Chapter 10 Unforgettable War 4
The whole house was filled with the sound of soldiers, and Zhao Xingde couldn't fall asleep. He got up, opened a letter paper, picked up his pen and wrote down what he had seen, heard, thought and felt in recent days:
"Shaoyang, Minghuan, Shouyi and other gentlemen, after parting in the capital, I often think of discussing with you all, as if it were yesterday. Under the Taixue shed, Brother Shaoyang once said that what is called a gathering of gentlemen is to interact with those who share the same path, looking far ahead and making plans within, while those who are practical and skilled rush about outside, then governing the world can be expected, and all under heaven will enjoy great peace. I am dull and stupid, and in the army in front of the Yellow River, I have been exerting my efforts for over a decade, which is what is called rushing about outside. Now I will report to you gentlemen what I have seen, thought and felt in recent days, seeking to discuss with fellow travelers, dispel doubts and resolve perplexities."
On the day of the military expedition, the transportation commissioner sent thousands of laborers from nearby villages to follow the army. Because the rich paid money to avoid labor, all the conscripted laborers were poor people who suffered from wind and dew, and labored for thousands of miles. They transported heavy loads until late at night, and looked at each other with tears in their eyes. Some said: "My family has no food for the next day, I missed the farming season, selling my children is a possibility." Others said: "The government has many tasks to be done, there's no end to it, we can't avoid becoming wandering ghosts in a foreign land." Hearing these sad voices, tears fell down. My brother thought about it over and over, thinking that the money paid by the rich to avoid labor was all taken by the officials. If this is how they exempt the rich from labor, then the poor's labor will not decrease but increase instead. Why not use the money paid by the rich to hire laborers to transport goods for the poor? In this way, the rich would be happy with their leisure, and the poor would eat from their labor, each getting what they deserve.
From Bianjing to Daming, the journey passes through dozens of states and counties. However, there are nearly a hundred tax checkpoints along the way, which locals jokingly refer to as "small law courts." Taxes on goods such as cloth, aquatic products, grains, bamboo, books, paper, lacquer, rice, firewood, and vegetables are extremely burdensome.
Heaven gives birth to all things to nourish humanity. Since different regions have varying levels of production, they rely on merchants to exchange what they have for what they lack. However, the numerous tax checkpoints within the country are like blocking a river's flow, hindering trade and commerce, which will inevitably lead to poverty and hardship, just like a natural disaster.
Take salt taxes as an example - in some areas of the Central Plains, poor commoners may not even know the taste of salt for months on end. However, once they enter the borders of Hebei province, everyone eats salty food because the armies stationed there privately trade with Liao and Xia for salt.
Although private trading by the military is prohibited by law, it's precisely this that allows the poor commoners in Hebei to know the taste of salt - isn't this pitiful?
Hebei expeditionary camp is a strategic location, and the various armies have been stationed on the border for a long time. They should be elite troops who are brave in battle and skilled in fighting. However, from what I have seen, many soldiers are forced to serve as servants of their commanders, selling salt, weaving cloth, making leather, and forging iron, engaging in all sorts of industries. Some say that the imperial court wants to defend the interior while appearing weak on the exterior, so they often deliberately make the military supplies insufficient to control the various expeditionary camps.
It is also said that the hereditary military camps have been passed down for a long time, and it is difficult to eradicate the evil practices. In my humble opinion, since the Imperial Academy has already established martial arts studies, why not expand them further? If Grand Master Wang Wen Gong wants to make our Imperial Academy scholars take charge of prefectures and counties, let those above the rank of army commander personally receive imperial favors, and gradually replace the private individuals in the hereditary military camps with students from the martial arts academy.
Or, soldiers are rewarded by the imperial court and thank their generals for it. This is why the imperial court does not lightly reward the various armies. In my humble opinion, everyone has a conscience; with education, they can distinguish right from wrong, understand reason, clarify loyalty and righteousness, and fulfill our responsibilities.
People use the phrase "grinding a knife to hate its unsharpness, but when it's sharp, it hurts people's fingers" to describe the military camps, which is quite absurd. Although things may not have loyalty and righteousness in their hearts, people often have a sense of shame and integrity. If the imperial court treats the military like parents treat their children, then the military will also serve the imperial court with the same filial piety as children do to their parents. Our dynasty relies heavily on the military, trusting them more than the previous dynasty did. If we follow your strategy, where generals and officers come from official schools and soldiers have loyalty and righteousness in their hearts, then all we'll see is the country's Great Wall, with no more rebellious armies.
"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. My brother wants to set up a school in the capital to teach soldiers about loyalty and righteousness. What do you gentlemen think?"
Zhao Xingde sometimes sat in contemplation, and sometimes wrote hastily, producing thousands of words at a stroke. Just as the third watch drum sounded outside, he finally sealed the letter with wax and stamped it with his private seal. Feeling extremely tired and sleepy, he lay down on the desk and fell fast asleep.
The next day at dawn, Xing De woke up in a daze, and only Han Shizhong was sitting in the room, while several other generals had already left.
"When you were in Bianjing, you borrowed over 10,000 taels of silver, and although the matter didn't come to fruition, Old Han still acknowledges your favor." Han Shizhong chuckled and said, "Now there's a lucrative business opportunity, are you in or out?" He was referring to the private trade between the Song and Liao dynasties along their border, where merchants would secretly transport goods under the protection of the Hebei army. Between the Song and Liao dynasties, there existed a buffer zone spanning hundreds of miles, where both countries preferred to send troops to fight rather than allow their citizens to settle. Due to the intermittent trade embargoes imposed by the Song dynasty on Liao, as well as the enormous profits brought about by smuggling and high tariffs, private transactions flourished in this sparsely populated buffer zone, making it an ideal marketplace for merchants from both sides. However, it also became a hotspot for bandits and even soldiers from both countries to plunder goods. Later on, powerful merchant groups would hire local militias or even the Hebei army to escort their caravans."
What Han Shizhong said about this business of protecting merchants, the advance payment alone was over 2,000 yuan. After the matter is settled, a percentage will be deducted according to the final profit. In the Hebei army, this is one of the most profitable deals. When Han Shizhong first arrived, Yuan Guangfu, the big camp in Hebei, deliberately gave him this deal in order to get close to him.
The large merchant group had already hired more than 100 counties of righteous and brave men, and with Han Shizhong bringing a few dozen cavalry to escort them, they would be set. Although Zhao Xingde was just a scholar, he had always been clever and wise, and Han Shizhong needed his help in supervising the leaders of the merchant group to see if they were intentionally lowering the profit margins of the transaction to cheat him. After hesitating for a moment, considering that ordinary bandits would not dare to attack such a large merchant group, Zhao Xingde finally could not suppress his curiosity about the private goods market between Liao and Song, and agreed to go along with it.
In the Hebei Xingying Fu, Tong Guan officially announced to the generals of the Xingying that Liu Yanqing had returned to the capital and was transferred to the honorary position of Left Guard General, and he himself took over the command of the Hebei army. The generals, regardless of their inner thoughts, all flattered the new commander on the surface.
Tong Guan didn't put on the airs of a great general, and after deliberately comforting his subordinates for a while, he slowly said: "Whether it's the Khitan people invading from the south or the court strategizing in Youyan, the Hebei large camp is always the first to bear the brunt. The situation in Hebei is that the three towns of Xiong, Ba, and Bao are the throat, and the three prefectures of Hejian, Zhending, and Zhongshan are the heavy towns. If the Liao cavalry breaks through the pass and enters, our court will be on the defensive, then the three towns will resist in front, the court will set up a strong army behind, and the Hebei campaign headquarters will be stationed in Daming Prefecture to respond to the three towns, just as it should be.
However, if our dynasty wants to use troops in Youyan, the military camp in Hebei is set up in Daming Prefecture, which is a bit too far from the front line. During the reign of Taizu Emperor and Wuzong, when the court was determined to conquer Youyan, the main camp of the Hebei army was in Yingzhou. Before I left Beijing for my post, Your Majesty personally instructed me...
Tong Guan stopped speaking, his eyes cast downward. The other generals felt a shiver run down their spines and involuntarily stood up straight, quietly listening to the official's announcement of the imperial edict.
Tong Guan said in a low voice, "The imperial edict orders the River North Campaign to deploy and command all the troops of the Great Camp, move to Weichang Prefecture, and prepare for the expedition against Youyan."
Tong Guan's voice was full of energy, almost shaking the eardrums of the generals below him. The Hebei expedition had been stationed in Daming Prefecture for 60 years, and even if they went out to defend the borders, most of them still had homes in Daming. Some had bought land and settled down, with large families that had branched out over several generations. The Hebei expedition considered Daming Prefecture their backyard. Now, with a single order, they were about to relocate, and it was hard for them not to feel some resentment. But since Tong Guan had spoken first, this was an imperial decree, none of the generals dared to speak out in opposition, nor did anyone dare to express their discontent.
"As everyone has no objection, Ben Shuai will follow the imperial edict. Today is August 8th, and after ten days, the army will move to Hejian Prefecture. The families of generals and soldiers who need to follow the camp north to Hejian should move slowly, thank you all." Tong Guan said with a smile on his face to the other generals.
After he finished reading the imperial edict, the details of the specific implementation were left to his subordinates to explain to the various generals. Tong Guan sat upright on a white tiger skin taishi chair, sizing up the expressions of the generals, checking who might be dissatisfied, while casually picking up a copy of a memorial, opening it and finding that it was a draft sent by Zhao Xingde to the capital.
Tong Guan was born as the head eunuch of the imperial study, and his literacy was unimpeded. He read through Zhao Xingde's letter in one glance, closed his eyes to ponder for a moment, and thought: "This Zhao Yuan is indeed a talented person. To exchange him with the private generals of the Liu family, it's just right to get rid of these old generals. As a monitor, he originally had no power or influence, and even less so in Hebei. As long as I nod my head, there are countless people who would cry and beg to come and be his monitor? To teach loyalty and righteousness to the soldiers, isn't being loyal to the imperial court the same as being loyal to me? Hmph, this article is well-written. No wonder the officials love to use scholars." He opened his eyes and waved his hand to let his attendants pass on the letter.
On the 15th, Zhao Xingde received a letter from Chen Dong and others while following the Hebei Grand Camp on a military campaign. After scolding the treacherous officials and cruel officials who deceived the emperor and bullied the people as usual, Chen Dong and Deng Su highly praised Zhao Xingde's proposal to replace the military generals, based on the traditional psychology of scholars being wary of military leaders. At that time, most of the students in the Martial Arts Academy were descendants of hereditary military officers, and Chen Dong mentioned in his letter that he would contact the scholars of the Imperial Academy to petition the court to speak out, asking to follow the example of provincial examinations in various places, widely open martial arts competitions, select talents to fill the National Academy's Martial Arts Department, but this matter involves a lot, replacing military generals with students from the Martial Arts Academy is not something that can be accomplished overnight.
Zhang Bing, He Fang and Zhu Sen were more interested in Zhao Xingde's idea of teaching loyalty and righteousness to the lower-level soldiers, and persuaded Chen Dong and others from the Li Xue She to contribute 100 taels of silver to Zhao Xingde for purchasing items needed for his lectures. Zhang Bing, who was originally from Hebei, also recommended several famous scholars and officials from the Daming Prefecture to Zhao Xingde. However, by the time this letter arrived, Zhao Xingde had already crossed the Yellow River with the main army.
Zhao Xingde carefully read the letters from his fellow students and friends, stacked them up neatly, and put them in his bosom. He felt that his ideas had been accepted by these like-minded friends, and a joyful feeling overflowed in his chest. Then he opened another letter written by his senior fellow student Song An, and his face suddenly turned gloomy. Although the Imperial Censor's Office had intervened in the case of the Liao State envoy's breach of etiquette during the Dragon Boat Festival, due to the insistence of the Ministry of Rites and the Temple of the Imperial Messenger, Li Ruobing, the supervisor of the West Pavilion Post Station, was still demoted and exiled, being reassigned as a ninth-grade auxiliary official in Qiongzhou.
Zhao Xingde read the letter from Song An with a expressionless face, his heart filled with mixed emotions, unsure whether it was anger or guilt. He let out a long sigh and gazed around at the vast expanse of the two branches of the Yellow River flowing into the sea, where the army of Hebei was marching between them. The sky and earth seemed to blend together in a single entity, with thick and low-hanging clouds blocking out the sunlight, as if they were about to press down on the ground itself. The soldiers marching in formation also wore gloomy faces. The 70,000-strong army formed a long snake-like array, marching between heaven and earth, with the sound of carriage wheels rumbling and horses whinnying, stretching out endlessly to the north and south.
