Clear and cold water droplets fell from the eaves. Looking back, the pitter-patter of rain fell in the courtyard. In various parts of the Prime Minister's residence, the officials who came over were still talking. The servants who served tea and poured water carefully passed by.
Since the news of the war in the southwest came, the members of the Jun Society in the Right Minister's residence of Lin 'an had been holding private meetings for several days.
For the Lin 'an imperial court, including Li Shan, the war in the southwest was essentially an unexpected "undeserved disaster". Everyone had originally accepted the "change of dynasty" and the "Jin Kingdom conquering the world" situation. Of course, this understanding existed in a more roundabout and more convincing way of saying that the war in the southwest was a sudden change in this great chaos.
Therefore, people had to think about some things that they originally did not want to think about.
There were the reasons for the establishment of the small imperial court in Lin 'an and the reasons for the surrender of the Jin Kingdom. For everyone, there were many narratives. For example, those who firmly believed in the surrender of the Jin Kingdom agreed that there would be a rise and fall of a king every three hundred years. The tide of history could not be stopped and people could only accept it. At the same time, people could save more people and avoid unnecessary sacrifices.
From this deduction, although the Jurchen people had conquered the world, they could only rely on Confucianism to govern the world from ancient times to the present. Even in the background of the world overturning, the people still needed Confucianism to save them. Confucianism could enlighten all people and also enlighten the Jurchen people. Therefore, the "Confucian scholars" could only endure the humiliation and carry the heavy load to spread the orthodoxy.
Of course, such a statement was too lofty. If it was not talked about among "like-minded" comrades, sometimes it might be laughed at by those who did not know the current situation. Therefore, there was often the saying of taking things slowly. The biggest reason for this statement was the incompetence of Zhou Zhe and Zhou Yong in governing the country. The Wu dynasty was so weak and the Jurchen people were so powerful that they had to feign civility and preserve the orthodoxy of the Wu dynasty.
As for why they did not respect Zhou Junwu as the emperor, it was also because of the examples of Zhou Zhe and Zhou Yong. Zhou Yong's son was hot-blooded but stupid. He did not see the big picture and could not understand everyone's humiliation. With him as the emperor, the situation in the future would be even more difficult to revitalize. In fact, if he did not obey the orders of the imperial court, he still proclaimed himself emperor in Jiangning and stubbornly reformed the army, there would have been more forces gathered under the command of the orthodox. If it were not for his extreme behavior, there would have been more people in Jiangning who could have survived.
In fact, thinking about it carefully, so many people surrendered to the imperial court of Lin 'an. Wasn't it the disaster caused by Zhou Junwu's reform of the army in Jiangning, Zhenjiang and other places? He completely took back the military power, broke up the original direct descendants of many aristocratic families, and expelled the middle and upper generals who originally represented the interests of various families in Jiangnan. When some disciples of the big families raised objections, he even wanted to expel them without any explanation. An emperor did not know how to weigh the pros and cons. He was so headstrong and self-opinionated to this extent. It seemed different from Zhou Zhe and Zhou Yong, but the degree of stupidity was similar.
He proclaimed himself emperor in Jiangning, but in the end, he abandoned the people of Jiangning and broke out of the siege, causing hundreds of thousands of people of Jiangning to be killed by the Jurchen. He relied on the help of the people to break out of the siege. After that, he only favored Yue Fei, Han Shizhong and a few other generals in the army, and ignored the interests of many big families … Zhou Junwu had been deserted by his own people. The orthodoxy of the Wu dynasty was like a candle flame. How many people could understand the painstaking efforts of these people who preserved this orthodoxy?
In any case, there were many reasons for the people of Lin 'an to walk their own path, and they were all very sufficient. If there were no unexpected complications, everyone could believe in the invincibility of the Jurchen and realize their own powerlessness. The correctness of "having no choice but to do this" was self-evident. But as the battle reports from the southwest reached their eyes, the worst situation was that everyone felt guilty and embarrassed.
If the Jurchen was not so invincible, then what were they doing on their side?
The southwest had caused the Jurchen to eat a loss, so what should they choose? Should they uphold the orthodoxy of the Han and reconcile with the southwest? They had already sold out so many people on their side. Would they really give them face? How should they define the orthodoxy that they had originally insisted on?
If they did not reconcile and threw their lot in with the Jurchen without any hesitation, would their words of feigning civility and swallowing humiliation still stand? Would they still be able to talk about it? Most importantly, if the southwest one day attacked from the mountains, would their side be able to withstand it?
When faced with a powerful enemy, the choice was very easy to make. But now that the southwest had displayed the powerful muscles of the Jurchen, the people of Lin 'an more or less felt the apprehension and awkwardness of being caught in the cracks.
The people of Jun Society had discussed their views on the southwest for several days. There were some viewpoints that they held back, trying their best not to let some sharp things touch each other's self-esteem. On the other hand, they were also waiting for the higher-ups to give a more authoritative statement. On this day, as a light rain fell in the residence of the Right Minister, Gan Fenglin, who had asked Li Shan a few days ago, also quietly came and summoned several of his fellow disciples to the small study for a chat.
"There is something that I want to show to my fellow disciples today. This is Teacher's new work. "
As Gan Fenglin spoke, he took out an article. The spirits of the others were roused. "Oh? Is it related to the southwest? "
In the past few days, Wu Qimei had several of his trusted disciples gather information on the southwest and constantly confirmed the various details of this information. Although he had not spoken in the past few days, everyone knew that he must have been worried about this matter. Now that he had an article, it must be a way to deal with it. Someone was the first to receive it and said with a smile, "Teacher's magnificent article, this student has the pleasure of seeing it first."
That senior disciple held the article in his hand. Everyone gathered around and read it with delight at first, but then they frowned, tilted their heads in confusion, or muttered something. Some of the less determined people discussed with the people beside them, "What does this article mean?"
Li Shan also looked over in confusion and saw that the title of the article was "On the Death of the Second Qin Dynasty".
Was the situation of the Qin dynasty similar to the one in front of him? He was puzzled. The first senior disciple who had finished reading the article passed it to the people beside him and was also puzzled. "The brush is like a beam, enlightening the blind, but what is Teacher's intention in writing such a magnificent article?"
After that, everyone read the article one by one and more or less felt something. They discussed spiritedly with each other, and someone sensed something. "Qin Zheng is talking about the southwest …"
"In fact, he is similar to the former Crown Prince, Jun Wu. He is headstrong and self-opinionated. He can be strong for a while, but not for long. What does everyone think …"
Everyone discussed for a while, and not long after, Wu Qimei also arrived and gathered the people of Jun Society in the great hall at the back. The old man was in good spirits and greeted everyone cheerfully. After treating them to tea, he sent someone to distribute a copy of his new article to everyone.
Many people looked at the article with puzzled expressions. Wu Qimei waited for everyone to finish reading before she opened her mouth.
"In the past few days, everyone has been disturbed by the southwest war. When this old man heard about the situation in the southwest, I was also somewhat surprised. I sent Fenglin, Jiaji, and the others to confirm the news, and then asked about the situation in the southwest in detail. Today, some things can be confirmed. At the end of last month, in the southwest mountains, the Black Flag Bandit Army led by Ning Yi used the terrain to set up an ambush and defeated the Jurchen elites led by the Baoshan Great King Wanyan Xibao of the Jurchen Western Army. Wanyan Xibao was killed by Ning Yi at the front. This battle reversed the situation in the southwest. "
The old man frankly explained the situation. Amidst the solemn gazes of the crowd, he smiled. "This kind of news is beyond our expectations. But now it seems that the situation in the southwest is difficult to predict. In the past few days, I asked Fenglin, Jiaji, and the others why the southwest could be won. Just how did the southwest develop in those ravines in the past few years? It is shameful to say that many people do not know.
"… Thus, this old man also gathered some people, the merchants who have had dealings with the southwest in the past few years, the people who still have their eyes on the southwest and have not relaxed. For example, Li Shan was one of them. Back then, he had a close relationship with Li Dexin and did not forget to understand the situation in the southwest … This old man asked everyone for guidance and learned many things. Everyone, you have to be alert about the southwest. "
The old man nodded and said sincerely, "You have to be alert."
Everyone nodded. Some people looked at Li Shan, envious that he had received his teacher's praise.
Wu Qimei said, "It seems that in the next few years, the southwest will become a great calamity for the world. Who is Ning Yi, and what is the black flag? In the past, we had some ideas, but in the end, they were nothing more than general talk. In the past few days, this old man has asked and investigated in detail, and after reading many reports, I have come to a conclusion. "
As he spoke, Gan Fenglin took out a large stack of papers. Some were old and some were new, and they were probably all gathered information. When placed on the table, it was as tall as half a man's head. Wu Qimei patted the papers.
"Why is the southwest in such a state? What kind of person is Ning Yi? First of all, Ning Yi is a savage person. In truth, everyone knows and has heard many things here. Although this person is a drafted son-in-law and has an innate inferiority complex, the more inferior a person is, the more savage they are. They cannot be touched! This old man does not know when he learned martial arts, but ever since he started practicing martial arts, his hands have been stained with blood!
"Back then, he had the support of Qin Siyuan and was in charge of the Office of Secret Investigations. When he was in charge of the affairs of the Lulin Forest, his hands were stained with blood. Often, righteous men of the jianghu would try to assassinate him and then die at his hands … this was the reputation he had in his early years. In truth, if he was truly a gentleman, how could he have made so many enemies when he was in charge of the Lulin Forest? The Liangshan bandits had a deep grudge against him and once attacked Jiangning and his home. Ning Yi also attacked Liangshan, and with the power of the Right Minister's residence, he slaughtered nearly half of the bandits in Liangshan. Blood flowed like rivers. Although a dog biting another dog is not a good person, the reputation of Ning Yi's savagery cannot be wrong.
"Secondly, Ning Yi is a cunning person." Wu Qimei rapped his fingers on the table. "Everyone, he is very intelligent and cannot be underestimated. He was originally a scholar, but later his family declined and he married into the family of a merchant. Perhaps because of this, he developed a desire for money and other things, and is extremely talented in business."
"Let's not talk about small matters. Let's just mention that in the eleventh year of Jinghan, the world suffered a disaster. There was a flood in the South and a drought in the North. Many areas had no harvest and the people had no way to live. At that time, Qin Siyuan was the Right Minister and was in charge of disaster relief. Ning Yi took advantage of this and mobilized the world's grain merchants to sell grain in the disaster areas. He was a business genius. In the name of the Minister's residence, he unified the distribution of grain merchants and unified the grain prices. Those who did not follow his command were suppressed, and even the government personally came out to deal with them. That year, it snowed and the price of grain could not be lowered. Many people starved to death in the Central Plains, but he helped the Right Minister's residence and made a lot of money! "
Wu Qimei rapped her fingers hard and someone in the room stood up. "I know about this. That year, they said it was for disaster relief, but in reality, it was sold at a high price!"
Someone else said, "That's right, I also remember the disaster in the eleventh year of Jinghan …"
"If it wasn't for the disaster that greatly damaged the country's strength, it's hard to say whether the Lady Zhenren would have come to the South …"
Everyone was discussing. Wu Qimei's palm pressed down.
"This was only a matter of the past. Even a few years ago, when the Black Flag Army lived in the mountains of the Southwest, they were still doing business with the various places. This old man has said before, Ning Yi is a business genius. Everyone should know the price of the goods transported from the Southwest, right? Let's not talk about anything else. Just the books, the Southwest printed the classics and histories very beautifully. Not only were the words arranged neatly, the packaging was also exquisite beyond compare. But? The same book, the price in the Southwest is ten times, a hundred times, or even a thousand times that of a normal book! "
"The Southwest's ancient books are not sold in large quantities, and the price is high. A few years ago, this old man wrote an article to criticize this matter. It's just a book. Even if it's beautifully decorated, can the words of the sages in the book be wrong? Not only that, the Southwest also meticulously decorates all kinds of beautiful and promiscuous literature, all kinds of vulgar and uninteresting literature, and ships them to the Central Plains and Jiangnan to be sold. Those who flaunt their cults flock like ducks! These things turn into silver, and when they return to the Southwest, they become the guns and cannons of the Black Flag Army. "
"Everyone, Ning Yi has a nickname in the outside world, called the Devil of Heart. This person has a deep understanding of the unbearable parts of the human mind. Although he was in the Southwest in the early years, he used all kinds of strange and obscene objects to disturb the hearts of the people of Jiangnan. He even sold the guns and cannons of the army to our Wu dynasty's army. When the Wu dynasty's army bought his guns and cannons, they instead felt that they were taking advantage of it. When others spoke of the attack on the Southwest, all the armies were softhearted, so how could they take up swords and spears! Little by little, he corroded our Wu dynasty's army. That's why I say that this person is crafty and crafty. We must guard against him. "
"Third!" Wu Qimei's voice grew heavier. "This person's madness cannot be measured with common sense. The first reason for this madness is that he cruelly murdered the king, causing our Wu dynasty, our Central Plains, and our China to fall into enemy hands. It's incomprehensible! And after he murdered the king, he actually said it was for China! He named his army the Chinese Army, what a joke! And the second reason for this madness is that he actually said he wanted to exterminate our Confucian orthodoxy! "
At this point, he looked at the crowd and paused. Laughter came from the room. "This matter is indeed madness."
"It's said that not long after he said this, Little Cang He was besieged by the world. That's why we didn't scold him enough back then …"
"Exterminate our Confucian orthodoxy, after I heard that back then, I didn't dare to scold him …"
Back then, Ning Yi's declaration of war against the Confucian school was spread by Li Pin, but the world's discussion and criticism didn't last long. First of all, this was because Little Cang He didn't do much in this aspect — for example, killing every Confucian they saw. Later on, when Little Cang He was besieged by the world and fled to the southwest with his tail between his legs, he also didn't do anything drastic. Secondly, it was because everyone had too much confidence in the Confucian way. Killing the emperor was still feasible. A madman who wanted to exterminate the Confucian school, but the Confucian scholars were actually very calm about letting him exterminate it.
Regarding this matter, if everyone was too serious, it would be easy to feel that they were fools and that they had lost. It was fine to mention it occasionally and scold it a little.
At this point, Wu Qimei also sneered and then said solemnly, "Even so, we can't be careless. This person's madness leads to the fourth reason, which is tyranny! What is tyranny? It's said that when the Black Flag Army of the southwest faced the Female Zhenren, they were not afraid of death and rushed forward one after another. Why? It's all because of tyranny! This is also the reason why this old man has been writing this article these few days! "
At this point, some people in the room had already reacted and their eyes lit up. "So that's how it is …" Some people, including Li Shan, nodded slowly. Wu Qimei's gaze swept across these people and was quite satisfied.
"Why can the Black Flag Army fight against the Jin army head-on? I've asked many people and looked into some previous news. The whole thing might have to start from Fang La … Back then, when Fang La was rebelling, his slogan was' all laws are equal, there's no difference between superior and inferior '. The word' equality 'is one of the reasons. That year, Fang La rebelled in Hangzhou, which is now Lin 'an. Ning Yi happened to be among them. We later found out that many of the help that Ning Yi later killed the emperor came from the remnants of Fang La's rebellion. "
The old man stood up. "Chen Fan, the commander of the battle in Changsha today, is the disciple of the bandit leader Fang Qi. Many of the Miao troops he led were from the so-called Tyrannical Saber Camp, and the leader of the Tyrannical Saber Camp is now one of Ning Yi's concubines. When Fang La rebelled, Ning Yi fell into it. Later, when the rebellion failed and the city was breached, it was said that Ning Yi had made contributions to our dynasty, but in fact, at that time, Ning Yi had already taken over Fang La's mantle. "
"He was inspired by this' all laws are equal '. After killing the emperor, he also talked about equality in the Huaxia Army. What did he mean by equality? He wanted to say that everyone in the world was equal, that the commoners were equal to the emperor. Then, his act of killing the emperor was no longer a big mistake! He raised the banner of equality, saying that since everyone is equal, then everyone who lives in a big house and has fields and land at home is not equal. With this reason, he killed no small number of rural gentry and nobility in the southwest, and then confiscated their property, thus making everyone equal. "
"Of course, this person deeply understood the human nature. Regarding these matters of equality, he would not wantonly spread it. Instead, he would secretly carefully investigate the scandals committed by the large families. As long as there was the slightest mistake, in the Huaxia Army, it would be like the emperor breaking the law and being punished the same as the commoners. The large families' property would be confiscated. The Huaxia Army used this reason to act, and in the army, they also strictly enforced equality. Everyone in the army had the same hardships, no one had extra money, so where did the money go? All of it was used to expand the military resources. "
"In the imperial court, this is called being a militaristic —"
"Using the words of equality to confiscate everyone's property, using the threat of the Female Dao Master and the world to make everyone in the army fearful and afraid, forcing everyone to accept this situation, making them not dare to run on the battlefield. Everyone, fear has already seeped deep into the hearts of the Black Flag Army. Using military laws to rule the country, taking the wealth of the people, being harsh, taking away the joy of the people, increasing their fear, such a thing is called … Tyranny!!! "
Wu Qimei's voice was so loud that even the deaf could hear. At this moment, everyone finally understood what was going on.
"Qin Shihuang was militaristic and was able to unify the six countries, what was the reason? Because of his harsh governance and strict laws, the rise of the Qin Dynasty was because of his tyranny. However, the second Qin died, why? Because of his harsh governance and strict laws, everyone feared his tyranny and rose up to resist. This was why the Qin Dynasty died because of his tyranny. At the end of the day, it can't last long. "
"Since the Black Flag Army rose up, they were often surrounded by enemies on all sides. Everyone was afraid, which was why they fought bravely. From Little Cang River to the southwest, they won many battles, born from fear. No matter whether or not we like Ning Yi, this person was indeed a hero of a generation. He fought for ten years, and the path he walked was actually very similar to the Female Dao Master. Today, he forced back the attack of the Female Dao Master. But can this last long? "
Wu Qimei shook her head. "It can't. In times of adversity, if you squeeze people too much, when it's good, you won't be able to get through. Ning Yi is cruel, cunning, crazy, tyrannical … this kind of devil, perhaps he can be fierce and barbaric for a while, but looking at the thousand years of history, has this kind of devil ever succeeded? "
He smiled. "The southwest is thousands of li away from Jiangnan, not to mention the fact that the war situation is not yet settled, even if the southwest Black Flag Army can really resist the attack of Zong Han's army, their vitality will be greatly damaged. Furthermore, after defeating the Female Dao Masters, the fear in the hearts of the Black Flag Army has already disappeared. In the next few years, it will only be based on merit and rewards. Tyrannical people who do tyrannical things will suffer a backlash. We might be able to see his valiance for a while, but after that, it is time for him to fall. This matter has been recorded in the thousand years of history, there will be no other result. "
"Regarding the southwest, Ning Yi, and the Black Flag Army, I have had people organize these days. Afterwards, I will announce the Black Flag Army's tyrannical conduct to the world. With these things, my Wu dynasty's dukes will definitely be able to clearly see the direction of the world's situation. This old man believes that Ning Yi's' law is equal 'is something that no one will dare to join in on the fun. Next, this old man will also write a letter and discuss this matter in detail with my Wu dynasty's backbone daren. The Black Flag Army is fierce and barbaric for a while, and it will be difficult for them to survive for long. Everyone does not need to worry too much. However, we must also take their strong points and draw on our own experiences … "
The drizzle outside was still falling. As Wu Qimei spoke, the hearts of Li Shan and the others were already heated up. With Teacher's explanation, they could truly see the context of the world's affairs. That's right, if not for Ning Yi's savagery and tyranny, how could the Black Flag Army have this kind of fierce fighting strength? But so what if they had fighting strength? If the former Crown Prince Jun Wu's path could really be taken, then all the dukes of the Wu dynasty would also become ruthless people.
However, this kind of thing simply could not last for long. Even the Female Dao Master was currently going downhill and had to refer to the Confucian way of governing.
At this moment, Wu Qimei's words dispelled the fog in everyone's hearts. Like a bright lantern, it pointed out the direction for everyone. When they returned home that day, Li Shan and the others also began to write articles, beginning to discuss the Black Flag Army's internal tyranny: promoting equality, spreading fear, seizing private property …
In the following half a month, the image of the Chinese army's savagery, along with the battle reports from the southwest, spread throughout the Wu dynasty.
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