Chapter 22 2. The imperial power is a pendulum
The traditional saying is that someone saved Su Shi.
The first important figure was Wang Anshi.As early as three years ago, he had already left the phase and lived in Jiangning without asking about the government.But when he heard that Su Shi was in danger, he immediately wrote to the emperor saying: Is there any saint who kills talented people?This sentence is very important.Because although there were people who rescued Su Shi at that time, such as Zhang Fangping and Fan Zhen, they turned out to be accomplices themselves.Therefore, current affairs commentators believe that Su Shi's case was "solved with one word" by Wang Anshi, and only he could save Su Shi's life.
Then there is Renzong's empress Cao.At this time, she was the Empress Dowager, who was seriously ill and was about to pass away.The old lady called Shenzong to the bedside and said to him: Back then, when Su Shi's brother was a Jinshi, Emperor Renzong was overjoyed, saying that he had found two prime ministers for his descendants.Now Su Shi is guilty of writing a few poems, too much!
Emperor Shenzong didn't speak, just shed tears.
Two heavyweights extended a helping hand, Su Shi finally escaped from death, and Zhezong entered the court as an official after succeeding to the throne.On April 26th in the third year of Yuanyou (1088), Empress Dowager Gao, Shenzong's mother and Zhezong's grandmother, summoned Su Shi who was on duty in the palace at night.At this time, it has been nearly nine years since the occurrence of the Wutai poetry case.
The Empress Dowager asked: What was Aiqing the year before last?
Su Shi replied: Deputy envoy of regiment training.
Ask again: What official do you do now?
Su Shi replied: Hanlin Bachelor.
Ask again: Do you know why the rise is so fast?
Su Shi replied: Fortunately, I met the Empress Dowager and His Majesty the Emperor.
The Empress Dowager said: No.
Su Shi said: Could it be that the minister recommended it?
The Empress Dowager said, "It's not right either."
Su Shi's face turned pale with shock: "Although the minister is incapable of doing anything, he dare not take evil ways."
The Empress Dowager said: This is the meaning of the first emperor!When the first emperor read Qing's articles, he always sighed again and again, and even called him a genius, but he hadn't had time to reuse it.
Su Shi heard that he had mixed feelings and cried bitterly.
The Empress Dowager and Emperor Zhezong also cried, and the monarchs and ministers cried together.
This is very intriguing.Shenzong did appreciate Su Shi, but it is also a fact that he did not reuse him.The question is, after so many years, why did the empress dowager, as a mother, repeat the old story?Is it to patch up the Wutai poetry case in a disguised form?
Not necessarily, because Shenzong didn't want to kill Su Shi.
There is evidence for this.After Su Shi was imprisoned, Wang Anli, Wang Anshi's younger brother, once interceded for him.Wang Anli said: Since ancient times, a magnanimous king has never sinned with speech.If Su Shi is punished, I fear that future generations will criticize His Majesty for not allowing talents.
Shenzong replied: Don't worry, I don't intend to get into it.
Of course, only the emperor himself knew this thought.Therefore, one time when he went to court, the prime minister Wang Gui said that Su Shi had a heart of disobedience.This is an accusation of treason, and Shenzong immediately sat upright and asked: "This person is certainly guilty, but he is not so far, how do you know?"
Wang Gui said: There are poems to prove it.
Shenzong asked: What poem?
Wang Gui replied: "From the root to the Jiuquan, there is no song, only Zhelong knows it in the world."
As I said before, Wang Gui has always been trying to please both sides.If even he comes to add insult to injury, it can be seen that the court is already screaming for death.In fact, everyone knew that the rumors were tight at that time, and the emperor also specifically warned Wang Anli when he confessed: Don't spread these words, lest they implicate you when they punish Su Shi.
Therefore, if Shenzong wanted to put Su Shi to death, Wang Gui provided the opportunity.However, the emperor said: How can the poet's words be interpreted in this way?I know that his poem is about juniper trees (juniper reads like expensive), so what does it matter to me!
Zhang Dun also said next to him: Everyone can be called a dragon.
Shenzong said: That's right.Zhuge Liang is Wolong, does he also have the heart of disobedience?
Wang Gui was tongue-tied and blushed.
Obviously, if Shenzong wanted to engage in literary inquisition, it would be as easy as pie.If Su Shi had lived in the era of Zhu Yuanzhang or Emperor Qianlong, ten of his heads would have been cut off.But he was not killed, he was not banned from writing, his published works were not destroyed, and the court did not check everyone's works.This shows that Shenzong never wanted to use this opportunity to suppress speech and imprison thoughts.On the contrary, with these four nos and one no, it can be concluded that the Wutai poetry case is not a literary inquisition.
However, it was only a little bit close.
The evidence lies in the in-depth analysis and deliberate misinterpretation of the investigators.For example: a red and emerald flower is about to flow, and the spring is shining and the snow is ashamed.The chemical industry only wants to present new and ingenious things, and spend less time if you don't let go.This was originally written by Su Shi about Peony, and it is also said to be referring to Sang and Huai.Isn't it an out-and-out literary prison to handle the case like this?It just didn't work out.
The question is, how did this go wrong?
The direct reason is of course the Emperor Shenzong's mistake.When he first received the report, he was furious, as evidenced by the arrest warrant and strict investigation order.But the secret conversation with Wang Anli tells us that he became calmer later.Calmness is probably because Li Ding and the others have overdone things and aroused the emperor's vigilance.More importantly, I am afraid that he still has a supreme prosecutor in his mind, that is, the family law of the ancestors.
That's right, treat scholars well and rule the world together with scholar-bureaucrats.
So, can we still engage in literary inquisition?cannot.It is common to find fault with official documents drafted by Hanlin scholars.But looking for evidence of treason in the works of art of literati will be shameless for scholars.It is said that Su Shi's two poems about juniper trees were also questioned in prison.Su Shi replied, Wang Anshi has a poem that says: The common people in the world are waiting for the rain, but they don't know where the dragon is.My dragon is also his dragon.The investigators couldn't help laughing after hearing this.
Obviously, it was uncivilized in the Song Dynasty to catch a few words and label them as haters.This is a consensus and a bottom line that must be adhered to.Because everyone wants to write, who can guarantee that it will not be misinterpreted?The reason why Zhang Dun wants to speak for his political opponent Su Shi is probably because of this consensus and bottom line.On the contrary, Li Ding and Wang Gui were despised because they did shameful things when they needed to collectively defend the dignity of scholar-bureaucrats.
Of course Shenzong couldn't afford to lose this person, and he was even more afraid of losing the country.In fact, from the beginning of Emperor Taizu, Zhao Song officials knew very well that their regime, which was obtained by bullying orphans and widows, was actually not legal.Without legitimacy, but also to maintain, we can only talk about legitimacy.It is one of the legitimacy to rule the world with the scholar-bureaucrats.The emperors were polite to the civil official group, although it was because of their upbringing and guilty conscience.
What if you are not guilty?
I'm sorry, but I will behave like Huizong later.
It can be seen that this kind of political civilization is fragile and unreliable, even the perseverance of the scholar-bureaucrats is unreliable, otherwise, how could Wang Gui and his like make the situation worse, and how could Li Ding and his like keep shouting for death?The emperor's decision-making is even more based on what is conducive to consolidating the imperial power.Therefore, even though Shenzong did not intend to study Su Shi deeply, he did not stop Yushitai either.His explanation to Wang Anli was: After all, this case was reported by the censor.In order to ensure the smooth flow of speech, Su Shi had to be wronged temporarily.
This detail is worth noting because it wasn't like this before.On the eighth day of the fourth lunar month in the eighth year of Xining, a bad censor asked to resign. In order to keep him, Zhong Cheng Deng Wan wrote a letter saying that he was "precise and conscientious, consistent from beginning to end".Shenzong presented the memorial in the court hall, looked at Wang Anshi and Lu Huiqing and smiled.Wang Gui, the deputy prime minister who has always been cautious in his words and deeds, said: Just now Huiqing has changed to "the capital is quite evil, and it is always the same".At this time, among the monarchs, ministers and colleagues, there is really a sense of family chatting and laughing.
However, the court after Wang Anshi dismissed his prime minister again became the one-word hall of Emperor Shenzong.His guarantee of a free flow of speech is definitely not for democratic decision-making or freedom of speech, but for his own centralization of power.For this reason, he turned both the speech officer and the admonisher into eagle dogs. As long as you obey the order and obey the command, it doesn't matter if you bite the wrong person.
The case of Wutai poems should be regarded as such.
What's more, the empire has never strictly defined what is slander and what is persuasion, and the result can only depend on the emperor's whim.There is not even a spectrum of whether the rule is enlightened or whether the politics are civilized.Because imperial power is originally a pendulum, if it swings to the left it will be autocracy, if it swings to the right it will be turmoil, if it stops right in the middle it will be enlightened.However, whether it can be stopped in the middle, and how long it can be stopped, only God knows.
Of course Wang Anshi and Sima Guang didn't know either.
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