Ps: Be careful with long popular science articles.
This chapter briefly explains the formation and transformation of social conflicts in the Northern Wei Dynasty from the founding to the destruction of the country, as well as the impact of the Six Towns Rebellion. Please feel free to skip it if you don’t like it.
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In the days after Yuan Ke's death, even Li Chengzhi himself couldn't figure out why he could grow old overnight?
In the past few months, he had tossed and turned and thought hard. It was not until he saw the three green lotus-like smoke clouds in front of the emperor's mausoleum yesterday that Li Chengzhi suddenly realized:
It turned out that subconsciously, he had long regarded Yuan Ke as a benchmark, a model, and a mirror that showed the teachers of the past would not forget the teachers of future generations.
It is not possible to become the emperor just by pulling someone over, let alone a period like the Southern and Northern Dynasties, when the current situation was the most turbulent, social relations were the most complex, and conflicts were the most acute.
Under such complex and difficult conditions, Yuan Ke must be extraordinary if he could become the leader of the Northern Wei Dynasty and bring its national power to its peak.
Not long after entering Beijing, Li Chengzhi naturally began to observe and learn Yuan Ke's methods and methods of governing the country, pro-government, managing the army, and herdsmen.
But he hasn't even started yet, and the benchmark for learning is gone. That's why Li Chengzhi has the illusion that he "suddenly lost the direction of struggle."
In Li Chengzhi's view, Yuan Ke's history books do not leave much blank space. Compared with the previous emperors, such as the founding emperor Daowu, he was able to lead his army to defeat Rouran at the age of twelve, and then destroyed Daxia, conquered Yan, and conquered Rouran.
Even if Yuan Ke's achievements are not as good as those of Emperor Taiwu of Northern Liang, Emperor Xiaowen who moved the capital and became Chinese, etc., they are not much worse.
When he suddenly realized that being a rebel was not that easy, and being an emperor was not that easy, Li Chengzhi deliberately began to understand and study the society and contradictory relationships in the Northern Wei Dynasty.
Drawing lessons from the mistakes of the Two Zhaos, Three Yans, and Two Qins, Emperor Daowu knew that if he did not rely on the Han people, or to be precise, if he did not get the support of powerful Han people, the Hu people's attempt to seize control of the Central Plains and secure their country would be tantamount to nothing.
Idiots talk about dreams.
Therefore, since the founding of the Northern Wei Dynasty, Emperor Daowu set the tone for the sinicization of Xianbei. Instead of implementing the policy of "division of Hu-Han systems" like other Wuhu regimes.
But the Great Wall was not built in a day. In comparison, the big proposition of "national integration" is many times more difficult than repairing the Great Wall. It will naturally give rise to extremely sharp social conflicts.
To put it simply, if the interest class refuses to give up its core rights and interests, it will inevitably create continuous counter-revolutionary behavior.
Where there is oppression, there will naturally be resistance: Emperor Daowu was eventually killed by his second son...
Fortunately, with the help of the prince, the rebellion rose and fell without causing large-scale unrest, and the national policy of sinicization has not been shaken.
It was not until Emperor Daowu's grandson, Emperor Taiwu, who was praised by Liu Yu as "a brilliant military strategy and a leader in eternity" that the Hanization process of the Northern Wei Dynasty reached its peak. Correspondingly, ethnic conflicts also reached a moment of urgency.
Although Emperor Taiwu saw the opportunity early, he took Cui Hao as the scapegoat and executed all three Cui Hao clans, as well as the Fanyang Lu family, Taiyuan Guo family, Hedong Liu family and other Cui family's in-laws. He even killed those who wanted to rebel. Prince, but ethnic conflicts still broke out.
The wise and powerful Emperor Taiwu did not die in the hands of his son like Emperor Daowu, but died in the hands of the eunuch Zong Ai.
Later, Emperor Taiwu's direct grandson, Prince Tuoba Huang's eldest son Tuoba Jun, succeeded to the throne. In order to appease the Xianbei nobles and ease ethnic conflicts, he deliberately slowed down the sinicization process and restored Buddhism.
But conflicts cannot disappear out of thin air. In the thirteen years since he was emperor, Tuoba Jun’s greatest political achievement was to mend the holes—the holes left by Emperor Taiwu’s excessive force.
He quelled the rebellions of hundreds of Hu tribes such as clans, Xianbei and clans, Gaoche, and vassals of more than 10,000 people, including Huns, and killed Hu ministers in units of "thousands".
This is all the mess left by Emperor Taiwu.
These thirteen years were also the most turbulent thirteen years in the Northern Wei Dynasty. History records: the country was in turmoil and the times were difficult, and the government and the public were in trouble.
But the effect is also obvious: the living space of the anti-Han group is further compressed, and the gap between Hu and Han is gradually weakened.
After that, Empress Dowager Feng of the Northern Wei Dynasty came to power twice and served as regent for more than 20 years.
Although she had many stains, numerous favored ministers, and a chaotic private life, and even killed her son Emperor Xianwen (father of Yuan Hong) because of her revenge for her male favorites and unwillingness to delegate power, her contribution to the Northern Wei Dynasty could not be erased at all.
If Emperor Daowu established the country, he set the tone for the Sinicization of Xianbei, but at least half of the foundation for Sinicization was laid by Empress Dowager Feng during the more than 20 years of her rule.
One, class salary.
They have already established a country and have been in charge of the Central Plains for many years, but officials from top to bottom, big and small, don't even have half a penny of salary?
This strange phenomenon existed for nearly a hundred years in the Northern Wei Dynasty. It is a miracle that the country did not collapse because of it.
Don't underestimate this salary, which represents the official shift from the tribal social structure of the Xianbei people to the feudal social structure of the Han people.
Later, came the equalization of land and the three-head system.
Ban Lu changed the social structure, and these two measures promoted the Xianbei people's social production mode.
To put it simply, the upper class no longer uses the plundering method of killing chickens to obtain eggs and digging up leek roots, but instead uses the relatively gentle and less troublesome method of planting and then cutting.
Since then, Xianbei dignitaries, officials, tribal chiefs and other Hu groups had to learn the Han people's methods of serving as officials, governing the people, and leading the army. Subtly, they naturally accepted the Han people's etiquette system, living habits, and even culture.
Later, Emperor Xiaowen converted the country into Chinese and moved the capital to Luoyang.
The turbulence caused was not small, such as the rebellion of the prince, the important officials of the Xianbei tribe, and the rebellion of Yuan Xi and others after Yuan Ke ascended the throne, etc., which were all contradictory derivatives of Yuan Hong's forced sinicization.
In the Yuan Dynasty, surnames were divided into clans, and the Xianbei aristocrats with eight surnames as the core were integrated into the new clan system and combined with the Han people, and the ethnic conflicts came to an end.
But a new contradiction was born: the contradiction between aristocratic families, local powerful people and centralized power.
To be precise, it should not be born, but has always existed. If we trace the origin, it must be traced back to at least the late Western Han Dynasty.
The fall of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the chaos of the Three Kingdoms, the fall of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, and the change of dynasties in the Southern Dynasties are all rooted in this.
In fact, relatively speaking, this contradiction was not prominent in the early Northern Wei Dynasty. However, in order to resolve ethnic conflicts and suppress the anti-Han groups, starting from Emperor Daowu, through Emperor Taiwu, Empress Dowager Feng, Emperor Xiaowen and other powerful people, they worked tirelessly and not only supported
The original Han clans were replaced, and the Sinicized Xianbei aristocrats were transformed into new clans, thus causing this contradiction to be infinitely intensified.
As for the Southern Dynasty, it was completely peaceful after the "Yongjia Rebellion" and the "Southward Journey of Yiguan".
The sentence "The king and Sima share the world" is a clear proof...
Yuan Ke was aware of this problem, and took extremely targeted measures to solve it like a stroke of genius.
First, gradually strengthen the centralization of power and weaken the local powerful armed forces. The most obvious example is the declining Guanlong family, such as the Li family in Longxi and the Yang family in Hongnong.
To put it simply: there are fewer and fewer retainers and private soldiers of the noble families, the land invaded and the number of private households that can be hidden are declining at a geometric rate.
Detailed to the specific means: the upper class vigorously recruits the poor and common people; if there is a rebellion in some places, the clan tribes must be conquered; and the lower class vigorously supports Buddhism and robs people and land with the powerful clans...
Second, they vigorously established official schools in prefectures and implemented a system of separate education for the common people and the common people. Four primary schools were established in Beijing specifically for poor families.
This is only the second step. What amazed Li Chengzhi the most was the system of "recommendation and guarantee", "learning before being promoted", and "taking exams every time you are promoted" that Yuan Ke vigorously promoted.
When an official starts from a noble family, he must be inspected by the Zhongzheng of the state and recommended by more than three officials. However, if the new official makes a mistake or even commits a crime, the responsibility of the recommended official will be held accountable, unless you are already dead.
Juqian studying refers to the Imperial College and Imperial College established specifically for the children of the royal family, Xianbei dignitaries, and aristocratic families. Although it is not a mandatory measure, you can be recommended as an official without studying. But if you are not reused, you will not be promoted.
Official, naturally Yuan Ke has the final say...
During the reign of Yuan Ke, more than 80% of the newly promoted officials were recruited from Imperial College, Imperial College, and Four Primary Schools.
As for taking the exam for every exam, as the name suggests, if you want to be an official, you must take the exam. No matter you are a child of a powerful family or a humble family.
Sound familiar?
You are familiar with it, it is actually the prototype of the imperial examination.
Because of the establishment of the imperial examination system, many scholars in later generations regarded Yang Jian as the second emperor of Qin Dynasty. But ultimately, it was not that Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty came up with such a wise decision in a flash of inspiration. He stood on the shoulders of his predecessors and knew
Learn from the past...
It is a pity that Yuan Ke died too early, which resulted in the failure of these measures. In addition, the land equalization system and the three-chief system that were established during the period of Empress Dowager Feng and consolidated during the period of Emperor Xiaowen were completely destroyed.
The period of Hu Chonghua's rule not only further solidified the aristocratic class, but also re-intensified the ethnic conflicts that had stabilized.
It can be summed up in two sentences: After three hundred years of hard work, I returned to before liberation in one night...
This has given rise to new conflicts: the conflict between the Six Town Military Group and the vested interests, namely the central government and the Sinicization Group, which can be said to make matters worse.
The reason for the uprising in the six towns is very simple: the capital moved south, and the status of the Xianbei nobles who stayed in the six towns became increasingly low. In addition to Hu Chonghua's short-sightedness and connivance, the upper-level officers in the six towns committed corruption and exploitation, causing the lower-level soldiers and townspeople to have insufficient food.
Leading to the outbreak of the uprising.
It seems that it was Hu Chonghua's fault, but the root of the problem was laid during the Yuan Ke period: due to successive southern expeditions, Zhongli's defeat and other reasons, the national power of the Northern Wei Dynasty was greatly reduced. Since Rouran had not invaded the border for many years, the role of the six towns was relatively weakened, so
As a result, the imperial court's supply to the six towns decreased year after year.
Add to this the fact that the six towns have been suffering from famine for many years. The upper-level officers have no money to make money, the lower-level officers have no money to suppress the army, and the townspeople have no food. How could they not hold grudges against Yuan Ke and the court?
According to the original historical trend, it could have lasted for more than ten years, but the bad thing was that history suddenly took a turn:
After Yuan Luo's death, Yuan Cheng, Yuan Jia and others investigated and purged Yuan Huai in the capital. When Yu Zhong rebelled, his accomplices confessed that before the assassination attempt, Yuan Huai and Yu Zhong had sent people to the six towns with heavy sums of money.
, to confuse the town army into revolt.
Li Chengzhi suggested focusing on appeasement, rewarding officials, titles, money, and grain. Stabilize it first, and it would not be too late to settle accounts later in the year. But no one except Gao Zhao agreed, and they all felt that he was alarmist. Instead of appeasing him, he sent yuan
Yinzhijie went to six towns to issue orders?
He no longer knew what to say. Li Chengzhi was very worried that the army had not yet reached Guanzhong, but he first waited for the bad news that Yuan Yi had been cut off as a sacrificial flag, and that one or all of the six towns had rebelled. p>
Because it is located in a border town in the north, and implements a military garrison system in which the soldiers are both the people and the people are the soldiers, the people's fierceness and martial spirit can be called the best in the Wei Dynasty. In comparison, Liangzhou and Longxi County are thin.
The successive riots in Gulu Town are at best caused by scabies. But if the six towns are in chaos, the Northern Wei Dynasty will be really in chaos.
Moreover, history has already given the answer: the Six Towns Uprising was the trigger that led to the destruction of the Northern Wei Dynasty.
Six Towns is the only place where Yuanhong has not been Sinicized, and the social structure is still the tribal system of the Hu ethnic group. Therefore, once there is unrest, the whole people will oppose Sinicization...
Ask yourself, even if it is to eliminate the war, stop the iron hoof from ravaging the Central Plains, and stop the tragedy of the two-legged sheep from happening again, Li Chengzhi must desperately rewrite this period of history instead of letting it break out in advance.
Taking a step back, in order to make his path of rebellion less difficult and less difficult, he must nip the rebellion in the Six Towns in the bud:
Without the Six Towns Uprising, how could Er Zhurong have the opportunity to recruit troops and strengthen his strength?
Not to mention the rise of Gao Huan and Yuwentai, naturally there would be no Wei to divide the East and West, no Northern Qi, no Northern Zhou. It is even less likely that there would be the later Guanlong Group...
That’s why I secretly visited Chencang and went to six towns...
There were many thoughts in his mind, and it was already midnight, but there was still no trace of sleepiness. Li Chengzhi had to drink half a glass of strong wine to induce drowsiness.
When I was awakened by Li Liang, it was already dawn the next day...