I open a history tutorial class in Daming

Chapter 148 Ying Zheng, you are so greedy!
It is really difficult to count how many people died during that period when the country was destroyed and families were ruined.

Should we just talk about the Anti-Japanese War? No, because this war is only a part of that humiliating history.

If you want to talk about modern history, you have to talk about the two Opium Wars, the Taiping Rebellion, the Hundred Days' Reform and the Boxer Rebellion, the Eight-Nation Alliance, the Xinhai Revolution and the Beiyang warlords.

Didn’t anyone die during the Northern Expedition and the ten-year confrontation before the War of Resistance Against Japan?

Wasn’t the War of Liberation after the end of the Anti-Japanese War waged at the cost of human lives?

Even after liberation, there were the crossing of the Yalu River, the War to Resist U.S. Aggression and Aid Korea, and the War to Resist U.S. Aggression and Aid Vietnam.

All the wars won or lost in modern times and even in contemporary times have come at the cost of blood.

Before the real rise, there was blood everywhere.

Song Shen drew a timeline on the blackboard next to him.

"1840 to 1949, this is the period of history I just mentioned. It spans a hundred years, but it doesn't mean there were no wars after that. It can only be said that we didn't fight wars on our own land, but there were still many crises on the border, so there was still bloodshed and sacrifice."

He marked out a section in the timeline:
"We have talked about Japan before, right? Japan had evil ambitions and invaded our territory. Northeast China was just the beginning. From 1931 to 1937, they occupied Northeast China and continued to provoke us. Finally, the war broke out in Beijing in 1937. If we count from Beijing in 1937, it was an eight-year war of resistance, but starting from 1931, it was fourteen years."

Zhu Di's eyes fixed.

He looked at the timeline Song Shen wrote on the blackboard, and at the word "Beijing" marked below "1937", and couldn't help himself.

The point, this is the point he wants!

He immediately raised his hand and asked:
"Sir, why are there two calculations like this? According to this map, the Northeast you mentioned is actually the Liaodong area. After the Central Plains rose again, this area seemed to be well integrated into the territory. According to common sense, no matter how future generations judge, they should take the fall of the Northeast as the starting point. Why do some people say that it started from the fall of Beiping? Was Beiping still very special in that era?"

The name Beiping actually existed since ancient times. Beiping existed in Yan during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. After the Yuan Dynasty established its capital in Beiping, it was renamed Dadu. After Zhu Yuanzhang ascended the throne, it was changed back to Beiping. It was only after Zhu Di moved the capital that it was called Beijing, so he was not unfamiliar with this name.

Song Shen tapped the table in appreciation:

“That’s the right question.”

“That’s why I said so much before.”

"First of all, we need to make one thing clear. After the fall of the Qing Dynasty, before the beginning of the new era, there was chaos for several decades. You can think of it as being just like the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, and the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms. It was a very chaotic situation. Warlords in various places had their own troops and were like the governors of the late Tang Dynasty. The local people only knew this local emperor."

"Besides, Northeast China was also controlled by warlords before it fell. The central government certainly existed, but they would not care about each other unless necessary."

"From the perspective of the central government at the time, they had no control over the area outside the Great Wall. It was not their territory. There was also a superpower in the north that was eyeing it covetously. It didn't matter whether the area was occupied by warlords, the Japanese, or the superpower. It wasn't that they didn't want it, but they couldn't get it back no matter what."

“But Peking is different.”

"After Zhu Di moved the capital, Beiping remained the capital until the Qing Dynasty came to power. In the eyes of the central government at the time, or the imperial court as you understand it, losing Beiping was a huge insult. Compared with the Northeast, it was completely different in terms of strategic significance and representative significance in the hearts of the people."

"The subsequent war cannot be called an all-out war of resistance. It can only be said that the attack on Beijing was an intolerable provocation to the entire country. Regardless of whether they were acting independently, everyone had to work together to fight Japan."

At this time, Zhu Yuanzhang frowned and asked:
"So where was the capital of the court at that time? It should be in Beiping, right? Didn't Beiping always remain the capital? This should be more like the concept of Zhu Qizhen being the emperor and Ming fighting the Battle of Beijing. Why is it still called a provocation?"

"Could it be that they were like Zhao Gou, and the entire court collectively moved south after the fall of Peking? This doesn't seem right..."

All the emperors expressed their approval.

If the capital was in Beijing, and foreigners attacked the country again, it would not be considered a provocation, but a risk of national destruction. But Song Shen only said that the strategic and historical significance of the war made it unbearable for the whole country, which led to the outbreak of a full-scale war... Isn't it inappropriate?

Song Shen's expression was a little subtle:
"Well, the capital of the imperial court at that time was not in Peking. Instead, it was originally located in Nanjing, which was the capital during the Hongwu period, Yingtian Prefecture."

"But they were also short-lived. In the end, it was not them who led the rise of the Central Plains. A group of farmers and workers defeated them and drove them away."

Zhu Yuanzhang:......

Li Shimin smiled so hard that his teeth almost showed:

"I told you so. There is definitely something wrong with the Feng Shui of Jiankang. It is not a place that can be the capital of a country!"

"Old Zhu, to be honest, have you ever considered moving the capital to Chang'an? If you value the northeast more, then moving to Yan is also good. At least from their later history, it took hundreds of years from the time Zhu Di moved the capital to the fall of the Qing Dynasty. The Ming and Qing dynasties also lasted a long time. In any case, the feng shui there is definitely better than your current Jiankang, ah no, Yingtianfu!"

"And that two-capital system is just bullshit. The enemy in the north hasn't even been defeated yet and you're already thinking about getting money from the sea. Does the Ming Dynasty have such a full treasury that it can support fighting on two fronts at the same time?"

"Zhu Di, let me ask you something. If you want to go to the sea to fish for silver and take your eyes to the gold and silver mines in Japan, how much manpower and material resources do you need to invest in order to build so many ships and take so many people there? Although Japan is a barren place, there are always people there. You have to go there from a long distance across the ocean, and the soldiers on the ship have not recovered yet, so you have to fight. Don't lose both the lady and the soldiers!"

Even Ying Zheng, the oldest emperor of this era, couldn't help but nod secretly at this moment.

He whispered to Meng Tian beside him:

"This is just like when we fought the six nations. We should make friends with distant nations and attack nearby ones. It is better to conquer the nearest places first and then consider the distant ones."

"What do you think, Mr. Meng?"

Meng Tian nodded:

"I only know military tactics, not national policy. But if we look at the situation around the Ming Dynasty, the barbarians in the north who have repeatedly invaded are more dangerous. We must pacify them first before considering other things."

"Although Sir said there is so much wealth on the sea, how can one achieve success overnight..."

"Isn't Zhu Di too impatient?"

Fang Xuanling heard their conversation and sighed:
"How could he not be anxious? His prince died a year after ascending the throne, and within two generations, a rare waste like Zhu Qizhen appeared. Most importantly, the Ming Dynasty was ruined in the end. There were endless emperors who were kicked in the head by donkeys. First Emperor, when you first heard that Fusu committed suicide and Hu Hai ruined the Qin Dynasty until the second emperor died, weren't you furious?"

Ying Zheng was stunned into silence.

Indeed, he was one of the first people to enter the tutoring class. When he learned about the actions of Fusu, Hu Hai, Zhao Gao and Li Si, he was so angry that he almost killed people. In the end, he actually tortured Zhao Gao to death.

If we put ourselves in his shoes, it is completely understandable that Zhu Di was so anxious.

After all, there is one most important issue that both Zhu Di and Li Shimin had, and that is that the way they ascended the throne was not glorious, so both of them cared extremely about their reputation.

Ying Zheng heard people after the Tang Dynasty, including Mr. Song, joke that the Xuanwu Gate Succession Law in the Tang Dynasty was caused by Li Shimin, and Li Er must have felt uncomfortable. And Zhu Di's Jingnan Rebellion, as long as there are two incompetent emperors in his descendants, he will be blamed, because everyone can say that it is Zhu Di's offspring that has problems. If you insist on this, which emperor with great talent and strategy does not have some problems? But if you get the position by mistake, then you are the natural person to take the blame.

After a while, Ying Zheng laughed at himself and said:

"If that's the case, then my eldest son committed suicide, and my youngest son ascended the throne and died. Even if I was at fault, and the system of military merit was at fault, the people of later generations would ignore it. The ones who were scolded the most were Hu Hai and Zhao Gao. Fusu was fine except for being cowardly and stupid, and some people might even think it was because he was too kind."

"But in fact, no matter what, it was because I, as the emperor, did not plan for them in advance, and I, as a father, did not teach all my sons well."

When they spoke, they deliberately lowered their voices so as not to affect other people's discussion, but they did not whisper too much, so people around them could hear them, including Cheng Yaojin.

When facing people other than Emperor Li II, Cheng Yaojin speaks faster than his brain.

After hearing what these people were discussing privately, he said without hesitation:
"Oh, what are you saying? People in later generations will scold you as well!"

"you……"

Before he could finish his words, Zhangsun Wuji and Fang Xuanling simultaneously covered his mouth with their hands and chuckled in unison:

"Zhijie, what nonsense are you talking about?!"

Cheng Yaojin then realized a problem...

His Majesty's only allies in this classroom, apart from a few of his ministers, are Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao, and these allies are not very reliable.

If Yi Tu Tu told everyone how Qin Shi Huang was scolded and offended others, your Majesty's interpersonal relationships in the class, which were already poor, would probably be further damaged.

Not good, very bad!

Ying Zheng smiled:

"What's wrong? Anyone who points out my faults to my face will be rewarded. Have you heard of this saying?"

Cheng Yaojin: ???

Fang Xuanling sneered:
"I didn't expect that you, the First Emperor, had also read this article. How can the affairs of Qi be related to you?"

Ying Zheng was just about to have a few more words with him to see what kind of tyrant he would be in the eyes of these literati after many years.

But the bell rang.

Everyone was caught off guard and left the tutoring class space without any preparation.

…………

Qin Dynasty.

Ying Zheng woke up from Zhangtai Palace.

At this time, Meng Tian was also at the desk below. Since he was pulled into the tutoring class, he stayed in Zhangtai Palace at noon every day so that he could communicate with His Majesty in time after each class.

Fusu was basically there too, and occasionally he would go with Zhang Liang to the Ministry of Works to check on the progress of the paper.

"Meng Qing, you must have chatted with Cheng Yaojin and Li Jing during the class earlier."

After waking up, Ying Zheng did not mention the previous argument, but suddenly asked about this.

Meng Tian was a little confused, but he immediately bowed and replied:
"Yes, you have instructed that the only generals there are Cheng Yaojin and Li Jing. Although Li Shimin and Zhu Yuanzhang were also emperors who conquered the world on horseback, they usually talk too much, so it is not appropriate for me to discuss it in private."

Ying Zheng nodded and said:
"Did you get anything out of these two people?"

Meng Tian looked at him blankly, not knowing why His Majesty suddenly asked these questions.

Today, the professor and other students mainly talked about the national policy set by Zhu Di in the answer sheet. Perhaps the content about the capital accounted for a large proportion, but this seemed to have nothing to do with their Great Qin.

At least by the time of Li Shimin, the capital was still in the area around Xianyang, and there were some changes but they were not too big.

Is it...

He asked cautiously:
"Your Majesty, do you also want to move the capital?"

Ying Zheng was stunned for a moment, and then laughed out loud at Meng Tian's question.

He waved his hand immediately:
"you think too much."

"I just want to know if you have learned anything from Cheng and Li, such as whether they have better tactics to deal with the Xiongnu, more powerful weapons, more suitable military systems, etc."

"Today, when I heard them talk about their descendants, I was touched."

"The Great Qin was about to fall in the second generation, so when I was considering national policy, I paid too much attention to cultivating Fusu and how to come up with a better method than military merit, or how to balance the issue between counties and fiefdoms."

"But now, I still feel that my vision is not long enough..."

"They are all thinking about how to conquer a larger territory for their descendants, how to drive away the barbarians, and even how to open up the sea and explore gold and silver mines in more distant places. But I am still busy with these things. Isn't this scary?"

Originally, Zhang Liang and Fusu were both dozing off on the side. Even when Ying Zheng and Meng Tian woke up to chat, they did not perk up because they had been working all morning. Zhang Liang, a commoner without any position, was also working for his own future. They had heard enough about these national policies during the previous discussions.

But after hearing Ying Zheng's last words, Fusu sat up straight and Zhang Liang's eyes almost popped out.

Zhang Liang stared at the First Emperor in front of him with his eyes wide open:
"What we are discussing, do you still think it is not enough?"

"You have conquered all the lands of the Six Kingdoms by yourself. Fusu handles government affairs for you every day. It's only been a few days and you want to conquer new places. Who are you going to conquer? Where else can you conquer?"

"You are so greedy!"

(End of this chapter)