Xianxia version of Water Margin

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When Jiang Hongfei decided to march north to destroy the Jin Kingdom, there were many voices of opposition in the Yuan Dynasty.

Some people said: "The Jurchens are like wolves and tigers. Eating raw meat and drinking raw blood is a common thing. Moreover, the Jurchens never fear death. They are ready to die and are invincible."

Some people said: "The Jin people are like tigers, their horses are like dragons, they go up the mountain like monkeys, and go into the water like otters. If the Yuan Dynasty makes enemies with them, it will suffer, or bring disaster to the Yuan Dynasty, or even the opportunity of destruction. It is still unknown."

Some people said: "If you provoke the Jin people to go south, kill all the men, abduct all the women, burn all the palaces, and take all the spiritual stones. Don't go north!"

Others said: "Han people can't beat the Hu people. Don't we have enough lessons like this? Once we send troops, we will cause endless troubles."

Some people even submitted a memorial to Jiang Hongfei strongly opposing the expedition against the Jin Dynasty - "Questions on the Northern Expedition", which was directly handed to Jiang Hongfei, and asked Jiang Hongfei to order the ministers who supported the Northern Expedition to come to discuss face to face.

This memorial is very long, and it states a total of 27 items related to the pros and cons of the Northern Expedition. Each item is annotated in detail. For example, the item "going to war without a reason" is annotated as follows:

Relying on the oath of alliance between Yuan and Jin, there has never been a war between the two countries for several years. Now they suddenly want to send troops to attack Jin and break the oath, but why? What reason can be used to inform the people of the world? What reason can be used to inform Jin? Going to war without a reason.

The end of the memorial is full of affection:

"Your Majesty, don't talk about sending troops lightly. The oath is not easy to make. If it is abandoned one day, I am afraid that once the war starts, all insects and plants in China will not be able to rest!"

It is no exaggeration to say that Jiang Hongfei went to war with Jin under tremendous pressure.

Let's put it this way, Jiang Hongfei was the founding emperor of the Yuan Empire, and he had uprooted most of the aristocratic families of the previous dynasty. Otherwise, this war might not have been fought.

Don't think Jiang Hongfei is exaggerating.

Before Jiang Hongfei, especially before the Huang Chao Uprising, whether you were a Ming monarch or a warlord, whether you were Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, Cao Cao, Li Shimin, or An Lushan, you had to cooperate with the aristocratic families, otherwise you would step down at best, or die without a burial place at worst.

The aristocratic families at that time almost controlled the economic, political and cultural lifeline of the entire society. They formed a closed and intricate power circulation system through the annexation of hereditary official positions and land.

The power of the aristocratic families was almost omnipotent, so it was impossible to eradicate it from the system.

At that time, if you wanted to be an official, you could only be recommended and promoted by internal dignitaries, such as the recommendation of filial piety and integrity, and the nine-rank politics.

For example, Cao Cao entered the officialdom through the recommendation of filial piety and integrity.

And this method led to the fact that most official positions could only be inherited among a few families, and the lower-class people had almost no chance to turn over.

The most typical one is the Wang family of Langya.

During the Eastern Jin Dynasty, the Wang family of Langya produced 35 prime ministers, 36 queens, 36 imperial consorts and 186 celebrities.

The Wang family did not produce emperors, but they produced officials.

Their strength was enough to challenge the royal family.

They often said that a country lasts for a hundred years, and a family lasts for a thousand years.

This means that a dynasty's regime can last for a hundred years, while the aristocratic families can last for a thousand years.

Especially after the Sui and Tang Dynasties, the power of the aristocratic families reached its peak.

Why did the powerful Sui Dynasty perish in the second generation?

It was not because of Yang Guang's debauchery and waste of money.

The so-called Han inherited the Qin and Tang inherited the Sui, as a great dynasty that opened a single page in Chinese history books, it only lasted for 39 years.

Don't you think this is strange?

So why was the Sui Dynasty, which lasted only 39 years, able to stand out from the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms and be listed as one of the eight dynasties? Moreover, both father and son were recorded as great emperors in the history books.

A 39-year dynasty.

In China's 2,000-year feudal history, it was very short-lived.

Although it existed for a very short time, it created many achievements.

It can even be said that other dynasties could not do it in more than 300 years.

Yes, the two Song dynasties were not as good as the Sui Dynasty in more than 300 years.

The Tang Dynasty had been established for more than ten years, and the food accumulated by the Sui Dynasty had not been eaten up.

It was recorded in the Diary of Emperor Taizong of Tang: "The world's reserves can be used for 50 to 60 years."

It can even be said that after experiencing three generations of emperors and the Zhenguan Reign, the Tang Dynasty had to survive until the late period of Li Zhi, and the national strength just reached the level of the second year of Daye.

How powerful the Sui Dynasty was in these 39 years can be seen from this.

What the Sui Dynasty left to the Tang Dynasty was definitely not just a little bit of wealth, but also directly affected the process of Chinese civilization for thousands of years.

First of all, Yang Jian directly ended the turmoil that lasted for four hundred years since the end of the Han Dynasty and the Three Kingdoms.

After the Wei and Jin Dynasties, the Five Barbarians invaded China, the nine states sank, the Central Plains was torn apart, and wars continued.

However, Yang Jian fought north and south, defeated powerful enemies, and rebuilt a unified dynasty.

Who did this last time?

Qin Shihuang!!!

Let's put it this way, Yang Jian not only completed the achievement of Qin Shihuang's unification of the world, he was also the first emperor in history who, when the nine states sank, saved the world and pulled the Chinese nation back on track from the brink of destruction.

For this reason alone, it is not an exaggeration to call Yang Jian a great emperor in history books, right?

Second, he was not only a man of civil and military skills, but he also carried out a lot of livelihood projects and was a very, very frugal emperor.

As a founding emperor, Yang Jian took the lead in advocating diligence and frugality, saving various expenditures, setting up granaries, and revising laws.

At that time, we implemented a people-oriented policy.

The lives of ordinary people are completely different from those four hundred years ago.

The society is stable, people's livelihood is prosperous, and they live and work in peace and contentment.

This is the most basic.

However, historically, as long as any dynasty implements people-oriented policies, it will definitely offend the aristocracy.

This also left a root for the demise of the Sui Dynasty.

After Yang Jian, the famous Sui Yang Emperor Yang Guang stepped onto the stage of history.

History is always surprisingly similar.

Also died in the second generation.

The Sui Dynasty was simply a replica of the Qin Dynasty.

But he is not the same as the Sui Yang Emperor in Jiang Hongfei's previous film and television drama who lived and drank all day long.

Yang Guang, the second emperor of the Sui Dynasty in the Zhenger Eight Classics history book, was not only a good man in both civil and military affairs, but also as talented and general as his father. He was the only subjugated king in Chinese history who achieved great achievements.

First of all, the imperial examination system, which lasted for a thousand years, was invented by Yang Guang.

Before this, the imperial court used the nine-grade Zhongzheng system to select officials.

If you are not from a noble family, there is no need to think about entering the officialdom. Even people from poor families are unlikely to become officials, let alone ordinary people.

But as for Yang Guang, he opened the imperial examination, which was equivalent to adding another way to select officials through examination. Only then did the children of poor families and common people have the opportunity to enter the management of the imperial court.

In addition, Yang Guang opened the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal.

This is a true lesson that will benefit the future.

This river was still one of the main shipping lines in Jiang Hongfei's last life.

Moreover, the diplomatic system of paying tribute to China and having all nations come to the DPRK also started with Yang Guang.

It can be said that Yang Guang had a principle at that time:

If you come to worship obediently and follow my logical framework, then we will make a fortune together. If you don’t come to worship and are unwilling to agree with Chinese values ​​​​and my system, then I will directly send troops to kill you, and that’s it. .

Therefore, on the whole, the Sui Dynasty was a dynasty that actively innovated and sought development. It constantly opened up territories, made achievements, and refreshed history. Its civil and military skills were basically the best in China at that time.

However, good fortune lies on the back of misfortune, and misfortune lies on the back of good fortune.

It is precisely because the Sui Dynasty was too fierce that it left the root of the country's subjugation.

The Sui Dynasty and the Qin Dynasty are so similar. They both rose too fast, but their foundations were unstable and their pace collapsed too much. As a result, they were ruined.

They all ostensibly unified various small countries, but these intertwined old forces, that is, the noble families, have never been able to digest them. In addition, the powerful emperors of these two dynasties liked to seek reforms, which seriously endangered the noble families. , The interests of the aristocratic family.

In addition, in the later period, there was indeed a lot of militancy, and the common people couldn't stand it. Therefore, it was at the end of the Sui Dynasty that the seventy-two groups rebelled against the king.

In the end, the Sui Dynasty, which had an unstable foundation, quickly fell from its peak and perished.

It can be said that the Sui Dynasty basically finished all the things that offended people, and all the foundations that should be laid were laid before the glory of the Tang Dynasty.

Therefore, historically speaking, the Han Dynasty inherited the Qin Dynasty, and the Tang Dynasty inherited the Sui Dynasty. The reason why the Han and Tang Dynasties could last for hundreds of years and be so arrogant must be at least half of the credit for the foundation laid by the Qin and Sui Dynasties.

Jiang Hongfei didn't want the Yuan Empire to become a short-lived dynasty like the Qin and Sui Dynasties, let alone make wedding clothes for other dynasties.

Therefore, Jiang Hongfei must learn from the lessons of history.

The reason for the change of dynasties in the Sui and Tang Dynasties was inseparable from the manipulation and gaming behind the scenes by the Guanlong Group, the largest power in the Sui and Tang Dynasties.

The so-called Guanlong Group is a combination of aristocratic families.

If it weren't for the nods and recognition from forces like the Guanlong Group, I'm afraid the final winner wouldn't be Li Tang.

To be more serious, Li Tang is just the agent of Guanlong Group.

Don’t the talented Li Bai and Du Fu still want to follow the path of a wealthy family?

At that time, when people met, didn't they always ask which family you were from?

The five surnames are Qiwang, and the four surnames in Guanzhong are Wei, Pei, Liu, and Xue.

In fact, even the Anshi Rebellion in the middle of the Tang Dynasty was essentially a power game among the aristocratic families within the Tang Dynasty.

These Guanlong clan nobles devoured a large amount of the country's resources, allowing power to only be passed on to a small group of people, and class consolidation was extremely serious.

Even if there is an imperial examination, it is just a matter of situation. Your identity and background have been clearly investigated by the examiner.

The biggest role of the imperial examinations in the Sui and Tang Dynasties was to increase the legitimacy of the officialdom for the children of these noble families. If the people at the bottom want to make a class jump, then you don't even have to think about it.

So, in this desperate world, he finally angered a low-class person, Huang Chao, who was a salt merchant.

Huang Chao studied hard in Hanchuang, but failed repeatedly. After seeing clearly the darkness of the imperial examination and officialdom, before leaving Chang'an, he angrily wrote the famous poem "The Empress Fu Ju":

When autumn comes on September 8th, I will kill all the flowers after they bloom.

The incense formation soaring into the sky penetrates Chang'an, and the whole city is covered with golden armor.

A few years later, in the second year of Qianfu, floods and droughts broke out in various places in the Tang Dynasty.

It was recorded at that time that the wheat harvest was only half-harvested and there were almost no crops in the autumn. However, due to the constant use of troops by the court at that time, taxes were increased. However, the officials of the noble family not only did not report the disaster, but also continued to impose excessive taxes.

This led to the common people being killed and unable to complain.

Huang Chao's anger finally erupted, and he and his family rose up in rebellion. People from all directions rushed to join the righteous army, and in a short period of time, 300,000 people were gathered.

Huang Chao's army was unstoppable. Wherever the army went, all the nobles and aristocrats, regardless of gender, age or young, were killed.

When Huang Chao's army first attacked Chang'an and entered the capital, although they did not harm the people, Huang Chao mercilessly left all his anger to the nobles and aristocrats.

The "New Book of Tang" records that the royal family, the princes and kings, were slaughtered without distinction, and all the bureaucrats and dignitaries they met were killed. Even the Li royal family was not spared. It is said that he killed 80,000 nobles and aristocrats in Chang'an.

The survivor at the time, the late Tang poet Wei Zhuang, wrote in "The Complaint of the Qin Woman": "There is not even half of the nobles and aristocrats left, and the streets are trampled with the bones of the nobles and aristocrats."

In other words, less than half of the nobles and aristocrats had been killed.

When Huang Chao attacked Chang'an for the second time, the remaining less than half of the aristocratic families were killed by him.

The power of the Guanlong Group was completely wiped out.

In the whole country, due to Huang Chao's continuous massacre, most of the aristocratic families across the country were wiped out. The remaining ones who escaped by chance could only give up their rich family traditions, change their names, and live the rest of their lives in secrecy.

Later, with the development of history, these aristocratic families rose again in the subsequent dynasties.

In the Zhao Song Dynasty, the aristocratic families rose again.

Jiang Hongfei knew that the aristocratic families were the biggest threat, and they would also affect the foundation of the Yuan Empire.

Therefore, since the establishment of the power of Liangshan Marsh, Jiang Hongfei was determined to eradicate all the dignitaries, wealthy families, and gentry families. He eliminated a large number of aristocratic families and selected many new officials through the promotion of meritorious service and the imperial examination system.

However, to be honest, because Jiang Hongfei was both on guard against the aristocratic families and had to use them, Jiang Hongfei did not kill all the aristocratic families like Huang Chao did. Not only that, Jiang Hongfei also appointed a large number of officials from the Zhao Song Dynasty. Moreover, the meritorious forces and new officials who passed the imperial examination would also become new aristocratic families.

This also made the Yuan Empire also have strong aristocratic families.

These aristocratic families were unwilling to let Jiang Hongfei wage war against foreign countries. They wanted to take advantage of the fact that the Yuan Empire had finally completed its unification, live a comfortable life, and make a fortune in silence.

Therefore, these aristocratic families had tried to stop Jiang Hongfei from sending troops.

But Jiang Hongfei's prestige was too high. He had made up his mind. Who dared to disobey him?

But then again, if this war is won, these aristocratic families will definitely not dare to say a word, and if this war is lost, these aristocratic families will not dare to say anything, but Jiang Hongfei may have to work harder to launch a war in the future.

Fortunately, Yue Fei made Jiang Hongfei proud. Not only did he recover Liaoning Road for Jiang Hongfei, but he also defeated Jin Wushu and pushed the territory of the Yuan Empire to Daling River, taking advantage of all the advantages and making Jiang Hongfei proud.

In this way, no one dared to criticize Jiang Hongfei's affair with Jin...

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