Chapter 15 Chapter 3 Reversal of the Universe

On February 12th in the eighth year of Xining (1075), when the Bian River outside Kaifeng was still frozen, a messenger hurriedly set off for today's Nanjing.The official history did not record the date of his arrival, but when he appeared in Jiangning City, it should have been a beautiful spring, and Wang Anshi, who received the edict, felt even more warm in his heart. That's right, the emperor asked him to return to Beijing to serve as prime minister again. Wang Anshi set off without a moment's hesitation, and there is even an official history saying that it took only seven days to reach the capital.But that may not be reliable.At that time, the standard itinerary from Jiangning to Kaifeng was twenty-two days, and Wang Anshi's day and night journey was not even close to that level. Besides, he first met Emperor Shenzong after he entered Beijing on March 27.If Wang Anshi had arrived in Kaifeng in the middle and early March, what would the monarch and his ministers have been doing for so long?Isn't Song Shenzong eager to ask Wang Anshi to work as soon as possible?

This time difference makes people suspicious. In fact, some people think that things are not that simple. Wang Anshi is actually entangled in his comeback, at least he is not so eager to try. The evidence is the song "Mooring Boat Guazhou" written while passing through Guazhou Town, Hanjiang County, Jiangsu Province: Between Guazhou and Jingkou, Zhongshan Mountain is only a few mountains away. The spring breeze is green on the south bank of the river, when will the bright moon shine on me? Judging from this, he seemed to be thinking about when he would go home just after he set off.

Unfortunately, this is also insufficient.Poetry has no meaning.Since Liu Yuxi's "Wan Muchun in front of the sick tree" can be interpreted as the upstarts of the Manchu dynasty celebrating each other, then "When will the bright moon shine on me" can't be interpreted as returning to the hometown after returning home after a successful career?Besides, there is still controversy about when this poem was written, and it may have nothing to do with his comeback. Wang Anshi's thoughts, only he knows, right? However, according to the standard itinerary, Wang Anshi set off as soon as he received the appointment, and met the emperor as soon as he arrived.Because from the twelfth of February to the fourth day of March, and from the fifth day to the twenty-seventh of March, there are exactly 22 days on the road.The emperor and his ministers met as if they had passed away, and the emperor's tone was also very intriguing.He said: After Ai Qing resigned, the villain started talking all over the place, and it was all maintained by Lu Huiqing.Now that the cleaning is almost done, Ai Qing can make a difference.

Wang Anshi also had thousands of words coming to his mind, but he just said calmly: The villain is disturbing, so he dare not rest assured.This time he came back in response to the imperial edict, and he really hoped to make some achievements, so as to repay His Majesty's kindness of knowledge.It's just that the old minister is physically and mentally exhausted, and I'm afraid it won't last long. I beg your Majesty to forgive me! Song Shenzong said: You and my monarchs and ministers don't have any grudges. Of course it should be so, but it's a pity that it's not easy to reunite after breaking the mirror.In fact, Wang Anshi's relationship with Shenzong, Han Jiang, and Lu Huiqing changed after his comeback, and Han Jiang even got into a fight over a trivial matter.At that time, Wang Anshi agreed to appoint a person to be an official in the city, but Han Jiang objected. The emperor said that he might as well let him try it.Han Jiang said: "If this is the case, the minister, the prime minister, can't do it."

The emperor was taken aback: Why is it such a trivial matter? Han Jiang replied: You can't argue about small things, let alone big things? Both Wang Anshi and Song Shenzong had to make concessions. Han Jiang's attitude is very strange.Because according to the official history, it was he who suggested that Wang Anshi be recalled to the court, which will be discussed later.But now it seems that it is difficult for them to repeat the past story. Han Jiang also left the phase half a year after Wang Anshi's reinstatement to become a magistrate, and never returned to the center. As for Lu Huiqing, they turned against each other even more.

Lu Huiqing, who was the first to participate in the reform and served in the "National Economic Reform Commission", can be regarded as Wang Anshi's close comrade-in-arms and good student.Not only did the official history think that the two of them were like father and son, but Lu Huiqing himself said to Song Shenzong: Wang Anshi is the only one who can make ministers as loyal and filial as they serve their parents from the bottom of their hearts. This is true, at least it used to be. Wang Anshi's younger brother Wang Anguo looked down on Lu Huiqing.One time, Wang Anshi and Lu Huiqing were discussing the new law at home, while Wang Anguo was playing popular songs on the flute.The elder brother couldn't bear it anymore, so he scolded him: Brother, can you stay away from those obscene sounds?Wang Anguo replied: Brother, can you stay away from those villains?

Lu Huiqing gritted her teeth with hatred, so when Zheng Xia's punishment was retried in the first month of the eighth year of Xining, Wang Anguo was dealt with together, and sentenced to be dismissed as a civilian.When the news reached Jiangning, Wang Anshi cried bitterly in front of the messenger sent by the emperor.When he returned to the capital, his younger brother hadn't left the country yet.Brothers meet again, the scene can be imagined. Wang Anshi was hit repeatedly, but Lu Huiqing made great strides forward.As soon as he became a political adviser, he restarted the investigation procedure of the Shiyi case, on the grounds that he could not just listen to Zeng Bu's one-sided words.He was also overjoyed by Emperor Shenzong's handling opinions. Lu Jiawen and Zeng Bu were dismissed at the same time and left the capital together.The reformist camp was in ruins, and Lu Huiqing, the only one who was proud of the spring breeze, inevitably expanded himself.

Expansion of performance is also invented a new method. The new law is called the Hands-on Act. Simply put, it requires the public to declare their property, which will be converted into market value after verification by the government, and then property tax will be levied.The concealed part was found to be confiscated after being reported, and one-third of it was used to reward the person who reported or verified. The results can be imagined, the officials and government servants rushed into the homes of ordinary people like wolves and rummaged through boxes and cabinets, and ransacked places as big as palms, and even registered a few pigs and chickens, cows, horses and dogs. It is impossible to escape the law.

This is really restless. So everyone felt that Wang Anshi was better in comparison. Han Jiang couldn't stand Lu Huiqing's domineering, and it is said that he found out that this person was plotting to frame Wang Anshi, so he secretly asked the emperor to recall his old partner.In fact, the ins and outs of this matter are unclear in the official history, and it is impossible to check.The only thing that is certain is that Wang Anshi was indeed appointed prime minister again on February 11th in the eighth year of Xining. This matter was obviously beyond Lu Huiqing's expectations.We know that in the Tang and Song dynasties, the appointed generals had to write imperial edicts on white hemp paper, which was called Xuanma worship.Therefore, Ye Shi said vividly that Lu Huiqing saw white hemp paper coming out of the palace when he went to court, and immediately stood on tiptoe and stretched his neck, thinking that he was going to be prime minister.When the master of ceremonies shouted out Wang Anshi's name, he was like a thunderbolt, and he was stunned.Of course, this is an exaggeration and unreliable, but if it is said that Lu Huiqing was stunned by the news, it is almost inseparable.

No wonder Song Shenzong wanted to praise Lu Huiqing just after meeting Wang Anshi. It seems that His Majesty the Emperor already knew something, or had a premonition, and just hoped that they could help each other.I believe Wang Anshi and Lu Huiqing also understand this truth.It's a pity that the tree wants to be quiet but the wind doesn't stop. Major personnel changes in the imperial era always cause commotion.Some people with lower positions and no firm stance will inevitably consider changing their families, and the process of re-joining the team will also be full of gossip. One of them is that Lu Huiqing once planned to use a conspiracy case to frame Wang Anshi.

There is no evidence to say whether Wang Anshi believed this rumor, but it is clear that there are quite a few "enthusiasts who volunteered to help him" to avenge his death.They began to collect Lu Huiqing's misdeeds and crimes in order to put her to death. The following case was very bloody, and the old accounts were also turned out.According to supervisory officials, Lu Huiqing once used his power to collude with the county magistrate of Huating to forcefully borrow 5 million from local wealthy people to buy land.This is of course a serious problem.It happened that Lu Huiqing himself resigned repeatedly, so the emperor demoted him to Chenzhou (now Huaiyang County, Henan Province). However, the Huating case was filed at the end of May of the eighth year of Xining, and there was no result until the beginning of June of the ninth year of Xining.Those who were determined to bring down Lu Huiqing stole the materials held by the task force without telling Wang Anshi, and sent them to the judicial department among other documents in an attempt to convict Lu Huiqing by bypassing the investigation process.Unexpectedly, Lu Huiqing was an informant in Zhongshu Province, and this information was quickly sent to Chenzhou.After receiving the news, Lu Huiqing immediately fought back. Not only did he write a counterclaim, but it is said that he also handed over a private letter from Wang Anshi with great force, which actually had the words "Don't order the superior to know". This is a big trouble now, of course bullying the king is more serious than using power for personal gain.Therefore, many historians believe that this is Lu Huiqing's betrayal of Wang Anshi, and it is also an important reason for Wang Anshi's second dismissal.But this is not reliable.Because, as the table below shows, there was a four and a half month time difference between Lu Huiqing's letter to Wang Anshi's dismissal.If Lu Huiqing's exposing materials really contained content such as "Don't let the emperor know", would Wang Anshi still be able to stay in the aspect for so long? So, is this a thing or not?

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