Elegy of Tang Dynasty

Chapter 25 Summary of the first act, please ask for a ticket
I was very nervous about writing this book. I had to check a lot of information for each chapter, and I found many obvious errors in the history books.Many times, it’s not that I don’t want to update more, it’s that I really can’t finish writing, even though I know what I want to write.

I want to ensure that I can restore the historical trend as true as possible, instead of copying history books, which often causes headaches.It is true that historical materials cannot be used as if they were swallowed whole.

For example, according to the results of repeated research by Mr. Yan Gengwang, a leading modern historian, the population of Kuizhou is at least five times that recorded in food records.

Obviously, historians were limited by the times, ignored the influence of the floating population on the economy, and had a shallow understanding of the commodity economy.

According to historical records, Kuizhou was a barren land with a population of only [-] households.However, Mr. Yan combined other historical materials to verify that there are more than [-] households in Fucheng alone.

It is one of the few metropolises in the southwest except Chengdu, and the economic and cultural center in eastern Sichuan that lasted for a long time during the feudal period.

Another example is that the finances of the Tang Dynasty at the end of the Kaiyuan period were actually in a state of collapse. They relied on the model of "tearing down the wall" to achieve financial revenue through the central government's allocation of less or no allocation of funds to the localities, so that the localities should bear more financial pressure. support balance.

The situation at that time was so dire that some local post stations were unable to be operated by the government and had to be subcontracted (forcibly apportioned) to large local households.Then any big local family that takes over will soon go bankrupt, and families often flee to avoid being punished.

There are detailed records in historical materials unearthed in recent years, but these historical books will not be written directly.

The first [-] words, maybe a simple sentence in it, are the result of my hard work for a long time.

The plot of the first act is half-concealed. In fact, the theme is about the monetization of the Tang court's taxes and an attempt to adjust the mediocrity of rent.Similar operations were historically launched under the control of Li Linfu, but were abandoned halfway.

The competition for tariffs led to Li Longji's extravagant desires, the biased position of Chang'an, and the systemic conflicts between Guanzhong and Hebei.

This is the first act, and it is also the historical trend in the last years of Kaiyuan.

What I am focusing on is these historical contexts, rather than Li Longji killing his three sons, making Li Heng the new crown prince, Li Linfu coming to power and driving away Zhang Jiuling, which led to the corruption of the government.

These are all superficial, and readers all know that I don’t want to use this as the main background to write about it. It’s all badly written.

If I were to rewrite this, it would be like killing these people and the Tang Dynasty would last forever.If I write it like this, I can update [-] times a day without any headache at all.

In the last book, when I was writing, I paid more attention to the "plot" of history and the direction of the story of the whole background.Because many readers of the last book did not even understand the basic story background.As a last resort.

And this book, everyone more or less knows something.My focus is on the underlying context of history.

Try to restore the true social, economic, political and humanistic forms of the Tang Dynasty during the Kaiyuan Tianbao period.Not limited to Chang'an City.

Ancient people who studied the economy of the Tang Dynasty often ignored a problem that modern people can easily detect: when they calculated economic accounts, they only counted the country's total volume, not the speed of economic operation.

Only calculate the circulation of coins, regardless of its circulation speed and circulation area.

Only stand at the national level to check whether the national economy is healthy, and don't care about the stability of the grassroots. (I didn't use the past to satirize the present, don't relate to modern times, thank you).

In many cases, the criteria for judging are different, and diametrically opposite conclusions will be drawn.

For example, Tang Ting's treasuries in various places in Hebei are full, and they have always been full, including before the Anlushan rebellion. There has never been a shortage of military supplies.

This will create the illusion that society is stable and prosperous.

However, if this is used to explain that Hebei's financial situation is excellent, the people's livelihood is in good condition. During the Tianbao period, the Tang Dynasty was invincible, and it was because the side generals deliberately made things happen that the Anshi Rebellion broke out and the people were in dire straits.

Then this is a very wrong view.

Every country in the world has also built many large granaries for their own food security, and these granaries are often full.

For example, the author myself was in the Kaiyuan period of the Tang Dynasty, and I was too poor to open the pot and had no money to eat.Then can I go to the government granary to beg for food?Should the staff at the granary open the granary and let me eat?

The answer should be self-explanatory, right?
The government belongs to the government, and the people belong to the people.

I wrote about signs of troubled times in "The Prosperity". I think this book should have no similar works, including the two books I wrote myself.This is a new challenge for me.

I try to tell the story clearly, and tell the foreshadowing and changes within the general trend, without getting hung up on the small details.I also try not to write things that modern people think they are right about, and try not to write stupid plots that can reverse the disadvantages.

If you can't write this kind of thing, you will definitely not be able to write it.

For example, if you think you are eloquent and attentive, if you catch the opponent's little braid, you can reason with Li Longji or negotiate terms with Li Linfu to convince the opponent.

Let those who were dismissed from office be exempted from dismissal, and those minions around Li Linfu can be played with applause.

Thinking that with a little information advantage, you can turn around the desperate situation.

This kind of story will not appear in the book, and will not write a chapter.Many small things are just the fuse of the general trend. No matter how you fiddle with the fuse, as long as you are unable to dismantle the bomb, it is impossible to change anything, not at all.

Most of the ancient stories I know don't have such complicated routines, because in ancient times when information transmission was not smooth, it was really difficult to act out.

The more complex the routine, the greater the chance of failure.

For example, in the historical facts of the plot background, Yan Tingzhi helped the prisoners to plead for mercy, and was then dragged into the water by Li Linfu.With this, Zhang Jiuling was also dragged into the water by Yan Tingzhi, and was eventually dismissed from the prime minister.

Is the whole thing complicated?

It's really that simple to kill a famous minister of Tang Dynasty and a minister of Zhongshu?
Unfortunately, it is really not complicated. The matter itself is so simple. What is complicated is the game and choice behind it.

Li Linfu's people found out what Yan Tingzhi had done through a casual search. They all used government channels, and there were not so many private spies, keeping secrets, and counter-reconnaissance.

There is no such thing as hiding something and then being exposed, and then counter-attacking, or fighting wits for fifty rounds.There was nothing, even going to Li Longji to file a complaint was the final word.

Limited to the objective conditions of ancient times, it was impossible to implement so many routines.The more complex the conspiracy, the greater the likelihood of failure.

Even if there is, it is nothing in front of power.

The "horse assassination case" in the south of the Yangtze River in the Qing Dynasty was not complicated, and it was solved by a stranger going up with a knife.

The assassination of Prime Minister Wu Yuanheng by a feudal town in the Tang Dynasty was also done with a knife, and the court knew who sent it after an investigation. This incident did not produce the desired effect politically.

These stories that actually happened in history are ugly, and there are not so many twists and turns, but there is no way, because this is the truth.I can't make up a play under the guise of "art comes from life and is higher than life".

The style of my book makes it impossible to come up with those "complex plots" that are so wild and so childish that you want to pinch your toes.I can write it, but I can't write it in this book.

Maybe in the next book, who knows.

Officials in the Tang Dynasty could have sex with prostitutes, fight for power, and even frame them for tricks.

However, they also have to do things, to do serious things, to do work, and to achieve political achievements.It doesn't mean that you think about doing this today and doing that tomorrow all day long.

It's like what a reader in the book friend group said: Why do people in modern urban dramas seem to do nothing except fall in love all day long!
We fall in love when we go home, we fall in love when we work, we fall in love when we go to school, and we fall in love when we go on business trips.Everything else has faded, disappeared, can’t be seen, and blurred.

Switching to historical texts, these officials fight for power all day long, without talking about what they have done. Isn't this the same as people in urban dramas who only fall in love?

Just change a word.

If nothing else, let’s talk about Li Linfu.

Li Linfu is true to his words, but he spends most of his time dealing with government affairs instead of racking his brains to deal with political opponents.

Getting money for Li Longji is a mentally and physically consuming task, and the risk is not small. The emperor has a big appetite, and it is not easy to serve him.

Sir, are all your energy focused on killing your competitors?This is what is written in the history books, but we cannot just take it for granted.

Here is a brain that is different from the "love brain". Let me call it the "power brain".That is to say, apart from fighting for power and profit, there is nothing worthy of this person's attention.

I'm afraid of those "Machiavellian" stories.

According to the story logic of "powerful brain", the protagonist should take refuge in the emperor and the powerful officials, pulling and stepping on them.Then he ignored the objective laws and seized military power. After the Anshi Rebellion, he became a military governor and then dominated one side.

The next step is to cut off the opponent and build a new country, step by step, to create a new one, not called the Tang Dynasty.

I can't write a story like that according to my ideas. To be honest, with similar books, I know what the ending will be after reading the first volume.Can I still write a book that I can’t even read for you to read?

There was no rule of law in the Tang Dynasty, and there was no place to reason and talk about right and wrong.These are not important to the powerful.Power is law, and law represents power, just like the big fish eating the small fish.

Where was there any justice in the Tang Dynasty?Where is the justice?

If I wrote it, I would think it was ridiculous, and I would not dare to publish it to embarrass myself.

If the protagonist is weak, the "power" that can be used is actually very limited.In the face of power, the so-called modern techniques are pale and helpless.

It's like you wrote an impassioned pleadings, and people don't even read it, just throw it in the trash can and pronounce the sentence later.

It's that simple and straightforward, and unabashed.

At that time, the people in Chang'an who were qualified to call deer a horse were not limited to Li Linfu.

The number of people is not even lower than double digits.

Instead of thinking about so many showy operations, the protagonist might as well practice the guitar to see if he can please Li Longji and enter the opera garden.

In the future, you can naturally use your identity as a disciple of Liyuan to do things, and your chances of winning may be greater, at least in line with the political environment at that time.

Otherwise, don’t think too much about it.

In the Yingzhou Incident during the Wu Zhou period, there were 10,000+ Hebei people, and the imperial court refused to allow them to be killed. Wu Yizong still killed a lot of people without going through any procedures, and was not punished afterwards.

Li Longji killed the three sons without the participation of any officials from the Ministry of Criminal Justice, and even the foreign court did not intervene at all, and there were no steps to decorate the front, and the involvement was extensive.

He didn't even bother to play around with it, and he just killed it if he really wanted to.

In the face of absolute power, any technique is like a spider weaving its web, in vain.

If the powerful want to kill you, even if you find a lot of evidence to prove your innocence, it will be useless. Those things are no different from paper shields.

If I ignore these things and write something that is exciting and impossible to exist in the social environment at that time, it will become a story of my own delusion in the skin of history.

Books may be very popular, even very lively, and even make a lot of money, but I have no plans for such a plot, nor do I intend to write similar ones.

This book is absolutely impossible to write, the next book depends on the situation.

Li Linfu brought down his political opponents, often with just a few words, plus the guidance of the forces behind him.Take advantage of the general trend to get rid of political opponents.

These means are efficient, concise, and immediate.

I will analyze the general situation and use similar methods to express the conflicts that should exist, and there will be no more showy operations.

The first act will end in the next chapter, and the second act will begin soon, so stay tuned.

In this book, I try to express what I want to express in plain language and direct and easy-to-understand writing. Meaningful clichés talk about it with energy.

When I wrote the book, I said in the book club that this book does not seek results, I will write it according to my own ideas.

It is my expectation to use time to justify the title of my current book.

Regarding some questions about character creation, since some book friends have asked them before, I will focus on explaining them.

the first:

Xiao Fang is a child, this is a must.If you are an adult, you must make a choice in advance, because a capable person cannot hide it.If Xiao Fang becomes an adult, is he going to be Li Longji's dog now, or is he going to be the next An Lushan?

If you are a dog, you will definitely die miserably in the end; if you are not a dog, you may die soon. How do you choose?
Besides, it is now the 24th year of Kaiyuan. By the time the bomb explodes during the Tianbao period, Xiao Fang will be 40 years old. With the average life expectancy and medical conditions in ancient times, how many more years can he be able to bounce around?
At his age, if he pursues something (such as overthrowing Li Tang), is it a bit "old boy"?Don't you feel sad if you rule the world at the age of 70?
second:

Xiaofang's personality problem, book friends who have read my last book know that Liu Dudu's personality and emotional intelligence are first-rate.If I want to shape, I can create a childhood version of "Liu Dudu".

What the current arrogant character design means depends on Xiao Fang’s name.If it's too young, it's not necessarily better if it's bigger. If you talk too much, it won't be interesting. Just read slowly.

third:

Why was the character Lao Fang inserted and why was his character so extreme?

Lao Fang's true identity is Zhang Chengye of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms. He is the "half protagonist" of this book.It is also the protagonist of some historical novels, believing that after killing the rebel generals of the Anshi Rebellion, the country can be rebuilt.

The theme of my book is: history can never go back, and the prosperous Tang Dynasty can never be reproduced, only a new path forward.Trying to reproduce the prosperous Tang Dynasty in vain is turning back the wheel of history, and it will surely be smashed to pieces.

The mid-Tang Dynasty is at the crossroads of history, and many problems that have been accumulated for hundreds of years will definitely explode.

This is the comprehensive effect of geography, humanities, economy and even climate factors in Chinese civilization for a long time.

As for why it is impossible to return to the state before the heyday of the Tang Dynasty, my book will reveal a little bit. The [-] words that have been written now can also be seen with many tricks, right?

Please look forward to the second act, the stage is Chang'an.

Today I'm brewing up the plot, so I'll update it.

(End of this chapter)