing relations with the Kingdom of Jin, Song Huizong sent an envoy to the Kingdom of Jin again, requesting to cede the cities of Xijing.

On the surface, Wanyan Zonghan only agreed to cede Wuzhou and Shuozhou, but in fact he no longer wanted to cede an inch of land to the treacherous Song Dynasty.

Wanyan Zonghan begged the emperor Wanyan Wu to buy a letter and said: "If the Song people don't return to me, they will rebel and block the road to and from Yanshan Mountain. They will lose the alliance in the future. Please don't cut off Shanxi counties."

Wanyan Wu begged to buy and wrote back to Wanyan Zonghan, saying: "The former emperor has promised to the people of Song Dynasty, so it should be promised to Song Dynasty."

After Wanyan Zonghan received the letter from Wanyan Wu begging to buy, he still had objections to the cession of the land.Therefore, he personally went to Huining City, the capital, to meet Wanyan Wu to beg for a purchase, and explain to him the reason why the prefectures in Shanxi and the people of the Song Dynasty could not be ceded.

The capital city of the Kingdom of Jin will meet again in Ningcheng.

Chapter 8 Game of Thrones

The news of Wanyan Zonghan's return to Huining City, the capital of the Kingdom of Jin, attracted the attention of the major families in the capital of the Kingdom of Jin.

As the commander of the most powerful legion in the Kingdom of Jin and shouldering the heavy responsibility of chasing down Tianzuo Emperor Yelu Yanxi, Wanyan Zonghan shouldn't have left Datong Mansion in Xijing so easily and returned to the capital Huining City after thousands of miles.

If it was just to negotiate the cession of the land to the Song Dynasty, it seems that Wanyan Zonghan only needs to write a letter to talk about the matter, and there is no need to leave the army and return to the capital.

Before Wanyan Zonghan returned to the capital Huining City, Wanyan Sagai met Wanyan Zongqian, Wanyan Zongjun, and Wanyan Zongwang brothers in Guoxiang Village, and even Ximen Qing, the son-in-law of Emperor Taizu Emperor Wanyan Aguda, was invited List.

At the banquet in Guoxiangzhai, Wanyan Sagai and Wanyan Zonggan's brothers recalled how he and Emperor Taizu Emperor Wanyan Aguda divided and governed the Jurchen ministries, how they supported Wanyan Aguda to fight against Liao, and supported him as emperor The throne, the history of the establishment of the Dajin Kingdom.

Wanyan Sagai said to Wanyan Zongqian, Wanyan Zongjun and others: "I'm getting old! This body is getting worse day by day. If I don't think I can survive this year, I have to go to accompany the late emperor.

Dear nephews, I cooperated closely with your father and emperor to defeat the Liao Kingdom and open up thousands of miles of land for the Dajin Kingdom.

After I die, Zong Han will continue to expand the territory of the Dajin Kingdom. I hope that all the virtuous nephews will always take care of Zong Han like the first emperor treated me. "

"Uncle Sagai, please rest assured to recuperate from illness and recover soon. Uncle Sagai has served as the Prime Minister of the country for many years, and he is the magic needle of Dinghai in my Dajin Kingdom. My Dajin Kingdom cannot do without Uncle Sagai!"

Wanyan Zonggan said.

"That's right! Uncle Sagai, my father must also hope that you can live a long life and continue to protect the golden country you created. Tomorrow, my nephew will send people to go to the mountains to collect herbs and do my part for my uncle's speedy recovery." .”

Wanyan Zongwang also said the same.

"Uncle, brother Ximenqing is proficient in medical skills, and there are many capable people under his command. With him here, he will definitely be able to cure uncle's illness."