Guide to Traveling through the Northern Song Dynasty.

Chapter 865 0860 [Jiaozhi presents Kirin]

When Yang Zaixing led 6,000 new troops and passed through Yongzhou (Nanning), he happened to meet Xia Dajun coming from Guizhou.

Together with Chen Keda, the magistrate of Yongzhou, and Wu Kui, the general magistrate, the four of them held a meeting.

Xia Dajun first said: "I was ordered to pacify the barbarians in the southwest, and I just came from Ziqi Kingdom and Temo Road. The puppet master of Ziqi did not want to remove his title from the country, but only wanted to accept the Ming Dynasty's canonization and become a vassal state. The chiefs of Temo Road were all Express loyalty to the Ming Dynasty, but fear of being half-hearted.”

Temo Road was a Jisi Road established in the Song Dynasty. It was nominally on the same level as Yongzhou, but it had always been managed by the magistrate of Yongzhou.

Chen Keda, the magistrate of the state, introduced the situation and said: "The barbarians in Temo Dao have always surrendered on the surface. Only by sending troops to fight twice and beating them painfully can they be truly loyal to the Ming Dynasty."

Yang Zaixing asked: "How many Tuding and Dongding are there in Yongzhou?"

Wu Kui, the general judge, replied: "There are more than 80,000 Tuding and Dongding, and most of them have sincerely surrendered. If there is a war, we can invite war."

"So many?" Yang Zaixing said in surprise.

Chen Keda smiled and explained: "Thanks to corn and sweet potatoes. The agricultural officials brought corn and sweet potato seeds and taught the people of all ethnic groups how to farm. The grain output in many mountainous areas increased sharply, and the leaders and people of all ethnic groups benefited from the emperor's grace. For Yongzhou They are more willing to obey the government’s orders.”

In his family, two corrupt officials were caught last time, one of whom was his brother.

To the northwest is the newly independent Ziqi Kingdom, to the west is the disobedient Temo Road, and to the southwest is a long border with the Li Dynasty of Vietnam.

Establishing Baojia and drafting soldiers as soldiers means further control of ethnic minority tribes.

Wu Kui said: "With more than 80,000 men, we definitely cannot recruit them all, otherwise all the tribes will rebel. Recruiting 10,000 men as soldiers and another 10,000 men as civilian husbands is already the limit of Yongzhou. There are also three garrison troops in Yongzhou. Thousands, we can also temporarily recruit thousands of Han soldiers and 20,000 to 30,000 civilians."

This is mainly due to the promotion of corn and sweet potatoes, which has effectively benefited ethnic minority tribes. Their territory is full of mountainous areas, which are very suitable for growing corn and sweet potatoes, and the Ming Dynasty even sent agricultural officers to provide guidance.

Those tribal chiefs must have concealed the truth, but they did not dare to openly confront the court, so they chose to report some and hide some.

Chen Keda asked: "What does the imperial court think of the Annan border?"

After Nong Zhigao's rebellion, the Northern Song Dynasty court modified the conscription system here. During Wang Anshi's reform period, he even ordered Yongzhou to establish the Baojia system, and all people of all ethnic groups had to establish the Baojia system.

Yang Zaixing said: "This is the best."

Yang Zaixing said: "Don't pay attention to Annan for the time being. Your Majesty's intention is to destroy Ziqi State first, conquer Temo Road, and then attack Dali from southern Sichuan, Xiangxi and Guangxi. After destroying Dali, deal with Annan."

They were all officials implicated in corruption cases and were demoted to this point. The emperor now wants to expand externally. As the first and second leaders of Yongzhou, they will definitely achieve success as long as they cooperate well.

Chen Keda is a capable minister and official, but he comes from the Chen family of Xianyou.

After Chen Keda was dismissed from office, he was pardoned by the emperor and demoted to this miserable place in Yongzhou. In his heart, he was somewhat resentful towards the imperial court, but he wanted to achieve meritorious service and be promoted to wash away his stains, and the best way was to open up new territories!

However, less than ten years after the founding of the Ming Dynasty, the number of foreigners registered in Yongzhou nearly doubled.

Yongzhou is so special.

Yang Zaixing nodded and said: "That's enough. The temporarily recruited Han soldiers and local soldiers are not expected to go out of the city to fight. They can just defend the captured city. I was ordered to organize and train the new army, which will take a year."

……

Hearing this, Chen Keda and Wu Kui instantly became energetic.

In Yongzhou, ethnic minorities are scattered all over.

"Within one year, I can guarantee that there won't be any big trouble in Yongzhou." Chen Ke said firmly.

Until the end of the Northern Song Dynasty, the number of Tuding and Dongding in Yongzhou remained within 50,000, and the government could mobilize them as soldiers at any time.

Just when Yang Zaixing and his new army were about to set off to continue their westward journey, a fast boat came quickly from Zuojiang.

Yang Zaixing and Xia Dajun were both retained by people sent by Chen Keda.

"What happened?" Xia Dajun was already preparing to return to Beijing to resume his duties. He was invited back to the state government at the dock outside the city.

Chen Keda explained: "The leader of Annan sent someone to contact him, hoping to surrender to the Ming Dynasty and ask for the title of king. The tribute gift list has been sent, and the envoy will arrive next month."

When King Annan paid tribute or requested a title, he first contacted the magistrate of Yongzhou, and then the Yongzhou officials reported it to the court.

Xia Dajun said: "This is a major diplomatic matter and must be reported truthfully."

Chen Keda wanted to make more contributions: "Once the imperial court canonizes King Annan, it will be difficult for Guangyuan to get it back. That was the home of Nong Zhigao and his son. It not only stood out in the mountains in the north of Jiaozhi, but was also rich in gold. Whether it was Both finance and military affairs are of great benefit to Annan. Even if the court wants to enthrone King Annan, it should redraw the boundaries so that the court can conquer Guangyuan. "

Quang Yuan Chau, also called Thuan Chau, is the northeastern protrusion of Cao Bang Province in Vietnam.

This was originally the territory of the Northern Song Dynasty. Because it was rich in gold, it was repeatedly invaded by the Annan Kingdom. The local tribes asked the Song Dynasty for protection, but how could the Song Dynasty have time to control these Jizu tribes? In desperation, the various tribes in Guangyuan Prefecture could only surrender to the Northern Song Dynasty, and at the same time pay tribute to Annan with tears in their eyes.

Nong Zhigao's father started a rebellion that year because he was inexplicably lost his official position in the Song Dynasty. When he returned to Guangyuan Prefecture, he was skinned and exploited by the Annan Kingdom.

No one can be relied upon, so we might as well build our own country.

The Northern Song Dynasty later defeated Annam and fought all the way to the capital Thang Long. It was forced to withdraw its troops due to too many non-combat casualties.

Then, in order to calm down the border troubles, Guangyuan Prefecture was given to Annan!

Annan was not satisfied with picking up Guangyuan Prefecture for nothing, and repeatedly had border disputes with the Northern Song Dynasty. The Northern Song Dynasty chose to settle the matter and gave Erdong, Six Counties and Eight Passes to Annan.

Several people discussed it, and Xia Dajun expressed his position: "When I return to Beijing to resume my duties, I should advise your majesty to take back the lost lands of the former Song Dynasty, and not to canonize King Annan too hastily."

Chen Keda cupped his hands and said, "I'll leave this to your Excellency." Chen Keda turned around and bowed to Yang Zaixing: "The small country of Annan calls itself Little China in the South of China, but its barbarian spirit remains unchanged. Once the Ming Dynasty refuses to grant the title, they will definitely invade the border. , until the imperial court agrees to the canonization. There may be border troubles next year, but they will definitely not be large. Please be prepared to bring troops over at any time. "

"Just use Annan to train the new army!" Yang Zaixing immediately agreed.

……

Going to China to request canonization was a good thing for Vietnamese officials.

Du Yingwu, the uncle of the state, was deeply favored and became an official envoy smoothly.

They did not wait for a reply from the Yongzhou government and set off with the tribute.

The tributes were quite rich, including one unicorn, two elephants, twenty kilograms of agarwood, two ebony sticks, fifteen pairs of ivory, and several gems...

The guard general of Menzhou (Zhennanguan) sent someone to ask Yongzhou for instructions, and Chen Keda had no choice but to order the guard general to let him go.

Du Yingwu arrived outside Yongzhou City and found that he could not enter the city. He immediately said angrily: "We are here to pay tribute and ask for a title. How dare you, a magistrate, treat us harshly? Aren't you afraid of provoking a border conflict between the two countries?"

When Chen Keda heard this, he immediately faced north and raised his hands: "I am serving the Ming Dynasty. The Annan envoy is so arrogant that he threatens the Yongzhou prefect to send troops to invade the border area!"

Seeing Chen Keda's tough attitude, Du Yingwu softened on the spot and obediently followed the arrangements of the Yongzhou government.

This is now, Du Yingwu has not yet taken power, he is just a favorite and uncle of the country.

Historically, King Annan would die of illness in a few years. Du Yingwu climbed onto the bed of the Queen Mother (niece-in-law), controlled the little emperor who was only three years old, and became the de facto controller of Annan. Only then did he become arrogant and domineering.

Chen Keda warned: "I will send officials to lead you to Beijing, but please don't cause trouble along the way. This is the Ming Dynasty, not a small barbarian country!"

The Annan mission set off, first going to Guangdong, then crossing Meiling to Jiangxi, taking a boat all the way north along the Gan River, turning into the Yangtze River and taking the canal.

By the time they arrived in Henan, it was already snowing and freezing, so they could only stop temporarily.

Kirin and elephants are not intolerant to the cold, so the local government did not dare to neglect them and sent people to build shacks and light fires for warmth.

As winter turns to spring, it is already the second year of the Ming Dynasty's rejuvenation of China.

The Annan envoy came to Luoyang with tributes, and was scolded as soon as he handed over the gift list.

The official who received them was Xia Dajun, who returned to Beijing last year.

Xia Dajun held the gift list in his hand, pointed at the rhinoceros and said, "You are so audacious that you deceived the former Song Dynasty, and you dared to deceive the emperor of the Ming Dynasty. This is obviously a rhinoceros, why did you write it as Qilin when you reported the tribute?"

Du Yingwu said: "This is Qilin."

Xia Dajun said angrily: "Annan deceived the Emperor of Heaven, arrest them all!"

"This is really a unicorn!" Du Yingwu refused to change his story. Once he changed his story, he would be guilty of deceiving the emperor.

"Xianlin" was an unspoken rule between Annan and the Northern Song Dynasty, and both sides knew it tacitly.

Due to the unfair position of the Vietnamese Li Dynasty, the kings of all dynasties liked auspiciousness, and the yellow dragon, white elephant, and unicorn appeared particularly frequently.

Kirin represents the orthodoxy of destiny. Under normal circumstances, Annan would not be dedicated to China.

This time "Xianlin" is not only not deception, but also represents sincerity.

During the reign of Emperor Renzong of the Song Dynasty, Annan offered a unicorn once.

At that time, someone recognized it as a rhinoceros, causing both countries to lose face. Things that we were willing to fight or endure, but after being exposed, we couldn't even agree on the same tone.

Therefore, there are discrepancies in the records of this matter in "Collection of Imperial Edicts of the Song Dynasty", "Xu Zi Zhi Tong Jian" and "Meng Xi Bi Tan".

The "Collection of Imperial Edicts of the Song Dynasty" collects imperial edicts, which clearly states that Jiaozhi paid tribute to rhinos.

"Xu Zi Zhi Tong Jian" is vague, only saying that the imperial court's external propaganda is a strange beast.

"Mengxi Bi Tan" is purely hearsay, because Shen Kuo was not in the capital at the time, and said that the rhinoceros-like monster was covered with scales.

Xia Dajun shouted: "Bring some buckets of water!"

Several officials immediately brought water from the Luo River, poured it on the rhinoceros, and then wiped it with rags.

After rubbing it, the scales on the rhinoceros were wiped away...

Xia Dajun sneered: "You still say you are not bullying the emperor? Arrest them all!"

Du Yingwu was confused on the spot, we said it was Qilin, you just have to admit it. This represents the vassal state of Annan, dedicating auspiciousness to the suzerain, and handing over the orthodoxy to the Ming Dynasty!
Why expose it in front of the people?

Seeing that the monarchs and ministers of the Song Dynasty were very sensible, they wrote rhinoceros in the edict in return, indicating that they would not be deceived. At the same time, it was promoted among the people as a unicorn. When others exposed it, it was renamed a strange beast, in order to highlight Song Renzong's status as a saint in the world.

After the Song Dynasty completed the operation, both dignity and face were gained!

Is the Ming Emperor shameless? Foreigners offered auspiciousness and actually refused it.

Du Yingwu was dragged to the prison cell of Dali Temple, and he was still shouting along the way: "I want to see the emperor, I want to see the emperor, this is really auspicious Qilin..."

(End of this chapter)